November 28, 2014 - Friday in the Philippines

Today we celebrate our first week in Laoag and we are meeting some very special people.  I just hope I can express our gratitude properly for the tender mercies and the blessings that have crossed our paths.

We are getting acquainted with the shopping facilities here and we have a senior couple, Elder and Sister Pettingill who gave us some initial tours.  We also met the Richards who have been very helpful in getting us oriented to the city.

Perhaps our biggest hurdle we cleared this week was going out teaching with the sister missionaries last night.  We met two families who were so welcoming to us.  We got to sit with the sisters and in one situation taught about the importance of Scripture reading and in another situation they taught about faith.  In both families, mom and I were able to contribute and bear testimony.  It was our first opportunity to feel like missionaries!

Yesterday was our first district meeting and we sat with Elders and Sisters in a 90 minute training.  These Elders and Sisters were so sharp in the Gospel!  Some were short timers who will be leaving in December and some were just in the beginning weeks of their missions.  They were from all over; Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Philippines, Tonga, Canada, and they were all very engaged in the work of the rescue!  The one lesson I was able to appreciate the most was taught by the district leader, "We are called to the Philippines because the Lord knew we could handle it".  Now that was profound and made a huge impact on me because sometimes we think that what the Lord asks us to do is more than we can handle. That is a tool of the adversary!  But, because He knows us and what we are uniquely qualified to offer, we can do hard things and fulfill our purposes to serve and build and bear testimony!

The Filipino People are very religious and very receptive to prayer and discussions about Jesus.  We saw pictures of the Savior in both homes we visited last night.  We are grateful to be here and we are ever thankful for your prayers!!

Check out the additional pictures this past week that were just posted on previous blogs!

The foundation being dug

The family that will have the house

Here are some pictures of the house foundation and the family receiving the humanitarian aid.  The people are very poor and this is why the Richards family is here to help build housing.  This house will be 16' by 20' with no interior walls.  There is no plumbing or electrical and several families will be living here.  They are very excited to have this new addition.  That is mom in the purple dress.  We were humbled to meet this family.

November 25, 2014 - 3rd day in Laoag

Mom and I met some great people yesterday.  A family by the name of Richards who have moved here from Utah with their 6 children to experience the culture of the Philippines.  Brother Richards served his mission to the Philippines in the 1990's and has returned with his family to do humanitarian work here.  He has been such a blessing to mom and I!  He has helped me get the internet up here in the apartment and even though it is very slow, we can still connect with the blog and with email!!!  Yea!

So mom and I continue to meet so many wonderful people who have been set in place to help us in our transition here.  We are working hard to stretch ourselves and get acclimated,  to this extremely different way of life and we see progress each day.  Thank you for your prayers!

We will meet for the first time our mission president and his wife this Saturday.  He has been away at a mission president's conference and we will get together and see how we can help him in his responsibilities.  In the meantime, we are settling in, cleaning the apartment and getting ourselves oriented to the area.  

I had my first haircut today and here was the process; hair washed, head massage, hair dry, back and shoulder massage, hair cut meticulously, then another hair was and head massage and I was done.  Price?  $4.25USD!

Again we are connecting with some wonderful people who have taken our transition under their wings.  In addition we have felt the prayers of our family and friends and will be eternally grateful.

David's Hair Salon - Elder Lasher's 1st visit

Catholic Church mid 1500's

November 24, 2014 - Welcome to Laoag

After a long anticipated journey that began back at the mailbox in Rigby on the 3rd of September, mom and I have arrived in Laoag!  We flew in from Manila this morning and we arrived in the Laoag Airport at about 1:15pm and what an interesting airport!  We departed from the airplane on to the tarmac and the air was warm and a little muggy.  But the thing I have first been impressed with is the fresh air and then the kindness of the people.  This is such a beautiful area!

We were met at the airport by the AP's and the Senior Couple the Pettigills.  They were such a welcomed sight and so friendly and helpful!  

We first went to the mission home and received an orientation to the mission.  We will be having our own car.  I will need to get a Philippine Drivers License and that should be interesting.  In Manila, there are maybe two full lanes of driving with up to 5 cars competing for those two lanes.  I was overwhelmed with how the drivers were able to "fill the gaps" so quickly and still make left and right turns.  In the process there were motorcycles, pedestrians and dogs and animals to keep from hitting.  I could not believe the patience and the calmness that prevailed!

Needless to say, this senior missionary couple was overwhelmed with the new environment but we were happy to note that Laoag is much more quite and simple.  The Pettingills were so good to us.  They took us under there wings and we went shopping for some necessities for the apartment.  

More precious notes

AM Study

Our Dryer & Extra Bedroom

Dining area from the front door

Bedroom

D

Livingroom

Dining area

The precious notes!

HO! HO! HO!

View of the plane arriving in Laoag

 

 

 

Laoag International Airport 11/24/14

 

AP's and Elder and Sister Pettingill greet the new missionaries!

November 23, 2014 - Sunday

We made it to the Philippines!  We arrived late last night after some 8,000 air travel miles and 28 hours of actual travel miles... A trip I won't mid taking one more time!

We traveled on some huge aircraft that held 320 passengers.  There were 4 classes of passenger travel and we sat on the very back row of the economy class!  It was probably the most challenging for me to sit for such long periods of time!  We never did see the sun set until we arrived in Manila.  That was interesting!

So, it is now official, Sister Lasher and Elder Lasher are full time missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  We had many very interesting conversations just from people seeing our name badges.  

We had several former missionaries come right up to us and engaged in some wonderful dialog.  We also had several folks who talked to us who had great admiration for the missionary efforts of the Church.  

My appreciation goes out to all the missionaries, who may never quite understand the impact they have had on people, who have impressed these kinds of people.  They were very complimentary about all the missionaries they have seen in their travels throughout the world.  It is such a privilege to be a part of this great world-wide work!

Mom and I had a comfortable room last night.  We had representatives from Church Travel meet us at the Manila Airport and took us to our room.  We got to the room just a little before 11pm and we were tired.  But it was really only about 8am in the morning Rigby time!  We have an adjustment period for sure!  

We meet for our Church meetings this afternoon with a small branch.  A brother will be picking us up in about 2 hours and we will meet with our first Church members!  More to come!

Well, we made it to the Branch Meeting that started at 2pm Philippine time and met some absolutely wonderful people!  Brother Clem has been our driver coordinator and we finally met him and his family.  What a pleasant and happy group of brothers and sisters.  We instantly felt that we were a part of their congregation.

For each of our grandchildren taking piano lessons or who might be thinking about taking these lessons, this is a note for you!  The branch lost their pianist about 3 months ago when he moved out of the area.  One of the counselors in the Bishopric has 3 daughters ranging in age from 11 years old to about 8 years old.  After a few weeks without a pianist, their dad asked them if they would like to play since they knew a little about the piano.  They were NOT receptive to that idea but dad was persistent and encouraged them to at least try.  Well, we heard them play today and they were not only good at playing the Hymns for the Sacrament services, but they were happy to be doing it.  They were so excited when we met them to tell us about their callings to play!

The rest of the meetings were great with many of the branch members participating.  There were several testimonies that were shared about miracles in their lives and in missionary service.  Probably the most touching came at the end of the meetings when another Primary young girl came up to us and said she wanted to be a missionary "just like us".   Tell me Heavenly Father doesn't know each of us and where He needs us to serve!  We sure found out today that two senior missionaries discovered that their service is needed here in the Philippines....  

November 20, 2014 - Thursday

As most of our family will agree, this last two weeks has gone by quickly.  The MTC experience was absolutely amazing!  The last members of our district left today and mom and I shed some tears over the friendships we have made.  

Sister Chao was the last in out district to leave today and then mom and I are leaving tomorrow morning at 5am.  Our flight leaves Salt Lake at 8:30am tomorrow, and we arrive Saturday late in the afternoon in Manila, Philippines.  We will stay in Manilla for a few days as our Visas are processed and then we are off to our mission field of labor. 

This experience in the MTC has been so good for mom and I.  As you can imagine, being together as full time missionary companions takes adjusting time.  The best thing we have done to transition more perfectly is talk to one another and not only express our concerns, but also express our love for each other.

An interesting tender mercy presented itself early this morning as we were doing our last load of laundry at 5:30am.  Mom started reading her Patriarchal Blessing that we both brought on a laminated card, and she was amazed at the parallels those promises and blessings had for her full time missionary service.  The Lord has confirmed on so many occasions that He needs His missionaries in the mission field now.  We are grateful we could be a part of this great work!

Sister Lasher at the MTC laundry - last day! (Dad took the picture!)

Elder Lasher at the Provo Temple - last day (Mom took the picture!)

November 19, 2014 - Wednesday

Today is sunny and in the mid 40's here at the MTC.  We are winding down our training for the mission office portion of our stay here so we checked the mail early!  What a wonderful surprise we had waiting for us with a package from home and wonderful notes from our Rigby 10th Ward friends!  Thank you so much to the activity that the Young Women had to write the missionaries!  In a future day, precious young women, you will recognize just how much this meant to each of us away from home!

We also received many precious notes from our grandchildren and an idea came to me that will help me enhance this blog!  I am going to start a grand children's corner and answer each one of their questions they have!  We love those precious notes!  They will be wall decorations in our apartment in Laoag!

I got these pictures today.  Ali sent me the winter storm in New York very close to where we "thought" we would like to serve a two year mission..... Seneca Lake, New York.  Perhaps by a show of hands, which one would you choose?

Laoag, Philippines!

Let's see.... Philippines or New York - Seneca Lake area??

November 18, 2014 - Tuesday

Sister Chao - Taiwan Mission Secretary - 84 years old and serving!

 

 

 

November 17, 2014 - Monday

We began our 3rd week of training this morning as we wind down our time here in the MTC.  Mom and I are both going through the mission office training and today they began with some nifty computer basics that included word and excel training.  I have used both extensively and I picked up some new things that will be very helpful!  Mom was also happy to be there as many pieces of information made more sense to her.

It was cold and sunny today and it seems that we will have these brisk days the rest of the week.  Mom and I got some good news tonight that we sold our car and that was wonderful!  We also got a sweet note from our adopted daughter, Lindsay Gallenger, one of Amy's friends in high school.  We were so happy to hear from her!  Thank you, Lindsay, for your uplifting note!  It helped make our day!

The sale of the Subaru came at a very good time for us.  It will help out our monthly expense commitment, but that is only part of the great news.  Tommy was communicating with the buyer and found out we were selling the car to help us in serving this mission.  The buyer was so grateful to know this and he and his wife were told by Tommy that they were an answer to prayers for us.  Then he told Tommy that us selling the car was an answer to their prayers.  It was very tender for some of us as we shed tears of joy for knowing that Heavenly Father really does look out for His Children as they try to do His work and keep His commandments.  This news was very humbling for me.

November 16, 2014 - Sunday

This has been a great day in the MTC!  We started off today fasting for certain miracles to happen for our family and we are already seeing His Hand in our prayers!  We had Sacrament right after breakfast time and then we got to go to an assembly hall here at the MTC and watch Music and the Spoken Word broadcast to us.  The opening song on today's broadcast?  "Called to Serve"!  We currently have dozens of countries where the MTC missionaries are going out to this week so it was very appropriate when the Tabernacle Choir sang as the closing song, "When the Saints Go Marching In"!!  Yes, we are in the right place at the right time and we are reminded of that so many times each day.

I have a note to our precious grandchildren; we hope you will each prepare well to be a missionary!  There is no better way to spend two years of your young lives in serving the Lord.  I would encourage each of you who are taking piano lessons to learn the piano well.  What a tremendous blessing this will be to you and thousands who hear you play.  And the neat part about this is that when you play, you are playing for Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ!  

Prepare well and practice your music as much as you study the words of the Gospel in the Scriptures every day.  You will quickly know, in a setting like this, that your talents will be magnified one hundred fold in His service!  Learn the piano and any other instrument where you can express your love to Heavenly Father.  And I would suggest that you also take any opportunity to learn how to conduct music and sing in the Choir.  Needless to say, we have had piano solo's, singers and violin performances over the last week that have been amazingly special.  And the performers were all young missionaries who literally sang praises to Jesus Christ and brought such a neat Spirit to our meetings!

I also learned something special today as well.  We are currently being trained in the "MTC" or Missionary Training Center.  How about this other meaning for "MTC"?  My Time with Christ?  Food for thought because this is just that!  There isn't a place here in or on this campus where that Spirit does not have the potential to reside!

Like we have said, we have met so many excited missionaries ready to serve.  It has been fun to get to know them and find out where they are from and where they have been called to serve.  We met several missionaries yesterday and today from the Philippines going to places like Eugene Oregon, Mississippi and Kansas.  Everyone going to some new area to teach and preach the Gospel and they are so happy to do it!

And just think, Granny and Grandpa have joined their ranks and we are happy to do so!  And we love you so very much for your love and support!!!  THANK YOU!

 

November 15, 2014 - Saturday

On this Saturday, mom and I had a very relaxing day here at the MTC.  We had no formal classes so we took advantage of our "P" (preparation) day and got up at 5:30am for a 30 minute workout on the tread mill and went to breakfast.  We got our laundry done and we took some time in our room to fold clothes and talk about our choice opportunity to be full time missionaries.  

Being full time missionaries is a family affair for each of us in our family.  We are very grateful for the love and the support from each person following us on this blog!  Please note that today, with my precious companion's help, we downloaded two new pictures!!!  Check it out!  

One is with Josh and Amy's 30 minute visit and mom and I pointing out our mission field on the huge world map in the MTC hallway.  All missionaries traditionally take this picture pointing out their field of labor.  Bob pointed out Guatemala, Josie pointed out Finland, Tom pointed out New York, Josh pointed out Australia, and Jared pointed out the Philippines.  A great family tradition and sooner than we can imagine, the grandchildren will be pointing out their fields of labor in the coming years!  How sweet will that be???!!!

We attended the Provo Temple this afternoon with our friend Sister Chao.  Let me tell you a little bit about her and the love that mom and I have developed for her and so many others.  She lost her husband about 8 years ago.  They joined th Church in the year 1976 and were sealed in the temple in August 1977.  Guess which temple????  The Los Angeles Temple! Where mom and I were married in February 1977!  She is 84 years old as I have mentioned before and she has the energy of many who are 20 years younger.  She loves to walk and take the stairs instead of the elevator.  When we take the stairs with her I'm the one huffing and puffing!  She will be an office missionary for her son-in-law who is the Mission President in her mission Taiwan.  Pretty special opportunity!   She will serve for 12 months.

We also were able to Skype Amy and Cambry and Isaac tonight. With Amy's help I think we worked out a few bugs!

Mom and I are finding a new closeness that we have not experienced in our first 38 years together.  We are so excited to serve the people of the Philippines together, and we are so grateful for the love and the support we receive from our family and friends.  Thank all of you for your loving kindness and for the expressions of support that we have received over the past 3 months.  

We are finding that our love for one another grows stronger each day.  We are especially finding out how much we are looking forward to serving in the Philippines.  There is no way we could turn back on this precious opportunity.  We know from just one week here at the MTC that we would turn away from so many blessings if we were to go back home now.  We have begun a journey that will be a treasure for us and for our family and friends, so hold on tight!  We are one full week into this mission and we can't wait to see the end from the beginning!  It promises to be exceptional!!

November 14, 2014 - Friday

Elder and Sister Lasher with Amy Jeppson - Photography by Josh!

Today ended our first week here at the MTC and what a special week!  The next time you see a returned missionary give them a hug and thank them for their service!  All the missionaries are very special and I can see how Heavenly Father loves them so much.  They are here and willing to serve and have made this sacrifice to be here.  I look at them as at least trying to be obedient even if a few of them end up going home early.  At least they put forth that effort and I am grateful for their wonderful example.  They are full of enthusiasm and vitality and it is contagious!  

And then there are these wonderful returned missionaries who are so filled with light and happiness for having served faithfully!  What a pleasure it is to be around them!  All the trainers and teachers are returned missionaries.  We had Sister Kacher as one of our instructors and she served in Cambodia.  If you aren't sure who that is take a look at the last General Conference Ensign on page 104.  Elder Kacher is her father and she is "Nellie" in the talk.

We said goodbye to our district and several senior couples today.  We represented 17 countries we were going out to serve in and some left Wednesday, and most left today and a few of us have another week here.  There were so many of these senior missionaries both couples and single sisters who have made tremendous sacrifices to be here.  However not one would consider it a sacrifice to be on the Lord's errand. 

Want to know the BEST part of today?  Amy and Josh came by after dinner tonight to spend a precious 30 minutes with us.  It was a wonderful reunion and a glimpse of the great reunion planned for 2016!  It was good for all of us to know that we are all OK!

It has been a good day!  And now I'm closing this posting and will continue to enjoy James Paul Kenny!

Photography by Josh!  Left to right Grandpa, Amy, Granny!

November 13, 2014 - Thursday

What a great day this was!  We have been working on the Preach My Gospel lessons and mom, (Sister Lasher), and I work well together.  What a blessing it is to be able to serve with her and for both of us to be healthy and able!  It's from all those meal prayers where the food DID nourish our bodies!  Tender mercy!!

I was able to download James Paul Kenny's 3 CD's on my lap top and Brother Kenny, those 36 songs are absolutely inspiring to me!  Thank you for sharing your talents with the world!  I hope everyone will get copies for themselves and family and friends.  I can't say that I have a favorite song but track #2 on the Joyful Noise brings a sweet and precious spirit into my heart.

We will say good bye to many friends tomorrow.  One senior couple left yesterday afternoon for Singapore and flew throughout the night.  He actually was a friend whom we met in Rexburg at the temple.  He and his wife were temple workers that we saw frequently.  I also found out he was in charge of the airshow in Rexburg where we took the food truck three years ago.

We had the opportunity to attend the temple tonight with Elder and Sister Sanders, a senior missionary couple whom we have come to love.  They are headed to South Africa, Ghana, and will also be serving as medical missionaries.  Sister Sanders is a nurse and Elder Sanders will be working in member support, the same duties that I think I will be having.

Sister Lasher and I are amazed at how special the MTC is.  We are grateful for all those who serve and work here.  This is a very special place.

Wednesday November 12, 2014 (Day 3 MTC)

Sister Lasher and I had a great day as we continued our MTC experience.  We want to thank those who are following our blog!  It is so good to hear from you and feel of your love and encouragement! This has been a bitter sweet experience so far.  We are meeting some wonderful senior couples That have some amazing faith promoting stories that we are grateful for.  Also, we saw a new group for 400 fresh missionaries enter the MTC today!  The royal army's reinforcements and what a great group of missionaries!  There are over 2,000 here this week!  If we can just focus on this we won't be quite as sad to be away from our precious family for a season!

We received our first package today from our kind friends Paul and Sue Kenny.  We were given their three CD's and I am downloading them on my computer, (as soon as I can figure that out)!  I love the Kenny's and thank them for their kind package and their gift of music.  Thank you Kenny's!!

Let me tell you about one of our senior missionary single sisters.  She came from a less active family and got back into the church because of some loving neighbors.  Good, kind, active neighbors can have a profound affect on people!  That is why I am convinced that getting to know our neighbors is a huge part of this missionary effort!  Her parents became active decades later but her siblings have yet to come back.  This precious sister lost her husband just a few years ago coming home from a Hawaiian vacation when he had a heart attack on the return cruise line and died.  She is filling that commitment with very little support and with a strong testimony.  She is inspiring to our group!

This is why we are here.  We dearly miss our precious family and friends, but we have a message to share and some talents we can use to contribute to this great work.  In fact, we all have special talents that we can use to help build up our Heavenly Father's Kingdom wherever we are!  Let's use those talents and join and support a royal army of dedicated missionaries taking His  Word to all the world! Even, (and especially), to our own neighborhoods!!

God bless you family and friends of the Laoag Blog!  We love you!

MTC the Second Day

The training here at the MTC is intense.  There is a wonderful Spirit here and some very well qualified teachers.  Each one of our instructors have served a full time mission and have been home anywhere from 3 weeks to several years.  I can tell that they love the Gospel as they teach us the principles found in Preach My Gospel.

The training and responsibilities are on a fast flow! It can be quite overwhelming at times!  We are exposed to so many scenarios in teaching the Gospel, in being the medical resource missionaries and in living up to the expectations of a full time missionary.  The obvious lesson here is that we are not in charge.  This is the work of the Lord.

We have met some very special senior missionaries here over the last two days.  There are three single sisters who are leaving family and businesses and going out to assist in the work of salvation.  One sister is 84 years old and going into the mission home in Japan.  One lost her husband on a vacation cruise coming home from Hawaii and one had to raise a family of 5 after her husband left her 20 years ago.

There are some amazing faith promoting testimonies here at the MTC.  One realization I have come to after watching these precious missionaries coming and going is that they have all left the comforts of their homes to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Mom and I are grateful to be a part of this Sacred Army!

We attended a devotional tonight with Bishop Davies, 2nd counselor in the Presiding Bishopric.  He made a wonderful presentation but what I took away from him and his wife is the love that they share.  After Sister Davies spoke, Bishop Davies got up and gave her a big hug and put his thumbs up to the congregation and then he told us about their relationship and said he has always loved her and that he is not afraid to show it.  That was not only touching but remarkable that he would set that wonderful example in front of 2,000 missionaries.

The first day!

November 10, 2014 - Precious grandchildren waving "goodbye" for a season!

The morning started off with lot's of tears and anticipation.  Mom and I had breakfast but we really weren't too hungry if you know what I mean.  I had a sweet experience giving one of my daughters a blessing and playing and encouraging each of our precious grandchildren.

Then we loaded up the Tundra and Bob took the wheel and he and Josie and Amy and Ali  had the precious duty to deliver two Senior Missionaries to the MTC in Prove some 65 minutes away...There were more tears but we talked about how great it is to be a part of this family.

We arrived at the MTC a few minutes early and got checked in quickly.  We then drove around the building and unloaded the Senior Missionaries luggage and had 2 or 3 minutes to say goodby.  That is by far the hardest thing we have had to do!

But we had missionaries help us get to our room and then we started a fast paced orientation process.  We had no more time to think!  What a blessing that was!

We've met several couples and single sisters today and I was asked to be a District Leader for a group of 8 senior missionaries.  One of those single sisters is an 84 year old who is headed to Japan for 12 months to work in the mission office.  Her son in law is the Mission President.  That is the kind of dedication we have been exposed to over the last 9 hours.

This will be a great mission because we have such great support at home!  We love our family and we are grateful to be able to serve this mission!

Senior Missionaries!  Elder and Sister Lasher

Tomorrow

Today was the Holy Sabbath Day and we were all together for our Sunday Meetings.  Can you imagine getting all 27 members of this family ready for the 9:00am Sacrament Meeting and being on time?  Well we did it and we enjoyed having this opportunity to be together.  

It is very crazy having 17 grandchildren under the age of 11 and 10 adults.  We are grateful for the hospitality of Josh and Amy and having them be so kind to open their home up for a Lasher Family "controlled chaos" family reunion.... well, perhaps not so controlled .....

We have shared some very emotional moments here this last few days.  It is interesting that mom and I have talked about this opportunity for over 35 years and now we are at that point of making that complete commitment.  I must admit that it was so much easier to "talk" about it that it is to "just do it".  It is the difference between day and night.  We know that the Adversary would love it if we just stayed home and take the easy route of being here with our family.  And that could be easy but what a mistake that would be.  It is press forward and no looking back and let the mission experience begin!!!   

Even though it may be hard ....................

It will definitely be worth it!

Let tomorrow begin.......

The Day After Tomorrow

I can imagine how we all feel about a much anticipated event coming "the day after tomorrow".  In our case, the day after tomorrow is the beginning of the MTC for these two senior missionaries.  And what an emotionally anticipated day it has become!

Granny called Pop Pop this Saturday morning as part of a long term routine of talking to her precious father every week since we were married 38 years ago.  She has rarely missed a weekly call, but this call is very unique since she won't be able to call him every week from the Philippines.  He is healthy and alert and plays golf two and three times each week, and he lives in Virginia Beach.  Helen talks to him every week and usually flies out to see him every year.  This was a hard day for her as she hung up the phone.

Then we had our Thanksgiving dinner together this afternoon and that was equally hard for Granny and Grandpa and the kids.  It was a fun day and we enjoyed walks and playing in the park together and that is just the formula for what memories are made of.

We so often take our family relationships for granted.  We see the children and grandchildren almost every day.  We talk on the phone and make plans for special occasions and love being with one another.  It is just at that time of our lives that we finally can enjoy the "fruits of our labors" but are we ready to take the next step and sacrifice who we are for who we can become?  That is the big question!  And we are ready to make that commitment.

We are so very grateful for this time with our family.  We have been stretched and have experienced unbelievable growth together and now we get to take this to the next level to help share this precious Gospel with a new group of people.  But we are not leaving anything behind as we strive to  strengthen this already strong family relationship.  Our precious children will be resilient and will look out for each other and will continue to be a blessing to mom and me. They always have been.

What a great blessing it is to be a part of this precious family!  We are committed to living together through the eternities as a family.  I would not trade our previous experiences or those that await us for any other mortal reward!

Friday with the family gathering

We are all coming together on this beautiful Friday afternoon.  Tom and Josie and Zac and Hayley and Jack and Mia and Emma arrived this afternoon and Bob and Mary and Bobby and Jacob and Anna and Johnny finally arrived with Jared this evening around 7pm.  This time together this weekend is a very special opportunity for us to share some time together and make plans for our reunion of 2016. 

We all took a long walk together this afternoon and had dinner together this evening and had some dinner for Bob and Mary and Jared who arrived after dinner.

Mom and I treasure this time together, but we are ready to start our mission!  We know that the Lord has called us to serve and we are ready.  We are already making plans to re unite!  But seriously, we are humbled by all those who have been so supportive and have been so kind to us as we make these final arrangements.  Each of you know who you are who have made these extra efforts on our behalf.  

Thank you!  Any may the Lord's choicest blessings be with you until we meet again.

The Wednesday before MTC!

We are at Amy and Josh's home in Utah are getting ready to enter the MTC this entire week.  Helen and I are here with the Jeppson family and Ali and Cody and Maddie and Landon and Kenzie. Amy went with us to the Bountiful Temple this morning and we all knew this was our last temple trip with family for the next two years. 

Although we are sad to part for a season, we are grateful for this opportunity to serve and consecrate our time and talents for the Lord's Kingdom.  We have the greatest family and we are so grateful for their love and support.  We all know that this time will go by quickly once we get started on Monday.  

Cody and Maddie and Landon and I took a little field trip this afternoon.  We had lunch and a playtime in the park and a scavenger hunt and we had a great time together!  Cody was such a big helper when we crossed the creek and he made sure Maddie and Landon got across safely.  We collected leaves and counted bugs and birds and listened for the sounds on the trail and even stopped to smell the air along the trail.  We had a great time together!

The week before the MTC

We are here with the Jeppson Family for our final family week.  Ali and Cody and Maddie and Mackenzie came with us and provided our transportation!  The Sathre's and the Lasher Jr's. along with Jared will join us Friday for an early Thanksgiving weekend.  Helen and I put our car up for sale on consignment at the Idaho Falls Subaru Dealer.  We are totally dependent on the Lord and have consecrated all that we have, materially, to serve this mission.  We love our precious family and we love the opportunity to serve this mission.  I know that we will all be strengthened and blessed for this effort.  We could not serve this mission without the love and support of this precious family.

Our agreement between Zac and me

Zac will be the first grandson to receive the Aaronic Priesthood and be ordained to the office of a Deacon in 2015.  Granny and I will miss this sacred ordination.  I have a special Onyx rock that has the word "remember" painted on it.  I decided to give it to Zac as part of his preparation to receive the Aaronic Priesthood in June 2016.  I told him that the word remember would be a special word for him.  It would remind him to remember that he is loved by his earthly parents and his Heavenly Parents.  I told him that both sets of parents had a great deal of trust in him and that with this love and trust, he could be a great Priesthood holder as he prepares well over the next 19 months.  We spoke of ways to prepare and I suggested he carry the rock in his pants pocket to "remind" him of who he is and who he can become.  He then gave me a prized obsidian pointed rock that I could carry and be reminded of what great potential he has.  I know he will prepare well.

Next Stop - The Jeppsons!

Today we left Idaho for the last time over the next two years.  It was a difficult day to leave our precious children and grandchildren.  I had a wonderful experience with Zac, Hayley, Jackson and Mia last night.  We had an Idaho Family party and after the festivities, the kids and I went downstairs to give mom a break and clean up the living room and the toy room.  The kids were very receptive to helping and we quickly got the living room in great shape.  As we began the toy room, Hayley came over to me and started crying and said she did not want me to go on the mission.  It was a very tender moment and both Jack and Mia began crying as well.  We talked together for about an hour on how Heavenly Father needed us to help share the Gospel in the Philippines and how much we needed to be obedient in spite of how hard it was going to be for all of us.  We started making plans for what was to take place both in Rigby and in the Philippines and what we each could do to help us serve an honorable mission.  I was so very grateful for the sacred time with those precious grandchildren.

Faith Precedes the Mission Miracles!!!

"Does not each of us confront those moments in life when faith and the reason of the world are seemingly incompatible and we must choose between the two? We find ourselves at a spiritual crossroad—one path paved with the knowledge and reason of man, the other paved with faith in God. It may come when there is a lack of funds to pay our tithing. It may knock when the Lord calls us to a position far beyond our natural abilities. It may be when we are called to serve at a moment of inconvenience. It may come with the loss of a job, the death of a loved one, or a sudden unexpected illness, but come it will. Do not all men, at some time in their lives, face that dilemma—the reason of the world versus faith in Jesus Christ? Moses experienced it. He had just freed the children of Israel. He now led them on a seemingly suicidal course direct for the Red Sea. The Egyptian armies were in hot pursuit. The powers of reason no doubt cried out: "Veer to the left or to the right. To proceed straight ahead is a death trap—pinned against the wall of the Red Sea on the one side, the fast-approaching Egyptian army on the other." But Moses was steadfast in his course. March they would, directly toward the Red Sea. The Israelites, seeing their fate, fearfully cried out, "It had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness" (Exodus 14:12). Moses was alone. The power of reason and the power of the people combined against him with a raging fury. But deep within his soul was a power that far exceeded the powers known to man, a power that drove him on against the world, against all seeming odds, against all that was rational and reasonable in life. It was the power of faith. It proved to be his—and his people's—temporal and spiritual salvation."

— The Infinite Atonement by Tad R. Callister

The extended Lasher Family!

This is our family as of September 2014.  Helen and I have been blessed with 17 grandchildren from our children and their spouses.  This was the reunion in Utah at Amy and Josh's home on our birthday weekend. From left to right are the Brown Family (Madeline, Mackenzie, Jared, Cody, Ali (Lasher), Landon, the Sathre Family,  Zac, Hayley, Tom, Emma, Jackson, Josie (Lasher), Mia, The Lasher Jr's, Jacob, Johnny, Mary, Bob III, Anna, and Bob Jr., Granny and Grandpa, and the Jeppson Family, Amy (Lasher), Josh, Cambry, Isaac, Courtney and Callie.  We love our family and we are so grateful for their love and their support for us!  To our grandchildren and their parents, we will pray for you everyday of our mission and will look forward to our sweet reunion in the fall of 2016 and seeing how this family will change in number and in stature and in testimony!

Eternal Friends!

Helen and I had a family party to celebrate our birthdays this year at Amy and Josh's home in Utah. My birthday was on the 28th of August and Helen's was on the 3rd of September.  This surprise reunion was on Saturday August 30th and our children invited very dear friends to come to Fruit Heights to celebrate with us before we received our mission call.  They are Jim and Mar jean Parker, (one of our Bishop's in the Fremont 6th Ward), Hank and Sherie Tillman, (Hank and I served together in an Elders Quorum Presidency in Fremont, and Sherie worked with me at Longs  Drugs), Ron and Carol Wakley, (Ron was our Home Teacher in Fremont), and Earle and Karen McEwen, (I served as Earle's counselor in the Creekside Ward Bishopric).  Also included in the reunion but not pictured was the missionary who taught me the discussions back in 1971 and his wife, Skip and Leona Chandler.  This was such a wonderful surprise and reunion of eternal friendships!