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Bishop Brooks letter March 27th

March 27, 2021

Dear 5th Ward Family

Good morning to all of you. Winter has again shown its tenacity, but hopefully only as a reminder as to what we have to look forward to 6 or 7 months from now. Thank you for the Good Samaritan who moved the snow from our driveway. Lori was being looked after by her daughters again this week and I was in Medicine Hat. We arrived home to a snow-free driveway last night at 10:30. I almost cried.

You’ll likely notice that I’m writing this letter for distribution on Saturday rather than Sunday. That’s done intentionally to serve as a reminder that this weekend is Stake Conference. Leadership is scheduled for Saturday at 4 pm and I’m sure everyone who is to attend has been informed.

The adult session is at 7 pm and the Sunday morning session is, as usual, set for 10 am. These last two meetings will be both in person as well as broadcast on the stake YouTube channel. If you wish to attend either of those meetings in person at the Stake Centre, remember you have to have a ticket and will need to be both masked and will have to social distance. Only a limited number of tickets are available. Brother Spencer has them so you will need to contact him.

For those of us attending the Leadership meeting,  we are to read President Nelson’s talk from last October General Conference entitled “Let God Prevail” and be prepared to discuss it at the meeting. As I re-read that talk, I couldn’t help but think about people in my life who have fully committed to the concept of “letting God prevail”.

One of my first home teaching families was a single sister who had been widowed far longer than my then 14 years. She would regularly ask my companion, Brother Elmo Fletcher, who was then President of the Alberta Temple, to give her a blessing, which he always did. She knew that her Father in Heaven loved and knew her and despite her many physical ailments, did all in her power to continue to serve by attending the temple and there doing work. She suffered from arthritis which impeded her ability to walk. I’m not sure she was ever not in pain. I’ll never forget the day President Fletcher gently chastened her for having crawled from her home the half-block to the the temple steps where he found her as he made his way to his assignment about 5 in the morning. For her, she knew in her heart that the Lord needed her offering of service and the effort to do so, despite the pain, was something she was prepared to give. She also knew that there were better days ahead for her, either in this life or the next. For her, she knew God would prevail, and she was prepared to let that happen.

My mother was born into humble circumstances in 1915. Her father was soon to leave for the battlefields of France and Belgium. As a child, she contracted scarlet fever, which resulted in her having an enlarged heart. She also suffered from whooping cough and, 20 years later, German measles. This latter malady resulted in her not being able to have her second child in the hospital, so my brother Ben was born in a private home somewhere on the south hill in Cardston. She was too contagious to be allowed around other patients. 

My mom and dad named Ben after mom’s father, Ben Hugh May, the aforementioned veteran of World War I who died in my mother’s 20th year from pneumonia, not long after Ben’s birth. 

My father was a school teacher. They married in 1932 when she was only 17 years old. They started their family during the time of the Great Depression and had three children from 1933 to 1939. Like many of their friends and neighbours, they got by on what they grew in their garden and very little money. 

It was this woeful economic situation as much as patriotic fervour that prompted my father to, without consulting my mother, enlist in the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1942. When he left for basic training, mom was expecting their 4th child. She was 26 years old and had 4 children under 9 years of age. 

Somehow, mom got through those early years. When I came along, just prior to her 44th  birthday, she was a grandmother twice over and was getting a wedding ready for child number 3. I’m sure she never thought she was going to be raising a new born at the same time she was tending grandkids. 

When I was growing up, she was my primary teacher, the primary president and the Relief Society president. She washed clothes every week in an old wringer washer and hung everything out on the line for the the world to see. She got a new dress every year on her birthday, whether she wanted/needed it or not. She cooked every meal and, I’m embarrassed to say, made every bed. We had one bathroom between 4 of us. She never learned to drive so, unless Dad was home, she walked everywhere. 

Despite what many of us, certainly those of the millennial generation, would expect, she never complained. She didn’t complain about her health, or the health of her family, or really anything. She ensured we were at every meeting were supposed to attend. She regularly attended the temple and read her scriptures faithfully. She sent three sons on missions and saw all 5 of her children married in the temple. She epitomized for me a woman of faith and personified the concept of “let God prevail” and I think of her and thank her every day for her example and love.

As Lori and I were travelling home this week, we were talking about how it appears so many people concentrate on all of the negative things around them rather than being grateful for the positives in their lives. I have said here before how important it is to count our many blessings. We have more benefits and luxuries than our parents and grandparents could have ever imagined and yet so often we hear people complaining about not having enough and resenting those who might have more than them. 

Too often, we completely overlook the things we have in order to complain about what we don’t. 

That attitude extends to our own personal relationships. There have been few times that I have counselled with people that their focus is on what their spouse isn’t doing rather than remembering the good things about them. It’s sad we are so quick to want someone to do something that will be for our benefit rather than offer to do things that would benefit someone else. 

And yet, I have faith that there is hope. I have seen and heard of the experiences of those who have both served and been served. Lori and I have benefited greatly from the generosity and consideration of our ward members. I know many of you have experienced the same thing.  We cannot begin to thank you enough. Lori is noticing some improvement in her pain level and is learning how to do things with one arm. She’s amazing. 

So this week is Stake Conference and next week is General Conference. I urge you all to participate by watching, pondering and discussing. I know that as we listen to our leaders, we will hear messages of love and inspiration that will direct us to help and assist those around us and weather the storms of life. We will be encouraged to forget ourselves in the service of God and will be reminded that service to Him is given by serving others.

I am so grateful to be part of the Cardston 5th Ward. You are all wonderful and I love each of you.

Stay safe, stay healthy and social distance.

Love

Bishop Brooks

Bishop Brooks' letter March 21st

 March 21, 2021

Dear 5th Ward Family

It has been an interesting week for the Brooks family, with more ups and downs, twists and turns, than the scariest rollercoaster. At the end, though, we have a new grandson, his mother is doing well, and Lori is back home for at least a few days while she continues to recuperate. 

It’s funny how life can seem to be going along in a fairly smooth way when all of a sudden, everything changes. President Kim Taylor used to say “The Lord will have a humble people”. I know exactly what he meant when he said that.

Not surprisingly, Lori was not sure I should have put anything in last week’s letter about her injury. I wondered about it as well, but felt like I should share because after all, we are family. 

A huge thank you to those who called and reached out to Lori and me. Knowing others care brings a sense of calm and love that eases stress and tension and can alleviate pain. We love our ward members.

So, I was in Medicine Hat all week while Lori was being babysat by her daughters in Calgary. Even though I wasn’t the one hurt, I have to confess I was starting to feel sorry for myself, thinking I was all alone. It’s funny how prayers are answered. I had several emails and calls about ward matters that came from people I really respect and love. They had no idea that their calls were exactly what I needed to get me to stop worrying about myself and our situation and start focussing on serving others. 

But even with that reminder, I guess God knew I needed something else. For me, that was stumbling on a rebroadcast of the 25th Anniversary Concert for Les Miserables. I know I’ve said before that Les Mis is my absolute favourite musical of all time. I was first introduced to it by our son, James, who was studying the Victor Hugo novel in high school English. His teacher recommended that the students watch the 10th Anniversary Concert special if they could find it. Now James was not a fan of theatre, musical or otherwise. When I was involved in the Carriage House Theatre and grew to love the stage, James would come to a performance, stretch out his 6’6” frame in his seat, put his head back and tell his sister Haley to “Wake me up when dad comes out.” And then he’d fall asleep.

So, when James called up to Lori and me to hurry down to watch this amazing singer, I was both surprised and a little hesitant. But we went down into the basement and there on the screen was Colm Wilkinson singing “Bring Him Home”. It was the first time I had ever heard the songs of Les Mis sung, and created in me a fascination and love for that amazing production and its music and message. 

Now don’t misunderstand, I love music just for music’s sake, but a musical that takes it to the next level with a message as deep and hopeful as Les Miserables truly speaks to my soul.

The story follows a petty thief as he, because of a kindness shown to him by a bishop following years of imprisonment, spends the rest of his life on a journey of redemption. The characters he encounters along the way bring meaning to his life when he thought all was lost. 

The lyrics of this musical masterpiece are both haunting and profound:

Take my hand

And lead me to salvation

Take my love

For love is everlasting

And remember

The truth that once was spoken:

To love another person is to see the face of God

Just reading those words brings tears to my eyes. The author was truly inspired, for we believe the same thing. How do we show love for God? We obey His commandments and serve others. How do we serve others? By loving them and helping them through their trials. What is our reward for doing that? Eternal life with our Father in Heaven, where we can see His face forever, along with those whom we love.

Or this passage:

One day more!

Another day, another destiny.

This never-ending road to Calvary;

This describes our journey through life, which, while it might seem arduous and never ending, indeed has a destination, an opportunity to spend life eternal with our families in the presence of our Saviour, thanks to His atoning sacrifice. But for that sacrifice, that opportunity would have been lost to us. 

Then, finally:

God on high

Hear my prayer

In my need

You have always been there

Who among us has not fallen to our knees in anguish, hope and faith when we seek God’s blessing on a loved one who is in desperate need. Like Jean Valjean, we would gladly give up our own lives to save the life of another. That is when we truly feel just a little of what our Saviour felt when He first knelt in the Garden of Gethsemane, then again later when He hung from the cross. It is a Christlike love for another that brings us closer to him and hopefully inspires us to live our lives in a better way.

It was probably helpful that President Monson’s Biography “To the Rescue”, published in 2010, became available about the time I became obsessed with Les Miserables. In it, he said:

“The sweetest experience in mortality is to know that our Heavenly Father has worked through us” 

Counting a letter to the sisters on Mother’s Day and the Christmas letter of 2020, this will be my 55th letter to the ward since Covid. I began to write to you to simply keep you informed of the things that were happening during a year of incredible change and opposition. I then found that I was opening up to you a little bit about some of my inner thoughts, feelings and beliefs. I have found that I have developed a profound love for each one of you by being able to express my feelings to you. I see your faces as I sit before my keyboard and try to give you a message of hope. It is my prayer that you feel my testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ and of His sacred teachings. We strive as a people to become perfect, even though we know that the road to perfection is one we will travel every day of our mortal lives without truly finding success. But He is there to guide and direct us, and we are each there to provide support and encouragement to our fellow travellers. 

Let me share with you something I found in my “in box” this past week. 

“Once when I was a teenager, my father and I were standing in line to buy tickets for the circus.

Finally, there was only one other family between us and the ticket counter. This family made a big impression on me.

There were eight children, all probably under the age of 12. The way they  were dressed, you could tell they didn't have a lot of money, but their  clothes were neat and clean.

The children were  well-behaved, all of them standing in line, two-by-two behind their  parents, holding hands. They were excitedly jabbering about the clowns,  animals, and all the acts they would be seeing that night. By their excitement you could sense they had never been to the circus before. It  would be a highlight of their lives.

The father and mother were at the head of the pack standing proud as could be. The mother was holding her husband's hand, looking up at him as if to say,  "You're my knight in shining armor." He was smiling and enjoying seeing  his family happy.

The ticket lady asked the man how many tickets he wanted? He proudly responded, "I'd like to buy  eight children's tickets and two adult tickets, so I can take my family  to the circus." The ticket lady stated the price.

The man's wife let go of his hand, her head dropped, the man's lip began to quiver. Then he leaned a little closer and asked, "How much did you  say?" The ticket lady again stated the price.

The man didn't have enough money. How was he supposed to turn and tell his  eight kids that he didn't have enough money to take them to the circus?

Seeing what was going on, my dad reached into his pocket, pulled out a $20  bill, and then dropped it on the ground. (We were not wealthy in any  sense of the word!) My father bent down, picked up the $20 bill, tapped  the man on the shoulder and said, "Excuse me, sir, this fell out of your pocket."

The man understood what was going on. He wasn't begging for a handout but certainly appreciated the help in a desperate, heartbreaking and embarrassing situation.

He looked straight into my dad's eyes, took my dad's hand in both of his,  squeezed tightly onto the $20 bill, and with his lip quivering and a  tear streaming down his cheek, he replied; "Thank you, thank you, sir.  This really means a lot to me and my family."

My father and I went back to our car and drove home. The $20 that my dad  gave away is what we were going to buy our own tickets with.

Although we didn't get to see the circus that night, we both felt a joy inside us that was far greater than seeing the circus could ever provide.

That day I learned the value to give.

The giver is bigger than the receiver. If you want to be large, larger than life, learn to Give. Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get - only with what you are expecting to give - which is everything.

The importance of giving, blessing others can never be over emphasized  because there's always joy in giving.  Learn to make someone happy by acts of giving.”

~ Katharine Hepburn

(from Everything Good in the World)

My hero, Jean Valjean, discovered this same principle as he fought for his personal redemption. We can all do likewise. It was Christ’s gift to us that makes our own rescue possible, after all we can do. 

Remember about Stake Conference on March 27 and 28. We have tickets for the Adult session and for the Sunday morning regular session. 

Stay safe, stay healthy and social distance,

We love you all.

Bishop Brooks

Temple now in Phase 3

 

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Now that the Cardston Alberta Temple has entered phase 3, celebrate the reopening by performing an ordinance for your ancestor or sharing one of your reservations with a family member or friend.   Use Ordinances Ready   To schedule an appointment, please click the appointment link below. Schedule Now “Please schedule regular time to worship and serve in the temple. Every minute of that time will bless you and your family in ways nothing else can.” —President Nelson, April 2020 Forgot your FamilySearch Account information? You can reset your password or go here to recover your username.

Westwind School Superintendent Covid-19 Update

Darren Mazutinec - Superintendent of Schools Westwind

CJHS moves to online learning for 2 weeks

 Cardston Jr. High Covid-19 Update

https://www.westwind.ab.ca/about-us/news/post/cjhs-covid-19-update

We have identified multiple cases of COVID-19 in our Cardston schools this week.  AHS has informed us that at least one of these positive cases connected to Cardston Junior High School has been identified as having a COVID-19 variant of concern (VOC).

Out of an abundance of caution and care for our school community and their health and safety, we have decided that Cardston Junior High will temporarily transition ALL STUDENTS from in-person to at-home learning beginning Monday, March 15, 2021.

We understand and respect that this may be challenging for students and families. Still, we believe that these necessary actions will protect our students and allow us to confidently assess reopening our doors to in-person learning as soon as possible.  We truly appreciate the ongoing support of the entire Westwind community as we navigate these uncertain times together.

Posted on: Mar 12, 2021

Bishop Brooks' letter March 14, 2021... 1 year

 March 14, 2021

Dear Ward Family

Today we experience the wonder of having our clocks spring forward one hour, so if you’re reading this at 9:00 am and haven’t changed your clock yet, it’s really 10:00 am and you’re late for church.

It seems hard to believe that we are about to enter our second year of the Covid 19 pandemic. Great hope seems to have sprung among the nations of the world where the various vaccines have been approved and are being administered. However, with the rise of yearning for a cure to the virus and a return to the way things were, we are cautioned to not let down our guard down too quickly. 

I pray each day, as I’m sure most of you do, that we can once again meet with family and friends and that we can visit the sick and the weary, the widowed and the infirm. 

In the meantime, please continue to reach out to those around you. While the disease is potentially terminal, a major treatment, i.e. social isolation, brings its own form of pain and anguish. At no time in history have we been able to freely communicate via technology as we have today. Please take advantage of that great gift.

Lori and I have been talking this week about the idea of “opposition in all things”, and what that really means. The discussion began when we were watching a recorded episode of our favourite joint TV program “NCIS”. I should preface this by saying Lori had a fall this week and will be out of commission for a time. A tremendous thank you to Dr./Brother Eagle Bear and his kindness and skill in dealing with Lori’s injury. And also a tremendous thank you to the Schow family for watching over Lori until I was able to get back to town. 

Anyway, we were laying in bed watching the TV when one of the characters said something quite profound when trying to console another character who just got bad news from home. On the subject of trials, he said:

Stars can’t shine without darkness

I went looking for the source of that quote and came up with several, but the one I really like is attributed to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. who said:

Only in the darkness, can you see the stars

I like the Dr. King version better for some reason. Maybe it’s because the stars are there all the time, doing their very best to shine, but only darkness allows them to truly be seen. 

Anyway, maybe it was our current trial, or maybe it was just an epiphany regarding our bump in the road that lead us to have the discussion about opposition. 

I turned to 2 Nephi 2 and read Lehi’s words of counsel to Jacob, particularly verse 11 where he says:

For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, my firstborn in the wilderness, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad. Wherefore, all things must needs be a compound in one; wherefore, if it should be one body it must needs remain as dead, having no life neither death, nor corruption nor incorruption, happiness nor misery, neither sense nor insensibility.

Further study into this verse lead me to understand that the Lehi’s meaning is far deeper than I had imagined. It is relatively simple for us to understand that until we have tasted something bitter, we can never truly appreciate the sweet, and vice versa. Indeed, we may even welcome the contrast in order to fully understand, however, we are likely less enamoured with the idea that we need to suffer misery in order to be grateful for happiness. 

This idea of opposition in all things is explained somewhat when we read, just a few verses later, Lehi’s account of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden where they succumbed to temptation:

22 And now, behold, if Adam had not transgressed he would not have fallen, but he would have remained in the garden of Eden. And all things which were created must have remained in the same state in which they were after they were created; and they must have remained forever, and had no end.

23 And they would have had no children; wherefore they would have remained in a state of innocence, having no joy, for they knew no misery; doing no good, for they knew no sin.

24 But behold, all things have been done in the wisdom of him who knoweth all things.

25 Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy.

We are directed to have joy, both in this life and the next, but we cannot, by extension, comprehend joy without first understanding sorrow.

Elder Bruce C. Hafen, later of the 1st Quorum of the Seventy and now with emeritus status, in 1989 published a book with Deseret Book entitled “The Broken Heart: Applying the Atonement to the Life Experience”. At the time, he was Dean of the J. Rueben Clark Law School at BYU. 

In chapter 3, he quotes an account from his wife, Marie concerning this topic of opposition and joy and particularly applying it to the decision to start a family shortly after their marriage:

In my case, here is what all that meant in a down-to-earth sense. After making the great leap of faith involved in deciding to have our first child whenever Mother Nature wanted to send him or her, how was the joyful news of pregnancy made manifest? I was sick. Odd way to be showered with "joy." For part of each day for several months, I felt one degree of terrible or another. It was morning sickness "ad nauseum." Then about four weeks before delivery, I threatened to miscarry, so I spent a number of days in bed, which seriously complicated the classes I was both taking and teaching. But when the big day finally came, even the hours of labor were worth it, as I lay there in my hospital bed holding that beautiful little boy in my arms, his reddish hair already hinting at his temperament. I thought, "Nothing could be more wonderful than this. Surely the world stops for such a beautiful baby." I can remember being shocked when I heard that another mother had another baby just minutes after I had had ours. It seemed our experience had been unique, nonrepeatable. The day after the baby was born, I was cuddling him happily in my hospital room when my doctor came in. He was my uncle and quite a salty character. He looked at us and said cheerily, "How does it feel to have the easiest part over with?" "Easiest part?" I asked. "Why, sure," he replied. "It's the next twenty years that are going to be tough."

Now, almost exactly twenty years later, I understand. After all the diapers, the bruises, the washing, the cheering, the cleaning up, the pleading, the nail-biting, the crying, the laughing, the pacing, and the praying, I understand. I feel about raising children the way Ammon felt about missionary work. "And this is the account of Ammon and his brethren, their journeyings in the land of Nephi, their sufferings in the land, their sorrows, and their afflictions, and their incomprehensible joy." (Alma 28:8.) 

I can’t help but think that as a world, we are currently experiencing one of those moments. We have, for the past year been thwarted from our efforts to meet with family, as a ward, or to even travel far from our homes. We have not been able to join together for a ward dinner, to enjoy a sporting event or to, on occasion, even shop for clothing. Perhaps most importantly, we have been unable, for a very long time, to attend the temple to there perform ordinances as we have done for so long. 

And yet, while it appears we have been stymied, the Lord has foreseen this time and has made provision for us to continue to serve. The challenge is as much for us remaining faithful and engaged in the work as it is in the actual pandemic itself, or in other words to seek out the stars and even become stars, in a time of darkness.

This past week, we had the 5th member of our ward pass away during this pandemic. Brother Grant Nelson left this life during a time when the family that he loved was largely unable to spend time with him. And yet, when that family gathered last Saturday to both celebrate the life and mourn the loss of their patriarch, they did so with a knowledge that they will someday be reunited. 

That hope that is founded in the Plan of Salvation and made possible by the Atonement of Jesus Christ is similarly the foundation of our current hope that this too shall pass and we can be together again with family and ward members where we can throw our arms around each other and express in person our love. 

Our Father in Heaven and His Son love us dearly. Through them, we can have joy both here and in the next life. I testify to this truth.

Much is going to happen in the next little while. We have Stake Conference on March 27 and 28, with General Conference the following weekend, which, coincidentally, is also Easter weekend. 

I’m told by President Ferguson that commencing April 11, we will begin having Sacrament meeting each Sunday. As to the time and schedule, that has yet to be determined. We will let you know as soon as we find out.

We love you all.

Stay safe, stay healthy and social distance.

Bishop Brooks

Covid-19 We have moved forward to Step 2

 

Step 2 restriction changes continue Alberta is completing Step 2 of the Path Forward as hospitalizations remain well below 450. The following changes to public health measures come into effect March 8: Retail services and shopping malls can increase customer capacity to 25% of fire code occupancy, not including staff. Curbside pick up, delivery and online services are still encouraged. Banquet halls, community halls and conference centres can open for all activities permitted under Step 1 and 2, including hosting wedding ceremonies up to 10 people, funeral services up to 20 people, virtual events, and permitted performance activities. Receptions are not allowed. Performance activities have expanded to include adult performers and performance groups (10 people maximum), individual or group rehearsals and livestreamed performances, and large indoor film activities with approval. In-person audiences are not allowed. College and university athletics can resume lessons, practices and physical conditioning activities (10 people maximum). Games are not allowed.  These are in addition to the changes announced March 1 to reopen libraries and expand indoor fitness activities. Visit alberta.ca/CovidMeasures for additional details.  All other restrictions remain in place, including: No indoor social gatherings. Entertainment facilities remain closed. Services, like physio and hair salons, open by appointment only. Places of worship limited to 15% capacity for in-person attendance. Working from home is mandatory unless a physical presence is required to operate effectively. See all public health restrictions The path forward with COVID-19 Step 3 changes will be made no earlier than March 22. Decisions on easing or increasing restrictions will be based on hospitalizations and the current spread of COVID-19, including case counts and variants of concern. Continue following all public health measures to reduce case numbers: wash your hands, wear a mask in public, keep 2 metres apart, stay home and get tested when sick, and get vaccinated when it’s your turn.

https://www.alberta.ca/enhanced-public-health-measures.aspx

Bishop Brooks' letter March 7th

 March 7, 2021

Dear Ward Family

I’m writing this letter to you on Friday morning in the midst of what could likely be called “false spring”, although as I look at the Weather Networks long range forecast, I see little in the way of snow for the next two weeks. Lori always says I spend too much time worrying about the weather, but the fact is I’m always concerned about the roads and whether I need to try to avoid a storm so I can be somewhere I’m scheduled to be. She tells me I still worry about it too much. 

I did have a few days away from the office this week and we again went to Canmore for a time. Now I know we were there only a couple of weeks ago, and it may seem like we spend lots of time there, but the reality is, with the exception of some work related conferences, we’ve never really been there. Anyway, unlike the Valentine’s Day weekend when we suffered through frigid temperatures, a late night fire alarm and an earthquake, this trip was much more relaxing. We were able to take walks each morning and thoroughly enjoyed our time. I suggested that on our way home we take the more scenic Highway 1A back to Calgary, but that idea was quickly squelched by a fairly stern look from my co-pilot. 

I grew up in a family where we often travelled the road less taken, usually on the pretext of it being shorter or having less traffic. I think it was more likely because Dad just loved driving on the back roads to see what he hadn’t seen or experienced before. I’ve caught a bit of that same fever, much to Lori’s dismay. 

So, while travelling home this time, I had to stop at the Fort Macleod Courthouse for a few minutes. When we departed, rather than turning left out of the parking lot I turned right. Even before I had completed the turn, she said “Where are you going?”. I told her we were just going to take a different route. “We’re never going to get home, are we?” was her reply. 

Now, I think there’s a lesson there. For me, it’s likely to never deviate from the approved and much travelled path, although in my defence, it was far from a lengthy detour and indeed avoided the one and only traffic light in Fort Macleod. That it took us through the industrial park, however, was more than enough reason to hear a lengthy lesson on why we should have gone the usual way. But I digress. 

No, the lesson, I believe, is that sometimes it’s ok to take a bit of a different path, as long as the path doesn’t take us from our ultimate goal. Too often, I believe, we just travel life’s path on auto pilot, and as a result may sometimes end up where we don’t want to be. 

A few years ago, when travelling to our cabin in Montana seemed to be an almost weekly occurrence, we arrived in Browning and turned right on main street as per usual. We drove through town, commented on the new hotel and casino on the west end, turned onto the road toward East Glacier, then I slowed down and pulled a quick u-turn. Again, Lori said, “what are you doing?” I told her, we’re not going to the cabin, we’re travelling to Utah. Both of us were in the zone of habit, which in this case wasn’t taking us to where we wanted to go at all.

I wonder if sometimes we do the same as we travel our spiritual path. Of course, good habits are desirable. Daily prayer and scripture study, weekly meeting attendance, monthly ministering, are all good practices and customs to foster and maintain, however, if, like my mindless drive in Browning, we act as an automaton, the chances are we aren’t really getting much out of the trip. That’s why we are reminded to search and ponder rather than just read the scriptures. It’s also why ministering is way more about learning about and helping people than it is to read a monthly message, tell our families to call us if they need anything, then not think about them again until the next month. 

While driving home from Canmore, Lori reminded me of one of the lesser discussed parables, although it is a cousin to a commonly quoted one. 

1Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him.

2 And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them.

3 And he spake this parable unto them, saying,

4 What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?

5 And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.

6 And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.

7 I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

8 Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it?

9 And when she hath found it, she calleth her friends and her neighbours together, saying, Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost.

10 Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.

The parable of the lost sheep, of course is often quoted and teaches a valuable message of the worth of a soul, particularly a soul once lost that is now found. However, verses 8-10 teach a similar message, using money rather than livestock in the role of the lost soul.

However, as is pointed out by Donald and Jay Parry in “Understanding the Parables of Jesus Christ”, there is a significant difference between the lost sheep and the lost coin. Whereas the lost sheep likely wandered away from its flock and the protection of its shepherd, or in other words exercised its agency in straying from the path, the lost coin, as an inanimate object, had no such agency. It was lost because of the lack of attention or carelessness on the part of either the owner of the coin or someone who had the responsibility to care for it.

Think about that for a moment in the context of our responsibilities at home or in the church. In both places, we have a stewardship. Whether it be as teachers or parents, we have a duty to look after our charges. That doesn’t mean they don’t have their own agency to choose their path. However, if our inattention or even irresponsibility result in a person leaving the strait and narrow, or heaven forbid, drive a person away, I dare say we would, as the woman with the coin, do all we can to bring them back into the fold. 

However, the two parables, read together, essentially teach the same lesson. The worth of a soul is great in the sight of God, and we are charged with the responsibility to do all we can to bring those souls home to our Father in Heaven. They teach a lesson of redemption; they teach a lesson of The Rescue. 

We have been asked to prepare for our upcoming Stake Conference by being involved in a Temple and Family History challenge. The following was received from Brother Paulson:

The Stake Presidency would invite everyone to participate in a Temple and Family History challenge in the weeks leading up to Stake Conference: 

1-All member adults and youth over the age of 11 hold a current Temple Recommend or Limited-use Recommend, or be working towards that goal. 

2-Search out a name ready to take to the temple (when we are able to do so).

3-Complete at least one batch of indexing or add a memory on Family Search.

Stake Conference itself is scheduled for March 27 and 28. There will be a limited number of tickets for in person attendance (currently around 20 tickets per ward), but that number could go either up or down depending on government direction. Please don’t ask me for a ticket. We don’t know the number of tickets we will receive, and in person attendance will of course be dependant on social distancing and mask wearing. The tickets will be distributed by invitation only. The rest of us will watch via technology. It will not be broadcast to the TSC, instead we will watch in our homes likely via the stake YouTube channel. 

Of course, the following Sunday will be General Conference. I am looking forward to both events.

If you need a temple recommend interview, please contact Brother Spencer so he can arrange it. If you are a parent of a youth, ask them if they have a current limited use recommend and if not, again contact Brother Spencer so we can take care of that. 

Our temple status was just elevated to Phase 3 commencing a week from this Monday. However, the numbers are still strictly limited and require an appointment be made in advance. It does mean, however, that with an appointment we can do proxy work. It will be a wonderful thing to be able to return to God’s house. 

Stay safe, stay healthy and social distance.

We love you all.

Bishop Brooks