Banbury Ward of
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Message from the Bishopric

Dear Banbury Ward,

As Come Follow Me suggests in its first line for this week’s study, for those of us living in these latter days, we have special reason to pay attention to the story of the Flood. When Jesus Christ taught how we should watch for His Second Coming, He said, “As it was in the days of Noah, so it shall be also at the coming of the Son of Man.” (Joseph Smith – Matthew 1:41). The world in which Noah lived was corrupt and filled with violence, much like it is today in our current world. We have read in the Book of Mormon about the cycles of wickedness that occurred so many times and the Tower of Babel that clearly showed deep divisions amongst the people. In Noah’s days, many families were torn apart, and many were prideful such that “every man was lifted up in the imagination of the thoughts of his heart, being only evil continually.” (Moses 8:22)

Noah was a righteous prophet, and he did everything he could to urge the people to repent and return to God. They wouldn’t listen but he persisted in preaching with a plea to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ and to receive the Holy Ghost. The people shunned the light of Christ he shared, and the Earth ripened for the Flood. Something that has always stuck out to me in this story is how Noah, while preaching to the people, also made sure he fully taught his family the gospel and led them in righteousness to keep them safe from the corruption. The Lord fulfilled His promise and protected them by instructing Noah to build the Ark.

We have our own Noah’s Ark today in a living prophet, President Dallin H. Oaks. He gave an excellent talk in the October 2025 conference about the family centered gospel of Jesus Christ. Families come in many different varieties, and the Lord loves them all, no matter how they are made up. Our doctrine and belief in “eternal families” strengthens us and bonds us. President Oaks said we learn eternal values, the purpose of life, the importance of marriage and children, and other essential lessons in life about kindness, forgiveness, self-control, and education/honest work. He said that families unite to strengthen one another, and we should remember that the sins and inevitable shortcomings that all of us in a family experience in mortality can be forgiven because of the glorious Atonement.

I’ve often thought of my role as son, husband, father, and grandfather and wondered if I have done enough so far as a parent. Did I spend the time required to learn these sacred truths and then teach my girls what was necessary about the gospel I know is true? We should never get down about ourselves when we reflect on how we do as parents (that is Satan’s plan to have us doubt) but instead should reflect on all that we did and try to do. Heavenly Father loves effort and sacrifice. Families and extended families flourish when they stick together, pray together, worship together, and create memories and traditions. Pres. Oaks said that if we find time to do what is truly worthwhile, parents and family members will find that they can turn their family on, especially if they turn their technologies off. Children/grandchildren will remember when you spent those dinner times with them or when you helped with schoolwork or played with them. Most of all they will be blessed by the love you shared with them.

We have so many loving and kind people in our ward, and we want you to know how thankful we are for everyone’s goodness. The single, the married, the widowed, the stepfamilies, etc. – we all come together for a united purpose. We are trying our best to follow Jesus’s example and are all imperfect beings with the best of intentions. Let us remember to always be of service to each other and to extend a hand to any that is in need. I testify that President Oaks is a true prophet. He just gave the BYU devotional this week and stated that members in times of doubt should work hard to get to know the Savior personally. His four tips to doing so were to Strengthen our Faith in Him, Increase our Humility, Seek Help from Others, and Be Patient. I think this is very wise counsel when we think about building our own Noah’s Ark. May your families be blessed for your efforts and may you all believe in Him who has the power to help.

With much love,

Brother Thomas

• Choir Practice - Sundays at 2:00 p.m.

• Youth Camps this year will be the week of June 22-27.

• Cleaning the Temple  - CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP  - Our stake has been assigned to clean the Meridian Temple the week of February 16, 2026.  We were asked to have 15 volunteers each day.  Cleaning in the temple is a wonderful way to experience the temple in a manner other than what some may be used to.  Please consider signing up and giving some of your time to ensure the temple is clean and ready for those attending the temple.  (Our next cleaning assignment will be in June.)

• February 22 - Youth Fireside - 7:00pm at the church building.

• February 26 - Stake Humanitarian Workday - 10 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

  • • Children’s center from 10:30 to 12:30 (Toddlers-5 years)

    • Donation Focus:

      • • Soap/body wash, shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, shaving cream, hygiene items, hair ties, brushes, combs, sunscreen, laundry soap, new underwear (female teenage sizes)

        • Donations will benefit Breaking Chains Academy & students at Nampa High School

• The Remember Him Area initiative, which invites us all to focus on Becoming Lifelong Disciples of Jesus Christ, is featured on the Area website. All members are invited to:

  • • Share the Remember Him Video featured on the Area Website.

    • Invite families and individuals to visit the site and discuss the video message at home.

• Missionary Meals - We can invite the missionaries to dinner any day or night of the week; there is no longer the requirement to have a non-member present. Please reach out to our Ward Missionary Leader, Larry Nelson, if interested, and for further details and options. The missionaries will not be passing a calendar around, you will need to schedule directly with the missionaries. 

• Cleaning the Temple  - CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP 

Our stake has been assigned to clean the Meridian Temple the week of February 16, 2026.  We were asked to have 15 volunteers each day.  Cleaning in the temple is a wonderful way to experience the temple in a manner other than what some may be used to.  Please consider signing up and giving some of your time to ensure the temple is clean and ready for those attending the temple.  (Our next cleaning assignment will be in June.)

A temple recommend is required to enter and clean the temple.  For those able to attend the Monday cleaning shifts, the temple doors will open at 8:30 am.  Prayer meeting starts at 9 am.  For all other shifts (Tuesday - Friday), please plan to arrive at 9:30.  Prayer meeting will begin at 9:45 am and cleaning will start after the prayer meeting.  

General Information:

• When you arrive, someone will be at the recommend desk to greet you and show you where to go.

• You should come wearing "Church Dress" and bring a clean comfortable pair of shoes.  The temple will provide white scrubs and socks.  The temple no longer provides shoes to wear, but they did have sock and slippers this past week if you prefer those.  Shoe covers are provided for those that bring their own shoes.

• After changing, the group will meet for a prayer meeting.  During this meeting there will be a hymn, prayer, spiritual thought, and then you will be provided your cleaning assignments.

Please make sure to bring your Temple Recommend.  The staff is unable to authorize anyone to come into the temple without one.  Only the temple presidency or a recorder can look someone up.  

It takes many hands to clean and prepare the Lord's House for the patrons that will attend the next day.  Please know how much this cleaning work is appreciated.

• Are you interested in being called as a Temple and Family History Worker with the assignment to work in the Family Search Center? Like a temple worker, this would be a weekly commitment, however each shift is only 2.5 hours. This is an extremely fulfilling calling and an opportunity for anyone to serve the Lord in a meaningful way.  Those who work at the center are witnesses to the miracles that happen there and the joy that the work brings into their lives.  Please reach out to a member of the bishopric if this is something you would like to discuss.

• "To allow for greater access to the words of the living prophets, printed copies of Church magazines are now available at no cost. These magazines include the Liahona, For the Strength of Youth, and Friend. This policy will eventually apply to every area of the Church.

  • • • Members can use their Church account to choose their preferred subscription(s) on a yearly basis at MagazineSubscriptions.ChurchofJesusChrist.org"

      • Please contact a member of the Bishopric, Relief Society Presidency, Elders Quorum Presidency, or your ministering sisters/brothers if you have any questions about this change or if you need assistance with subscribing for no-cost print magazines.

• For temple recommend interviews with the Bishopric and other meetings with the Bishop, please call or text David Swenson at (208) 477-8903.

• All temple recommend interviews with the Stake Presidency must be scheduled ahead of time. There are no walk-in appointments at this time.  For recommend renewal interviews, please visit https://calendly .com/minorth/temple to see available times and schedule an interview with the stake presidency.

Worldwide Church Events

The following link will take you to the church website with a list of all the upcoming and recent church events

https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/events/