The Master Healer

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TaylorsvilleStake.org

Hello beloved sisters and brothers,

Please Pray for Patriarch Bowles

Our beloved emeritus Patriarch, Theron Bowles, is currently hospitalized with respiratory issues.  We ask all to please pray for his well-being and health. 

Easter Egg Hunt: Saturday, April 8, 2023 

On Saturday, April 8 at 9 AM, the Community Connections Committee will host our annual Community Easter Egg Hunt.  This is a fun way to share time with neighbors, friends, and loved ones.  

Easter Services

In commemoration of Easter, special services will be held in each ward at the regularly scheduled times on Sunday, April 9.  No other meetings should be held on this day so that families and friends may gather and celebrate this sacred occasion.  We invite all members to prayerfully consider who you should invite to worship with you.

Flood Preparation

The Utah Area Presidency has asked each of us to make timely preparations for potential flooding due to record snow and rainfall this winter.  Brother Ryan Griffin of the High Council sent an email to all stake members this past week with information and links to resources for planning and preparation.  Hard copies of these resources have been distributed to each ward and are meant to be shared with all neighbors.  We invite ward leaders, ministering sisters, and brothers to ensure everyone in our community has access to these resources for their safety and well-being.

Weekly Message: The Master Healer

One winter morning, as I was leaving my early morning seminary class, held at our church building, an idea popped into my head.  About an inch of new snow had fallen while we were in class and it occurred to me that I could recreate a trick I had recently seen in a movie where the driver of a car slid gracefully around a corner of a building.  

I pictured myself in our 1972 Oldsmobile station wagon, executing this maneuver perfectly around the corner of the parking lot which led to the rear parking area of the church.  I imagined how impressed my friends would be to see me perform this amazing driving feat.  

So, with everyone watching, I began my approach.  At just the right moment I hit the brakes and turned the steering wheel hard to the right.  The station wagon obediently turned and began sliding broadside into the corner.  

I was thrilled!  This was working exactly as I had envisioned!  

A split second later, I hit the gas to accelerate out of the slide…

Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you realized, too late, that you had made a very poor decision?

No matter how hard I pressed on the gas pedal…my trajectory did not change.   There was not enough traction.  My momentum was carrying me broadside… toward the curb.  

I hit the brakes, but nothing changed.    

As if in slow motion, the car slammed broadside into the curb and up through the neighbor’s split rail fence just beyond, and stopped.

My friends came running over to see if I was OK.  

Fortunately, my only injury was my pride…

Hoping maybe nothing serious had happened, I climbed out of the car.

Both of the wheels on the driver’s side were badly bent and the whole side of the car was badly dented and scratched from the fence.

Any hope of hiding my mistake was gone…  This was bad!  

I went next door to a gas station owned by a member of our ward.  He looked disparagingly at me and at the car and pointed toward the phone to call home.  One of his mechanics fixed the wheels so I could drive the car home to face my parents.

I felt horrible…and stupid for making such a dumb mistake.

To his credit, and to my relief, my father, although very upset, helped me see that all the damage I had caused could be repaired…with some time, money, and hard work.  

He expressed gratitude that nothing worse had happened to me.

He took me over to the home of the church neighbor, whose fence I had destroyed, so I could explain and apologize for what I had done.  I made arrangements to come the following Saturday to repair their fence.

Over the next few weeks, my father showed me how to repair and replace the dented/broken metal parts.  Then he helped me repaint everything.  It was a lot of hard work and cost me most of the money I had saved to that point in my life.

When I was finished, the car looked almost perfect and we drove that car for many more years.

As you might hope, I learned a lot of lessons from this experience…  

Every Easter, I reflect on this because it illustrates some important principles in a very tangible way for me.

Every one of us has made mistakes and committed sins.  But we have a loving Father in Heaven, who, although He may be disappointed in us, will always show us the WAY to overcome our sins.  

Our Savior, Jesus Christ, is THE WAY.  

Through faith in Him and sincere repentance, He will pay the price for our sins.  

But, He also provides the power and grace to rise above them…to no longer be defined by them.  

And He heals us… 

And He heals those we may hurt… 

…from the wounds and negative consequences as well.

His simple invitation to each of us is…Come unto me.  And I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28,29)

I hope that as we prepare to worship and partake of the sacrament this Easter Sunday, we will remember Him… the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE.    

I pray that all of us will take time to praise our Father in Heaven and His Son, the Redeemer, the Master Healer.

And I hope we will invite a friend or a loved one to worship with us.

Everyone needs His healing, perfect love.      

I love you all.

President Gardner