St George

This past weekend, I headed up to St George. My brother, Joe, was being made a bishop. Craig had a meeting and couldn't come with me. Boaz had his last campout before he could get his merit badge, and this campout his older friends would be there. And this coming weekend we are headed north for Thanksgiving. I was grateful I could go. 

Brenda ended up coming in from Wisconsin. All the Salt Lake people came. It ended up that just Gena wasn't able to make it.

We had dinner in a local cultural hall and the kids ran and played. Carter turned 7 the next day, Sunday, and he was sure we had all come for his birthday.

Brenda and I went with Cooper and Carl and did initiatory before everybody else arrived. It was lovely to visit one of my favorite temples.

After dinner, I recognized that I had left my earrings in my rented temple dress. So I made a few phone calls and a lovely temple worker named Rebecca had found them for me. That meant I got to go back by myself and wander the grounds and remember the night that temple had been my light that shone in the darkness.

The temple stands so firm in the darkness and is a beacon and a promise of light. I wandered to the rose garden in the back and sat and had a bit of a conversation. I used to love to take pictures of flowers, so I tried for old times sake.

It was dark, and I was trying out a few things I had read about on Facebook. :) I can see that I focused on the leaves in the background, instead of the Rose.

This one has a better focus. But I must admit I love the peach flower more.

This is where people hang out waiting for rides, but I managed to get a picture of the fountain. I love that most temples have running water, and I think of the living water from John. We get closer that that Living Water by participating in the temple ordinances than we can anywhere else. 

This is Joe Saturday night.

This is Joe Sunday morning. (Actually after church, because we met them at the building for Sacrament Meeting at 9.)

During the comments when the bishopric who were being released spoke, one of them said this wasn't a funeral. The new bishopric would be awesome and they were all looking forward to new responcibilities. 

They called Holly up and she said she knew it wasn't a funeral, but a beautiful beard had died that morning. She also said she didn't know if she should call him bishop now at church. She was going to have to think about that. She was supportive and full of faith. I cried during her talk.

Joe got up and said that he had big shoes to fill, figuratively. Everybody laughed because the previous bishop is short. Joe is almost 6 foot and he has bigger feet. He acknowledged that he didn't feel prepared for this calling and that he would have to lean on his two excellent counselors. He talked about the process of calling the two me that would be sitting by him for the next few years and how hard that had been. He said there were so many men who were able. He talked about having to scrape for his testimony. He talked about not having a lot of support when he was younger. And then he directed his remarks to the youth. He said to come and talk to him if they had questions. Because he had had many questions when he was younger. He invited them to come and talk to him if they thought that they might be off the path. Because when he was younger he had been off the path. He invited anybody that needed help to get straight with God to come and talk to him. He promised that they could get things right with God.

I thought about how he grew up. He was 9 when mom left the church. We kids scattered and were all in self-preservation mode. We didn't have a lot to offer him as a nine year old. His world feel apart and he was strong enough to put it all back together. He found his way back to the Church after he was married, and I think a dad. But since he has been back, he has been strong and steady. I am in awe of what he has done and who he is.

The Stake President got up for final remarks and told Joe that what ever Holly decided on calling him, he better answer. :) And then he said that he wasn't called to fill the former bishops shoes. He had his own shoes to fill. The Lord called him and he was capable. Then he testified again that the Lord was in charge and he had called the new bishop.

It makes me a bit teary again just to write about it. What a fantastic thing to witness.

Craig sent me this picture.

I missed the primary program in my home ward. I always love those Sunday's. But I wouldn't have missed the Sunday that I did have for all the world.

I was Brenda's ride to and from the airport. I do miss her. We are too far away from each other. But it was good to have this little bit of time together.

Next week, I'll be hanging out with Deb and Willa again. I'm too far away from them too. I am extremely blessed by wonderful siblings.