9th Ward Elders

Elders,

Good morning! It is just another beautiful day here in the Highlands. These are the best days of the summer, when you can sleep with the windows open with a slight cool breeze. You have an anticipation of the heat to come but for now the evenings are so pleasant.

This past Sunday was tumultuous. We had a beautiful sacrament service as we learned and felt the events that the youth and leaders experienced during youth conference. As difficult as the situation was, I believe that everyone is coming through it with a deeper reverence for the forces of nature and a stronger bond of unity and a testimony of miracles. The darkness has turned to day and both Scott and Chloe are recovering so quickly. Chloe was home last Saturday and Scott could be home as early as today. 

We had a great lesson and discussion in our quorum meeting as well. Ken led us as we talked about President Nelson’s talk “We can do better and be better”. We had so many great comments and ideas. Members suggested multiple different points of view that I had not considered. I came away better for the discussion. 

We talked through how the word repent and repentance has such a strong and powerful feeling of being punitive. It brings up negative thoughts, feelings, and images. The word has dark overtones that we all seem to fall into. It is really about an invitation to change and to improve. It isn’t a demand for perfection or a terminal sentence. It is a process that we can go through to become a little more like our Heavenly Father.

Ken posed the question “What does repentance look like on a daily basis?” There were lots of comments and insights. If you’ll indulge me, I’ll share mine.

I am a software engineer by trade and one of the patterns that we follow is Agile-Scrum. This is a way of time boxing your work and efforts so that (in theory) at the end of every Scrum (usually 2 or 4 weeks) you know you have worked on the most important pieces of the project and have something that is delivered and could potentially be deployed. Inside of the Scrum you have various “ceremonies” that you participate in as part of the development process. You have a daily standup, sprint planning, backlog grooming, sprint review, and sprint retrospectives. These ceremonies enable the process to be self-sustaining and continuously improving.

We can take a look at this from a spiritual perspective. We have a one week sprint that culminates in our opportunity to take the sacrament each week. It gives us a time to review and reflect (sprint review and retrospective) on our week and think about the successes and how we might do things better. Each day we get to have a daily standup which for me is an opportunity to say what happened yesterday, what I’m planning on today, and what is in my way. For me, it is in studying the scriptures and prayer where this occurs. And for me this is what daily repentance looks like. It is the quick daily checkin, discussion, and plan that I have with God. It isn’t that I don’t have big things to deal with and big issues that I need to work on, but those elephants in my life  can be broken down into elephant carpaccio and the changes can occur in small ways every day.

Maybe this is just the software engineer geek in me coming out, but I see this process of continuous improvement working not just in software design and development, but in my life as well and the daily small wins and conversations help me “do better and be better”.

This Sunday is a 5th Sunday and we’ll join forces with the relief society and hear from the bishopric. They always have great things to share and things to teach us. I hope to see you all there.

It is a privilege to get to rub shoulders with each of you. I learn so much by your examples. Thank you for being men of God and worthy holders of his priesthood. You are great men.

Enjoy the rest of your week!

President Oldroyd
801-573-6828

Elders,

Hello from from sunny, muggy, hot Louisianna. I’m down here on business and had an opportunity to enjoy a real crawfish bol (not boil). It was quite an experience. The good people down here are very welcoming and kind. I hate being away from home and in the sweltering heat, but the sleepy town of Baton Rouge right next to the Mississippi isn’t all that bad.

We continue to hear good and positive news from our heart patients. Pam Oka’s surgery went well and she’ll be in the hospital for about a week. Brad Woolley is making steady progress as well. We are 2 for 2 on heart surgeries this month. We are grateful for skilled doctors and nurses, faith, and prayers that are so needful in situations like this.

This week in Come Follow Me, I’ll have to admit, I haven’t been able to study and read. My work has drained me – from the redeye flight Sunday night until now there has been very little stopping or sleeping. I was going to just crash on the bed tonight and not create the message this week, but I am glad that I made an effort to study. The rewards are great. This week’s study is about the final hours of our Savior’s life. It includes the mockings, trials, scourgings, and ultimately the crucifixion. There is a lot there to make us sad or frustrated. On the other hand it can give us hope as well. We see great examples of charity and love from the Savior even during this impossible situation.

One scripture that was called out in the manual is Mark 15:39 and the question associated with it is “How has reading about the Crucifixion strengthened our testimonies that Jesus is the ‘Son of God’?” The scripture says: “And when the centurion  which stood over against him , saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God”. 

As difficult and dark as that experience was, the spirit and power of Jesus Christ was able to reach out and touch the heart of this roman guard. My heart too was touched by reading even just a bit of the account. I can testify with the centurion that Jesus is the Son of God and the atonement of Jesus Christ allows us to anchor ourselves to God and His son. 

The scriptures are powerful witnesses and testimonies of the Savior. I hope that you can make the time; take the time, to follow the Come Follow Me outlines. They are a fantastic way to study and learn more about the relationship that Jesus has with our Heavenly Father and the relationship that we can have too. Even a little bit of studying is inspirational, uplifting, and testimony building.

This Sunday Ken will be teaching us from President Nelson’s conference talk: “We Can Do Better and Be Better”  https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2019/04/36nelson?lang=eng I know it is a talk that has been mentioned frequently since conference, but I believe I still have nuggets of wisdom to gain from the talk and the process of counseling together over the talk seems to bring them out for me – and I thank you in advance for your comments and insights.

Thank you for your love and support. I quite often am reminded of my limitations and inadequacies, but I feel of your strength and it makes me a better person.

Thanks,

President Oldroyd
801-573-6828

P.S. Now I can go get some sleep.

Elders,

Wednesday just snuck up on me and as I checked my to-dos I realized that I had not written to you all yet. I don’t know if it is approaching the big 5-0 or what, but time just seems to accelerate faster and faster. Regardless, today was a beautiful day. I didn’t spend too much time outside but what time I had was perfect. I feel for Dan Dresser. He has been anointed the bicycle fixit specialist for all the missionaries (why missionaries can’t do simple bike repair is beyond me) and changing tires, tubes, adjusting brakes and cables. I spent a good while getting two of our bikes repaired and usable. One daughter has been riding her bike for several months and never told me that she had no brakes until she couldn’t pump up her tire any longer so as I replaced the tube, I checked the brakes and both were so worn down they couldn’t grip. It was fun to get a chance to be the fix-it hero instead of Wreck-it-Ralph.

In quorum we talked about the Atonement of Jesus Christ and how it related to the three gardens – the garden of Eden, Garden of Gethsemane, and the Garden Tomb. We talked about how we worship God the Father through his Son and our brother Jesus Christ. We also talked about how the Atonement of Jesus Christ descends below anything we may have done in our lives and clears the way for us to throw off that burden and come alive in our Savior. I felt like we had a good and lively discussion. I love the heart of John Haberle.

Yesterday (Tuesday) Brad Woolley had his surgery. From all signs he is doing very well. There are concerns but nothing out of the normal range. You can follow his recovery at a blog that Marlene setup to convey such information: https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/everyonelovesbradleyp

Next week Pam Oka undergoes heart surgery as well.

Elders – thank you for your fasting and prayers on their behalf as well as the other kind things you do. This Sunday is Come Follow Me: Matt 26, Mark 14, Luke 22, and John 18. All of the gospels talk about the last supper and the subsequent events in the Garden of Gethsemane. Reading the different accounts of the same event one right after another has been eye opening and thought provoking. I love the image of an angel coming to strengthen Jesus Christ in his time of greatest agony and sorrow. I think of the sleeping apostles, of the valiant but boastful Peter… There are so many great things, characters, and lessons in these chapters, I encourage you to drink deep.

Thank you for taking care of each other and for being the great men that you are.

Father’s day is Sunday – that doesn’t mean you sleep in later than noon and skip church. Come on over and show gratitude to your Heavenly Father. 

See you soon,

President Oldroyd
801-573-6828

Elders,

Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers this past weekend on fast Sunday. We have many brothers and sisters suffering in several ways. Your efforts to “bear one another’s burdens… mourn with those who mourn, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort” make a big difference. 

In my Come Follow Me studies this week I came across something I hadn’t noticed before. In John 15 Jesus teaches that he is the vine and we are the branches. He continues to teach that branches can’t bear fruit without vine. And then in verse 7 he says: “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, yes shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” There is a foot note on the first “abide” that points to problem-solving in the topical guide. Problem solving? Huh? At first it didn’t seem to fit in my head, but then it started to sink in.

What if abiding in Jesus really is ultimately a lesson in problem-solving? Often, we think of the gospel as a single thing, or maybe a defined – rigid set of steps. What if it really is more of an individual learning exercise where we learn through study, experimentation, example, and sometimes failure? – solving problems? I think that the Savior is inviting us to develop a deep and very personal relationship with him in a very personal and individual way. He then gives us a couple of leads to follow to help us get going on developing our relationship. Verse 10 talks about keeping the commandments. Verse 12 talks about loving and ministering to others. Verse 14 instructs us to become friends with Him.

There’s plenty of food for thought here in John 15. I hope that you enjoy digging into this chapter and would welcome any insights that you would like to share.

This week John Haberle will lead our lesson. We’ll be discussing the talk by Brother Callister – The Atonement of Jesus Christ ( https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2019/04/45callister?lang=eng ). I encourage you to read it and come ready to share your insights into the Atonement and how we can apply it in our and our family’s lives.

Have a fantastic rest of the week. Let’s meet on Sunday.

Thanks,

President Oldroyd
801-573-6828

Elders,

Welcome to Wednesday. I hope that you had a great Memorial Day weekend. It was great to be back in quorum last Sunday. Ken led us in a wonderful lesson as we talked about how our homes are like castles and what we can do to fortify them and deal with the invaders that are diligently trying to storm through and destroy us. If you didn’t get a chance to read Elder Rasband’s talk “Build a Fortress of Spirituality and Protection”, take a few minutes and feel the spirit of his message and testimony.

We have a service opportunity this Saturday. We are looking for a couple of Elders to come down to Camp Haven (about 2 hours away) and help clear the road of branches. If you could spare several hours this Saturday, I’d really appreciate your support. It starts at 8:00 am and ends in the afternoon. Please let me know if you are available to help.

This week we are studying about preparing ourselves for the future and the prophesies of the Second Coming. Whether it is preparing like the wise virgins – filling the oil in our lamps one drop at a time, building up our fortress walls like Captain Moroni,  or taking our “talents” and multiplying them – we have a responsibility to prepare and make the best out of our time here on earth. I really appreciate all that you all do to help our quorum, ward, and community be a better place. 

Elders, there are many in the ward and neighborhood that are struggling. As we prepare for fast Sunday this coming Sabbath, please take a moment to consider who you can fast and pray for specifically. Your specific fasting, faith, and prayers will go a long way to helping to lighten the burdens of those in our midst – especially if we don’t just fast and pray, but also listen and then act on the promptings we receive.

Thanks for your friendship. You are all great men. Please let me know if there is anything that the quorum can do to help you and your family.

See you on Sunday,

President Oldroyd
801-573-6828

Elders,

First off, I want to apologize for missing the past two weeks. I had good intentions but things just didn’t work out. Between vacation and a work trip my time just disappeared. This weekend is the Memorial Day weekend. It is traditionally the start of summer and many times we gloss over the meaning of Memorial Day. It was first observed  in May 1868 to celebrate the sacrifices of the Civil War. In 1971 it was made a national holiday. We celebrate all of those that paid the ultimate price in the service of our country. I hope that during the weekend you find some time to talk to your family about why we celebrate Memorial Day. I encourage you to take 10 minutes to listen to this presentation called “Remember Me” by Jocko Willink a decorated hero, author, and podcaster. https://youtu.be/8c_MxHNOUmE

This last Sunday Nick taught us in Sunday School about the parable of the laborers. He shared portions of Elder Holland’s talk from the April 2012 conference https://www.lds.org/study/general-conference/2012/04/the-laborers-in-the-vineyard?lang=eng. It is a beautiful parable about the love God has for each of us and that no matter where we are on the covenant path – even if we don’t think we can even see it from where we are – that he loves us and is anxious to apply the atonement in our lives – to heal us – to purify us – to make us better men, husbands and fathers. 

I was studying this morning and found myself wrapped up in the story of Mary and Martha. This is part 3 of the story. The scene was a dinner at the home of Lazarus just a few days before Jesus was crucified. I’m sure that his upcoming ordeal weighed heavily upon Jesus. He was there with his apostles. He had previously told his apostles that he was soon to be killed, but they hadn’t internalized that yet. They thought Jesus was invincible and that surely he would not lose his life. Mary had heard the same message. She believed and she acted to show her love and acceptance of Jesus as her king and savior. She took an incredibly expensive box of nard (perfume) and anointed his feet with the oil and washed his feet with her hair. It is a deeply touching and symbolic scene of love, devotion, and faith on the part of Mary. Jesus recognized her gift and prophesied that “Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her.” (Mark 14:9) It begs the question for each of us – How do we show our love and devotion to the Lord? 

This coming Sunday our lesson in quorum will be led by Ken on the talk from Elder Rasband in the last conference titled: Build a Fortress of Spirituality and Protection https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2019/04/56rasband?lang=eng

We also have 2 service opportunities coming up soon. If you can help with either one, please let a member of the quorum presidency know. The opportunities are: 

June 1 – Camp Haven day of service. It is at our stake’s property near Indianola. It starts at 8:00am and will run for a good portion of the day. We’ll be cutting back branches from the road and putting them through the chipper. We need a couple of men for this one. If you can spare a Saturday, please let us know.

July 29th – Aug 4th to clean the Jordan River Temple each night from 10-12:30 am. While it isn’t until the end of July, we are being asked to turn in our roster by the first of June. Cleaning the temple is a pretty awesome experience. If you haven’t done it (or it has been a while) and you have a current recommend, I encourage you to take advantage of the opportunity.

A final reminder – We are asking everyone to take a ward survey. The leadership of the ward would like to get a pulse on the ward and get anonymous feedback on what we can do to make your church experience more meaningful. If you haven’t already taken the survey please follow this link and take the survey. http://bit.ly/w9survey

Men, life is great. You play an important role in your family and in our ward family. Thank you for being an example for me and my family. 

See you on Sunday!

President Oldroyd
801-573-6828

Elders,

Tomorrow (Thur) is our Elder’s Quorum activity over at the clubhouse. Mildred Barlow is going to share “Her Life, Laughter, & Learning”. The dinner and program will be at the clubhouse at 7:00pm. Please contact either Doug Moore 801-231-2636 or Scott DuVall 801-808-6505 if you have any questions. Hope that you and your better half are able to join us. I wish that I could be there but I have another engagement.

Last Sunday we were able to have a discussion around temple and family history with the Relief Society. Nick Bassett led the discussion and challenged us to do something today. It could be something as simple as getting your churchofjesuschrist.org / familysearch.org account setup. It could be taking 10 minutes to do a quick batch of indexing (that is what I did). Or, just downloading the familysearch tree app on your phone. There are so many simple little things you can do. I hope that you’ll take the challenge and do a little something today. 

At our house we had several extended family members in from out of town. As we talked over dinner tonight, we ended up in a long discussion around family histories, telling stories, and sharing the familysearch tree application. Our extended family would rather do pretty much anything other than talk about church or go to church, but there we were – talking all about our family tree and what it will be like to get to know them and their “actual” stories once we meet again in heaven. It was a great way to talk about important things and build relationships.

This Sunday we’ll have a Sunday School – Come Follow Me lesson on Matthew 18, Luke 10, and John 7-10. I don’t want to impose on Kris’ lesson, but I really loved studying John 9 this morning about Jesus healing a blind man on the sabbath. I had a couple of insights that I hadn’t thought of previously. Maybe I’ll write about it a little next week if we don’t get to discuss it on Sunday.

Thank you for making “Sunday Snacks” a big success. Thank you for coming and sharing your treats and conversation. It was a great afternoon. I hope you all enjoyed it. We’ll organize another one soon. Let me know if you have any suggestions on how to make it even better.

Thank you for being great men. I appreciate all the good you do.

Thanks,

President Oldroyd
801-573-6828

Elders,

Here we are again. I just finished listening to the Jazz lose to Houston in the NBA playoffs. It is never easy to see your team’s season end. The speculating can begin as to whether or not the season was a success or not. The talking heads will talk and debate over every trivial thing. Some will say that Jazz are better than last year and others will point out that they went out of the playoffs earlier than last year so the season is a failure. We need more shooters, more X, Y, and Z. It seems to be what we do best…

Last Sunday in Sunday School – and throughout all last week, we celebrated the final week of our Savior’s life. There were scenes that were exciting and cheerful. Some were painful and poignant. Others were distressing and depressing. In the end He truly was crucified and three days later arose from the grave – the “firstfruits of them that slept”. He became our Savior and Redeemer. He paid the price that nobody else was capable of. He did it for you, for me, for everyone.

What is interesting is that just like the end of the season for the Jazz, the Savior’s life was scrutinized and dissected. There were those that believed in the resurrection and the good news and saw the Savior’s life as a success. Others criticized him for pushing too hard, going too far to disrupt, and throwing his life away. Others saw him as a fake and fraud as well. Throughout the intervening 2000 years, the talking heads haven’t stopped speaking. They search to prove by intellect and reason any number of theories concerning the Savior.

What are we to do? There are so many conflicting opinions and messages. We are inundated by “information”. Jesus gave the answer himself. He said to “Come follow me” and do the things he said / did. As we do the things he said and try to develop a relationship with Him, we will come to know him, find true happiness and joy, and ultimately receive life eternal. He sent the comforter to “teach us all things”. We need to use all our faculties to answer the questions we have, but also add the Holy Ghost into the mix. We can feel and know the truth about the Savior despite all the noise and confusion.

Was the Jazz season a success? I don’t know. It was fun. I think they made progress, but have a ways to go. Was Jesus all that he and his followers claimed? Yes, he was that and more. I’m grateful for my testimony of his life and mission. My relationship with him is growing and I couldn’t be happier. Ultimately, this Jazz season will fade and forgotten but I hope that my feelings for the Savior never fade or dim – that I can continue to grow my relationship with him.

This Sunday we get to hear from Nick Bassett, not as Gospel Doctrine teacher, but as our Ward Temple and Family History Leader. He is going to help motivate and instruct us in the possibilities of Family History. Come hungry to learn about Family History. It will be a great discussion and learning opportunity.

ALSO, after the block on Sunday (28th) we will have “Sunday Snacks”. Bring a simple treat to share and spend some time with friends and neighbors in the cultural hall. It will be a fun opportunity to meet some of our newer neighbors and strengthen ties with long-time friends. 

May 2nd we have an Elder’s Quorum activity over at the clubhouse. Mildred Barlow is going to share “Her Life, Laughter, & Learning”. The dinner and program will be at the clubhouse Thursday at 7:00pm. Please contact either Doug Moore 801-231-2636 or Scott DuVall 801-808-6505 to RSVP and get a food assignment.

There are many in our quorum with challenges and problems – health and otherwise. Use your skills as priesthood holders and ministers to lift and bless the lives of those around you. Pray for them. Minister to them.

Thank you for all you do. We have a wonderful quorum. You Elders are the best.

Thanks,

President Oldroyd
801-573-6828

Elders,

We have a few days of great weather, but as I sit here and write this, the Jazz are getting blown out of the building for the second time in a row. It may not be a sweep, but if very easily could. Hopefully things turn around soon.

Wasn’t Stake Conference great? I miss partaking of the sacrament, but back to back weeks of conference were good too. There are many things to reflect on and many things to be thankful for.

This Sunday is Easter. I hope that you are enjoying the Holy Week. We are following along with the last week of events in the Savior’s life. Take a look at https://www.mormon.org/easter and follow along. It is a nice addition to our Come Follow Me curriculum and helps to pace the final events in the Savior’s mortal life. On Easter Sunday, I encourage you to come to our Sacrament meeting hungry, not only to partake of the ordinance of the Sacrament, but to be filled with a beautiful Easter message as well. Bring your family. Bring your friends. Share the good news of our Savior’s Resurrection and love.

In Stake Conference, President Williams highlighted the “prophetic imperatives” that President Nelson has shared in his tenure as President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Depending on how you count there were nearly 20 imperatives with at least a third of them repeated several times. They are all worth discovering and studying. President Barlow took that list and narrowed it down to 4 imperatives that we as a stake should rally around.

1. Draw the power of Jesus Christ into our lives – get to know the Savior better
2. Prayerfully study the Book of Mormon each day. A chapter, verse, or word – whatever you can do, just make it a daily habit.
3. Be in the temple on a regular basis – Make and keep an appointment with the Lord, he will bring you the miracles he knows that you need
4. Evaluate where you spend your time – Where is your heart? Where is your energy spent? What should you shift around to align our time with our priorities?

I hope that you will review these imperatives and decide out how to incorporate them into your lives. I believe that our lives will be blessed as we follow the words of our prophet.

Elders, you are great men and I appreciate you and the efforts you make to do better and be better. Please let me know if there is anything I can help you with. We are all in this together.

Thanks again. We’ll see you at noon on Easter.

Best wishes,

President Oldroyd
801-573-6828

Elders,

Wow, who dialed up the winter weather all of a sudden? One of the news stations mentioned that this was one of the wettest starts to a new year in a long time – maybe even record-setting (I was at the gym on a treadmill at the time and only saw parts of the closed-captioning as I huffed and puffed my way along).

What a fantastic conference weekend it was. I hope that you were as inspired by the messages as I was. We were all anxiously waiting “the next big change” and it occurred to me that the big change needs to be me. From reverence in the chapel, to honoring the sacrament, to being a better __ , to missionary work, to deepening my understanding of the atonement, to keeping to the covenant path, to better follow Him… I need to be the next thing that changes and makes a difference. We all do. Individually. One by one.

While it is hard to say which talk was more impactful than others, one that certainly stood out to me was President Nelson’s talk in the Priesthood session ( https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2019/04/36nelson?lang=eng  ) I can’t wait to discuss this with all of you in a quorum setting but since that wont happen for a few weeks, I wanted to share a couple of my thoughts. When I first heard the talk, I thought it was all about needing to repent – and repent all the time. He went to great pains to explain that repentance is a process, but it somehow still felt punitive. As I listened to it over a few times that feeling went away however. The talk (for me) is about being a little better each day. He says “Brethren, we need to do better and be better because we are in a battle.” I love the imagery of a battle. Some of the ways we need to do better and be better include how we treat our bodies (cheeseburger anyone?), our wives, and the priesthood responsibility we bear. 

Every time after I come home from the priesthood session Kris asks me if they told me that I had to love her. Most times the answer is kinda, or yes – this time it was an emphatic yes. Elders, our wives and children need us to step up and be better men. We need to be real men that are full of love and priesthood power and not just nice guys that occasionally do the dishes without being asked. They need our time, attention, respect, partnership, and love.

I can’t express it better than President Nelson. He says:  

“The Lord needs selfless men who put the welfare of others ahead of their own. He needs men who intentionally work to hear the voice of the Spirit with clarity. He needs men of the covenant who keep their covenants with integrity. He needs men who are determined to keep themselves sexually pure—worthy men who can be called upon at a moment’s notice to give blessings with pure hearts, clean minds, and willing hands. The Lord needs men eager to repent—men with a zeal to serve and be part of the Lord’s battalion of worthy priesthood bearers.“

President Nelson

Those are some powerful words. What can you do TODAY to do better or be better? I’d love to hear from each of you. A quick email reply or SMS is all it takes. What will you do?

Just a reminder that this Sunday is Stake Conference. The Saturday evening session (always worth it) is at 7:00pm at the Stake Center. The Sunday session is at 10:00am at any of the stake buildings. Don’t show up at our normal starting time, you will have missed it. Lol.

Just writing this email has got me fired up. I hope that you catch the spirit and passion that I feel for General Conference and the gospel of Jesus Christ. Stake Conference will be great as well. I hope to see you there.

Elders, I love being part of our quorum. Thanks for your participation and testimonies. You are great men. Don’t forget to write and let me know what you are going to do today to be better.

Get after it,

President Oldroyd
801-573-6828