In preparing for this general conference (April 2&3; 11-1pm/3-5pm both days), I am reminded of the prophecy given to Joseph Smith recorded in Doctrine and Covenants 21:4-6.
"Wherefore, meaning the church, thou shalt give heed unto all his words and commandments which he shall give unto you as he receiveth them, walking in all holiness before me;
For his word ye shall receive, as if from mine own mouth, in all patience and faith.
For by doing these things the gates of hell shall not prevail against you; yea, and the Lord God shall disperse the powers of darkness from before you, AND CAUSE THE HEAVENS TO SHAKE FOR YOUR GOOD, and his name's glory."
What an amazing promise is given to those of us who will listen and give heed to a prophet's words! How I would love to see powers of darkness recede and disperse and what does it mean for the heavens to SHAKE for my good!
I love this gospel.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
THE GREATEST "GIFT" EVER
Last night I read the talk, "Receive the Holy Ghost" by Elder David A. Bednar, from the October, 2010 General Conference. It will be the text we study this Sunday at Relief Society. This greatest of gifts, we are bestowed, comes by the laying on of hands, through the Priesthood with the direction "Receive the Holy Ghost", to be with us always. With the bestowal of this gift, comes the admonition to so live the gospel of Jesus Christ, with exactness and faith, so that the Holy Spirit will remain with us constantly to direct, comfort, warn and testify of truth.
I want to share my favorite quote on the Holy Ghost, which come from an early apostle Parley P. Pratt. I have it typed and pasted on the inside of my bible, so that I see it often:
"The gift of the Holy Ghost, quickens all the intellectual faculties, increases, enlarges, expands and purifies all the natural passions and affections; and adapts them, by the gift of wisdom, to their lawful use. It inspires, develops, cultivates and matures all the fine-toned sympathies, joys, tastes, kindred feelings, and affections of our nature. It inspires virtues, kindness, goodness, tenderness, gentleness and charity. It develops beauty of person, form and feature. It tends to health, vigor, animation, and social feelings. It invigorates all the faculties of the physical and intellectual man or woman. It strengthens, and gives tone to the nerves. In short, it is, as it were, marrow to the bone, joy to the heart, light to the eyes, music to the ears, and life to the whole being. "
I know that I have witnessed this animation, beauty, purity, peace and goodness among many of our Dallas 4th Ward Relief Society Sisters. Let us all live to have the Gift of the Holy Ghost permeate our lives.
I want to share my favorite quote on the Holy Ghost, which come from an early apostle Parley P. Pratt. I have it typed and pasted on the inside of my bible, so that I see it often:
"The gift of the Holy Ghost, quickens all the intellectual faculties, increases, enlarges, expands and purifies all the natural passions and affections; and adapts them, by the gift of wisdom, to their lawful use. It inspires, develops, cultivates and matures all the fine-toned sympathies, joys, tastes, kindred feelings, and affections of our nature. It inspires virtues, kindness, goodness, tenderness, gentleness and charity. It develops beauty of person, form and feature. It tends to health, vigor, animation, and social feelings. It invigorates all the faculties of the physical and intellectual man or woman. It strengthens, and gives tone to the nerves. In short, it is, as it were, marrow to the bone, joy to the heart, light to the eyes, music to the ears, and life to the whole being. "
I know that I have witnessed this animation, beauty, purity, peace and goodness among many of our Dallas 4th Ward Relief Society Sisters. Let us all live to have the Gift of the Holy Ghost permeate our lives.
Monday, March 21, 2011
SPRING in our Step!
It is officially Spring! The days will include more "light". I enjoy all the seasons and the changes that come with them. But Spring is the season with all the possibilities. Spring brings Mother's Day and Easter and General Conference. We have March Madness (or March Sadness as I call it as my brackets always do so poorly!)
With the change in weather, we can get out and exercise or start a garden or plant some flowers or open some windows and air out the house.
Spring spells a time of movement as the weather begs us to get out of our house and habits and be part of all that is living and alive.
What are your goals for Spring?
With the change in weather, we can get out and exercise or start a garden or plant some flowers or open some windows and air out the house.
Spring spells a time of movement as the weather begs us to get out of our house and habits and be part of all that is living and alive.
What are your goals for Spring?
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Charity
Our lesson this Sunday is on Charity and for Sunday's lesson I would like us all to ponder what is meant by the Pure Love of Christ and how do we go about developing that type of love within ourselves for our brothers and sisters.
Thank you,
Fronda Wiseman
Wear GREEN, and PRAY for Japan!
I grew up with a father (whom I loved very much) that was terminally ill for much of my childhood. At times, he was near death and silly things like remembering to wear green on St. Patrick's Day so one would not get "pinched" did not make much sense to me.
Yet as I have grown up, I have appreciated the perspective these experiences have given me.
I read about the awful crisis in Japan and wonder what I can DO for them. I am so mindful of what it feels like to live "at the edge" of all that used to be a normal life.
There must be balance in this second estate for us. We must have faith, hope, and charity. Those divine attributes remind me that FAITH and HOPE come in the form of looking to the small and simple events (such as St. Patrick's Day) AND having CHARITY for the Japanese(and all who suffer) in my prayers and checkbook.
Balance is learning how to appreciate one without forgetting the other!
Yet as I have grown up, I have appreciated the perspective these experiences have given me.
I read about the awful crisis in Japan and wonder what I can DO for them. I am so mindful of what it feels like to live "at the edge" of all that used to be a normal life.
There must be balance in this second estate for us. We must have faith, hope, and charity. Those divine attributes remind me that FAITH and HOPE come in the form of looking to the small and simple events (such as St. Patrick's Day) AND having CHARITY for the Japanese(and all who suffer) in my prayers and checkbook.
Balance is learning how to appreciate one without forgetting the other!
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Apple Pie, Custard Pie, . . .
Ever heard of a potato peel pie? Our book interest group this month is reading about a small group of people living on a small island in the English Channel, in post WWII. They form a literary society and eat potato peel pie. If you want to learn more about the remarkable lives these people enjoy, come join our discussion:
April 5th
7:30 PM
Barbara Doerk's house
Book to be discussed: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
P.S. This is one of my favorite books I've read in the last 2 years.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
April Wheat Order
Hello Sisters,
How are you doing on your provident living pursuits? Do you have self-sufficiency on your mind? I know so many of you are thinking about how to better protect yourself and your family and you have a great interest in following the warnings the Lord has given us. Self-sufficiency is not just a one-time event, it is a lifestyle, and when we plan our lives in this manner we learn to think and plan ahead, work harder, and choose more wisely in all aspects of our lives. I can attest to the comfortable and content feelings we enjoy when we embrace this eternal principle.
With this in mind, here is a bit of forewarning so you can plan ahead and save up for a wheat order from Wheat Montana Farms. Some of you are familiar already with this drill. A very nice lady from Allen (not a member of the church but a very nice Christian lady who spends an enormous amount of time and effort doing this so be sure to be grateful and polite...) will put together a group wheat order in April. This is the person I've worked with getting my own wheat over the years so if you need help in the process, I can answer questions. Other than that, it will be up to you to get your order form and money to her in a timely fashion. All information on how-to's and deadlines will be provided in early April.
More Soon,
Kim Adair
How are you doing on your provident living pursuits? Do you have self-sufficiency on your mind? I know so many of you are thinking about how to better protect yourself and your family and you have a great interest in following the warnings the Lord has given us. Self-sufficiency is not just a one-time event, it is a lifestyle, and when we plan our lives in this manner we learn to think and plan ahead, work harder, and choose more wisely in all aspects of our lives. I can attest to the comfortable and content feelings we enjoy when we embrace this eternal principle.
With this in mind, here is a bit of forewarning so you can plan ahead and save up for a wheat order from Wheat Montana Farms. Some of you are familiar already with this drill. A very nice lady from Allen (not a member of the church but a very nice Christian lady who spends an enormous amount of time and effort doing this so be sure to be grateful and polite...) will put together a group wheat order in April. This is the person I've worked with getting my own wheat over the years so if you need help in the process, I can answer questions. Other than that, it will be up to you to get your order form and money to her in a timely fashion. All information on how-to's and deadlines will be provided in early April.
More Soon,
Kim Adair
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
A Valuable Temporal Law
It has been a year since my open heart surgery. I did not believe my body could recover from such a catastrophic illness.
As I was reading the lesson for this Sunday, Gospel Principles #29 "Lord's Law of Health", I was exceedingly (to quote Nephi) grateful for the blessings that came to me from a lifetime of "trying" to live this law. Each time I went to the doctor, I was told how quickly my body was healing and how much strength was returning to my vital organs.
I have a testimony that these health laws given to a prophet for our day (D&C 89) are such a gift to us.
How have these valuable temporal laws helped you have a greater quality of life?
As I was reading the lesson for this Sunday, Gospel Principles #29 "Lord's Law of Health", I was exceedingly (to quote Nephi) grateful for the blessings that came to me from a lifetime of "trying" to live this law. Each time I went to the doctor, I was told how quickly my body was healing and how much strength was returning to my vital organs.
I have a testimony that these health laws given to a prophet for our day (D&C 89) are such a gift to us.
How have these valuable temporal laws helped you have a greater quality of life?
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Fiesta of Friendship Recipes
Fresh Blueberry Pie
3/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2/3 cup water
5 cups fresh blueberries, divided use
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter (not margarine)
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest (yellow only, not white part)
9-inch pie crust, blind baked and cooled, or use the recipe for a pecan pie crust at the bottom of the recipe
In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch, salt and cinnamon. Blend in water and 1 1/2 cups blueberries. Bring to a boil, stirring and smashing half the berries deliberately (use a potato masher a few swipes if you like). Boil, stirring constantly, until mixture is very thick, a minute or so. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract, butter, lemon juice and lemon zest. Cool. (See note below.)
Fold in 2 1/2 cups blueberries, coating them well. Scoop into cooled baked pie shell. Arrange remaining cup of fresh berries over top. Cover with plastic wrap and chill at least 2 hours, or overnight if needed.
Serve plain, or with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt. To serve, remove pie from refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature.
Serves 8.
Note on cooling the filling:
A quick way to cool the filling before adding the rest of the blueberries is to fill a large salad-type bowl with ice and water. Partially submerge the pan with the cooked blueberries in this cold bath, stirring every once in awhile, and in 5 or so minutes it will be sufficiently cooled to continue with your recipe. You can also just set the pan on an unused burner while it cools off, but the cold water bath is much faster and lets you get your pie in the refrigerator more quickly if time is important.
Texas Pecan Pie Crust
1/2 C cold Butter
1 C flour
1/2 C chopped pecans
Place all of the ingredients in a food processer and pulse a few times until it looks like the right consistency. Add a few Tablespoons of cold water until the dough clumps into pie crust dough. Put the dough in the freezer for a few minutes until it is chilled. Roll the dough out using extra flour. Put the pie crust into 9 inch pie plate. Bake at 400 for about 20 minutes until browned. You may need to cover the rim with a foil while baking to prevent excess browning. Allow the crust to cool completely before putting in your filling.
Better Than Cool Whip Pie Topping
4 oz cream cheese- softened
3 T sugar
½ t vanilla
Mix these together on a medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth.
Gradually add one cup of heavy cream to the cream cheese/sugar, mixing at a higher speed until thick. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Black Beans
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained (about 32 oz)
1 C tomato juice
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. fresh chopped cilantro
In a nonstick skillet, cook garlic and cumin in olive oil over medium heat until you can smell the garlic. Add beans, tomato juice, and salt. Continually stir until heated through. Just before serving stir in the cilantro. You can keep this warm in a slow cooker.
Brisket Taco Meat
One or two days before you want to serve brisket tacos cook up a brisket. This is how I do it. I buy a whole untrimmed brisket, about 10-12 pounds. I generously salt and pepper the brisket with kosher salt and coarsely ground black pepper. I coat the entire brisket with a generous amount of chili powder. I usually do this step in the sink to minimize the mess. The chili powder actually holds in the moisture from the beef so you don’t need to put in in a bag or cover it with foil. I put the brisket on a rack over a baking pan or a roasting pan, then into a 400 degree oven for about an hour. I turn the heat down to 200 and cook it for about 8 more hours. After this come out of the oven it needs to cool for at least one hour. Put the drippings from the meat into a fat separator. Throw out the grease but save the dark brown juice.
The day you are ready to serve brisket tacos slice the meat up into taco sized pieces and put into a large pan or crock pot. To the beef add the reserved brown juice, 16 oz jar of salsa verde, 14-16 oz can of tomato sauce, 1 T Cumin, 1 chopped onion, and 6 Cloves of Garlic, minced. Mix the sauce up with the meat. Cover and heat for a couple of hours at 350.
This make enough taco meat for about 20 hungry people.
Serve this on corn tortillas with queso fresco, salsa or pico de gallo, and guacamole.
This recipe is easily adapted to using leftover brisket
Sweet Tamale Corn Casserole
• 1 (15 1/4-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
• 1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn
• 1 (8-ounce) package corn muffin mix (recommended: Jiffy)
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a large bowl, stir together the 2 cans of corn, corn muffin mix, sour cream, and melted butter. Pour into a greased 9 by 13-inch casserole dish. Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven.. Let stand for at least 5 minutes and then serve warm.
You can melt ½ cup of cheese on this during the last 3 minutes of baking. Serve with sour cream and pico de gallo.
3/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2/3 cup water
5 cups fresh blueberries, divided use
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter (not margarine)
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest (yellow only, not white part)
9-inch pie crust, blind baked and cooled, or use the recipe for a pecan pie crust at the bottom of the recipe
In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch, salt and cinnamon. Blend in water and 1 1/2 cups blueberries. Bring to a boil, stirring and smashing half the berries deliberately (use a potato masher a few swipes if you like). Boil, stirring constantly, until mixture is very thick, a minute or so. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract, butter, lemon juice and lemon zest. Cool. (See note below.)
Fold in 2 1/2 cups blueberries, coating them well. Scoop into cooled baked pie shell. Arrange remaining cup of fresh berries over top. Cover with plastic wrap and chill at least 2 hours, or overnight if needed.
Serve plain, or with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt. To serve, remove pie from refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature.
Serves 8.
Note on cooling the filling:
A quick way to cool the filling before adding the rest of the blueberries is to fill a large salad-type bowl with ice and water. Partially submerge the pan with the cooked blueberries in this cold bath, stirring every once in awhile, and in 5 or so minutes it will be sufficiently cooled to continue with your recipe. You can also just set the pan on an unused burner while it cools off, but the cold water bath is much faster and lets you get your pie in the refrigerator more quickly if time is important.
Texas Pecan Pie Crust
1/2 C cold Butter
1 C flour
1/2 C chopped pecans
Place all of the ingredients in a food processer and pulse a few times until it looks like the right consistency. Add a few Tablespoons of cold water until the dough clumps into pie crust dough. Put the dough in the freezer for a few minutes until it is chilled. Roll the dough out using extra flour. Put the pie crust into 9 inch pie plate. Bake at 400 for about 20 minutes until browned. You may need to cover the rim with a foil while baking to prevent excess browning. Allow the crust to cool completely before putting in your filling.
Better Than Cool Whip Pie Topping
4 oz cream cheese- softened
3 T sugar
½ t vanilla
Mix these together on a medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth.
Gradually add one cup of heavy cream to the cream cheese/sugar, mixing at a higher speed until thick. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Black Beans
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained (about 32 oz)
1 C tomato juice
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. fresh chopped cilantro
In a nonstick skillet, cook garlic and cumin in olive oil over medium heat until you can smell the garlic. Add beans, tomato juice, and salt. Continually stir until heated through. Just before serving stir in the cilantro. You can keep this warm in a slow cooker.
Brisket Taco Meat
One or two days before you want to serve brisket tacos cook up a brisket. This is how I do it. I buy a whole untrimmed brisket, about 10-12 pounds. I generously salt and pepper the brisket with kosher salt and coarsely ground black pepper. I coat the entire brisket with a generous amount of chili powder. I usually do this step in the sink to minimize the mess. The chili powder actually holds in the moisture from the beef so you don’t need to put in in a bag or cover it with foil. I put the brisket on a rack over a baking pan or a roasting pan, then into a 400 degree oven for about an hour. I turn the heat down to 200 and cook it for about 8 more hours. After this come out of the oven it needs to cool for at least one hour. Put the drippings from the meat into a fat separator. Throw out the grease but save the dark brown juice.
The day you are ready to serve brisket tacos slice the meat up into taco sized pieces and put into a large pan or crock pot. To the beef add the reserved brown juice, 16 oz jar of salsa verde, 14-16 oz can of tomato sauce, 1 T Cumin, 1 chopped onion, and 6 Cloves of Garlic, minced. Mix the sauce up with the meat. Cover and heat for a couple of hours at 350.
This make enough taco meat for about 20 hungry people.
Serve this on corn tortillas with queso fresco, salsa or pico de gallo, and guacamole.
This recipe is easily adapted to using leftover brisket
Sweet Tamale Corn Casserole
• 1 (15 1/4-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
• 1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn
• 1 (8-ounce) package corn muffin mix (recommended: Jiffy)
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a large bowl, stir together the 2 cans of corn, corn muffin mix, sour cream, and melted butter. Pour into a greased 9 by 13-inch casserole dish. Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven.. Let stand for at least 5 minutes and then serve warm.
You can melt ½ cup of cheese on this during the last 3 minutes of baking. Serve with sour cream and pico de gallo.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
FAITH AND SPIRITUAL COURAGE
This Sunday our lesson will be examples from the Scriptures on enlarging our Faith as well as our Spiritual Courage. Please read Daniel, Chapters 1-5, and also Doctrine and Covenants Section 65. Do we love God and worship Him only - or in 2011 have we set up any " idols" that distract us here in our Second Estate? I'd love your input - See you tomorrow!
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
MARCHing On.....
So it is now March! Last night, we celebrated our Relief Society's birthday with over 75 women and I am so grateful for EVERYONE who made it all so much fun. As I sit at my computer at 7AM this morning, I am amazed at how many people it takes to have a successful function in the church. From Karen Bateman (who is over these events and starts to work on the next one the minute the last one is finished) to all the members of the Relief Society Board to all the women who contributed food and their time to decorate and/clean up to the Priesthood who helped set up and clean up AND staff a nursery to all the women who called their friends and neighbors and sisters on their visiting teaching district and those who contributed their time and talents to sing/play piano or be part of the fun games - not to mention taking pictures and decorating bulletin boards - everyone helps make these events - MATTER.
90% of life is showing up and so many women in this ward did MUCH more than that!
I think Emma Smith was right when she said - "We are going to do something extraordinary." I am certain she was thinking of the women of the Dallas 4th Ward Relief Society!!!
And the month of March has just begun...can't wait for the rest of it.
90% of life is showing up and so many women in this ward did MUCH more than that!
I think Emma Smith was right when she said - "We are going to do something extraordinary." I am certain she was thinking of the women of the Dallas 4th Ward Relief Society!!!
And the month of March has just begun...can't wait for the rest of it.
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