Spirit World

What happens when we die?

I have a new-found understanding of Heavenly Father's love for His children now that I am a mother.  I can't imagine not doing everything possible to give my daughter the best life I can.  I get frustrated with people who insist that this life on this corrupt planet is the only shot we have to do the right things to return to our Heavenly Father and live with Him in his Kingdom.  I believe that Heavenly Father is a great and loving Father who will offer His children every opportunity to return to Him, even if that means after we leave this world.  In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints we believe that after we leave this world (die) we will go to a Spirit World where we will either be teachers or learners.  Those who figured things out in this world and followed the commandments of Heavenly Father will go on to teach those who either didn't have the opportunity or didn't figure things out before they died.  Coming from a Catholic background I imagine the Spirit World to be much like Purgatory, a place of waiting, repenting and learning before we are worthy to enter Heaven.  Then, our spirits will be reunited with our (perfected) bodies and we will be judged and placed in degrees of Heaven depending on our faith and works.

For more information about this topic and Heavenly Father's Plan of Happiness click here.

Building a Bridge

"The Lord’s way is not to sit at the side of the stream and wait for the water to pass before we cross. It is to come together, roll up our sleeves, go to work, and build a bridge

or a boat to cross the waters of our challenges."

—Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Learning From the Past

Learning from the Past

"We look back to claim the embers from glowing experiences but not the ashes.  And when we have learned what we need to learn and have brought with us the best that we have experienced, then we look ahead and remember that faith is always pointed toward the future." - Jeffrey R. Holland
        

We can learn from the past but then we must look to the future.  Dwelling on the past can be dangerous when we get stuck in the past and don't move on.  The past provides a good learning opportunity and blue print for the future.  We can learn from our mistakes and the mistakes of others so that we don't make those same mistakes again.  Ultimately, though, faith is forward moving.  We can best travel through this life if we 'learn from the past, plan for the future and live in the present'.

Word of Wisdom

Word of Wisdom

As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints there are a few things that most mainstream people do that I choose not to do.  Our Church has counselled that we should not use tobacco, drink alcohol, coffee or certain kinds of tea (does not include herbal tea).  We are also counselled that all things should be done in moderation.  There are items that we are to use sparingly which include sodas and other less healthy food options.  This counsel is called the Word of Wisdom.  You can read the entire Word of Wisdom in Doctrine and Covenants Section 89.  The summary of the Word of Wisdom can be found below.

• Wine and other alcohol are not allowed for consumption.
• Tobacco, in any form, should not be taken into the body.
• Hot drinks, which include coffee, black tea, green tea and white tea are not healthy.
• Herbs, fruits, meat and grains were created for us to use and are healthy and good in moderation.
• Plants in the form of vegetables, fruits, etc. are to be used with "prudence and thanksgiving".
• Meat is to be eaten sparingly.
• Grain is to be a main staple of the diet.

The Word of Wisdom is followed by a promise for all of those who keep it of health and strength, stamina and protection.

Paul said, "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God... If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are." (1 Cor. 3:15-16)  Our bodies are temples and we must keep them clean because 'no unclean thing can dwell with God'. (1 Nephi 10:21)  When we do all that we can to remain clean, Jesus Christ will make up the difference and wash our stains away.  Then we will be made clean and welcomed back into the fold to be with Heavenly Father.

For more information about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints visit www.mormon.org.

Indexing

I spoke very shortly about indexing in the previous post but I would like to expand on the topic now.  I have a special place in my heart for indexing.  My Mom's Father died of cancer when she was sixteen.  One day when I was showing her the website familysearch.org we decided to try to find her Dad.  She was so excited when we found census records that had his name and family living in the household with him.  The census was taken when he was just one year old.  She was able to clear up some questions about his family that were present also.  Then we searched for her Grandfather and found a WWII draft card with his information and signature on it.  She was so excited that she went home and showed my Great Aunt, my Great Grandfather's only surviving daughter. 

                              

None of this would have been possible if it hadn't been for volunteers who index records on family search.org.  It is a free website offered to the public by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  Anyone can index records to help further the mission of family history.  All you need to do to get started is go to https://familysearch.org/volunteer/indexing and click 'Get Started' to download the free software.  If you would like to try it out first without downloading there is a short tutorial.  Click on 'Test Drive'. 

It's fun, easy and takes little time.  You can index a batch (group of names) in less than half an hour.  There is a check and balance system in place so that you don't have to worry too much about making a mistake.  Another indexer will index the same record and if there are discrepencies then an arbitrator checks over both records and makes changes.  It's really neat seeing pages from history and being part of such an amazing worldwide project.

For more information about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints go to Mormon.org.

Callings

Each member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is given a calling in the Church.  I think callings are a great way to keep people active in the Church, feel a part of the community and get things done.  I have had many callings since I became a member.  Here are a few of my favorites (in no specific order):

• Young Woman Secretary - I got to participate in Young Women (ages 13 to 17) meetings, teach, and best of all, go to Young Women's camp.
• Gospel Doctrine Teacher - Gospel Doctrine is Adult Sunday School.  I love to teach and really enjoyed preparing and teaching the adults every Sunday.
• Media Center Assistant - It was fun to work in the Church Library.  I got to know the materials and see a lot of people.  I like categorizing and organizing.  I also loved checking out all of the movies the Library had available.
• Choir Director - Although it's tough to get participants for the choir and I felt like I was always advertising for more singers, I loved leading the choir.  I was able to pick the music that the choir sang and chose some of my favorite songs that I hadn't heard in a while.
• 5 Year Old Primary Teacher - As I said before, I love to teach.  Teaching the 5 year olds was polar opposite to teaching adults as Gospel Doctrine Teacher.  The 5 year olds were a lot of fun.  I loved coming up with new and fun ways to get them to learn.  I also liked planning the message for sharing time when it was our turn to teach the Junior Primary.
• Family History Consultant - My husband and I were called to be Family History Consultants when we moved to our new Ward.  We went into member's homes who wanted to learn how to do family history searches on their own computers through familysearch.org and enter their family history in new.familysearch.org.  We also held informational seminars in the Church Family History Center for the Young Women and taught a Family History Presentation for a Relief Society meeting.  The best thing about this calling was that I learned a lot about Family History myself and began indexing records through familysearch.org

I testify that the Church's practice of extending callings to members is divinely inspired.  I have been blessed in so many ways in my callings as I have performed my duties and furthered the mission of the Church.  To learn more about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints please visit Mormon.org.

Visiting Teaching

I guess there really isn't a great place to start and I don't have time today to start at the beginning.  Perhaps, some day soon I will sit down and tell that story but for now I'll start with today. 

I went visiting teaching.  Visiting teaching is a program that the LDS Church has where each woman is assigned a partner and the pair are given two or three women in their area to visit once a month.  The Church also has a home teaching program similar to visiting teaching where the men are assigned partners and have families to visit.  Having gone through Divinity School and learned that it is usually the Pastor's job to visit and check on all of the members of his/her congregation I especially recognize the importance of this program.  I testify that the visiting teaching and home teaching programs issued by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints are inspired of Heavenly Father.

For more information about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints please click here.