EVENTS IN INDEPENDENCE, MISSOURI
Dear Friends and Saints,
EVENTS IN INDEPENDENCE, MISSOURI
Dear Friends and Saints,
Elder’s Meetings – 2026
The dates for conference will be March 29th through April
3rd.
The location will be at Waldo Restoration Branch.
Has it been a year already? The time seems to have passed
with such exceeding rapidity that it does not seem possible. I would like to
thank everyone for their participation in the inter conference period. We have
had good discussions in our newly created Elder’s Meetings, Spirit filled
worship in the House of the Lord in Kirtland, and angelic ministry in joint
worship at the Stone Church. None of which would have been possible without the
devoted prayers of the saints. Above all it is our omnipotent Creator to whom
all thanks and praise is due.
The 2026 conference is just around the corner, and I look forward with great
anticipation to gather again for worship and discussion. We will have time set
aside to discuss, ample opportunity for worship, and, as always, good
fellowship.
The theme for the conference week comes from Ephesians 5:14: “Awake, thou that
sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.” Our daily
themes will be as follows:
Monday: “Awaken your Soul” 2 Nephi 3:46
Tuesday: “Awaken to the sense of our Awful Situation”
Ether 1:111-113
Wednesday: “Awaken Your Branches” Nehemiah 2:17
Thursday: “Awaken and Enlarge my Church” Book of Mormon
1:65
Friday: “Awaken and put on thy Strength, O Zion” Isaiah
52:1
On Tuesday and Thursday we will have special missionary
classes that will equip each one to better fulfill their calling of being an
ambassador for Christ, and arm them with the tools to render an effective
answer to the question “What is the reason for the hope that is within you?”
On Thursday, we will have the opportunity to put what we
have learned into practice. This is the part of conference about which I am
most excited. It will be the time to “Go and do” rather than just sit and
listen.
If you plan to participate in conference this year,
online or in person, please go to Conference
2026 - Conference of Restoration Elders to register.
As there has been over the last few years we will have an
Aaronic and members quorum to participate in the discussions. All members and
Aaronic priesthood are welcome to attend. Please see the link above for
registration.
It is our goal to be done with business by Wednesday to allow us to confer upon
and discuss the work entrusted to us. To this end we have put in place an
online nomination form to streamline the election of officers. I would
encourage all Elders to give sincere prayer as to those who should serve on the
various councils of the conference. It is imperative for this effort that each
person being nominated give their consent to serve. You will notice a check box
on the nomination form attesting that this communication has taken place.
The form is available at Conference
2026 - Conference of Restoration Elders
A tentative schedule will soon be available on the website.
As the physical preparations are now underway, let us ensure that our
hearts are being prepared to meet our God in worship and discussion. May we
gather with unity of purpose that unseemly contentions will have no place in
our deliberations. And above all things may we have fervent charity for all
men, that we may see the creature through the eyes of the Creator. May God
bless you and keep you in holiness before him.
Please
remember those involved in the planning of the conference and those with
ministerial responsibilities in your prayers. And always remember to uphold one
another in daily prayer “Till we, in the unity of the faith, all come to the
knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the
stature of the fullness of Christ.”
Your brother in Christ
Jeremy Stephenson
CRE Chairman
jstephenson@eldersconference.org
816-898-4748
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ZIONWORKS NEWS - Feb. 5, 2026
Pure Dance Studio Classes This spring Pure Dance Studio is offering 4-week class sessions! A wonderful way to dip your toe into the dance world. Whether it’s for exercise, a creative outlet, or to make friends we hope you will join us.
The cost is $45.00/session per person. Contact puredancestudio@yahoo.com for details and registration (required). Kelda Brown Pure Dance Studio |
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LIVING IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD FEBRUARY 5, 2026
LIVING IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD
FEBRUARY 5, 2026
Hello, Aloha, Hola, G'Day, Bonjour, Guten tag, Shalom
aleichen, Zdravstuyte, Habari, Kumusta, Namaste, to God's faithful Saints
around the world,
If one of the languages above does not fit you, forgive
me. They say there are between 3nd 5 thousand languages spoken in the world
today. So, what does that have to do with living in the Kingdom of God? We all
know of One who can speak and understand every language. That, of course, is
God/Jesus Christ.
How is the weather in your part of the world? While
it has been freezing in much of the United States, it is pretty
warm in Australia and at various conditions in other parts of the world.
So what does that have to do with living in the Kingdom of God? We all know One
who controls all the elements and thus the weather conditions. Again, that is
God/Jesus Christ.
Due to the very cold temperatures and road conditions in
many places, Saints were not able to go to church. Thanks to God who has given
to mankind the ability to produce methods by which the message of God can be
"zoomed" all round the world. This is what we deal with as we are
"Living in the Kingdom of God" at this point, but we know when Jesus
comes in His Glory, there will not be all the distractions we face in our
current status.
In the "Real" Kingdom of God, those present
will have nothing to take away from their devotion to and worship of God. There
will be nothing in God's Kingdom that is not of Kingdom quality. Patriarch Ed
Gard said in a message from the Lord, that we should sacrifice or get rid of
anything and everything that we cannot take into the Kingdom.
In our world of confusion, division, disregard for
Christianity and many other things that demand our attention, may we not allow
ourselves to be taken away from the only ONE who has all the right answers.
Scriptures are very clear in telling us that JESUS IS THE ROCK OF OUR SALVATION
and thus the only foundation upon which we can successfully build. We have many
hymns that also remind us of this fact, one of which is
entitled, "How Firm a Foundation." This is the only foundation
upon which we can build and be supported by as we live in the Kingdom of God.
How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord, Is laid for
your faith in His excellent word!
What more can He say than to you He hath said— To you who for refuge to Jesus
have fled?
“Fear not, I am with thee, oh, be not dismayed, For I am
thy God, and will still give thee aid;
I’ll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand, Upheld by My
gracious, omnipotent hand.
“When through the deep waters I call thee to go, The
rivers of sorrow shall not overflow;
For I will be with thee thy trouble to bless, And sanctify to thee thy deepest
distress.
“When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie, My
grace, all-sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not harm thee; I only design Thy dross to consume and thy gold
to refine.
“The soul that on Jesus doth lean for repose, I will not,
I will not, desert to his foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake, I’ll never, no never, no
never forsake.”
In every condition, in sickness, in health; In
poverty’s vale, or abounding in wealth;
At home and abroad, on the land, on the sea, As thy days may demand, shall
thy strength ever be.
Even down to old age all My people shall prove My sovereign, eternal,
unchangeable love;
And when white hairs shall their temples adorn, Like lambs they shall in
My bosom be borne.
You will notice that there are seven verses to this hymn,
but only four in the Hymnal. There is confusion as to who wrote the hymn, but
there is no confusion as to the meaning of it and the source of that
meaning. GOD/JESUS CHRIST.
Many things are happening in the world that are attempts
to gain control of the people. Each of us need to be aware of things happening
in our communities and the world that affect our hope for God’s Kingdom to
come on the earth. I would especially encourage the Saints in the Center Place
to become more aware of things transpiring in Independence that may affect us
individually and collectively.
God bless each one
Paul Gage
Important Update - Book of Mormon Retreat & Internship Retreat – NEW DATE – Feb 6-8 Internship application due - Feb. 15 Register now for the 2026 Book of Mormon Retreat, for youth ages 17-24 Due to extreme weather last weekend, the Book of Mormon Retreat has been rescheduled to NEXT WEEKEND (February 6-8) at the Odessa Hills Campground. Ages for the retreat are 17-24. Also, the Internship Committee has decided this year to extend the allowed age range for the summer Book of Mormon Internship. Anyone who is a 2026 high school graduate through age 24 (unmarried) may apply for the Internship this summer, 2026. The application deadline has been rescheduled by one week — applications must now be received by no later than 11:59 PM, Sunday, February 15. Please announce this to your congregations and share with anyone who may be interested. We would greatly appreciate it. More information and registration forms are available at the Book of Mormon Foundation website, or they could contact me with any questions. https://bomf.org/internship/ Thank you, Jon Tandy 816-797-2330 |
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Healing Hearts Meeting - Feb. 15, 2026
Mary Ellen (Eagan) Bryant Obituary September 26, 1929 - January 29, 2026 Funeral information: Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026 at South Crysler Restoration Branch 10:00 am Visitation 11:00 am Service Graveside following at Mound Grove Cemetery Mary Ellen (Eagan) Bryant was born on September 26, 1929 to Roy G. and Royal Pearl (Wood) Eagan in Lamar, Colorado. She was the second of five children. She attended Lamar High School where she became a member of the National Honor Society, earning a small scholarship to the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley, then known as the Colorado State College of Education. She attended college there for two years but had always wanted to go to Graceland College, the RLDS Church college in Lamoni, Iowa so she made the switch in 1950. As Graceland was only a two-year college at the time, after earning her Associate of Arts degree in General Business, Mary followed many Church students to the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg, where she graduated in 1954 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. Upon returning home to Colorado, Mary landed a job as Executive Secretary for the President, Vice President, and Treasurer of Plateau Natural Gas Co., located in Colorado Springs. She worked there for five years. While in college at UCM, Mary had met fellow student Maurice Bryant. The two met again at the 1958 RLDS World Conference in Independence, Missouri. They went to various preaching services that week and afterward, Maurice traveled to Colorado to meet Mary’s family. Mary traveled to Rochester, New York the following May to visit Maurice and meet his family. All the while a flurry of correspondence flowed back and forth between the two. They were married on September 27, 1959 and settled in Rochester, New York. Mary went to work for Eastman Kodak Company in their Business and Technical Personnel Department, often describing that job as the best job she ever had. She worked for Kodak until leaving the workforce in 1962 when she had her first child, Jay, born in February of that year. After a move to Independence, Missouri in late 1962, two more children came along: Gayle in 1963 and Douglas in 1964. Mary spent the next eight years raising her children. In 1970, Mary began working again part-time, then full-time as a secretary and bookkeeper. In 1980 she went back to school as a full-time graduate student at UCM, earning 22 hours toward a Master’s Degree in Education and earning her Missouri teaching certification. She then worked for Armco Steel, Kansas City Power and Light, and finished her career at the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority as an Executive Assistant. After retirement, Mary focused her full attention on her greatest love - her family, attending family gatherings, concerts and events that her grandchildren participated in, and using her artistic skills to create memory books for her own family as well as each family of her siblings and children. She wanted her children, grandchildren, and great- grandchildren to know how important they were to her and how much she cared for them. She is survived by her husband of 66 years, Maurice Bryant, her children Jay (Rita) Bryant, Gayle (Tony) Fleming, and Doug (Tracy) Bryant, her grandchildren Phillip Bryant, Michael (Julie) Fleming, Matthew (Stephanie) Fleming, Christina (Mike) Haun, Melissa (Jake) Lair, Ben (Allyson) Fleming, Nicholas (Katia) Bryant, Catie (Trey) Shepherd, James (Genevieve) Wulff, and John Wulff, and 18 great-grandchildren. |
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