Eucharistos and Chariti: Translating Thankfulness

Last updated on: November 4, 2022 at 1:47 am By Delisa Hargrove

Happy November! I love exploring the root meanings of words in the scriptures, and the Greek definitions of thankfulness are some of my favorites. Translators used thanks and thankfulness when translating several different words from Greek to English. Two of the coolest root word definitions (to me) are for eucharistos and chariti (found on BibleHub.com.) Eucaristos essentially means “to be grateful, express gratitude towards, to say grace at a meal, to give thanks, thanksgiving.” Today Eucharist is the ritual commemoration... Read more

Finding God in the Fiery Furnace

Last updated on: November 2, 2022 at 5:01 am By Delisa Hargrove

We all find ourselves in life’s crucibles—at the hand of others, as a part of life, or sometimes because of our own choices. Those refining times in a fiery furnace reveal so much about who we are and can help us determine our spiritual trajectory. Next to the Savior’s atoning sacrifice, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego’s crucible story is my all-time favorite. I imagine them standing in a huge throng before the 90-foot version of Nebuchadnezzar. They’d gathered by order of... Read more

“He has sent me…”

Last updated on: October 28, 2022 at 10:28 am By Delisa Hargrove

By Daylen Bushman, written after sending his second son on a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. “I am a child of God, and He has sent me here.” Our Heavenly Father knows who we are and what we did before we came to earth and our potential and growth opportunities we have while we are in this mortal life. Over the past few months, I have reflected on the love that our Father in Heaven... Read more

Come, Drink of the Fountain of Living Waters

Last updated on: October 17, 2022 at 6:55 pm By Delisa Hargrove

Niagara Falls astounded me! What an awe-inspiring force of nature with its 5.9 million cubic feet of water rushing over the falls every minute. On another day, I stumbled upon a little spring in a Scottish field. The water bubbled gently at the surface then flowed in an almost imperceptible rivulet through the field. Both the little spring and Niagara Falls perpetually flowed as fountains of water. Fountain of Living Waters What image comes to mind when you visualize the... Read more

Reaching for the Hem of the Healer

Last updated on: October 14, 2022 at 3:15 pm By Delisa Hargrove

I’m sitting here with a chance to testify that the Lord never fails me when I’m reaching for the hem of the Healer, and I will do that. While visiting family in Utah three weeks ago, I noticed a little painful twinge in my left ear. I shrugged it off to any number of innocuous causes. I hit the ground running when I arrived home; stress levels increased, sleep levels decreased. Four days after returning home, while playing at a... Read more

Edmund Durfee Martyred for His Faith at Morley’s Settlement

Last updated on: August 27, 2022 at 4:27 pm By Delisa Hargrove

Edmund and Magdalena Durfee, Tamma Durfee Miner Curtis Lima existed before the Mormons arrived in Illinois, and from the ranks of settlers already there came several anti-Mormon activists by 1944. Just five miles to the north of Morley’s SEttlement was a non-Mormon district called Green Plains, which, given its proximity, became a staging place for raids against the Mormons. Warsaw, which became a hotbed of anti-Mormon activity that led to the murders of Joseph and Hyrum Smith in... Read more

Unity Through the Doctrine of Christ

Last updated on: August 27, 2022 at 11:03 am By Delisa Hargrove

Unity is “the quality or state of being one, single, whole, complete … forming a whole from separate parts … harmony.” Unity through the doctrine of Christ In His old and new world ministries, Jesus described the manner of men we should be. I would that ye should be perfect [whole, complete] even as I, or your Father who is in heaven is perfect. This unity – perfection, wholeness, completeness – is a process. Unity Through the Doctrine of Christ... Read more

Valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman: Modern & Ancient Ancestral Stories

Last updated on: August 20, 2022 at 6:00 pm By Delisa Hargrove

For me, the valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman is such a meaningful Church historical site. I hadn’t been to the valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman since I was 16 years old. I took a lot of hopes and expectations with me on my recent trip. Discovering the town site contributed to a fantastic overall visit. My cousin Jenni shared an old copy of the town map and prophetic quotes and scriptures about the valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman. I’m excited to share those along with a... Read more

Garden Grove: Stories of Leaving Nauvoo

Last updated on: August 20, 2022 at 12:30 pm By Delisa Hargrove

Garden Grove As the Saints headed westward, Church leaders decided to create a long-term camp at Garden Grove, which was 128 miles from Nauvoo. Parley P. Pratt recorded All things being harmonized and put in order, the camps moved on. Arriving at a place on a branch of Grand River we encamped for a while, having travelled much in the midst of great and continued rains, mud and mire. Here we enclosed and planted a public farm of many hundred... Read more

Far West from Our Ancestors’ Perspectives

Last updated on: August 6, 2022 at 3:41 pm By Delisa Hargrove

After visiting Adam-ondi-Ahman, we drove to Far West. I timed our arrival at sunset. I wanted to be on the temple site after dark as we talked about the fulfillment of a dated prophecy—meeting to continue the foundation of the Far West Temple. The Saints had been driven from the state and a few people gathered in the very early hours of April 26th to see that prophecy fulfilled. Our ancestor was there. We circled our camp chairs in the... Read more

Who was Jonathan's son, crippled as a child, whom David showed kindness?