Saturday Night Fever -- Not

Last night about this time I was sitting on the stand in our stake center. I sat by a bishop (who is also a CEO) and we were between the Dallas Temple president and his wife and the Dallas Mission president and his wife. Next to them sat our stake presidency, and not one but two General Authority Seventies. Not bad company for a nobody like me.

I was fulfilling an assignment to speak at the Saturday night adult session of our stake conference. On the morrow they will divide our stake, but for tonight there is a sea of faces that fill our large chapel, the overflow, the entire gym, and the stage. Just the “Amen” to the opening prayer is deafening.

You would think I would be scared to death. I would think I would be scared to death. All those people…..and those important people. But interestingly enough, I wasn’t.

I was worried about what to say, but once I figured that out, the people didn’t bother me at all.


You could chalk that up to my being tired, as I had stayed up half the night before.

I’m sure part of it was because I prayed for peace and calm.

But also, I am learning. This is the Lord’s church, and we are on His errand. It is not about us; it is about Him. And the Lord takes care of His business.
So I’m learning to relax more, to trust that help is near, and to have faith that all will be well.
I wasn’t disappointed.


And it's nice to pretend like I'm a grown-up once in a while.




"Say not, I am a child; for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee. Be not afraid of their faces; for I am with thee. Then the Lord put forth his hand and touched my mouth ..and said, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth." Jeremiah 1:7-9

"Let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed. D&C 123:17

Day of Rest

I've heard that Sunday should be a day of rest. I think it's a rumor.

Today I had a 7:30 am stake PEC meeting. At 8:30 I spoke in a Spanish ward sacrament meeting, then went straight to a ward conference where I taught Relief Society and conducted a 4th-hour training meeting.

Last Sunday I left the house at 8:15 am to visit three wards, one up in Oklahoma, had training meetings with them, and got home about 5:00. That night I went to bed hours earlier than usual and slept for a solid 11 hours.

Every Sunday isn't like that, but lately most of them have been.

I guess it depends on how you define rest. Were these Sundays physically, mentally or emotionally restful? No. Especially when sandwiched between two full work days.

Sometimes it's rest just to do something different than the norm. Believe me, my Sundays are different.

To "rest in the Lord" is to be free of worldly concerns, to be spiritually uplifted, to be rejuvenated by His Spirit, and to have peace.

In that sense, the Sabbath truly is a day of rest.

Even mine.