1.14.18- What I Learned In Church

Today we read from Sharon Eubanks talk "Turn On Your Light" from the October 2017 conference. Here are some parts of the talk that stuck out to me:

The friendships that Relief Society women, young women, and primary girls build with sincere, faithful, godly women and girls to other faiths and beliefs will be a significant force in how the church grows in the last days.

How do we play our part?

What should we do?

1.) Be righteous

Being righteous doesn't mean being perfect or never making mistakes.

2.) Be articulate

Being articulate means to clearly express how you feel about something and why

3.) Be different

When we keep our covenants, it may make us different from others in our culture and society, but it gives us access to inspiration so we can think of different solutions, different approaches, and different applications.

We aren't always going to fit in with the world, but being different in positive ways can be a lifeline to others who are struggling.

4.) Be distinct

Distinct means to be recognizably well defined.

The restored gospel is recognizably well defined. But we have to be distinct about how we follow it.

5.) Do one through four in happy ways

Being happy doesn't mean to slap a plastic smile on your face no matter what is going on. But it does mean keeping the laws of God and building and lifting others. When we build, when we lift the burdens of others, it blesses our lives in ways our trials cannot take away.

There is energy that comes from happiness and optimism that doesn't just bless us--it builds everyone around us. Any small thing you do to light real happiness in others shows that you are already carrying the torch that President Kimball lit.

1.7.18- What I Learned In Church

This new teaching style for both Sunday School and Relief Society is quite interesting. Now instead of sitting in rows, we sit in two rows (half circle style) across the room from each other so we can see who is commenting. We also pass around a microphone so those who want to make a comment are heard by everyone in the room.

In Relief Society we were given little notebooks to write down promptings while reading the lessons throughout the week, or during the lessons. I often write down parts of the lesson that sticks out to me and what things I would like to remember not just for one day.

The first thing we talked during this particular lesson is about the sisters. I never thought about how many sisters there were in our ward. Here are our statistics:

• There are a total of 219 sisters (not including those who are inactive) 
• 17 sisters at our assisted care facility
• 7 have asked that we do not contact them
• 25 sisters have asked that we do not visit them
• 16 sisters serving in our Primary program
• 5 sisters serving in our Young Women's program
• 2 sisters serving in the library

Some important comments to remember about the sisters around you:

• We need each other!
• Love and accept people for who they are
• Go sit by someone if they're sitting alone
• Extend yourself to people you don't know
• Think of ways we can help each other
• Make connections