Month: February 2020

Elders,

Happy Thursday. Tomorrow is Valentine’s day. It’s not too late to redeem yourself. 

I have really been enjoying the Come Follow Me for this year. I have found a number of great podcasts that follow along with the curriculum. It has been a lot of fun to hear so many different ideas about the material we are studying. There are some really smart people out there with great insights into the scriptures and the gospel. I have even found myself enjoying some of the Isaiah chapters.

I was talking with a good friend this week and we were discussing ministering and how we each interpret it maybe a little differently. We talked about what our responsibility is and and what we think God expects of us. We ended up talking a bit about Alma and his great “Oh that I were an angel” discourse in Alma 29. Here Alma desires with all of his heart to obliterate sorrow. He says at the end of verse 2 “…that there might not be more sorrow upon all the face of the earth.” This is what ministering should be – to help remove sorrow. Physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually we all want to help others reduce sorrow in all the facets of their lives. Ministers don’t just go through a pre-conceived checklist of actions that sound like good ideas, they help remove sorrow. Each of us has needs and these can change frequently. Ministers need to see the need and help fill the need – in whatever facet of their life is needed.
 
I’m glad that the formal reporting and checking off of the list is removed from Home Teaching. The training wheels are off. We now need to seek through the spirit what we can do for each person we are assigned to. This forces us to get to know our families on a deeper level. I believe that God will help us in our efforts to truly love and serve his children. We can also reach out to those assigned to us and talk about what we need. It is the hardest thing in the world to do, but it can open up doors of friendship that we never would have imagined.

As we mentioned in quorum, we have made some changes to our assignments. Please review your assignment in the Member Tools app – or on the church’s website. A member of the presidency will also be getting you your slip of paper with your assignment on it as well. If there are changes that need to be made, please talk to one of the presidency members and we can adjust as needed.

We had a great lesson in quorum this past Sunday. Brother Barlow talked about general authorities, God’s plan, and what we know and don’t know about the life that follows our mortal life. The discussion was good and I really appreciated getting to talk and discuss some hard questions. I appreciate the openness and vulnerability. It led to a great discussion. I was a better man after our lesson. Thank you for sharing and contributing. 

If you are traveling this President’s day weekend then please be safe. If not, I hope to see you on Sunday. I love you men and am grateful to be with you. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help make our quorum stronger or more enjoyable.

Best wishes,

President Oldroyd
801-573-6828