Our Special Sunday

Today is my sweetheart’s 70th birthday. That surely doesn’t seem as old as I used to think it did, even tho’ it still sounds old. I can’t believe that in just six years I will be there too. He’s had a good day.

Our week was a pretty typical week. Friday, Saturday and Sunday have been very special, however. Friday evening we had the missionaries here for supper. I admitted to my husband, Karl that I do it not only because I enjoy having them but also because it gives him an excuse to help me clean up the house and make it presentable every once in a while. Elder Arellano is from Peru and Elder McCarreher is from Pennsylvania. They were hearty eaters which we enjoyed. We had Hawaiian haystacks with rolls. And mincemeat pie for dessert. I tho’t I had taken cherry pie out of the freezer to bake. When Karl took it out of the oven for me, I tho’t my goodness that cherry pie is pale, they must have forgotten to put the food coloring into the pie cherries. When I found out it was mincemeat, I was kind of concerned because I think I know more people who don’t like mincemeat than do. But they both liked it and seemed to enjoy it. Elder Arellano had two pieces even. They were only here a little over an hour but it was a good hour.

Saturday at the FHC we had a genealogy conference with Brother Paul Smart from SLC as the presentor. He was really big on Indexing. Almost every thing he showed us he would say that was possible because of Indexing or that would be so much easier if they had indexed it. He was trying to recruit as many of us as possible for Indexing. I think I am almost converted. I was going to talk to our ward FH consultants today but didn’t get a chance too. I had Karl drop me off at the church on his way home so I could attend the luncheon and RS General Broadcast. I was a little late but got there in plenty of time to eat. The broadcast was wonderful. I really enjoyed the music too. Music can make me very emotional. The way I could feel the spirit and with the beautiful music, I wasn’t able to talk for a little while afterwards. It makes me really look forward to next weekend for General Conference.

We had a very special day today. There was a new man on the stand with the bishopric when we got there. When Bishop John started to conduct he said, “Altho’ I’m usually nervous doing this today I am more nervous. Sister Mickelson told me to just take a deep breath and carry on.” He then announced that Elder Lynn and Sister Jeanine Mickelson of the First Quorum of Seventy were here in Idaho Falls and chose our ward to attend. What a neat experience having them there with us. A new couple in our ward, Julianna and Kevin Robinson (no relation that we can ascertain) spoke to us. Then Elder Mickelson spoke to us. He said that it was a real treat to be here with us and to feel the Spirit so strongly. He said it was a real treat singing the hymns in English because they are assigned to Mexico City in the Area Presidency there. I guess they are home for conference and since they are originally from IF they came home to see family. He talked about our sacrament hymn We Sing All Hail to Jesus Name. He told of the last feast of the Passover and how the Savior introduced the sacrament. Elder Mickelson has such a neat spirit about him. Sister Mickelson was sitting directly behind me and I turned around and met her after the meeting concluded. She shook my hand and said, “I’m so happy to meet you, Sister Robinson.” That really thrilled me to have her call me by name. I then went up and shook hands with Elder Mickelson. He also called me by name. Of course I had my name tag on so that helped.

They were in Sunday School with us too. I sat beside Sister Mickelson there. The last five to seven minutes of class Elder Mickelson asked Brother Mullins if it was okay if he asked a few questions. Of course Brother Mullins turned the time over to him. He first commented that there were two types of death. He then asked what physical death was and what spiritual death was. We talked about them for awhile. He asked me, calling me by name, and I can’t remember the exact question but the answer I gave was, “Because Jesus Christ was resurrected every person who ever lived will also be resurrected. He then went onto explain justification, the world’s definition and also the Lord’s or Paul’s definition. He is a great teacher! We were struggling with understanding not sanctification but justification by the Lord, Jesus Christ. What I got out of it was sanctification and justification by the Lord, Jesus Christ are one and the same. We went a little over but the spirit was sooo strong.

We then went into the cultural hall for our joint meeting with the priesthood and relief society. The song we were going to use for the opening song Lord I Would Follow Thee they used for a closing song in sacrament meeting. Sooo we sang # 130 Be Thou Humble. It is true that I have played it before but it has been long enough ago that I can’t remember when. But I had practiced almost every day last week and the Lord blessed me and I was able to play without many mistakes if any. I am very grateful for that. Bishop John talked about a special ward service project that he would need 40 couples for on October 13. He wants 20 couples from 8-12 and another 20 couples from 1-5. It sounds like they are doing an “extreme makeover” for a house of someone in our ward. He said he couldn’t tell us too much yet because the Lord just woke him up at 2:30 just this morning told him what he was to do. I was sitting there thinking, “we are committed to the FHC on Saturdays, which is more important. When I talked to him afterwards and told him that, he said, “And that is exactly where you are supposed to be on that Saturday. Thanks for telling me.” I felt much better. I wanted to help with the ward service project but couldn’t see how we could. Bishop John then talked on the Nine B’s that President Hinckley wrote about. It was a very good meeting.

After Bishop got thro’ speaking he asked Elder Mickelson so speak again. He spoke for only a few minutes but told of his love of the Prophet and how wonderful it was to work with him. He said we are all anxiously awaiting as you are to find out who the new apostle will be and who the new counselor in the General Presidency will be. He said, “we all love the sense of humor of President Hinckley.” Then he told us how his daughters and daughters-in-law take over his supper to him every night, that he is so busy that he would probably forget to eat. He said that this one night one of them took dinner over to him and asked him if he liked spinach. He said that he did not. His daughter told him that he should eat it anyway that it was full of iron and would be good for him. He replied, “If I wanted iron, I’d eat a horseshoe!” He got a big chuckle out of that. He bore a strong testimony of President Gordon B. Hinckley being the true prophet of God on the earth at this time. My heart burned within me as he was telling us this. After I played the postlude music, I shook hands with him and Sister Mickelson again. She didn’t shake my hand but gave me a hug and said, “Sister Robinson it was such a pleasure to meet you.” I think I told her the same thing (using her name of courseJ ). It really thrilled me that she used my name. As I was thinking about it later, and wondering why it meant so much to me my tho’ts were: it made me feel as if she really knew me even tho’ we had just met for the first time….I imagine it will be much the same way when I meet the Lord again, that He will call me by name and He will know who I am and what I have done in this life.

Hearing and being there with Elder Mickelson really strengthened my testimony and made me feel so close to the spirit. I’m really looking forward next week to the spiritual feast we can experience while watching General Conference.

It was a very wonderful and sobering experience.