Sunday, December 29, 2013

Christmas Breakfast Recipes

German Pancakes 
by Juli Shogan

Place 1/4 cup butter in a 9x13 pan and place it in the oven while pre-heating to 425 degrees. Meanwhile, in a blender, blend 6 eggs, 1 cup milk 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1 cup flour.  When butter is melted and oven is pre-heated, pour this mixture into the pan.  Bake 20 minutes.  It will be puffy and beautiful.

Serve with lemon and powdered sugar or maple syrup.

Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate
by Cat Call

1 gallon whole milk
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 jar Mrs. Richardson's butterscotch caramel sauce
3/4 cup cocoa powder (more if you like a darker taste, less if you want a lighter taste)
1 T kosher salt
your favorite hot cocoa mix mixed with two and a half times the amount it calls for
(for example: A hot cocoa calls for 1T per cup. I would use 2.5T per cup, instead. There are 16 cups in a gallon, so I would do 40T of the mixture.)

Heat. Mix thoroughly. Keep warm in a crockpot. Serve with more caramel, whip cream, and a sprinkling of kosher salt.


Friday, December 27, 2013

Special Interest Group: Shakespeare

ATTENTION SHAKESPEARE SCHOLARS:
The Brentwood Ward Relief Society is hosting a Special Interest group that we have been given permission from the stake to invite the other Relief Societies to participate in. This is a Shakespeare Group in which they study Shakespeare’s plays, analyzing themes and plots. It’s a great opportunity to expand knowledge of great literature.  Get ready for HAMLET! We will plan to meet Wednesday, January 15 at 7 PM at Sandie Madsen's home. Prepare by reading Acts I and II. Again, I strongly suggest that you obtain the text SHAKESPEARE MADE EASY- HAMLET. There are many available on Amazon. There will also be some on hand.

Sunday, December 15, 2013

Reflections on the Mission of Jesus Christ

Now, the peculiarity of His mission, and that which distinguished it from other missions, was this: He came not to seek the glory and honor of men, but to seek the honor and glory of His Father, and to accomplish the work of His Father who sent Him. Herein lay the secret of His prosperity; and herein lies the secret of the prosperity of every individual who works upon the same principle



 



Jesus, the Son of God, was sent into the world to make it possible for you and me to receive these extraordinary blessings. He had to make a great sacrifice. It required all the power that He had and all the faith that He could summon for Him to accomplish that which the Father required of Him. … He did not fail, though the trial was so severe that He sweat great drops of blood. … His feelings must have been inexpressible. He tells us Himself, as you will find recorded in section 19 of the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, that His suffering was so great that it caused even Him “to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit: and would that He might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink.” But He had in His heart continually to say, “Father, not my will, but Thine be done.” [See D&C 19:15–19.]

We are all dependent upon Jesus Christ, upon his coming into the world to open the way whereby we might secure peace, happiness and exaltation. And had he not made these exertions we never could have been secured in these blessings and privileges which are guaranteed unto us in the gospel, through the mediation of Jesus Christ, for he made the necessary exertions. …

Sunday, December 8, 2013

The Power of Everyday Missionaries

Elder Clayton M. Christensen's, The Power of Everyday Missionaries - the What and How of Sharing the Gospel was the subject of Sister Wright's Lesson today.  Here is just a couple of excerpts from the book:


Some promises relate to the power and strength people will receive as they share the gospel (the sections and verse of the Doctrine and Covenants in which these promises are given are shown in parentheses):

  • None shall stay you (1:5)
  • You shall receive strength such as is not known among men (24:12)
  • He Himself will go with you and be in your midst.  Nothing shall prevail against you (32:3)
  • Power shall rest upon you.  He will be with you and go before your face (39:12)
  • Your enemies will not have power over you (44:5)
  • The Lord will stand by you (68:6)
  • No weapon formed against you shall prosper (71:9)
  • He will uphold you (93:51)
  • The gates of hell shall not prevail against you (17:8)
  • You shall have power to declare His word (99:2)
  • Your tongue shall be loosed, and you will have the power of God unto the convincing of men (11:21)
  • Your mouth shall be filled and you shall become even as Nephi of old (33:8)
  • You will not be confounded.  It shall be given you in the very hour that portion that shall be meted unto every man (84:85, 100:5)
  • Your words shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, and shall be the voice of the Lord and the power of God unto salvation (68:4)
  • Your arm will be God's arm.  He will be your shield and buckler; He will gird up your loins and put your enemies under your feet (35:14)
Other blessings the Lord has promised to those who share the gospel relate to personal purity and increased faith:
  • You shall stand blameless before God (4:2)
  • You shall be lifted up at the last day (17:8)
  • You will be given a testimony of the words of the prophets (21:9)
  • You shall have revelations (28:8)
  • Your sins will be forgiven (31:5)
  • You shall have great faith (39:12)
  • You will be able to keep God's laws (44:5)
Consider the blessings that pertain to happiness, health, and prosperity:
  • You shall have blessings greater than the treasures of earth (19:37-38)
  • He will take care of your flocks (88:72), and your back shall be laden with sheaves (31:5)
  • You shall not be weary in mind, body, limb, or joint, and you shall not go hungry or thirsty.  A hair from your head shall not falll to the ground unnoticed (84:80, 116)
  • Your joy shall be great (18:14-15)
And perhaps most extraordinary of all, He has promised to fill us and our work with the Holy Ghost, to make us into better men and women:
  • He will send upon you the Comforter, which shall teach you the truth and the way whither you shall go (79:2)
  • The Holy Ghost shall be shed forth in bearing record of all things, whatsoever ye shall say (100:8)
  • He will go before your face.  He will be on your right hand and on your left; His Spirit shall be in your hearts, and His angels round about you, to bear you up (84:88)
  • He will bear you up as on eagles' wings; and you shall beget glory and honor to yourself and unto the Lord's name (124:18)
  • He will make you holy (60:7)

If you'd like to read more about this book or the movement, you can visit this website.

The Prophet Joseph Smith

Joseph Smith, whom God chose to establish this work, was poor and uneducated, and belonged to no popular denomination of Christians. He was a mere boy, honest, full of integrity, unacquainted with the trickery, cunning and sophistry employed by politicians and religious hypocrites, to accomplish their ends. Like Moses of old, he felt incompetent and unqualified for the task, to stand forth as a religious reformer, in a position the most unpopular—to battle against opinions and creeds which have stood for ages, having the sanction and support of men, the most profound in theological lore; but God had called him to deliver the poor and honest-hearted of all nations from their spiritual and temporal thralldom [bondage]. And God promised him that whosoever should receive and obey his message—be baptized for the remission of sins, with honesty of purpose—might receive divine manifestations, should receive the Holy Ghost, the same Gospel blessings which were promised and obtained through the Gospel, when preached by the ancient Apostles. And this message, this promise, was to be in force wherever and to whomsoever it should be carried by the Elders, God’s authorized messengers. So said Joseph Smith, the uneducated, the unsophisticated, the plain, simple, honest boy.

Joseph Smith, the great prophet, was not an educated man when God chose him and made known to him his mission. The Lord bestows spiritual gifts and knowledge upon the unlearned, and the greatness of the kingdom is made known to them by the power of the Holy Ghost, and they gradually become great in the knowledge of the things of God.

And in the Spirit of Christmas, Sister Demke reminded us that this is the Season of JOY (Jesus, Others, and You.)  What do you know to be true?

Excerpts from Teachings of the Presidents:  Lorenzo Snow, Chapter #23, The Prophet Joseph Smith.


Sunday, December 1, 2013

Be Meek and Lowly of Heart


According to Elder Soares, meekness is the quality of those who are “Godfearing, righteous, humble, teachable, and patient under suffering.” Those who possess this attribute are willing to follow Jesus Christ, and their temperament is calm, docile, tolerant, and submissive.

When asked how to remain humble, President Kimball offered this formula:

First, you evaluate yourself. What am I? I am the circle. I am the hole in the doughnut. I would be nothing without the Lord. My breath, my brains, my hearing, my sight, my locomotion, my everything depends upon the Lord. That is the first step and then we pray, and pray often, and we will not get up from our knees until we have communicated. The line may be down; we may have let it fall to pieces, but I will not get up from my knees until I have established communication—if it is twenty minutes, if it is all night like Enos. . . . If it takes all day long, you stay on your knees until your unhumbleness has dissipated, until you feel the humble spirit and realize, “I could die this minute if it were not for the Lord’s good grace. I am dependent upon him—totally dependent upon him.” [TSWK pp. 233–34]

Elder Neal A. Maxwell expounded on the topic of meekness during a BYU devotional in 1986:

Meanwhile, the world regards the meek as nice but quaint people, as those to be stepped over or stepped on. Nevertheless, the development of this virtue is a stunning thing just to contemplate, especially in a world in which so many others are headed in opposite directions. These next requirements clearly show the unarguable relevance as well as the stern substance of this sweet virtue.

Serious disciples are not only urged to do good but also to avoid growing weary of doing good (see Galatians 6:9 and Helaman 10:5).

They are not only urged to speak the truth but also to speak the truth in love (see Ephe-sians 4:15).

They are not only urged to endure all things but also to endure them well (see D&C 121:8).

They are not only urged to be devoted to God's cause but also to be prepared to sacrifice all things, giving, if necessary, the last full measure of devotion (see Lectures on Faith 6:7).

They are not only to do many things of worth but are also to focus on the weightier matters, the things of most worth (see Matthew 23:23).

They are not only urged to forgive but also to forgive seventy times seven (see Matthew 18:21–22).

They are not only to be engaged in good causes, but also they are to be "anxiously engaged" (see D&C 58:27).

They are not only to do right but also to do right for the right reasons.

They are told to get on the strait and narrow path, but then are told that this is only the beginning, not the end (see 2 Nephi 31:19–20).

They are not only to endure enemies but also to pray for them and to love them (see Matthew 5:44).

They are urged not only to worship God but, astoundingly, they are instructed to strive to become like him! (See Matthew 5:48; 3 Nephi 12:48, 27:27.)

In the midst of all these things," they are given a Sabbath day for rest, during which they do the sweetest but often the hardest work of all.

Who else but the truly meek would even consider such a stretching journey?


Lesson given by Cassi Campbell, based on Elder Soares' General Conference Talk, Be Meek and Lowly of Heart.