Yabba Dabba Do - See Ya in Two!

The Helaman Sons Letters Issue No. 5 – “Yabba Dabba Do – See Ya in Two!”

From the GUIDElines issue dated February 15, 1990:

Craig’s Farewell and Setting Apart

We had to choose between Doug and Craig as far as Farewells were concerned last Sunday.  After many attempts to get one of the bishops to give in, they went ahead and scheduled them within 30 minutes of each other (and 15 miles apart!).  Since I had been to Doug’s ward just recently, after he begged us to come in December, and had heard him talk many times, even though I heard I missed a good meeting, I decided to go to Craig’s.

Of course it was good.  The Guides sang Warriors of Light and then How Great Thou Art for the closing.  Bro. Bowden had a good group and wept repeatedly during the singing.

I have never heard such praise heaped upon one young man, as his bishop did on Craig.  If his normally thin features appear to be a little swollen from “big head” disease, please bear with him.  Soon, you will see that he is merely human, after all.

His setting apart was special.  His bishop, yours truly and the Stake President all had a chance to speak.  I am glad I went.  It will give me a pattern for future meetings of that type, even for my son.

Ironically, although I thought I had taught Craig as well as I could, he managed to get into the setting apart chair without giving any of the numerous girls a goodbye hug.  I thought each of you knew, and him especially, that when you are the center of attention then you get your way!  If you are going to be important leaders in the Church, even General Authorities, you have to start thinking that way now.

About Doug:

Doug was so much fun at the Temple Worker’s Fireside.  Of course, you guys know what I am going to say.  The first thing he did was stand right up in front of the microphone and say, “Sheesh!”  Then I think he said, “Crud, I was warned not to say Sheesh!”  By then all of the “old guys” in the congregation, and of course all the Guides, were eating out of his hand, as usual.  I keep telling him, the way we spell charisma in the Program is D-O-U-G !  He went on to bear a powerful testimony, I am sure, but Craig and I were trying to figure out how best to cut out an HOUR of the program to make the Temple President happy, so we missed most of what he said.

We won’t miss anyone like we miss Doug.  Really, if there is anyone I want to watch when he grows up it is Doug.  But I honestly hope he never changes . . . did I day that?  Can you imagine him with 14 little Douggies crawling all over him and hanging onto their Dad?

About the Temple Worker’s Fireside

What a night!  You all know how much we can pack into a Guide Sunday Night Training Meeting and they always last at least two hours.  Well, President asked to see the agenda and then said, “Brother Parker, I thought this was only going to be an hour fireside!”  I said, “Whatever you want, President, just let me know.”

Well, he said, “Petersen (the outgoing Visitors’ Center Director) doesn’t need to talk, neither does Kimball (the incoming Director) and I certainly don’t want to.  Cut it down to an hour.”

We did!  And in that hour we packed in an 80-voice chorus of Called To Serve, We Thank Thee O God For A Prophet, I Am A Child of God, and How Great Thou Art, plus talks from Craig, Paul, and Sister Randall, a temple worker friend of mine.  We had testimonies from Kim and Doug.  Bro. Bowden, Todd, and Brent did the Godhead discussion.  Don talked about angels.  It was all terrific!  I have never seen the group in better form.

It was wonderful to see the President and Matron of the temple sitting on the front row so they could see the chorus with tears running down their faces as we sang Called To Serve.

It was grrrr8!  And, President said, “Since we cut out an hour, I guess we’ll have to do this again!”

Letter from Temple President

Dear Brother Bowden:

We were very pleased and impressed with the fireside meeting put on by your Youth Guides, February 11, 1990.  Their enthusiasm was catching, their spirits were very humble and sincere, and they apparently have a good foundation of the missionary lessons with necessary approaches to those who would offer questions.

The Temple workers present enjoyed the meeting very much and would like to attend another one in the future.  Most Temple workers had no idea of the training these young people are receiving and thus came away with a new appreciation of the youth of this area.

Sincerely,

President

The Mountain of the Lord’s House

Something that has always bothered me about, you know, in the scripture where it says he was taken to the top of a high mountain and shown everything from the beginning to the end.  You know that reference.  I always wondered how it was possible, even in the Spirit, to see every man, woman and child through all ages of time.  Well . . .

I was reading in the book by Joseph Field McConkie, in Chapter 9 it starts –

“Mountains are the meeting place between heaven and earth.”

I get a little teary when I think of it but this morning Russell and I stood in front of the entrance to the temple and I put my arm around his shoulders and said, “Please read it to me.”  He said, House of the Lord – Holiness to the Lord – Arizona Temple.

Then I said, suppose you were God and you had this Prophet called Moses and you wanted to teach him about the mysteries.  What would you do?

Before he could answer, you know he is so quiet and reserved, I said, “Perhaps you’d take him to a place where heaven and earth meet and there instruct him.”

“Man’s spirit instinctively responds to the solitude and grandeur of these temples of nature.  Here it is that prophets and righteous men form time immemorial have gone to meet their God, and here it is that many of earth’s most singular events have taken place.  So sacred is the mountain summit that our temples have come to be known as the mountain of the Lord’s house.  As there are sacred moments, so there are sacred places—places, like men, chosen and ordained to stand above the rest and point the way to god.”  (more of McConkie)

All of you have your endowments…gifts of knowledge obtained in the Mountain of the Lord’s House…and there you have seen the face of God and his Son and have been instructed as to all the mysteries of God!

Isn’t that an interesting thought?  That our Arizona Temple has everything within its walls that Moses was shown, and other prophets as well!  Remember, Moses was instructed to remove his shoes, for the place upon which he stood, he was told, was “holy ground” as we remove our shoes and clothes and put on clean, white garments in the temple.

“Isaiah prophesied that Israel of the last days would journey from the ends of the earth that they might worship in the mountain of the Lord’s house and there be taught in the ways of the God of their fathers.  Sinai was a sacred place, a place set apart, a place for the children of Israel to meet their God and make covenants with Him.  Sinai was Israel’s first temple.  There Moses taught them about the priesthood and sought to sanctify them that they might enter the present of the Lord.”  (More McConkie)

You all know that I go to the temple for inspiration and revelation and I was so gratified to read, “Nephi records that when the Lord sought to reveal to him the manner in which he should build the ship that was to bring his family to the Americas, he first heard the voice of the Lord say to him, ‘Arise, and get thee into the mountain.’” (1 Nephi 17:7)

Perhaps some of you are aware that the word Utah is a Ute Indian word meaning “tops of the mountains.”  Thus, the “mountain of the Lord’s house” had been built as designated in the “tops of the mountains,” or “Utah.”

I hope you have received greater enlightenment, as I have.  I will look at our beautiful temple in a different light and feel even more reverent while therein.

There are going to be changes in the Program, you may want to be aware of.  We have decided to allow the sisters to be Guides at 18 years of age and work until 19 or 19 ½ and then transfer to a weekend Zone or Districts and work with the full time Sisters, etc.  We believe that this will help more go on missions.

Also, we will be simplifying the reports and changing the SNTM so that it is less structured and more fun than it has been recently.  The Advisors [former Missionary Presidents who volunteer to work on each of the nights of the week) will be given more responsibility on their nights.

The SNTM will include some time for the Ammonites to get together in smaller groups for instruction and answering any questions.

Brethren, I feel impressed that we are not preparing enough young men and women well enough, and if we indeed are a pilot program for the rest of the Church, then we need to focus on doing these things.  I have never been as interested in baptisms as I have been in helping each of you to grow.    I don’t have all the knowledge or wisdom I need, so I hope you will pray for the continued success of the Program and each of us Directors.

David has already written somewhat to me regarding humility and becoming more Christ like.  Share with us some of the things that you are learning so that we may be uplifted and strengthened.

Please, pray for those you leave behind in the Program.  I was just talking to Russell in the temple yesterday and he and I agreed this week has been the worst week of our lives for depression.  The Devil would have us fall if he could.

We love each of you.  The rule is, if you write to me I will make sure that it gets out to all of you in the GUIDElines.

See Ya in Two!  Brotherly,

Bro. P.

P.S.  I have enclosed a DRAFT copy of the new Weekly Report.  I am not sure we need to have a place on it for referrals, baptisms, etc.  What we really want to know are those five things.  Brian and Aaron sent their papers in yesterday.  Bob is going to Hong Kong!  Darren to Florida!

Our next post is entitled Spring in the Gardens and transports us to the gardens as we prepare for Easter.  We begin to receive letters from the MTC!