Stokes Sounds Off

Search This Blog

Saturday, January 27, 2018

Update Provided for the Kinshasa DR Congo Temple

Hello again, everyone! With the research I did to verify the closure of the Baton Rouge Louisiana Temple, it slipped my mind until now that I had found another update on the construction process for the Kinshasa DR Congo Temple. Let's talk about what has changed.

I last provided an update on that temple just four days ago. At that time, I noted that hard landscaping was making progress and that the paint being applied to the exterior of the temple was nearing its completion.

While the process of painting the exterior white has not yet fully completed, it has made progress. Roof shingles are also being laid, while the hard landscaping continues to progress as well. The final update to this temple's status is that the ceiling ductwork is being installed. It was wonderful to learn of those updates.

As with everything else related to Church and temple news, I continue to keep my eyes open for developments on any front and I will continue to do my level best to bring those to you all as I become aware of 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. 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.

Baton Rouge Louisiana Temple Closes For Renovation

Hello again, everyone! I wanted to post here again to confirm that the Baton Rouge Louisiana Temple has (or shortly will be) closed for its' renovation process. Its' last endowment session was scheduled for 1:00 PM today Louisiana time, and since that was almost 3 hours ago. it seems safe to assume it has since closed.

After consulting the many sources to which I look for temple-related information, it would appear that that temple is anticipated to be rededicated in mid-2019, rather than mid-to-late 2019 as I originally projected.

What that means is that the revised estimate for that rededication which I recently provided (mid-September) may or may not need to be changed based on how quickly this process moves along. It will be interesting to see what happens in that regard.

I am grateful to have been able to share this news with you all. You can depend on my continuing to monitor all temple-related developments and on my bringing those to you here as soon as I can after learning of 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. 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.

Elder Christofferson Provides Counsel About Truth to Seminary and Institute Instructors Worldwide

Hello again, everyone! This crossed my radar several hours ago, but I had to delay posting about it for several hours. Yesterday (Friday January 26), Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles provided counsel about truth to seminary and institute instructors in a broadcast that was carried worldwide. You can find a summary of his address here, and it is well worth the read, so I definitely recommend it to you all.

That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. 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.

BREAKING NEWS: Elder Von G. Keetch Passes Away at age 57

Hello again, everyone! I am saddened by some late breaking news of which I just became aware. Elder Von G. Keetch, who was called as a General Authority Seventy in April 2015, has passed away as the result of a brief and sudden illness at the relatively young age of 57. Since his call as a General Authority, Elder Keetch has served with the Church Public Affairs Department, and, at the time of his passing, was serving as the executive director of the same

Since the flu season has been particularly bad here in Utah (especially throughout the Salt Lake and Utah Valleys), that could have been the cause, but that has yet to be either confirmed or denied. . Funeral arrangements are pending, and the First Presidency has sent out their condolences to his family. I will share more about this as that becomes available.

It seems to be the season for actively-serving general authorities to pass away. Elder Bruce D. Porter did so in December 2016, and his death was preceded by that of Per G. Malm in July of that same year. And we have also, of course, seen the recent passing of two beloved apostles, Elder Robert D. Hales in October of last year, and President Thomas S. Monson at the beginning of this month.

It is always sad to hear of these beloved leaders passing away. But the one consolation we have is our knowledge that their work continues beyond the veil, unhindered by those factors that led to the deaths of their physical bodies.

Though they may never read this personally, I take this opportunity to extend my condolences to the families of these deceased Church leaders, and especially in this case to the family of Elder Keetch, and to thank them for letting the rest of the Church share him for a time. Elder Keetch's legacy will live on as all of us live as he taught. In reference to that subject, since his call as a general authority came less than 3 years ago. he only had one opportunity to speak in general conference, and you can read that powerful sermon here.

As one who has read some things that have been written of Elder Keetch's ministry, I can say without hesitation (or fear of contradiction) that he practiced what he preached. May God bless his memory, and his family as they mourn his passing at this tender time, that they may be comforted by the knowledge of a future reunion with him.

That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. 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.

Friday, January 26, 2018

Ensign Supplement Pays Tribute to President Monson

Hello again, everyone! This is just a brief post to inform all who are interested that the Church has released this supplement to pay tribute to President Monson, including the text of the addresses given at his funeral by Ann M. Dibb, then-President Uchtdorf, and Presidents Eyring and Nelson. I hope all of you enjoy reading it as much as I did. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. 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.