Association.

What is in an association? Everything!

Today, as I sat listening during Stake Conference (a religious meeting with multiple wards that are located within certain boundaries), I realized how many wonderful people I have the privilege of being associated with. This Stake Conference was rather large, broadcast in 10 buildings throughout my little city. The growth here has been amazing and the LDS activity level is extremely high, unlike many other areas in Utah. We already had two stakes in our city, but because we have experienced such growth, we now have three (after today's meeting).

I am so thrilled that The Lord has called the person who is now the new stake's president. I have had the privilege of being associated with him through various city volunteer activities and he is the genuine deal. He behaves in such a way that he doesn't compromise his standards in any situation. I appreciate that very much! Especially since I've been running into some railroading attempts by members of my own city government against my efforts (which are all volunteer, by the way) and yet they profess to be LDS. It has been disappointing to be involved with people that don't live according to the standards they profess to believe (which happens in every religion).

Through the last year of volunteer work that I have been blessed to be involved with in my community, I've found that there are some amazing people! Whenever I have a disappointing day where I have encounters with those who are not so impressive (which doesn't happen very often) I find that there are so many absolutely wonderful people all around me. I feel truly blessed!

"As part of His plan, God has followed a simple pattern from the beginning of the world. He chooses a prophet (like Noah or Moses) to teach the gospel and lead the people. Sadly, most of God’s children have disregarded, disobeyed, and rejected His prophets.

As promised, Heavenly Father sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to earth. Jesus Christ lived a perfect, sinless life. He established His Church, taught His gospel, and performed many miracles. Incredibly, even Jesus Christ was rejected. Following His death, many people began to drift away from or distort Christ’s true teachings. As a result, God withdrew His authority to direct the Church that Christ had established." -- Mormon.org