Daughters in My Kingdom

Women in the church have always played a pivotal role, especially in caring for the temporal needs of those around them. I love learning about how important women have been in the restored church (since the time of Joseph Smith). The Relief Society leadership has just released a wonderful history, called Daughters in My Kingdom and I have been thoroughly enjoying the history and doctrine in this work. Here is a wonderful message from Sister Julie B. Beck about realizing the importance of our gifts and introducing this great book.

Daughters in My Kingdom

I was reviewing Sister Julie Beck's great talk from our last General Relief Society Meeting and I was struck with the warnings she gives. I know that this is a long quote, but I thought that it was very interesting, she says, "

Because we are living in the last days of this earth, there are signs of a great struggle everywhere. Myths and misperceptions regarding the strength, purpose, and position of Latter-day Saint women abound. Prevailing myths imply that we are of lower importance than men, that we are generally sweet but uninformed, and that no matter what we do, we will never be enough to be accepted by our Heavenly Father. As the Apostle Peter said, there are “false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denyingthe Lord that bought them.”

The Book of Mormon describes what is happening: “For behold, at that day shall [Satan] rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good.“And others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security,that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell.“And behold, others he flattereth away, and telleth them there is no hell; and he saith unto them: I am no devil, for there is none—and thus he whispereth in their ears, until he grasps them with his awful chains.”

In the growing climate of entitlement, excuse, apathy, and enticement, daughters of God who are not watchful, prayerful, and inspired are increasingly at risk of becoming what the scriptures describe as “silly women” who worship a variety of “strange gods.” Sadly, as a result of life’s difficulties and the world’s popular heresies, many sisters believe the myths more than the truth. Their misalignment with God’s plan is demonstrated in findings that many are not doing essential things such as praying and reading scriptures. The Lord Himself has said that “this is a day of warning, and not a day of many words.”"

Looking over those myths I have to admit that I have let myself believe at least some of them at different points in my life. Sister Beck goes on to say that reviewing our history with the great women that our church has had will strengthen us in these days. I know that for myself looking to other strong women has taught me more than just about anything else concerning who I want to become. I know that Heavenly Father expects amazing things from His daughters and I know that through the gospel we can deliver what he needs for us to do.

For Sis. Beck's full article check out this link.

Mothers

For Mother's Day I thought that I would share one of my favorite motherhood quotes, by Gordon B. Hinckley (Teachings of Gordon B. Hinckley, 386):

"The true strength of any nation lies in those qualities of character that have been acquired for the most part by children taught in the quiet, simple, everyday manner of mothers... Jean Paul Richter once declared, "What a mother says to her children is not heard by the world, but it will be heard by posterity.""

Relief Society

The Church of Jesus Christ has an amazing organization for women called the Relief Society. This group includes all women, ages 18 and older, and gives those involved the opportunities to learn and serve together. Recently, my ward had a wonderful lesson on the Relief Society Declaration and I have since been studying the powerful points in this message. We were given the challenge to focus on one point and work to improve in that area. I hope that we can all review these powerful ideas and implement them more fully into our lives.

Relief Society Declaration

We are beloved spirit daughters of God, and our lives have meaning, purpose, and direction. As a worldwide sisterhood, we are united in our devotion to Jesus Christ, our Savior and Exemplar. We are women of faith, virtue, vision, and charity who:

~Increase our testimonies of Jesus Christ through prayer and scripture study.

~Seek spiritual strength by following the promptings of the Holy Ghost.

~Dedicate ourselves to strengthening marriages, families, and homes.

~Find nobility in motherhood and joy in womanhood.

~Delight in service and good works.

~Love life and learning.

~Stand for truth and righteousness.

~Sustain the priesthood as the authority of God on earth.

~Rejoice in the blessings of the temple, understand our divine destiny, and strive for exaltation.

His Help

Challenges seem to come in all forms, but my current hurdles are approximately the sizes of large garden gnomes. To be more specific, they are my four-year-old and two-year-old. Please don't get me wrong - I love my children dearly. I love being a mother more than anything else that I have been able to do. However, it never ceases to astonish me how these two rambunctious beings can continually throw me for a loop. For me, parenting is a constant lesson to try and learn more patience, creativity, and love. And, sometimes after a full day of attempting to teach difficult skills like sharing and kindness, I feel utterly exhausted.

After one morning of particularly loud sibling rivalry, a sweet hour of nap-time quietness came. Picking up the Ensign (March 2009), I had the chance to read an interview with Sister Julie B. Beck, Relief Society general president. She enthusiastically spoke of all the wonderful things that women have the opportunity to accomplish and when asked how women can do all of this she responded, "If she is helping the Lord with His work, she is entitled to His help." On this particularly hard day, Sister Beck's message powerfully struck my tired soul. One of the things that I know to be true is that families are the work of our Father in Heaven. He wants children reared in homes filled with love and compassion. My work as a mother is His work. Therefore, I am entitled to His help. To me, this is an amazing gift to know that I have a Heavenly Father who wants me to succeed and who is constantly trying to help me. Thank goodness, because I need all the help I can get trying to keep these two on the garden path.

Mormon girl interviewed at Harvard

This is a wonderful clip of a discussion held at Harvard concerning the personal search for purpose. On the panel were college students of different faiths, including this Latter-day Saint girl, Rachel Esplin, as well as a Muslim, Jew, Presbyterian, and Buddhist. They all answered wonderful questions concerning their faith and religious practices. Rachel Esplin answers questions regarding her upbringing, the development of her personal testimony, women's roles in the church, her belief in Christ, Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon, knowledge of spiritual truths, temple marriage, temple covenants, and missionary work. This is a great clip to see!!

Day of Faith: Personal Quests for a Purpose - 3. Rachel Esplin from Harvard Hillel on Vimeo.

Create

The Relief Society has put together this amazing, short (1:40), presentation with the words from President Uchtdorf's address to the women at the last General Relief Society meeting. It is a poignant reminder of the amazing desire and gift we've been given to create.

Happiness, Your Heritage

This past General Conference had many highlights for me, but I have to say my favorite talk was by President Uchtdorf, given at the General Relief Society Meeting. While he was talking specifically to the women of our church at this meeting, his comments are so poignant and applicable to all. He concluded with the message:

"I believe that as you immerse yourselves in the work of our Father - as you create beauty and as you are compassionate to others - God will encircle you in the arms of His love. Discouragement, inadequacy, and weariness will give way to a life of meaning, grace, and fulfillment. As spirit daughters (and sons) of our Heavenly Father, happiness is your heritage."

What were your favorite quotes/talks from this past Conference? Has anything been particularly meaningful or helpful to you?

For President Uchdorf's full talk, click here.

General Relief Society Meeting

Once a year, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints holds a meeting specifically for women. This General Relief Society Meeting will be held this Saturday, September 26th at 6:00 p.m. MDT. We invite all women to participate and hear the uplifting messages of our church-wide leaders by either attending the meeting which is broadcast to all Stake Centers of our church, or watching the broadcast via Internet at www.lds.org. We know that any who do take the time to listen to this broadcast will be inspired to do their best and to reach out in love to those around them.

Women and the Church

A while ago we received a comment from a concerned reader that believed that the church "degraded" women. This is unfortunately a misconception that many outside the church seem to have because women do not hold the priesthood and therefore must be being demeaned by the organization. I obviously cannot speak for all women in the church, but I just wanted to write a little bit about how I actually feel that the church provides quite the opposite for women - true fulfilment and opportunities for self-improvement.

Our church leaders continually teach about the importance and divinity of womanhood. In our last General Conference, many references were made of the irreplaceable role of women, including an entire talk entitled "Daughters of God" (given by M. Russell Ballard), which encouraged women to reach towards their full potentials. Leaders have also given a great deal of counsel to women to obtain as much education as they can, which will in turn strengthen them and their family members. In our church, women have many possibilities to teach, lead, and serve. The women's organization of the church (the Relief Society) is the largest women's organization in the world and has almost limitless opportunities to teach and serve many around the globe. In addition to the countless ways women forward the work of the church, men are taught to revere and honor the women in their lives.

Through church leadership and local support, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Saints truly can strengthen women and help them achieve their best. Despite these teachings do women sometimes feel overwhelmed or inadequate to the tasks placed upon them? Definitely. With many societal pressures on how to be the "perfect" women, this is often the unfortunate case inside and outside of the church. Being a modern woman is especially difficult in a world that devalues the natural roles of mother and nurturer. However, if gospel principles are followed and women accept the best that they can do and not the best their neighbor can do, true happiness can be found in the honorable and unique role of womanhood.

In closing, there are many things that I do find degrading: pornography, society's crumbling view of the importance and sanctity of marriage, how women are often portrayed in the media, the idea that being "just a mom" is not enough, and the perception that if a women is a full-time caregiver she must have no other options available to her. On the other hand, something that I find genuinely ennobling: the church and how it helps me focus my life on the things that truly matter most - specifically, the Lord, my family, and personal growth.