Lupe's Notes - Sep 9, 2012

  Good afternoon sisters, didn't the young women do a great job with their musical number?

THOUGHT: The Lord has given us commandments so that we can resist evil and find happiness”

George Albert Smith

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

1. Reminder about Donna Larsen. Her family is very appreciative of your visits to Donna and ask that you would continue to do so this week. She is at the Orem Rehab Center 575 E 1400 S in Orem. Please call before you head out to make sure she will be in her room. 801-225-4741. While there you might want to also visit Amy Waldron's mother, even though she may not know who you are, she'll feel of your spirit. Her name is Lu Jones, room 113.
2. Thursday, Sept. 13^th at 7 pm in the RS Room: Preparedness Specialist, Jed Norwood will share his vast knowledge with the sisters and brethren. He will focus on 8 different categories: Water storage, forage, and conservation; Fuel storage, forage, and conservation; Sanitation; 30 day vs. 72 Hr. kits; Using resources properly; Using herbs in an emergency; Biological/nuclear contamination and Pioneering skills for today. Come with questions!
3. Stake Conference, Saturday night session at 6 pm on the 15^th. Note change of time.
4. Regional Conference, Sunday the 16^th at 10:00 am.
5. Brigham City Temple dedication September 23^rd. We are asked to attend the 9 am session if possible.
6. General RS Broadcast on Sat., September 29^th at 6 pm at the Stake Center with an Ice Cream social to follow the broadcast. Sisters, please let your RS President know whether you prefer the soup dinner before the broadcast or the ice cream social afterward.
7. We have a Mt. Timpanogos Utah Temple Cleaning Assignment on Monday, Oct., 1, from 8:00 am to Noon. We need one more sister. You can contact me lupellee@yahoo.com
8. Don't forget to visit our RS Blog. Http://manila12thwardrs.blogspot.com It has RS news and Activities, Preparedness info, recipes, Missionary addresses & links to their blogs, Lupe's notes from past lessons and more!
9. Empty Nesters – tomorrow night at Sorena and Chuck DeWitt's home, at 7 pm.

BIRTHDAYS: Sept. 11^th – Tiffany W.; Sept. 13^th – Kay J.; Sept., 22^nd – Rachelle F.; Sept., 23^rd – Lynette A. Happy birthday to you - Enjoy your day.

Our lesson today was presented by Pat Heaton, our new teacher. Lesson # 18 “Stay on the Lord's Side of the Line”, from the George Albert Smith Manual.

She wrote on the board:

Stay on the Lord's Side of the Line

Commandments = help us resist Evil – find happiness

It's good to be back with you sister, although I would much rather have Amy be here and I there. But this is the way of the church, callings and releases.

This lesson is such an important one; it's as important as a gospel doctrine lesson As I read the title ad the material, a poem came to my mind. I used to know by heart when I taught the young women, but I will read. I'm sure that many of you are familiar with it. It was written by Joseph Malins, entitled “A Fence or an Ambulance”. It fits perfectly with our Relief Society message. As I read it, see if you see a symbolism and analogy to the gospel. It does have lots of analogies to the gospel.

A Fence or an Ambulance by Joseph Malins

 ‘Twas a dangerous cliff, as they freely confessed,

Though to walk near its edge was so pleasant;

But over its terrible edge there had slipped

A duke and full many a peasant.

So the people said something would have to be done,

But their projects did not at all tally;

Some said, “Put a fence around the edge of the cliff,”

Some, “An ambulance down in the valley.”

But the cry for the ambulance carried the day,

For it spread through the neighboring city;

A fence may be useful or not, it is true,

But each heart became brimful of pity

For those who slipped over the dangerous cliff;

And the dwellers in highway and alley

Gave pounds or gave pence, not to put up a fence,

But an ambulance down in the valley.

“For the cliff is all right, if you’re careful,” they said,

“And if folks even slip and are dropping,

It isn’t the slipping that hurts them so much,

As the shock down below when they’re stopping.”

So day after day, as these mishaps occurred,

Quick forth would these rescuers sally

To pick up the victims who fell off of the cliff,

With the ambulance down in the valley.

Then an old sage remarked: “It’s a marvel to me

That people give far more attention

To repairing results than to stopping the cause,

When they’d much better aim at prevention.

Let us stop at its source all this mischief,” cried he,

“Come, neighbors and friends, let us rally;

If the cliff we will fence we might almost dispense

With the ambulance down in the valley.”

Oh, he’s a fanatic,” the others rejoined,

“Dispense with the ambulance? Never!

He’d dispense with all charities, too, if he could;

No! No! We’ll support them forever.

Aren’t we picking up folks just as fast as they fall?

And shall this man dictate to us? Shall he?

Why should people of sense stop to put up a fence,

While the ambulance works in the valley?”

But a sensible few, who are practical too,

Will not bear with such nonsense much longer;

They believe that prevention is better than cure,

And their party will soon be the stronger.

Encourage them then, with your purse, voice, and pen,

And while other philanthropists dally,

They will scorn all pretense and put up a stout fence

On the cliff that hangs over the valley.

Better guide well the young than reclaim them when old,

For the voice of true wisdom is calling,

“To rescue the fallen is good, but ‘tis best

To prevent other people from falling.”

Better close up the source of temptation and crime

Than deliver from dungeon or galley;

Better put a strong fence round the top of the cliff

Than an ambulance down in the valley.

Staying on the Lord's side of the line. There are lots of analogies. It is wisdom to put up a fence. Across the line are the tempter's arrows. In the gospel sense there is also need for an ambulance in the valley. The principles of repentance and forgiveness are available to us as an ambulance, therefore, we have need for both.

Let's look at some of the teaching of George Albert Smith. Look for particular things as we read this. His grandfather's name was also George Albert and gave his grandson this counsel: “There is a line of demarcation well defined between the Lord's territory and the devil's territory. If you will stay on the Lord's side of the line you will be under his influence and will have no desire to do wrong; but if you cross to the devil's side of that line one inch you are in the tempter's power and if he is successful, you will not be able to think or even reason properly because you will have lost the Spirit of the Lord, “

I think there is an important principle to discuss. “You will not be able to think or even reason properly because you will have lost the Spirit of the Lord.”

Have any of you had the opportunity to try to talk to someone who is under the influence of alcohol or drugs? Have any of you try to reason with someone under those conditions? In any type of sin, can you reason righteously with them?

Lynette: Mental illness creates the same problem.

Robby: I have always taught my children to have a constant prayer. I would teach them that if they go over just a little bit – that there are no fence sitters – that if they go to the edge, it would create problems. One of my children, my daughter is in that situation. You just cannot talk to her about it. She is worse than her father who was an alcoholic. Can't reason with them.

The object of the lesson is to help us understand how important it is to stay o the Lord's side. If we start to move over, we begin to lose a little bit. The longer we stay on the other side, the more difficult it is to come back to the Lord's side. Prevention is better than the cure, but the cure is there.

Carol B: I was raised in a family of addicts. Because of that I became a co-dependent. I try to fix everyone. We lived about 50 miles from the bar, and I would go pick up my dad and take him home. When we would get there, mom would start screaming that she was going to divorce him if he didn't stop. The main thing that I am trying to say is that people become addicts, in a way. I'm addicted to fixing people. Satan has a way of telling us that this is how it is and we can't change. But we can.

Just like Joseph Malins says. But we have need for an ambulance because we do have a cure.

Jenny H: Are you saying that if we are an enabler, you are an addict?

Carol: We can try to fix people, but only the addict and God can help him.

Never underestimate the power of the Lord. I have on the board a principle that is very true. The Lord gives us mercy to be able to resist evil, to find happiness. To find happiness in life now and in eternity. I find that even among LDS people, this is a most difficult principle for adults to understand, much less children and teenagers. To them commandments means confinement and restrictions. These restrictions will keep them from happiness. This is Satan's prime deception in life. On the other hand, the prophet leads us to understand truth.

What are some examples of keeping the commandments and enjoy freedoms?

Karen M: When we are dishonest, we have to remember what we said in the past.

I have been Karen's visiting teacher and can tell you that she lives by that principle of honesty.

Jennifer Cirone: Obedience is the key to happiness and freedom. Obedience will give us freedom. If you deceive yourself, you can't move forward.

Lynette: Sherry Dew told about having to speak at a Conference on the Family and told how keeping the law of chastity freed her from getting venereal disease, unwanted pregnancy. She wasn't sure how the women would react to her speech, but afterward there were several women who came forward and gave her support.

Thank you. Listen to what George Albert Smith says: “All the happiness that has come to me and mine has been the result of trying to keep the commandments of God and of living to be worthy of the blessings that he has promised those who honor him and keep his commandments.”

In gospel doctrine class, we talked about this in Alma. The point was brought out that we are blessed for trying. The desires of our hearts are very important. If our works fall short, we will still reap the blessings. LDS women have a very difficult time with this concept. We are so much harder on ourselves because we know more of God then the world does. We don't want to settle for less than perfect, if in the process of striving, we don't meet our goals.

Amy W: I'm still thinking how so many of us have difficulty with obedience. Take my children. Half of them are really in tune, and will follow instructions. IN fact, too much to the point of reminding the other half. Then I have the others: my 7 year old daughter and my son. They don't seem to grasp the concept of obedience and of keeping the commandments. They agree that it is a good thing for other people but not them. I have concern for the next 10 years. It reminds me of Brother and Sister Smart (the older ones) who teach the Marriage class. They younger Brother Smart told how his father paid tithing before his baptism, but didn't now know how much that had to do with being baptized. I think having obeyed that law of tithing increased the blessing of the spirit which helped him decide to be baptized. I have kept the commandments as best as I can, have fasted in some part of my effort, ad the Lord is till blessing me because I have kept the commandments. I have done my best, even if the result is not neat, the power remains.

It is a difficult principle. A prophet once said “God doesn't balance his books in a day.” We see people who are still not doing good things, but are prospering. We need to remember that those are very temporary signs of happiness. The only thing that is permanent is the keeping of the commandments.

The adversary tries to lead us astray with his deceptions and subtleties. As we have studied the war chapters of the Book of Mormon we learned that we must know the enemy. The same with each one of us. We must know the enemy so that we are not caught us with him.

We watched the Olympics a few weeks ago and it was amazing to me that races can be decided in a 1/100^th of a second. Years back, it was impossible to determined who really had won and it was called a dead heat. As I was watching the swimming competition, the thought came to me that if our Savior had for 1/1,000,000^th of a second had impure thoughts or desires, He would have failed. He didn't.

Women, especially LDS women tend to get caught up with things that they think are doing wrong. This concerns me a lot. I was having a meal in the Temple cafeteria one day and one of the temple worker said to me that she felt she would never make it to the Celestial Kingdom. We didn't have time to discuss it any further though. Later, another sister said she had overheard the comment, and that she too had resigned herself to being in the Terrestrial Kingdom. She doesn't see herself in the Celestial Kingdom. That is a sin in our life, a prideful thing. It is like saying our Savior can save all, but He can't save me. It diminishes the power of the Atonement and the power of the Savior.

We think that Satan attacks us in our weakness, but Elder Dallin H Oaks tells us that Satan can also attack in our strengths. He gave a talk that was later published in the October 1994 Ensign.

“”Satan is a skillful imitator, and as genuine gospel truth is given the world in ever-increasing abundance, so he spreads the counterfeit coin of false doctrine.”

“”He attempts to distort and corrupt everything created for the good of man, sometimes by diluting that which is good, sometimes by camouflaging that which is evil. We generally think of Satan attacking us at our weakest spot.”

“But weakness is not our only vulnerability. Satan can also attack us where we think we are strong—in the very areas where we are proud of our strengths. He will approach us through the greatest talents and spiritual gifts we possess. If we are not wary, Satan can cause our spiritual downfall by corrupting us through our strengths as well as by exploiting our weaknesses.”

And when we don't give the Lord the credit.

I encourage you to go home and read the ways that Satan can attack us by using the methods that he uses. So do all in your power to stay on the Lord's side. Read our scriptures, pray daily and attend the Temple, we can be blessed to not fall into his traps. Don't be one of those who says that she is tired ob being told to read, prays. The sole purpose of doing these things on a daily basis is like putting on our seat belt, that protects us to a degree. These things that we do day to day arms us and protect us on a daily basis. It keeps us on the Lord's side. It helps us to be able to recognize when we have moved one inch from the Lord's side.

Our lesson for September 30^th will be Elder Neil L. Anderson “What Thinks Christ of Me?

Posted in: Lupe's Notes