Relief Society Lesson 2/8/2015 "Pray Always"

Many of us have a daily routine. Our activities include eating, sleeping, showering, cleaning, cooking, and other various things. Does you daily routine include prayer?

How essential is it that we make prayer part of our daily routine?

In any relationship, communication is crucial. Can you imagine your marriage if you only talked when something was wrong or troubling you? Relationships do not survive healthily without communication and our relationship with our Heavenly Father is no different. We need to keep a transparent relationship with our Heavenly Father. It is important to be communicating with Him when things are both good and bad.

Have you had a friend who only talks to you when they want or need something from you? It can be frustrating and difficult to deal with. Don't be that person to your Heavenly Father. This being said, if we are not the best at daily prayer this does not by any means that we cannot pray when things are rough and when we need help. Heavenly Father loves us! He wants to bring us peace and happiness to all areas of our life.

Reasons to Make Prayer a Priority
1. Jesus Christ Commanded us to Pray Always.
There are many scripture references to the importance of prayer. Such as Matt 6:13, Luke 18:1, and Matt 26:41. Prayer is designed to help us with temptations and fight worldly evils. It is a source of comfort and strength from our Heavenly Father.

2. Blessings
Prayer brings us blessings! Whether someone you know is sick or you need help studying for a test, prayer can only be beneficial.

3. Improve the Relationship with Heavenly Father

Picture the painting of Jesus at the door with no knob. How open is your door today? Prayer can open that door more, if we do not pray that door can't open. Our Father is there for us if we only let him in. No man can do his best without prayer

4. Faith
Heavenly Father wants to give us peace and comfort but we must have faith in his timing.


Lets say that you never work out. If you try to start working out every day you may last a while but chances are you will eventually fail your goal and become discouraged. Set realistic goals. Start with working out 3 times a week, then start working out 4, then 5, and so forth. If you find that your frequency of prayer had decreased apply this method.

Relief Society Lesson 2/1/2015

Many of us, if not all of us, have questions about the Temple. This week we learned about where we can go to find the answers to our questions. They taught that as we search for these answers, we should look with spiritual eyes, and a prayerful heart.

We are so blessed to have so many resources we can turn to and can help answer our questions. One resource we were encouraged to go to was lds.org. On lds.org one will find conference talks, scriptures, manuals, and other things that can be a great guide in answering our questions. Below are a list and explanation of some of the resources, and we encourage you to continue to explore lds.org and see what is available.

Search Bar

The search bar is a great tool, and it is found on the lds.org’s home page. You can input almost any topic and have a number of results come up. Topics like repentance, baptism can be searched, along with other topics like the Garments, and baptism for the dead could be searched as well. This is a great starting point, and it will give you many results to choose from.

Teachings

Teachings is a tab found on the lds.org’s homepage. There you can find teachings from the first presidency, prophets and apostles, general conference, gospel topics, and broadcasts. It’s a great place to search if you want to hear what the leaders of the Church have said on a topic. Also it’s a great place to get help for your next talk.

Gospel Topics

Gospel topics is found under the Teachings tab. Gospel topics is one of the best resources. There you can find information on almost any topic. Topics are organized alphabetically, and presented in essay format. There you can find topics like word of wisdom, media, temples, garments, and mores. I have looked here many times and it is really helpful.

Handbook 2

Handbook 2 can be found on lds.org and on your gospel library. This is a great source for the saints. It discusses callings and duties in the church. If you have questions about how to perform your calling and other things, come here. In class we searched how to properly care for our garments, and it told us in a clear and understandable manner.

Scriptures

The scriptures are the standard works, Bible, Book of Mormon, D&C, Pearl of Great Price. The questions we have are spiritual questions and the standard works can provide spiritual answers. The scriptures are the Lord’s way of talking to his children.

Resources

Resources is a tab on lds.org’s home screen. There you can find things for callings, for the family, temples, family history, and more.

Study helps

Study helps are the pages found in between the Bible and the Book of Mormon, and can be found on lds.org as well. Here is the topical guide, Bible dictionary, and maps. This is also a good place to start if you are trying to search topics in the scriptures, or understand certain terms found in the scriptures.

Again we all have questions about the Gospel, and most of us have questions about things concerning the temple. Prayerfully search for answers, go to these sources, trust in our Heavenly Father, and look with spiritual eyes. Some of our answers will come right away, and some will take time, but they will come.

Relief Society Lesson this Week - Temples!

The lesson today was on temples and teaching us how to answer our own questions. We were encouraged to please attend the temple as often as possible. The temple is a gathering place for the saints to receive further light and knowledge.  The endowment is the key that empowers us and helps us fight against the adversary. The lord teaches us in symbolism so that we will learn what we are capable of learning at that time. When you go focus on the feelings you have and seek to learn something new.

We have lots of resources to help answer our questions.

Lds.org
October 2012 ensign
Preparing to enter the holy temple  - elder packer

We love you sisters!

Ward Conference Relief Society

Since this Sunday was Ward Conference the Stake Relief Society Presidency taught us about keeping our covenants.

"Covenant Keeping Women are a Powerful Force in the Kingdom of God"

How can we become a powerful force in the Kingdom of God by keeping our Covenants as individuals?

• Modest Dress
• The way we treat others
• Education. Teaching our children the Lord's standards
• Use the Manual "For the Strength of Youth"
• The way we decorate and run our homes
• Be organized; both literally and figuratively
• Take time for Spirituality
• Have a house of prayer
• Have quite time
• Unplug from the media/ be receptive to the spirit

How are we a powerful force as a whole relief society?

• We all have a role to play in Relief Society
• Even if you're not part of a committee, you're still a visiting teacher
• We help uplift each other
• No one is forgotten
• We can share the gospel with each other & the world
• Visiting Teaching

Never forget that Relief Society is the largest organization in the WORLD!

  References:
    "Women and the Priesthood" by Sheri Dew
    "Daughters in My Kingdom"
     D&C 109:8
     Moroni 6:4

Relief Society Lesson

This weeks lesson comes from the Teaching of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Fielding Smith. Chapter 20: Love and Concern for All Our Father’s Children.

Follow the link to read the Lesson: https://www.lds.org/manual/teachings-of-presidents-of-the-church-joseph-fielding-smith/chapter-20-love-and-concern-for-all-our-fathers-children?lang=eng

Allie Hales began her lesson by sharing an article written by a non-LDS writer who came to visit BYU, The article is called “The Trick to Being More Virtuous” and can be found at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/28/opinion/the-trick-to-being-more-virtuous.html?_r=0 The writer talks about how a BYU briefcase had a major effect on his behavior. “I found that I was acting more cheerfully and courteously than I ordinarily would… I was unconsciously trying to live up to the high standards of Mormon kindness, or at least not besmirch that well earned reputation.” The writer continues to talk about moral elevation and the trick to being more virtuous.

So thinking about this experience the non-member had trying to represent Mormon kindness, why do you think Mormons are so kind and so helpful?

Some answers from comments in class:

• To love others is the second great commandment. and we try to live our commandments
• We have our Prophet Thomas S. Monson’s example and counsel which centers around service and love for others
• We have Christ as our Ultimate example, and He is the greatest example of service
• Members have a unique perspective. We believe we use to all live together before, and we are all brothers and sisters.

Following the story and discussion we went on to talk about the following from teachings of Joseph Fielding Smith.

1. With the Knowledge that God is the Father of all People, we Desire to Love and Bless others
1. “I think if all men knew and understood who they are, and were aware of the divine source from whence they came, and of the infinite potential that is part of their inheritance, they would have feelings of kindness and kinship for each other that would change their whole way of living and bring peace on earth.”
2. How has this knowledge changed you and how you act?
2. As we Love and Support One Another in the Church, We Become a Power in the World for Good
1. Matt 5:16 “Let your Light so Shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your father which is in heaven”
2. “We have not reached a condition of perfection yet, it is hardly to be expected that we will in this life, and yet, through the aid of the Holy Ghost, it is possible for us to stand united together seeing eye to eye and overcoming our sins and imperfections. If we will do this, respecting all the commandments of the Lord, we shall be a power in the world for good”
3. How can we become a power for good in the world?
3. We Express Love for our Fellowmen by Serving Them
1. “Our mission is to all the world—for the peace, and hope, and happiness, and temporal and eternal salvation of all of our Father’s children. … With all my powers of persuasion I urge this people to continue to reach out and bless the lives of all our Father’s children everywhere.”
2. How can we serve others?
4. We Need to Appreciate and Love People for Themselves
1. Junie The Horse. Junie was stubborn and would out-smart Joseph Fielding by letting herself out of her stall. However the horse was reliable and dependable and took Joseph Fielding’s mother where she needed to go every time.
2. “She was a wonderful horse with only a couple of bad habits. People are a lot the same way. None of us is perfect; yet each of us is trying to become perfect, even as our Father in heaven. We need to appreciate and love people for themselves.”
3. Can you remember the time you felt unconditional love? How did you feel?
5. When we Love The Lord With all our Hearts and our Neighbors as Ourselves, we are in Harmony with all Sacred Law
1. Matthew 22: 37-40
2. “ If we love the Lord with all the heart, with all the soul, and with all the mind, and our neighbors as ourselves, then there is nothing more to be desired. Then we will be in harmony with the total of sacred law.”

Relief Society Lesson

This Sunday's Relief Society Lesson was about Visiting Teaching and what we can do to help make it a greater priority in our lives.

A Few weeks ago Elder Packer gave a talk in Regional Conference about taking the time to conduct a personal interview with ourselves.  His thoughts were in harmony with a previous speaker as we were encouraged to examine the intentions of our hearts.

What do you want for yourself and for your family?
What are you doing so that you can reach those goals?

As our amazing Relief Society President (Kristina) taught the lesson she put 3 question on the board and asked each of us to ponder them:

  1 - Where am I Spiritually?
  2 - Where are my areas that need improvement?
  3 - What will I do this week to improve one of these areas?

Many of the quotes used in class came from President Uchtdorf's Talk "Lord, is it I?" This amazing talk portrays the Apostles introspection during the last supper when the Savior said that He would be betrayed by one of them. Instead of pointing fingers at the men around them, these ordained Apostles looked at themselves and asked "Lord, is it I?"

When we find it difficult to do something the Lord asks of us we should not look for someone to blame or external factors to excuse our behavior.

The last bit of relief society was spent discussing how we can balance doing all we are asked to do without overloading ourselves. Some of the wonderful advice given include:

•   Don't feel Overwhelmed
•   Know that your priorities may change overtime, especially after you have a baby
•   Don't focus on what you're NOT doing. Focus on what you ARE doing
•   Give yourself credit for the little things you do each day
•   The Adversary is trying to get you to doubt yourself
•   Write down a list of what is most important to do that day, and then do it in that order.

Be Prepared 11/30

Preparedness:

The  head of the Preparedness Committee gave us some great advice:

• Prepare now while things are peaceful.In Alma 15, Moroni instructed the Nephites to build fortifications against the Lamanites BEFORE they were attacked.

• Get out of debt. One for the Money, published by the Church, is a helpful guide to money management.

• Store food and clothing and save money so you won't be destitute in hard times.

• Prepare spiritually as well: pay tithing, repent, and try to follow the commandments.

Family History Work:

Zack and Callie Smith talked about their committee, Temple and Family History Work. Here is a summary of what they told us:

• Family history is for everyone, not just "old people." We're the ones who have grown up with the Internet.

• Get kids involved by telling family history stories at bedtime

• When we redeem our ancestors we are redeeming ourselves at the same time. Not enough to just go to the temple and do work for people who are not our ancestors.

• Our ward goal is for every ward member to take a family name to the temple

• We also have great stake goals as well--ask the bishop if you'd like a copy.

• Committee members can come to your home to do help you do family history work if you would like!

The work is easy now because of familysearch.org, ancestry.com. findmypast.com, myheritage.com, and puzzilla.org (all of these sites are now free with your LDS login!)

Bishopric Message:

• Use the LDS Tools app for the ward directory, info about callings, and events, birthdays, etc. 

• If you don't a have a smart phone, use lds.org for the same features.

• Also, the Gospel Library app is really great to have because it gives you access to the scriptures, manuals, Church magazines, etc. 

Relief Society Lesson 11/16

In the World but Not of It

Hello, ladies! 

We had a great Relief Society lesson by Allie Hales yesterday about being a part of the world and interacting with others without becoming worldly ourselves. 

Love Others and Live with Differences

One sister made a comment that reminded me of Elder Oaks's last conference talk, "Loving Others and Living with Differences," in which he said,

 "We are to live in the world but not be of the world. We must live in the world because, as Jesus taught in a parable, His kingdom is 'like leaven,' whose function is to raise the whole mass by its influence. His followers cannot do that if they associate only with those who share their beliefs and practices. But the Savior also taught that if we love Him, we will keep His commandments."

"Don't Retreat Behind Your White Picket Fence"

How can we live our standards and follow the Lord without closeting ourselves away from the world? One sister said it's tempting to shelter in our homes with our families behind our white picket fences. It's easier and less scary that way. But the Lord wants us to serve and lift others and bring them to Him, and we can't do that by hiding.

Instead of getting confrontational and contentious with others who disagree with us, we must always be loving and kind toward them. Instead of getting caught up over points of doctrine, we should simply say that we know the Church is true and invite people to find out more about us. 

Distinct and Different in Happy Ways

Allie quoted from the lesson part of a talk from President Kimball:

"Much of the major growth that is coming to the Church in the last days will come because many of the good women of the world (in whom there is often such an inner sense of spirituality) will be drawn to the Church in large numbers. This will happen to the degree that the women of the Church reflect righteousness and articulateness in their lives and to the degree that the women of the Church are seen as distinct and different—in happy ways—from the women of the world."

Let's all keep working on strengthening others and being an example of the Lord to others this week!
 

Stake Conference This Sunday!

This Sunday we had a wonderful Stake Conference with some amazing speakers! Elder Richard G Scott spoke again on the three ways we can receive answers from heaven:

    1. God can say yes or give us peace about our decision.
    2. God can say no
    3. God can withhold any answer so that we can we can exercise our agency and choose for ourselves.

This is a topic he has spoken about before and it's a pretty incredible talk! If you missed conference, here's a link to the talk he originally gave back in 1989.  It's not exactly the same from this Sunday, but it's such an important message, no wonder he speaks of it often!

"Learning to Recognize Answers to Prayer" by Elder Richard G. Scott :

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1989/10/learning-to-recognize-answers-to-prayer?lang=eng

Relief Society Lessons