a favorite family picture: 1979

Mexico pictures!

   

 
 This one shows some of my Mexican souvenirs that sit in the trunk.  I will need to get them out and show you some day.  This is in Margie and Melvin's first grade classes.  I used to dance the Jarabe Tapato  (a Mexican dance with this dress) also.

Wonderful message about obedience from Lavona Richardson

RICHARDSON REVIEW 11-10-13

Dear Family,

I am grateful that we are a missionary family.  One of my memories of growing up was that my Daddy loved missionary work and often told us missionary experiences from his mission in San Antonio and Laredo Texas.  All of his children served missions. You have heard me say many times that the missions that your Dad and I served together were the crowning events of our lives.  I know that my Daddy and Mother are happy that we have so many in our family involved with missionary work.  I am grateful for the five grandchildren I have serving full time missions and for the two that will be leaving for their missions in January.  I know we are all missionaries and need to find people for the full time missionaries to teach. I am enjoying being a missionary each Wednesday at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City and each week I have some wonderful experiences.  Recently I was assigned to give the spiritual thought in our prayer meeting on obedience.  These are some of the thoughts that I used in my talk.

                                       

                                                                     OBEDIENCE

I have five grandchildren serving missions all over the world with two more with calls to serve. As I visit with them before they leave my advice to them is to be obedient to all the rules even though they might not know the reason for them. If they are obedient the Lord will bless them with His spirit and they will be effective missionaries.  I like the words of the Children’s song “Follow the Prophet”. There are nine verses that tell about the prophets in the Old Testament such as Adam, Noah, Abraham, Daniel, Samuel, Jonah and ending with the verse- “ Now we have a world where people are confused , If you don’t believe it go and watch the news. We can get direction all along our way, if we heed the prophets—follow what they say” 

A quote I like about obedience, “A seed of faith is already planted in your heart…But like a growing plant, it must be nurtured or it will wither. Frequent and heartfelt prayers of faith are crucial and needed nutrients. Obedience to the truth you have received will keep the testimony alive and strengthen it. Obedience to the commandments is part of the nourishment you must provide for your testimony.” 
I am currently reading the book Choose Higher Ground by Henry B. Eyring. On page 37 I found another quote about obedience I like.  “However much faith to obey God we now have, we will need to strength it continually and keep it refreshed constantly. We can do that by deciding now to be more quick to obey and more determined to endure”

Joseph F. Smith said, “.Men must not be constrained against their will to obey the will of God; they must obey it because they know it to be right, because they desire to do it, and because it is their pleasure to do it. God delights in the willing heart.”

One last quote that was posted at the MTC when a grandson was there, “Obedience is the price, faith is the power, love is the motive, the Spirit is the key, happiness is the reward, Christ is the reason.”

It is my prayer that we can all obey and sustain the leaders called to direct the work in these Latter-days.  

Lots of love now and forever, Mom, Grandma, Lavona

Conference Center experience

Dear Family and Friends,

I received tonight this letter on e-mail and wanted to share it with you.  I gave this man a tour of the conference center yesterday in Salt Lake City,. I was so impressed with him and his desire to learn.  It was a great thrill for me to introduce the Book of Mormon to him and to bear my testimony about this great book.  I was also privileged to share with him the story of the restoration of the gospel and again bear my testimony.   I could feel the spirit so strong.

I wanted to share with you the letter I received today from this great man.  I hope that the missionaries can continue to teach him.   I am so grateful to be a missionary and the great experiences that I have each week.

Love,
Mom, Grandma, Lavona Richardson

     Mrs. Richardson,
  My name is David Stanton and you gave me my tour of the conference center on Wednesday.  I wanted to thank you for your kindness and enthusiasm in sharing a wonderful building and your faith with me.  I have been most impressed by my visit to Salt Lake.  I want you to know I went to the Deseret book store and purchased a copy of the Book of Mormon and look forward to reading it.  I think too often we as people focus on the divisions between us.  This is especially true when it comes to faith.  I am grateful for the opportunity to have met you and the other kind people of faith I have had the pleasure to meet on my visit here.

  I want to tell you again how much your enthusiasm and joy made me feel very welcome as you took me through the tour.  I spent ten years in the US Army.  I spent a year in Saudi Arabia and a year in Korea.  I have lived in Arkansas, Texas, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Wyoming, and South Dakota during my life.  In all of my travels I have never been more impressed by a place or the people in it than I have been with Salt Lake City and the good people I met.  I have been told by many people that I must remember that there are bad people everywhere, but I choose to focus instead on the fact that there are good people everywhere.  There are no better anywhere than the Mormon people of Faith, including you that I had the pleasure to meet this week.  As a Catholic I am first a follower of Jesus Christ who seeks to reflect His goodness and to live as He commanded.  We share that belief and I recognized in you and the other kind people I met the hearts of followers of Christ.  I hope to come again, and if I do I hope that I can come say hello to you at the conference center.

Thank you again for your kindness and your time,

In Christ,

Dave