“The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before.” –Dieter F. Uchtdorf

As we create and share things that are “lovely…[and]…of good report” we can connect to our divine nature, and invite others to elevate their minds and hearts toward their own highest good.

Today, I wanted to share what one group of students, a percussion quartet called Tangents, is doing to add some good to the world, both through performance and through outreach at schools and doing clinics for students.

One of the group’s members, Peyton Ford, talks about her excitement to be able to “share the gospel of Jesus Christ in an unobtrusive way — we just play good music and serve others the best we can.”

The group was created by a professor at Brigham Young University in 2019 during his first year at the university. One of three pieces launched virtually in February 2021 was a performance of “Sevilla” from Suite Espanola by Isaac Albeniz, shown below. (You can see the other two videos on the BYU Percussion Quartet’s Tangents YouTube channel

The most recent video from Tangents includes a guest appearance by Daron Bradford, who owns and plays over 100 different types of wind instruments. Daron has been playing for the Tabernacle Orchestra at Temple Square for many years, and has performed on stage or in recordings with musicians such as Christian stars Jordan Smith, Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith; Broadway singers Sandra Turley, Dallyn Vale Bailes, and Dale Kristien; and many others.

The performance with Tangents and Daron Bradford below is of John Cage’s Living Room Music. (This piece was written in 1940 with instructions to use any kind of household objects. The Metropolitan Orchestra Percussion quartet performed this piece almost a decade ago, as have other groups. Each performance is different depending on the objects selected.)

Tangents plays wood instruments…as in using pieces of wood on a sand dune instead of in a living room. They also use rock and other natural objects. True to the composer’s intent, in one movement they use only their voices (apparently called a speech quartet).

You can watch their performance of Living Room Music below or at this YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuN5iXxk-aY

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This is quite a story. Five siblings — the Faylor quintuplets — received their “mission calls” (assignments to serve as missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) at the same time.

Young people who choose to serve a mission fill out paperwork, get a doctor’s okay to serve, and wait to find out where they will spend the next 18-24 months of their lives. Missionary service can range from local service opportunities in one’s home community to assignments around the world. In this case, the siblings are serving in different places around the United States.

This appears to be the first time in the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that five siblings have received mission calls on the same day. But then again, it’s not every day that quintuplets are born!

1 day, 1 family, 5 mission calls: The Faylor quintuplets prepare for missionary service

You can see a video of the Faylor siblings talking about their baptism into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints below.

And for fun, here’s a video of triplets opening their mission calls a few years ago. According to the article linked above, “Three sets of quadruplets have served missions concurrently, while 57 sets of triplets have served simultaneously, according to the Church’s Missionary Department.”

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Last night was the first ever #LightTheWorld (virtual) Social Sing and Serve event. It was a beautiful virtual concert of performances, along with simple invitations for ways to show kindness and love to people in our spheres. (e.g., text the 11th person in your contact list and share a compliment or some kind words; mail a note of love to a parent, teacher, or other special someone; reach out by video or phone to someone who might be feeling extra lonely this year).

The music includes a variety of performances, including GENTRI performing in perfect harmony even though they were each in their own homes. Elenyi (which means “ray of light”) sings “Oh, Come All Ye Faithful” — like three angels! David Archuleta expresses how Christ brings hope in dark, difficult times through the song, “In The Bleak Midwinter.” Steven Sharp Nelson plays “Away in a Manger” while friends from the deaf community perform the lyrics in American Sign Language. Exquisite. The virtual choir of Aberdeen Lane and friends singing “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” is incredible. And you can see last year’s special video of Claire Crosby singing “Silent Night” while Russell M. Nelson, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Besides music, there are also some heartwarming moments of service captured in this video. If you haven’t seen the wheelchair version of BMX, you’ll see some amazing video clips of Jared “Wheelz” Fotheringham. He shares some of his indomitable spirit with wheelchair-bound children and youth. And Stuart Edge does some of his fun hidden camera magic, with help from some college students (and a huge teddy bear) to brighten the days of some healthcare workers.

It’s amazing to see what people are doing to adapt to the limitations that COVID-19 has brought. We wouldn’t have had such a concert without the pandemic. There are bright spots in this difficult time. Keeping looking for the light in your world. God is aware of you, of us!

The video of this #LightTheWorld event is embedded below.

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~by Amy (not her real name)

I was studying away when I received a text from my roommate, saying that one of her friends with whom she had been in contact was just diagnosed with COVID. “I’ve been feeling symptoms,” the message said, “so I will be getting tested tomorrow.”

Feeling a slight sore throat myself, the sudden shift was a little too much for my body and brain to handle. 

Even though I kept trying to tell myself everything was going to be okay, and even though in my heart I knew it would be, I broke down. I am scheduled to receive my temple endowment in a week and a half, and that could all change if they come back positive (or if I do). 

By this time, I was no longer able to focus on my heavy load of homework, so I decided to read an email from one of my friends who is currently serving as a missionary. He wrote:

“Miracles happen. Remember that. Be on the lookout….”

I realized I needed a miracle, so I immediately prayed I could have God’s help somehow. 

Exactly thirty minutes after my first roommate texted, I received another text. This was from a number not in my contacts. She said, “I made some minestrone soup today. It’s nothing fancy just a pot of vegetables and juice. Just wondering if that is something you guys would eat. I’d love to bring some over!”

Minestrone happens to be one of my favorite soups. I could not believe that so soon after I felt so overwhelmed and alone, I got this text. I still didn’t know who it was from but I thought for sure it would be someone in the ward…maybe my ministering sisters or something? How could they choose something so perfect and healthy as minestrone and it not be for me?

Well, the longer we texted back and forth, I realized she had sent this message to the wrong number!

After all the confusion, this woman (who lives more than 20 minutes away from where I live) called me and apologized because she thought she was texting someone in her ward [congregation] who just had surgery. As we cleared up the miscommunication, she said, “Well I’ll pray that someone can bring you food!”

The call ended and I started walking home. I was still so tired and maxed out but so grateful someone reached out right when I needed it. I thought, “It’s the thought that counts here,” even though the kindness was for someone else. 

About twenty minutes later, she called back again. I think she had the realization that she needed to be the answer to her own prayer for me. She said, “Have you had dinner yet?” I told her no. She said, “Well, we are going to bring you some minestrone.” And they did! A random family from several cities over brought me dinner (a favorite food, no less) on the very night I didn’t have it in me to cook, I wanted to feel peace, and I needed a miracle.

I have no doubt in my mind that God hears our prayers. Miracles are real! I’m grateful for my missionary friend who encouraged all of us to look for them.

This experience reminded me of a story President Thomas S. Monson told years ago, “We Never Walk Alone.” Tiffany had fallen into a deep depression because of high levels of stress and was losing weight (which she couldn’t afford to lose). But she could not eat. Friends and family were trying to deliver her some of her favorite foods, but to no avail.

One day, when prodded about what might possibly sound palatable to her, Tiffany could envision eating homemade bread. “But,” President Monson shares, “There was none on hand.”

The next morning, on the other side of town Sherrie had a prompting from the Spirit to bake an extra loaf of bread that day. She felt to take that bread with her in the car when she went to have lunch with a friend. After lunch, and with a very tired toddler in the car, Sherrie had the unexpected thought to deliver the bread to Nicole, someone she barely knew, and who lived 30 minutes away.

She tried to rationalize away the thought, wanting to get her very tired daughter home and feeling sheepish about delivering a loaf of bread to people who were almost strangers. However, the impression to go to Tiffany’s home was strong, so she heeded the prompting.

When she arrived, Tiffany’s husband answered the door. Sherrie reminded him that she was [Tiffany’s sister’s friend] whom he’d met briefly [months before], handed him the loaf of bread, and left.

And so it happened that the Lord sent a virtual stranger across town to deliver not just the desired homemade bread but also a clear message of love to Tiffany. What happened to her cannot be explained in any other way. She had an urgent need to feel that she wasn’t alone—that God was aware of her and had not abandoned her. That bread—the very thing she wanted—was delivered to her by someone she barely knew, someone who had no knowledge of her need but who listened to the prompting of the Spirit and followed that prompting. It became an obvious sign to Tiffany that her Heavenly Father was aware of her needs and loved her enough to send help. He had responded to her cries for relief.

_____________

*Image from Katrin Morenz from Aachen, Deutschland, posted at Wikimedia Commons (originally found here), shared under this Creative Commons license (Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0)

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So far, one of the things that is fascinating me about this General Conference Odyssey project is how different my experience has been each time. Last week, it took me a while to settle on what to write about. This week, it took me all of about three minutes after I began reading the Priesthood Session talks (I started at the bottom of the list) to know what I wanted to write about.

I also started this project with a vision of what topics I’d feel most strongly posting about. But I have tried to stay open to whatever seems to “click” — and so far, what has grabbed my attention has surprised me more often than not. I am pretty sure I was pretty sure Boy Scouts would never be on my radar screen!

This week’s post will be simple because my experience engaging the material was simple. Just an hour or two before picking up my phone to start to read the talks, for some reason I was thinking about the Boy Scouts. More specifically, I was reflecting on why I choose to support Friends of Scouting, even though my son is no longer heavily involved in it (and even as some people choose not to support BSA).

It’s because I have long believed that the Church has stayed in the program as much for boys outside the Church as for those within it. (A recent Mormon Newsroom statement would seem to support that belief.)

In my brief moments when I was reflecting on my choice to support Friends of Scouting, I also imagined how grateful I’d be if my son were the one benefiting from the donations of other people. I also thought of my girls, of others’ daughters, too, and how often I think about the boys who will someday marry them.

Imagine my surprise when the first words I read from the Priesthood Session all but replicated the thoughts I had had about Boy Scouts.

Horace Mann, that great educator somewhere back in the time of Abraham Lincoln, told how he was the speaker at the dedication of a great boys’ school, and in his talk he said, “This school has cost hundreds of thousands of dollars; but if this school is able to save one boy, it is worth all that it cost.” One of his friends came up to him at the close of the meeting and said, “You let your enthusiasm get away with you, didn’t you? You don’t mean what you said that if this school, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars, were to save just one boy, it was worth all that it cost? You surely don’t mean that.”

Horace Mann looked at him and said, “Yes, my friend. It would be worth it if that one boy were my son; it would be worth it.”

I want you to know that it would be worth it if it were my grandson, or one of mine. It would be worth it if it were one of yours.

I want to be honest here. Even as I see the value of the program, I’ve never felt a personal connection with or passion for Boy Scouts. We are not outdoorsy people. I don’t do so well with lots of lists and requirements such as those that infuse the BSA program. My son chose not to get his Eagle for various reasons, not the least of which that the expectations for Eagle projects didn’t match his personality style (and his project idea was rejected) and he didn’t want to do a more “typical” project just to check it off a list (nor was I going to force it).

In short, I would be dishonest if I said I wasn’t relieved that we are essentially done with Scouts in our little family.

I share these confessions because all of this doesn’t change how I feel about donating to BSA. My feelings and my little family are, in a sense, beside the point when it comes to responding to a prophetic invitation to support BSA in the big picture. Again, I have long felt there was purpose in that prophetic vision.

So I would like to invite you, if you haven’t already, to consider donating to the BSA Friends of Scouting campaign. Rather than worry about the BSA leaders’ salaries, or why Mormon girls don’t camp and tie knots as much as boys (thank goodness, I say!), consider instead whose son out there you might help (maybe a fatherless boy, or an inner-city boy, or a shy boy who would never do anything on his own but with Scouts gets out of his shell). Consider all the nonprofits and cities and neighborhoods and natural preserves that have benefited from the service of Scouts. Consider even future generations who could be blessed because a boy was busy and involved with Scouting and learned some responsibility and leadership and stayed out of trouble.

I say three cheers for the BSA and all the good that has come of the 100-year-long relationship between it and the Church. Who knows how long that relationship will last, but while it does, I will continue to give my support through Friends of Scouting. I hope you will, too.

– – – – –

Other posts from the General Conference Odyssey are below:

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I’m sitting here after watching “Meet the Mormons” for the second time (was able to see a preview screening and then went with two of my children tonight — the show came out a day early where I live). I’ve got many thoughts swirling around in my head. What can I share about the experience I’ve had with this film?

Because, you know, I’m Mormon (a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints). So what else would I say on a Mormon website except that I liked the film?

Let me say this. Honestly, I went in a little skeptical, maybe even nervous. I wasn’t sure what to expect. A movie about Mormons on the big screen? Would I like it? What if I didn’t? (That’d be awkward, being a Mormon blogger and all.)

I loved it. (And I loved it even more the second time around.)

I am a fan of documentaries, so that may have something to do with it. The cinematography is breathtaking, especially in the scenes of Costa Rica and Nepal. The stories are real and diverse. They capture the fact that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is an international faith.

As I’ve read reviews, I have seen people echo what I have felt — that “I think the [stories and the] challenges were diverse enough that somebody could identify with just about any one of them.” (There are some other gems from that article from “famous Mormons” that resonated with me as well.)

But the main reason I loved the film is because of how it made me feel. My son said something similar: “Mom, I didn’t have any major spiritual experiences with the movie, but I just felt good through the whole thing. That was evidence enough to me that truth was being shared.”

What kind of truth? Even if you take out the “Mormon” element (which is more understated than I expected it to be), the film explores the importance of family and the joy in and need for service to others. It encourages not giving up in hard times, and living life wholeheartedly. For Mormons, these principles connect to our faith in Jesus Christ, but these are true principles that can inspire regardless of religious belief, or even if you don’t identify yourself as a person of faith. They connect to so much of what it means to be human.

I left this film the way I feel when I engage with inspiring narratives. I left wanting to be a better person. I left wanting to face my own challenges with more hope. I left wanting to hear more stories!

And yes, I left feeling more surely the reality that God knows and loves all of His children. Tonight, as I watched the film, I felt that in a personal way — that He knows me. I was reminded, again, that He really is intimately involved in our lives — even when we don’t know it, see it, or even believe it. The last story about Dawn, in particular, really hit that truth home to me.

There is a very real message that we all matter to God, and that we each have something to offer this world. The song at the end of the documentary (“Glorious,” sung by David Archuleta) also reiterates this reality. The song in context of the film was one of the things my daughter loved most. She’s usually one who shares a lot with me, but Mary-like, both times we watched the film, I could see that she just wanted to ponder what was left in her heart after experiencing it all. (In fact, the first time she asked me kindly but directly to stop asking her what she thought!)

I hope you will take the opportunity to experience the film if it is in an area near you. (If it isn’t, you can request it here.) In my opinion, the film is not pushy or preachy. It’s informative without being impersonal. I do think that most people will find something that resonates, in the stories and/or in the simple yet powerful principles that are reflected in the narratives.

Note: All proceeds of the film will be donated to the Red Cross.

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During Education Week at BYU, Elder Bednar asked that we flood the internet with our testimonies. He said, “My beloved brothers and sisters, what has been accomplished thus far in this dispensation communicating gospel messages through social media channels is a good beginning—but only a small trickle. I now extend to you the invitation to help transform the trickle into a flood. Beginning at this place on this day, I exhort you to sweep the earth with messages filled with righteousness and truth—messages that are authentic, edifying, and praiseworthy—and literally to sweep the earth as with a flood.”

So I am going to share my thoughts and testimony of Jesus Christ.

My name is Michelle Iverson. I am a wife, mother, teacher, writer, missionary, and disciple of Jesus Christ and I believe that love is a super power!

It is a power we use in everyday life as we care for our families and friends, serve others through our work and church callings, and share the gospel. But there are also those defining moments in life where we get to find out what we are made of and it is in those moments that we can call on love to help us make it through.

When I was a very little girl I was sexually abused by my grandfather. This was a very scary experience for me that continued on for many years. I felt confused because I really loved my grandpa and I loved myself, but what I was experiencing made me wonder if I should love either one.

Those early defining moments in my life created a wall around my heart. I no longer saw myself through eyes of love. In fact, I hated myself. When I looked in the mirror, I could never see who I really was. I saw something so far from the truth. I could only see a broken, ugly, and unlovable image looking back at me. I carried secrets and those secrets were heavy and dark.

As I grew up and started to date, I realized that I had some serious issues with trust and commitment. I saw men as untrustworthy, and so that is what I often attracted and experienced in my relationships. Several years after I returned from serving a mission, I met and married Tyler. A couple of years into our marriage, I discovered he was struggling with a pornography addiction. All of the fears and insecurities I had carried my whole life were unleashed again, and I was left wondering if there was a single man on the planet I could truly trust with my heart.

Here it was, another defining moment. I remember praying and venting all of my pain, loneliness, and anger to Heavenly Father one night. I laid next to Tyler and quietly cried in the dark. I was angry, but I knew that if I was ever going to heal my heart and the incorrect perceptions I had of myself, I had to learn how to love and it had to start with me.

Throughout my life, I have found that the overriding lesson here on earth is love. We are given many experience where we learn how to wield our superpower with faith and humility. True love, the kind that heals lives and changes hearts, comes from Christ. He is the source of our power and I have seen his grace and light work wonders in my life and literally “save the day” in the most heroic ways. Anything I have been able to overcome is only because of him. He has healed my heart, my children, and my husband.

My greatest desire is to love as he loves, and life is giving me many opportunities to practice. It is the difficult things we face that carve out a deeper reservoir of light within us and allow us to use our powers for good! I love my Savior Jesus Christ. I know that he lives! He is real, and when I look at myself now, I am looking for him.

Michelle Iverson is a wife, mother, author, speaker, teacher and follower of Jesus Christ. She loves to share her insights and experiences through her writing and teaching and seeks to restore well-being to the lives of those who suffer. After experiencing sexual abuse in her childhood, and sexual addiction in her marriage, she and her husband Tyler have become passionate about sharing their story. Michelle’s true passion is helping women overcome adversity through the “sacred art of self-nurture.”

The post #BecauseofHim — Healing from Abuse and a Spouse’s Addiction appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.

At the same time, I am struck every time by the patterns in the stories. Addiction has predictable patterns. Which means there is hope for the principles and support and therapeutic approaches that can help those who need healing. It is gratifying to see how many people are spending their time and energy to help couples in this situation. “KatieDid” is an example of one such person. Catch a snippet of her story below, and find information about what she and others are doing in the Northwest part of the US in September.

A guest blog post written by “KatieDid”

When I was a girl, I would often dream about love and romance. I looked forward to the time when I would fall in love and get married. I wanted to meet someone with whom I could share my true self. We would share everything about ourselves: our hopes, joys, dreams, work and sorrows. I knew marriage wouldn’t be a walk in the park, but I believed it would be worth the effort. Eventually I found that special someone and we began our life together. He was my best friend and greatest supporter. We worked, played, cried and laughed together.

Slowly, almost imperceptibly, over the next few years that relationship changed. We still lived and worked together, but that closeness was gone. I felt the loss, but assumed it was due to the stress of having children and still being in school. Not everything can last forever. One evening my husband came to me looking very uncomfortable. He confessed that he had been using pornography….

Read more of KatieDid’s story at hopeandhealinglds.com

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And take a look at the end of the post for information about a conference that will be held by the Northwest Coalition for Healthy Intimacy in Portland, Oregon on Saturday, September 13, 2014 Speakers will includeDouglas Weiss, Ph.D; Donald L. Hilton, M.D.; Geoff Steurer, LMFT; Rhyll and Steve Croshaw; and LaVarr McBride, instructor of criminology at Penn State University. The conference will include an exclusive pre-screening of the forthcoming documentary The Heart of the Matter: Finding Light in the Darkness of Pornography Addiction (formerly titled Shamed). Editor’s note – this is a must-see!) Find more information or register at www.nwchi.org.

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[p.s. I don’t have photos of the instant choir because I can’t get up that early!]

Another unique element of BYU Women’s Conference is the service projects. What’s unique about service projects? The sheer numbers of humanitarian kits, blankets/quilts, cards, and more that are completed in such a short amount of time. Every year on Thursday night, for three hours, sports fields are turned into service project areas, a veritable beehive of activity.

Through the course of the conference, you can also see women doing loom hats, fleece blankets, and other “Take, Make, ‘n’ Return” projects.

There are also service learning rooms scattered throughout campus so that women can listen to talks and participate in service with other women. Lastly, from noon to 3:00 p.m. and from 5:00-8:00 on Thursday, Sharing Stations display a multitude of service ideas via booths. The BYU Women’s Conference website has dozens of links to past Sharing Stations. (Mormon Women had a booth several years ago!)

It used to be that the projects included international needs, but there has been a deliberate shift toward local needs — as a model to show Mormon women how endless those needs are. “Even in Utah” the needs far overwhelm the capacity of what women at BYU Women’s Conference can accomplish. I remember last year looking at a list of organizations in need of blankets and quilts. Many of them say that they have a CONSTANT need for these things.

The hope is that LDS women can leave BYU Women’s Conference inspired and energized to work with their local Relief Societies to build faith, strengthen families, and provide relief in their own lives and communities.

BYU Women’s Conference provides many service ideas at their Pinterest page.

The post Some things that make #byuwc unique appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.

Verily I say unto you,

Inasmuch as ye have done it

unto one of the least of these my brethren,

ye have done it unto me.

~ Matthew 25:40 (see also Mosiah 2:17)

Share photos from today’s challenge with the hashtag #BecauseofHim and/or #StartingToday

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