"TURN YOUR LIGHT ON"
BY SISTER SHARON EUBANKS
Lesson by Lisa Hanson
The prophets are speaking about women. Sister Eubanks implores us sisters to hear their words. She referenced a talk given almost forty years ago, written by President Spencer W. Kimball, but delivered at the 1979 Women's General Conference by his wife Camila Eyring Kimball.
"Finally, my dear sisters, may I suggest to you something that has not been said before or at least in suite this way. 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... will be drawn to the Church in large numbers. This will happen to the degree that the women of the Church relent 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."
"Among the real heroines in the world who will come into the Church are women who are more concerned with being righteous than being selfish. These real heroines have true humility, which places higher value on integrity than on visibility... It will be... female exemplars of the Church [who] will be a significant force in both the numerical and the spiritual growth of the Church in the last days."
- It will be the good relationships of the women that will trigger much of the major growth coming to the Church in years ahead.
- The friendships that Relief Society women, young women, and Primary girls build with sincere, faithful, godly women and girls of their faiths and beliefs will be a significant force in how the Church grows in the last days.
- President Kimball called these women from other backgrounds "heroines" who will be more concerned with being righteous than selfish, who will show us that integrity is more valuable than visibility.
- The first is to be righteous:
- Being righteous doesn't mean being perfect or never making mistakes
- It means developing an inner connection with God, depending of our sins and mistakes and freely helping others.
- Repenting continuously allows the Atonement and Christ's sacrifice to work in our lives daily.
- Women who have repented have changed the course of history
- When we repent we change our individual world, which changes our families, which causes change in our communities and the world.
- Even when our lives are in peril, and utter chaos, we can cry out to the Lord for help.
- Jesus Christ is stronger than any terrible circumstance. We can rely on His strength.
- By following the Lord we can change the course of our lives, the lives our children, spouses, family members and friends. We can be righteous by living with an open heart for others who have made mistakes and want to change. None of us are perfect, but we can always repent and keep trying.
- The second is to be articulate:
- Being articulate means to clearly express how you feel about something and why.
- Each of us needs to be better at articulating the reasons of our faith:
- How do you feel about Jesus Christ?
- Why do you stay in the Church?
- Why do you believe the Book of Mormon is scripture?
- Why does it matter that the prophet has something to say in 2017?
- How do you know he is a real prophet?
- Use your voice and your power to articulate what you know and feel.
- The third is to be different:
- In July of 2017 at Panama City Beach in Florida, a number of swimmers had been caught in a riptide. The stranded swimmers were caught in a strong current and were being carried out to sea. A near by couple tried to help the swimmer but then got caught in the current themselves. Quickly the number of those caught in the riptide grew as more people tried to help those in trouble. There were no ropes and no lifeguard. The police sent for a rescue boat, the the swimmers had been caught in the tide for twenty minutes and were exhausted. Jessica Mae Simmons and her husband were on the beach and she had the idea to form a human chain to reach the swimmers caught in the current. They shouted at the people on the beach to help them, dozens linked their arms and marched into the ocean. People of all walks of life, races and, genders linked arms and marched into the ocean
- .
- Everyone on the beach could think only of traditional solutions, and they were paralyzed. But one couple, in a split second thought of a different solution. Innovation and creation are spiritual gifts. 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. We aren't always going to fit in the world, but being different in positives ways can be a lifeline to others who are struggling.
- The fourth is to be distinct:
- Distinct Beams to be recognizably well defined
- Jessica Mae Simmons recognized that she had her own distinct talent for holding her breath for an extended period of time. She knew she could swim out to the struggling swimmers once the chain was formed and pull them on a boogie board to shore. She had a distinct skill, she knew how to swim against at rip current.
- The restored gospel is recognizably well defined. But we have to be distinct how we follow it. Just as Jessica practiced swimming, we need to practice living the gospel before the emergency so that, unafraid, we will be strong enough to help when others, (or ourselves) are being swept away by the current.
- Finally, the firth thing to do is to 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 building, when we lift the burden of others, it blesses our lives in ways our trials cannot take a away.
"You don't build out of pessimism or cynicism. You look with optimism, work with faith and things happen."
-President Gordon B. Hinckley
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