Jacksonville Ward Oregon Latter-day Saints

05/25/2023

07/31/2021

Bro Striley gave an amazing lesson to the young men about making good choices. Great lesson for us all!

07/31/2021

Jacksonville boys taking care of business at AP camp this year

07/11/2021

Hi Everyone. Please share with your friends and ministering families. The Klamath Falls stake has some areas in trouble. They shared the following:

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐊𝐥𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐅𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐉𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐬 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐋𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫-𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐒𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞, 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡 𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐚𝐫, 𝐭𝐨 𝐣𝐨𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐮𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫, 𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐰 (𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟏𝟏𝐭𝐡, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟏).

We'll be fasting and praying for relief from this fire, for the safety of our firefighters, for those affected by this fire [Bootleg Fire], as well as helping to ease the extreme drought conditions our area is currently facing.

We'd appreciate anyone who would like to join us in this special day of fasting and prayer.

Also, if you could please share this post, we would be very grateful. 🙏

01/12/2021

Come join our ward's "Family Tree!" In the Bishop's office hallway, we have a big "Jacksonville Ward Family Tree" we are trying to fill with leaves. Grab a leaf and write any family names you've found for the Temple on it! Our ward's goal is for everyone in the ward to contribute at least one leaf to our family tree, so we can fill our tree with as many leaves as possible before the Temple reopens!

12/24/2020

12/24/2020

One of my favorite Christmas traditions began decades ago when I was a young missionary in Germany. At Christmastime my companion and I were invited to celebrate with members and enjoy Bauernfrühstück (farmer’s breakfast), a hearty German dish.

This Christmas tradition always reminds me of the wonderful people I served among on my mission and has remained a part of my life to this day.

While our children were growing up, we created our own recipe and prepared delicious Bauernfrühstück every year on Christmas Eve. Our family made these baked omelets with potatoes, onions, peppers, mushrooms, bacon, ham, sausage, cheese, and a variety of vegetables. Our children are now grown with families of their own, but they still carry on this tradition. I mention this as a very small example of the lasting impact serving a mission has had on my life.

As Susan and I offer prayers of gratitude for missionaries serving throughout the world this Christmas season, we realize many missionaries may be in circumstances that are quite different from what they had envisioned. But inviting souls to come unto Jesus Christ—the Lamb of God, the Good Shepherd, the mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace—will enable them to come closer to Him as well. The daily pattern of coming to know and “hear Him” that they are developing now can have a lasting impact throughout their lives.

And for all of us, regardless of our circumstances or seasons of life, may we remember today—and every day—that He invites each of us to come unto Him. He is the Light of the World.

12/24/2020

Merry Christmas to you all! In a message I have recorded for missionaries around the world on Christmas Day, I shared three lessons (there are of course many, many more) we can learn from the birth of the Savior.

First, there is great happiness in trusting God and being trusted by God. Think of the trust God had in Mary to bring His Only Begotten Son into the world through her and for her to be His mother throughout His earthly mission. She trusted God and God trusted her.

Second, just because something comes from God does not mean it will be without difficulty. Joseph and Mary knew they were to be central stage on one of the greatest and most important events of human history, yet it was not without hardship. While the King of kings was about to be born, He was to be born in the humblest of situations. Mary, in her final days of being with child, would ride the bumpy and dusty roads on a donkey. Joseph realized there would be no place for his wife to comfortably give birth. And then the relief of the baby safely born, but still, He is laid in the most unlikely place for a king—a manger.

Third, while Jesus was born as the divine Son of God, He still had to grow “from grace to grace” (Doctrine and Covenants 93:13) to become the Savior of the world. Each of us, while we have divine qualities to believe and to do what is right, to desire goodness, and to be who we want to be—we still need to grow into that disciple of Jesus Christ we want to become.

As an ordained Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, I testify to you that through sacred experiences, special moments, precious and powerful feelings, I have a sureness to my knowledge that Jesus is the Christ, that He lives, that He is resurrected. He is exactly who we proclaim Him to be. I testify that He lives and that He is the Savior of the world.