Called to Blog

I just read an awesome article about Mormon bloggers. You can read the article here. A movement was started because of a few experiences - mostly dealing with what comes up when you type in 'Mormon' on an internet search engine. Plenty of anti-Mormon web sites are out there and easy to find. The goal is to have more truthful Mormon web sites out there so that when someone who is investigating the church does some internet research, they will be directed towards sites that have strong gospel teachings - positive testimonies.

I'm sure I mentioned this movement (started in a CES talk given by Pres. Hinckley) in another post. But, I want to get back to that. I do feel some responsibility as a member of this church to put my share of the good news out there. I have a calling in the church to teach Relief Society, I teach from the Joseph Smith manual on the the 3rd week. Because of our Stake Conference, and some other factors - I taught lesson 2 in February a couple of weeks ago. I am preparing lesson 4 (the Book of Mormon as the keystone of our religion) right now - I realize that we are probably 2 or 3 lessons behind the rest of the church but I am going to share anyway.

Lesson Two from the Joseph Smith manual was called God the Eternal Father. I am including a few scans of what my manual looks like when I teach these lessons. What a testimony it is to me that the spirit really does help me teach these lessons, because, now, as I look at these scans - the notes don't even make sense to me and it has only been two weeks!

I want to share an experience that I had, that I shared in my lesson, that illustrated to me how much my Father in Heaven loves and values me as a person. Maybe some of you have seen or heard the following object lesson, but it is one that can use repeating. A couple ladies in the ward told me last night at our enrichment meeting that they have used the same illustration with their grand kids or in Family Home Evening since I told them about it.

One year in seminary, my seminary teacher held up a crisp new $20 bill and asked if anyone wanted it. Of course, everyone raised their hands. Then he squished the bill up into a little ball and said, 'now who wants it'. Everyone still raised their hands - so he threw it down on the floor and stepped on it, grinding it down in to the carpet of our classroom and asked, 'who would want it now?' Everyone still wanted it. The teacher then pointed out that we all still wanted the $20 because no matter how wrinkled the bill was, it still had the same value. Then, the lesson, that no matter what we do, our Heavenly Father still wants us - we still have value. There is nothing that we can do that will change that value in his eyes.

What an impact that had on me. For the first time, I KNEW that it was true and that God, our eternal father, loved me and valued me and wanted me to return to Him as much or more than I wanted that 20 bucks. That knowledge, though sometimes harder to access, has been with me ever since. This is my first "more good" entry. I encourage all of my fellow LDS bloggers to do the same!

Yeah! Blogger spellcheck is working again!!