When I compare myself to others, my life seems small. When I look at my life by the Lord’s measure, I no longer feel that way.
As one who has made a covenant with God, you are part of the house of Israel. You have been gathered, and you are a gatherer. The centuries-long epic story of the covenant people is building to its climax, and you are a key player.
Now is the time when “Jesus will say to all Israel, ‘Come home.’”This is the message of the gatherers: Come home to the covenant. Come home to Zion. Come home to Jesus Christ, the Holy One of Israel, and He will bring you home to God, your Father.
-July 2026 Come Follow Me Manual chapter, “Jesus will say to all Israel, Come Home.”
President Russell M. Nelson has called this gathering “the most important thing taking place on earth today. Nothing else compares in magnitude, nothing else compares in importance, nothing else compares in majesty. And if you choose to, if you want to, you can be a big part of it.”
“Anytime you do anything that helps anyone—on either side of the veil—take a step toward making covenants with God and receiving their essential baptismal and temple ordinances, you are helping to gather Israel. It is as simple as that.”
Mark’s photo of the Northern Lights from Bornholm, Denmark
Rejection is one of the greatest teachers in life. Mark is experiencing it as a missionary, and you can probably recall a time when you’ve been rejected. I think of a small rejection I faced just last week and ouch, it still hurts.
Rejection makes us see that we aren’t going to be chosen every time; we can’t all be the favorite; the gifts we prepare won’t always be appreciated; and sometimes, the precious things we share with people will be ignored.
Let’s remember that poor reception from others can’t obliterate our efforts. We haven’t failed if we have loved, sacrificed, and shown the courage to share. And if we are unable to accomplish the big things we hoped, let’s remember that our identity and our worth in God’s eyes have never been a matter of popularity, outward measures, or appearance.
…for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.
1 Samuel 16:7
What can we do when we experience rejection? It’s tempting to get discouraged, feel like a victim, or become angry. But Jesus knows a lot about rejection, and he met it with love and truth, whatever the personal cost.
Today, I am going to keep facing the winds of possible rejection and keep loving, serving, and sharing. I also take comfort that in some things, such as temple work, we see things as they really are:
There is value in giving, even if we don’t see an immediate result.
I am taking a break from updating my blog during the next few weeks. Weddings call forth many private emotions and so many errands. You can picture me in the aisles of Hobby Lobby on (another) “last trip for the wedding,” running errands, facilitating a big luncheon for family and friends, and preparing church lessons, etc. It’s a time to celebrate Tim and Queenie and to cherish the covenants of the temple sealing. While I am busy, I know that no detail of the wedding matters more than those few minutes in the temple being sealed as husband and wife for eternity.
Tim and Queenie are preparing a display of 4 generations of wedding/young couple photos for their reception. These are Richard’s grandparents. The first picture is new to me. Until this month, I had never seen a picture of the Rosses when they were young, and I see the features of both couples in their descendants. It makes me feel sentimental as I reflect on the bright hopes of young couples engaged to be married.
I think we should all collect family stories, share them, display old family pictures, and do some temple work.♥️ Everyone needs this kind of connection and belonging. In each family tree there is someone who will inspire you.
I attended this young lady’s temple endowment this week and it was one of the biggest honors of my life to be included.
I remember my grandmother using the same word, “honored,” as she accompanied me for my endowment. I noted this, but didn’t understand why she would say it until I learned the significance of temple covenants for myself.
I think my grandmother understood that she was witnessing the sacred acts that would bring Heavenly Father closer to me and allow the Atonement of Jesus Christ to do its work in me…enabling me to overcome anything.
What an honor it is to witness the stunning grace of God for a loved one.
And we ask thee, Holy Father, that thy servants may go forth from this house armed with thy power, and that thy name may be upon them, and thy glory be round about them, and thine angels have charge over them;
Daniel Spencer Jr was the first ancestor in my family to join the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and his descendants can be found in many places. You can read about him here. He was a missionary, a mayor of Nauvoo, and a pioneer. During the last decades of his life he served as a stake president in Salt Lake City. One of my favorite facts about Daniel Spencer is that he was a missionary in England and visited many European countries, including Denmark, during this mission. So, Mark is following this ancestor’s path.
George Sterling Spencer was Daniel Spencer’s grandson. He built the original cabin on the land we still visit each summer which we call the Weber. Most of George Sterling Spencer’s children are listed below.
This week, Mark told me that he and his third cousin in the Spencer line, a fellow missionary, have been asked to do an Easter musical number together in Denmark. They are the great-great grandsons of the two brothers I have circled. The missionary’s first name? Spencer. 😄
Family history is really interesting when you begin to connect the dots from the past to the good things happening now.
This week while sorting through boxes, I discovered these kid quotes I scribbled down during the first few months of 2009. Mark was 2, Tim was 6, and Daniel was 9. I don’t know if they are entertaining to anyone else, but they still make me laugh. 😃
1/09:”My legs love to fight,” Mark admits as we try to pull him away from Timothy.
1/09: “Get your fingers off!” Mark screams as we try to help him steer the mini jeep.
1/09: To Mom, sitting at the school table, “Hey, I was sitting in that chair. Can you sit on my lap?” -Mark
1/30/09: “This is my room where I fight and build things and take naps and get changes.” -Mark
1/09: “It’s not really comfortable to play computer games before your first jobs are done.” -Timothy, discussing his daily moral dilemma.
2/09: Mark: “We need to go to Grandma’s house.”
Mom: “Which grandma?”
Mark: “The one with all the Legos and the sewing and the snacks and the little red cups!”
2/18/09: On the way to church on a cold February morning, Daniel says, “We wouldn’t want to send Cupid out in this weather. It would be hard to shoot an arrow and make anyone fall in love.”
2/20/09: Daniel, after viewing a stern photo of his ancestor, Daniel Spencer, said, “If great-grandpa Spencer were a dinosaur and they found a fossil of his skeleton, they would have a hard time knowing what he was really like because he would look pretty vicious. Thank goodness we have family history because he was really a good guy.”
3/1/09: Tim, on the carpet, “I’m making a snow angel. It’s not working.”
3/4/09: “When I wake up, I want to be in a jet. A red jet.” -Mark
3/5/09: Mark, handling a toy cement mixer, asks what it is called.
Mom: “It’s a cement mixer. It mixes cement.”
Mark: “And diapers. It mixes diapers.”
Mom: “How did you come up with that?”
Mark: “It’s just my observation.”
Mark, hearing Mom tell Dad about his “observation” quote asks, “Am I significant?”
3/6/09: Mark, displaying two of his Lightning McQueen cars, tells Paige, “These ones are sweet. But you don’t eat them.”
3/9/09: Mark, looking at the messy table after dinner, exclaims, “There are chili dots everywhere!”
3/10/09: Mark asks, “Are you the singing mommy?”
3/10/09: Taking in hand his electric toothbrush, Mark exclaims, “Start. Your. Engines!” and begins to brush.
3/21/09: Daniel, after spilling a little lemonade, remarks in a frustrated voice, “I just wish gravity wasn’t so strong. I mean, I’m grateful we’re not just floating around (although that would be fun sometimes) but I wish it wasn’t so easy to spill.
3/22/09: Discussing possible musical selections the kids can do for an upcoming sacrament meeting,
Mom: “Paige can play piano and Daniel and Timothy can sing.”
