Last updated on July 15th, 2024 at 08:09 am
July 7, 2024
Here is the best thing I heard (What?), saw (Eye.), and read (Read.) this week, as well as the best idea (💡) I developed.
What?
- [Jaelan Petrie]: “There’s a pivotal moment — I think for me and for the series — and that is when we took our content schedule up to the First Presidency. (A content schedule is a list of all the media that you’re going to create). And when President Nelson saw it, he said, ‘Oh, great. It looks like you have all of the great stories of the Book of Mormon, but you’re missing some of the great doctrine of the Book of Mormon and need to focus on that.’ That actually changed the way we approached the series… It went from just being the great stories to the great doctrine. And I think that’s part of what the series is about, is getting the great doctrine out to everybody so they understand it, they know it and they can use it in their lives. …
[Aaron Merrell]: “One of the fun things as we’re trying to develop these stories, is that sometimes some of these are sermons … it is a person on stairs just talking or talking to his sons. That was one of the fun things, I think, for us as filmmakers and storytellers, to really dive in deep and explore what is going on to put them in this place. And so, really trying to drill in deep and do that exploratory work to really find the essence of these stories, the context of the stories, I think as a filmmaker, that was a pretty fun, exciting thing as well.” - During my ward’s Fifth Sunday lesson on Sunday, June 30, 2024, a sister in the ward shared how her children are more interested in the doctrine of The Book of Mormon when she is able to teach the doctrine like a bedtime story. Isn’t this how our Savior, Jesus Christ, taught? He taught important doctrine in memorable ways through parables. How might we do the same?
Eye.
The Chosen: Season 4 Episode 8:
- [Shmuel] “I wanted to believe. I came here to give you a chance and you’ve ruined it.”
[Jesus] “I’m sorry I couldn’t help you.”
[Shmuel] “I’m sorry I couldn’t help you.” - Luke 12:51-53 – “[51] Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division: [52] For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three. [53] The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father; the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother; the mother in law against her daughter in law, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.”
Read.
“Heart of the Matter: What 100 Years of Living Have Taught Me” by President Russell M. Nelson:
- “May I suggest eight ‘ates’ that can help husbands and wives build strong, lasting relationships:
“First, anticipate. Think of each other’s hopes and needs, and anticipate them.
“Second, appreciate. Simple expressions of thanks make all the difference. The Lord loves a grateful heart, and so does your companion.
“Third, celebrate. Don’t just remember your wedding anniversary and each other’s birthdays, celebrate them! Celebrate finding each other! Celebrate your sealing by attending the temple regularly together. Celebrate your love for each other with date nights so that you have time together alone.
“Fourth, cooperate. Lift each other’s load and lighten each other’s burdens. Turn to each other first.
“Fifth, elevate. Do all you can to elevate each other’s mood at the end of a long day, or during a difficult challenge, or while sorting through a difference of opinions. Transform problems into opportunities.
“Sixth, motivate. Encourage your spouse to develop his or her talents, to grow, and to serve. Be the reason your spouse is able to do something he or she might not have thought possible.
“Seventh, radiate. Try to radiate more light than heat! Work together to make your home a lighthouse for your neighborhood.
“Eighth, supplicate. When Adam and Eve were cast out of the garden, they ‘called upon the name of the Lord, and they heard the voice of the Lord … speaking unto them.’ Study the gospel together. Grow in spiritual symmetry. Let your home be a house of prayer, a house of faith, and a house of God. Make your home the primary sanctuary of your family’s faith. Doing so will bless your marriage in ways you cannot imagine.”
💡
Prepare a gift (perhaps a treat and a thoughtful card / note) for each of the families in our cul-de-sac and deliver the gifts on National Good Neighbor Day (September 28, 2024).
- It’s common to receive neighbor gifts around the Christmas and New Year holidays, but neighbors wouldn’t be anticipating gifts in late September!
Additional Content
Previous Newsletter (June 30, 2024 – Presentism, You are a Diamond, and What’s in it for me?)