The Conversion Story of Suzanne Sanders

Hi! My name is Suzanne Sanders I'm honored to share my conversion story with you and how I came to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. 

I was baptized and confirmed on Sept. 18, 2010. I am so happy that my Husband, Howard grew up in the church and had all of the wonderful virtues instilled in him throughout his life. I had been raised Lutheran and since I had been baptized as an infant then confirmed at 12 in the Lutheran Church, I thought I was good to go. So when the Missionaries came to visit I figured that I had already learned everything I could and I read my daily devotionals so I felt happy but inside I felt like I knew I could be better as a Person, Mother,Friend, Daughter, Wife, Grandma & Sister. 

One thing I wasn't ready to give up is tobacco and coffee. I had already given up alcohol and was thankful to my Husband for believing in me and always encouraging me by telling me “You will” with a positive tone. Then I received inspiration after sending the missionaries away 3 times, that I could do it after all~if I could give up drinking and not even crave it, then God and his Angels must be helping me to have a change of heart and giving me the faith of conquering any obstacle! I had a prompting about my lungs being like my wings and they were very dirty and I woudn’t be able to fly the way Heavenly Father intended. So that’s when I gathered all the tools I could to quit smoking and set a date for my baptism. I remember my Aunt Evelyn giving me a necklace of a small round globe made of glass with a tiny mustard seed inside. 

And with it contained this scripture: -Matthew 17:20
And Jesus said unto them, "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you." 

I was about 9 when she gave that to me and it was very special and I believed it! And the good thing is that I know it's true and Trust and Faith in God are the most important thing to me. I also know that it is possible for God to communicate with us if we sincerely ask and believe that he will answer our prayers.

Here is a lovely story that I feel describes how I feel about transformation~


~ The Grand Dream ~

The caterpillar has a grand dream ~ feels a calling of something urging him to dream of the impossible ~ to experience a transformation of legend and myth, to shift into the shape of the dream held within his heart... he envisions a life of dancing on the wind, being gorgeous to behold painted in glorious fashion, delicate yet strong, with unimaginable stamina.


Deep into the cocoon he must go to meditate, to find communion with his deepest self where he KNOWS that thoughts and substance will combine to create the manifest change. Deep within he goes, silencing all else, to let the thoughts of his desires become so strong that slowly he feels shifting deep within ~ he holds on to his vision as he transcends all limitations, holding on ~ holding on, until he feels ready to claim his new life, ... he slowly begins to emerge. The cocoon has been his sanctuary of communion where he took all shadows to be transformed ... and he is ready ... to see the breaking of the new dawn.


He stretches as the cocoon begins to fall away, he opens himself completely ... feeling the wind on his back like never before he opens his eyes and sees shades of color fluttering around him as his wings catch the breeze ~ red's yellow's blues more vibrant is he than he even imagined ... He takes a deep breath and plunges off the branch ... he catches his breath in exhiliration, his deepest intuition whispers the wisdom of the knowledge of flight ~ he has learned to listen to every sacred word.


He knows he has set himself free, to be all that he dreamed ... he is renewed, he is reborn and whole in his expression of SELF. He is fulfilling his destiny ...as he teaches us that no dream is too big to imagine nor too big to come true ... ~ © Presley ԼƠƔЄ 10.29.2011

SUNDAY LESSON - SEPTEMBER 1, 2012.

 LESSON FOR SUNDAY,  SEPTEMBER 2, 2012

CHERYL WILSON 


I love the beautiful words of President Uchdorf to the sisters of the church.  He so knows our hearts and how to address our concerns.  In the November 2008 Conference Issue of the Ensign, President Uchdorf talks about how so many of us dwell on our shortcomings rather than our strengths and talents.  He talks about how is own dear wife who prepares the most beautiful and delicious of meals will often times say, I put in too much ginger or I should have added more bayleaf."   His culinary abilities are limited to fried eggs and toasted french bread chunks.  His observation is that "our splendid sisters sometimes undervalue their abilities--they focus of what is lacking or imperfect rather than what has been accomplished and who they really are."   And yes, we all do it.  It's the nature of women.

To those of us who have ever felt inadequate, discouraged or weary, he is speaking to us.  Life is hard and it's sometimes hard to keep our heads above water.  At times the feeling of being overwhelmed takes over.  We can't flip the switch and make it all go away, but we can find a source of peace.

The greatest kind of happiness available is God's happiness.  Although we often do not understand God's ways we know that we are his children.  He has said. "Behold this is my work and my glory--to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."  Being compassionate and creative are two attributes of our Heavenly Father that we should emulate for that is what contributes to His perfect happiness.

We as mothers, participate with God in creating physical bodies for His spirit children.  By teaching an nurturing them we use our creative skills, gifts and talents.  If we feel inadequate at creating, we need to start small and success will build on success.  There are so many things we can learn along with our children.  Gardening, crafting, painting and other skills too numerous to mention.

We are commanded to "succor the weak" and compassion is in our natures as women.  Reaching out and blessing the lives of others will enable our Heavenly Father to bless us in ways we never could have imagined. James Barrie, the author of  Peter Pan once said, "Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves."  No matter our circumstances in life, there is always something we can do.

As we create beauty and are compassionate with others we can partake of our Heavenly Fathers happiness.

8-19-12 Lesson on the Sabbath Day

Posted by: Sally

Our lesson on Sunday was taught by Janae Howell from the George Albert Smith manual.

Here is a link to the lesson, Offer up thy Sacraments on my Holy day.

Janae did a great job of leading a discussion which ranged from hearing what kind of changes converts went through with sabbath observance to ideas of how sisters help make Sunday special in their home.  She also pulled out so many great quotes from the manual that stirred even more discussion.

We talked about some of the benefits and blessings that come from keeping the Sabbath day holy.  Not only do we renew our covenants each Sunday but we have the added blessings of more time with our families, a break from consumerism, less stress, learned reverence, and the list goes on.  I think it shows how loving our Father in Heaven is.  When we are obedient to his commandments he showers us with blessings.


Janae emailed me this quote from the lesson that she wanted to share on the blog.

• As a child, George Albert Smith learned the importance of honoring the Sabbath day. Often on Sundays a group of neighborhood boys would come to his house after Sunday School to invite him to play ball. “I was like the boys,” he said. “I thought it would be lots of fun to play ball and to play other games. But I had a wonderful mother. She did not say, ‘You cannot do it,’ but she did say: ‘Son, you will be happier if you do not do that. …’ I want to tell you I am grateful for that kind of training in the home.”¹ The impact of his mother’s teachings can be seen in President Smith’s frequently reminding the Saints that keeping the Sabbath day holy brings great blessings.

Special Event Fireside

For those not at church yesterday, they announced a missionary fireside-

**August 29th at 7pm. GJWSC**

Elder Robbins from the Seventy will be Presiding and speaking
for new members, investigators, re-activated members and their friends/family.

8-5-12 Sunday Lesson

Posted by:

Sister Christy Huffaker-Bernat

Link to the talk : He Truly Loves Us by BY ELDER PAUL E. KOELLIKER

I want to summarize the story in the children’s book You Are Special by Max Lucado:

The Wemmicks are small wooden people carved by a woodworker named Eli.  Each Wemmick is different in appearance.  Every day the Wemmicks do the same thing which is to give each other stickers-- either dots or golden stars.  They give dots to other Wemmicks if their paint is scraped, their wood is chipped or if one does something foolish.  Conversely, the star stickers are given for beauty or talent.  Punchinello, the protagonist, is a Wemmick who tries to execute fun tricks and good things but falls short and so the other Wemmicks give him dots.  Sometimes he gets more dots because people see that he has a lot of them.  Punchinello is sad and doesn’t want to be in his community.  He starts to think less of himself.  Then he meets Lucia.  She is like no other Wemmick!  She has no stickers.--they just don’t stick to her.  Punchinello wants to be like her.  She suggests that Punchinello visit his maker, Eli the woodworker.  It takes courage for Punchinello to seek out Eli but he does and a lovely dialogue of love ensues.  Eli explains to Pulchinello that he has been waiting for his visit and that the stickers only stick if you let them/ if they matter to you.  He tells Pulchinello, “You are special because I made you and I don’t make mistakes.”  When Punchinello leaves, his heart starts to believe what Eli shared and thats when a dot falls off of him.

Sisters, you are Special.  and Heavenly Father loves you.  Your lives have meaning and purpose and if you remember nothing else, remember your divine worth.

Another book I want to reference is Andy Andrews book The Butterfly Effect.  In this book Andrews tells us of Edward Lorenz who presented a hypothesis to the New York Academy of Science in 1963.  His theory stated that “A butterfly could flap its wings and set molecules of air in motion, which would move other molecules of air, in turn moving more molecules of air-- eventually capable of starting a hurricane on the other side of the planet” (p.6).  His ideas were laughed at and this “buttterfly effect” became a combination of myth and legend in comic books and such.  But Andrews states that thirty years later “colleges and universities worldwide came to the conclusion that the butterfly effect was authentic, accurate and viable” (p.8).   “Soon after it was accorded the status of a ‘law.’  Now know as The Law of Sensitive Dependence Upon Initial Conditions, this principle has proven to be a force encompassing more than mere butterfly wings” (p.8).  The book continues with real life examples of how what one person does matters and can even change life, social conditions and history (an excellent little read).

Again you are special and your life has meaning and is important.  

The main focus of my lesson is Elder Paul E. Koelliker’s April 2012 Conference Address, “He Truly Loves Us” but before honing in on the talk, I ask, “Is your life free of adversity?  Are you 100% problem free?”  On a few occasions I’ve had a  sister tell me that doesn’t want to be with us in Relief Society because everyone looks perfect and/ or she just can’t relate.  I’ve since wondered how often do we judge others outside appearance against the feelings that we are experiencing inside at the moment?  I’ve been further pondering this as I’ve been healing from knee surgery and watching some of the Olympics.  The athletes are amazing and we see them at their peak.  We see a few top athletes win medals but we don’t often know of the adversity that they’ve faced or the time and energies therein engaged.  I enjoyed a news interview where Michael Phelp’s coach Bob Bowman told of some of the things he would do to help prepare this decorated athlete for the unexpected in his training.  He told of filling his goggles with water so that Michael couldn’t see and then at the last Olympics in the Butterfly 200m that happened!  But Michael has trained for the unexpected and has continued to train that way this past year and now he is the most decorated Olympic swimmer ever.   Adversity does make us stronger.  But how do we weather it?  And “How has the gospel helped you deal with problems?”,  and “How do we feel God’s love when going through a problem?”  I welcome feedback on those questions.

Elder Koelliker presents some rather parallel questions in his talk as he references the questions of two missionaries, “How can we help each individual develop a desire to know more about Heavenly Father?  How do we help them feel His Spirit?  How can we help them  to know that we love them?”  I think all these questions are connected.  

Per Elder Koelliker a key answer is to navigate through or around worldly distractions and nurture a real desire which invites us to feel the power of God’s love.  He cites 1 Nephi 2:16, where Nephi “...having great desires to know the mysteries of God,... did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did visit me, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words which had been spoken by my father; wherefore, I did not rebel against him like unto my brothers.”  Elder Koelliker states, “Awakening the desire to know enables our spiritual capacities to hear the voice of heaven.  Finding a way to awaken and nurture that desire is the quest and responsibility of each of us....  As we feel that desire stirring in our hearts, we are prepared to benefit...”  He then leads into the scripture in Doc&Cov 52:14 where we are told that “Satan is abroad in the land and he goeth forth deceiving...”  and “to combat this distracting influence, the Lord said that He would give us ‘a pattern in all things, that (we) may not be deceived’.”  What are the patterns in your life?  What are your best practices?  What gospel patterns can you identify at work?

Elder Koelliker states the following about patterns and their importance:

Patterns are templates, guides, repeating steps, or paths one follows to stay aligned with God’s purpose.  If followed, they will keep us humble, awake, and able to discern the voice of the Holy Spirit from those voices that distract us and lead us away.  the Lord then instructs us, “He that trembleth under my power shall be made strong, and shall bring forth fruits of praise and wisdom, according to the revelations and truths which I have given you (Doc& Cov 52:17)”

Some patterns identified in this talk are humble prayer, helping others, the pattern of the family, enduring to the end and the Savior’s pattern of love  (see the talk!) .    

Elder Koelliker states that when we identify and strive to follow the Lord’s directives in these patterns, we are yielding to God’s will we will feel His Spirit.  He further states the following:

“What is the ultimate means by which we can enjoy the gift and power of the Holy Ghost?  It is the power that comes by being faithful disciples of Jesus Christ.  It is our love for Him and our fellowman.  It is the Savior who defined the pattern of love when He taught us, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another (John 13:34).”  

And President Gordon B. Hinckley also said on this subject, “To love the Lord is not just counsel; it is not just well-wishing.  It is a commandment..... Love of God is the root of all virtue, of all goodness, of all strength of character, of all fidelity to do right” (“Words of the Living Prophet,” Liahona, Dec. 1996, 8).  

In Elder Koelliker’s talk, he talks about love expanding and within the pattern of family and children added there is “seemingly no end to the expansive capacity to love.”  This love comes from Heavenly Father who knows and loves us individually,equally and fully.  Elder Koelliker states that “the feeling of love from our Heavenly Father is like a gravitational pull from heaven.  As we remove distractions that pull us toward the world and exercise our agency to seek Him, we open our hearts to a celestial force which draws us toward Him.”

So, I think the questions raised in this lesson all connect and basically reduce to desire and love.  Those two ingredients can help create patterns.  My hope for you?  That you will feel special and know your life has meaning-- much more that what you might think.  I hope that you will desire to nurture your knowledge and self worth by seeking after positive patterns--as outlined in the scriptures and by prophets and by our Savior’s example.  I hope that we can all get rid of negative distractions that don’t let us feel the gravitational pull from heaven.  We are loved by our Heavenly Father.  We all experience different things and have different talents and life goings-on.  May we be inspired by the good around us i.e. the Olympics now, and let these events motivate us to spiritually prepare for the unexpected.  May we evaluate where we are individually, and desire to progress and feel the influence of  God’s love and the Spirit in our lives.

Loads of love,

Sister Christy Huffaker-Bernat