Four Stake Women’s Conference 2015—Women
of Light—Notes
D&C 50:24 "That
which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God,
receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the
perfect day."
Testimonies from three sisters:
Jullayne Newquist—“Becoming
a Woman of Light”
Happens gradually as you take advantage of the opportunities that arise
in your life. Gave beautiful examples
from her own life about her journey.
Paige Gorman “Being
a righteous mother in a wicked world”
Focus on purpose instead of perfectionSeek
purpose through the SaviorHe
makes up the differenceWhen
the Savior comes first everything else falls into placeThe
atonement is our source for everythingThe
Savior can heal us in all waysLook
to the Savior for our source of light
Merrilee Lingren “Enduring to the End”...we
are all in the process of enduring1)
stand firm in our testimonies of the basic principles of the gospel...we
are protected by the covenants we make in the temple2)
enduring means holding fast to that which is true...sacrifice
always brings blessings...families
are blessed when we serve3)
endure and wait patiently...Isaiah
40:31"But
they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up
with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk,
and not faint."
Sister Rosemary Wixom:
I came here to tell you that the Lord
loves you, he knows your heart, and knows your needs. Every Wednesday the General Auxiliary
Presidents pray for you. We are all in
this together and none of us has a corner on figuring things out. Those who lead us all have trials with
children and families. We are not
immune. We seek inspiration to lead.
The Lord has a plan for us and we’re on
the path together and we need each other in all our diversity. We need each person with all they bring. We need our covenants and the power of the
priesthood of the Lord.
Alma 28: 8 And this is the account of Ammon and his
brethren, their journeyings in the land of Nephi, their sufferings in the land,
their sorrows, and their afflictions, and their incomprehensible joy,
and the reception and safety of the brethren in the land of Jershon. And now
may the Lord, the Redeemer of all men, bless their souls forever.” Note, it said “sorrows, afflictions, and
incomprehensible joy” all in the same scripture.
Alma 28: 14 And thus we see
the great call of diligence of men to labor in the vineyards of
the Lord; and thus we see the great reason of sorrow, and also of
rejoicing—sorrow because of death and destruction among men, and joy because of
the light
of Christ unto life. In verse 14 we see the reason
for sorrow and joy. Heavenly Father has
given us an opportunity to experience both.
Through our faith in
Jesus Christ and courage to live the gospel we tap into the atonement and
become Women of Light. This begins at
baptism and when we receive the Holy Ghost and as we comprehend the light, we
become sanctified.
Sister Wixom showed
pictures of women from other countries and commented about how alike we
are. We teach our children, love each
other, make the gospel the most valuable thing, desire to serve Christ and help
others. We have the same types of
families and children in our midst. We
need go no farther than across the street or in our homes to be of service.
C.S. Lewis “Already the new men are dotted here and there all over
the earth. They do not draw attention to themselves. They love you more than
other men do, but they need you less. They will usually seem to have a lot of
time: you will wonder where it comes from. When you have recognised one of
them, you will recognise the next one much more easily. And I strongly suspect that
they recognise one another immediately and infallibly, across every barrier of
colour, sex, class, age, and even of creeds. To become new men means losing what we now
call 'ourselves'. Out of our selves, into Christ, we must go. His will is to
become ours and we are to think His thoughts, to 'have the mind of Christ' as
the Bible says.”
Discussed the Pre-existence:
We lived there for
eons of time before we came to this earth. We have all lived in our Heavenly Father's house. As we read the scriptures we come to remember what we once knew.
President Benson: “Nothing is going to startle us more
when we pass through the veil to the other side than to realize how well we
know our Father and how familiar his face is to us.” (“Jesus Christ—Gifts and
Expectations,” in Speeches of the Year, 1974,Provo: Brigham
Young University Press, 1975, p. 313.)
Brigham
Young: “I want to tell you, each and every one of you, that you are
well acquainted with God our heavenly Father, or the great Eloheim. You are all
well acquainted with Him, for there is not a soul of you but what has lived in
His house and dwelt with Him year after year; and yet you are seeking to become
acquainted with Him, when the fact is, you have merely forgotten what you did
know.”
President Eyring:
“You were
tutored by Him before you came into this life. He helped you understand and
accept that you would have trials, tests, and opportunities perfectly chosen
just for you. You learned that our Father had a plan of happiness to get you
safely through those trials and that you would help bring others safely through
theirs. This plan is marked by covenants with God.”
We
were tutored about our experiences. We
knew it would be hard without help. So
we have help in the form of others, prayer, scriptures, the divine strength of
the atonement, and our covenants.
The
Lord loves everyone. The atonement is
for everyone. Do not question that
love. Ask: Am I really your daughter and do you really
love me? Then hold on to that little
hint of light and keep holding brighter until the perfect day. Come to know your mission and purpose. Come to know that we are Women of God. Cheer for each other. Validation comes from the Lord and not from
the world. You may not know right then
that you are God’s daughter, but look around, and you will eventually see His
hand in your life.
We
must have the courage to stand for truth, even if we stand alone. Example of Esther. She was courageous. She didn’t stand alone. Her handmaids fasted with her. Like Esther, we came here for such a time as
this.
After
the video, Sister Wixom asked, “What did you learn about courage?”
Answers included:
“Affirm
we are courageous.”
“You
don’t realize how strong you are until being strong is all you have left.”
“Breathe
out fear, breathe in faith.”
“Courage
is not the absence of fear, it’s doing that thing in spite of the fear.”
“Faith,
when acted upon, eventually becomes knowing.”
Faith
is a process. What is the Holy Ghost
teaching you? Faith is living the gospel
in a world of casualness. Share the
gospel because we love. Make our family
our priority. Hold fast to what we know
and wait for further knowledge. Face social issues with prayer and
resources. The Lord can only teach an
inquiring mind.
Intentionally
teach your children what they need to know.
Teach them the whys and that sometimes we need to walk by faith. Teach the truth, and teach plainly. Love those who do
not believe like we do. We can love and live with differences. Those who diligently follow the Lord will suffer persecution but it can motivate you to be more courageous. Have Christlike compassion.
Elder
Russell M. Nelson said: “Why do we need such resilient faith? Because difficult days are
ahead. Rarely in the future will it be easy or popular to be a faithful
Latter-day Saint. Each of us will be tested. The Apostle Paul warned that in
the latter days, those who diligently follow the Lord “shall suffer
persecution." That very persecution can either crush you into silent weakness or motivate you to be more exemplary and courageous in your daily lives."
D&C 25: 10 And
verily I say unto thee that thou shalt lay aside the things of
this world,
and seek for the things of a better.
What are our priorities?
Put the eternal ones on the calendar first and all else will come into
focus. Time spent seeking personal
revelation is time well-spent.
Bruce Hafen: “We can have eternal life if we want it, but only if there is nothing else we
want more.”
Take the time to:
·
Pray
·
write lists and
prioritize things
·
what should surface
to the top
·
put the things of
God on your calendar first
·
we need to remember
what matters most or we can be overcome with things that don't really matter
No matter what
happens...you can carry on!!! It
will take consistency. "Quiet, God
at work," Hold on, Don't quit, Keep believing, Don't give up, let God do His
work in you.
Told story of Ann who had many trials
in her life and had developed the philosophy that “Hard is not bad. Hard makes us strong.” With the Lord’s help I can do anything. The Holy Ghost and the Grace of God can and
will bandage you up.
She spoke of trials, troubles, and
afflictions (Alma 36:3, 27; Alma 38:5).
She defined trials as “acts of God,” troubles as “things we are
responsible for,” and afflictions “things caused by others.” Ann was faithful in her many trials,
troubles, and afflictions. She stayed
focused by reading the Book of Mormon, attending the temple, keeping a sense of
humor, and immersed herself in service.
Focus on the Savior and others. When you focus on the Savior that is where
the joy is. This life was designed to
have holes in it. The Savior fills the
holes.
Told the story of Georgia
Marriott. Georgia testified of the
gospel every day. She wrote in her
journal, “"It's true, it's true, and no one can tell me otherwise because
I feel the truth inside of me growing and defying any doubts. . . . Life holds
no chains for me because I am liberated by that inherent Light given to me
before the world." Ten days after
that journal entry, Georgia was hit and killed by a truck.
After her passing, Georgia's
roommates and family set to work, preparing a service that they felt was
"what Georgia wanted." They opened her college journals and the light
of the gospel poured out. In this treasure trove of journals rested Georgia's
personal witness of Christ.
Earlier that year she had written:
"How to share a testimony every
day effectively:"
·
Love those you speak to . . . that is
where the Spirit steps in and touches the person's heart.
·
Offer a gem to someone with humility,
yet confidence in the truth.
·
Seize the moment; take it with
courage.
·
Speak as the Spirit directs.
·
Show others you recognize the beauty
in them.
·
Important in missionary work is
recognizing the Light in others.
Georgia’s funeral was attended by
over 700 people, many not of our faith.
On hand were 250 Books of Mormon with Georgia’s testimony inside. By the end of the service, all of the books
were gone. Georgia was a woman of light. May we be united in
our effort to better Love the Lord and feel His love in our life.
President Kasteler
Stakes are a refuge and defense from the storm. (D&C 115: 6 And that the gathering
together upon the land of Zion, and upon her stakes, may be for a defense,
and for a refuge from the storm, and from wrath when it shall be
poured out without mixture upon the whole earth.)
We are on a journey which will always have bends and
holes. Once we make a commitment to God,
the refining begins. It takes courage and
faith to go through the tribulations of life. Living
faithfully and having a firm testimony doesn’t make the trials go away but it
gives us the hope of the atonement of the Savior. But God has promised “I will be your light in
the wilderness” (1 Nephi 17:13).
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