Guest Blogger, Sister Johnson

Iron Mountain Branch Relief Society March 23, 2013
"The First Relief Society"

Last Saturday, we had an awesome Branch Relief Society gathering.  The presidency has been working on it and looking forward to it for a couple of months.  Our RS President, Cindy Gordon, found a script on the internet with the details of the First Relief Society.

Sample of 11 quilt blocks

As part of the decorations, I went through the material in the RS closet and pulled out pieces and created 11 quilt blocks, 10"x10" to 14"x14".  I then put a backing on each piece and left a space that they could later be stuffed and made into a pillow.  They were centerpieces on each of the small round tables we sat at and they were wall decorations.  Then there were enough for those who wanted one to take home with them.  This is a picture of a sample of the ones I made.  Some I made more than one or used different material to make same pattern.

This was held in the Relief Society Room.
(The picture in the background is of all the Relief
Society Presidents.)

The script had speaking parts like Joseph Smith, John Taylor, Emma Smith, Eliza R. Snow, and several others.  Everyone who came received a name tag for one of the original participants.  Then during the process, each character's name was read and she would stand and be voted on as accepted.  Elder Johnson was the Narrator and our local Elders Christensen and Dusterhoft were Joseph Smith and John Taylor.

Relief Society 2nd picture

Sister Gordon (Eliza R. Snow)
& Sister Johnson (Bethsheba Smith)

Sister Gordon has a hobby of collecting old lace.  She brought lace for everyone who wanted to have one wear one.  She also supplied some shawls.  All who wanted to were able to dress up.









Refreshments were finger foods which everyone brought.  There were several types of herbal tea to drink.  We actually had a regular tea party.

We had food and visiting before and after the presentation.  The feedback on the activity was great.  We had 16 sisters attend.  And everyone seemed to have had a great time.

More MND and Home Teaching Takes Off

 We concluded our second successful Mormons Next Door presentation of the week on Saturday. This time we had seven non-members come. We have had a total of seventeen non-members attend these three presentations with one convert baptism to date. The missionaries and members had invited three of the attendees and two couples came who had read about it in the local newspaper. Once again nine of the members took on the “face” of the presentation by reading the script. There have been approximately twenty different members involved in reading the script at the three presentations we have now given over the previous four months. In addition three different members have “volunteered” to oversee the promotion. This involvement by branch members has had a big impact on the culture of the branch, plus each time we do it we learn how we can make it better next time. We have suggested the branch approach the local Jr. College for a repeat performance in the fall. Elder and Sister Riley (a senior couple from Orem, UT) came and are excited to try it in the Escanaba branch where they serve.

Atop the Nauvoo temple. A symbol of the great message of hope for the last days,
Revelation 14:6   

 Last week we also had the opportunity to increase our support to the branch by introducing the 2^nd counselor in the Elders Quorum presidency to his less active home teaching companion and then introducing him to his families. He began making appointments for their visits. Sister Johnson and I have found it necessary to almost hold each member by the hand and demonstrate how aspects of home and visit teaching are to be done including explaining the wonderful benefits of this type of service. Following that visit I picked up my less-active companion and we went home teaching. The new Elders Quorum President had absolutely no experience in setting up the home teaching districts, companionships, etc., so it was a blessing that I was called to help. Everyone involved has been pleased and happy with these small beginnings. Consistent home and visit teaching will definitely be a new experience for the members of the branch here in Iron Mountain. 

 With a little less than four months remaining, we will be prioritizing where we can best place our final efforts. Our goal, as from the beginning, is to find and teach investigators and less-actives. The Lord has given us great tools to use and with His help we will yet be successful in bringing the light of the gospel to those we have already met and some we have yet to meet.

Still lovin’ it,

Elder and Sister Johnson

Latest MND and Baby in a Blue Cap

 We experienced another great week. On Saturday we once again held the Mormons Next Door presentation, this time in the little Crystal Falls library about 30 miles north west of here. It was well attended by active and less active members plus we had three non-members attend. This part of the branch, although somewhat remote, supplies about a third of the active membership of the branch. The script readers were all local members including a less active sister who lives an additional 15 miles from Crystal Falls. Our branch president who, if you recall, lives near Green Bay and has been assigned to serve as the branch president until another person is selected, was also there. The little family with the nine year old we are teaching came as well as two less actives sisters who rarely/never attend. Now is the time for follow up. Because of the distance we are trying to figure about the best way of involving the non-members in a teaching situation. We will involve the sister who invited two of the non-members but since she lives an additional 15 miles further into the forest we think the best approach is to invite them to be taught in a members home in Crystal Falls. We will provide transportation for the young missionaries or we will teach them ourselves.

 We are convinced that this Mormons Next Door approach to introduce the Gospel dramatically lessens the fear that is often involved with the invitation to learn more; and, when members see how easy it is they become more and more willing to make invitations to friends and acquaintances. Since we have given members this option, the level of branch interest in missionary work has risen dramatically. Having learned from the previous presentation last December we have now involved the members with much more of the promotion. Another benefit is the availability of an easy venue that can be used by the young missionaries to which they can invite current and past investigators. They are in fact excited for our repeat Mormons Next Door presentation scheduled this coming Saturday here in Iron Mountain. Also, Elder and Sister Riley, another senior couple serving in Escanaba about 50 miles from here, have expressed an interest in seeing how it all works and they will also be in attendance on Saturday.

 We think these will be the last presentations we will schedule for this branch before we leave for home. We will suggest the branch schedule another presentation in the fall, this time at the local Junior College. They have the rooms and hopefully the willingness to let it happen.

 Again, we are grateful for this presentation, which was put together by the Seventy, and we hope it is being used successfully in other parts of the country. 

 In other news Alex and Amy blessed us with our 25th grandchild who arrived safe and sound this past Saturday. He was named Boyd Alexander Johnson after his grandfather (me) and his father.

The fluffy white brimmed blue cap was knitted by his grandmother
Sister Dawnine Johnson. She knits a variety each week and
donates them to the local hospital for the newborns. 

With love and the beginnings of a little “release anxiety”,

Elder and Sister Johnson

Here's a little video of more snow just in case you are not yet tired of the stuff.

Missionary Impacts and the Strangites

 We spent last week in continuing our preparations for the upcoming Mormons Next Door presentations. We are inviting less active members, members and any and all of the non-members we have met since we first arrived. We also worked on getting all of the script readers arranged for each presentation. We have invited one or two of our less active members as well as our recent convert to be readers. We know it will help their testimonies to be involved. This production has already energized the branch. They are coming forward with their requests for invitations and suggestions as to how we can make it better. This time around we have given members of the Branch Council responsibilities for promotion. Because of their local connections it is working out far better than if we had tried to do it by ourselves. Our first presentation is next Saturday at the Crystal Falls library. We will be sure to let you all know how it turns out.

 We also had very good lessons with the individuals we regularly teach. Even though Br. Peters displays a reluctance to get baptized, he is not reluctant to do every other thing we ask of him. He was at the Regional Conference broadcast on Sunday and heard some outstanding General Authority talks. He has undertaken to read the bible for the first time and is now in Exodus. His reading always gives us a great starting point for discussing the gospel. The conversation always comes around to the importance and necessity of baptism. He continues to be moved by the Spirit. We have lost track on the number of challenges and commitments we have made. At least he still invites us back for a new lesson each week.

 It was re-confirmed to us that we will at least have one and maybe two baptism(s) before we go home. No one here, or in Salt Lake, can find the paperwork confirming the baptism of the eleven year old brother of the young girl who asked to be baptized; so, we may have to re-baptize him. It’s a great time to be missionaries. Any time is a great time to be a missionary.

 What follows are excerpts from an e-mail sent to us by our friend Elder Gary Cockerham. He and his wife Nola are serving in the office of the Kennewick Washington Mission. He has responsibilities for mission vehicles among other things. We thought you might be interested to see how the influx of new missionaries is impacting their mission. Here then is a small piece of the story:

"… we received 30 new missionaries on Tuesday.  They arrived on the same plane from Salt Lake City that took most of the departing missionaries back to Salt Lake City.  The assistant to the President, Elder Lim, flew out for his home in Toronto, Canada, early Wednesday.  The new missionaries are great; 7 sisters (5 of them 19 years old); and 23 elders (about half of them 18 years old).  Thirteen of them are Spanish speakers, including 3 Hermanas.  The new group was so large that we needed a change of venue for the traditional welcome dinner because the Mission Home is too small.  The Barber Family (Former Mission President) invited us to their big home high on the side of the hill overlooking the temple.  It was large enough even though we filled it up, and they treated us like royalty.

Wednesday was transfer day.  As usual, I was in charge of the Tri-Cities transfer site.  At 8:00 am, we had about a 20-minute program with hymns, prayers, a spiritual thought, introduction of the new missionaries, and announcement of the new missionaries’ trainers.  Because the group was also so large, we moved this meeting from the Relief Society room to the chapel.  From the Tri-Cities, we sent 20 missionaries to points in the West, including 10 new missionaries; we sent 13 missionaries to the Yakima area, including 8 new missionaries; and we had 30 transfers within the Tri-Cities area, including 12 new missionaries.  It all came off surprisingly well – we didn’t lose one single missionary & only about 3 pieces of luggage, for a brief time.  We were all wrapped up with the sendoff & leaving the stake center by about 9:05 am. 

...The assistants to the President orchestrate this show every transfer, and the whole process still amazes me every time I see it.  The assistants become so familiar with the details during the transfer planning process that they have all of these things memorized by transfer day.  Before the transfer meeting begins, the parking lot is bustling with luggage, bicycles, cars, car keys, and boxes of supplies being swapped & shuffled between vehicles."

Having a great time, excited to be missionaries,

Elder and Sister Johnson

Remember to do this on Saturday night. And yes we know the
cartoon was created for turning the clocks back in
the fall, but it is the thought that counts.

 Bonus material: when we were completing our weekly report on the new missionary portal the church has created which has on it everything "missionary", I discovered the following included in the article that talks about the history of the church in Michigan. From there I became interested and went to a piece on Wikipedia of related church history I knew nothing about. Read on and you will see.

USA-Michigan (from the missionary portal)

Lucy Mack Smith, mother of Church President Joseph Smith, traveled to Michigan in 1831, just one year after the organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She visited her brother in Pontiac, preached, and warned one unfriendly pastor that one-third of his flock would soon be Latter-day Saints. When Joseph Smith sent men to Pontiac, they baptized 22 people from the pastor's congregation, including the deacon. The Church President visited Michigan in 1834. He was later murdered by mobs in Illinois in 1844, thus ending a period of Church advancement in the state. Several Church members began the trek westward with other Saints. One apostate, James J. Strang, claimed to be Joseph Smith's successor as Church President. Although he was denounced by leaders, he formed a group that settled on Beaver Island in Lake Michigan before disbanding.

(Disclaimer, Sister Johnson wanted nothing to do with the following article and thought it strange that it should even be included. I, on the other hand, thought it an interesting historical footnote, ed.)

The Mormon kingdom on Beaver Island*

Although Beaver Island is known mostly today for its beaches, forests, recreational harbor and seclusion, at one time it was the site of a unique Mormon kingdom.

The island's association with Mormonism began with the death of Joseph Smith, founder of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Most Mormons considered Brigham Young to be Smith's successor, but many others followed James J. Strang. Strang founded the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite), claiming it to be the sole legitimate continuation of the church "restored" by Joseph Smith. His organization still exists today (though not on Beaver Island), numbering up to 300 adherents. His group initially settled in Voree, Wisconsin, setting up a community there which remains to this day.

Seeking a buffer from persecution and perhaps more isolation to increase his control of the group, Strang moved his followers to Beaver Island in 1848. The Strangites flourished under Strang's leadership and became a political power in the region. They founded the town of St. James (named after Strang), and built a road called "King's Highway" into the island's interior that remains one of its main thoroughfares. The Strangites cleared land, built cabins, farms and other improvements, and sought to establish themselves as a permanent presence on Beaver Island.

Strang was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in 1853, and again in 1855. He also founded the first newspaper in Northern Michigan, the Northern Islander. During Strang's stint in the legislature, he made Beaver the center of a new county: Manitou County included the Beaver Islands, Fox Islands, North Manitou, and South Manitou islands, with the county seat at St. James. Manitou County was disestablished by the state of Michigan in 1895 (see below).

Once established on Beaver Island, Strang declared himself a polygamist, a practice which he had previously opposed.[13] He had five wives and fathered a total of fourteen children.

In 1850 Strang proclaimed himself king, but not of the island itself. Rather, he claimed to be king over his church, which at that time contained most of the island's inhabitants. He was crowned on July 8 of that year inside a large log "tabernacle" built by his followers, in an elaborate ceremony that featured a crown (described by one witness as "a shiny metal ring with a cluster of glass stars in the front"), a red royal robe, a shield, breastplate and wooden scepter. The Strangite tabernacle and Strang's modest house are both long gone, as are the Strangite royal regalia, but a print shop built by his disciples remains—the only Strangite building left on Beaver. Today, it houses a museum dedicated to the island's history.

Strang and his followers often clashed with their non-Strangites neighbors on Beaver Island and adjacent areas. While claiming to be king only over his own adherents, Strang tended to exert authority over non-Strangites on the island as well, and was regularly accused of forcibly seizing their property and of physically assaulting them. Open hostility between the two groups frequently resulted in violence. Strangites were beaten by ruffians at the post office, while Strang once fired a cannon at an unruly group of drunken fishermen who had threatened to drive his people from the island. Strangites held an increasing monopoly on local government, blurring the distinction between church and state in their "utopia".

While Beaver Island's would-be monarch held many progressive ideas (such as the conservation of woodlands), his autocratic style of rule came to be seen by many as intolerable. One edict, for instance, dictated the type of clothing Strangite women must wear (see bloomers). Two women refused and Strang had their husbands flogged, a task made easier after one of them was caught in the act of adultery with the wife of his business partner.

While recovering from their injuries, the husbands began plotting against Strang. On June 16, 1856, the US naval gunboat USS Michigan entered the harbor at St. James and invited Strang aboard. As Strang walked down the dock, the two men shot him from behind and then ran to the ship. The boat departed and disembarked the men at Mackinac Island without arresting them. Neither was convicted of the crime.

After Strang died of his wounds on July 9, 1856, mobs came from Mackinac Island and nearby St. Helena Island and drove the Strangites (then numbering approximately 2,600 persons) off Beaver Island, confiscating their property. With the Strangites' departure, local government in Manitou County (including Beaver Island) all but ceased. Courts and elections were rarely held, County offices were usually unfilled, and the area acquired a lawless reputation affirmed by Michigan governor John J. Bagley in 1877 when he called for the county's abolition.[16] A bill was introduced, but failed to pass. A new attempt in 1895 was successful, and the Beaver Islands became part of Charlevoix County while Fox and Manitou islands became part of Leelanau County.

(*Copied from the article on “Beaver Island” in Wikipedia)

Lows, Highs and Three Coyotes

  We experienced the lowest of lows followed by the highest of highs this past week. And the events came on the heels of one another. Wednesdays is when we visit with those individuals we are teaching and encouraging who are living in Crystal Falls, MI. We needed to slightly change our schedule to accommodate one individual who would be leaving town. We were looking forward, however, to our regular 2:00 meeting with Rich Matson. He had invited a member of his new band, at this fellow’s request, to meet us. We hoped to have the opportunity to explain a little about the church and the Faith to which Rich belongs. We felt this was great progress as Rich was mostly inactive when we met him with some mistaken ideas about the church of his own. Rich, with his dad, has been reading the Book of Mormon and along with lessons from “Gospel Principles”, is re-discovering the Faith of his youth. The fellow arrived on schedule and after introductions stated, very boldly, that he believed there should be no “man” between him and God. We of course agreed that all should seek to establish a personal relationship with God through prayer, which gave us an opportunity to introduce the importance of prophetic callings today. Well, it became obvious that something set him off in that line of conversation. He became visibly angrier and more upset. It got to the point where we couldn’t proceed and we apologized for anything we might of said that upset him. He wouldn’t accept the apology. He, instead, kept on escalating his points that by now had gotten completely away from where we had started. The feeling was very dark. We tried to completely change the subject by asking to see the guitars he brought, which he makes himself. He shared his guitars, which were beautiful, but underneath he was still simmering. We left for our next appointment and, as we later discovered, Rich tried to reason with the fellow to no avail. It was a disaster, Rich was heartbroken. This man had insulted his friends (us) right in Rich’s home and Rich's new band was dissolving right before his eyes. Needless to say Rich went through some extreme highs and lows during the next day or two. He eventually discovered that this fellow has a history of being slightly unbalanced. Rich is grateful he found out sooner instead of later. The whole process caused him to discover where he actually stood in relation to the truths of the revealed gospel versus the pull of the world. He chose truth and light. In a Facebook post about this brouhaha, Rich revealed he had planned to share, for the first time in many years, his testimony with this fellow. We are so proud of him.

  The very next appointment was with the Carlson family. We have been talking about the baptism of their daughter for the past year. When we first brought it up her parents were dead set against it. In their view she was too young, even though her brother had been already been baptized at age eight. Over the past year Sister Johnson has been teaching Primary lessons and we have been teaching the Missionary lessons. Lately we could feel the mood and spirit during our lessons change. So after a very challenging encounter just minutes before, we were elated when Sister Carlson announced that her daughter wants to be baptized before we leave to go back home. There are still some challenges to be worked out but the main wall has been breeched. 

  Other adventures for the week included helping out the young missionaries who also serve here in Iron Mountain. It seems that last Thursday their water heater gave up the ghost. Needless to say we have neither the authority nor the ability to resurrect dead appliances. The result was us providing showers for Elder Christensen and Elder Dusterhoft. Elder Dusterhoft is from Green Bay on what they call a "trial" mission. He is now in his second transfer which will be his last before he gets his regular call. Individuals on trial missions usually have some kind of mild physical or mental disability which could preclude them from serving a regular full-time mission so they get to try one out, usually within a couple of hundred miles of their homes. He is doing great. Later that same day we had the opportunity to feed four Elders who were in the midst of exchanges. After we had gone to bed the mission president called and told us that the two Jr. Companions, who had been left here together, were having problems with their CO detector. They couldn't get it fixed that night so they ended up spending the night on our floor. Such is the occasional emergency. You get used to it.

  Another bit of good news is the creation of the IronMountainBranch Facebook page. Rich Matson (yes the same "Rich" as in the first paragraph) was able to set it up last Wednesday. By Sunday we had over 80 friends. Fantastic. Not all of them are current members. Some are former members that moved out, some years ago. Some are former missionaries who served here. It is an eclectic group with a nice number of current active and less-active members. The Branch Presidency is excited to be able to use our Facebook presence to communicate with members. Rich was called to be my assistant secretary in the Elders Quorum so we work on it together. 

We are grateful to the Lord for His tender mercies,

Elder and Sister Johnson

Here is the typical Yooper sense of humor of a on display. We saw this returning from District meeting a couple of weeks ago.

Supply your own caption!

A Visit From Flat Stanley

 The highlight of this past week may have been celebrating Valentines Day with Sister Johnson. We just relaxed a little and reflected on the wonderful experiences we are having and the wonderful people we have met. It was also pasty making week. We have three more opportunities and then it is over. While working at the Senior Center we invited some of the other workers to our Mormons Next Door presentation next month. We had a nice little conversation about religion. Nothing, to our knowledge, changed. We are thick in the middle of planning for that event. The truly great part is how excited and animated the branch has become. They are truly rallying around the event with stories about invitations they have given and expressions of excitement for the possible results. This kind of enthusiasm is a new and welcome feeling.

 With the Lord’s inspiration and the Spirit’s help we were able to finally finish the assignment of branch families into Home Teaching districts. The newly called president was seemingly paralyzed while trying to figure out how he was going to make sure everyone in the branch got a monthly visit. He was fixated on the inactive, the missing and moved members. We were finally able to move beyond those feelings by helping him realize we just needed to start with those who were active and less active and make a plan to get to the others as we could. I can see why I was called to this position. I have been able to really help set the home teaching up due to our commitment, when we first arrived, to visit everyone listed on the Branch roster. No righteous or right activity goes unnoticed or unused in the economy of the Lord’s plan.

 Sister Johnson is using Preach My Gospel principles and knowledge in teaching the youth Sunday school class and is being rewarded with small successes. Based on her experiences with that small class up until now, she’s excited.

 We had other wonderful visits with our “regulars” as well. Dennis Klingman is well on his way to total integration into the Branch. He gave a great lesson on Sunday. The Carlson family is more and more receptive to the baptism of their daughter. Br. Peters is asking more questions from his reading in the Old Testament and seems to be more at ease with the idea of membership. We have received permission from the Branch and Stake Presidents to establish a Face Book presence for the Branch. The less active son of the former 1^st counselor has agreed to administer it. We will help set it up and establish guidelines for its use. Face Book is a very important resource for the members of the branch due primarily, we think, to the travel distances involved. We think this additional resource will become a valuable communication tool for Branch leadership.  At least we hope so.

Still smiling,

Elder and Sister Johnson

P. S. We've had a short visit from a classmate of one of our granddaughters Allie Johnson. His name is Flat Stanley and we have been introducing him to the culture of the U.P.

Flat Stanley is excited to try a pasty. A favorite of the local residents.

The game of cribbge is a favorite pastime of Upper Michigan residents.

Flat Stanley found out that it snows a lot this far north in the United States. 

Two Trainings and Roses

Not too much happening this past week unless of course you count the wonderful Zone Training Meeting and Senior Training in Oshkosh. And in spite of being on the road quite a bit, we were able to make time to visit the Elders Quorum president (close to 100 miles round trip) and commit him to contact an individual with an invitation that could possibly bring the blessings of the restored Gospel into their lives. He chose his next-door neighbor and will have given them a written invitation to the “Mormons Next Door” presentation by last Saturday. We will follow-up with him this Wednesday. The zone Leaders shared with us “who, what and when” cards that are left as a reminder to members that they have committed to make an invitation to some gospel related activity to a family or individual.  They make the invitation and we follow up. The cards coupled with our MND presentations in March give the members a very easy way to begin the process of contacting friends and acquaintances. Hopefully they will realize it is not such a frightening experience after all.

Sunday I was set apart as the Elders Quorum secretary. I feel very good about this calling. With the Lord’s help I will be in a position to assist with the set-up of the home teaching families and routes. My mantra will be, “Doing something is going to be a big step up from what went on before, which was practically nothing”. When you meet members who benefited from a close relationship with home teachers and they ask you, “why haven’t we seen anyone in quite awhile”, it makes you very sad. In that regard, Sister Johnson has made a big difference with her calling as Relief Society secretary. We continually meet members who comment on the cards, mailings and visits they receive from the sisters. These results are coming after a sweet, previous Relief Society president quit requiring visits altogether.

It’s the eternal principle of faith…to make something happen, something has to happen.

Trying to make things happen,

Elder and Sister Johnson 

Happy Valentines Day