Random Things...

I didn't write the following. It was posted by Alex Boye; singer, member of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and member of "I'm a Mormon!" on mormon.org. I just happened to see it while checking out the website. Members are encouraged to use this site to proclaim their own membership. It's way cool!

Cellphone vs Scriptures

I wonder what would happen if we treated our scriptures like we treat our cell phones? What if we carried them around in our purses or our pockets?

What if we turned back to go get them if we forgot them?

What if we flipped through them several times a day?

What if we spent an hour or more using them every day?

What if we used them to receive messages?

What if we treated them like we couldn't live without them?

What if we gave them to other kids as gifts?

What if we used them as we traveled?

What if we used them in case of emergency?

This is something to make you go..."Uh, Dude. Where are my scriptures?"

Unlike our cell phones:

One Plan DOES fit all.

Unlimited usage. No roaming charges.

You can always get reception.

You can use it in the mountains and in the tunnel.

It's free with no hidden costs.

AND you don't ever have to worry about your scriptures being disconnected because Christ has already paid the bill!

This week has been a high for us...well I know it was for me and I'm pretty sure it was for Elder Z.

This week it was our total privilege and blessing to take a young man to the mall to shop for new church clothes. He was going to be baptised and we thought how great it would be if he could show up in something more that his jeans shorts and a t-shirt. He is a young, almost completely blind twenty-one year old who has "seen" the light of the Gospel and taken hold. He is of very meager means and I know the Lord accepts his attendance in whatever he has to wear...but man, did he light up the room when he completed his baptism and came back into the room fully decked out in his new threads! To make this story more joyful, he found the Gospel by supporting his sister and HER baptism. He said he felt something right while he was sitting there for her. He took the lessons and gave up smoking instantly! AND in the words of Paul Harvey's "rest of the story"...HIS sister was introduced to the Gospel by HER friend who was recently baptised and SHE had removed all her piercings so she could take full advantage of the Atonement and put her old life behind her! It is TRUTH that caused these young people to give up their former lives to partake of the gifts of the Gospel. They are happy and moving forward in their new lives...

This is what is happening here in Jacksonville, North Carolina week after week and we're thrilled to be even a small part of it. We love what we do and feel it such a blessing to be at this place, at this time, with these people. Our testimonies grow and grow with each new day, with each reading of the Book of Mormon and we invite you, if you are not already doing so, to read the BOM with your families. Don't put it off like we did for so many years. It's not that we didn't try to get into the habit, it's just that we let life interfere.

We hope that our family will continue to try and lift each other up rather than tear each other down. As we enter into the full swing of the holidays we want to tell each member of our family that we love them and appreciate the support and prayers they extend in our behalf. And about gifts at Christmas...well, would you like to see the clothes that you helped to buy by giving up the gifts you would have received?

Much love,

Elder and Sister Zollinger

I'll Begin Again!

This was so profound. These are the lyrics to a song from the musical "Scrooge". It's after he repents and begins a new life. A perfect example of what the atonement is all about. You can hear the song on iTunes. This version is by the late, great Sammy Davis Jr. I did take the liberty to add one word. It was, I feel, needed!

I'll begin again
I will build my life
I will live to know
That I fulfilled my life
I'll begin today
Throw away the past
And the future I build
Will be something that will last

I will take the time
I have left to live
And I'll give it all
That I have left to give
I will live my days
For my fellow men
And I'll live in praise
Of that moment when
I was able to begin again

I'll begin again
I will change my fate
I will show the world
That it is not too late
I will never stop
While I still have time
'Till I stand at the top
Of the mountain I must climb

I will start anew
I will make amends
And I'll make quite certain
That my story ends
On a note of hope
On a strong amen
And I'll thank the world (Lord)
And remember when
I was able to begin again

Welcome, Welcome Sabbath Morning

SUNDAY! It is the busiest day of the week, naps are non-existent, we travel hither and yon, we are tired when we get home AND it is without a doubt the best day of the week! We love what we do so that definitely helps. It's the day that most visibly reflects what this mission is all about. It's about people, more specifically, young Marines. It's about families, some whose spouses have been deployed and some whose families find themselves in the middle of military life. It is always, ALWAYS about keeping the membership strong in the Gospel and in many cases lately, bringing some into the Gospel. The work is never ending and always exciting. Let me tell you about Audra and Alex.

Alexandra was the first in the group to join the Church. She did not waiver in her belief and when she made the commitment to join, she removed all of her piercings to include brow, lip and who knows what else, we weren't here at the time. She was so excited that she shared the message with her friend, Audra, and she joined. Then THEY shared the message with Audra's brother, Chris and HE will be baptised later this month. It is amazing how these three lives have been changed in such a short time AND because someone had the courage to share!

There are many who come into the chapel doors in jeans, sometimes shorts, and sometimes with tattoos and such...they are welcomed with open arms! We love our wards and we serve both the Jacksonville 2nd and 3rd Wards. We attend all of the PEC meetings, the Ward Council meetings and missionary group meetings. It is a hustle to get from one to the other and we sometimes only make it for part of each Sacrament meeting. It is all so worth it!

Yesterday will be a day not soon forgotten and I will share it in the most reverent way I can so as not to detract from the spiritual nature.

Sunday evenings, each and every week, we conduct Sacrament at Camp Geiger, one of our assigned bases. As I've shared before, we meet in the back room of the main chapel, the room with all the real stuff, like organs, pews, big screens for power point preaching etc. Our room has a small pulpit, a big screen tv, a piano AND a coffee maker! We usually have from 3 of us (that means literally 1 of them and 2 of us) to 9 of us. Yesterday we had four Marines, including one of the MCT instructor's. One young lady has been studying on her own and has made a commitment to be baptised even without having had a discussion. However, it has really weighed heavy on her mind that the priest in her Parrish told her that her soul was in jeopardy because she joined the military. After the meeting was closed we showed the dvd "Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled." At the conclusion, with tears in her eyes, she expressed gratitude for having been comforted and that her soul was intact. But that's not the end of the story. Their instructor, SSG Covey, started a conversation with them with, "Right now I am not your leader. I am your friend and a member of this Church." When he is in the field with his platoon, he conducts Sacrament for the membership so they do not miss out on those moments of peace. He explained the comfort of a Priesthood blessing and offered one to each of young people present and so they each received a blessing. As tears flowed I could not contain the joy that we all felt at this special moment, a moment that will be forever imprinted on my heart. It is moments such as these that I pause to give thanks for the privilege and blessing of being here, of doing as the Lord has asked us to do. It is all about love but more importantly, the message of our Savior's love for us...His children. We are so blessed!