Faith Crisis: The Importance of Regular Church Attendance on Healthy Living

When I was completing my graduate degree I heard concerns of faith crisis across denominational lines. These were mentioned by professors, classmates, lectures, and in reading material. The timing fascinated me as faith had often been marginalized by institutions of higher learning. However, the importance of religion and spirituality was now being heralded,-- just as attendance and participation in worship was waning.

The research for staying -- or becoming involved for the first time, is impressive. Tyler VanderWeele (Harvard) found that for those who have regular attendance at religious services experience:
 A near 30% reduction in mortality over 16 years of follow up
 A five fold reduction in the likelihood of suicide
 A 30% reduction in the incidence of depression

For youth, studies by Dr. Lisa Miller at Columbia University, report that children who have a positive active relationship to spirituality are:
40% less likely to use and abuse substances
60% less likely to be depressed as teenagers
80% less likely to have unprotected sex
More likely to have markers for academic success

For all involved, the community found in Worship Services pays big dividends:
There is expansion of of one's social network
Greater likelihood of healthy social relationships
 A higher satisfaction with life
 Greater stability in marriage
 More charitable giving, volunteering, and civil engagement

This research was clear. Across the board, those who participated in regular worship benefited from doing so. Perhaps it's just the chaplain in me, but I call those benefits, blessings.

The 2016 Election

I've had 4 different flights since the election and sat by the most interesting people. The first man had worked for Secretary Clinton's campaign. He wept as he told me of his sorrow with the election results. As he processed this loss he spoke of his faith in the American people to come together. We had a lovely conversation.

I next met a man originally from Nigeria who had immigrated to Chicago before moving to Houston. He had met a young man there by the name of Barak Obama and had thought, "He's going places." By the time Mr. Obama ran for president this man was a citizen and was thrilled to vote for his Chicago friend. He then said, "I voted for Mr. Trump this time. My biggest reason was Obamacare." He also said, "I know this country will heal. It's America."

Last of all I met a woman whose husband works for the FBI. She too spoke of the greatness of the American people.
I came away from all three conversations full of hope.
"This nation shall endure."
Ezra T. Benson

Rahab

Rahab by Jeanne Gomm of Gomm Stain Glass Studio 2016

Rahab

Rahab is probably my favorite woman of the Old Testament. She was a heroine, a harlot, a refugee and an immigrant. She was also smart, kind, caring, courageous and full of faith. Rahab saved the Israelite spies from certain death and in turn they saved Rahab and her family.  Rahab had grown up worshiping false gods but had gleaned a fervent testimony as she learned of Him whom she came to know as THE living God, the Creator of heaven and earth, the God of strength and miracles.

I wonder how Rahab was treated. She had given up her homeland, her occupation and her faith tradition. Was she accepted or was she shunned? When she came to gather water from the well, did the other woman speak to her kindly or did they turn away and speak about her? After all, Rahab’s past could provide plenty of fodder for wagging tongues. Was she considered a threatening stranger or was she invited in to the circle and comfort of loving sisterhood?

We will probably never know, but either way,  Rahab stayed the course. If there were those who mocked her, she like Nephi of old, “heeded them not” (1 Nephi 8:33). My favorite quote from her is, “…for the Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and earth beneath” (Joshua 2:11). To me, Rahab's story is one of grace and redemption. It reminds me that "no matter what our past has been we have a spotless future" (Brown).

Rahab’s story becomes more fascinating as we learn of her posterity. According to Jewish tradition it includes seven kings and eight prophets. In Matthew chapter 1 we read that one of those is He who is known as King of Kings and Lord of Lord’s.

Bible King James Version 

Brown, H., B. 1883-1975.

The Book of Mormon Another Testament of Jesus Christ 

Gomm, J., (artist) Gomm Stain Glass Studio 

A Boy, a Dad, the Game of Baseball and a Tender Mercy

On Thursday October 13, 2016 the annual Heritage Gala took place.

At the end of the Gala when all were gathering to leave, one of the clergy volunteers, Steve Lineback,  showed me a Hall of Fame postcard. It was signed by Ralph Kiner, and Steve had won it in the silent auction. Kiner is one of the baseball greats who played for the Philadelphia Pirates, the Chicago Cubs, and the Cleveland Indians. Ralph Kiner was also an announcer for major league baseball and did so for 53 seasons. That was a great card to win in a bid!

I was happy for Steve. It's fun to become the owner of some American baseball history. However, when he said, "My dad and Ralph were friends. They played baseball together in high school. My dad used to pitch to him." My heart took a little leap.

Steve Lineback's dad John, was a Naval Pilot in WW II. After the war he taught high school, coached, started a family, and was in the Naval Reserves.  Fifty-five years ago while on a routine Naval training mission, he and his plane were lost at sea. Neither the plane or the pilot, were ever heard from or seen again. Steve Lineback was a boy of fifteen when he and his family received the tragic news. Their lives were forever changed.

To receive a tangible reminder of the past,-- to connect in a little way to a loved one through an auctioned item, can only be described as a tender mercy. For me it was a gentle reminder that a loving Heavenly Father not only knows when a sparrow falls to the ground and how many hairs are on our head, (Matthew 10:29, Luke 12:7) but also understands when we could use a little boost in the form of a connection to someone we love, someone we have missed.
I've reflected on this again and again since Thursday night.
God is good.


Post Script: 
 Nationally recognized collector and historian Brent Ashworth, donated the autographed item spoken of here. This along with other items donated by Brent, were to help raise funds for the programs at Heritage. In his vast collection of items Ashworth "just happened" to choose something of significant personal meaning to one of 250 people in attendance. As "luck" would have it Brent and Steve also sat at the same table that evening.

...As a Hen Gathereth Her Chicks

     We have a hen who gets broody. Her greatest desire seems to be a good mama. As city ordinance prohibits us having a rooster to accommodate her desire for motherhood, we bought two, day old chicks. That night when she was sleeping on her barren nest, we put those babies beneath her wings. The next morning when we checked on the three of them, she seemed as pleased as punch to show us her babies. It was if she were saying, "Seeeee, I told you I was going to be a mama."
     She took such pride in her wee ones. She taught them to scratch, led them to the raspberry plants, showed them the newly mowed grass clippings, water sources, and most importantly, to come when she would call. They stayed by her side and she protected them. If there was danger in the form of a summer storm, or a prowling cat or skunk, she would call to them with her special cluck. They would come running under her wings and were kept safe. They thrived under her loving care.
     She is now on her second set of baby chicks. These too were placed under wings in the dead of night. Once again she seemed thrilled to be a mama. However, these babies would not heed to her special cluck. She would call and call while watching and waiting for them to come to her and they would not. These independent babies did not understand the peril they were in nor did they seem to care. Eventually we intervened and put them in the rabbit cage. There they eat, drink, and watch from captivity the antics and abilities of the free range hens. They have no idea what they are missing.
     If we can keep them safe one day they will be large enough to join the others. However, they will have missed the protection of a loving mama. They will have to figure things out on their own. They will struggle. Not because they didn't have a mama,  but because they refused to heed her call. She often lingers by their cage, hoping perhaps they will show an interest in her and her wisdom, but they never do.
     As I watch these chicks I think back to the book of Matthew chapter 23:7 where Jesus says, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not."
     He will call. He will gather. He will protect. He will love. But He will never force. We are forever invited to come unto Him. My little red hen has underscored for me the importance of agency and the never ending love of the Savior.  Jesus gently calls to us with arms outstretched. His protection will see us through the dangers and storms of this life which will surely come. --as we come unto Him.
    
    
    

National Healing

     There is a scripture in the book of Chronicles which has been on my mind lately. The Lord is speaking to Solomon and says, "If my people which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." ( 2 Chronicles 7: 14 KJV)

     George Washington must have been familiar with this scripture.  He often called for times of prayer, fasting, the keeping of the Sabbath Day holy, and repentance with his troops. The commander taught without Divine intervention liberty would not prevail.

     Washington called for a national day of fast to be held on May 17, 1776. The next year he issued   the following directive:
     All the troops... except the guards, are to attend Divine Worship tomorrow morning during the second bell; the officers commanding corps, are to take especial care, that their men appear clean, decent and that they are to march in proper order to the place of worship...The honorable Congress having recommended it to the United States to set apart the 6th of May next to be observed as a day of fasting, humiliation, and prayer, to acknowledge the gracious interpositions of Providence; to depreciate deserved punishment for our sins and ingratitude, to unitedly implore the protection of Heaven...the Commander-in-Chief enjoins a religious observance of said day and directs the Chaplains to prepare discourses proper for the occasions." 

George Washington, Headquarters, April 12, 1777

    

     If attention to Divine Worship, humility, and prayer was needed in 1777, it is surely needed now. May God bless us as we seek Him and may our land be healed. 

                                                                               Reference

Shea, M., A. (2012). In God We Trust: George Washington and the spiritual destiny of the United   States of America. Derry, NH: Liberty Quest.

Are There Any Sick Among You? James 5:14

 For this post, I have a guest writer, my daughter, Jodi Harris Brimhall. It is taken from a talk she gave in her congregation in Red Rock Arizona, June 19th, 2016.

"Are there any sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with the oil in the name of the Lord."

James 5:14

I was asked to speak to you today about the Priesthood. When I think of the Priesthood, I first think about my Father in Heaven, and how He loves us all so much, and wants to help us through our journey here on Earth. Heavenly Father allows men to hold His Priesthood power, and all men, women, and children are able to receive the blessings from it. This Priesthood power allows us to be baptized, confirmed, receive our temple endowments, and be sealed as families. We are also able to take the Sacrament every week, just as we did earlier today, because of the power of the priesthood.

     I also think about the many times in my life I have asked for priesthood blessings, and the comfort they have given me, or the miracles that have happened because of those blessings. I want to share a few stories with you about those priesthood blessings.

     I’ll start with a story about my husband. When Rick was a young kid his parents noticed he had a lazy eye. They took him to the eye doctor and the doctor told them that they had caught it way too late and it was too severe for any treatment to be effective. Normally they would try to treat it by putting an eye patch over the good, healthy, eye, which would then force the bad eye to have to work harder. His mom insisted that they at least try it. The doctor said they could try it, but assured her it wouldn't help. They gave him the eye patch, which he wore for several months. His dad gave him a blessing and in that blessing he blessed him that his lazy eye would correct itself. It slowly got better, and by the time he went back to the doctor nearly a year later it was completely healed. The doctor told his parents that he had never seen an eye that bad, on a child that age, correct itself, and he said it was a complete miracle.

     When I was 5 years old I got an infection, which then caused my kidneys to fail. I had to be up at Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake and I wasn't getting better. I was in the hospital for about a week and my kidneys were getting worse. I asked my dad if he would give me a blessing. He found another priesthood holder in the hospital, and they were able to give me a blessing.

     I don't remember a lot from this experience because I was so young but I do remember they had to draw my blood several times a day to see how my kidneys were functioning. After I received the blessing from my dad, they drew my blood and my numbers started to improve immediately. I was released from the hospital days later, having made a full recovery, and I have not had a problem with my kidneys ever since. One other thing I remember from my hospital stay was on the day I was checking out I could see the nurses station from my room, and there were 2 nurses standing there talking about me. I heard one of them say that it was a miracle that I recovered completely and so quickly, and they couldn’t believe I was well enough to go home. The healing process only began after my priesthood blessing.

     During my time in the hospital, there was one day where my parents took me into a small room where other sick children and their families were gathered together. I wasn’t sure why we were there until I heard a familiar prayer start, and I looked up to see a few men blessing the sacrament. We were too sick to be home, taking the Sacrament in church, so these wonderful Priesthood holders brought the blessing of the sacrament to us.

     Rick is the priesthood holder in our home, but he is gone a lot for his job. Last year Rick was working in Nebraska for 3 months and our son was having terrible night terrors every night that would take him hours to snap out of. I felt helpless as everything I tried to do to help my son didn't work, and I grew exhausted as I was unable to sleep at night, and had no husband there to help me. I reached out to our Home Teacher Scott Allred, and he and Brad Rasmussen were able to come give Logan a blessing. The night terrors became shorter each night, until they stopped completely, and we were all able to get the sleep we needed. The priesthood is not available only to those who have worthy father’s or worthy husbands. Anywhere you go, you can find priesthood holders to help you, and this has been a huge blessing in my life.

     In preparation for this talk I have been thinking a lot about the men in my life who hold the priesthood and as today is Father's Day I've been thinking a lot about my Dad.  Two weeks ago my dad suffered a heart attack. Miraculously he is doing okay and is recovering well. My dad is the rough and tough cowboy type. He grew up working on a farm and he started working when he was 8 years old. 
     While I was growing up, I can't ever remember a time in my life when my dad sat with my family on Sunday's. He was in the bishopric, then he was the bishop, then he was in the stake presidency. He was always up on the stand, watching over the people he served. I remember nights when the phone would ring and he would rush off in the middle of the night to help someone in the ward who was in a crisis. My dad is always the first person to offer help and the last person to ask for it - to a fault. When he had his heart attack he was home alone, and really didn't want to bother the neighbors or home teachers, so he thought it would be a good idea to drive himself to the hospital. 
     The hospital parking lot was under construction when he got there, so he had to park a few blocks away, and then hobble himself into the hospital in excruciating pain. Nearly 2 hours later, after he had been admitted to the ICU, given medication, and received test results that confirmed his heart attack, he decided he should let his family know where he was and he did so by sending my mom a text that said "I had a heart attack, I will be spending the night at the hospital.” My mom frantically rushed to the hospital to be with him. After she got there, it was around 10pm, and she called both of my brothers, who live in Utah. My brothers left immediately to go to the hospital. When my mom told my dad that my brothers were coming he said, “Good, I need them to give me a blessing.”

     The next morning I was able to talk to him. I called my dad on FaceTime so I could see him. He was laying in a hospital bed hooked up to IVs and heart monitors, and wearing very tired eyes. I asked him why he didn't call anyone or at least call my mom to tell her he was at the hospital and he said, "well she was in a movie and I didn’t want to bother her." After assuring me he was fine he asked "hey Jodi, how's your car running?" We have been having problems with one of our cars recently and that's what he was currently worried about, apparently.

     This whole experience with my dad has opened my eyes to 2 things. The first, my dad is not as smart as I thought he was. My siblings and I have since reminded him that he needs to let people help him, and that 911 exists for a reason.

The second, and most important thing I have learned is how seriously and reverently my dad treats the Power of the Priesthood. Throughout this entire experience, the only time my dad ever asked for anything, was to ask for a priesthood blessing. This speaks volumes to me, and has shown me that if my dad won’t ask for help getting to a hospital while he’s having a heart attack, but will ask for a priesthood blessing to recover, there are few things in this life as precious and necessary as the power of the priesthood.

     Priesthood blessings can come to you no matter your circumstances, and I know that everyone here has different relationships with their Father's and the men in their life, and the priesthood holders in their life. I also know that for some people Father's Day can be a day of hurt, for various reasons, but one thing that is the same for all of us is our Eternal Father, and the love that he has for each of us. He is our true Father, and he loves us so much that he has given us his priesthood power on the earth to help us and to heal us.

     Elder Ballard taught, “ Our Father in Heaven is generous with His power. All men and all women have access to this power for help in our own lives. All who have made sacred covenants with the Lord and who honor those covenants are eligible to receive personal revelation, to be blessed by the ministering of angels, and to commune with God.”

     I know that our Heavenly Father loves us, and wants us all to have access to the blessings of the Priesthood. I have a testimony of the Power of the Priesthood, and have seen it work miracles in my life.