tubaloth

I thought this was brought up in one of the World Wide Training broadcasts? I thought after the new handbook came out thats when this idea came to be...
I can't seem to find much on lds.org
I know our ward has tried to push this more. Not that we don't help people move, but to let the family know that they need to find people too. We tried to even do something like match what they bring... Meaning if the family gets 3 people to help move then the Elders bring 3 people to help move. But things never work out that way.

I get the opportunity to teach/council an Elders Quorum in a mid singles ward (31-45)  in Utah.   We had noticed a couple of Elders are kind of negative.   I caught hold of idea about the Plan of Happiness, and we should be happy.  I will share some of the scriptures and talked in the next post.  One idea that popped into my mind is that Happiness is a spiritual feeling.   I might be the last person on earth that finally realized that.  Before I felt like Happiness was more of a physical attitude/state of mind.   I think it still is, but I now feel like a happy spirit can lead to a happy attitude. 

Scriptures:
1 Nephi 8  8-10 
10 And it came to pass that I beheld a tree, whose fruit was desirable to make one happy.
2 Nephi 5:27
27 And it came to pass that we lived after the manner of happiness.
Mormon 9:27
14 And then cometh the judgment of the Holy One upon them; and then cometh the time that he that is filthy shall be filthy still; and he that is righteous shall be righteous still; he that is happy shall be happy still; and he that is unhappy shall be unhappy still.
Quote by Joseph Smith
Happiness is the object and design of our existence; and will be the end thereof, if we pursue the path that leads to it; and this path is virtue, uprightness, faithfulness, holiness, and keeping all the commandments of God. [Teachings, 255–56]
Talks
Finding Joy in Life
Quote:
Sadness, disappointment, and severe challenge are events in life, not life itself. I do not minimize how hard some of these events are. They can extend over a long period of time, but they should not be allowed to become the confining center of everything you do.
Our Search for Happiness
Quote:
The problem is that too many of us try to consume happiness rather than generate it.
Your Happily Ever After
 
I just found this, this morning. 
http://worldhappiness.report/ed/2018/ 
I haven't gotten into it yet.  Passing it on.
 

I also am teaching this 4th Sunday topic.  I'm in a mid singles ward, and we really haven't talked about it that much.  I actually have tried to push the Elders Quorum Pres to do more.  (We did not have any change in our quroum because we don't have a high priest group). 
In preparing for my lesson, I wanted to go back and figure out when Home Teaching started.  It was announced in April 1963 conference.  Elder Lee (at the time) was giving the assignment to present this new correlation program the church had been development.  (This is also were the term ward council seems to have started). 
The idea at the time was to revamp the teaching in the church.  New way of teaching the different age groups, a bigger emphases on teaching in the home, thus Home Teaching. 
We realize now we have more members outside the USA then it it.  Yes Home teaching probably could still work fine in Utah and maybe even the USA.  Outside it, things needed to evolve.
 In my singles ward we actually tried to adapt home teaching as Elder Holland brought up a year or two ago.  The problem we actually ran into was the church's record still needed to know who you visited each month.  Became kind of a hassle figuring out if we count that as a visit.  
Like others have said, I think for the last 55 years we just got complacent with how things were done.  Back in April 1963, Pres David O. McKay wrote about Home Teaching in some new leadership manual that was coming out.  The first part of it I think got lost over the years.  I just changed the quote from Home Teaching to Ministering. 
 
 

I would even suggest to go Mormon.org each day.  

1. they have a short video for that days item. 
2. They have other suggestions on what you can do. 
3. they have a scripture about Christ doing that days item.  
That was the one thing I wish was on the Advent Calendar is scriptures to go with it.   I get they didn't have the room.  Nice to see they are on mormon.org. 

The big thing I remember probably has blended together of some small experiences.   I remember being on splits with some other companion. I remember us walking and talking about agency and how people have the power to choose.  Blending in the knowledge of what I had gained of the plan of salvation, a light bulb went off in my head during this conversation.  The plan of salvation is so perfectly constructed that it allows each person to grow or fall as much as they want to.   The more a person follows the path, the closer they can get to God.  The opposite is also true.  Each person has the power themselves to grow at there own speed.  The plan of salvation is really the perfect plan to allow people to use their agency. 
 

I don't think there is a set time. Its a process. I'm sure the First Presidency probably like to restore blessings then taking them away.

The JST has this a little different 
 
JST Heb. 11:1 … assurance of things hoped for … 

Glad your lesson went well.   For our opening exercises once our bishopric counselor wrote all the announcements on the board.    He kind of goes over them, but you don't get all the back and forth questions.   "What time does it start"   "Where is that at" 
 
We went to our Elders Quorum and hardly anybody was there, and no teacher.   We all discussed where everybody was at.  Then I looked at my watch and realized we were 8 mins earlier.    So now I push our counselor to write the announcements on the board each time.    Now it doesn't really help that half the time the Elders Quorum Pres goes over the same thing again.   Doh! 

Partly, we need to be careful what we're calling "truth"
 
The truth is that there are not, really, that many quotes stating the means that Joseph may have used to translate. A few quotes does not equate to a truth about how he actually translated.
 
It is entirely possible that Joseph, for example, tried it out the hat method once or twice, and that got mentioned, and now that has been latched onto as "the way" by the anti crowd. There are, of course, differing reports of how he translated.
 
All we know is that these various methods were reported by someone. But that does not define "truth".
 
It's also just as possible that Joseph did not translate this way (with the hat), but that he merely experimented to see how and if it affected things. We really don't know. We also don't really know how reliable such witnesses as Elizabeth Ann Whitmer Cowdery were. For all we know she was a nutter and/or made stuff up for the pleasure of sounding like she knew stuff. Who knows.
 
All we really have is reports, and those reports were interpreted by those reporting, and then are interpreted by us, and bias and misunderstanding is potentially introduced every step of the way.
 
It makes sense to me to teach children the truth, for the most part, but we need to teach the "truth", and not interpretations that may or may not be truth.
 
The truth is that we don't really know how the translation process occurred, for the most part, except that it was by the power of God. Mentioning the reports of different potential methods isn't harmful, imo. But to teach children that historical reports define absolute truth is harmful.

Make sure you understand the whole story.  Anti-Mormons like to use the stone in the hat to make it sound odd, but when you understand the translation process (fully documented in church history) it makes perfect sense, and is only a fraction of the miracle that the translation of the Book of Mormon is.  So, tell the whole story, and don't overemphaize things that really aren't that important (but like to be used negatively).

I have to agree with LP.  I think the church has really been working hard to bring those tough history subjects more to light.  I think subjects have been more open.  Especially with the essays that are on lds.org.  
 
I say teach them in the way you want as long as the facts are correct.  

First of all, being a member of the church is not what makes us culpable.
 
Moroni 3:20-24
 
20 And moreover, I say unto you, that the time shall come when the knowledge of a Savior shall spread throughout every nation, kindred, tongue, and people.
 
21 And behold, when that time cometh, none shall be found blameless before God, except it be little children, only through repentance and faith on the name of the Lord God Omnipotent.
 
22 And even at this time, when thou shalt have taught thy people the things which the Lord thy God hath commanded thee, even then are they found no more blameless in the sight of God, only according to the words which I have spoken unto thee.
 
23 And now I have spoken the words which the Lord God hath commanded me.
 
24 And thus saith the Lord: They shall stand as a bright testimony against this people, at the judgment day; whereof they shall be judged, every man according to his works, whether they be good, or whether they be evil.
 
Second - wickedness never was happiness. Period. It's not - wickedness never was happiness unless you don't know any better.
 
Righteousness is joy. The gospel brings us joy. True, real, honest, lasting joy beyond measure.
 
So what you're really asking is, wouldn't it be better if we could wallow in the mire, trudging through evil and darkness, just a bit longer, because the sunlight and cleanliness is such a burden.
 It's like saying,  Wouldn't it be better if none of us ever showered, brushed our teeth or shaved, because grooming is annoying? 
Wouldn't it be better if we can all just be obese because working out and eating right is so hard?
 
Wouldn't it be better if we could all just be lazy and idle all the day long because earning a living is such a pain?
 
Wouldn't it be better if we were all stupid and didn't have to think because thinking is so laborious?
 
The answer is NO! It would not be better.

I am a ward clerk,  mostly our financial clerk did the tithing.   He has got other things going in his life right now have stepped in.    A couple of things I would like to pass on that would help us (tithing enterers).   Nothing to big.  Just passing it on.
 
I know being married means you are one!    But putting both husband and wife name on the tithing slip doesn't do anything.  We can not enter tithing for two people.    I'm sure the check that paid for the tithing came out of a joint account.    If its tithing for the husband he should put his name so it goes under him. If its the wife that is paying tithing put it under her name.    
If you put both names, they will just use the first name on the list.   If you separate the names that does mean you would get two tithing settlement print outs.   I can see that would maybe make it harder to know if all the tithing is correct.   If that is the case, then just say we are going to put all our tithing in one name (husband or wife).    
 
Also, if you pay with a check, it would help us if you write the check number somewhere by the check box at the bottom.  Usually we put #  in front of it so we know its a check number. 
You probably are asking "I sometimes pay with multiple checks do I really need to write the check numbers for each check?"  Yes! If you don't we have to.  The church's program (MSL)  required a check number for each check.     So you can either write the check number and the amount of each check  or you could even use multiple slips.   It doesn't matter to us.    Sometimes we end up doing multiple slips anyways.   
We also had a guy in our ward that would use his Bill pay to generate a check and send it to the bishop.  The bishop just gives us the envelope with everything.   I know this is convenient for people.  As you can guess we have to fill out a tithing slip and put the long check number they have on those.    I would prefer you send the check to yourself and you feel out the tithing slip.  
 
The church actually does have a way you can send money (through your bank's bill pay feature)  and send it straight to the church.   Its not something the church can sign up everybody at the same time.  If you are interested in it, send me a message.  
 
 
Neither of these things things are that big of deal,  but if you want to be kind to your tithing enterers, this would help.    
Oh one other thing.  I'm sure there are people that have no use for the Yellow Carbon copy of your tithing slip.  If you pass it on to us, we just take it off and shred it.  Again not that big of deal, but every little bit counts.  
 
Thanks