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

Message from the Bishopric

When I was 18 years old, I had an awesome bishop who helped me prepare to become ready and worthy to serve a mission. He strengthened my testimony, encouraged me, and showed me what it meant to become a disciple of Jesus Christ.

What I did not realize at the time was that this was not the first time our two families had found themselves in that kind of relationship.

About 150 years earlier, our ancestors were doing something very similar.

My third great-grandfather, Christian Hans Monson, was born in Norway in 1837. As a young teenager, he came into contact with missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who had been imprisoned for preaching the gospel. Christian’s father was the jailer, and Christian helped carry meals to the prisoners.

At first, he had been instructed to mistreat the jailed missionaries. But as he listened to them teach and testify of Jesus Christ, something began to change in his heart. He began comparing what he was hearing with what he had always believed, and he quickly came to know that the restored gospel was true.

One cold winter night in 1852, at only 14 years old, Christian secretly used the jail keys to let the missionaries out so they could baptize him in a nearby fjord before returning them safely to their prison cell.

When his family discovered he had joined the Church, he was beaten and eventually driven from his home. Yet he refused to deny what he knew to be true and remained a faithful member of the Church for the remainder of his life.

I recently discovered that one of those missionaries who helped teach and prepare my ancestor for baptism was an ancestor of the bishop who later helped prepare me to serve my own mission.

I love thinking about that.

Generations later, descendants of those same families once again found themselves together trying to help one another come unto Christ. One family helped a young boy in Norway gain a testimony strong enough to sacrifice everything for the gospel. Then years later, their descendant helped another young man from that same family line prepare to go and preach that gospel himself.

The Lord truly works through generations.

This month, as a ward, we are focusing on family history and temple work. Family history is more than names and dates. It is discovering stories of faith, sacrifice, testimony, and discipleship. It reminds us that the blessings of the gospel ripple across generations and that we are all connected through Jesus Christ.

Love - Brother Coltrin

• May is Family History & Fill the Temple Month! - Throughout the month of May our youth have the goal to be in the temple.  We invite everyone to join in, especially on Saturday May 30 for a ward temple day.  Schedule your appointment now.  We'd like everyone to find a name using Ordinances Ready using the Family Search website.  Then bring that family name to the temple, or if you can't attend, share it with someone else.  In addition, you could upload a memory to Family Search or share a memory with your children/grandchildren.  Primary children - We invite you to learn an ancestor's name and a family history story you can share during the ice cream linger longer.  The Bishopric and others want to hear from you!

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

  • • Young Women's Camp - It will be at Hayfork campground near Idaho City (an hour away)

      • • Girls Camp: YCL's will leave Monday, June 22 to set up camp. The rest of the girls will come up Tuesday morning, June 23rd. Everyone will clean up camp and go home Thursday, June 25th.

    • Young Men's Camp – June 24-27th at Northwest Passage Campground - McCall & Garden Valley.  All Young Men - Deacons, Teachers, and Priests are invited.

• Sunday Youth Assignments

  1. • May Chair Set-Up - Priests.  Please come at 8:30 a.m. to help set up chairs.

     • May Greeters - Young Women 14-18 Class

• May 24 - Regional Single Adult (36+) Fireside - 7:00pm at the Meridian Idaho West Stake Center - 1985 N Black Cat Rd.

• May 26 - Empty Nesters Activity (including Singles) - Tuesday, May 26 at 6:00pm at the Nelson's Home (591 W Bogus View Dr). Soup and salad will be served. Hope to see you all there!

• Now through May 28 - Stake Humanitarian DONATIONS - We will be collecting hygiene items to make kits for the homeless and developing countries at the Stake Humanitarian Workday on May 28th.  We are seeking the following new items: 

  1. • Toothbrushes

     • Combs or brushes

     • Washcloths

     • Hand towels

     • Nail clippers

     • Tweezers (not plastic).

     • We will place a container outside of the Relief Society door for the next few weeks to collect these things. Thank you for your generosity.

• May 28 - Stake Humanitarian Workday - 10:00am-1:00pm at the Stake Center. Everyone is welcome! Bring the whole family! Donations being accepted for this workday are listed above.

• May 28-31 - Boise-Nampa YSA Conference (18-25) - REGISTER HERE - Contact the bishopric if you have any questions.

• May 31 - Ice Cream Linger Longer - Meet directly after second hour (weather permitting). Join us outside the kitchen for ice cream, socializing, and sharing family history stories.

• June 5 - Stake Primary Activity - At the Stake Center

  1. • Girls: 10:00am - 12:00pm

     • Boys: 1:00pm - 3:00pm

• June 26 - The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square - Watch Party - Friday June 26 at Scentsy Commons (2901 E. Pine Ave., Meridian).  Activities: 5:00-6:30 p.m., Concert 7:00-9:00 p.m. See flyer below.

• 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. 

• 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) 447-8903.

• 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/