8/26/2018 Pure Joy, Paynes Prairie, Elder Christofferson

 Pure Joy - Taylor McKenna in Alaska and Stephen & Ehrin having fun in the basement.

We went to Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park last Saturday - about 20 minutes from our home.  The whole park covers 21,000 acres.  It is hard to even describe it is so beautiful.

When you climb up into the observation tower, you can see for many miles - that combined with Florida's clouds is breathtaking.  (almost as beautiful as the Nevada desert 😊)

   

 An observation deck with a rocking bench ..

These are the kinds of vines Tarzan swings from.

 

 We stopped at the observation deck that is just off the highway coming back.  This is all marsh land, apparently full of critters that we aren't really excited about running into anyway.  Fortunately the walk is a boardwalk that is safely above it all.

This is a huge marsh/lake covered with water lilies.   
        Our weekly schedule is a little different this semester because we have added a lecture series on Thursday evenings.  So Mike teaches T-TH 12:50 to 1:40 - Teachings of President Nelson and Wednesday 7:00 - 8:30 is Old Testament.  The lecture series is on Thursday evenings at 7:00, but he has that all set up so now it is just a matter of being there.  We serve a light dinner at 6:30 for both of the evening classes and then treats after the Thursday class.  Mike is still serving in the Branch Presidency, I was released from the Relief Society when they changed presidencies - we were pretty much a temporary summer presidency.   Home seems a long ways away at times, but we wouldn't be anywhere else for now - it has been an amazing experience to be here.  Our Father has been good to us. 

Closing with this thought from Elder Christofferson:    The word of God, as Alma said, is like a seed planted in our hearts that produces faith as it begins to grow within us (see Alma 32:27-43 and Romans 10:13-17).  Faith will not come from the study of ancient texts as purely academic pursuit.  It will not come from archaeological digs and discoveries.  It iwll not come from scientific experiments.  It will not even come from witnessing miracles.  These things may serve to confirm faith, or at times to challenge it, but they do not create faith.  Faith comes by the witness of the Holy Spirit to our souls, spirit to spirit, as we hear or read the word of God.  And faith matures as we continue to feast upon the word.
   We are reminded of the scripture that is the MIA theme this year -- D&C 19:23 - Learn of me, and listen to my words; walk in the meekness of my Spirit, and you shall have peace in me."       Our love to ya'all  !!

8/19/2018 3AM Brain, Flowers, Missionaries, President Monson

Really not much this week -- but here goes

Nature is amazing.  You can see the flower at the bottom, unopened pod top right 

 In this picture the top pod has bloomed and starting to sag.  It is interesting that the pod by itself doesn't sag but once it has bloomed it seems to weigh more ?? figure that out.

 Close up - beautiful!

 Sister Quinton (left) got her visa, so will be going to the Philippines tomorrow.

Three of this group going home.  This is in the hall of the Institute building.

Our ending thought is from "Be of Good Cheer" (April 2009) President Monson.  It is worth the read, you may want to go to the Ensign for the whole article.    Sure love you all  

Late one evening on a Pacific isle, a small boat slipped silently to its berth at the crude pier. Two Polynesian women helped Meli Mulipola from the boat and guided him to the well-worn pathway leading to the village road. The women marveled at the bright stars, which twinkled in the midnight sky. The moonlight guided them along their way. However, Meli Mulipola could not appreciate these delights of nature—the moon, the stars, the sky—for he was blind.  

Brother Mulipola’s vision had been normal until a fateful day when, while working on a pineapple plantation, light turned suddenly to darkness and day became perpetual night. He was depressed and despondent until he learned the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. His life was brought into compliance with the teachings of the Church, and he once again felt hope and joy.   

Brother Mulipola and his loved ones had made a long voyage, having learned that one who held the priesthood of God was visiting among the islands of the Pacific. He sought a blessing, and it was my privilege, along with another who held the Melchizedek Priesthood, to provide that blessing to him. As we finished, I noted that tears were streaming from his sightless eyes, coursing down his brown cheeks and tumbling finally upon his native dress. He dropped to his knees and prayed: “O God, Thou knowest I am blind. Thy servants have blessed me that my sight might return. Whether in Thy wisdom I see light or whether I see darkness all the days of my life, I will be eternally grateful for the truth of Thy gospel, which I now see and which provides the light of my life.”  

He rose to his feet and, smiling, thanked us for providing the blessing. He then disappeared into the still of the night. Silently he came; silently he departed. But his presence I shall never forget. I reflected upon the message of the Master: “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”6

My brothers and sisters, each of us has that light in his or her life. We are not left to walk alone, no matter how dark our pathway.

I love the words penned by M. Louise Haskins:

And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:

“Give me a light, that I may tread safely into the unknown!”

And he replied:

“Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God.

That shall be to you better than [a] light and safer than a known way.”7

08/12/2018 Rain, Rainbow, Demolition, Silver Springs, The Church is true!!

We smile, but there is a lot of truth in this - 

 Lots of rain but you don't see many rainbows.  This was a double and in the main one you could see clearly ever color.  Have we said before that our Father has blessed us with a beautiful world.

 We need all of the grandchildren here - reminded us of when Jeremy took down the home on the lot Craig and Krishelle bought and we all sat on the side of Stym's home and watched it go down.  It is pretty impressive to watch.  The parking lot close to us in the picture is right next to the Institute building.  This is quite a project, they are taking down the Ag Fraternity house which has been there for at least 50 years so it is pretty run down.  We are not sure if they are rebuilding or relocating.  It is a prime location, so we'll see.  There are a lot of talks and lessons in the fact that it takes so long to build and so little time to tear down.

Out trip to Silver Springs State Park was amazing.  We will use a few of their pictures because they are so much clearer.  We saw alligators, but fortunately never this close.  In the pictures we took, you can't see the babies, can barely see the alligator.  The guide said they will just lie there until a bird or turtle or frog gets too close and then shoot up and get it.  We are sorry we didn't get to see that.

Our picture --

 There are also lots of turtles.

We took the glass bottom boat tour. The water is as clear and blue as it looks in the pictures.  You can see down 20-30 feet.  We have used some of their photos because they show the color better. Also in the first one you can see the depth of the water at the dock.
                                 Their Picture

                                      Ours

                                      Their Picture

                                              Ours

They made some of the Tarzan movies here but you can't see the trees he would swing from.  The movie Creature of the Black Lagoon, a 1954 3D horror movie was also filmed here..  We are standing by the suit the actor wore in the movie. The man who was the creature for most of it was a local that was raised in the area and could hold his breath for a long time.  He had to swim down and get in the cave and then wait for them to be ready to shoot the scene.  From the glass bottom boat, you can see the rock cave he comes out of, it is about 20 feet down. Look up the trailer on it in You Tube.  Kind of fun after seeing the location.

Also, parts of the Jerry Lewis movie, Don't Give Up The Ship was filmed here.  In one of the scenes there is a sunken ship and that film prop is still down at the bottom. 

This is an old Indian dugout canoe dating way back that is made from a hollow log.  It has been part of a movie, but it is the real thing.

and some old statues that were part of a movie

What Silver Springs is best known for is its group of artesian springs that feed into the Silver River  in Marion County, Florida, about 45 minutes from us. This is an aerial shot.  Located in the middle of this "patch of natural Florida jungle" is the largest artesian spring in the world which discharges 23 cubic meters of crystal clear water every second, enough, it says, "to supply the everyday needs of sixteen to seventeen million average citizens of Earth." 

 The boat takes you over six of the springs and you can see clear to the bottom. The park itself is beautiful - looks like it could have been part of the Garden of Eden. 

Sorry there isn't a closer picture of my beautiful hat !!

 

From Elder Whitney Clayton - Choose to Believe -  ... all of us will, at some time or another, have to traverse our own spiritual wilderness and undertake our own rugged emotional journeys.  In those moments, however dark or seemingly hopeless they may be, if we search for it, there will always be a spiritual light that beckons to us, giving us the hope of rescue and relief.  That light shines from the Savior of all mankind, who is the Light of the World.

     Perceiving spiritual light is different from seeing physical light.  Recognizing the Savior's spiritual light begins with our willingness to believe.  God requires that initially we at least desire to believe.  "If ye will awake and arouse your faculties ... and exercise a particle of faith," the prophet Alma teaches, "yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of [the Savior's] words." ... those words remind us that belief and faith require our personal choice and action.  We must "awake and arouse [our] faculties."  

    Quoting again Aaron's FHE lesson from years ago: The church is true.  There's work to do!!

                                                   Love to you all 

 .

8/5/2018 Baptism Day for Barbara, Summer Classes and Rain, The Atonement

Barbara has been coming to church for almost two years.  She came first because of a guy she was dating, but when that went by the way, she kept coming and has been so active that most thought she was a member.  Her knowledge of the Book of Mormon stories and people, and her knowledge of the scriptures is pretty impressive for her age and her time associating with the church.  Her parents have been against her being baptized, thought it was just a phase, but her happiness in those two years has brought different vision.  They like her friends and the activities they are involved with.  She turned 18, but still waited for their blessing and that came.  The chapel in the Stake Center was full and her family came.  

A beautiful Florida sky for a baptism.

Barbara's family - Aunt, Mom, Barbara, Dad, Brother (sorry I don't know names)

We had to smile at Elder Burt who baptized her.  We needed a baptism picture for the baptism board we keep at the Institute, a picture we do all the time, but he obviously was a bit uncomfortable.  She started to put an arm around behind him, but he stayed flat against the wall and turned his arm away from her.  His companion rescued him so he wouldn't be the only guy in the picture.

     Our days are busy with preparation for classes and meals.  We have two more weeks of class for summer semester.  Mike is teaching Revelation which has been kind of fun. I think all of us in the class have felt the hope that comes from the teachings there instead of only the trials we are being warned of.  We're both grateful for one of the YSAs teaching me how to do Power Point presentations to go along with the lessons.  Grateful to learn it out here when we have the spirit of missionary work to help.  There is no day that we do not feel and recognize where our help comes from.  Speaking of every day - there have only been three or four days in the last six weeks that it hasn't rained - mostly a "gully washer" and once in a while a "drizzle-drazzle" as called in a story Mike's mom tells of someone praying in church for rain.  In the fall Mike's classes will be Teachings of President Nelson for the Tuesday-Thursday day class and Old Testament for the Wednesday night class.  

We are grateful for the friendship and love and support.  Good family and friends are one of our greatest blessings.  Thanks to all  !!

Ending with a quote from Elder Jay Jensen of the Seventy:

 The Atonement—an Ever-Present Power

I have experienced and have a witness of a truth that President Packer taught: “For some reason, we think the Atonement of Christ applies only at the end of mortal life to redemption from the Fall, from spiritual death. It is much more than that. It is an ever-present power to call upon in everyday life. When we are racked or harrowed up or tormented by guilt or burdened with grief, He can heal us. While we do not fully understand how the Atonement of Christ was made, we can experience ‘the peace of God, which passeth all understanding’” (“The Touch of the Master’s Hand,” Liahona, July 2001, 26; Ensign, May 2001, 23).