Tuesday, January 5, 2016

Elder and Sister Reynders

Called to Serve
Elder and Sister Reynders
Mississippi Jackson Mission
175 Burnham Road
Brandon, MS  39042

at the iconic map at the MTC

They are outta here!  80 couples joined my brother and his wife as they entered the MTC  yesterday for a week. Elder and Sister Reynders will also go to Salt Lake City for another week for some special training.  Mark will be serving as the mission nurse.  They'll head out to Mississippi after that. I'm excited to hear about all their doings. Their parents both served missions, but now it's time for the next wave of senior missionaries from the next generation.  Mark and Jo are leading the way in the family and I'm excited for them. Hoping to follow in their footsteps someday - CALLED TO SERVE!

“O ye that embark in the service of God,
see that ye serve him with all your heart,
might, mind and strength,
that ye may stand blameless before God
at the last day.
“Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God
ye are called to the work.”

Doctrine and Covenants 4:2-3

Friday, January 1, 2016

Red Letter Year



It's more than just a red letter day.  It's going to be a
Red Letter Year. Here are my 2016 goals:

2015 was not a good year for blogging.  I suppose with blogging I rode a wave that has come and gone in it's popularity, but it's still out there.  My posts were meager this year in more ways than one and I struggled with my new computer which is older now and I'm still not sure how to work it, hence, I have picture issues.  Ugh!  Why do my pictures disappear? I lack the skills - don't I know it!

Well, in spite of my set backs, I'm going to keep blogging.  That was one of my goals for 2015 because my blog was waning even in 2014.  I was not successful, but I will carry on in the hopes of doing better.

I said I'd lose weight.  Happily I did!  But it's still a goal for the new year.  I've got more to do.
I will lose weight!

I was very successful I think with indexing and I've done more with research too.  I pretty much index a batch a day and plan to continue, but as the year went on I started doing research a little everyday too. I will continue both.  My researching has improved my family tree, but I have not been diligent in assembling names for the temple.  I want to get better at that.  Also I bought DNA test kits for Hugh and I last year and we haven't done it yet.  Hope there's not an expiration date on it. It's not suppose to be difficult, but it seems to be for me.  I need someone to just hold my hand to get it done and take me through the process and if that's what it takes I guess I'll do that.  It's kind of like pictures and my new computer - it's more of a struggle than it needs to be, but admittingly, it's still a big struggle. Hoping to get this resolved in 2016 if not sooner.  DNA test and submit names for temple ordinances.

I've kept a Thank You Journal pretty consistently for two years now.  Hopefully I'll just be more thankful now without going through this exercise.  I'm going to try something different my sister, Beth, suggested - A Good Turn Daily.  It's Scouting terminology for serving everyday. I'm going to try and record this information daily in my little journal instead of my thanks and see what the results are.

I have a number of other goals, but this is all I'll put here on the blog.  Hopefully my blogging will improve, I'll be lighter, I'll have DNA results to share and get better at submitting names to the temple.  I also look forward to rendering more service.  I already think of myself as being serviceable, but I think I can always do more - maybe more for the people closest to me.

2016 here I come!

"As we emulate His example,
we will bless lives,
including our own."
—Thomas S. Monson,
general conference, October 2015