Greatly enlarged souls

This post is part of the General Conference Odyssey. This week covers the Sunday Afternoon Session of the April 2000 Conference.

Elder Maxwell talked in this session about "contentment," which seems like kind of an uncommon topic to choose—but I almost see it as another word for trust, which is definitely one of Elder Maxwell's themes! What struck me about it was how strongly he tied contentment (feeling at peace with the circumstances we can't change) to Jesus Christ's atonement. I think the link is that because Christ suffered and died for us, and because we know He will turn all things for our good as we repent, we can then have ultimate trust and acceptance of whatever things Christ "allots" to us.

Here are some of the things Elder Maxwell said about that:

• Being content means acceptance without self-pity. Meekly borne, however, deprivations such as these can end up being like excavations that make room for greatly enlarged souls.…

• We can draw upon [Christ's] glorious Atonement by repenting. We can learn to serve and to forgive within our sample of humanity, including settings no larger than the family or friendships.

The justice and mercy of God will have been so demonstrably perfect that at the Final Judgment there will be no complaints, including from those who once questioned what God had allotted in the mortal framework.

We can and “ought to be content with the things allotted to us,” being circumstantially content but without being self-satisfied and behaviorally content with ourselves.

Such contentment is more than shoulder-shrugging passivity. It reflects our participative assent rather than uncaring resignation.

• This spiritual contentment rests on our accepting the Atonement of Jesus, because we “have come to a knowledge of the goodness of God, and his matchless power, and his wisdom, and his patience, and his long-suffering towards the children of men; and also, the atonement which has been prepared from the foundation of the world”

I was just re-reading Elder Bednar's talk about having faith "not to be healed" and the message there is similar. In that talk, Elder Bednar quotes a young man he knew who had cancer. The man wrote in a letter to Elder Bednar about something he'd learned while praying to be healed: 

Up until this point, I had a hard time reconciling the need for my faith in Christ with the inevitability of His will. I saw them as two separate things, and sometimes I felt that one contradicted the other. ‘Why should I have faith if His will ultimately is what will prevail?’ I asked. After this experience, I knew that having faith—at least in my circumstance—was not necessarily knowing that he would heal me, but that He could heal me. I had to believe that He could, and then whether it happened was up to Him.

As I allowed those two ideas to coexist in my life, focused faith in Jesus Christ and complete submission to His will, I found greater comfort and peace.

I have been thinking about that a lot lately. It takes some courage to believe that God could have fixed any number of things in your life that you wish he would fix—and he didn't do it. But if you can keep that firmly affixed to its concurrent truth—if he didn't, there was a good and loving reason He didn't—it's actually very comforting. Peace doesn't come from everything being easy (we all know too well that that could change at any moment)—but peace comes from trusting God is there with us in all of it, working and planning and preparing all things for our good!

Other posts in this series:

Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven—by Rozy

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Know that it will come

This post is part of the General Conference Odyssey. This week covers the Sunday Morning Session of the April 2000 Conference.

Just a quote today from Elder Eyring's talk:

You may have confidence in the Lord’s service. The Savior will help you do what He has called you to do, be it for a time as a worker in the Church or forever as a parent. You may pray for help enough to do the work and know that it will come.

Other posts in this series:

Finding a safe harbor—by Rozy 

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25 things very dull indeed

I don't a believe a single one of these pictures is well-lit, deliberately composed, or even perfectly in focus. That's the state of my life these days! But I'm happy to have pictures of these little moments, all the same. So here are a few good things happening around here lately!

1. Clementine got this little bunny dress for Christmas. Really a present for me, of course, so I made sure she wore it on my birthday. Note her admiring look at Gussie (who is looking rather grown-up, next to her)

Funny little poppet!

2. Gus wrapped in his "cow-dinal" blanket

3. A new way Clementine likes to sit (she's a little sick here, poor lamb)

4. A carefully laid-out set of gear for a policeman heading to bed

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Joy through womanhood

This post is part of the General Conference Odyssey. This week covers the Priesthood Session of the April 2000 Conference.

I've been thinking recently about Satan's attempts to destroy the family and just how many different directions they come from. One thing I worry about for my daughters is how motherhood, even among church members, is often pushed aside as a minor or secondary goal, rather than a primary focus to aspire to and prepare for. I worry about how easy it is to absorb cultural attitudes toward childbearing and families, because I know that by orienting themselves toward worldly measures of success, my daughters would rob themselves of the contentment and happiness that could be theirs if they embraced their divine roles.

Some of these same worries are captured in this little parable I read recently: https://www.jrganymede.com/2023/01/06/the-child-of-destiny/

Richard G. Scott also talks about Satan's attacks on women in his conference talk:

Satan has unleashed a seductive campaign to undermine the sanctity of womanhood, to deceive the daughters of God and divert them from their divine destiny. He well knows women are the compassionate, self-sacrificing, loving power that binds together the human family. He would … rob them of their exalting roles as wives and mothers. He has convinced many of the lie that they are third-class citizens in the kingdom of God.

I like what Elder Scott then suggests as a counter to these lies:

…Let us encourage every woman who questions her value to turn to her Heavenly Father and His glorified Son for a supernal confirmation of her immense individual worth. I testify that as each woman seeks it in faith and obedience, the Savior will continually prompt her through the Holy Ghost. That guidance will lead her to fulfillment, peace, and a consuming joy through magnifying her divinely appointed, sacred womanhood.

I hope I can teach my daughters to do that!

Other posts in this series:

Sweet Refreshment Find—by Rozy

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As a magnifying glass

This post is part of the General Conference Odyssey. This week covers the Saturday Afternoon Session of the April 2000 Conference.

I loved Elder Ballard's talk for this session of Conference. I doubt it was my favorite one at the time, because I used to think he was the most boring speaker! But now I like his talks so much, and I'm seeing his old ones with new eyes. He quoted what President Snow said in the year 1900 about the church:

On Friday, April 6, 1900, President Snow said: “The Lord has prospered us amazingly, and we are doing large things at the present time. … Now that we are approaching our seventy-first year, the Lord expects that we will do something—something that will cause the nations to marvel…

Then Elder Ballard extends that challenge to "do something" to the current new century, the year 2000. It resonates with me right now, too, during these times when I feel like the world is out of control and I don't know HOW the few of us Latter-day Saints who are left are supposed to make a difference in it. How can we and our families stay strong when so many others have fallen away? More importantly, how can we call those people back? I love Elder Ballard's answer to that question:

…As I read and ponder the scriptures and carefully consider the Lord’s counsel to His followers in every dispensation of time, it appears to me that the most important thing every one of us can do is to examine our own commitment and devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ. We must carefully guard against spiritual apathy and work to maintain the full measure of our loving loyalty to the Lord.

…It is important that we each know for ourselves that Jesus is the Christ and that He has restored to the earth through the Prophet Joseph Smith the fulness of His everlasting gospel. As we press forward in His service, spiritual experiences will increase our faith, and we will find great joy.

It's a pretty simple answer, and I guess an obvious one—that the most important things we can do is focus on our own commitment first. But I like the reminder that doing so really will allow us to have an effect on those around us too. Elder Ballard is realistic about how sometimes others won't want to listen to the full gospel message or accept the covenants that come with it. But even then, we can be witnesses of Christ:

Because we love the Lord, we should be spiritually sensitive to moments when the powerful and important truths of the gospel can be shared with others. Perhaps more importantly, however, we should seek at all times to purify ourselves and to lead such worthy lives that the Light of Christ emanates from us in all that we say and do. Our day-to-day lives should stand as immutable witness of our faith in Christ.

Then he summarizes:

Brothers and sisters, the Lord expects us to do something. I believe we are expected to increase our own faith, shake off any possible feelings of apathy, and by the power of the Holy Ghost reaffirm our commitment and intensify our service to the Lord. Then, when we seek to clarify someone’s understanding of the Church, our lives—well and faithfully lived—can serve as a magnifying glass through which others can examine the impact of gospel living. Under the light of our good example, the Spirit can enlarge understanding of the Church and its mission to all with whom we have contact.

We need not apologize for our beliefs nor back down from that which we know to be true. But we can share it in a spirit of loving understanding—boldly and confidently, with an eye single to the glory of God—without pressuring our listeners or feeling that we have failed in our duty if they do not immediately accept what we believe.

I feel like it's a good, patient perspective to see things this way—to trust that we'll be led when to speak and when to let our actions alone speak for us. I have questions about this all the time with my own children. When should I say something? When should I insist and when should I merely invite? When should I let things go? When should I chasten? When should I stay silent? The answers to these questions seem to constantly be changing from month to month and child to child. But I like the thought of not worrying about "failure" when it seems that someone isn't listening. Instead I should concentrate on being worthy of the Holy Ghost myself, and then trusting Him to both lead me, and to speak through me so my life can "serve as a magnifying glass" for those I love and have influence over.

Other posts in this series:

Power in the Word—by Rozy 

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