Rainy Sunday, burnt cornbread and white gloves
Today we got some much needed rain. I always think of the farmers of my favorite local farm and how thrilled they must be on days like this.
I have not written about Sunday's for some time. They seem to be getting more and more tender and I see our family becoming more and more emotionally involved. I can't even begin to think of how or when we might leave and go back to our other ward.
A few weeks ago this sweet 8 year old boy in primary got baptized. He comes every Sunday often without his parents. He is so smart. He was so nervous. During Primary I took him into the font with the water running and the two of us just sat down and ran our fingers through the water and talked about being excited and being nervous and how sometimes they feel the same. After the baptism the Bishop had him come to the front to see how many people had come to support him. He said, "In a ward mostly made of up converts you are one of the few that has been a member his whole life." It was true. This has been the first congregation I think I have ever been in where the converts to the church totally outnumber those who where raised in our church. I thought it was awesome! This ward is truly a representative of a typical ward in our church around the world.
I have not written about Sunday's for some time. They seem to be getting more and more tender and I see our family becoming more and more emotionally involved. I can't even begin to think of how or when we might leave and go back to our other ward.
A few weeks ago this sweet 8 year old boy in primary got baptized. He comes every Sunday often without his parents. He is so smart. He was so nervous. During Primary I took him into the font with the water running and the two of us just sat down and ran our fingers through the water and talked about being excited and being nervous and how sometimes they feel the same. After the baptism the Bishop had him come to the front to see how many people had come to support him. He said, "In a ward mostly made of up converts you are one of the few that has been a member his whole life." It was true. This has been the first congregation I think I have ever been in where the converts to the church totally outnumber those who where raised in our church. I thought it was awesome! This ward is truly a representative of a typical ward in our church around the world.
It is so hard to ever calculate when we think we are going to get home and this week I learned my lesson not to put the timer on in the oven. I made some green chile cornbread and it would bake and still have 20 minutes left when we walked in the door. So we could eat it warm with our meal.
Well our day got extended a little and we ended up not walking in the door until 6:30pm. The bread had probably cooked 3 times over and was charred on the top and a yellow rock on the inside. We were so hungry we tried to find some good parts, but there were none. Peanut Butter and Jelly and Lucky Charms are sounding like our new Sunday Meal. By the time we get home most of us are too tired to eat much of anything.
A few weeks ago our Church magazine (The Ensign) had sent a photographer and writer to spend a week with our ward and write a story about a tutoring program that our Bishop created less than a year ago. It is an amazing program. He invited some of the young D.C. interns to come to our Church building one night a week to help the youth with their homework. The youth started bringing their friends that brought their friends. Their friends started inviting any one from the neighborhood who needed help with a job application, adults who wanted to learn how to read etc, to come for hot dogs and learn or do anything they need. It in a matter of months it turned our building into a community center for the city to come to. It is a miracle on so many levels.
Today we had an awesome sharing time. Our chorister is out of the country for awhile and we are all taking turns doing music time. this is the scariest thing I could ever do for service. My voice is small, weak and out of tune. But my love for the kids and energy is high. I got everything ready but ended up not needing to do it because of our great sharing time. I was so relieved. This is good though to "stretch" myself and learn how to do new things.
A woman in our ward has a good friend who designed a sharing time around teaching children what a testimony is, through the symbol of a white glove. She had taught it to many children in the Philippines for years. As Barb, got ready to teach our children she looked for a song in the primary hymn book on the subject and could not find what she was looking for so she wrote one. It is amazing. The sharing time idea along with the song will be published in an upcoming issue of the Friend Magazine (our church magazine for children) to share with all the primary children around the world. Barb's friend ask that we take photos of the children learning the activity and the song for the article. It must have just been thrilling for Barb to see her song in action and hear those sweet kids singing it.
As you sing each part of the song each teaches you one by one the different parts of what make a testimony. I thought it was so cute how this girl counted them off as each part of the song was sung. (just as Barb I am sure intended it to be done)
Caroline learning the different meaning of each photo on her white glove.
Our primary with their "testimony gloves" It was really an amazing Sunday again we just feel so blessed for this opportunity to serve. It makes up for the charred corn bread for sure.
The burned cornbread is a bummer, but it sounds like your day was filled with greatness anyway.
ReplyDeleteKristi, I love your Sunday posts. I know you have to be careful not to intrude into people's privacy and you always do it so tastefully without being too vague. Thanks for the heads up on the articles. I look forward to seeing them and using them in the future.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful post. Thanks for passing on these great ideas for teaching primary chidren about Jesus and their testimony. So glad to hear this ward is doing so much for it's members and what a great way to use all those interns that flood DC every year.
ReplyDeletejane, is it ok. i have gone in stages of not writing anything about sunday but feel like i have so much i want to share and am not sure how to do it. please let me know if i am getting weird and too revealing.
ReplyDeletethanks for your comment.
stefanie. i will say the reason my cornbread did not burn all the way through was because of the great pampered chef pan.
michelle a. no kidding. the service that the community is providing for the interns to feel needed is just as much a miraacle. thanks for reminding me of that.
ReplyDeleteThese posts are such testimony builders. You have no idea how much it inspires me. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI love DC, and I especially love the Church there. So many wonderful people, so many converts who make real sacrifices to come to church every Sunday. I was in the Branch when I lived there and we were in the same stake as Capitol Hill, I think. I loved the diversity and how people from all different backgrounds came together to participate in the gospel. It's a great place.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE that community service at the church & the white glove song-I'll need to look for the upcoming article (clue us in if you can)!
ReplyDelete-Janae
I love reading about your new ward, it sounds like a place of miracles. It's amazing and cool that you got to take pictures of these activities since that's not something you'd normally get to do. That sharing time sounds great, I might have to borrow that idea when it's my turn later this month!
ReplyDeleteSorry about the cornbread, I'm glad you house wasn't filled with smoke.
stacy, thanks for saying that. i am always so hesitant to write much about it. but it is the one day of the week i have so much go blog about.
ReplyDeleteand you are never going to guess who is in our ward that you grew up with. we just figured it out!
Thanks for sharing your Sundays with us. I love hearing about your primary and seeing pictures of the sweet children in your ward. I love seeing their sweet faces.
ReplyDeleteIn February 2003 the church did a broadcast celebrating the 125th anniversary of primary. Sister Sydney S. Roynolds who was the first counsellor in the primary general presidency at the time gave a talk where at the end she bore her testimony on the fingers of one hand. It was then published in the August 2003 Friend Magazine in an article titled, "I Can Pray to Heavenly Father Anytime, Anywhere" if you're interested in looking it up.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad that you shared the glove idea. The beauty and simplicity of gaining and bearing a testimony of five points of the gospel has stayed with me, and hopefully will stay with your primary children.
barb, i read the talk thanks so much. that is the same concept for the lesson and it just awesome. so the photos on the glove go along with the lesson of that talk.
ReplyDeleteOk, I am finally leaving a comment on your blog. I have been a lurker for some time now. I am actually Adam's sis-in-law. So that is how I got to know of your blog- I do love it and all the ideas.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your Sunday with the awesome sharing time experience. I am the primary pres. in our ward and would love to know when this sharing time will be in The Friend.
Can't wait to read the article. I love seeing the Love and Grace of God in Action.
ReplyDeleteAmazing!! It does seem like a place of miracles, for sure. I can't imagine being able to write a song when one is needed. I love everything you said in this post, and I can't wait to see those articles!
ReplyDelete