2019 Mutual Theme Announced

Hello again, everyone! In a letter from the Young Men and Young Women General Presidencies which was sent to leaders around the world, the 2019 Mutual Theme was announced. The theme comes from the words of the Savior in John 14:15, which reads: "If ye love me, keep my commandments." A simple and concise yet powerful injunction, which the leaders hope the youth will keep in mind this year as activities are planned and carried out, and as the Come, Follow Me curriculum is discussed every Sunday. You can read more about this development here.

Two additional Church News stories are significant as well. This one highlights remarks from BYU professor Lori L. Wadsworth, who highlighted 7 ways each of us can recognize the divinity of others. C. S. Lewis, in his "The Weight of Glory", was quoted as saying "It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which,if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship." It is a wonderful thought that each of us has a divine nature, heritage, and potential, and the remarks shared during this devotional exemplify these principles.

For those of us who are Church members, we either directly know someone or know someone who knows someone who has, through no fault of their own, had to come home early from their missionary service. One such individual, now a player for an NFL team, shared his experience in that regard, and some insights into how all of us can help such individuals.

I continue to monitor all Church news and temple updates and will pass those along to you all as I receive word of them. I should also note that I am still working on combining the two lists of temple locations, and once I get that done (within the next 2-3 days or so), I will publish that here, so stay tuned for that.

That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed about newly-added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Miscellaneous Church and Temple News

Hello again, everyone! I am posting again now to pass along miscellaneous Church and temple news. First, regarding temples, I wanted to report that the LDS Church Temples site, which had a massive data loss earlier this year, continues its' restoration process. The updated estimate for when the site might be up and running again is now listed for September. As we continue to unite our prayers in behalf of all of those working on this issue, hopefully it will again be available sooner rather than later.

Next, the updates from the Church News. This article reports on the sacrifices made by Saints in Brazil to reach the first temple in that nation (which was located in Sao Paulo), and talks about how temples have since started dotting that nation. With 6 in operation, 2 under construction, and 2 others announced, and other potential locations have become a real possibility.

I currently have 4 Brazilian candidates on my list for the near future, namely: Belo Horizonte, Salvador, Florianopolis, and a second in the Sao Paulo area).  Thanks to the increase in the number of temples in that nation, hose Saints no longer have to make great sacrifices to attend the temple., and the first South American apostle, Elder Ulisses Soares, comes from Brazil.

As I have previously observed, the Lord seems to be mindful of Brazil, and of how valuable that nation has been in increasing the strength of the Church worldwide in many ways. I am sure we will certainly see many other Brazilian temples announced in the not-too-distant future, and that we might even see a day when the number of temples operating in Brazil matches or exceeds the number of temples in Utah. It will be interesting to see in what manner and how swiftly all of that unfolds.

Salt Lake City, where the Church's worldwide headquarters is located, is home to many "hidden jewels and gems" which are popular attractions for those who are visiting the city, whether for General Conference, the Lights on Temple Square during the Christmas season, or at other times. This article describes some of the most frequently-visited locations which fit that description.

And finally, the Church News again reported on "Mormon Night with the Angels", which is a Monday night each July in which members and friends of the LDS Church are given a special opportunity to attend a baseball game for the Los Angeles Angels. The team gives an invitation for  the Church to have one of its' leaders throw out the ceremonial first pitch. This year, Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles had that honor, which  you can read more about here.

I continue to monitor all temple and Church news and will do my level best to bring word of those to you ASAP after I become aware of these developments. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly-added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Two Additional Church News Stories Reported

Hello again, everyone! I am back yet again, this time to cover two additional Church news stories which have been published within the last 10 hours or less. The Church News again continues to highlight landmark and significant addresses from Church leaders in their "From the Vault" Series. The focus of this week's article was on an address given by then-Elder Gordon B. Hinckley of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in October 1974 on the campus of BYU-Provo. Although President Hinckley's foremost legacy was his smaller temple-building program, which more than doubled the number of temples in the period of a few short years, he was also well-known as an eternal optimist.

In his aforementioned address, he spoke about how important optimism can be in our daily lives. He also talked about how being pessimistic, especially about things that are outside our ability to control, can dampen our spirits and weigh us down. By focusing on the positive (which does not necessarily mean ignoring the negative, bur rather not letting the good in our lives be outweighed by the bad, difficult, or challenging things), our lives take on a richer quality, and we are better equipped to deal with the hard times when they come. Both the summary of his address and the address itself are well worthy of your time.

The second and final new item I wanted to report on was how two "native sons of St. George", Elders Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and Steven E. Snow, Church Historian and Recorder, who is a General Authority Seventy, traveled "back home" to St. George this weekend for the rededication of the St. George Tabernacle. Also in attendance was Bishop Dean M. Davies, First Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric, who had a supervisory role in the tabernacle's renovation process. The Church News summary can find found here, with a more complete summary provided by the Deseret News here.

I continue to monitor all Church news and temple developments and will do my level best to bring word of those to you as I receive them. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to do so, please feel free to subscribe to stay informed of new content. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.