Some Great Advice - Elder F. Enzio Busche

Losing a Love

"When there has been so much love and happiness for someone, it is natural to be reluctant to close such a wonderful chapter in our lives.
For moving forward is rarely accomplished without considerable grief and sadness.
And while our sorrow may be profound, the clouds will clear, and the sun will shine on us again.
And in that warm, bright light we will find ourselves facing a glorious future.
A future of exciting challenges and infinite possibility, in which the horizon will stretch out before us, rimmed in the heavenly glow of the sunrise of our tomorrow."
(From the movie, "The Prince and Me")

Visiting Teaching Funny!

A Mother

A mother is a person who seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie.
~Tenneva Jordan

Just For Laughs!

If only it were this easy...

ZION VISITING TEACHING SERVICE
" We Care Because You Don't Have Time To"

* Visiting teaching getting you down?
* Can't get that annoying Relief Society President off your back?
* Visiting teaching interfering with your valuable television and craft time?
WE CAN HELP!

At Zion's Visiting Teaching Service, we'll do your visiting teaching for you.

For a small monthly fee, we will send one of our representatives to the homes of your sisters.
* For $10.00 per sister, we will provide a visit
* For $15.00 per sister, we will provide a spiritual message.
* For $20.00 per sister, we will remember birthdays and anniversaries.

$20 isn't too much to pay for Peace of Mind. So give us a call at:
*1-800-462-2879 - That's 1-800-IM-2-BUSY *

Because of high volume an extra $15.00 will be added to all services required on the last day of the month.

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Check Out Our New Services!!!
*Meetings*

We will send a representative to the appropriate meeting to take notes for you and report back.

* Ward Council Meeting $30
* Ward Council Meeting w/ written report $50
* Presidency Meetings $20
* PEC $25
* Sacrament Meeting $20
* Sunday School $20
* Priesthood $20
* 3-hour Sunday Block (best value) $50

PLEASE NOTE: Surcharge of 10% for stake meetings
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Talks and Lessons

Did a bishopric member call and assign you a talk? Tired of wasting Saturday night preparing a lesson? Well, free up your time and just read one of our professionally prepared talks and lessons. No need to spend countless hours poring through books, writing and praying. We'll do it for you!

* Basic Talk (any subject assigned) $20
* Scripture Talk (basic + 5 scriptures) $30
* Deluxe Talk (scripture + 1 poem + 2 G.A. quotes) $40
All talks are guaranteed to last 15 minutes. Add $1 for each additional minute
* Basic Lesson (40 minutes) $25
* Deluxe (Basic + visual aides) $35
* Super Deluxe (Deluxe + Handouts) $45

- Due to high expectations, centerpieces and floral arrangements, Relief Society lessons are slightly higher. Call for quote.
- Due to lower expectations, priesthood lessons receive a 10% discount.

*Call us at 1-822-752-2537. That's 1-822-Slacker *.

Introducing our Bundle Buys and Frequent Shopper Plan
Bundle any 3 services and receive a 20% discount. Receive one free Basic talk or lesson with any 10 purchases.

There you have it! We take all the work off of your shoulders and put ours to the wheel just for you.

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Introducing our new:
Casserole Service

If you just can't possibly throw together food for various Ward occasions, WE CAN!

*Our basic services include:*
a.. Funeral Potatoes
b.. Green Bean/Mushroom Soup with Crunchy Onions
c.. Green Jell-O with Carrots
d.. Spinach Dip in a Bread Bowl
e.. CheezWiz/Tater Tot Surprise

For only $15 (plus deposit) each delivered to your house with Corningware marked with your name! They'll never know you didn't make 'em!

Remember our number: 1-822-S-L-A-C-K-E-R

It's Great Being a Woman!

"You were not created to be the same as men. Your natural attributes, affections, and personalities are entirely different from these of a man. They consist of faithfulness, benevolence, kindness, and charity. They also balance the more aggressive and competitive nature of man. The business world is competitive and sometimes ruthless. We do not doubt that women have both the brain power and the skills to compete with men. But by competing they must of necessity, become aggressive and competitive. Thus their godly attributes are diminished and they acquire a quality of sameness with man. The conventional wisdom of the day would have you be equal with men. We say, we would not have you descend to that level."
-President Ezra Taft Benson

Quote taken from here.

Study & Prepare

Thomas S. Monson:

“Study and prepare for your life’s work in a field that you enjoy, because you are going to spend a good share of your life in that field. . . .

“Have discipline in your preparations. Have checkpoints where you can determine if you’re on course.

“I hope that you are not afraid of tough classes. I never did have a ‘cinch’ class. I hope that you are not afraid of lengthy periods of preparation. Burn the midnight oil. Don’t procrastinate like my older sister, who after a late date rationalized, ‘I have a test tomorrow, but I am weary. What is more important, my health or my test? Aha, my health! I need my sleep.’ So she slept. I won’t say what happened to the test.

“You simply have to apply yourself. I hope that you want to be so well equipped that you can compete in this competitive world. I hope that you will learn to take responsibility for your decisions, whether they be in your courses of study which you elect to take, or whether they be in the direction of the academic attainments which you strive to achieve.

“Should you become discouraged or feel burdened down, remember that others have passed this same way; they have endured and then have achieved. When we have done all that we are able to do, we can then rely on God’s promised help.”
“Life’s Greatest Decisions,” CES Fireside for Young Adults, Sept. 7, 2003, 4

Developing Christlike Attributes

Elder Uchtdorf:
"Developing Christlike attributes in our lives is not an easy task, especially when we move away from generalities and abstractions and begin to deal with real life. The test comes in practicing what we proclaim. The reality check comes when Christlike attributes need to become visible in our lives—as husband or wife, as father or mother, as son or daughter, in our friendships, in our employment, in our business, and in our recreation. We can recognize our growth, as can those around us, as we gradually increase our capacity to 'act in all holiness before [Him]' (D&C 43:9)."
"Christlike Attributes—the Wind beneath Our Wings," Ensign, Nov. 2005, 102

The Angels May Quote from It

Spencer W. Kimball:

"A journal is the literature of superiority. Each individual can become superior in his own humble life.

What could you do better for your children and your children’s children than to record the story of your life, your triumphs over adversity, your recovery after a fall, your progress when all seemed black, your rejoicing when you had finally achieved?

Some of what you write may be humdrum dates and places, but there will also be rich passages that will be quoted by your posterity.

Get a notebook, a journal that will last through all time, and maybe the angels may quote from it for eternity. Begin today and write in it your goings and comings, your deepest thoughts, your achievements and your failures, your associations and your triumphs, your impressions and your testimonies. Remember, the Savior chastised those who failed to record important events."
Spencer W. Kimball, “The Angels May Quote from It,” New Era, Feb 2003, 32

I Believe......

"I believe in the sun even when it is not shining. I believe in love even when I cannot feel it. I believe in God even when He is silent."
(written on a wall during the Holocaust)

Confounding of Languages and An Understanding Heart

You will probably remember the scriptural account of the confounding of the languages at the Tower of Babel, I like how Jared and his brother responded to that experience:

"And the brother of Jared being a large and mighty man, and a man highly favored of the Lord, Jared, his brother, said unto him: Cry unto the Lord, that he will not confound us that we may not understand our words.
"And it came to pass that the brother of Jared did cry unto the Lord, and the Lord had compassion upon Jared; therefore he did not confound the language of Jared; and Jared and his brother were not confounded.
(Ether 1:34 - 35)

I thought about how important it was for him to be able to understand those he loved still, and I wondered what would have happened if they hadn't prayed for understanding. It reminded me of when the Lord appeared to Solomon one night, "and God said, Ask what I shall give thee". Solomon could have asked for riches, power, longevity, anything. – what he did ask for is more impressive than all of those things…. Can you guess…….. he said:
"Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart ……., that I may discern between good and bad:"
"And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing".
(1 Kings 3:5-10).

I am going to try and tie this altogether now.

The reason for the languages being confounded was due to sin brought about by pride and selfishness. Sometimes in relationships it is as if the languages have been confounded when it is difficult to understand another's soul and perspective, whether it is in families, friendships, or any other associations. The only way to really understand another is to do as Solomon did; to lay aside any selfish wants, and to pray as the brother of Jared did.

I hope today that we will have understanding hearts to those we come into contact with, and if we don't, that we will pray until we get one.

Anger

"President Wilford Woodruff counseled that “the moment a man or a woman becomes angry they show a great weakness.” (In Journal of Discourses, 4:98.)

We are instructed to “let all bitterness, … and anger, … and evil speaking, be put away.” (Eph. 4:31.) The implication is clear: we have the capacity to control this carnal communication."

(L. Lionel Kendrick, “Christlike Communications,” Ensign, Nov 1988, 23)

Communication Consequences

"We will be held accountable for all that we say. The Savior has warned “that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.” (Matt. 12:36.) This means that no communication shall be without consequence. This includes the slight slips of the tongue, the caustic communications that canker the soul, and the vain, vulgar, and profane words which desecrate the name of Deity."
(L. Lionel Kendrick, “Christlike Communications,” Ensign, Nov 1988, 23)

Disappearing Like Frost

James E Faust:
"I have now lived long enough to know that, whatever our situation, our troubles melt and disappear like frost in the morning sun when we dwell upon our blessings rather than our disappointments. No matter how pessimistic one's view may become of the times and the seasons, we can always fall back on special friendship, on faithful, personal love, and on simple, true dealings in our own personal lives"
("Married or Single: Look beyond Yourself," Ensign, March 1980).

Truth

One of my all time favorite quotes, I don't know who said it originally, but it has always stuck with me:

"Truth is not determined by what people think of it".

Paying Our Debts

Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin:

Let me tell you the story of one man who sacrificed greatly to maintain his own financial integrity and honor.

In the 1930s Fred Snowberger opened the doors of a new pharmacy in northeastern Oregon. It had been his dream to own his own business, but the economic turnaround he had hoped for never materialized. Eight months later, Fred closed the doors of his pharmacy for the last time.

Even though his business had failed, Fred was determined to repay the loan he had secured. Some wondered why he insisted on repaying the debt. Why didn’t he simply declare bankruptcy and have the debt legally forgiven?

But Fred did not listen. He had said he would repay the loan, and he was determined to honor his word. His family made many of their own clothes, grew much of their food in their garden, and used everything they had until it was thoroughly worn out or used up. Rain or shine, Fred walked to and from his work each day. And every month, Fred paid what he could on the loan.

Years passed and finally the wonderful day arrived when Fred made the last payment. He delivered it in person. The man who had loaned him the money wept and with tears streaming down his face, said, “You not only paid back every penny, but you taught me what a man of character and honesty is.”

The Chinese Bamboo Tree: A Parable for Parents

I just read this a couple of days ago, here. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

"In everything you do in your family, keep in mind the miracle of the Chinese bamboo tree. After the seed for this amazing tree is planted, you see nothing, absolutely nothing, for four years except for a tiny shoot coming out of a bulb. During those four years, all the growth is underground in a massive, fibrous root structure that spreads deep and wide in the earth. But then in the the fifth year the Chinese bamboo tree grows up to eighty feet!

"Many things in family life are like the Chinese bamboo tree. You work and you invest time and effort, and you do everything you can possibly do to nurture growth, and sometimes you don't see anything for weeks, months, or even years. But if you're patient and keep working and nurturing, that "fifth year" will come, and you will be astonished at the growth and change you see taking place.

"Patience is faith in action. Patience is emotional diligence. It's the willingness to suffer inside so that others can grow. It reveals love. It gives birth to understanding."

From The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families by Stephen R. Covey (pp. 22-23)

The Prescription

"We must be involved in a good and a righteous cause. We must see through the glass clearly, with an objective look at ourselves and families so as not to be caught in the second great calamitous worldwide flood that is even now all around us. It has been prophesied that the faithful will win this great war, that they will triumphantly rise up to meet the Lord Jesus Christ at the time of His second coming. The prescription for this victory includes daily individual and family prayers with a family home evening at least weekly. You may say, "I don't have time." Brothers and sisters, you simply cannot afford not to take the time. It is amazing how much time suddenly becomes available with the television off. This prescription continues the same as it has always been--keep the commandments; follow the prophets; read, understand, and even ponder the scriptures."

Elder Durrel A. Woolsey (Gen Conf Oct 1995)