I Dare You To Eat It

Shout out to my daughter, Rosie, serving her mission in Arizona and my darling son-in-law, Chas, who did the filming for this piece. Go team!

A little extra planning makes it easier to incorporate something really big, like food storage, into my daily diet. I break down a year’s supply into the days of the week and try to cook accordingly: Monday-Wheat, Tuesday-Rice, Wednesday-Beans, Thursday-Pasta, and Friday-Potatoes. One day at a time, I’m choosing to make food storage, and provident living, part of my daily routine.

In a similar way, I’m trying to make sure that I plan to be a student of the gospel. I want the scriptures, and the words of our prophets, to be part of my daily routine. Here’s how I’m planning to make that goal a reality in 2009:

Monday-Doctrine and Covenants and Church History

Tuesday-Doctrine and Covenants and Church History

Wednesday-Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith

Thursday-Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith

Friday-General Conference Talks

Even though serving in the Primary doesn’t allow me to attend the Gospel Doctrine class each week, this is the course of study that is currently being guided and directed by our leaders. The instruction is followed by the entire adult membership of the church, and I absolutely want to be on the same page!

Do any of these favorite sections from the Explanatory Introduction strike you? “…the Doctrine and Covenants is unique because it is not a translation of an ancient document, but is of modern origin and was given of God through his chosen prophets for the restoration of his holy work and the establishment of the kingdom of God on the earth in these days.” ” These sacred revelations were received in answer to prayer, in times of need, and came out of real-life situations involving real people.” “Finally, the testimony that is given of Jesus Christ–his divinity, his majesty, his perfection, his love, and his redeeming power–makes this book of great value to the human family and of more worth than the riches of the whole earth.

I try to allow myself one hour of study each day. Sometimes, waking up early in the morning is the only way to fit it into the schedule. Yes, I really use the class member study guide produced by the church. I think they do that for a reason. Week after week, I follow the suggested reading, answer every question, and take notes that relate to my understanding of the messages I feel. And I do FEEL things. Beginning the study time with prayer and a sincere petition for the blessings and inspiration from the Holy Ghost makes all the difference.

On the weekends, just like with my food storage, I either use the time to crash, catch up, or add a little more variety to my diet. I recently finished reading Believing Christ by Stephen E. Robinson and would recommend it to anyone. It’s a tiny book packed with examples that helped me see the difference between believing in Christ and believing Christ. Besides my personal study plan, family scripture study keeps my nose always in the Book of Mormon.

As with anything, food storage and gospel study take some time, and no one has enough of that. Designing a PLAN helps to keep those goals a priority. I certainly don’t have a perfect record but consistently working towards the goal, staying focused on my plan, helps me experience success, one day at a time.

Google You Tube and search “Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin Tribute Video”.

See? I told you! That’s exactly how he was. ALL THE TIME. (My experience, not on an airplane but at my own dining table, was posted on December 2, 2008.)

Quiet, kind, and bold.

Man, I love going to the temple. I love being able to participate in something so much bigger than myself. I love that there is a ‘recovery plan’ in place, which provides eternal opportunities for all of God’s children. I love that God allows me to show up for work, punch His timeclock, and take a shift each week. I’m thankful that I don’t have to be perfect before I can work in His business.

I say all the time that I want to ultimately join the company, run my own office, and inherit the business. I’m glad for the opportunity of vocational training. He gives me the chance right now, to do the work I’ve said I want to do for eternity. Time spent at the temple is about caring for people. I WANT to have a part in this great work.

When I see  the numbers of people who explore this website from Spain, South Korea, Singapore, Costa Rica, Switzerland, Netherlands, etc. I’m reminded of the Welcome message from our Prophet, President Thomas S. Monson, during the October General Conference:

Next month the Mexico City Mexico Temple will be rededicated following extensive renovations. In the coming months the construction of other temples will be completed, and open houses and dedications will take place.

This morning I am pleased to announce five new temples for which sites have been acquired and which, in coming months and years, will be built in the following locations: Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Córdoba, Argentina; the greater Kansas City area; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Rome, Italy.

Brothers and sisters, our missionary force, serving throughout the world, continues to seek out those who are searching for the truths which are found in the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Church is steadily growing; it has since its organization over 178 years ago.

It has been my privilege during the past six months to meet with leaders of countries and with representatives of governments. Those with whom I’ve met feel kindly toward the Church and our members, and they have been cooperative and accommodating. There remain, however, areas of the world where our influence is limited and where we are not allowed to share the gospel freely. As did President Spencer W. Kimball over 32 years ago, I urge you to pray for the opening of those areas, that we might share with them the joy of the gospel. As we prayed then in response to President Kimball’s pleadings, we saw miracles unfold as country after country, formerly closed to the Church, was opened. Such will transpire again as we pray with faith.

I hope I will choose to always make time for this type of service. It’s not to be missed!

My sister-in-law Kathy sent me this website with a special Christmas message from Brigham Young University alumni, faculty, staff, and students: www.joytoeveryone.com 

Seeing the beautiful images of children around the world, it’s so nice to know that beyond the problems of today we’re all connected, and Jesus, really is our Savior. Please take time to read the brief story behind this music video and the messages of hope found on the blog.

Thanks to my good friend, Laurie, for sending me an email about a grocery store in Utah that is offering 50 pound bags of white or red wheat for $16.00. I guess you have to go on their website (www.maceys.com) and pre-order, email only, to get this great deal. It seems like the price is about half what you would normally pay.

Years ago, I took an excellent series of classes, from a true food storage maven. Anne taught me that in Utah, because of how dry the climate is, bags of wheat may be slid into a large Rubbermaid garbage can, stacking about 3 or 4 bags on top of each other while the can is laying down, on its side on the ground, and then you just stand the thing up and pop the lid on.

Something to think about if you need to buy wheat and are short on funds or the time to get it canned. We’ve done this in the past and then gone back and canned the product later.

I’m so glad we began buying wheat when our children were little. Even though we didn’t have extra money, we just kept buying a little bit every few months and slowly, over the years, our supply grew into the amount suggested by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. What we learned during 25 years of marriage is that we never seemed to have ‘extra’ money. So starting early made a huge difference.

As I’m writing these blog posts I’m able to share the little bits I’ve learned about building a food storage that can simplify the daily routine, starting right now, and also bless family and neighbors in times of need. My tracking website tells me that I’m getting traffic from Canada, Great Britain, Poland, Germany, Sweden, Japan, Saudi Arabia, India, France, Russian Federation, Czech Republic, Romania, Panama, Australia, and Denmark. I’m thrilled and amazed!

If anyone is interested in learning more about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the inspired counsel that encourages provident living, please visit www.lds.org or www.providentliving.org for more information. I’m thankful for both spiritual and temporal guidance that encourages all members, over 13 million worldwide, to organize their families and prepare a minimal amount of storage. When it comes to something as vital as food, it only makes sense to maintain a plan that is independent of what the government and grocery store can provide.

Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, the oldest living apostle of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, died last night, age 91. Please visit www.lds.org for more information.

About six years ago we invited Elder Wirthlin and his sweet wife, Elisa Young Rogers Wirthlin, to join us for a Sunday dinner in our home. They were our neighbors and we like to invite the neighbors for dinner.

There are a couple of things that I would share about that experience. First, and certainly not in order of importance, I’m glad I didn’t let the fact that I don’t have the perfect dining set or even enough matching chairs hold me back from sharing my food and home with others. (You would think that because I sell all that stuff and charge $125.00 per hour, my own home would be picture perfect. Not even close.)

I’m thankful that for over 25 years, in 10 different homes, my husband and I have continued a tradition of inviting people for dinner. It was one way to serve others. Systematically working our way through the ward list, hesitating to invite the Wirthlins would have felt like surrendering to the insecurity. And years of practice made us bold.

The most important part of that specific Sunday dinner was the beautiful example I witnessed in Elder Wirthlin. In addition to the seven of us and the Wirthlins, we had also invited my parents, and our next-door neighbors, Dustin and Sarah. (Because I don’t enjoy the cooking, when I do it, I try to do it big.)

Dustin and Sarah were not members of the L.D.S. faith so Mike and I tried to carefully explain Elder Wirthlin’s calling and life of service as an apostle of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Right there, in the middle of “could you pass me the peas” Elder Wirthlin asked Dustin and Sarah if they would like to have the missionaries teach them about the restored gospel and join with us at Church.

I don’t know why, but I was not expecting that. What I learned, between bites, in our less than ideal dining room, on a less than ideal street in Salt Lake City, was an example of love that overcomes fear. Elder Wirthlin and his dearest wife Elisa, were people who were not afraid to share the message of the Gospel. It was a gift they freely offered to everyone. What a life!

I will remember this past General Conference for the messages that spoke to my spirit:

* Fasten your seat-belt.

* Eyes forward.

* Stay on track.

And from Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, * Enjoy the ride.

Brace yourself. These are the sketches I drew to help my daughter learn and memorize the Articles of Faith
…and a few teaching hints to go with them:

* Let the child help draw the picture or at least draw it while they are watching. Learning happens with the art making. Just like how children learn the concepts of a Primary song by singing it more than if they only listened to someone else sing to them.

* Talk about the BIG ideas that are represented with these little pictures. No point in having children repeat things they don’t understand.

* Tape one of these pictures to the dashboard of your car so that you can help your child memorize on the fly.

* Quiz backwards, for a review, and have the child try to draw the same picture after you have said the verse.

* Relax and don’t get hung-up on creating perfect pictures. Children don’t care. They like primitive art! It naturally speaks to them.

Years ago, I began planning our family dinners from the carbs up. (WHAT? HAS SHE GONE MAD?)

Monday: Wheat

Tuesday: Rice

Wednesday: Beans

Thursday: Pasta

Friday: Potatoes

I found that I needed to focus on the long-term storage items in order to get them incorporated into our daily diets. Is it the Word of Wisdom meal plan? As in D&C 89:14 All grain is ordained for the use of man and of beasts, to be the staff of life, …  I don’t know. My favorite verses are: 18 And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones; 19 And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures; 20 And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint. 21 And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them. Amen.

Food for thought.

Well, here’s an idea that has absolutely nothing to do with food storage.

I’ve been helping my youngest daughter memorize the Articles Of Faith and stumbled onto a little trick that seems to be working really well, for both of us. I’ve made simple sketches, incorporating each number with little Pictionary-type line drawings that veeeery loosely illustrate the words and principles. So far, Lizzie’s solid on 1-9, and we’ve only been working on it for two weeks! Having them memorized, in the proper order, is a first for me. If you’re interested, and promises not to laugh at my wacky drawings, I could try to figure out a smart way to post the sketches.