The Good and the Bad...

I think I'll start with the bad. It's not really bad, but here you go. We found out the birth mom in Logan decided to place her baby with another couple. She gave birth a week ago and placed it on that day. Ade and I are disappointed it wasn't us, but we both believe that she was guided by Heavenly Father in her choice. We know everything will come together when the time is right.

Now for the good. Ade got a call from her neurologist's office. She recently had an MRI to check out her brain (see if the MS was causing any problems). The MRI was so good that she doesn't even need to go in and visit with the doctor. We're thinking of celebrating Friday with a good date night.

Life is full of ups and downs, but it is always humorous when they come on back-to-back days.

Forgiveness and Unity

I have compiled the Scriptures, Quotes, and Stories from my talk below. I didn't write out every word so I can't give you the whole talk, but you can probably get the idea from the information below.

"To forgive is a divine attribute. It is to pardon or excuse someone from blame for an offense or misdeed. The scriptures refer to forgiveness in two ways. The Lord commands us to repent of our sins and seek His forgiveness. He also commands us to forgive those who offend or hurt us." Church Website

Matthew 5: 44

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

Doctrine and Covenants 64: 9-10

Wherefore, I say unto you, that ye ought to forgive one another; for he that forgiveth not his brother his trespasses standeth condemned before the Lord; for there remaineth in him the greater sin.

I, the Lord, will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men.

Samuel T. Whitman wrote: “The ice storm [that winter] wasn’t generally destructive. True, a few wires came down, and there was a sudden jump in accidents along the highway. … Normally, the big walnut tree could easily have borne the weight that formed on its spreading limbs. It was the iron wedge in its heart that caused the damage.

“The story of the iron wedge began years ago when the white-haired farmer [who now inhabited the property on which it stood] was a lad on his father’s homestead. The sawmill had then only recently been moved from the valley, and the settlers were still finding tools and odd pieces of equipment scattered about. …

“On this particular day, it was a faller’s wedge—wide, flat, and heavy, a foot or more long, and splayed from mighty poundings [—which the lad found] … in the south pasture. [A faller’s wedge, used to help fell a tree, is inserted in a cut made by a saw and then struck with a sledge hammer to widen the cut.] … Because he was already late for dinner, the lad laid the wedge … between the limbs of the young walnut tree his father had planted near the front gate. He would take the wedge to the shed right after dinner, or sometime when he was going that way.

“He truly meant to, but he never did. [The wedge] was there between the limbs, a little tight, when he attained his manhood. It was there, now firmly gripped, when he married and took over his father’s farm. It was half grown over on the day the threshing crew ate dinner under the tree. … Grown in and healed over, the wedge was still in the tree the winter the ice storm came.

“In the chill silence of that wintry night … one of the three major limbs split away from the trunk and crashed to the ground. This so unbalanced the remainder of the top that it, too, split apart and went down. When the storm was over, not a twig of the once-proud tree remained.

“Early the next morning, the farmer went out to mourn his loss. …

“Then, his eyes caught sight of something in the splintered ruin. ‘The wedge,’ he muttered reproachfully. ‘The wedge I found in the south pasture.’ A glance told him why the tree had fallen. Growing, edge-up in the trunk, the wedge had prevented the limb fibers from knitting together as they should.”

Dallin H. Oaks

“Don’t treasure up past wrongs, reprocessing them again and again...festering is destructive; forgiving is divine (see D&C 64:9–10). Plead for the guidance of the Spirit of the Lord to forgive wrongs . . . , to overcome faults, and to strengthen relationships.”

James E. Faust

"What can we all learn from such experiences as these? We need to recognize and acknowledge angry feelings. It will take humility to do this, but if we will get on our knees and ask Heavenly Father for a feeling of forgiveness, He will help us. The Lord requires us 'to forgive all men' for our own good because 'hatred retards spiritual growth'. (Orson F. Whitney, Gospel Themes)"

"Most of us need time to work through pain and loss. We can find all manner of reasons for postponing forgiveness. One of these reasons is waiting for the wrongdoers to repent before we forgive them. Yet such a delay causes us to forfeit the peace and happiness that could be ours. The folly of rehashing long-past hurts does not bring happiness.

"Some hold grudges for a lifetime, unaware that courageously forgiving those who have wronged us is wholesome and therapeutic."

Dr. Sidney Simon, a recognized authority on values realization, has provided an excellent definition of forgiveness as it applies to human relationships:

"Forgiveness is freeing up and putting to better use the energy once consumed by holding grudges, harboring resentments, and nursing unhealed wounds. It is rediscovering the strengths we always had and relocating our limitless capacity to understand and accept other people and ourselves."

Counsel from a wise Church Leader

"Keep a place in your heart for forgiveness, and when it comes, welcome it in."

“To err is human; to forgive, divine.” Alexander Pope

Moroni 7: 46-48

…Charity never faileth. Wherefore, cleave unto charity, which is the greatest of all, for all things must fail—

But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.

Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen.

Doctrine and Covenants 38: 24, 25, 27

And let every man esteem his brother as himself, and practise virtue and holiness before me.

And again I say unto you, let every man esteem his brother as himself.

Behold, this I have given unto you as a parable, and it is even as I am. I say unto you, be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine.

Moses 7: 18

And the Lord called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them.

Catching Up

Last weekend was a lot of fun. Friday we had a ward party that included a service auction and chili cook off. There were probably 20-25 different chili entries. All the ones I tried were great. My favorite was a white chili with chicken. It was really different, but had tons of great flavor.

Most of the day Saturday I spent working on a talk for sacrament meeting. Kevin (the Bishopric member who asked me) gave some ideas and scriptures to help get me started. The focus was "Forgiveness" and as I prepared and prayed I ended up talking about unity as well. I'll include some notes, scriptures and stories from my talk in a later post.

We went to dinner at Red Robin with our friends Dan and Kim (and 2 of their 3 kids). Then we went to play volleyball with some friends.

Sunday mostly consisted of church, choir and dinner with my sister Sarah and her fiance Austin. We had fajitas and played Rummikub (reminded me of family vacations at Uncle Larry's).

Jazz Pictures - Halftime

Jazz Game and Adoption Update

I think Adrienne and I have some of the best friends that you could ever find. One friend has season tickets to the Jazz. He couldn't make it to last nights game so he just gave them to me. Ade had some things at home she wanted to get done, so I took Dan with me and we had a blast. It was a close game until the 4th quarter, then the Jazz just took over. So we got both the thrill of a tight game and the satisfaction of a dominant finish.

I know many of our friends and family want updates on adoption. Right now everything comes down to waiting. The young lady we met with is due any day, but she hasn't decided what she will do once that day comes. I know she is praying for guidance and I know that she will have her prayers answered. I just don't know what that answer will be. She is part of a wonderful family, and has the love and support of her whole congregation. Ade and I are at peace just waiting to see what she decides.

Back in Town

Last weekend was great. It was so great to see all our friends in St. George. It is always nice to get away and catch up with everyone. We had a birthday party for Eden, a blessing for Gabriel, and a "fancy shmancy" dinner for Valentine's Day.

The Valentine's Day dinner was wonderful. There was live entertainment with singing and piano, dancing, games, even a drawing at the end for prizes. It was put together to benefit the Dixie Care and Share. Adrienne gave me a hard time during the drawing. She asked what was wrong because I usually win something any time I'm involved in a drawing. I told her to be patient because we'd win the very last and, of course, the biggest prize. Sure enough our number came up and we won a $250 gift certificate to Ashley Furniture.

Nothing new to report on Adoption. We hope the young women we met with gets the answer she is seeking. We know that Heavenly Father will answer her prayers and let know know what is best for the child. There was an article in the Ensign (the monthly magazine for our church) for February that told the story of adoption from 4 different view points. We read it as we drove back last night. If anyone is interested, here is the link: The Gift of Adoption

Guys Night Out

This week Trevor, Will and I decided to have a guys night out to watch a movie. Unfortunately, Will realized he had too much homework and had to ditch out. Trevor and I still went and had fun. I think that we should try to get together like this on a fairly regular basis. Our wives are all sisters, but we (the brothers-in-law) don't know each other very well. Maybe we could figure out something on a monthly basis.

We are getting excited for this weekend. Some of our friends (Brent and Andrea) in St. George put on a black tie dinner each year on Valentine's Day. The proceeds go to charity (a different one every year). This year it goes to Dixie Care and Share. We've never been because this is the first year that the dinner falls on a weekend. We are really excited to see them and have a nice night out. The event website is: www.unforgettablestgeorge.com.

Brent and Andrea are also blessing their baby on Sunday, so this is going to be a pretty packed trip.

Blog Book and Adoption Meeting

We got our blog book last Wednesday. It's about the size and thickness of a Dr. Suess book. It really is pretty cool. I'm amazed that people can have a single book published so cheaply. I definitely think this is something that we'll do each year. It makes a fantastic journal and family history.

Yesterday we went up to Logan to meet a young woman who is pregnant and considering adoption. We met with her and both of her parents. It was a very special experience. We don't have any idea if the situation will work out for us or another couple...or even if she'll decide to keep the child. What we do know is that she is praying to seek guidance. We both had an overwhelming feeling of peace that it was in God's hands and that it would work out in the best interest of the child.

I think it's time to go. Adrienne and I decided to have a date night and go out for a movie.

Digital Profile Online and Other Events

Wow, I can't believe it has been nearly 2 weeks since our last post. We have been pretty busy. My (as in Jason's) mom, Daisy, decided to come out and help Sarah with her wedding plans. We went up to the Bridal Show with them last Friday. My mom also came down on Sunday to go to church with us and we all had a nice dinner together.

The big news over the last couple weeks is that our online profile is now officially...drum roll please...ONLINE. It has been published to LDS Family Services "Beta" site that should go live any day now. For the time being you can see us at: https://www.beta.itsaboutlove.org/ial/profiles/16569023/ourMessage.jsf. Please forward this link on to all family and friends that you think might be interested. For that matter, please forward this blog on to anyone you know that might like to catch up with us.

Thanks to all!!!