September Calendar

September is here! It's almost fall! We have lots going on this month!

Called to the Work

The Difference

My gear was well packed and getting to the starting line wasn't a problem. I had a certain confidence that all would work out, even though the pre-race jitters were still inevitably apparent. This was my second time racing in an endurance bike race. Last year, I went one hundred kilometers, but this year, I was tackling the one hundred mile distance. Early in the race, my tire lost some air and help was solicited from a man I refer to as Bike Angel. Next year, I aspire to be proficient enough at all things involving routine tire maintenance. This year I would just have to rely on the good graces of the angels amongst us. Shifting gears, balance, hydration, nutrition, and navigating closely to other bikes are skills with which I feel comfortable now. Bit by bit, I am learning this sport and maybe someday someone somewhere will refer to me as his Bike Angel. My, what a difference a year makes!

My kids were packed up in the car with their church snacks, games, and coloring books with fifteen minutes to spare. We were actually going to be on time for sacrament meeting. We sat in the front of the service because the kids could actually stay in the pew for more than five minutes at a time. Zachary sang all of the hymns and halfway paid attention to the speakers. Nathan played with his coloring book and although there were a few outbursts, he remained generally quiet. We're still working on not running in the hall and I apologize if you've been run over by the hooligan Roark children. There is still lots of room for improvement. It has been two years this week since being baptized and confirmed a member of the Church. Much of my focus has been spent on learning the gospel, making major changes in family schedules and adopting the completely new lifestyle that being a church member requires. By next year, I aspire to have set my house in order enough to be answered prayer for others. My, what a difference two years makes!

Rachel Roark

Formula for Success

Relief Society Declaration

Today in Relief Society, we discussed our divine nature as daughters of God. We were reminded of the Relief Society Declaration, that explains who we are and what we do. We have posted it here and also included a link on the right side of the blog under "Helpful Links", so we can refer back to this often, and always remember that we are "beloved spirit daughters of God, and our lives have meaning, purpose, and direction."

Happy Birthday Primary!

Whate'er Thou Art Act Well Thy Part

"That was a message to me that morning to act my part well as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is merely another way of saying ... 'Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of Heaven, but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.' (Matthew 7:21.)"

-President David O. McKay

"We Are Daughters of Our Heavenly Father"

"We are daughters of our Heavenly Father who loves us and we love him." The Young Women's theme is an affirmation of who we are and whose we are. Each one of us is unique. We each have different experiences, different circumstances: young and old, rich and poor, single, married, widowed and divorced, some are mothers and some are not. It matters not. We are His and He loves us.

In Sister Elaine Dalton's conference talk "We Are Daughters of Our Heavenly Father", she delivers a beautiful message on how that knowledge can lighten our load as we live each day.

"Our daily contributions of nurturing, teaching and caring for others may seem mundane, diminished, difficult, and demeaning at times, and yet, as we remember that first line in the Young Women's theme -- "We are daughters of our Heavenly Father, who loves us" -- it will make all the difference in our relationships and our responses."

In all that we do, if we just remember that, we can stand with our head held high and know that our Heavenly Father will recognize our accomplishments and bless us for them no matter how small. We can know that we are never alone, and He will always be there for us. On Sunday we will discuss the strength and power of being daughters of a Heavenly Father.

Marcia Lindley

Virtue

"With God All Things Are Possible"

This week in Relief Society, we will be discussing Lorenzo Snow Chapter 14, "With God All Things Are Possible." President Snow said:

"Where the Lord plants us, there we are to stand; when he requires us to exert ourselves for the support of these holy principles, that we are to do; that is all we need to trouble ourselves about; the rest our Heavenly Father will take care of."

We should remember to always have faith, and that no matter what our circumstances are, God will always be there for us. He never leaves us, it is we who leave him.

Come prepared to discuss your thoughts on Sunday!

Kristy Ward

Whom the Lord Calls, the Lord Qualifies

"Remember that this work is not yours and mine alone. It is the Lord's work, and when we are on the Lord's errand, we are entitled to the Lord's help. Remember that whom the Lord calls, the Lord qualifies."

President Thomas S. Monson

September 17 - Save the Date!!!

Please mark your calendars

and plan to join us for

"PURSUE YOUR SACRED BIRTHRIGHT"

a RS/YW joint event

September 17 at 7pm

at the Meandering Way chapel

Visiting Teaching Thought

Dear Sisters,

Yes, it's about "back to school" time! As everyone's schedules are filling up, let's make it a priority to visit with the sisters in our districts. With all of the stress involved in the activities of this month, treat yourselves to a "break" and adjust your focus to include this vital act of ministry and love. We are promised that not only ourselves, but the sisters we visit, will be greatly blessed.

Sister Medaris

To Reach a Goal

Divine Nature

Last night I was reading my scriptures and came upon 2 Peter 1:4, "...that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust." The word "partakers" struck me. Meaning, we can choose to partake of our divine nature. It (potential) is something that we are born with. We have to work to allow it to become our natural nature. Let me jump to the flip side...if we aren't giving in to our divine nature, then we are giving in to our human nature, or the natural man.

We know that the natural man is an enemy to God. Mosiah 3:19, "for the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man..."We have two natures at play, human nature and divine nature. How do we feed our divine nature to make it our natural personal nature? Thankfully, the scriptures have answers.

2 Peter 1:4-7, "Be partakers of the divine nature. ... Giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity." I love this answer. When we extend brotherly (sisterly) kindness and charity to others, we are partaking of our divine nature.

The middle part of Mosiah 3:19 outlines for us how we can shut down our human nature. "...[P]utteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord." Allowing the Atonement to work in our lives allows us to "becom[e] a saint"!! (Am I the only one excited to have the title 'saint' added to my name?!?!) Mosiah 3:19 is a verse of hope! The Atonement of Jesus Christ can save us, even from ourselves. This is what the Atonement is all about. It is Christ's invitation to us to become like him. To make his nature our nature. To walk with him on the path of improvement and perfecting. To give up what is easy and human and to start to embrace who we really are, divine spirit daughters of our Heavenly Father.

Jessica Przybyla

Relief Society: True Charity and Pure Religion

Lorenzo Snow Lesson #13

The Relief Society was organized by the Prophet Joseph Smith, under the inspiration of the Lord. Today it is recognized as one of the most powerful forces for good in the Church. "Charity Never Faileth" is an appropriate motto for our organization. Charity is the pure love of Christ (Moroni 7:47) and when we practice this in our homes and associations, it cannot fail! The Apostle James said, "pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this: To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world" (James 1:27). The members of Relief Society across the world exemplify this in the service they render. This is the foundation upon which we can exist and succeed to help build the Kingdom of God. I know we each have had many wonderful experiences in Relief Society and I look forward to discussing this Sunday how Relief Society has blessed each of your lives.

Erin Hayes

What We Learn by Studying the Scriptures

Don't forget to join us for our Scripture Study class tonight at 7:00 p.m. in the Relief Society room!

Priesthood Power