Today, we're continuing with our YIA field journals from the Spartanburg tour in July. Enjoy!

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

By Sister Kathryn Genaro

Today's Timetable

9 a.m. Morning chapel led by Brother Liam Turley, Brother Jared Stone, Brother Jackson Hamet, and Brother Justin Benyola on finding our strength through God
10 a.m. Singing at a nursing home
12 p.m. Lunch at the Spartanburg Branch
1-3 p.m. Canvassing for VBS
6 p.m. Branch cookout

This week, we have a very special treat for you! Directly after GMBA Campout, a group of young people traveled to Spartanburg for Youth in Action, where they dedicated the week to community service. The theme was "Make Me a Blessing."

Each day, one of the tour participants kept a field journal, recording tidbits from the trip. This week, we're sharing thoughts, reflections, and humorous anecdotes as told by five different young people. We want to give a big thanks to Sister Alyssa Maddox for coordinating this at our request! She did an awesome job recruiting writers for each day.

So, without further ado...

Monday, July 21, 2014

By Brother Jake Goode

Today's Time Table

9 a.m. Morning chapel led by Sister Kathryn Genaro, Sister Elizabeth Zaccagnini, and Sister Camille Hamet on changing the "Impossible" to "I'm Possible" with God
10 a.m. Singing at Valley Falls Nursing Home
12 p.m. Lunch at the Spartanburg Branch
2 p.m. Singing at Wesley Court Nursing Home

Here is a little reminder that God is in control. Forward it to someone who may need a boost today.

School Miracles for August!

It's Aug. 1, and this month we'd like to feature school-related testimonies and experiences for Miracle Monday. Anything remotely school-related is fair game. From classmates to quizzes and busses to band practice, we want to hear about how God blessed you (or your kids) in school (Kinder through Ph.D.!) Please send us your stories so we can praise God with you. 

Summer Reading Challenge Giveaway Winner!

Thanks to everyone who left comments on the discussion forum! We hope the Reading Challenge has been enriching! 

This week's giveaway winner is...

Jared Scolaro

You get your choice of three lovely gifts.

1. Lion and Lamb note cards

2. Love mini-pillows

3. "Not my home" mug

Don't Forget the Daily Reading Assignments!

Today: Helaman 12-13

Saturday: Helaman 14-16

Sunday: 3 Nephi 1-3

This article has undergone ministry review and approval.

I remember Brother Chuck S. describing his Harley-Davidson to me. To Brother Chuck, the bike had a distinct personality that he, as the rider, strove to understand.

Brother Chuck had a distinct personality of his own.

A fiercely faithful member of our branch for as long as I can remember, Brother Chuck always rode to church on his hog. If I sat in a pew behind him, I'd see his long ponytail braided neatly down his back, which was always clad in his black leather motorcycle vest, with the words "Sober Pack" emblazoned across the shoulders in orange letters.

Did you ever wonder why Jesus sits at the right hand of God?

The writer to the Hebrews refers to the Day of Atonement when he spoke of "a remembrance again made of sins every year" (Hebrews 10:3). That was the greatest day in the year to a godly Hebrew. It was a time to mourn sin and put it away — for the whole nation of Israel.

But God did not want the sacrifices and offerings of a people whose hearts were far from Him. They had sinned and had "come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). A spotless Lamb was required to be the perfect and only sacrifice.

Strive (verb): make a tenacious effort to achieve or obtain something; to struggle in opposition

1 Nephi 17:15: "Wherefore, I, Nephi, did strive to keep the commandments of the Lord, and I did exhort my brethren to faithfulness and diligence."

I have been studying the book of 1 Nephi recently, and I was intrigued by the word "strive." It certainly is not a passive word, and I've heard ministers preach about "striving for our faith," but the definition of "striving" didn't really make sense until I examined Nephi's actions.

Sister Rebecca Wilcoxson shares a testimony of God's protection in today's Miracle Monday. We've also got a theme for August! It's school-related miracles. Please share any testimonies or experiences you (or your kids) have had related to school, education, or learning. Also, don't miss out on how you can be part of the next Summer Reading Challenge Giveaway (instructions below).

The spring of 2012, DTE Energy (our local energy company) sent our neighborhood letters that they would be moving all of our electrical posts from one side of the street to another, so we were getting a nice huge electrical post on our side of the street right in our lawn.

We hope you enjoyed Beach Week on the blog. Hopefully you felt warm breezes, scented ocean spray, and powdery soft sand — especially if you are landlocked — and, most importantly, we hope it brought you insight into how we can see God reflected in His creation.

My husband, Michael, and I were driving along the CA-1 coastal highway on our way to Big Sur when I piped up, "Oh! The sunset! Let's stop and watch it."

Michael pulled the car to the side of the road, which was bordering a picturesque craggy cliff with waves crashing at the bottom and the whole bit. We sat on the grassy ledge to watch the show.

And we weren't alone.

There were maybe a half-dozen other carloads of folks who stopped to witness the sun as it did its graceful dip.

When I chose "hurricanes" as my topic for this series, I had no idea what I could really say. So I started doing some research, watching videos of recent hurricanes and the damage that they've left behind.

Although watching the actual storm was a little awe-inspiring because of how amazingly frightening they are, what I found most interesting was the destruction after the storm.

When I was little, I spent hours combing the sand to pick out the tiniest seashells I could find. My collection grew, and I've since used them in Pinterest-inspired crafts or decorative vases.

They're pretty, sure, but I don't often think that an empty, open clam or mussel shell (one that looks like a butterfly) was once the outer, protective layer of a tiny, otherwise helpless animal. By the time a seashell gets into our hands, it has already served the great purpose of protecting a clam for its lifetime.

We have a special treat for you! To celebrate summer, we've dedicated this week to beach-themed posts that explore how the physical world — waves, sand, palms, and more — reflect our relationship with God (Job 12:7-10). Beach Week was inspired by Sister Vicki's article from a few weeks back. So, sit back, relax, and enjoy! Today's post is a rewrite of an article that a few of our bloggers liked and forwarded to us.

Do you remember that Disney movie "Finding Nemo"? Remember when the uptight clownfish, Marlin, meets the laid-back sea turtle named Crush? Marlin is surprised by the amount of freedom that Crush gives his little boy, Squirt, allowing him to roam around the ocean and make new friends.

Here is something from this week's Reading Challenge chapters. Enjoy!

I was riding my bike a few mornings ago listening to the soundtrack from "Frozen" because that's the only album I was able to get to play thru my app for some reason. I do love the movie and the songs, but I wouldn't normally listen to them for a workout.

While going through the book of Isaiah, I've realized that there are so many verses that have made me see things differently in my world today.

One of my favorite chapters is Isaiah 52 because the message of the chapter to me is "Leave Your Captivity."

What are we held captive by?

What keeps us back?

What inhibits us from living a free life?