Skip to main content

The Quorum

You have to check out what is going on over at The Shepherd's Watch.  I mentioned it in my last post, but it's better when you can see it in action.  Different members of the elders quorum in my ward are taking turns sharing their personal scripture study with the rest of the quorum.  What's interesting is that the idea of scripture study is extending beyond the traditional definition of scripture—the standard works of the Church—to include the words of living prophets and apostles.  It may not be the conventional definition, but it is a doctrinally sound one.

I'm looking forward to the next few entries and then getting together on Sunday to discuss the exercise as a quorum.  Here are some highlights from what has been posted so far.
  • Bill Bailey shows how much there is to gain from reading even a few verses a night with young children who may not be able to handle much more.  Whenever I read 1 Nephi 11:31 from now on, I'll think of Bill identifying the "epic symbolism of the power of God over literally the scariest/most troubling things on Earth (disease, devils, etc.)."
  • Aaron Wight shares a conversation and the doctrinal basis behind a conversation that starts with the question, "What am I raising you to be?"  I won't share the answer here.  You need to read it.  But there is treasure in the response.
  • Michael Ellerbeck literally shows us his study notes for a passage in Alma.  It's fascinating.  They're just notes, but the last few lines are emotionally moving.
  • Johnny Walker shares the process by which he has gained insight from Bishop Barker and Elder Uchtdorf.  It embodies the kind of striving that transforms a Sunday meeting from just a class to a brotherhood.  

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Driving East

I will wake up tomorrow morning, on Father’s Day, alone in Cheyenne without my family. I say this matter-of-factly. Designated days have only a light hold on me. An unexpected business trip that means being gone on Father’s Day? No problem. I'm not much for ceremony. More than once we have marked Father’s Day by splurging for a hotdog at Costco while filling up the minivan on a road trip. (Surely, Cheyenne has a Costco.) If I wake up emotional tomorrow morning, it's not because I'm alone on Father’s Day. It will be because of the cocktail of emotions I drank today. —— Driving across Wyoming was beautiful. Everything below the horizon looked groomed and green. The grass, the hills. the forests. A sea of green dusted with flecks of distant snowfields and antelope. (So many antelope.) Above the horizon, wild white and stormy black scratched across brilliant blue. The kind of sea and sky that softens your heart and tricks your mind.  I pulled off the highway at Little America f...

Three Wonders

I know the tradition began earlier, but I associate it with the Carmen Red Oldsmobile station wagon. There was also the Toyota van, but the Oldsmobile days were the magic ones. Over the river and through the woods to grandmother's house we would literally go. (Also through the valley, past the waterfalls, over the hill, and along the lake.) Neilan family Christmas at Grandma and Grandpa's house. The house where my mom was raised, where aunts, uncles, and cousins were just a few houses or blocks away. The two story house where on any ordinary day you entered directly into the kitchen, sat at the kitchen table, and just listened to my mom and her parents talk as an assortment of her brothers would inevitably call or stop by. But on Christmas Eve, the house was already packed to the brim with family, presents, food, and laughter. So much laughter. It was a wonderland as a child to be surrounded by people who loved you and were excited to see you. The house was warm and the large w...

Sons and Daughters unto God

Lately, I find myself reciting in my mind portions of The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles . I memorized it years ago when our family was studying it at Easter. It has been a constant source of strength and perspective in my life. For all the scripture and sermon that exists about Jesus Christ, I’m not sure there is a more succinct and beautiful treatment of who he is and why it matters. There is one passage that repeats D&C 76. Referring to Jesus Christ, the Prophet Joseph wrote, “We saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father— That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God.” ( D&C 76: 23-24 ) I find in these truths evidence of Jesus Christ’s sweeping love and grace. Because of the universal atonement of Jesus Christ, he brings every inhabitant of every world he has ever created back into t...