Doran's Letter

Dear Ward Members,

A number of years ago, Jody and I bought a book to listen to while driving in the car. It was an excellent book and I highly recommend it to youth and families. The book is by Brother Gerald N. Lund. It is called “The Guardian”. The Guardian is a story about a teenage girl named Carruthers, but her father nicknamed her, and she always went by the name “Danni”. Danni was a young girl who had special gifts.

In the book Danni’s grandfather taught her about four important things, that if she remembered them, they would always guide her in her life.

These were called “the Four Remembers of Life”. They are:

1. Remember - YOU are unique.
2. Remember - YOUR life has a purpose.
3. Remember - YOU are free to choose who you are and who you will become.
4. Remember - YOU are not alone.

Remember – YOU are unique.

YOU are a unique son or daughter of our Heavenly Father and Heavenly Mother. You have been born into this world and have had individual experiences that have shaped your life and has made you who you are. You have had, and will have, trials and tribulations as well as happiness and joy. Your family dynamics, your associations with friends and others, and your life experiences, whether in or out of the church, have been unique to you.

Remember – YOUR life has a purpose.

Because you kept your first estate, and chose to follow Christ, you have been born into this world with the purpose of attaining exaltation. Our Heavenly Father has a purpose for you in the roles you play in your family, in your associations, in your friendships, in your community, and only YOU can fulfill YOUR purposes. “My life is a gift; my life has a plan. My life has a purpose; in heav’n it began” (Watkins, V. 1981, I Will Follow God’s Plan).

Remember – YOU are free to choose who you are and who you will become.

No matter your age, you are free to make choices that affect your life now and in the future. Our Father in Heaven has given you the blessing of making choices now to correct mistakes of the past. Good or bad, the past can have an affect on us but does not have to define us. Because of this freedom of choice, YOU have the power to dictate who YOU will become.

Remember – YOU are not alone.

No matter what your current situation is, Heavenly Father has blessed you with people in your life to support and sustain you. You may be blessed with ward family, with friends, with co-workers, with loved ones on both sides of the veil, with angels to attend you, with the Holy Ghost, and especially with the Savior, Jesus Christ and your Heavenly parents. No matter what you may encounter, Remember, YOU are not alone.

Brothers and Sisters, we recognize that this has been, and is, a challenging time in our lives. Yet it has been, and is, a time of great blessings, a time in many ways to slow life down and see the great blessings from our Father in Heaven. We have all seen many changes in the past months. Some of our beloved ward members have passed through the veil and are, and will be, missed very much. We need to be mindful of those loved ones who remain here with us. Our high school seniors have graduated in a year that will certainly be memorable. We love them and wish them the best. Although in many ways it may seem that the world has gone crazy, we need to have faith in the Lord, and to be encouraged by the optimism of our beloved prophet Russell M. Nelson. And as President Thomas S. Monson taught, “YOUR future is as bright as YOUR faith.”

Love,

Brother and Sister Shelley

Doran's Letter

Dear Ward Members,

On this beautiful Mother’s Day my thoughts are with my Mother, my Wife, and all of the other Mothers out there who have had such a great influence on their families. To all the sisters out there I express great reverence and thanks for all you do, and for all you mean to the families of our Heavenly Father’s children.

As I contemplate the situation we are all in, with “Home Church”, in many aspects I am grateful that we can focus this Sabbath day on the dear Sisters in our lives. How grateful I am for the example and influence that the Sisters have, not only in my life, but on our Heavenly Father’s kingdom as a whole. Women have many characteristics of such importance to the salvation of mankind that exaltation would not be possible without them. Elder Matthew Cowley was quoted at saying, “You sisters belong to the great sorority of saviorhood. You may not hold the priesthood. Men are different, men have to have something given to them to make them saviors of men, but not mothers, not women. You are the co-creators with God of his children.” Jack R. Christianson said, “You, as a woman, whether or not you have the opportunity to bear children, belong to the sorority of saviorhood. I don’t know of anything more beautiful than that.”

Sisters, and Brothers also, we often feel we fall short in our efforts to be all that we can and should be. Six years ago, as I was preparing to speak on Mother’s Day in our ward for a high council speaking assignment, I had been praying to know what I should say to the sisters in the ward. About 2:30 A.M. on the morning I was to talk, I was awakened with a thought that was so powerful to me that I had to get up and write it down before I forgot what it said. It was this, “Your imperfections may be exactly what your children need to help them come closer to God, and to help them get to the Celestial Kingdom.

I pray that the Lord’s choicest blessings will be with you at this time. Happy Mother’s Day!!!

Love,

Bother Shelley

Doran's Letter

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

In Elder M. Russell Ballard’s General Conference address on Saturday, April 4, 2020, he asked the saints to consider a request, given to the early saints of the restored gospel about 178 years ago. “…Let us, therefore, as a church and as a people, and as Latter-day Saints, offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.” Elder Ballard then asked us to “…consider what offering you will present to the Lord in righteousness…” (D&C 128:24)

I would like to share with you the significance of this request from an Apostle of the Lord. This request was not made lightly and is of great importance to all of us.

Almost 13 years before this request was made to the early saints, on May 15, 1829, John the Baptist appeared to the Prophet Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery on the bank of the Susquehanna River, near Harmony, Pennsylvania. John the Baptist conferred the Aaronic Priesthood on Joseph and Oliver and explained that this priesthood held the “keys of the ministering of angels, and of the gospel of repentance, and of baptism by immersion for the remission of sins.” He then exclaimed, speaking of this priesthood, “and this shall never be taken again from the earth, until the sons of Levi do offer again an offering unto the Lord in righteousness.” (D&C 13)

Who are the Sons of Levi? What kind of offering would they offer unto the Lord in righteousness? We learn from the Book of Exodus in the Old Testament, that Moses was born of a mother and father who were of the tribe of Levi. (Ex 2:1-8) The Lord called “Aaron the Levite”, the brother of Moses, to be a spokesman and a teacher. (Ex 4:14-15) The Lord instructed Moses to anoint and set apart Aaron and his sons to be priests, which would offer sacrifices on the altar of the tabernacle, and eventually the temple. (Ex 40:12-15) These blood or animal sacrifices, or offerings, were symbolic of the “sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father.” (Moses 5:7) These offerings along with the other tenets of the Law of Moses were meant to lead the children of Israel to Jesus Christ.

Who are the Sons of Levi in our day? Are they to offer blood or animal sacrifice again before or at the second coming of Christ? No, these types of sacrifices ended, or the law was fulfilled at the first coming of Christ.

Since Moses and Aaron were of the tribe of Levi, their sons would also be of the tribe of Levi. In the eighty fourth section of the Doctrine and Covenants, in what is known as “The Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood”, we learn that, those who are faithful unto the obtaining of the Aaronic and the Melchizedek Priesthood, and magnify their calling, become the sons of Moses and of Aaron. In other words, they become the Sons of Levi! We also learn in this section that the Sons of Moses and the Sons of Aaron shall offer and acceptable offering and sacrifice in the house of the Lord in this generation, or in this dispensation.

So, what is the acceptable offering which those who embrace and magnify the priesthood will present before the Lord? We learn in section 128 verse 24 of the Doctrine and Covenants, that the Lord will purify the Sons of Levi, or the faithful priesthood holders, “that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness”. Then as Elder Ballard proclaimed in General Conference, “Let us therefore, as a church and a people, and as Latter-day Saints offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness”, the completion of this verse is as follows: “and let us present in his holy temple, when it is finished, a book containing the records of our dead, which shall be worthy of all acceptation.” (D&C 128:24)



There are many things which we as disciples of Christ can “offer unto the Lord”, but the greatest gift we can offer would be to come unto the Savior sealed as eternal families. Then WE may receive the gift from Him of eternal life, which is the greatest of all the gifts of God.

Love, Brother Doran Shelley

19 April 2020

Doran's Letter

March 29, 2020

Dear Ward Family,

Today is a time of trial and tribulation, a time of uncertainty, and can even be a time of fear. It is also a time for reflection and a time in which we can turn to the Lord as individuals and as families. During times like these we can take comfort in the promises from the Lord, which we have received through covenants made with Him.

The resurrected Christ taught the Nephites, in a sermon very much like the sermon on the mount. They had recently been through times of great darkness, destruction, trails, and tribulation. He said to them, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, I give unto you to be the salt of the earth.” You may ask what does salt have to do with times which can seem much like the mists of darkness spoken of in the Book of Mormon.

In ancient Israel, salt was not as easily obtained as it is today. It was used to give flavor or savor to foods, much like it is today. It was also used to cure meats and as a preservative to keep them from rotting or decaying over time.

The Lord commanded the priests of the tabernacle (temple) to season all meat offered for sacrifice with salt. He also commanded them to offer salt with all offerings in relation to covenants with Him. (Lev. 2:13)

The Lord made a “covenant of salt” with Aaron, his sons and daughters, and their seed. He also made a “covenant of salt” with King David and his sons. These covenants the Lord said, were to last forever, or be “everlasting covenants”. (Num 18:19, 2 Chron. 13:5)

To the saints of the restored gospel, the Lord said through the Prophet Joseph Smith, “When men are called unto mine everlasting gospel, and covenant with an everlasting covenant, they are accounted as the salt of the earth and the savor of men.” (D&C 101:39)

As we strive to become more like the Savior and keep the covenants that we have made with Him, we give savor, or value, to His gospel and especially to His infinite atonement. The Lord has promised that if we keep His commandments, we will prosper in the land, and receive peace in this life. He also promises that if we remain faithful to our covenants, we will obtain the blessings of eternal life.

Brothers and Sisters, we love you and pray for you. May the Lord bless you for you are “The Salt of the Earth”.

Brother Doran Shelley