3/16 Dreams and Dinosaurs

Tyrel came over to eat dinner today. He’s back from a self-imposed sobriety ‘camp’ and is now in a ‘recovery house’. He’s been sober 43 days, which is a record for sobriety not imposed by the state. He’s taken to AA and a serious study of the gospel, and as part of the recovery, had a real heart-to-heart with his mom and dad about life, their impact on him, and his addiction. He has gained weight (not so sickly) and is looking really good. He seems to have made a significant stride, in that he is making this choice.

We bought a car. It’s a 2012 Chevy Impala (gold) grandma car, but had really low miles at a low cost, so it works. I’ll try to sell it again immediately for a few thousand more than we paid. If it sells, great, we made money and we’ll look for another. If it doesn’t, it’s still nice to have a car that’s younger than my kids :)

It’s been warmer here, up to 43° this last week. Bishop Jensen caught me and asked how we were enjoying the lake in front of our house (complete with icebergs and islands). He said that when Lenore Standiford used to live here, John Poole and his boys called it Lake Lenore. I told him it was great. Olivia Nelson dropped Porter off the other day, but when she saw the condition of our driveway, opted to stop in the middle of the street and made him wade through it to the house. 

Mom at lunch with a few people you might know and love. Picture is attached below. Porter and Cody are planning a summer backpack trip, Mom and I are planning to hike from the Driggs side past the Tetons to the Jackson side (around 20 miles) with Tad, Brigham and Isaac. Mom is also creating masks for the Cub Scout Pack Meeting on Dinosaurs. Drew is the T-Rex, Pace is the Triceratops (see other photo below, and pay special attention to the “quoty fingers” on the T-Rex). 

Hi, this is Porter. I have been busy with college classes and with the aerospace program. We’ve been put in groups of three and been assigned to design blueprints for a fully functioning Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV). As a team, we decided to plan a manned mission to Mars. I talked to Chris Eckman and he gave me a whole load of information. He’s letting me use his accounts on a couple design programs that are specifically made for building rockets. He also told me that he might be able to work out some back door connections with some friends of his at Lockheed Martin! I think that if I can really blow this project out of the water, it will guarantee my admittance into the summer academy (the summer academy is a week long, all-expenses paid trip to Boise and to the NASA ames center in California). So my days are packed, but I’m having fun. Also, dad got a new car, which means that I have the Jeep back! :)

Dad again: I spoke in Lewisville today about Testimony. Last night I had a dream that I was conducting sacrament meeting in the red brick church. I started to give my talk, but didn’t have my printed talk. I pulled out my computer to find the talk, but the battery was almost dead. I found the cord to plug it in, but my talk wasn’t still open on the computer. This is all taking an awkwardly long amount of time. As I looked up, a family got up to leave sacrament meeting. I apologized and try to find the talk in saved files, but it was nowhere on my computer. Minutes passed with radio silence from the pulpit, and I could hear families walking out of sacrament meeting. I kept apologizing then looked up again, but nobody was left in the chapel, and the lights were off. It was then that I realized I wasn’t even supposed to speak there. I was supposed to speak in Lewisville 2nd, but it was only 9:26, so I had time to get there and try again if I hurried. Then I woke up. Aargh. Not a happy, restful dream or a good way to start the sabbath day.

=============TALK

Here’s the summary of the talk in bullet points (read full scriptural account to get a broader picture). Our responsibility is to:

1) to OBTAIN a Personal Witness from God that this work is true

2) to change our nature through conversion

3) to bear witness to those in our sphere of influence that this work is true

Matt 16:

 17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

Matt 17:

 1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,

 2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.

 5 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.

Luke 22:

 32 But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.

 34 And he said, I tell thee, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me.

Elder Holland:

Whatever his feelings, Peter said for the third time, "Lord, ... thou knowest that I love thee." To which Jesus responded (and here again I acknowledge my non-scriptural elaboration), Jesus responded, perhaps saying something like: "Then Peter, why are you here? Why are we back on this same shore, by these same nets, having this same conversation?

Wasn't it obvious then and isn't it obvious now that if I want fish, I can get fish? What I need, Peter, are disciples--and I need them forever.

I need someone to feed my sheep and save my lambs. I need someone to preach my gospel and defend my faith. I need someone who loves me, truly, truly loves me, and loves what our Father in Heaven has commissioned me to do.

Acts 3:

 12 ¶And when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people, Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness we had made this man to walk?

Peter is a good example of each element of testimony, especially as we see his true conversion lead to the powerful witness of Christ’s gospel.