Happenings of the Day

***6/2/2004 MEETING NOTES: The Atonement of Jesus Christ - Bro. Dollar
          1. 2Nephi4:15 - The atonement: So sacred and special, it is spiritual learning
          2. Why should we focus on the atonement? Elder Holland:
               A. The atonement was/is a voluntary sacrifice for all pain, sickness, affliction, and sin because Christ loves us.
               B. The atonement is the compassionate foundation
               C. Every truth a missionary teaches is an appendage to the central message that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the Holy Messiah, the promised one, the Saviour and the Redeemer
                    1) The point of the restoration is so we can have access to the atonement again
                    2) Sacrifice, for us, is necessary to understand Christ's sacrifice
          3. What does it mean to have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ?
               A. To believe the He is
               B. To live by His teachings
               C. Understanding that it is only possible through Christ's grace
               D. The first act of faith is not waiting for Him, but asking Him
          4. The importance of the atonement:
               A. It is the repeating message of the Book of Mormon: Have faith, repent, be baptized, the Holy Ghost
               B. It is the ever present power to call upon in everyday life.  Whenever we are racked or harrowed up or tormented by guilt or burden, He can heal us.  Pres. Packer.

***June 2, 2004 JOURNAL: One Week In
          So it's been a week.  It's true that the days seem like weeks and the weeks seem like days.
          Got to teach the 1st discussion today.  Such an awesome experience.  The spirit was so strong.  We started by singing a song. <GOOD IDEA: SIS. WAGSTAFF>  That was good for us.  We were a little discouraged after trying to teach Bro. Robinson.
          Feeling kind of down today.  I don't know why.  Homesick again, I guess.
          GOOD: Sang songs, taught 1st discussion
          COMPANION: got stitches twice, dad flies an airplane
          GOALS: Smile, have a good day

28 November 2012

The babies woke up and decided they wanted to wear jackets today.  60 degree weather in Hawaii = jackets for babies.

We are still waiting patiently for our pictures to come in from Olan Mills.  I am still convinced that our pictures were involved in the unfortunate 140 car crash that happened in Texas over the Thanksgiving holiday.  It is still early.  The projected arrival date for our pictures is 10 Dec 2012.  But the lady at the picture place got my hopes up and excited because she mentioned they've been experiencing quicker turn around times, like under a week.  Uh.  Patience.

Cleaning up the house this week.  Thankfully, Nake'u was home all of the Thanksgiving Holiday.  That really helped to keep the house clean.  Now I'm focused on upstairs. ... uh.  No one likes cleaning upstairs.  Probably because it's more utility than anything else.  We are the only ones that come upstairs.  So if it's a little more lived-in than downstairs, no one really knows.  But, I still have this obsession with an entirely clean home.  Most likely a result of too much tv.  Because you could never predict when a random television (or feevee if you are Pwopwo) crew will show up at your home, welcome themselves in and tell you, your house is a mess or that you are a hoarder.

It is not even December yet and we may well be the last ones to put up our outdoor Christmas decorations.  We got our tree on Black Friday, as usual and used the first Family Home Evening night there after to decorate our tree.  But of the seven visible homes in our cul-de-sac, we are one of two that haven't put up our outdoor decorations yet!  It's not even DECEMBER!  We'll catch up.  Probably in December, when outdoor decorations should be put up.

Lloyd already asks me if it's Christmas every morning when he wakes up. I have decided against doing an Advent count-down for the babies.  It was a ton of work last year and we didn't make it out of the first week.  This year we'll plan daily activities.  One thing I want to do and have been working on is making coloring pages of Christmas songs, so we can learn and sing together.  That will be fun.

Incredible

And we're back!  I've had this post ready for a while now, but haven't made the time to post it.  The honest truth.

***5/31/04 Notes of Note: Personal Study
          Source of truth
          -The scriptures define truth as the word of God
          -The truth makes you free
          -We can learn truth from God through the scriptures and the words of the prophets
          -Sin is an example of how man's understanding is not always basked on principles.  If man's understanding was always based on gospel principles, we would not make mistakes
           -All that is good is from God

***May 31, 2004 JOURNAL: Incredible
          The Lord answers prayers.  I know that he does.  He blessed me with an amazing day.
          Today was preparation day.  For me it was nice and slow paced.  Shined shoes.  Washed clothes.  Had some fun.  Got some exercise.  Read a lot about the atonement, repentance and plan of salvation.  God to write letters home.  I was so excited! It made me feel a lot better.  I hope the letters get there soon.  I want them all to know I'm okay.
          Class was the best though.  We got to go to the referral center (TRC) today.  So awesome!  I spoke with a lady from Colorado who wanted a Finding Faith in Christ DVD.  I got to bear testimony that I know Christ lives and that he died for us.
          Elder Duthrie helped us all out.  He spoke with a man from New York.  He was Catholic, like Elder Duthrie was.  He got to bear testimony of the truthfulness of this gospel and of the power of repentance.  Such a testimony building moment!

26 November 2012

As I type we are half way out the door to run some errands this morning.  I have learned the more I can get done in the morning, the more gets done during the day.  Here's the thing for me.  Once the kids settle down into movie time and nap time, my body also wants to be in movie/nap time mode and take a break.  Then, as the body relaxes, I feel less and less to do work around the house!  Takes a lot of will power to get myself up from a break and get back to work.  Truth in all of that.


Our Thanksgiving holiday was wonderful.  We had great food, and most of all enjoyed spending time together with our little family.  We love our babies and we love spending time with them.

On My Way to the MTC

***May 23, 2004 JOURNAL: Last Night Here

***May 25, 2004 JOURNAL:From San Francisco
          I didn't cry at the airport.  I thought I would, but I guess because I didn't hug anyone, outside of my family, there was less of an emotional goodbye, or because I've been saying goodbye to people for the past two weeks.  I'm almost surprised at how alright I am, maybe it just hasn't "sunk-in"yet.
          Besides my own family, Greg Sessions and two others also came to see me off.  I have gained a great appreciation for Greg.  Especially for his spirit and his counsel.  When he told he some of his fears, I emailed him my favorite talk by Sheri Dew about seeing the "Big Finish."  He returned the favor of sorts at the airport.  He gave me a talk by Elder Packer (The Candle of the Lord) and a letter of counsel to never settle for less than I deserve.
          The plane is about to board and I'm still not excited, like I think should be.  I know I have work to do.  I know that work can and will only be accomplished with the help of and by the direction of the Lord.  I am ready to work.  I am ready to learn and to grow and to help those around me in anyway I can.  I am as ready as I will ever be.  I look forward to the experiences both good and bad that lay before me.  I know that the spirit of the Lord is with me and I am not afraid.  We'll see how long that lasts.

13 November 2012

I don't know if I was ever really excited to about getting to the MTC or even to the mission field.  I think determined might be a better word.  Besides, I had taught myself not to get excited over things, that way I don't get disappointed when things don't work out. ... What a sad outlook on life.  Now I get excited to anticipate many things.  Currently, I am super excited that next week is Thanksgiving.  Time to spend with my family, enjoying great food and remembering everything I have to be grateful for.  I am so excited for Black Friday I could bust!  When we drove past the Home Depot today I was already looking out for those refrigerated-Matson containers that would be holding the Christmas tree will soon be standing in our front room.  I've learned it's better to get excited and happy about things and life and face occasional disappointment then to always live in fear of disappointment.