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Contents contributed and discussions participated by Jeff VanDrimmelen

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Finding Answers from Conference - April 2008 Ensign - 0 views

lds.org/...index.jsp ensign general conference prophets revelation
shared by Jeff VanDrimmelen on 04 Apr 08 - Cached
  • Helps for Home Evening
    • Jeff VanDrimmelen
      Jeff VanDrimmelen on 04 Apr 08
       
      We got a great idea from a friend of ours. We have small children and it is constantly a struggle to get them to listen at conference. We have tried coloring and reading, but we end up spending most of our time telling the kids to be quiet. Well, this past Monday night at FHE we taught our kids the story of King Benjamin and focused on the tents all the families brought and how they faced their doors to the temple. We then decided that we would set up our tent in our house and let everyone come inside and watch General Conference out the door. We talked about making our tent a temple and what it meant when we entered the temple. To help us out, our 6 year old made steeples for our tent with an angel Moroni on the top. They will take off their shoes before entering our sacred temple. I am very hopeful that this will help them understand the sacredness and importance of Conference. :)
  • “Pray that one of the messages at conference will give you the personal revelation you need.” I knew that prayers could be answered through conference, but it never occurred to me to pray for the speakers in advance. Deciding to follow that advice, my wife and I specifically asked the Lord to direct our path through the conference speakers. We prayed for weeks as we eagerly awaited conference.
  • To my amazement, the very first conference talk, Elder Richard G. Scott’s “Using the Supernal Gift of Prayer,”1 gave me the answer I so desperately sought. During his talk I recalled several impressions I had
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  • That experience really solidified my testimony of conference and prayer. The talks we hear during conference truly are the words of the Lord, and if we put our trust in Him and earnestly seek Him in fervent prayer, He will guide us in our decisions.
  • After watching the Saturday sessions of April 2007 general conference, I began preparing for Sunday by implementing what the Brethren encouraged us to do
  • During this time, the missionaries invited me to attend October general conference. What stood out most from the messages was not the content but my feelings
  • I felt in both my mind and heart that I was listening to a prophet of God. I felt inspired and strengthened in my convictions; I also felt peace.
  • Jeff VanDrimmelen on 04 Apr 08
     
    Several stories about how Conference has helped people receive inspiration and guidance in their lives. - Receiving Answers - Implementing their Counsel - Serving Again - Learning His Will - Filing the Hungry - Helps for Home Evening
  • Jeff VanDrimmelen on 04 Apr 08
     
    Good stuff as we get ready for this weekend!
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Elder Quentin L. Cook: A Willing Heart and Mind - 0 views

lds.org/...index.jsp ensign humility quentin l cook service
shared by Jeff VanDrimmelen on 03 Apr 08 - Cached
  • “My father had three rules,” Elder Cook says. “First, we had to have worthwhile goals. Second, we could change our goals at any time. But third, whatever goal we chose, we had to work diligently toward it.”
  • People have so much to offer us if we are willing to learn from them,” Elder Cook says. “That is why it is important to surround yourself with good people.”
  • The list of good men and women from whom he had the opportunity to learn goes on, but Elder Cook points out that many of them didn’t hold lofty positions at the time. They were just good people.
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  • “Specific occupations or levels of education aren’t what I’m talking about when I say learn from good people,” Elder Cook says. “You can find good people everywhere and learn from them all.”
  • Remembering an example of love demonstrated, not simply taught, the Cooks’ second son, Joe, recalls that his father was uneasy about Joe’s driving back to San Francisco after finishing his first-semester exams at Brigham Young University. It would be late December, the roads might be snowbound, and he would be tired. At the end of the semester Joe answered a knock on the door of his dormitory to see his father standing there, having flown up from the Bay Area to be his son’s driving companion for the trip home. Joe says that was not only a powerful manifestation of his dad’s love for him but the talk time they had on the trip home—filled with discussions of various gospel principles and repeated testimonies of the Savior—became one of the truly formative moments in young Joe’s vision of what he wanted by way of testimony and for his own future fatherhood.
  • Jeff VanDrimmelen on 03 Apr 08
     
    An introduction to Eler Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum on the Twelve Apostles. - Learning from Others - The Influence of Family - Admiring Mary (his wife) - Loving People from All Walks of Life - Being Prepared at Home - Preparing to Serve - Ready and Willing
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Through New Eyes - Ensign March 2008 - 0 views

lds.org/...index.jsp atonement charity christ ensign outward appearance
shared by Jeff VanDrimmelen on 03 Apr 08 - Cached
  • “Pray to see yourself as He sees you,” the teacher said, speaking about the Atonement and individual worth.
  • I felt the Spirit testify of the great worth of my soul as a daughter of God. I remembered a scripture I had learned in seminary. I opened my scriptures and found it in 1 Samuel 16:7: “Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; … for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” What I looked like on the outside was not as important as who I was on the inside. My mind-set changed again as I looked around the room and felt an immense amount of love for the people I saw around me. The warmth of Heavenly Father’s love filled me, and for a moment I think I saw my classmates, in a small way, as Heavenly Father sees them—as His children.
  • Jeff VanDrimmelen on 03 Apr 08
     
    Great story about a young girl who realizes that who you are is not how you look. Uses Scripture Mastery from 1 Sam 16:7 - The Lord looketh on the heart.
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The Atonement and Faith - Dallin H. Oaks - 0 views

lds.org/...index.jsp atonement christ ensign faith forgiveness lds oaks repentance savior tv
shared by Jeff VanDrimmelen on 02 Apr 08 - Cached
  • Consider the themes of the books, magazines, movies, television, and music we in the world have made popular by our patronage. Do the things portrayed in our chosen entertainment build up or tear down the children of God?
    • Jeff VanDrimmelen
      Jeff VanDrimmelen on 02 Apr 08
       
      When I think of this quote I think of all the shows on TV today and a large marjority of them tear down. They desensitize us to the horror of violence, and de-emphasize the importance and sanctity of chasity and fidelity. Granted there are some good one's too (I like the Big Give and the House Makeover show... they show great examples of helping others), but I still have to ask myself if they are a good use of my time...
  • During my lifetime I have seen a strong trend to set aside entertainment that builds up and dignifies the children of God and to replace it with portrayals and performances that are depressing, demeaning, and destructive.
  • We are His servants, and it is critical that we understand the role of the Atonement in our own lives and in the lives of those we teach. Essential to that understanding is an understanding of the relationship between justice and mercy and the Atonement, and the role of suffering and repentance in this divine process
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  • the person who repents does not need to suffer even as the Savior suffered for that sin. Sinners who are repenting will experience some suffering, but because of their repentance and the Atonement, they will not experience the full, exquisite extent of eternal torment the Savior suffered for those sins.
    • Jeff VanDrimmelen
      Jeff VanDrimmelen on 02 Apr 08
       
      This is interesting... here is a good referene for the connection between our suffering as mortal human beings and the suffering the Savior went through. Our suffering will be less because of the Savior, but we will still suffer for our sins.
  • personal suffering is a very important part of repentance. “One has not begun to repent until he has suffered intensely for his sins. … If a person hasn’t suffered,” he said, “he hasn’t repented.
  • We tend to think of the results of repentance as simply cleansing us from sin, but that is an incomplete view. A person who sins is like a tree that bends easily in the wind. On a windy and rainy day, the tree bends so deeply against the ground that the leaves become soiled with mud, like sin. If we focus only on cleaning the leaves, the weakness in the tree that allowed it to bend and soil its leaves may remain. Similarly, a person who is merely sorry to be soiled by sin will sin again in the next high wind. The susceptibility to repetition continues until the tree has been strengthened.
    • Jeff VanDrimmelen
      Jeff VanDrimmelen on 02 Apr 08
       
      This is great imagery. True repentance not only cleans our leaves, but it strengthen's our trunk so that next time we won't get our leaves dirty. :)
  • Forsaking sins is more than resolving not to repeat them. Forsaking involves a fundamental change in the individual.
  • President Kimball said: “Sometimes … when a repentant one looks back and sees the ugliness, the loathsomeness of the transgression, he is almost overwhelmed and wonders, ‘Can the Lord ever forgive me? Can I ever forgive myself?’ But when one reaches the depths of despondency and feels the hopelessness of his position, and when he cries out to God for mercy in helplessness but in faith, there comes a still, small, but penetrating voice whispering to his soul, ‘Thy sins are forgiven thee.’
  • This powerful idea—that we must have faith and put the Lord first in our lives—seems simple, but in practice many find it difficult.
  • We cannot have true faith in the Lord without also having complete trust in the Lord’s will and in the Lord’s timing. As a result, no matter how strong our faith is, it cannot produce a result contrary to the will of Him in whom we have faith. Remember this when your prayers do not seem to be answered in the way or at the time you desire.
  • The exercise of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is always subject to the order of heaven, to the goodness and will and wisdom and timing of the Lord. When we have that kind of faith and trust in the Lord, we have true security and serenity in our lives.
  • Jeff VanDrimmelen on 02 Apr 08
     
    Sections of the Article: - The Savior Builds Us Up - Suffering is Part of Repentance - We Must Make A Mighty Change - Forgiveness Is Certain
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Treasure of Eternal Value - President Thomas S. Monson - 0 views

lds.org/...index.jsp ensign goals monson prepare for future sacrifice technology
shared by Jeff VanDrimmelen on 01 Apr 08 - Cached
  • It was as though I were leading the search for the hidden treasure of precious ivory.
  • I wish to provide the three pieces of your treasure map to guide you to your eternal happiness. They are: 1. Learn from the past. 2. Prepare for the future. 3. Live in the present.
  • “I awoke this morning and took my violin from its case. All day long I played the music I love. In the evening when the light grew dim and I could see to play no longer, I placed the instrument in its case. It will be enough. Tomorrow I leave [for my mission].” Forty-five years later, on June 23, 1938, Benjamin wrote in his journal: “The greatest decision I ever made in my life was to give up something I dearly loved to the God I loved even more. He has never forgotten me for it.”2
    • Jeff VanDrimmelen
      Jeff VanDrimmelen on 01 Apr 08
       
      Wow... this really is a great story. It makes me think about my own life. Am I willing to give the Lord everything I have? Am I willing to give up my greatest possesions. I have covenenated to do so... :)
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  • Daydreaming of the past and longing for the future may provide comfort but will not take the place of living in the present. This is the day of our opportunity, and we must grasp it.
  • Technology has altered nearly every aspect of our lives. We must cope with these advances—even these cataclysmic changes—in a world of which our forebears never dreamed.
  • Someone has said the trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your life running up and down the field and never cross the goal line.
    • Jeff VanDrimmelen
      Jeff VanDrimmelen on 01 Apr 08
       
      Goals
  • There is no tomorrow to remember if we don’t do something today, and to live most fully today, we must do that which is of greatest importance. Let us not procrastinate those things which matter most.
  • Now I spend more time with my family. I use crystal glasses every day. I’ll wear new clothes to go to the supermarket if I feel like it. The words ‘someday’ and ‘one day’ are fading from my vocabulary. Now I take the time to call my relatives and closest friends. I’ve called old friends to make peace over past quarrels. I tell my family members how much I love them. I try not to delay or postpone anything that could bring laughter and joy into our lives. And each morning, I say to myself that this could be a special day. Each day, each hour, each minute is special.”
  • Ideas for Home Teachers
    • Jeff VanDrimmelen
      Jeff VanDrimmelen on 02 Apr 08
       
      One of the wonderful things abut Diigo is the ability to share with one another. What are some other ideas you have for sharing this with others?
  • Jeff VanDrimmelen on 01 Apr 08
     
    I wish to provide the three pieces of your treasure map to guide you to your eternal happiness. They are: 1. Learn from the past. 2. Prepare for the future. 3. Live in the present.
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