For Time and All Eternity!

Congratulations to the Cotton and Hinchen families! Wednesday they were endowed in the San Diego Temple and then sealed right afterwards. What a special day for this family.

A few words of council for all of us given by President Howard W. Hunter: "Truly, the Lord desires that His people be a temple-motivated people. It would be the deepest desire of my heart to have every member of the Church be temple worthy. I would hope that every adult member would be worthy of—and carry—a current temple recommend, even if proximity to a temple does not allow immediate or frequent use of it.

Let us be a temple-attending and a temple-loving people. Let us hasten to the temple as frequently as time and means and personal circumstances allow. Let us go not only for our kindred dead, but let us also go for the personal blessing of temple worship, for the sanctity and safety which are provided within those hallowed and consecrated walls. The temple is a place of beauty; it is a place of revelation; it is a place of peace. It is the house of the Lord. It is holy unto the Lord. It should be holy unto us.

Let us share with our children the spiritual feelings we have in the temple. And let us teach them more earnestly and more comfortably the things we can appropriately say about the purposes of the house of the Lord. Keep a picture of a temple in your home that your children may see it. Teach them about the purposes of the house of the Lord. Have them plan from their earliest years to go there and to remain worthy of that blessing."

I encourage all of us as sisters in the Santa Rosa Ward to go to the temple often! If you do not have a current recommend....get one...If you have not had one before, talk to the bishop to see what you can do to get one and live your lives accordingly to get a recommend in the future. If you have one...attend, as Pres. Hunter said, "hasten to the temple as frequently as time and means and personal circumstances allow."

Saturday Evening Stake Conference

President Steve Jackson:
2 Nephi 31:20
*Press forward with a steadfastness in Christ
*Feasting on the word
*Endure to end
*Then ye shall have eternal life
It is our responsibility to teach our children of Jesus Christ and his gospel
What do we teach:
*He brings Salvation to our soul
*He helps us through difficult trials in our life
*He knows how to help us
*Doubt NOT
*The Savior will heal us
*Faith in the Savior
How do we teach:
Have family council (parents) ask “How are we going to help our children have
Faith in Jesus Christ?"
*Keep the commandments
*Obedience
*If you want to know the doctrine….Live it!
*Go to the temple regularly
*Listen to blessings given in the temple ordinances
*Teach children of Repentance
*Read the Book of Mormon (children will gain a love for it)
*Bear spontaneous testimony often to your children
*Pray always as a family morning and evening
Two questions Pres. Jackson asked missionaries returning from their missions that we should ask ourselves: 1) Did you feel the promptings of the spirit? 2) Did you follow those promptings? If the answer was yes, then he said they had a successful mission. As parents we should ask ourselves these same questions and often!
*We have testimonies of the gospel and it is our responsibility to help our children gain their own testimonies.

President Stanger:
*We are the deciders of the spirit of our home
*Never cease from teaching our children
*Teach our children gospel principles
*Teach and testify
“We don’t plan to fail, we fail to plan”
*How do I strengthen my family?
*Have you read the “Family Proclamation” and do you know it?
*Make a plan as head of household using the “Family Proclamation” then see how you can change the spirit of your home
*The key to strengthen our families is the SPIRIT of the Lord in our homes
*Family Prayer
*Family Home Evening
*Set goals for success
*Get kids involved in goal setting

Elder Cordova:
“The Future can never look brighter than it is today” Sis. Beck
He quoted an apostle (of whom I forgot) “We have been at war with the advisory for many years….He is no longer knocking at the doors of our churches anymore, he is knocking at the doors of our homes.”
*Protect our youth
*Do what I do – Not what I say (Pres. Uchdorf)
*Be doers, not hearers
*Strengthen our faith…Do this in the House of the Lord
*3 Nephi 13:32-33

Bro. & Sis. Hafen:
*Move from active members of the church to consecrated FOLLOWERS OF CHRIST
*What motivates us – Being with our family and the Savior
*Absorb the pain that we may have experienced in the past and don’t pass it on to the next generation
*2 Nephi 2
*Plan of Salvation – Our purpose in coming to this earth
*Atonement – Life story of Adam and Eve
*Atone – Story of Life of Christ is GIVING
*Fall – Story of Adam and Eve is RECEIVING
*Lehi’s words: If Adam and Eve would have stayed in the garden they would have had no children….Garden of Edan/No joy/No misery
*Misery/sweat/tears = part of the plan
*Joy/happiness = part of the plan

Sisters ~ I’m not the best note taker and some of this will probably not make sense…But it was a wonderful meeting with a strong spirit present. I didn’t take notes when the Lowell’s spoke, but they both gave great talks on how to have a successful marriage. They are great speakers!

We are excited about our new stake presidency:
President – Matt Morris (La Quinta Ward)
1st Counselor – Ty Broadhead (Bermuda Dunes Ward)
2nd Counselor – Alfredo Verdusco (Thermal Ward)

Our appreciation goes out to President’s Jackson, Stanger & Stearman who gave great sacrifice and service these past nine years!

The passing of Sister Wilma Long

Wilma Long, 93, was born on June 12, 1917, in Leeds, Utah to John William and Dallice Hartman, and passed away peacefully in Rancho Mirage with loved ones by her side on Sunday June 13, 2010. She married John Long in 1936 and they lived in Cedar City, Eagle Mtn. and Indio. She is survived by her three daughters, Cherie Ball of Indio, Golda Jones (Harry) of Salt Lake and Jacquie Freeman (Vern) of Riverside. Services were held Friday, June 18, 2010, with internment at Coachella Valley Cemetery afterwards, followed with a light luncheon prepared by the Relief Society and held at the Indio LDS Chapel.

Thank you to all who helped with Sister Long's Funeral Luncheon...The setup, the food, the beautiful table linens, the table decorations, the cleanup and all who organized. The family was so grateful for kindness shown toward them and the efforts to make the luncheon a success.

The passing of Sister Martha Lowell and Sister Linda Millan

I am sorry I took so long to post the passing of Sister Martha Lowell and Sister Linda Millan. But I wanted to recognize these wonderful women of our ward. Sister Lowell was a long time member of the Indio Ward and Sister. Millan only came to our ward last year. Each sister will be missed.

Martha Maxine Lowell passed away Wednesday, February 10, 2010, surrounded by her family at the home of her son Calvin and his wife Michelle in Indio, Calif. She was 87 years old. Sister Lowell was the third of five children born to Elsie and Chester Neeld on a farm in Nevada, Iowa. Martha's living siblings are Ken, Norma and Shirley. She lived with her family on the farm until she graduated from high school and left to attend business school. At 20, she met John Clark Lowell, an Army man, in Webster City, Iowa at a USO dance. At 21, they married in Riverside, Calif. They had a very eventful, exciting life traveling through the U.S. and Japan with his career. Her surviving children were born during her travels, Stephanie Reid, Lauretta Lowell, Ronald Lowell (Karen Knight), and Calvin Lowell. Martha and John converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in 1957 where they were sealed for eternity in the Logan, Utah Temple in 1959. Their strong belief in the church and their loving hearts helped them positively influence many people during their lives. In 1973, John and Martha moved from Hawaii to Indio where he taught at Indio High School for 27 years. There was no better love story than her relationship and marriage to her husband of 59 years. They shared a passion for bicycling along California's coast. For their 50th wedding anniversary they rode their bikes 50 miles along Venice Beach. They adored each other and set a wonderful standard of devotion for their children to follow. Not only was Sister Lowell passionate about her marriage and children, but she was very passionate in her creativity. She was an amazing artist who mastered cooking, flower arranging, and dress designing. Her children were dressed in her designs from childhood through high school. Their friends and family enjoyed her prom dress and wedding dress designs, and her grandchildren enjoyed many years of wearing the best Halloween costumes in town. Sister Lowell was very involved in her role as grandmother of 14 grandchildren, Wendy, Stephen, John, Patrick, Holly, Tommy, Kristi, Kari, Jessica, Hannah, Julia, Aaron, Spencer, and Virginia; and five great-grandchildren, Tristan, Kendra, Emma Mayfield and Lennon and Larry Wever. Her thoughtfulness and love are felt deeply by them all. She leaves a void in the lives of her family, who miss her terribly. Their faith in their Heavenly Father and Savior is strong. There is no doubt that she was met by her husband, friends and family and that she is in their care even now.

Sister Linda Lee Millan was Born April 24, 1944 and passed away on March 12, 2010. She came to Indio last year to live with her son Marco Millan. She had lived the past 20 years in Mexico where she was a teacher. We were lucky to have her in our ward for a short time. She was a sweet woman who always had a smile on her face. She loved the temple and loved her family.

We appreciate all the help given in behalf of these women for the luncheon served to the families after the funerals. We are truly grateful for such a loving and caring ward who help so much to make these special events successful!