Lost and Found

 Lost and Found By Greg Olsen

2003

I received an e-mail from a young man who expressed his discouragement at not being able to find many images of the Savior with teenagers. He noted that he had seen many paintings depicting Christ with loveable little children, but rarely had he found his age group represented in such a setting. This young man closed his message with these heartfelt words: “What about us?” Many of us have probably asked a similar question. What about me? Who doesn’t love little children with all their precious innocence and charm? But what about those of us that may not feel as lovable; those of us who may have struggled and lost our way, or who have wandered paths that have left us worn and doubting our worth? Thankfully, Christ’s love carries no conditions and is extended in full measure, especially to those who feel lost and forgotten.

Painting Symbology: The young man is dressed in dark clothing representing those dark clouds that at times weigh heavy on our souls and seems to cover the light that still shimmers inside us. The knapsack and bedroll remind us of the worldly burdens that we all carry around … fear, discouragement, pain, loneliness, sorrow, anger, hopelessness and on and on. The meandering path in the background symbolizes the twists and turns of life’s journey, some of which stretch us to our limit. Such was the case with Dan the young man I used as a model in this painting. Dan was a friend of our family whose path brought him to a place where he chose to leave this life and the clouds that must have surrounded him. Dan’s journey has made this painting all the more poignant for me as life imitates art. Wherever we are in our journey, the Lord is near. He will not force himself upon us, but simply waits for us to ask for his help. Unlike most of us, who have difficulty seeing beyond the outward view of that person on the bench, Christ sees the soul knows the heart and remains the ultimate Savior and friend.
by Greg Olsen

Valentine Match Game!

I know it's not VALENTINE'S DAY - 

but I wanted to post it now . . .  cause I'll forget!

Click on picture below to play game

or CLICK HERE

 

IN and OUT of My Control -

 

Twenty-Six Guards

A missionary on furlough told this true story while visiting his home church in Michigan:

"While serving at a small field hospital in Africa , every two weeks I traveled by bicycle through the jungle to a nearby city for supplies. This was a journey of two days and required camping overnight at the halfway point.

On one of these journeys, I arrived in the city where I planned to collect money from a bank, purchase medicine, and supplies, and then begin my two-day journey back to the field hospital.

Upon arrival in the city, I observed two men fighting, one of whom had been seriously injured. I treated him for his injuries and at the same time talked to him about the Lord.

I then traveled two days, camping overnight, and arrived home without incident...

Two weeks later I repeated my journey.

Upon arriving in the city, I was approached by the young man I had treated. He told me that he had known I carried money and medicines. He said, 'Some friends and I followed you into the jungle, knowing you would camp overnight. We planned to kill you and take your money and drugs.

But just as we were about to move into your camp, we saw that you were surrounded by 26 armed guards.

At this, I laughed and said that I was certainly all alone in that jungle campsite.

The young man pressed the point, however, and said, 'No, sir, I was not the only person to see the guards, my friends also saw them, and we all counted them. It was because of those guards that we were afraid and left you alone.'

At this point in the sermon, one of the men in the congregation jumped to his feet and interrupted the missionary and asked if he could tell him the exact day this happened.

The missionary told the congregation the date, and the man who interrupted told him this story:

"On the night of your incident in Africa , it was morning here and I was preparing to go play golf. I was about to putt when I felt the urge to pray for you. In fact, the urging of the Lord was so strong, I called men in this church to meet with me here in the sanctuary to pray for you. Would all of those men who met with me on that day stand up?"

The men who had met together to pray that day stood up. The missionary wasn't concerned with who they were, he was too busy counting how many men he saw.

There were 26!

This story is an incredible example of how the Spirit of the Lord moves in mysterious ways. If you ever hear such prodding, go along with it.

If we all take it to heart, we can turn this world toward God once again. As the above true story clearly illustrates, "with God all things are possible".

More importantly, how God hears and answers the prayers of the faithful.

Temple Covenants & Ordinances Are Rooted In Something Much Deeper

 

From youtube channel   -   True Millennial

Blessing To The Sisters of the World From President Russel M. Nelson on March 17, 2024

Quote From 

Worldwide Relief Society Devotional 

and Testimony Meeting

President Russell M. Nelson 

and the Relief Society General Presidency 

speak to women on March 17, 2024, 

in a devotional to commemorate the founding of the 

Relief Society on March 17, 1842.

To watch click on link

President Nelson's talk starts at 30:38

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tEq_H4Yjyc&t=2s&ab_channel=InspirationfromTheChurchofJesusChrist

 

Or watch here:

The Value of One Member

Ten little members, standing in a line.

One disliked the president, then there were nine.

Nine ambitious members offered to work late.

One forgot her promise, then there were eight.

Eight creative members had ideas good as heaven.

One lost enthusiasm, then there were seven.

Seven loyal members got into a fix.

They quarreled over projects, and then there were six.

Six members remained with spirit and drive.

One moved away, then there were five.

Five steadfast members wished there were more.

One became indifferent, then there were four.

Four cheerful members who never disagree-

'Til one complained of meetings; then there were three.

Three eager members! What did they do?

One got discouraged, then there were two.

Two lonely members, our rhyme is nearly done.

One joined an athletic club, then there was one.

One faithful member was feeling rather blue-

Met with a neighbor, then there were two.

Two earnest members each enrolled one more-

Doubling their number, and then there were four.

Four determined members, just wouldn't wait

Til each one won another, and then there were eight.

Eight excited members signed up sixteen more,

In another six verses, there'll be a thousand twenty-four!

I've seen a couple of authors for this poem

and also some words changed -

So I will leave it authorless!

The Visitor

by Ken Merrell

When I was 18, as I was preparing to serve a mission, my bishop called me to teach the Sunbeams. I had never before learned to love others more than myself until I had served those children in such a simple assignment. With time and patience I learned how to keep those seven children in their seats and listening to a simple lesson.

One day I invited Mike to come to church and sit in my class. Mike was my age but had stopped attending church completely by the time he was 12. We had remained friends over the years as I had served as the deacons quorum president, the teachers quorum president, and first assistant to the bishop in the priests quorum. He had been the topic of many fellowshipping discussions and was often part of my prayers as the years had passed. Once in a while Mike would accept my invitations to come to an activity. It always surprised me when he did, so I kept inviting him.

At that time, Mike had long, black hair and a beard. His complexion was dark and pleasant. I don’t remember when I invited him to my Primary class, but one day he showed up.

“Class, I would like to introduce you to my friend Mike,” is how I began my lesson. “He is visiting us today.”

Mike sat next to me in front. The children sat in a semicircle with their eyes fixed on him. They were much quieter than usual. I was about five or six minutes into the lesson when one little boy got up from his chair and walked across the room and stood directly in front of my friend. The boy paused for a moment and then climbed onto his lap. I continued with the lesson as I watched the two of them from the corner of my eye.

The boy sat looking into Mike’s face. Mike was quite uncomfortable but did not interrupt the lesson or turn the boy away. The other children watched the two of them for a few minutes.

Then one of the girls climbed off her seat and approached Mike. I was intently interested in seeing how Mike would react and did not want to instruct the two children to return to their seats. The girl stood with her hand on Mike’s knee looking into his face.

Then it happened. The boy on Mike’s lap reached up with both hands and turned Mike’s face directly to his. I stopped my lesson to see what was about to unfold.

With the innocence of a child, he said to Mike, “Are you Jesus?”

The look on Mike’s face was total surprise. It seemed, as I glanced at the children’s faces, they all had the same question on their minds.

Mike looked at me as if to say, Help, what do I say?

I stepped in. “No, this is not Jesus. This is His brother.”

Mike looked at me as if in shock.

Then without hesitation the boy in Mike’s lap reached up and wrapped his arms around Mike’s neck. “I can tell,” the boy said as he hugged Mike.

The rest of the children smiled and nodded in agreement as their simple question was answered. Mike blinked back the tears in response to the love he felt from this small Sunbeam. The lesson went on, but that day the teacher who taught the most was a three-year-old child.

Mike spent more than a year getting ready to serve a mission. It thrilled me to learn that he left for the mission field a few months before I returned. I still think of the scripture in Matthew 18:5: 

“And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.”

Find original story HERE

May 2000 - The New Era

On Instagram Page find.christ   -  Video of him telling the same story above

Promised Blessings for Reading the Scriptures

From

John Bytheway

Facebook Page

February 2, 2024

Look them all up!

Do it!!

 

"God Comes To Women"

Have you ever noticed how in the scriptures men are always going up into the mountains to commune with the Lord?

Yet in the scriptures we hardly ever
hear of women going to the mountains.
But we know why — right?

Because the women were too busy
keeping life going;
they couldn’t abandon babies,
meals,
homes,
fires,
gardens,
and a thousand responsibilities to make the climb into the mountains!

I was talking to a friend the other day,
saying that as modern woman
I feel like I’m never “free” enough
from my responsibilities,
never in a quiet enough space
I want with God.

Her response floored me,
“That is why God comes to women.
Men have to climb the mountain to meet God, but God comes to women where ever they are.”

I have been pondering on her words for weeks and have searched my scriptures
to see that what she said is true.
God does in deed come to women
where they are,
when they are doing their ordinary,
everyday work.

He meets them at the wells
where they draw water for their families,
in their homes,
in their kitchens,
in their gardens.

He comes to them
as they sit beside sickbeds,
as they give birth,
care for the elderly,
and perform necessary mourning and burial rites.

Even at the empty tomb,
Mary was the first to witness Christ’s resurrection,
She was there because she was doing the womanly chore of properly preparing Christ’s body for burial.

In these seemingly mundane
and ordinary tasks,
these women of the scriptures found themselves face to face with divinity.

So if — like me — you ever start to bemoan the fact that you don’t have as much time to spend in the mountains with God as you would like. Remember, God comes to women. He knows where we are and the burdens we carry. He sees us, and if we open our eyes and our hearts we will see Him, even in the most ordinary places and in the most ordinary things.
He lives. And he’s using a time such as this to speak to women around the world.

-Heather F