Monday, November 5, 2018
We always feel invigorated, excited, and maybe exhausted after our Zone Conference week. Halloween night we drove to Moncton, New Brunswick for our first zone meetings, stayed overnight at our Hampton Inn, and began our training by nine the next morning. Travelling with us were Mom H, and Elders Boardman and Olsen - our assistants. Both Assistants served for several transfers in New Brunswick so it was like going home for them, and you can imagine how thrilled they were to go back. Stopping in Truro at the Stanfield’s underwear factory and outlet, and finding white short-sleeved hoodies for $1.99 was the deal of deals for frugal missionaries!!
The great saints of the Moncton Branch started preparing a turkey dinner for us the day before our Conference, and they pulled out all the stops!! Their preparation included Autumn table centre pieces, party favours, and even homemade apple pie. Zone Conferences are always very full days of trainings, including power points, role plays, with plenty of instruction by us, the Assistants, the Sister Training Leaders, and the Zone Leaders. With emphasis on our Mission Culture points, the key indicators, and general teaching and training, we all leave motivated to be more effective, bolder, and more powerful teachers!! We teach, teach, teach!!! New Brunswick East and New Brunswick West Zones, include St. Stephen, Presque Isle, Maine, Edmundston, Bathhurst, Miramichi, Fredericton, St.John, and Montague, and Charlottetown PEI, so some pretty big drives!
Back to Dartmouth for another Conference on Friday, and interesting how even though we repeat our training, each conference is different, with missionaries all learning and gleaning different take-aways, that are just right for them. Our Dartmouth Relief Society prepared a delicious pulled pork meal for lunch, and again, we so appreciate their service to us.
My Mom opted to come for the afternoon portion of the big day, and she enjoyed the association and attention paid to her by our missionaries. We were all motivated to be more effective member missionaries!! Zones on Friday included Nova Scotia North, and Nova Scotia South with missionaries from Yarmouth, Sydney, Bridgewater, Truro, New Glasgow, Kentville, Annapolis Royal, Greenwood, Sackville, Halifax, Dartmouth, and Cole Harbour.
Friday night we took the just under two hour flight to St. John’s, Newfoundland for the Saturday Zone Conference. With Cornerbrook an eight hour drive away, we had the Shenfields, and Elders Tait and Call fly. Gander, GrandFalls, Bay Roberts and St. John’’s Elders and Sisters made the drive. Training was awesome. Fun to have our Assistants join us…They are inspired, enthusiastic, and converted, and their love of the gospel is contagious!! Mom chose to not come so she is holding down the Mission Home fort!!!
Sunday we finally got to attend meetings in Bay Roberts, and loved meeting and worshipping with the wonderful saints there, and were thrilled to have Jonathan and Jordan join us. The Jagoda’s our Senior couple serving in Bay Roberts, are amazing, and minister with unconditional love. We are so grateful for them. The combined Relief Society/Priesthood meeting was all on emergency preparedness, and we are determined to get loaded duffle bags or backpacks for each missionary companionship. Well-presented, and prepared, and we even came away with a bottle of processed moose meat!! Unfortunately it would not make it on the plane so we let Elders Broadhead and Musgrave inherit it!! Like I have mentioned before, these islanders know how to eat, and what a treat for us, to have them to host an all you can eat Potluck following the block!!
Nearing the end of our meetings we got notification that because of hurricane force winds our flight off the island had been cancelled, which although we were anxious to get back to keep my Mom company we were happy to spend unhurried time visiting, and getting to know our new friends. For years I have been thinking and dreaming of giving a talk entitled “Fill the World with Love,” so it was fun to share some of my thoughts! Here is a little outline:
Bay Roberts Sacrament Meeting November 4, 2018
Did I Fill the World With Love?
We love Newfoundland, and we love the people of Newfoundland..that's you!!
Compliment on how hardy, how resilient, resourceful, creative, loyal, musical, sincere. Our dear friends Lee and Lorna Gordon who served here a few years ago returned to Lethbridge with raving reports of their time here in Bay Roberts, so, when our Mission Call came to serve in the Canada Halifax Mission we were thrilled with anticipation of meeting and serving with you! We love our missionaries....Elders Calvert and Leavitt, and Elder and Sister Jagoda!
When I was a teenager I loved the 1970's movie "Goodbye Mr. Chips," not so much for actors Peter O'Toole and Petula Clark portraying the romantic love story of a middle age university professor bachelor falling in love a lovely student...but for the lyrics to one of the movies songs: "Did I Fill the World With Love?" And actually it is one of my life's mantras...did I fill the world with love? Did I Fill the World With Love??
When it is my time to leave this mortal life, one of the questions I will be asking myself is this very question. Did I Fill the World With Love?
Filling the World with love for me, or for any of us, cannot wait until we are ready to pass from this mortal existence. I believe, and I know that as children of our Heavenly Father, and as covenant keepers, on the covenant path, we must fill the world with love everyday!!
Weekly as we partake of the sacrament...what do we covenant? Mosiah 18: 8,9,10
Fellowshipping in our wards and branches of the Church is a powerful way to fill the world with love! And we must do it! Arriving in Atlantic Canada the end of June and visiting many wards and branches we have been overwhelmed with the warm, heartfelt welcome we have felt. It is your way, and I want it to be my way too!
Last summer in Lethbridge we had major stake and Ward boundary changes where we were totally shuffled, and found ourselves attending a meeting house clear across our city with 80% of the ward members totally new folks. It was really pieces of five other wards lumped together..a very diverse combination of people from all demographics, and economic groups. My husband and I immediately decided we would embrace the change...we were going to make new friends, and had a goal to weekly introduce ourselves to at least five new friends and to have little groups of these new friends over for Sunday dinner. This and many other similar fellowshipping efforts created a strong feeling of love and unity in our Ward that people began to express over the pulpit! Within six months my husband described our experience as the Westminster Miracle (Westminster is the name of our home Ward) Our Westminster Miracle taught all of us the power of fellowshipping, and the power of filling our Ward with love.
Ministering since April 2018 is the new buzz word in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and actually ministering is not a new word.prophets of old ministered, and the Saviour Jesus Christ himself spent His life ministering, and teaching us how to minister. In my minds eye I love imagining the Saviour ministering to the throngs as he taught the Sermon on the Mount, and my heart swells wiith emotion as I think of Him raising Jairus' daughter from the dead! When we think of the life of the Saviour, his entire life was a life of ministering, of filling the world with love. The beautiful realistic Bible videos make imagining easy!
I think for us to minister in 2018, it really is just the same as in the Saviour's day. All that is required is time, an open heart and just a bit of creativity!
Let me share an experience when my friend Carole knew I needed ministering! I was recuperating from a Caesarean section delivery from delivering our sixth son Jonathan who is sitting right there!
Well, Carole showed up carrying her cleaning tote, and said I'm here to clean your bathrooms...she knew I needed a pick me up, she knew I needed my bathrooms cleaned, and she knew I needed ministering to. Mostly I needed a friend, a sister to visit with.. That is the definition of ministering..of filling the world with love..
As missionaries, and as church members another GREAT way to fill the world with love is to share the gospel, and like President Martinez mentioned...to read the Book of Mormon, to share the Book of Mormon. That is why we are here in Atlantic Canada, why we are in Newfoundland!
Quote in program
Testimony...Hearts knit together in love...let us fill the world with Love by filling the world with the Book of Mormon. It is my testimony that simply sharing The Book of Mormon with our friends will make a difference in the world…
Having my Mom here for almost a month was delightful…we kept being missionaries, and she joined right in!! She returned home this past Tuesday, the 13th, and her room feels empty!!
Probably the best thing to do would be to submit this to the blog page, and then add a few emails as well which will update anyone that wants to be updated!!
Hope all is well with all of you…we send love and wishes for a Happy American Thanksgiving!!
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