Called to Serve

 Our sweet Meggan received her mission call and assignment Tuesday. She will be serving in the Paraguay Asunción North Mission and will be speaking Spanish. She reports to the Mexico MTC on May 28th.

We had a sweet evening with our family. Jordan and Megan and Elder Reimer were all able to join us on Skype. We love that our kids love each other!!

a SWEET year

 I have hit my one year mark of not eating sweets and I have been pondering over the last year and the changes that have been made in me physically, temporally, and spiritually.  I remember wanting to make this change in particular, but feeling weak and uncertain.  I read President Monson's talk about the Book of Mormon and was prompted that if I followed his counsel, I would be blessed. He said, "I implore each of us to prayerfully study and ponder the Book of Mormon each day. As we do so, we will be in a position to hear the voice of the Spirit, to resist temptation, to overcome doubt and fear, and to receive heaven’s help in our lives."

The thought of being able to resist temptation was highlighted for me and I committed to reading the Book of Mormon so that I could be strengthened to stay away from sweets. Reading and pondering daily has not always been easy and has not always happened, but as I have made the effort to do so, I have been strengthened and changed in ways that have been powerful to me. I have been better able to hear and understand the Spirit. I have been able to resist temptation.  I have been guided as how to overcome my doubts and fears. And heaven's help has been manifested in my life...miracles for me and those I love and serve. 

The Book of Mormon is true. Prophets are called of God. He loves His children. I am changed. I am blessed. I am grateful. -Mindy

So Grateful to be a Dad!

I love these girls! They are amazing people! I feel so grateful to be a dad and I want to be better..more present and undistracted as a dad.

Love Connecting Through General Conference

This link explains what General Conference is.  It is such a blessing!

Celebrating our Girls!

Sara turned 14
Meggan started at BYUI
Lena turned 16
And Moge's going to be a mama!
We love our girls!

FamilySearch at Valleyfest

Spent the day with my fam helping others find their fam at Valleyfest! #familysearch #valleyfest2018

Miss This Boy!

This kid has been serving for over a year! 1 to go! We miss him so much, but we are so grateful for his service and example. We know that what he is sharing is true. #socal #calledtoserve

Prayers Do Get Answered

Near the start of the month I was thinking of a friend who used to come to our Church. I was brainstorming what I could do to invite her back. I had seen her around the high school but never really got to talk to her a lot. We didn’t hang out in the same friend-groups and I didn’t have any classes with her. I thought, “What can I do?” I prayed that I would know what I could do. After praying I thought of inviting her to Mutual or Church but didn’t feel like that would work. Finally the thought came to me, "She knows about the Church. She knows she can come to you or your friends about it. If she needs it, she knows where to get it." I felt peace. I knew that was the answer. Pushing too much could push her over the edge and she’d never come. Now I wait and I prepare for when she could need me again. I keep myself open and ready for anything. I know there will be a time when she will come and need someone and I can be there. I know that God answered my prayer and it was the right answer. It brought me peace.

Lena

#LightTheWorld

I remember when I was a 12 year old girl, I was asked to read a scripture in church.  It was Matthew 5: 16 which reads “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”  I remember a feeling that I had in my heart as I read those words.  I felt it personally.  I needed to be a light for my Heavenly Father.  In 3 Nephi: 18:24 in the Book of Mormon it helps us to understand what that light is, “Therefore, hold up your light that it may shine unto the world. Behold I am the light which ye shall hold up—that which ye have seen me do.” 

It is a blessing to learn about our Savior and to try to be like Him.

Isn’t it amazing, though, how easy it is to fall into moods of selfishness and judgement. I have had a bit of a struggle this past month with thoughts of others not doing enough for me.  “Can’t they see how busy I am?”  “Why am I the one doing all of the work?”  “When will it be my turn to get what I want?”  (Yikes! It’s kind of hard to see those thoughts typed out.)  As I allowed myself to focus on these thoughts, I felt even more frustrated and sad and dark.  It was a depressing darkness that made the everyday processes in life feel hopeless. 

After acting out more than I would like to admit on these thoughts, I was led to question what was causing my pain.  Why didn’t I feel light.  And then I remembered the Source of light.  I remember how it feels to care for others as the Savior would.  I remember how it feels to think of others’ needs before my own.  I remember how it feels to be compassionate with myself.  I remember how it feels to know how the Savior and my Heavenly Father feel about me.  I love feeling His light.  I love sharing it.  It is what truly gives me happiness and peace.

How awesome to recognize this again, as we are given an opportunity to share and enjoy the light of Christ as we can participate in the Light the World celebration.  We can practice His teachings on a daily basis and feel His light in our lives and see it in others!  I hope and plan to take the opportunity to celebrate His life in this way.   I hope you do too!  He truly is my light!

The Lord is my light; the Lord is my strength.
I know in his might I’ll conquer at length.
My weakness in mercy he covers with pow’r,
And, walking by faith, I am blest ev’ry hour.

The Lord is my light, my all and in all.
There is in his sight no darkness at all.
He is my Redeemer, my Savior, and King.
With Saints and with angels his praises I’ll sing.
(“The Lord is My Light”, LDS Hymns no. 89)

Mindy

Change

Change can be hard, but I am grateful for change. My boys have changed, and my family is changing. It is hard, but exciting, and it's ultimately so good!

On July 24th Jordan left and moved to Utah. Megan (aka Moge) came up and drove down with him. Jord is living in Lehi and working in Orem and will be going to school.

This past Saturday Jordan proposed to Moge! They will be getting sealed in the Provo City Center temple on October 26th. (Here is why we build and have temples.) We LOVE Moge, and are so glad she will be joining our family.

On June 7th Brendan received the Melchizedek Priesthood and was ordained to the office of Elder.

On August 1st Brendan opened his mission call. He has been called to serve as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and has been assigned to labor in the California Arcadia Mission. He will report to the Provo Missionary Training Center on Wednesday, September 13th, and will prepare to preach the gospel in English.

This past Friday Brendan received his temple endowment in our Spokane temple. This is and was such a sacred, amazing event. I am so grateful for the eternal blessings this does and will provide for Brendan.

I testify that the only way to real happiness is to live the gospel. I love the gospel. I love my sons. I love my family.

Faith and Families are Forever

At the beginning of April our family took a trip to Portland. I have family who I’ve never met who lives in Portland. There have been a few communication attempts between our family. Emails and letters and texts and friend invites. We haven’t been able to reconnect, yet. I didn’t know the names of that family. With this visit to Portland came a renewed want to meet my entire family. Over the next few days, I wrote an email. I asked my dad for the email address and sent an email. For the next several days, I was anxious. I wanted to know if he had replied, and I checked frequently. I was constantly thinking about it. A week later came with no reply. I was super sad. I had imagined this elaborate dream in which this family member read my email and finally wanted to come back and meet me. But that hadn’t happened, at least not yet, so I continued to be sad. It affected me more than I had thought it would. It tore my main focus away from what I really needed to focus on. Finally, I decided I needed to be at peace with the silence. I prayed to my Heavenly Father to help me deal with this sadness. I prayed for help to be ok and at peace. Yes, I also prayed that this family member would respond and that he would know that I love him and his family. But I also know that Heavenly Father has a plan for us. If part of that plan was that he didn’t ever respond, I would need to be ok with that. I needed to trust my Heavenly Father. After that prayer, I’ve had peace. Every time I log into my email account, yes, I hope for a reply, but I’m also trusting in my Heavenly Father and His plan.  I know that one day I’ll meet this family member, whether it’s on this Earth or in heaven in the life after death. I know that we will live forever. I know that families are forever. And that is the hope I hold onto.

Lena

CT Scan and Results, and Future

A text Mindy sent to family on Monday: Hey all...Brad had a scan last week and we found out today it was clean!  Wahoo!  No more scans!!!  Just bloodwork every six months for the next two years.  We are happy for him to have continued health.  :)

3-Year Cancer Survivorship Birthday

Tuesday of this past week marked 3 years since the end of my primary cancer treatment @CancerCareNW (not counting my maintenance chemotherapy).  On that day 3 years ago I finished my last of 6 chemotherapy treatments.  I remember it being a big deal that day - a big deal to the nurses and staff there, and of course a big deal for me and my family.

I think I've written previously about the significance of the 5-year mark when talking about cancer survivorship.  For me, ever since being diagnosed, and since having the experiences me and my family have had over these 3+ years, each and every day has different and deeper meaning for me.

I cherish my relationship with my Heavenly Father - who He is, who I know I am, and what this relationship means to me.  I know He is there, He cares about me, and that He has a perfect plan just for me.  I believe that this plan does not and should not spare me from pain, but when I partner with and rely on Him during my pain and always, it progresses me on the path to returning to Him, and becoming who He wants me to become.  I am so grateful for that.

We Love to See the Temples!

In August Brad’s niece, Brenna, was married in St. George, Utah.  We had the opportunity to drive down there for that wonderful event.  It was fantastic to spend time with our family there.  As we prepared for the trip to southern Utah, we decided to stop at all of the temples (22) along the way.  In our church (as of the date of this post) we have 149 operating temples scattered all over the world (plus 14 under construction, and another 10 that have been announced).

We would like to show you all of our pictures from our visits to the temples, and share information about them with the help of this website: http://mormontemples.org

Rexburg Idaho Temple

Idaho Falls Temple

"Mormon temples are the holiest places of worship on earth for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Within these sacred walls, participants commit to live ethical and morally upright lives and to be faithful to their spouse and family."

Logan (Utah) Temple

Brigham City Utah Temple

"Latter-day saints consider temples to be 'The House of The Lord,' and take great care in their construction and maintenance. They are designed to fit harmoniously into the communities they call home and include beautifully kept gardens and green spaces that are open to the public."

Ogden Utah Temple

Bountiful Utah Temple

Salt Lake City Utah Temple

"Latter-day Saints also believe that having their marriage blessed or 'sealed' in the temple allows family relationships to endure beyond the grave. While legal marriage is binding 'until death do us part,' marriages sealed in the temple can be 'for time and all eternity.'"

Mindy and Brad were sealed in the Salt Lake Temple on August 18, 1993.

Jordan River Temple

Oquirrh Mountain Temple

"Temples are distinct from Mormon chapels. Sunday worship services are held in community meetinghouses and are open to everyone. Temple services are attended Tuesday through Saturday at scheduled intervals by small groups of church members."

Draper Utah Temple

Mount Timpanogos Utah Temple

"Mormons believe that through the grace of Jesus Christ all humanity can return to live with God. Religious observances (ordinances) such as baptism are an important part of accepting the divine gift heavenly Father wants all of his children to receive."

Provo Temple

Provo City Center Temple

(The free public open house for the Provo City Center Temple starts on 

Friday, January 15, 2016, and will go through Saturday, March 5, 2016.

The temple will be dedicated in three sessions on Sunday, March 20, 2016, 

with the cultural celebration taking place on Saturday, March 19.)

Payson Utah Temple

We drove past the site of the Cedar City Utah 

Temple - the groundbreaking was happening the next day.

St. George Utah Temple

"Some of [the] ordinances...performed in Temples...include making special 

promises, or 'covenants,' to put the teachings of Jesus Christ into practice. Because 

some people do not have the opportunity to participate in these ordinances 

during life, Mormons perform them by proxy for ancestors who have passed on."

Manti Utah Temple

Twin Falls Idaho Temple

"Temple worship is an essential aspect of religious practice for latter-day saints. 

It is a source of renewal and inner peace that give meaning to life, 

and strengthens their commitment to love and serve others."

Boise Idaho Temple

We also drove past the site of the Meridian Idaho Temple. 

It is set to be completed sometime in 2017.

Columbia River Washington Temple

Spokane Washington Temple

"To me the temple is literally a place I can relax. There are no worries from the outside world inside that building. It also makes me think of the covenants I made there that guide my life and will continue to help me throughout the rest of my time here on earth. I love being in the temple, helping families be reunited on the other side. Awesome stuff!"

~Jordan

"The temple is an amazing place to be. When I go to the temple, I feel so much peace. I can feel the Spirit so strongly. At the temple I don't have to think about anything except for my Savior and what I'm doing at the temple. School, homework, sports or news don't matter in the temple. I can relax in a way that I can't anywhere else. The temple is so quiet and calm. It's one of my favorite places in the world. I love the temple."

~Lena

A Savior is Born

As a family, we wanted to share this message of joy and love with you.

Please take 2 minutes to watch this video:
https://www.mormon.org/christmas

We love you all, and hope you feel peace at this wonderful time of year.

Love, the Reimers

#ASaviorIsBorn

Mortal Life

Someone once asked President Brigham Young (as a family we believe in living Prophets and Apostles...Brigham Young was the second President of our church - sustained in 1847, and a Prophet and Apostle) if he thought he would live to see the completion of the building of the Salt Lake Temple.  He responded to this question, and his response has been meaningful to me in regards to my thoughts about my life on earth:

"...I do not know, and I do not care...I have never cared but for one thing, and that is, simply to know that I am now right before my Father in Heaven.  If I am this moment, this day, doing the things God requires of my hands, and precisely where my Father in Heaven wants me to be, I care no more about tomorrow than though it never would come.  I do not know where I shall be tomorrow..."  (Journal of Discourses, Vol. 1, p. 132.)

I also recently heard this quote from President Abraham Lincoln:

“...I can die but once; but to live in constant dread of it, is to die over and over again.”

I am so grateful to know of Heavenly Father's plan for me individually, and for our family, and all of His children.  The very, very most important thing in my life is to strive and try to be "right before my Father in Heaven."

Brad

Sunshine, Rainbows, Dandelions, Mud, Soap and Water

Jordan gave us permission to share this part of one of his recent emails.  We are so grateful that he is learning and growing the way he is on his mission in Colorado Springs.  We love Jordan.  We join him in testifying of the power of Atonement of Jesus Christ.

I'll admit, this week was not all sunshine and dandelions for me, but i got through it. I'll talk a little bit more about the hard times here in a sec...

So this week has been a bit harder because it was hard for me/us to stay diligent all the time. It was hard because sometimes when we didn't have anything to do, we felt like we were being really unproductive. That is why we chose diligence for our topic in district meeting, because that is something we were struggling with. I have been trying to continually change myself to what the Lord wants me to be and be obedient and diligent and all the things that i should be, but it has been tough. Me and Elder Ohman have argued a few times this week cause we both think very differently. It happened a lot more in our last area, but i dont want it to happen at all if possible. 

I just have to remember why i am here and what i am doing and keep that perspective and i will be alright. I love this gospel and i love being a missionary. I hope that i can continually be better. I want to increase my personal comittment to my Savior and to the Gospel that i teach to others. I just wanted to include this this week because i feel like sometimes i put off a false image that missionary work is all sunshine and rainbows. It's not. It is hard and disappointing and sometimes instead of sunshine and rainbows you get mud in your face. But i am learning more and more that the atonement is an awesome soap/water combination to get rid of that mud. I hope you all are doing well and that you have an awesome week. I love y'all!

PET Scan and Results, Port Coming Out, Etc.

My most recent PET scan was about a week and a half ago – and my scans are continuing to show no evidence of disease, which we’re so grateful for.

I am scheduled to have my port removed next week on Wednesday ("A port is a small disc made of...metal about the size of a quarter that sits just under the skin. A soft thin tube called a catheter connects the port to a large vein. ...chemotherapy medicines are given through a special needle that fits right into the port. You also can have blood drawn through the port").  I'm looking forward to this for a couple of reasons...

First, my understanding is that doctors are hesitant to remove ports unless they have a significant assurance that the patient will not need any further treatment.  I think ports can stay in for like 10 years...so by default they would have it in if there is any possible need for further treatment.  So, the idea of having it out can be interpreted as meaning I have no need for further treatment now or in the immediate future.  We are, of course, glad for this.

Second, there are times when my port is uncomfortable.  Most of the time it's fine and I don't even recognize that it's there, but other times I do.  Some of those times have been when I have been stretching or exercising.  So, I am looking forward to increasing my physical activity and exercise once this port is removed.

I don't know if they will let me, but I am wanting to keep my port once it is removed. :) We've heard of a couple of other people who have done the same.  Someone said it was made of titanium and cost $8,000....why wouldn't I want to keep it?! :)

One of the most important things I think we have learned and are learning throughout our cancer journey is this principle: “Faith is to agree unconditionally—and in advance—to whatever conditions God may require in both the near and distant future” (Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, Christ and the New Covenant: The Messianic Message of the Book of Mormon [1997], 18–19).  

So, while we feel gratitude that there is no evidence of disease, we also feel overwhelming gratitude about knowing that our loving Heavenly Father has a plan specifically for us, with or without cancer.  And I know that His plan for me is always better than my plan for me, even if I don't understand His plan at first.

I Know My Father Loves Me! (From Meggan)

I had a sweet experience recently at school. A few weeks ago at our school it was finals week, my first one of my high school career. ;) My Science grade wasn't the best because I did badly on several of the chapter tests we had taken in the semester so I had been pretty stressed out about the final I was taking in that class. The things I had heard from others who had taken that class before with this specific teacher didn't help my confidence at all. :) But, I studied hard the week leading up to it, doing everything I could and taking it very seriously. I also prayed fervently to my Father in Heaven for help in remembering the things that I had learned, and in doing well on the test. I said a prayer the day of the final right before I started it and I felt a feeling of peace that came from Heavenly Father. I took the test and I felt very good about it (this didn't really tell me anything, though, because I had felt good about several tests that I had taken before and then failed...). A couple of days later I found out my grade and it was better than the grade I had received on any of the other regular chapter tests I had taken that semester! I know that my Heavenly Father helped me out so much on that test. I know that He loves me and cares for me because he cared enough to give me strength and remembrance for a test; a small thing in His eyes, I am sure. :) I also know that if you pray with real intent and do everything you can then Heavenly Father will help you. I know He is mindful of each of us and the little things in our lives. I am grateful for this experience and how it has strengthened my testimony of Heavenly Father's love for me. :)

Talking to Elder Reimer

Many of you know that our son, Jordan, is serving a full time mission for our church in the Colorado Springs, Colorado area (currently serving in Castle Rock, Colorado).  He left in July 2014 (to learn more about Jordan’s missionary service, click here).  During this two years of service for him, it is important for him to stay focused on his work there, so he does not communicate with anyone at home (other than letter and email) except usually on Christmas day and Mother's Day.

We REALLY looked forward to this opportunity to Skype with him.  We built it up so much, and were so excited, Mindy and I talked beforehand that there could be an inevitable let down (if the technology didn't work, etc.).  Thankfully, there was NO let down!  It was absolutely fantastic to see his face, hear his voice, etc.

In the weeks coming up to Christmas we had written down some questions to ask him, which he graciously answered for us.  We also invited him to share with us his testimony of his beliefs, and of his spiritual growth.  It was amazing to see how much he has grown, and how he is loving and serving others.  Mindy had the idea, towards the end, to say a family prayer together.  Brendan said our prayer - for me it was a very powerful, surreal feeling to say a family prayer as a whole family again.

We love Jordan, and are so grateful for his service.