12/28/08 TFOT Lesson - Celestial Marriage

Today's lesson was led by Tony Pullen and focused on the most recent general conference talk given by Elder Nelson entitled "Celestial Marriage".
Tony began with a quote from the talk that emphasized the point that salvation is an individual matter whereas exaltation is a family matter. The discussion then turned to how husbands can be more selfless in marriage, spending more time filling the needs of their spouse over satisfying their own needs & wants.

Some noteworthy comments in the discussion:

• Pres. Low quoted his brother as saying that marriage is the one thing abrasive enough to refine us!
• Elder Christensen referenced a 25+ year old Ensign article written by a woman who described the remarkable change in her once troubled marriage after she started concentrating her efforts on being a more "perfect wife" rather than on despairing over her many disappointments brought on by her husband.
  
• Elder Christensen also commented that a century ago there were very real fruits that a woman could see from her labors around the house/farm at the end of the day. However, in today's world many of these tangible accomplishments of a homemaker have been stripped away, or hollowed out, through technology and outsourcing. Thus, the sense of accomplishment, of achieving goals, of fulfilling ambitions is made much more difficult for women working at home. Husbands therefore need to be especially sensitive to these unfulfilled needs and provide support to their wives' pursuits both in and out of the home.
• Bro. Porter reminded us that if our Heavenly Father's work and glory is the eternal life of His children (Moses 1:39), then our most important work is the teaching and nurturing of our family (and could that not be extended to our brothers & sisters outside the four walls of our home?). Within the home, this nurturing is the responsibility of both parents. Fathers should make this a joint effort with mothers, not an occasional effort.
  
• Bro. Dionne suggested that husbands put themselves in their wives' place for an entire weekend, week, or even month if possible. He said that this experience helps one better see AND understand what one's spouse is doing in her role as mother.

Here's a link to Elder Nelson's talk.

"...go in service and faith to your outer limits"

In place of a quorum lesson today, I'd like to share a general conference address by President Henry B. Eyring (link below):



President Eyring, General Conference May 2008



The talk is titled, "Faith and the Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood" and was to be the basis for much of the lesson I had planned for today. I invite each of you to study and ponder this profound message. As I extend that invitation, I would like to echo Elder Eyring's words: "My purpose...is to help you grow in your confidence that you can and will rise to the blessings of the oath and covenant of the priesthood". As you study, I'd like you to think about how Elder Eyring's message applies to our covenant responsibilities in three areas where the Lord wants us to succeed: (1) our families, (2) sharing the gospel, and (3) serving those in need. Elder Eyring has said that: "the more faithful service you give, the more the Lord asks of you...The tough part of that reality, however, is that for Him to give you...increased power you must go in service and faith to your outer limits". Prayerfully consider how you individually, and we as a quorum can improve in the three areas above. Consider what your own "outer limits" and capacities are and how you can stretch them. I know that the Lord will help you do that. As we each place our trust in Him, He will give us increased power to do his work. He will not let us fail.

Thank you all for the priesthood holders you are and for the example you set for me. I am grateful for the blessing of being able to serve in this quorum with you and look forward to pushing our "outer limits" together.

Jonathan

12/14/08 Lesson: JS #22

Gaining Knowledge of Eternal Truths -
Brandon Westover led a lively & interesting discussion by starting with the question "what is truth?". He acknowledged that this was a difficult question, and one that might even seem a bit absurd, but that if we claim to "have the truth" or state that the Spirit will "teach us truth" then we are somewhat obligated to define what that "truth" is. It was generally agreed that truth is constant and repeatedly verifiable, whereas "facts" can change and be wrong.

Dave Sundahl shared an experience from his mission where he gave a brief overview of the restored gospel to a person he had contacted on the street and then got the response, "oh, so really your message is about revelation". Why, yes, it is!

Ben Castleton made the point that there is tremendous power to learn truth by obeying the commandments. Though we may have doubts and questions at times, obeying the commandments will always be to our benefit (in that it is prerequisite to having the Holy Ghost with us always).

Joseph Smith once said, " the most prominent difference in sentiment between the Latter-day Saints and sectarians was, that the latter were all circumscribed by some peculiar creed, which deprived its members the privilege of believing anything not contained therein, whereas the Latter-day Saints...are ready to believe all true principles that exist, as they are made manifest from time to time."
The beauty of this church is its openness to revelation, to new information from the heavens, to knowledge, to truth (see Articles of Faith 1:9).

Knowledge is revelation. Hear, all ye brethren, this grand key: knowledge is the power of God unto salvation. (Joseph Smith, 1843)

12/7/08 Lesson: JS #23

Todd Petracek led an excellent discussion about Unity, based on chapter 23 in the Joseph Smith manual. He started by referencing the story of the early saints unifying around the building of the Kirtland temple. This was a very tangible, concrete goal around which the saints could unify. He then asked us what the goal or purpose of our unity today should be. Some suggestions included providing help in a disaster, engaging with our community (in non-disaster situations), and nurturing & developing our children. While it might be less obvious how to act in a unified, productive way in these situations, it is nonetheless important that we work together to figure it out! Todd closed the lesson by sharing that one of the main things which attracted him to the church was the community that he saw in it and which he wanted to be a part of. (What better witness can we have?)
I think this discussion uncovered how sharing the gospel and serving our communities can be done simultaneously. Many of our neighbors, as well as colleagues at work/school, want to be part of a cause that is blessing peoples' lives. By giving them opportunities to serve (much like Tom Lowery did with his co-workers who helped him move yesterday!), people lose themselves in service to others and in so doing become more united with those people they are serving - and serving with. What a great antidote to the spiritually-sapping, self gratification-driven society which we live in today!

fyi - Pres. Eyring gave a great talk on unity in the October conference - it's worth the read (or re-read)