June 2016 ZONE CONFERENCE in Cranberry

                                               THE STANDARD OF TRUTH

"No unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, tell it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, til the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done."

Front:  Elders Schofield and Woodbury

2nd row:  Elders Boyes, Wadsworth, Story, Bumgarner, Rayburn, Liston, Cahoon and Aitken

3rd row:  Sisters Johnson, Jensen, Durfee, Nelson, Birch, O'Reilly, Crisp, Wilson, Morgan and Oliver

4th row:  Pres. Johnson, Elder Andrade, Sisters Johnson, Smith, Pena, Hansen, Schofield, Meyers, Bartlett, Sister and Elder Christensen

Back:  Elders Bell, Syndergaard, Miller, Beal, Masina, Elliot, Kap, Ramos, Wilson, Walker, Gull, Chafin, Moon, Coburn, Foster, Williamson, Ord, Bates, Pennington and Walker

Elders Masina, Andrade and Miller

Clothing Exchange

Sister Christensen mending!

Elder Christensen and Elder Haroldsen

Elder Pennington

Lunch makes us happy!

Our wonderful hostesses!  Thank you!

Singing our thanks...

Elders Williamson, Syndergaard, Bates and Ramos

Sister Smith and Elder Aitken

An Awesome Threesome!  Elders Schofield, Coburn and Cahoon

June 2016 ZONE CONFERENCE in Greentree

THE TRUTH OF GOD WILL GO FORTH

Never forget you have been called by a prophet of God!

The challenges you face are very similar to the challenges faced by those in the early church who were called to serve missions: homesickness, problems at home, discouragement and despair, people that don't have ears to hear, loneliness and temptation.  

But the foundation of truth is the same:  The gospel of Jesus Christ - faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the Holy Ghost and enduring to the end, teaching by the Spirit, opposition, people searching for the truth, and the Lords missionaries!

3 Nephi 22:17

"No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; ...This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord."

Front:  Elders Furniss, Woll, Lundberg, Hummer, Bramwell, Sisters Taunima, Durrant, McDonald, Johnson, Amendola, Christensen, Elder Christensen, Sisters Buetler and Johnson

Row 2:  Elders Pirzadeh, Butikofer, Parke, Bryant, Halsey, Wilkins, Loreto, Christensen, Sisters Stimpson, Penrod, Roberts, Sisters Casler, Caanan, Stimpson and President Johnson

Row 3:  (behind Sister Penrod in center):  Elders Posada, Hansen, Canaan, Goeckeritz 

Back:  Elder Baker, Sister Gardner, Elders Gardner, White, Gee, Whitby, May, Mills, Taylor(behind), O'Keefe, Nelson, Hughes(behind), Ord, Ekins, English, Haroldsen (behind), and Liston

Sisters Roberts, McDonald, Johnson and Taunima

Elders Hansen, Furniss, Bryant, Parke, Wilkins and Butikofer 

Elders Woll and Bramwell

Clothing Exchange

Sisters Durrant and Taunima

Lunch time!

Future engineers?

Sisters Roberts, McDonald, Simpson, Amendola and Beutler

Elders Gee, White, Sisters Durrant, Taunima, and Elder and Sister Canaan

Elders Butikofer,  Wilkins, May, Halsey, Hansen and Baker

Sister Penrod, Elders Pirzadeh, Loreto and Posada

Elders Ekins, Lundberg, Liston, Ord, Bryant, Hansen, Hughes, Mills and Christensen (kneeling)

Our lunch host and hostesses!

Singing our thanks!

"No unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, tell it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, tell the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done."

MLC June 2016

D&C 88:122

"Appoint among yourselves a teacher, and let not all be spokesman at once; but let one speak at a time and let all listen unto his sayings, that when all have spoken that all may be edified of all, and that every man may have an equal privilege."

What are the five elements in that scripture which are necessary to conduct an effective council?  

1. Appoint a leader

2. All share ideas, feelings and insights

3. All listen

4. All should be edified (content edifying)

5. All have equal privilege (equal voice and opportunity to share)

We practiced those five things as we broke into smaller councils and did some problem solving for concerns in the mission.  We experienced two promises given by Elder Russell M Ballard.

"When council members counsel together it is like opening  a reservoir of insight and inspiration that suddenly begins to flow between council members."

    "There is no problem in the family, ward or stake that cannot be solved if we look for solutions in the Lord's way by counseling."

Elders Ord and Liston training on pamphlet teaching.

Back:  Elders Ramos, Hawley, Howard, Gehrke and Baxter

Front:  Elders Whitby, Parke, Averett, Hummer and Richens

Back:  Sisters Wall and Hamblin, Elders Millis, Syndergaard and Nelson

Front:  Sisters Thompson, Morrison, Birch and Hansen

Back:  Sisters McDonald, Taunima, Hokafonu, Hale, Elder Masina

Front:  Elder Montgomery, Halls, Renteria and Ibarra

President and Sister Johnson and Elders Liston and Ord

S-M-I-L-E

Ultimately the very most powerful council that we have is daily intimate prayer with our Heavenly Father.  He knows every situation that we face and he knows the hearts of those that we are teaching.  If we will counsel with the Lord in all we do, he can direct us for good!  Here is the counsel Alma gave his son.

Alma 37

36 Yea, and cry unto God for all thy support; yea, let all thy doings be unto the Lord, and whithersoever thou goest let it be in the Lord; yea, let all thy thoughts be directed unto the Lord; yea, let the affections of thy heart be placed upon the Lord forever.

37 Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day.

We Looked Out the Window and What Did We See?

Sometimes as we are driving down the road we do a double take!  

This was an unusual drive in!  We can't say we have tried it!

There are many different denominations throughout Pennsylvania.  Interesting to see such a variety of churches!

New "love bug"?

Go "Steelers"

Firey sunset!

Blimp above bridge with a train over the Susquehanna 

Unusual combination...

One bottle of pop, two bottles of pop . . .