Tammy 0:02
Who are my missionaries out there? Whether you served a mission, are serving mission, plan to serve a mission, or using the motto by President David O McKay: "Every member,a missionary." Romans 7-16. What we're studying today contains some of the greatest missionary verses of scripture that any one of us could immediately turn to and begin an incredible conversation with beautiful doctrinal truths that everyone can believe in.
Welcome to the Sunday on Monday Study Group, a Deseret Bookshelf lPus original brought to you by LDS Living where we take the Come, follow Me lesson for the week and we really Dig Into the scriptures together. I'm your host, Tammy Uzelac.Hall. Now if you're new to our study group, hi, thank you for being here. And we want to make sure you know how to use this podcast, so follow the link in our description. It's going to explain how you can best use this podcast to enhance your Come, Follow Me study just like my friends who I love. I met them at BYU Women's Conference Jennifer Chamberlain and her adorable daughters Ellie, Chloe, Brighton, Maisie, and Alexa. Thank you for listening. Hi, friends. K, now another awesome thing about our study group is each week we're joined by two of my friends, so it's always a little bit different. And today I am so excited to introduce you to Kim Wells and Porter Wells. Hi, you two.
Kim 1:16
Hi, Tammy.
Porter 1:18
How's it going?
Tammy 1:19
Oh, it's good. Okay, how do you guys know each other?
Kim 1:21
Well, Porter is my son. He is my third out of five and he's just a joy, pure sunshine around our house.
Tammy 1:23
That's a good way to describe Porter. I, first time I met him I thought that he's the happiest kid.
Kim 1:31
Yes, I describe him that way often. He's, he's sunshine.
Porter 1:40
And I am a senior at Corner Canyon High School and plan to serve a mission this summer. So I'm excited to be on here.
Tammy 1:47
This, I was saying this to Porter earlier how cool is this? Because again, Heavenly Father has a hand in all the guests that are on the podcast. And I didn't realize Porter was getting ready to serve a mission so soon, he's filling out his papers right now. And this is so missionary centric. And so we were texting each other back and forth. Kim, I really liked that you texted me, "I was so hoping we'd talk about Romans 8. Why did you say that?
Kim 2:10
Well, because I've been reading, studying these chapters for a few weeks now. And I always just want to go back to that chapter 8, because I love chapter 8.
Tammy 2:23
If that's all you took with you on your mission was Romans 8, you could teach every discussion, I think.mmmm
Kim 2:28
Right, right.
Tammy 2:29
Okay, we're gonna have so much fun. So if you want to see pictures of my guests and read their bios, go to our show notes found at LDS living.com/sunday on Monday; you can find more information about them and see their cute family. So this is going to be a great discussion - everyone, you're going to want to for sure have your scriptures, something to mark your scriptures with, and a scripture journal, and Let's Dig In to Romans chapters 7-16. Okay, so this is the one thing I asked all my guests to do for the next 17 weeks as we study the letters or the epistles of the apostles, and mostly Paul. I joked that if Paul saw the church today, we'd all be getting a letter. And so Paul wrote to the saints in in Rome and gave them encouragement and instruction about what they needed to know. So I'm asking all my guests to come and tell me what part of the letters stood out to you. Because these letters are for us today. So I'm gonna let you both share with us; tell me what part of the letters stood out to you.
Porter 3:24
I mean, obviously we're focusing on Romans 8 and we'll get into that later. But I just think there's a lot of phrases in there that can help comfort you regardless of like your tribulations that you're going through. But some of the verses I really liked was Romans 14:19. And it says, "Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things werewith one may edify another." And when I was reading this, I just kind of thought we should be doing the things that lift others up and make peace in our lives. And I think that's kind of one of the main things that Paul would write to us in this day. So I really liked that verse.
Tammy 3:57
Oh, my gosh, hold on - I'm marking that.
Kim 4:01
That's interesting, because I also marked 19. 14:19. And from that, I, after reading that several times, I felt like he's asking us to be loving and positive in our relationships, in our conversations, and just being a cheerleader for all people around you. I don't think we can do too much of that. We, everybody needs cheerleaders. Cheerleaders just boost your spirits and make you feel better and you can keep enduring if you're going through hard things. And I just read that and I thought, we need to build each other up, we need to strengthen all of those within our influence. I also loved going into chapter 15:1,2. It says, "We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let every one of us please his neighbor for his good to edification." And again I just thought, you know, we've heard so much from our wonderful prophet President Nelson about gathering Israel. And if we're going to gather Israel, we've got to bear each other's burdens. We have to, whether it's in our congregations, in our neighborhoods, in our families. We need to be there and bear each other's burdens. That is how we are going to strengthen each other and that's how we're going to continue to gather Israel.
Tammy 5:24
Wow. Both of you came so well prepared. I'm writing so fast in my scriptures. Kim, you're totally right. The only way we can gather Israel is to bear each other's burdens. How awesome that that's one of the first covenants we make at eight years old. Like our sweet little eight-year old kids are taught to do this. That just hit me right then when you said that, because from the age of eight we're taught how to gather Israel. And are we doing it? So, Oh, my gosh, you guys. Wo, right out of the gates, heavy, awesome, incredible instruction that everybody's gonna want. And again, who doesn't love that? No matter what religion you are, you're going to come away with, "You're right." Porter, I love that you just said, "which make for peace and edify another." And both of you just built on each other perfectly. So thank you. That was perfection. Okay, so thank you. In the next segment, we're going to dive into the second half of Paul's letter, and you both introduced it perfectly. And we're going to read more of what he wants us to know. So we'll do that next.
Segment 2 6:23
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Tammy 6:38
So at the very beginning, I asked who my missionaries were, and I want to know, Kim and Porter, where do you guys fall in the category of missionary service? Have you served? Are you serving? Are you waiting to serve, all of that? Are you member a missionary?
Kim 6:51
Okay, well, considering my husband's Ward Mission Leader,
Tammy 6:54
Ooh, yes.
Kim 6:56
There's kind of a missionary focus in our home, as there should be in every home, right? I did not serve a mission when I was young but I, we're absolutely planning to later in life, Chad and I, when we're done raising all these great kids. But I do feel like I try and be a missionary and I feel like the last, I don't know, probably 5-7 years of my adult life I've tried to be a missionary in terms of really developing relationships and friendships with neighbors. And I feel like missionary starts with a relationship. And if we can learn more about the people around us, and find common values, I think things naturally progress to share about our beliefs and our values, you know, as members of the church. And so I know I can be a better better missionary, for sure. But I feel like I am trying to especially develop relationships that lead to missionary experiences.
Tammy 8:03
Well, and Kim, how did your most recent calling catapult you into missionary work?
Kim 8:08
Oh, boy. So recently, I was called as Relief Society president and I was pretty humbled by that.
Tammy 8:16
Yeah. In fact, I remember you saying to me you didn't even want it. Like "No, I don't want to, this is not my thing."
Kim 8:20
No, I have been with the young women most of my adult life. And when I say most of my adult life, I'm talking like 90% of my adult life. I've been, I think, pretty much every single calling in the ward Young Women's. I've been in a couple different Stake Young Women's. And so Young Women is kind of where I've always been. And then to be called as Relief Society president - it was initially, I feel like the Lord did send me some promptings because He knew I needed it. I was a little in denial when I would get some of those promptings before I ever got the call. And then as soon as I got the call, you know, I knew it was from my Heavenly Father and that I needed to stretch, that I needed to make small changes in my life that would invite the spirit more, get my priorities right. And I can tell you that even though I've only been in this calling for a few months, I have had some very tender, sweet experiences with sisters who are not actively attending church. And it has been absolutely so strengthening to me and just wonderful to get to know women I probably would not have had the opportunity to get to know if I did not have this calling. It's just, I mean, missionary work is hand in hand with my calling. Absolutely.
Tammy 8:22
Definitely. Wow, Kim, thank you. What about you, Porter?
Porter 9:46
Yeah, so over the past year, I was able to work in the Priest Quorum presidency as a secretary and I think that was great to get to know just a little bit better all the guys in my ward and work with the Priest Quorum. But I was released this winter, as I started to focus on my mission. And like you said, I've been working on my mission papers, and I plan to go serve this fall. And I'm excited, and I'm looking forward to it.
Tammy 10:09
Porter, how did you come to the decision to serve a mission? That's a big choice.
Porter 10:13
Yeah. So I kind of always felt like I've wanted to go, I think that was a decision I made in the premortal life. But this last summer we had a stake conference, and it was called "The Hope of Israel." And I wasn't super excited to go, but when I got there I met a friend from school, who was a non-member that I'm actually pretty good friends with now. And he hasn't even been baptized or anything like that. And just seeing the experience he had and the way I was able to impact him by, you know, just sharing with him some little insights and my testimony. I just realized the big impact I can have on others. And so I just, you know, there's people out there that I think are waiting for me to bring them to Israel. And so that's why I want to go serve is to let others hear the Word of God because like in Romans 10:14-18 it says how can the Lord be heard if there's no preacher? So I think they're waiting for me so they can hear the word of the Lord.
Tammy 11:13
Porter, you perfectly, perfectly set that up. Let's go to Romans 10. We're actually going to start at the end of Romans before we go to the beginning. So Porter cited Romans chapter 10. And will you read for us verses 14 and 15.
Porter 11:27
Yeah, let me get there., one sec. 14:15 "How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!"
Tammy 11:50
Thank you. In your scripture, circle the word preacher in verse 14, and as Porter perfectly taught us, the word preacher right here means missionary. Like how can they hear anything without a missionary? And so how important it is for all of us to be missionaries? And then verse 15. And there's a specific word that describes what we become as we preach. What's the word that stands out?
Kim 12:13
Well, peacemaker is what I'm thinking beautiful and Peacemaker. Isn't that what we all want to be is peacemakers?
Tammy 12:21
Yes. In fact, highlight right there. It says, "How beautiful are the feet of them," like the word beautiful is one of my favorite words in this verse. You want to cross reference this, to the outside - we're not going to turn there - but just to the outside I want you to write Isaiah chapter 52:7. This is where the Scripture originates from. Paul is reciting Isaiah. And he's saying to the saints, remember, Isaiah said, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace? So if you turn to that scripture in Isaiah and you look up the word beautiful, there's a couple of words for beautiful in Hebrew. This specific word is the word NA A, and it's a verb. It's not an adjective. So it's telling us you can actually become more beautiful by preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. It's something you can actively be, and you preach the gospel of peace, and you bring glad tidings of good things to people.
And so I think that is so powerful to think that missionaries, they really are the most beautiful people in the world. And whether you're on a full-time mission or you're serving as 'every member a missionary,' you can become beautiful. Here's what Don Parry - he's a professor at BYU - here's what he teaches about Isaiah 52:7 and this verse, verse 15. Kim, will you read this quote:
Kim 13:33
"All those who preach the gospel are beautiful because of the wonderful message they take to others' feet. The feet represent the whole body of those who travel about preaching the gospel.
Tammy 13:44
Thank you. And so now he's speaking to the saints, the beautiful saints who are preaching the gospel, those who are being preachers or missionaries. Turn to Romans chapter 16, the very last chapter. And he actually starts listing the names of those who are the preachers or those who are the saints that are helping to spread the good news. And if you scan your eyes all the way through 16:1-15, he just names name after name after name. Now, here's what I want us to do, because there's a lot of names. And if you read these you're like, are they men? are they women? and I'm so happy to tell you, it's a mix. So I'm going to just give you the names of the women, and I just want you to circle them in your scriptures.
So here are the women he names specifically: In chapter 16:1, "I commend unto you Phoebe, our sister. "So we have Phoebe right there. Go to verse 3 and circle Priscilla. Go to verse 6 and circle MVry. Verse 7, circle Junia. Verse 12, circleTryphena and Tryphosa. And then also in verse 12, is Persis. All three of those are women. And then in verse 15, circle Julia. It's so cool. I love that in here he is thinking women and men who are beautiful preachers are beautiful missionaries who are doing the work. So knowing that men and women are involved in this, and I just want to know, Kim or Porter, do you have any thoughts about the connection between missionary work and beauty, or anything you're thinking?
Kim 15:15
Well, I think there's nothing more beautiful than things that are natural and pure, and the Gospel. If we are living the gospel and we are trying to be like the Savior, we were being true to ourselves. It's pure who we are, right? We're trying to represent the Savior. That light is so obvious when you meet missionaries, or like, I remember when my oldest was set apart as a missionary. Very quickly, I feel like he looked different, right, there was a beautiful light about him. And I've seen that in so many young people. If you see them right before they leave on their mission, or right when they've come home, that light is a beautiful, a beautiful light. And that's what, they don't try to be beautiful. That is what is coming from them. It's so organic, because they're just trying so hard to do the Lord's will, that can't help but be beautiful with light.
Tammy 16:18
That's so true. In fact, kind of a funny story: I remember my mission president used to always say to the missionaries, "None of you are that good looking, let me be very clear. You're beautiful because you're a missionary. So all these girls that are hitting on you and boys," he would say, "You lock your heart. None of you are that good looking. Just finish your mission and wait till you get home." I used to laugh because it's so true. More boys liked me on my mission than they ever did in my entire life. I was so great when I was on my mission, but I wasn't that good looking. Yeah, there's nothing more beautiful than being your true self and sharing the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ. So Kim, you perfectly set that up and summed that up. Perfect, so thank you, thank you, thank you. Okay, so what we'll do then is in the next segment, we get to talk about one of the most beautiful aspects of the gospel, and I can't wait to get your insight on this.
Segment 3 17:02
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Tammy 17:02
So here's what we're gonna do: we're gonna play a little game of Name That Tune. I am going to sing just three words of a Primary song, and I want to see if you can finish the verse. Are you ready for this? Oh, my goodness. Okay. Three notes, three words. Let's see if you can get it. Here we go. I have to clear my throat. "I am a...
Kim, Porter 17:40
child of God.
Tammy 17:44
Perfect. You guys, I didn't even set them up for that, they had no idea I was gonna sing that. Okay. I love it. Now, here is what Elder Hallstrom said in his April 2016 General Conference talk about this song. Porter, will you read this for us.
Porter 17:58
Yeah. "This beloved hymn is one of the most often sung in this church. But the critical question is, do we really know it? Do we know it in our mind and in our heart and in our soul? Is our heavenly parentage our first and most profound identity?"
Tammy 18:13
Okay, you two. Do you really know it? How do you know that you are a child of God?
Porter 18:17
I think for me, one thing that really helps me remember I'm a child of God is the Spirit. Because through the Spirit, I can really feel God's love. And it's just a reminder that I'm one of His children. And, you know, going through trials, I've looked back, and I've learned that God really loves me, and it's through the Spirit that I recognize it.
Tammy 18:34
How does the spirit feel for you Porter? I'm just curious.
Porter 18:37
Yeah, it's just one of those things that just lifts my spirit and makes me happy. You know, it's just something that I feel with me when I'm doing the right things. So,
Tammy 18:47
And it's so great for you answered it that way, Porter, because sometimes I think we get caught up in the idea that when you say I feel the Spirit, it has to be this really strong, incredible, life-changing moment, which it can be. But I like how you just explained it makes you happy. And Galatians teaches there's so many different ways to feel the spirit and for Porter, the Spirit speaks to you through happiness. So thank you for pointing that out.
Porter 19:10
Yeah. I actually had another comment on that. So I heard this reference one time, but a fish doesn't realize it's swimming in water until it's out of water. And kind of how we can apply it to us in the Spirit is like, if you're doing the right things all the time, you're always going to have the spirit with you. And a lot of people think that, you know, having a spiritual experience is going to be something that's super overwhelming. And sometimes when you're feeling the spirit, you won't even really real realize it because you're just always doing the right thing.
Tammy 19:38
Yeah, absolutely. Wow, excellent, Porter. Thank you for sharing that. What about you, Kim? Do you know it and how do you know you're a child of God?
Kim 19:46
The first thing that that I thought of when I read that, you know, how do I know? How do I know I'm a child of God? I thought of my Patriarchal Blessing and I feel like whenever I read my Patriarchal Blessing there is no doubt that the Lord knew what I needed to hear. He knew traits that I had. He also knew what I needed to be careful about and warnings. And when I read my Blessing, I'm like, of course He knows, He's my Father in Heaven. Of course He knows, He knows me. He knows what challenges I'm going to face. And I recently had my next child who's just below Porter - Mia - she just got her Patriarchal Blessing two Sundays ago. And, you know, afterwards we were talking about it and she said, I said, What do you think, you know, what are your thoughts? Are you surprised by anything? And she said, Mom, I had a couple questions. And I felt like I got help, like, I got some answers. And I'm like, Of course you did because the Lord knows your questions. Right? And He wants us to have questions. He wants us to ask Joseph Smith had a question, right? That's how he got an answer. We need to have questions. And especially when things are very personal for us, we need to know that our Father in Heaven knows us because we are His, He chose us, we are His. And then it's, and then you can kind of work through understanding. Okay, because I'm a child of God. what does this mean? How do I act because I know I'm a child of God? How do I treat others because I know I'm a child of God? What power do I have because I'm a child of God? And so I really feel like when I read my Patriarchal Blessing, I get just a little more insight and comfort, and a reminder that I am His.
Tammy 21:41
Oh. Kim. I like that you pointed out your Patriarchal Blessing. Because when I wrote this question, I've been thinking about it all week. Like how do I know? In my mind I'm like, Oh, I've always known. But there's a line in my Patriarchal Blessing that just hit me. I'd never turned to my Patriarchal Blessing for a knowledge of this and it's so sweet, because it says that together with Heavenly Father, I sat down and made plans to come to Earth at this particular time. And I just imagined, like my dad sitting down with me and saying, Okay, let's plan this out. Like, that's what my parents have always done, sat down with me, given me all the information that I needed as parents would who love me, and prepared me. They're like, and it's gonna be hard, let's be clear. You're gonna need to have a savings account, or whatever. I just love that Heavenly Father, my Heavenly Parents did that for me. That's how I know I'm loved. They took the time. That's a lot of people to sit down and do that with too, but time is like, I don't even know, I'm trying, my brain is spinning. Oh, Kim. Excellent. Thank you to both of you for sharing how you knew you were children of God. Turn to Romans chapter 8 and let's read what Paul teaches about this beautiful truth about being children of our Heavenly Father. Kim, will you please read Romans 8:16, 17.
Kim 22:49
Yes, "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together."
Okay. I just want you two to imagine you're missionaries. Porter, you're gonna be there soon. You're out on the street, you're talking to someone, and you want to just be able to take the opportunity to get in real quick and build on a common belief or teach them a truth. You turn to Romans 8 and you read verse 16. I want to know from both of you, how would knowing this beautiful truth help someone?
I think if we want to share that we're all children of God. I think that by sharing that with someone who wasn't familiar with the gospel, right away they would want to know, Wait, what does that mean? Wait, how am I a child of God? And I think knowing that we come from God, from someone with so much love and power, it gives us just like strength. Like okay, if I'm a child of God and I have that power flowing through me because I'm a child, what can I do then? What am I capable of? What can I overcome? Because there's ,that's powerful. There's power when you're a child of God, and everyone is a child of God.
Tammy 24:18
That word you just, when you just said, What can I do as a child of God? Takes me to verse 17, the word heir. "And if children, then heirs; heirs of God." I mean, think of all the stuff you have inherited from your own family on earth, right? So many things we inherit characteristics, attributes, physically, everything. I like the definition of the word heir according to this verse. It means a person who is entitled to inherit physical or spiritual gifts. So then we think you, you as a child of God will inherit physical and spiritual gifts from our Heavenly Father that, by the way, are pure and perfect. There's no weird genetic mutation when it comes to qualities from our Heavenly Father. It's absolute perfect. So I liked how you just said, Well, what can I do then as a child of God, and what does He have me here to do? What have I inherited?
Kim 24:32
Right
Tammy 24:58
Oh I like that.
Porter 25:16
Yeah, and I'll add on to that one thing, I think is important when, you know, remembering you're a child of God. Or knowing that is recognizing Heavenly Father's love for you. And the great thing about that is, wherever you are, wherever you're serving, and the people that are there is, God has love for everyone. And it doesn't matter what your background is, what you look like and who you are, He'll always love you. I found a quote from President Monson and it says, "Your heavenly Father loves you, each of you. That love never changes. It is not influenced by your appearance, by your possessions, or by the amount of money that you have in your bank account. It is not changed by your talents and abilities, It is simply there." And I just love that because, you know, no matter what you're going through, or, you know, everybody's different, and everybody's going through different things, and God will always love you for who you are.
Tammy 26:07
Amen. Porter, I love that quote. Where did that come from?
Porter 26:12
I think it was from a talk in 2013 "We Never Walk Alone." I found it on the Come, Follow Me for that week. Actually, I was looking through it and found it. So
Tammy 26:23
K, good job, Porter. Wow. All right. I like that quote so much, because that's how I feel that Heavenly Father how He feels about me. I think He loves me for most. (Laughter) And I know He loves all of His children but He, you're absolutely right. He loves us no matter what we're going through, no matter what we've done, or what we will do. So thank you for sharing that quote, Porter. Kim, anything you want to add to that, or with his quote.
Kim 26:26
I would just add, you know, I've had the opportunity to go to some of BYU Women's Conference, maybe because I wanted to hear Tammy Hall speak, but also
Tammy 26:57
I did. I was seeing your face by the way. Thank you for being in the audience.
Kim 26:59
Oh, absolutely. But I knew there would be other great speakers and I attended a panel of a few women because one of my dear friends was on that panel. And I can't remember the sister that said it, but it really stood out to me. She said, "God chose you first and you didn't have to earn that. You don't have to, there's no qualifications.,There's no asterik, you know? He chose us and we can choose Him every day if we so desire, but He chose each one of us." Like Porter said, no matter what your circumstances are, what you're struggling with, what your trials have been. He loved you first, unconditionally. And is there a better message to share with people on this earth? I don't know that there's any, there's anything that would give someone more joy and hope. But to hear He loves you first no matter what.
Tammy 27:55
Well, then let's just build on this. In the next segment, we're going to talk about one of the most incredible blessings that come from this beautiful truth that what both you shared, He loved us first. And because we are His children, and because He loves us, He's going to do something specific for us. So we'll talk about that next.
Segment 4 28:12
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Tammy 28:27
Okay, so in the Preach My Gospel manual - which Porter is gonna be using pretty soon - on page 73 under a specific title there is a quote about prayer, which is the greatest blessing we can ever get from being children of our Heavenly Father. And Porter, I want you to read what this says about prayer.
Porter 28:43
"Because He is our Father, and we are His children, He will answer our prayers."
Tammy 28:49
That's it. And I love this because sometimes, and Satan loves to do this, it doesn't say "He might answer our prayers" It doesn't say "Because He is our Father, and we are His children, if he's not too busy He might have time for you." It's just the most simpl: "Because He is our Father, and we are His children. He will answer our prayers." And like you said, Kim, there's no astericks to the side, there's no hidden message about that. It's just that simple. He will answer our prayers. And Paul wanted us to know this. Paul teaches that we are children of our Heavenly Father. And then he gives some great verses on prayer in Romans chapter 8:26-28. So let's go there. 26-28 and Porter, will you please read these verses. Actually, let's each read a verse. So Porter, will you please read verse 26, Kim verse 27, and then I'll read verse 28.
Porter 29:38
"Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities, for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
Kim 29:51
"And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
Tammy 30:00
"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." Okay, you two. Did either one of you mark these verses?
Kim, Porter 30:00
Yes. Oh, yes.
Tammy 30:04
Tell me why.
Porter 30:14
Yeah. You know, I just like like that last verse in there says, "All things work together for good to them that love God," but I also like the second part that it says, "to them who are called according to his purpose." And I just, I like this because as we keep an eternal perspective, you know, we can understand and remember Heavenly Father's plan for us, When you face hardship, I feel like we can have faith that God is giving us our trials for a reason. And then, you know, there are better days ahead, because because God has a plan for us. And each trial that we grow through helps us gain those characteristics to become more Christ-like, and that we can look for the good that's come from each experience. And so that's why I really love that last verse in there.
Kim 30:57
So I'm going to talk for a second about 28 also because I really felt like that, to me, when I read that verse, I felt like I really could relate that to my calling. And that my calling can feel really overwhelming sometimes because, you know, you're really trying to bring peace and strength to women who are sometimes going through very personal difficult trials, right. And I don't have anyone I can talk to about those trials, right. I don't share any of that with my husband and my family. I have to take it to the Lord and sometimes it can be overwhelming. But because I love God, and I have faith that He knows His daughters, I've been called right now, according to His purpose, to serve at this time, even though, you know, I was very nervous. I felt very unqualified, but because I love God I do that, I want to serve, and I want Him to help me. I cannot do this calling on my own. Tammy, I've had to make some little changes in my life so that I feel like I'm more worthy of the spirit. Because I feel like I have a responsibility to be worthy to have the Spirit so that I can help these women because I sometimes don't know the answers, but the Lord does. And the Lord knows them. So it's, if I will turn to Him, love Him I can, I can know how to love the sisters, and everything is according to the will of God, that last part of 27 I think all of us have had trials that we wanted to end a lot quicker, or that we felt we didn't deserve for some reason, right. But everything is according to the will of God. He knows what we need for our growth. He knows what is going to develop character and strengthen us in a way that something else won't. Right? He knows the trials we need, the disappointments that all of those things bring growth. And God is about building people, and about helping people become stronger. And so I feel like if we love God we turn to Him and then we can fulfill these callings, responsibilities that we're given.
Tammy 33:20
Yeah. Tell me what struck you out of verse 26 when you read that. Because Kim you mentioned that a lot of women you are working with have personal difficult trials, really personal. And all of us here can relate to that we have all had personal trials and moments where the only person we could go to was Heavenly Father. Like I love how you set that up, Kim and shared that experience. So as you read verse 26, what did you learn from that verse?
Kim 33:47
Well, I feel like sometimes that is, that is the only way we're going to find relief is through seeking the spirit and the comfort that comes from the Holy Ghost. Because the trials sometimes don't leave. Sometimes they're long lasting, sometimes they have consequences that will go on for years. But the spirit can bring peace. The Spirit can comfort us if we are seeking that.
Tammy 34:13
Thank you, Kim. Yeah, what about you, Porter?
Porter 34:16
Yeah, I would just agree with that, you know. The spirit is reall, coming to God is really the only way that you'll have peace through your trials. And, you know, you just got to remember that He's giving you those trials for a reason and one day you're gonna look back and be like, Oh, that's why he did that. I mean, so yeah, you know, just trusting in God and His plan for you will really help you with that.
Tammy 34:39
For sure. Absolutely. Well, then as I was reading 26 It's, It's so wonderful in there that - and both of you may have had experiences with this - where sometimes you don't even know what to pray for because the trial you're going through is so hard. And I found so much comfort in 26 where it says that we know no. It says, "Likewise the Spirit also helpeth with our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered." And just the emotion in that verse for me is so real, that there have been times where I just didn't even know how to phrase what needed to be prayed for. And so I would just fall on my knees and the Spirit would take care of it. Like, how cool to think the Spirit can go to the Father on behalf of you and say, 'Listen, here's what Kim and Porter need. They don't know how to say it, let's work this out for them.' Have you ever felt that in your life?
Kim 35:33
Yes, I have. I have. I feel like, again, there are some trials that are very private, very personal, very, very difficult to bear. And we have to have the Spirit to find that peace, you know. Trials don't go away sometimes when we would like them to, but we can endure with the Spirit. We can find peace if we are seeking that.
Tammy 36:03
Anything from you, Porter?
Porter 36:05
Yeah, like you said, you know, like it says in 26, sometimes you just,you don't know exactly you know how to pray for what you're going through. And, you know, there's definitely been times where I've gotten down on my knees to pray and I just say, "Hey, God. Look, I really need Your support in my life and I don't know how to get through this. But I know that You can help me get through it." So, yeah, I really like 26.
Tammy 36:27
Such a good, these three verses. Again, Romans 8 - the best! So, thank you to both of you for what you shared and your experience with those three verses. Make sure everyone in your scriptures, highlight them, underline them. And I would love to know for those of you that read these three verses, I'm going to ask this question on social media: What did these three verses teach you? Or when have they helped you in your own life? Or when have you seen them fulfilled? I think that'd be really cool to know if, if any of you have had an experience where the Spirit has made intercession for you, and if all things did work out together for your good, because they really do, they honestly do. So thank you for sharing that. So in the next segment, then, let's talk about the work, when it says "all things will work together for them for good." let's talk about that work. And Porter, you beautifully talked about this earlier. You said you are going on a mission because you knew you were called to be one before you came here. So we're going to talk a lot about that in the next segment.
Segment 5 37:19
.....
Tammy 37:34
So I will tell everyone, the first time I met Porter and I did say this was at a lacrosse game, because my daughter decided to play lacrosse this year. And she loves it. Apparently, we're a lacrosse family, you guys. Were like the Wells now.
Kim 37:45
Love it.
Tammy 37:46
And so Porter, I just want to know, how did you originally get involved in lacrosse? Tell us that story.
Porter 37:52
Yeah, so my two older brothers Mason and Colby, they both grew up playing lacrosse in high school, and I look up to them a lot. And when they started playing I said, "Hey, I'll check this out." And then soon as I got to high school I stopped playing football and I realized I really wanted to focus on lacrosse, and I loved it.
Tammy 38:08
So you decided you're gonna play. Tell me, can you think of actual decisions you had to make to get good at lacrosse?
Porter 38:16
Yeah. So for me, kind of the main thing was, it just takes a lot of practice, a lot of wor, a lot of practices. I mean, during the season where we're practicing five days a week, and you know, on the days we don't have games, I'm out there working on the field, even after practice, to get extra reps in.
Kim 38:33
Well you do wall ball, things like that outside of practice, yeah.
Tammy 38:36
Did you get paid to do it Porter? Did your parents pay you to get good at lacrosse?
Porter 38:42
No, my parents never paid me to play.
Tammy 38:44
So you just made the decision on your own to practice hard and get good.
Yeah
That's pretty awesome.
Kim 38:50
We're not even one of those parents says, "Hey, if you get a goal, we'll pay you this much." No, you work hard. We hope you get a goal. But we're not paying for goals.
Tammy 38:58
That is perfect. Yes. Of all of this order. You had to make the decision for yourself that this is your sport. And let me tell you what everybody, Porter is good at lacrosse. He actually just was named all region. Congratulations, Porter. And thank you. It's really cool. And so Porter, here's a quote that I think perfectly sums up your ability to play lacrosse. And it is from Elder Nelson and he's quoting President Monson in October 2013. General Conference, and it's just a cute short quote. Can we read this for us?
Kim 39:28
Each day is a day of decision and our decisions determine destiny?
Tammy 39:33
Yes. Is that so good? Yes. So each day was the decision for Porter to play the cross or not playing a cross or practice or not practice, like many of us listening can relate to this. You're right every day we have to get up and make decisions. And those decisions determine our destiny. Let's see what this quote has to do with Romans chapter eight, verses 29 and 30. Because this is what Paul's teaching us with two words here. So we'll start here and Porter, would you please read for us Romans 829 and 30?
Porter 40:03
Yeah, for whom he did foreknow. He also did did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom he did predestinate them he also called, and whom he called, them he also justified and whom He justified them, he also glorified.
Tammy 40:25
Okay, let's just mark two words back in verse 29, underlined the word for No, and then underline the word predestinate. So for no means that he has known you. When it says right here for whom he did foreknow he, I would put in all caps, it should be because it's talking about God, for whom God did for No, God has known you, since beginning of Porter you perfectly. In fact, Porter, how did you even know that? Like, how did you know you decided to serve a mission before you were born?
Porter 40:54
You know, I mean, it mentions it in my patriarchal blessing. And that kind of just a reminder to me that I was sent to Earth for a reason. And I made a lot of decisions before I came here. And I wanted to stay true to those decisions that I made.
Tammy 41:08
Oh, my gosh, Porter, perfect. You just defined predestinate. So the word predestinate is the same as the word for ordination. They're interchangeable, because sometimes we think predestinate or for ordain is to predestined you to ill badness or goodness, or whatever, but that's not how God works. What Porter just said with the word decision is how for ordain, or predestinate means and it is, God calls all of us to membership in his kingdom and to his service. We confirm the four ordination or predestinate by our decisions and actions. And so like Porter said in his patriarchal blessing, yeah, absolutely. All of us were called to serve Kim, you were foreordained to be a Relief Society president. And it's by your decision to accept that call, then you have fulfilled that? Isn't that pretty awesome?
Kim 41:59
Yeah, it gives me hope that I can do it right that he knows he knows my my capabilities, he knows my skills and lack thereof. And if he thinks I can do it, then with him, I can do it.
Tammy 42:12
Absolutely. And every single one of us have been for ordained or predestinated. Here's a great quote. It's in Gospel topics on the gospel topics website for the LDS church. And Kim, will you please read this the doctrine of ordination? Yes.
Kim 42:27
The doctrine of for ordination applies to all members of the church, not just to the Savior and His prophets. Before the creation of the Earth, faithful women were given certain responsibilities, and faithful men were for ordained to certain ordained priesthood duties. As people prove themselves worthy. They will be given opportunities to fulfill the assignments they then received. Okay, yeah, tell me what you said, Wow. Well, what really, what really stood out to me is, first of all, before the creation, the earth, right, the fact that it goes back that far that we, that he knew us and he knew what how we would best serve in his kingdom. But then as people prove themselves worthy, they will be given opportunities to fulfill those assignments. So you know, it takes effort to write and we know that the Lord loves effort, we have to put in the effort so that we can, we can serve and do those callings, right? Yes, it doesn't just happen. Anything. You know, we talk about this with our kids, all of the time that we talk about in our house lot effort, the Lord loves effort. If you want to achieve great things, you've got to put in the effort. It's not just showing up is putting in the effort all the time. And I think that we're just given more of the spirit when we put in effort. And when when we live worthy and try and follow the commandments. He doesn't expect us to be perfect. Right. But as we're trying to be worthy, then I think he continues to bless us and strengthen us. Yeah, absolutely. Because
Tammy 44:01
I'm thinking like, it didn't just happen that Porter is a great lacrosse player. Like right, he proved himself. He gets he put forth the effort and everything about a sport, which we all understand applies to spiritual things. Also, like it doesn't just happen, it requires daily decisions and effort. So thank you, Kim, for connecting that. That's awesome. Here's what President Nelson has to say he was Elder Nelson at the time when he gave this talk. But here's his thoughts on being 14 Porter, can you please read this for us? Yeah. Your heavenly
Porter 44:31
Father has known you for a very long time. You as his son or daughter were chosen by him to come to Earth at this precise time to be a leader in his great work on earth. You were chosen not for your bodily characteristics, but for your spiritual attributes such as bravery, courage, integrity of heart, a thirst for truth, a hunger for wisdom and a desire to serve others. You develop some of these attributes pre mortally, others you can develop here on earth as you persistently seek them.
Tammy 44:57
Thank you, in that quote, what stood out to me was you're not here. You weren't chosen for your bodily characteristics, but for your spiritual attributes. And so one of the things I asked you both to do was come prepared to tell me what do you think each other's spiritual attributes are? So, Kim, tell me what you think porters are. And then Porter. I'm gonna have you tell you about your mom's. You did not
Kim 45:19
tell me that Porter had the same assignments.
Tammy 45:21
And I did not know that either. Lots of trail either of you. Alright. Wow. Okay, fine. All right, Kim, get it?
Kim 45:30
Well, the first thing attribute that stands out to me about Porter is his kindness is just this week. And I did I tell I told Porter, this what this sister said to me, just this week, I ran into a lady in our ward. And we were talking and she said, I just have to tell you, Porter has been the best thing that's happened to these boys in our ward. And I said, What? And I thought she was like kidding. Something. She said, No, he's like a magnet of bringing everybody together. Like he's just brought everybody together. And we just love it. It's just awesome. They're all better friends. And I'm thinking, yeah, that's Porter. Porter is very loving and kind, he doesn't care. If you are like him. If you look like him, if you're an athlete, I feel like Porter has a gift. Like my husband has that too, of being kind, very naturally and loving, just reaching out to people, anyone, any walk of life, any age. He it's, it's just organic with him. He just He truly enjoys people no matter what their station of life is. And that to me is, that's like how the Savior is just loving and accepting of all. Porter is very teachable. You know, Porter has been through trials that are hard. And he's had to humble himself and he's had to grow. And he is willing to take to take, whether it's advice from his parents, priesthood leaders, you know, something he hears in general conference, he is teachable. And I think I think that is wonderful to be teachable. To be willing, because to be teachable, you have to have some humility, right? You have to say, Okay, you probably know better than me or okay. That's something I probably needed to hear and something I need to change. And the other thing is, I would just say he's a peacemaker. I mean, even in our home, when things get stressful, I feel like, you know, porter will come around the corner and say something really funny to my 10 year old or just try and lighten the mood. And he just, he doesn't like contention, even when he was a young boy, he went, like if I got upset with him, I could tell it was if I raised my voice or something with him, that he it really hurt him. Right. He, he likes to be a peacemaker. And I think that is an amazing attribute.
Tammy 47:47
Oh, amazing attributes. Thank you, Kim. Okay, Porter, what are the ones for your mom?
Porter 47:53
Oh, thank you, mom. Well, I think I get I mean, a lot of those attributes from you. Because I would say the same thing about you, you're a very service oriented person. And I don't think this is something that you've always done, you know, before your, your calling is a Relief Society president, you're always looking for the opportunity to serve others. And you get you're so involved in so many different service opportunities, you know, helping with Soroptimists, or just reaching out to all your friends and your loved fighting people over to our house for Sunday dinner, because that's you love to serve others and spend time with them. And I think part of that, too, is you're very selfless. I think my mom, I think it was on her birthday. This last week, she was helping a lady in our ward with some of the things she was going through. And I just think that's so selfless because I mean, it was her birthday. And she could have just said, Oh, I don't really want to deal with this kind of thing today. We'll deal with it tomorrow. But my mom was like, No, I want to help her get through this. And so that's why that's one thing I really love about my mom. And I just think she also has, like I said in that quote, integrity of heart. A lot of times when people make decisions or situations happen, people are quick to judge and I feel like my mom is so loving and open. And she's not one that's usually quick to judge. So I really love that about her. And then last thing I would say she's super wise and she's super knowledgeable of the gospel. Not that I couldn't go to my dad. But whenever I have a question about something, I go to my mom and I just I just know she'll have an answer for me or a church talk. I can listen to it. That'll help strengthen my testimony. And so I really appreciate that and I appreciate her so.
Tammy 49:26
Oh, thank you credit, Kim.
Kim 49:31
Yeah, yes. Yes, it was both of your
Tammy 49:35
answers. Were so perfect. Okay, so let's just take all this for a minute. So we are children of a heavenly Father. We are children of heavenly parents, who love us so much. And because we are direct spiritual descendants of these perfect beings. We then have spiritual attributes which are perfect, undiluted and awesome. And both of you perfectly equipped Ain't each other spiritual attributes that the Lord will use to build His kingdom. So he's for a dame, the two of you to do incredible things in the kingdom of God. And as you do these things, go back to Romans chapter eight, verse 30, because here's the results. And we already read the verse, but we're gonna look at it one more time, in light of all of this, more over whom he did predestinate, or for Dane, them he also called, and whom He called them, he also justified now highlight the word justified, because in Greek, the word justified means declare righteous. So whom He called them, he also declared righteous, and whom he declared righteous them he also glorified. And that's the result of all of us making decisions, daily decisions, to act on the Lord's behalf to build His kingdom, to do the things we've been for deigned or predestinated. To do. And then how much do we love verse 31. And I know both of you marked this verse. Because as we work in the Lord's Kingdom, we just have to read it. Here we go, Porter hit it, read verse 31.
Porter 51:10
What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
Tammy 51:16
Don't use one a gal Hurrah for Israel at the end of that. Yeah, absolutely.
Kim 51:19
Absolutely.
Tammy 51:21
Tell me your thoughts on it.
Kim 51:23
I just feel like, you know, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter the opinions of men or people's judgments. God believes in us. He is for us every day. And we have to remember that because He is all powerful. And He is all knowing and all light. And so if he's with us, let the people say what they want to say, let the people judge how they want to judge at the end of the day. The Lord is for us.
Porter 51:51
Yes, order. Yeah. I mean, being being the athlete. That just to me, I kind of read it as like, as Scott is our coach. That's, that's all you need. And you'll be successful. And it doesn't matter how others view you. Because God is on your team. And, and he's, he's, he's there with you.
Tammy 52:09
Oh, I like how you just put it into the sports. Yeah, if he's our coach, you can't lose. He's got every play known to man. Awesome. Well, and I just have to tell you, this first became one of my favorites. Because when I was on my mission, I experienced verses 26 through 31, in two weeks in the MTC, like, No, I mean, you can't even I went in, I was so excited. I'm there. I'm filling the Spirit every day. And then I became very depressed and sad. And I was like, I don't think I can do this, I probably need to go home. And it was it's really like, Oh, and there were things I needed to take care of that I hadn't taken care of yet with my state president. And I've shared that repentant story before. And I remember crying and being sad and a sister missionary, she came up to me, and she knew I was sad. And she asked me what was wrong. And I just told her, I don't think I belong here. I'm really depressed. I think I need to go home. And she had me turned to Alma chapter 26, verse 27, which, of course, I've read before, but I had no idea it was there. So I went to Allah chapter 26, verse 27, she knew the scriptures way better than me, as I've always joked, I didn't even know Christ came to America till I was in the MTC. So there's no way I'm going to 26
Kim 53:18
that gives us all hope, Tammy,
Tammy 53:20
I know. You're welcome. So there's no way I'm doing verse 27. So she turns there, and she has says, read this out loud. And it says, And this is Alma, the younger and the sons of Messiah who are on their missions. And they say, Now when our hearts were depressed, and we are about to turn back, Behold, the Lord comforted us and said, Go amongst my brother in the Lamanites. And bear with patients sign afflictions, and I will give unto you success. And that was my moment. If God is for me, who can be against me? And she's like, we're all depressed. Like, this is hard work. Being a missionary is so hard, serving us Relief Society president super hard filling out the mission papers, Porter, how hard is that? Oh, it is hard. Oh, and forget about it. When you get that mission call. It's gonna get even harder till you're in the MTC, right? If it's that's good, that it's hard because you're doing what's right. And again, I love it. Porter, God is the greatest coach, there's no he's got all the winning plays. So just know you will absolutely succeed right there. I will give you success. And he will, he will give us success as we make daily decisions to follow His plan and why we're here. I have such a testimony of that. So thank you for both of you for what you shared and for that awesome discussion. Okay, so for those of us who do choose and make those daily choices. In the next segment, we're going to talk about what scholars call the most sensitive word picture of the love of God in all scripture, and we'll show you what that is next.
So I said that scholars call these verses of scripture the most graphic or vivid description of God's love. We are in Romans chapter eight. And we're going to look at verses 35 through 39. So I sent these verses to Kim and Porter. And I said that some scholars call these next set of verses, the most sensitive word pictures of the love of God. Now, if you're wondering what a word picture is, I had to look it up as well. A word picture is a graphic or vivid description of something. So I was like, well, that's interesting. So then I go in and I read these verses, it is Romans chapter eight, verses 35 through 39. Let's each of us take a verse and let's read verses 35 through 39. And then I want you guys to share what you marked,
Porter 55:45
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ Shall tribulation, or distress or persecution, or famine, or nakedness or peril or sword? As it is written, or they say, We are killed all the day long. We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter,
Kim 56:03
knee, and all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord.
Tammy 56:26
Thank you, okay, you too. What did you mark that was vivid, or that stood out to you?
Kim 56:31
Well, going back, I hope it's okay. And going back to 32, when I was reading that He that spared not his own Son, but delivered Him that for us all. And when I read that, I thought of the Savior in the garden, and on the cross, and doing all of that for you, and for me, and for everyone. And then as I went down, I feel like my picture kind of changed as I as I marked 37, where it says, Nate, and all these things, we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. I've also thought about experiences I've had coming out of trials, I pictured myself at the temple, getting peace through a trial, and that all of these trials, I'm able to overcome with the Lord's help, and I picture, you know, when I'm going through really hard things, a lot of times, I'll be on my knees, and I'll say a prayer and and I kind of can't get off the floor. Right? I'm overwhelmed. I don't want to leave the prayer. I don't want to get up and do the things that I need to do as a mother and as a wife, and all those things. I just want to stay and pray. And so I pictured the Savior, kneeling next to me, and just has his arm around me, and comforting me. He's there with me. And that's how I conquer and get through the difficult times I'm going through is with him right there with me in the thick of it. Because he knows and he understands because he paid the price so that he can know when he can understand. So I pictured nailing in the Savior building next to me. Ken, thank you.
Tammy 58:12
I love you read that verse, those two verses, and that's the image in your mind. In fact, you kept saying the word conquer, he will help you conquer. I just love the footnote for the word conquer. Look down at 37 in all these things, we are more than conquerors. Now. Look down at footnote 37 A for the word more. It says abundantly victorious. That is how will conquer and what does the say Kim abundantly victorious? I mean, have you ever been abundantly victorious Kim?
Kim 58:42
Yes, I feel like I have I feel like I have gained so much more than I even thought sometimes things don't work out in the timing that we we feel like we deserve or as they should. But we see that the Lord not only answers prayers, but we are blessed abundantly because we see the growth we see the change we see. Maybe it's opened our eyes up to something else or something we need to improve in ourselves or something we need to work on or a warning that we can feel coming. He gives us so much more than we ever think we're gonna get right he you know, everything on this earth is preparing us for glory. And we can't even comprehend that glory. Right? Right. We're not supposed to be able to comprehend it. But abundantly he's blessing us with even more than we know I you know, I've talked a lot about prayers of gratitude and recognizing tender mercies when we're going through trials. I cannot go through My trials without looking for tender mercies. And sometimes it's like, feels like an hourly thing I need to look for. But as I do that I am blessed abundantly because I'm recognizing the Lord's hand even during my trial. Yeah, for sure. Thank you, Kim. I was Good.
Tammy 1:00:01
What about you, Porter? What stood out to you? vividly?
Porter 1:00:04
Yeah, um, the last two verses 3039 is talking about a lot of things that that can't separate us from God's love. And I really like to emphasis on the word separate shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord. And when I was thinking of the word separate, I don't know if you if this has ever happened to you, but trying to separate two Legos that have the same size that are stuck to each other to so hard. And I just kind of was thinking about that. It just, it just really shows us how much God loves us that he'll always love us. And that that's what I that stood out to me. As it says it those things, no height, or depth or creature shall be able to separate our love of God.
Tammy 1:00:46
What about sin order, because it doesn't see anything in there about sin, consent, separate us from the love of God.
Porter 1:00:53
You know, I think sin is something you know, when when we sin. I feel like we won't be able to feel God's love as much because we're not doing the right things that help us feel the spirit. But ultimately, the great thing is you can repent and you can be forgiven of your sins and you can still feel His love and it'll always be there. No matter how much you sin or what you do. You can always repent and feel God's love.
Tammy 1:01:13
Absolutely poured. I'm so grateful. You said that because yes, sin does not separate us from God's love. He will always love us. I like how you said that. I had never considered this a word picture. And it was really awesome to read. And think visually because I'm a visual learner, just all the visual pneus of all of this, like nothing separates us from the love of God. And then we go back to verse 31. Because if God is for us, who can be against us? No one and all the things that list those are pretty awful. Tribulation distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril. So like, it lists all the horrible things you can imagine. And and I think in verse 36, adduser, as it is written, for thy sake, we are killed all the day long. I mean, that just really stood out like it is hard. As a saint, we sometimes feel like we are being just destroyed, or it says killed right here. And he's using very graphic wording that says we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Like I think many people listening feel like that, like Yeah, ah, this is tough. But you shared Kim, we are conquerors through him that loved us. We are abundantly victorious. And then Porter, you beautifully said nothing can separate us from the love of God. No matter how tight those Legos are poured. I thought that was such a good visual, because I remember sometimes having to pull them apart. It is hard. Yeah. And nothing can separate us. So thank you so much for your thoughts and your comments. And thanks for coming solo prepared today. Those beautiful the spirit was so strong as we discussed these things. And like you said, Porter, it was just a happy feeling. Right? Have we been happy for the last hour? Oh, yeah, for sure. Happy? Okay, so just take a minute, then gather your thoughts? And what is your takeaway from this whole discussion? What are you going to use in your daily life or what stood out to you?
Kim 1:03:05
Okay, so I think what stood out to me is through all of these chapters, you know, because Paul loves the saints, this is all coming from a place of love, right? The Epistle, the letter, whatever, it's coming from a place of love. He acknowledges his imperfections, right, like all of us. And then he wants us to return to Heavenly Father, He wants the saints to, to know of the things they need to do the counsel that needs to be given. I love the thought of joint heirs. That just really resonated with me. The whole time I kept rereading these chapters is, I am not supposed to do this alone. I'm supposed to do this with the Lord, we're going to shoulder responsibility together. We're going to we're going to figure this out together. And it's all going to be worth it. That's the other thing. I feel like the reward will be glory, eternal life, you know, we've got to get there, right? We can't just jump to the end. We can't just jump to happy times. We've got to have the trials, we've got to have the disappointments, the sadness, because one that's how we develop compassion for those around us. But to it's how we grow, and it's just all going to be worth it, the glory, it's all going to be worth at the end and and I'm grateful that we continue to have revelation from a prophet that knows what we need to hear now, just like Paul knew what the people needed to hear then our Prophet President Russell M. Nelson, he knows what we need to hear. He knows what we need to do to have the spirit more abundantly in our life. And so I feel like those general conference talks from our Prophet apostles, those are like the letters from Paul, this is right now what we need to be focused on this is where we need to be as a people to to be able to earn that glory that one day will be ours.
Tammy 1:04:54
No, absolutely. Excellent takeaway. Thank you, Kim. I like that I went back and uh, I put a square around joint heirs and then I wrote not alone. Thank you for teaching that. What about you, Porter?
Porter 1:05:06
Yeah, so I really loved Romans seven through 16. And like you were saying, If Paul was writing this letter, and present time, I just love Romans eight. And I love how it has so many, so many verses that just remind us of God's love for us, and that it can comfort us for our trials we're going through, but I also love how, throughout the rest of, of these chapters, it really focuses on what we can do to serve others. And you know, like, we talked about those attributes, we can have to gather Israel in a loving, loving your neighbor lifting other people up and making peace and, you know, not being not judging others. I think those are some great things we can work on and things I can work on, as I'm going into my mission. So I really love these chapters. And I'm definitely going to use this letter from from Paul to better myself as I go to serve a mission and just go on in life. So
Tammy 1:05:54
perfect takeaway, Porter. Thank you. That was my my takeaway Porter was when both of you shared what you liked about Paul's letter in Romans chapter 14. And I've marked it and I put your names in my scriptures because I don't ever want to forget, therefore, follow after things which make for peace and things were with one may edify another. So thank you for teaching me those verses. You too. That was awesome. That's the only way we're gonna gather Israel. So such a good discussion. Yes. Great. So cool. Thank you for being on the podcast.
Kim 1:06:26
Thank you for the opportunity to study and to really, you know, I'll never look at these chapters the same again, because when you spend more time really praying and studying it, it just changes how it looks right. It does. And I just think
Tammy 1:06:39
I wish I had known Romans eight on my mission, like, right, it's just an automatic go to like, you know what, you don't believe in anything yet. Let me just tell you first your child of God, if that's the only thing you build on, you're winning as a missionary. So Romans eights Awesome. Can you Tammy, thank you so much. Oh, enjoy your day. Have you shared each other's spiritual attributes? That was also my other
Porter 1:07:01
takeaway. Oh, sweet. Sweet.
Tammy 1:07:04
Sweet. You're awesome. Thank you. Thank you for having us. Oh, of course. You guys. were awesome. You knocked out of the park.
Porter 1:07:12
Awesome. See ya. Bye. Good
Tammy 1:07:14
luck, and thank you. Bye, bye. See you soon. Tammy, do you tomorrow night look great. Bye. Okay, well, of course, oh my gosh. I mean, that was such a great discussion. Romans eight just knocks out of the park every time. So, of course, there's more. But I had to focus on Romans eight. So if you haven't already, join our discussion group on Facebook or Instagram, go do it, and maybe share other stuff that you've learned throughout the week and the other chapters and I also go there and answer any questions that you might have. And then at the end of the week, on a Saturday, we post a question from this episode, so comment on the post that relates to this lesson, and share your thoughts. You can get to both our Facebook and Instagram by going to the show notes for this episode, which are found at LDS living.com/sunday On Monday, and it's not a bad idea to go there. Anyway, it's where we're going to have the links to all the references we used, as well as a transcript of this entire discussion and we have a glue in for this episode, so go check it out. The Sunday on Monday Study Group is a desert bookshelf plus original brought to you by LDS Living. It's written and hosted by me Tammy Uzelac. Hall and today our brilliant and beautiful study group participants were Kim and Porter wells and you can find more information about my friends at LDS living.com/sunday on Monday. Our podcast is produced by Colva singer EDMI it is edited by Haley hi m and recorded and mixed by mix at six studios and our executive producer is Aaron Hallstrom. Thanks for being here and we'll see you next week and boy if there was ever an episode to remember, nothing can separate you from the love of God because you are his favorite
Transcribed by https://otter.ai