Christmas Message 2017

Archive of messages sent while serving as a bishop in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

As a bishopric, in addition to wishing you a Merry Christmas, we extend our invitation to “come unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption” (Omni 1:26).

Jesus Christ is the reason for this joyous Christmas season. We remember not only Christ’s humble birth, but his life, his teachings, his example, his atonement, and his glorious resurrection.

Make Christ an important part of your holiday celebration and keep him a central part of your life all year long.

Just as the Apostles testified in The Living Christ, “that Jesus is the Living Christ, the immortal Son of God. He is the great King Immanuel, who stands today on the right hand of His Father. He is the light, the life, and the hope of the world. His way is the path that leads to happiness in this life and eternal life in the world to come.” We also add our testimony that true happiness can only be found in the Savior, Jesus Christ.

We hope you can take this small gift and put it in a place where you can see it often. As you see the picture of the temple and pass the actual temple daily, it is our prayer that it will help you, “always remember him” (D&C 20:77).

May the Lord bless you and all those found in your home this Christmas season.

With Love,                                                                                                

 Robert Sullivan     Brian South     Clayton Toone     Brad Walker     Blake Ross

The Brookside First Ward Bishopric

Go and Do

Archive of messages sent while serving as a bishop in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

I like that Nephi’s mantra was “go and do.” The order of that phrase being very important. When he went to get the plates, he first just went, saying, “I was led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do” (1 Nephi 4:6).

The Savior also seemed to operate in this manner, always going and then doing. Christ was often in the middle of going somewhere when he performed his miracles. He was coming down from the mountain when he healed a leper (Matt 8:1-3), Jesus was on his way to raise someone from the dead when a woman touched his garment in a crowd and was healed (Matt 9:19-22), and many more times his instruction came while going and doing.

I take from this that it is important to be “anxiously engaged in a good cause” (D&C 58:27). If we first answer the call to ‘go’ we can be ready to ‘do’ as the Lord would want or need us to.

President Buckner has called on all of us to go and do in the months of November and December. He wants to make sure all in our stake are cared for, especially during the holidays. He has asked that every home in the ward be visited in November and December. He has asked that every home and visiting teacher visit every family with a specific assignment. The assignment is this:

1. Tell your families that you have been sent by assignment from the Stake Presidency.

2. Ask them if they are taken care of for Thanksgiving (November) or Christmas (December). 

Once needs are assessed and met:

3. Ask them if they know of anyone in need that might need some extra help for the holidays. 

There are 133 families in our ward that we would like to visit and make sure they are taken care for the holidays. To make sure we get to see everyone, we will need to start right away! 

Please reach out to your families quickly and often. We have an amazing ward with such good people. I know we can meet the needs of everyone in our ward.

Thanks for everything you do to help each other live the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Sincerely,

Bishop Sullivan

Come Unto Him

Archive of messages sent while serving as a bishop in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

“Come unto me” is an invitation found throughout scripture. During His earthly ministry Christ invited the little children to come unto Him (Mark 10:14) and later beckoned all to come unto Him for rest and peace (Matt 11:28.) When the Savior visited the Nephites shortly after His resurrection, he invited all to come unto Him and touch His wounds (3 Nephi 11:14.)

This invitation isn’t merely an exercise to physically get closer to the Lord, but involves aligning our will with His, and therefore, the Father’s. We do this through Jesus Christ because He is, “the way, the truth and the life: no man cometh to the Father, but by [Him]” (John 14:6.)

So, how do we better come unto Christ?

In order for us to understand the Father’s will and to personally get closer to Christ, I believe we need to better communicate with Him. We do this by creating daily heavenly habits of praying and scripture study. We pray to talk to Him and we study to listen. In both prayer and study, we should also ponder so we can better recognize the promptings of the Holy Ghost while doing so.

If we can better communicate with our Father and the Savior through daily prayer and scripture study, we will better understand His will and be able to more effectively come unto Him. As we do so, we will have the promises found in Omni 1:26 which says:

“And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye should come unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption. Yea, come unto him, and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him, and continue in fasting and praying, and endure to the end; and as the Lord liveth ye will be saved.”

I pray that we can each become closer to Christ by developing these heavenly habits of daily prayer and scripture study. I also pray that we can support and love one another as we strive to be more Christ like.

Thank you for all you do in your homes and in our ward to build His kingdom in our little corner of Payson.

 

Bishop Sullivan

God Knows You

Archive of messages sent while serving as a bishop in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Last week in our combined meeting we talked about two very important truths: 1) God knows you, and 2) God loves you. While these principles seem small and simple, they are of infinite and eternal importance. When we each, individually, can truly believe, feel, and trust in these principles, we can be carried through any trial or difficulty.

We spoke about the Jaredites, who before embarking on their trip across the great waters were promised great blessings in the Promised Land. They had that promise and faith in the Lord. Then they built their barges. Not luxury ships, but some kind dish that would be carried across the ocean by the current. While they didn’t have many luxuries and they didn’t expect them, the Lord did provide for their needs with the instructions to put an entrance at the top and the bottom of the boat and He also provided them with their wants, light through miraculous stones.

With those few things, a boat with two holes and lighted stones to remind them of God’s miracles, the Jaredites left everything else up to the Lord. Their ships “were many times buried in the depths of the sea, because of the mountain waves which broke upon them, and also the great and terrible tempests which were caused by the fierceness of the wind.” Or in short, their journey was difficult and uncomfortable. However, “the wind did never cease to blow towards the promised land[.]”

I invite each of you to look for the lighted stones as the Lord pushes you toward the promised land through trials. Continue to see the small miracles and signs of God’s love for you each day. Recognize that God truly knows you, yes YOU, and give thanks for those small things that lighten the load as we pass through our trials of life.

I testify that God knows you and loves you. His Son, Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer.

Temple Attendance

Archive of messages sent while serving as a bishop in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

I loved attending our ward temple night in preparation for Ward Conference last week. There’s a special spirit when we are able to attend together and participate as a group. A special joy is felt when we all arrive in the Celestial Room at the same time.

Being in the temple this last week, my thoughts began to center on the blessings of temple attendance. I thought about my own wedding, the sealings I’ve attended, when I went through for the first time, and the different experiences I’ve had in the walls of that sacred building over the years.

Time and time again, my personal testimony has grown that the temple is not only a sacred place to make covenants with the Lord, but also a place for us to center our lives and set appropriate priorities. Answers to prayers and personal revelation are found in temple attendance.

President Hinckley taught, “Attend the temple. You will be blessed for so doing. Every man or woman who goes into the house of the Lord leaves there a better man or woman than he or she was when he or she entered the house of the Lord. The house of the Lord will have a refining effect upon you. It will cultivate unselfishness within your lives. It will build righteousness. It will impress upon you the importance of doing what you ought to do. Go to the house of the Lord."

I add my testimony to that of President Hinckley’s. Regular temple attendance will bring a greater announce of peace and happiness to your life. If you have recently attended, I invite you to go again. If you haven’t been in some time, I invite you to go soon.

By preparing to go to the temple and returning often, we will more fully accept Amaleki’s invitation to, “come unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption,” and together we will receive the promise found in that same verse, “and as the Lord liveth ye will be saved.” (Omni 1:26)