"We are all just walking each other home"

Today is Sunday July 12, 2020 

AND… 

    We are celebrating Baby BELLA ANNE KEARL’s Birthday TODAY!! 

    She was born at 10:46 this morning after two hours of labour!!!

7 pounds 2 ounces and 19 1/2”

Proud parents: Brendan and Megan Kearl and excited big sister Macie!

AND

Maxwell Jack Low celebrates his 10th Birthday on Thursday, July 16!!

Several readers have mentioned that the cute ‘Papyrus’ font I have used up to this point, in this blog is difficult to read… so I am experimenting with ‘Avenir,’ and hope for some positive reinforcement from those who gave the constructive criticism; if this font is suitable!!

It was another wonderful full-time missionary week, with Office Meetings all day Monday, Atlantic Canada Zone Interviews Tuesday and Wednesday, Atlantic Zone Conference Thursday, and Ottawa Zone Interviews Friday!! We conduct interviews at home, with Richard in our Office, and me propped up at the Kitchen table, with Zoom going on both Richard’s laptop, and my iPad. By the end of each day we are both exhausted, and exhilarated…how is that possible? We both find it so fun to see these amazing missionaries, chat for about fifteen minutes, and then give them each a big virtual hug!! I check up on their eating, their cooking, if they are drinking enough water, their exercise, how their families are back home, how things are going with their companions, and then I get a great report on who they are working with, who they have found, etc. etc. The time literally flies by, we are convinced our interviews are far more effective over the zoom!!

Pday yesterday was a lovely relaxing day. Exercise, Coordinating counsel meeting for Richard, hair colouring for me at Hair Town - a real salon, where the cute gal that cut my hair last week, knew how to colour my hair exactly the way I wanted it!! Watercolouring was our chosen relaxation activity, and Richard did a gorgeous Peggy’s Cove sunrise!! I’m still trying to specialize in flowers, and had fun with lilacs, anemones, poppies, roses, and apple blossoms! I love to sketch the flowers first, then outline with a fine pigma pen and then watercolour. Someone suggested that I omit the black pigma pen lining, so next time I’ll try that! It is a wonderful decompressing activity!! 

Newfoundland District Conference was this morning, and we were delighted to Zoom meet with our dear friends all over..from St. John’s to Bay Roberts, to Gander, to Cornerbrook. It has been months since we were in Newfoundland, and we miss those great folks.  Richard and I both got to speak.  

I love talking about ministering, and missionary work, and today I prefaced that, by teaching about covenant-keeping. 

Here is the essence of what I spoke….

In Mosiah 18: 8-10 we are taught that inherent in our baptismal covenants is the command to take care of each other. How well are we ministering? One of my favourite covenant keeping stories happened in 1856 when the Willie and Martin handcart companies were stranded, freezing and starving on the high plains of Wyoming.  President Brigham Young heard about the awful plight of these faithful pioneer saints the day before October General Conference, and in his sermon to the Saints the next day he said, and this is taken from a Vaughan J. Featherstone BYU Devotional address August 11, 1981.

“I will now give this people the subject and the text for the Elders who may speak to-day and during the Conference. It is this, on the 5th day of October,1856, many of our brethren and sisters are on the Plains with hand-carts, and probably many are now seven hundred miles from this place and they must be brought here, we must send assistance to them. The text will be - to get them here! I want the brethren who may speak to understand that their text is the people on the Plains and the subject matter for this community is to send for them and bring them in before the winter sets in.” 

“That is my religion; that is the dictation of the Holy Ghost that I possess, it is to save the people…This is the salvation I am now seeking for, to save our brethren that would be apt to perish, or suffer extremely, if we do not send them assistance.” 

“I will tell you all that your faith, religion, and profession of religion, will never save one soul of you in the celestial kingdom of our God, unless you carry out just such principles as I am now teaching you.” 

And then, those sweet obedient saints loaded up their wagons with supplies and went to the rescue. On the 30th of November again the saints congregated and President Young admonished the saints to prepare for the arrival of these same saints. He said: 

“When those persons arrive I do not want to see them put into houses by themselves; I want to have them distributed in the city among the families that have good and comfortable houses; and I wish all the sisters now before me, and all who know how and can, to nurse and wait upon the new comers and prudently administer medicine and food to them. To speak upon these things is a part of my religion, for it pertains to taking care of the Saints. . . .

As soon as this meeting is dismissed I want the brethren and sisters to repair to their homes, where their Bishops will call on them to take in some of this company; the Bishops will distribute them as the people can receive them. . . .”

“The afternoon meeting will be omitted, for I wish the sisters to go home and prepare to give those who have just arrived a mouthful of something to eat, and to wash them and nurse them up. You know that I would give more for a dish of pudding and milk, or a baked potato and salt, were I in the situation of those persons who have just come in, than I would for all your prayers, though you were to stay here all the afternoon and pray. Prayer is good, but when baked potatoes and pudding and milk are needed, prayer will not supply their place on this occasion; give every duty its proper time and place. . . .

Some you will find with their feet frozen to their ankles; some are frozen to their knees and some have their hands frosted. . . . We want you to receive them as your own children, and to have the same feeling for them.”   [Hafen, Handcarts, p. 139] 

What an incredibly motivating story of ministering!! We will probably never be called to minister like that…but to keep our baptismal covenants…we DO need to minister.  

‘A Heart Like His’ written by Virginia Pearce is one of my all-time favourite books, and I think it is probably because I felt a real gentle, but urgent stirring to strive to develop a Heart like His.  Although none of us will ever perfect our hearts, I have seen so many incredible examples of saints who are well on their way to developing those Christlike hearts. 

Delivering cookies, bread or fresh cinnamon buns are great examples of sweet ministering, but ministering is so much more…Think what you have done to show love to those around you… here are a few examples… 

• Phonecalls to elderly grandparent, aunt, uncle or friend, and ask them to tell you a happy story of their childhood.
• Read the scriptures over the phone to a shut in.
• Sandy Burbank reads ‘Saints’ to Mom Low everyday!
• Hospital window visit.
• Singing outside the window of Grandma in the Hospital.
• Nancy invited friends to go on a drive to Park Lake..they each brought their own bag lunch.
• Invite a family for a picnic….you provide the picnic!!
• Take a friend to visit their spouse in a longterm care facility.
• Clean a friends bathroom.
• Play a card game with a shut in.
• Do a puzzle together. 
• Defrost your grandma’s, or a friends freezer.
• Put a freezer meal in it when you are finished!
• Weed a friends garden.
• Teach children to paint rocks.
• Jan spent the afternoon helping Nancy clean and organize her garage!

* Deliver a nutritious meal to someone in need.

Ministering is a daily habit, and as we pray for inspiration to know who to minister to we will be guided to those needing us.…it is covenant keeping at its best as we reach out in love to those around us. 

I think the greatest blessing of Christlike ministering, of keeping our baptismal covenants is we develop a heart like His. 

Our friends Elder Richard and Sister Camellia Smith who served in Gander Newfoundland had the sweetest little plaque in their home with these simple words: 

“We are all just walking each other home…”

Read the Miracles abounding in the Canada Montreal Mission

July 12th, 2020

Fredericton Sisters:

« A completely inactive member just moved here from Nova Scotia. He comes from a very active family, his sisters husband is a bishop and his mom works in the temple every week! That's how active. Anyways, he is married to a nonmember. Oh and he has a name, its Stefan (I may have spelled it wrong). We called him on Thursday evening and left him a message. About an hour later, we were talking with the Moncton Elders and we got a call from Stefan. We hurried and grabbed the phone and answered. The call ended up being an hour long (maritimes, am I right?) And the entire time he just BORE HIS TESTIMONY to us! Keep in mind that he has been inactive since he was about 17 years old. He is in his late 40's now. To continue with the story, he kept bearing his testimony to us. In the middle of the call, he told us he wants to stop smoking. The only reason he never went to church was because he felt judged for being a smoker and a member. He said him and his wife want to stop smoking because his wife wants to be baptized. And that he wants to stop smoking so he can be a worthy priesthood holder and be able to baptize her. How neat is that?! We are going to start the stop smoking program with them soon hopefully!! I purely think this is one of the reasons I am still here in Fredericton. I feel it so deep in my heart and I am literally bursting with joy as I think of this beautiful experience. I have the deepest desire to help them and to love them! Within the first 3 sentences of our conversation, I had the most peaceful feeling come about me and I just felt so much love for this man and his wife. I knew right then and right there that I was supposed to be here. I like to think I was able to feel a bit of what Christ and God feel for them, the love that is. « 

Victoria South Shore Spanish Sisters:

-« KIMVERLY GOT BAPTIZED!! it was such such an amazing day filled with so much light!!!! Ah it was crazy though, our friend Angela, that has been an awesome member fellowshipper for Kimverly, got back tracked by the bus that came 30 minutes later but hey better late than never! We were able to wait for Angela and we were all there just enjoying the wonderful spirit there. Both Kimverly and her husband just testified about how happy they were and how this step they were taking as a family would really bless their lives!! There were so many smiles at this special little pool baptism!! (poor Kimverly's daughter though, she REALLY wanted to go to the pool with her parents when the baptism was happening haha. She was like, where is my swimsuit mom?!?) Crazy thing too, right after the baptism, we the got news that we can now have baptisms INDOORS. So we got the super cool experience to be one of the last pool baptisms in the mission!! »

Victoria South Shore Sisters:

 « Hi president!! Loving it here in Victoria SO MUCH!! The members are incredible, and it is so cool working off of member referrals!! We have also had a lot of member lessons and are getting to know our friends, which has led to some cool experiences. We are referring one really cool YSA guy to the YSA elders, and he has SO MUCH potential! He picked up interest thanks to the emails home from an elder here in the ward (one of his friends). AND THEN!!! We had 8 friends at church,, which was a miracle in and of itself and totally just thanks to the Lord doing his own work, and it is so cool to see the work progressing so much here. And to be so busy! In a lot of ways, this just feels like normal missionary work. »

Villa Maria (Montreal downtown)sisters:

« We had a sweet miracle this week. It was actually on Sunday. We started our Sabbath Day well, we were fasting so we were in a good spirit. We planned our day, had our personal study and joined our Ward Testimony meeting on Zoom. We had previously invited our amis to come to church, so we were hoping they would hop on the meeting. As we were listening to the testimonies being born, we received this message by our friend Delphine, in which she said that she was maybe going to come but she was unsure. It was okay for us, she was at work so we understand that she wouldn't really have time. However, when we started swiping the screen to see if any of our Amis were there, we saw her name! She was among us, listening. We were so happy. But that's not all! A short while after, we hear her voice, and see her face appearing on our screen. She had just unmuted herself and she was bearing her testimony! Incredible! I couldn't believe. President, that was probably one of the highlights of my week. She told her story and experiences, and she testified at the end about the assurance she has that God lives and that He listens to us. Our friend had just born her testimony to our ward and we were so amazed by her faith. Our bishop, and the whole ward said hi to her and said that she was welcome among them, among us! That was a miracle. « 

We are grateful for so many miracles here, and, in your homes. And we are grateful for the many sweet acts of ministering you have performed for us, and for each other. Your goodness motivates us to do more, and do be better.  Remember: “We are all just walking each other home.”

With much love,

Dad and Mom, Grandpa and Grandma, Richard and Gayle

Keep Smiling!!