February 2023 Ministering Newsletter
February 2023 Ministering Newsletter
There are a couple of Holidays in February – both celebrated in very different ways. There’s Valentine’s Day – which, although it doesn’t give a day off, is celebrated by millions of those seeking love. The other, an official national holiday, is President’s day. From the website https://teambuilding.com/blog/presidents-day-quotes here are some presidential quotes.
Presidential quotes on responsibility
“Ninety-nine percent of failures come from people who make excuses.” ― George Washington
“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” ― Barack Obama
“You are not here merely to make a living. You are here in order to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement. You are here to enrich the world, and you impoverish yourself if you forget the errand.” ― Woodrow Wilson
“Use power to help people. For we are given power not to advance our own purposes nor to make a great show in the world, nor a name. There is but one just use of power and it is to serve people.” ― George W. Bush
“It is easier to do a job right than to explain why you didn’t.” ― Martin Van Buren
“Times change, and we change with them.” ― William Henry Harrison
“Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.” ―John Quincy Adams
“You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.” ― Abraham Lincoln
“No person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave.” ― Calvin Coolidge
“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.” ― Theodore Roosevelt
“If I am shot at, I want no man to be in the way of the bullet.” ― Andrew Johnson
Quotes about courage from presidents
“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” ― Franklin D. Roosevelt
“The finest steel has to go through the hottest fire.” ― Richard M. Nixon
“Failure at some point in your life is inevitable, but giving up is unforgivable.” ―Joe Biden
“What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight; it’s the size of the fight in the dog.” ― Dwight D. Eisenhower
“The harder the conflict, the greater the triumph.” – George Washington
“In every battle there comes a time when both sides consider themselves beaten, then he who continues the attack wins.” ―Gen. Ulysses S. Grant
“In the time of darkest defeat, victory may be nearest.” ― William McKinley
“A man is not finished when he is defeated. He is finished when he quits.” ―Richard M. Nixon
“You can do what you have to do, and sometimes you can do it even better than you think you can.” ― Jimmy Carter
“A brave man is a man who dares to look the Devil in the face and tell him he is a Devil.” ― James A. Garfield.
“The bold enterprises are the successful ones. Take counsel of hopes rather than of fears to win in this business.” ― Rutherford B. Hayes
“If you take no risks, you will suffer no defeats. But if you take no risks, you win no victories.” ― Richard M. Nixon
“Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not: the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.” ―Calvin Coolidge
“When you reach the end of your rope, tie a knot in it and hang on.” ― Franklin D Roosevelt Note– this quote is also thought to have been originally written by Thomas Jefferson, and is often misattributed to other presidents like Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt.
Presidential quotes on integrity
“Honesty is the first chapter of the book wisdom.” ― Thomas Jefferson
“Any man worth his salt will stick up for what he believes right, but it takes a slightly better man to acknowledge instantly and without reservation that he is in error.” ― Andrew Jackson
“The truth will set you free, but first it will make you miserable.” ― James A. Garfield
“Be sure you put your feet in the right place, then stand firm.” ― Abraham Lincoln
“It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” ― Harry S Truman
“Honor lies in honest toil.” ― Grover Cleveland
“If you’re walking down the right path and you’re willing to keep walking, eventually you’ll make progress.” ― Barack Obama
“An honorable defeat is better than a dishonorable victory.” ― Millard Fillmore
“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” ― Abraham Lincoln
“I’ll never tell a lie. I’ll never make a misleading statement. I’ll never betray the confidence that any of you had in me. And I’ll never avoid a controversial issue.” ― Jimmy Carter
“The supreme quality for leadership is unquestionably integrity. Without it, no real success is possible.” ― Dwight D Eisenhower
President quotes on leadership
“The ear of the leader must ring with the voices of the people.” ―Woodrow Wilson
“Motivation is the art of getting people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it.” ―Dwight D. Eisenhower
“Yesterday is not ours to recover, but tomorrow is ours to win or lose.” ― Lyndon B. Johnson
“In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.” ― Dwight D. Eisenhower
“The test of leadership is not to put greatness into humanity, but to elicit it, for the greatness is already there.” ― James Buchanan
“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, then you are a leader.” ― John Quincy Adams
“The circulation of confidence is better than the circulation of money.” ―James Madison
“Every expert was once a beginner.” ― Rutherford B. Hayes
“Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction.” ― John F. Kennedy
“Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care.” ―Theodore Roosevelt
“A little flattery will support a man through great fatigue.” ― James Monroe
“I not only use all the brains that I have, but all that I can borrow.” ― Woodrow Wilson
“Those who have wrought great changes in the world never succeeded by gaining over chiefs; but always by exciting the multitude. The first is the resource of intrigue and produces only secondary results, the second is the resort of genius and transforms the universe.” ―Martin Van Buren
“Don’t expect to build up the weak by pulling down the strong.” ―Calvin Coolidge
“There are no great limits to growth because there are no limits of human intelligence, imagination, and wonder.” ―Ronald Reagan
Conclusion
US presidents lead the nation through crises, and business leaders can learn a lot from their advice. Presidential quotes inspire managers to persist with hardships, empathize with employees, act with integrity, and achieve great ends. By drawing on past presidents’ wisdom, industry leaders can harness greatness within themselves and their teams.
While we celebrate our Presidents, both past and present, we need to remember our responsibilities. In our democracy, the citizens also have a great responsibility. In Mosiah 29, King Mosiah is telling his people many of the reasons that they should not have kings. Besides the problems created by unrighteous kings he also spoke of accountability.
34 And he told them that these things ought not to be; but that the burden should come upon all the people, that every man might bear his part.
Fortunately the people agreed with him
38 Therefore they relinquished their desires for a king, and became exceedingly anxious that every man should have an equal chance throughout all the land; yea, and every man expressed a willingness to answer for his own sins.
He not only spoke of the safeguard of rule by common consent, he also spoke of the precautions that come with it.
27 And aif the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you; yea, then is the time he will visit you with great destruction even as he has hitherto visited this land.
. We need to participate in our civil government – both locally and nationally. “In the face of impossible odds, people who love this country can change it.”― Barack Obama Part of our responsibility is to vote – responsibly and being well informed. Another part, depending on our abilities and constraints, is to run for offices. We have at least a couple of people in our Stake who have done this – and we’re very proud of them. Even when we ourselves don’t run, we can support those who run. Another way to support the election process is to become a judge at voting booths. Again, we have those in our stake who have done this – and we thank them for this. There are other ways we can be good citizens. We can help in the PTA in our children’s schools. We can also volunteer in schools and other organizations. We can also perform our duty by accepting Jury Duty. There is so much that we can do that it can be overwhelming at time. How, like it says in Mosiah 4:27 “And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be done in order.” But each little step we take in the right directions (especially if we step together) we can go far in the right direction.
As for the other holiday, Valentine’s Day, sometimes it’s good to have a special day to remember how important love is in our lives. Here a suggestion for “14 (+1) Cheap Valentine’s Day Date Ideas” By Ramsey Solutions https://www.ramseysolutions.com/budgeting/five-cheap-date-ideas-for-valentines-day
Brief ideas (more detail in the actual website). Any notes under the suggestion are thoughts that I have had.
1. Enjoy Dinner and a Movie
There are ways to keep it cheap – and fun. One way is to shape food in the shape of a heart. This could include meat loaf. You could also cut fruits (i.e. apple and pineapple slices) into the shape of hearts. This can also be done to cheese slices and vegetables (i.e. thin carrot slices and potato (regular or sweet) slices to be fried). Radishes can also be made into rosebuds.
There are quite a few romantic movies that can be watched on Youtube – many of them Hallmark movies. You can also find some very interesting movies to watch for free in YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=lds+movies+full+legnth+love). Also, keeping the theme of Christian Love going on Valentine’s Day, there are plenty of free videos for this (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=lds+scripture+videos+love)
2. Hit the Open Road
3. Have a Game Night
This can be done with both family and friends. It can be done in a relaxed way – or it can be ramped up with prizes and trophies (the smaller the better). There can even be cheerleaders and/or scorekeepers – to those who don’t like playing games.
4. Visit the Museum
I found the following links to free and affordable museums: https://www.tripsavvy.com/salt-lake-citys-free-museums-2931531 and https://vacationidea.com/utah/best-free-things-to-do-in-salt-lake-city.html Some of these activities lend themselves to helping any younger children in the family appreciate the rich heritage we have in the Church. It can also be a good missionary opportunity for friends, neighbors and family members who would like to know more about our Church’s past.
5. Take a Hike
Since, in the winter I am wearing thermal underwear and, whenever I can, am hugging my heating pad, I’m not much for venturing out in the cold! However, I did find a website that had some hikes in Salt Lake County that THEY recommended - https://www.theoutbound.com/conor-barry/top-5-winter-hikes-near-salt-lake-city
6. Stroll a Garden Nursery
I did a search of garden nurseries in the Salt Lake Valley and came up with this list (some are a little further). I have just included the names, but the rest of the details are at https://www.google.com/search?tbs=lf:1,lf_ui:10&tbm=lcl&sxsrf=AJOqlzUyfaZI07dhyLlGeCRnMaCpEsqjFg:1674154331018&q=nursery+gardens+open+in+february+in+salt+lake+county&rflfq=1&num=10&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi39cvxptT8AhXEIn0KHYb5DTcQjGp6BAgXEAI&biw=1379&bih=706&dpr=2#rlfi=hd:;si:,41.17527480838914,-113.04700425507811;mv:[[41.27856072782628,-110.49268296601561],[40.13135842962406,-113.12665513398436],null,[40.70742980421455,-111.80966904999998],9
Millcreek Gardens Western Garden Centers Marvin's Gardens
Lowe's Garden Center Quality Flowers & Plants Cactus & Tropicals
Western Gardens West Valley Winchester Gardens Glover Nursery
Deseret Nursery Perennial Farm Homestead Nurser Noles Nursery
Forty Second Street Greenhouse Thyme and Place Sun River Gardens
J&J Nursery and Garden Center Park City Gardens Red Butte Garden
Garden Center @ The Home Depot
7. Go to the Farmer’s Market
When I first saw this I thought it was impossible to go to a Farmer’s Market in Salt Lake in February. However, I have found that we do have on Farmer’s Market in Salt Lake. It is the Winter Market in Gateway. It’s being held - Saturdays - November 12 - April 15 - 10 am - 2 pm. For more information go to the website: https://slcfarmersmarket.org/winter-farmers-market
8. Cook Dinner Together
This can either be as a couple (with children spending time with Grandparents, Aunts/Uncles, a couple you share babysitting duties with) a special all. Inclusive family dinner, or a double date with some friends.
9. Take a Trip Down Memory Lane
In ‘Family Search’ there are some family activities – Where Am I From, Surname Origins, All About Me, Compare-a-Face, Famous Relatives, Record a Story, Picture My Heritage and In-Home-Activities..
10. Go on a Picnic
11. Grab Coffee (Hot Chocolate) Together
12. Go Stargazing
13. Visit an Arcade
Even when we have video games at home, we don’t always play them together (especially with parents and children). Finding one or more that everyone would be interested in and competing (in a friendly way) could be fun. It could even include small prizes or certificates. This might be a fun time to include neighbors in a fun Valentine’s Day get together.
14. Do a Thrift Store Challenge
+1 This would be especially fun as a family activity. Find/create Valentines (and little treats) to share with those who are elderly, shut in, lonely, inactive or that you are inspired to give to. While doing this, there are a few Valentines songs or hymns/childrens hymns about love that are familiar enough to sing (especially if you have the words printed out) as you go (like Christmas Caroling for Valentine’s Day)
And remember—quality time doesn’t cost a dime. If money’s tight, you can’t go wrong with a sincere love letter and one-on-one time spent with each other. Whichever Valentine’s Day date idea you end up going with, just make sure you budget for it first. Let our free budgeting app, EveryDollar, help you stay on track and keep you from being tempted to go overboard this Valentine’s Day.
Celebrate Valentine’s Day with the Temple
https://www.ldsdaily.com/home-and-family/celebrate-valentines-day-with-the-temple/
Lauren Kutschke February 12, 2016 Home & Family
Every year on February 14th, people are searching for love. They desire to be loved and admired. As a member of the LDS church, one of the best places to feel that love is within the temple, and there really is no better place to feel such love encompass you. When you spend time with light, you grow to love it and look for it in others. The temple is the brightest place that we can be, and truly is the best way that you can celebrate any occasion, including Valentine’s Day. Here are four reasons how Valentine’s Day can be celebrated with the temple.
Temple on Valentine's Day
Be filled with love. Inside the beautiful walls of the temple, you can feel the love that God has for you and for those around you. This year, Valentine’s day falls on a Sunday. Take that time to search the scriptures for the love that Jesus Christ exemplified, and make it a goal to go to the temple the week after Valentine’s Day.
Remember to devote yourself.
Valentine’s Day is a day of devotion between people, but we can use the beauty of this tender day to remind us to devote ourselves to God. Heavenly Father admires us and supports us at every turn. If we choose to devote ourselves to Him, we will feel that support and will want to devote ourselves more to Him and even devote ourselves more to those around us.
Inspire beauty and light.
For some, the world can be a place filled with hardship and sorrow–events that are downright ugly and represent sadness. Within those dreary days, and even on our brightest days, the temple contains beauty that can inspire. We can use it to feel beautiful ourselves, and also to see the beauty in others.
Find peace.
February 14th can often be a little bit or extremely stressful. You have either the stress of finding something to give a loved one or the stress of just finding someone you can love. Usually, there are plans to be made and filled, food to make, and people that are in need of some heartfelt actions. It can all be a little bit overwhelming. That’s why you should try to go to the temple this week. It’s a new year, Valentine’s Day is upon us, and there are lots of things that can easily distract you. In the temple, you can focus, and be at rest while you feel the peace and assurance of knowing that you are in a place you can be close to God.
As President Boyd K. Packer described, “Sometimes our minds are so beset with problems, and there are so many things clamoring for attention at once that we just cannot think clearly and see clearly. At the temple the dust of distraction seems to settle out, the fog and the haze seem to lift, and we can ‘see’ things that we were not able to see before and find a way through our troubles that we had not previously known.”
From LDS Daily https://www.ldsdaily.com/home-and-family/10-easy-ways-to-minister-this-valentines-day/ by Aleah Ingram February 10, 2020 Home & Family
Valentine’s Day is coming up and it’s a great opportunity to share some love with your ministering brothers and sisters. Here are 10 ideas of how you can minister with more heart at this special time of year. I have just included the suggestions here – to find the details, click onto the website.
1. Pray to feel a portion of God’s love for your ministering friend.
2. Ask them what their love language is.
3. Text them a quote or scripture about God’s love.
4. Mail them a Valentine’s Day card.
5. Create a list of why you love or appreciate your ministering friends.
6. Make or purchase a treat & drop it off.
7. Send them some flowers.
8. “Heart Attack” their door.
9. Take them out for dinner.
10. Offer to help so they can go out.
The most important kind of love is the Love that our Heavenly Father (and Jesus ) have for us and the type of Love that we should have for them. In William Shakespeare’s 116th Sonnet he talks about this type of love:
“Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove: O no! it is an ever-fixed mark That looks on tempests and is never shaken.”
We need to appreciate and show gratitude for this type of love given to us and dedicate ourselves to better give this type of love.
I have mentioned that I was planning on sharing my testimony with you guys – I guess in a more formal way than other parts of these newsletters. Right here, I would like to bear my testimony of the Charity – both the true love of Christ that He gives to us and that love that we offer Him. I feel it all the time an too many ways to count. He gives it to me even (maybe especially) when I have a hard time giving it to myself. This is true not just with me – but with all of us! I also have a testimony of the need (commandment) for us to give this Christlike love to others. I know how much of a blessing this can be when share God’s love with those around us. I pray that I can do better in feeling and sharing God’s love. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen
* Winter Market Saturdays - November 12 - April 15 - 10 am - 2 pm The Gateway @ 16 North Rio Grande Street
CLOSED February 18 and March 11th from website https://slcfarmersmarket.org/winter-farmers-market
* As a special treat, your children can create a special treat for whoever they are with. This can make it a special occasion of your children and whoever’s watching them.
* I’m sure if there is a lot of interest in getting together to learn how to better do these activities special instructions can be arranged.
* Love is an Open Door (from Frozen) You’ve got a friend in me (from Toy Story) Let it Be (Beatles)
* Love One Another, Love at Home, Our Saviors Love, I’ll Walk with You, Jesus said Love Everyone, etc.
* Ramsey Solutions has been committed to helping people regain control of their money, build wealth, grow their leadership skills, and enhance their lives through personal development since 1992. Millions of people have used our financial advice through 22 books (including 12 national bestsellers) published by Ramsey Press, as well as two syndicated radio shows and 10 podcasts, which have over 17 million weekly listeners.
* Lauren Kutschke is studying Journalism at Brigham Young University and considers the East Coast home. She has a passion for writing, photography, skiing, hiking, and traveling. She enjoys studying German and is married to her best friend.
* Aleah Ingram. Aleah is a graduate of Southern Virginia University, where she studied English, Creative Writing, and Dance. She now works full time as a marketing and product manager, writer, and editor. Aleah served a mission in California and loves baking, Lang Leav poetry, Gaynor Minden pointe shoes, and Bollywood movies.
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