Just a little side not before I put this letter in here. I have been so saddened this week as our Apostle Boyd K Packer has been attacked by people, even those of our own faith about the talk that he gave in General Conference this past weekend that referenced our stand on same sex relationships, although that was not the whole talk. I raised my hand and sustained him as a prophet, seer and revelator and I MEANT IT! End of story. No debate. The Lord does not lie and He, President Packer, is his mouth piece.
That being said, here is my message for this month for our RS newsletter.
We thank thee, O God, for a prophet
To guide us in these latter days.
We thank thee for sending the gospel
To lighten our minds with its rays.
We thank thee for every blessing
Bestowed by thy bounteous hand.
We feel it a pleasure to serve thee
And love to obey thy command.
When dark clouds of trouble hang o’er us
And threaten our peace to destroy,
There is hope smiling brightly before us,
And we know that deliv’rance is nigh.
We doubt not the Lord nor his goodness.
We’ve proved him in days that are past.
The wicked who fight against Zion
Will surely be smitten at last.
We are now living in a time on earth where this message is of critical importance. We need a prophet, a guide, a direct conduit to our Heavenly Father that can give us the direction that we need to make it through these turbulent times. The days of riding the fence have passed. Things are becoming more clear, more black and white. Either we follow the prophet, or we do not. We cannot just pick and choose the counsel we follow, for all our inspired leaders are called of God to do just that, LEAD. Lead us to higher ground. Protect us from unnecessary pain and affliction. Sometimes things they say to us may hit close to home. The message may also be a sensitive subject to our heart. But we will never loose blessings from following our prophets, seers and revelators.
Conference is such a blessed time of renewal. A time where we can place our worries before our leaders and know that they will give us counsel on how to improve our relationships, how to become better stewards of the blessings we have, how to repent and come closer to our Heavenly Father through his Son, Jesus Christ, and how to strengthen our homes from the storms that are surely coming our way down the road.
Right now I am reading in the war chapters of Alma. There are many parallels found there that we are seeing today all around us. In Alma chapter 53 it tells us of the 2,000 strippling warriors who fought mightily to protect our liberties. Something that stood out to me this week while re-reading this chapter is in verse 17 it reads:
17 And they entered into a covenant to fight for the liberty of the Nephites, yea, to protect the land unto the laying down of their lives; yea, even they covenanted that they never would give up their liberty, but they would fight IN ALL CASES to protect the Nephites and themselves from bondage.
I love that! Right there it PROVES that WE CAN DO HARD THINGS! We can fight in ALL cases to protect ourselves from bondage. There are MANY things that put us in bondage. Our weaknesses are one of those things! Our prophets try to give us the tools to protect us and help us through our weakness and become STRENGTHENED in our fight against our liberty.
President Ezra Taft Benson said: “Men and women who turn their lives over to God will discover that He can make a lot more out of their lives than they can. He will deepen their joys, expand their vision, quicken their minds, strengthen their muscles, lift their spirits, multiply their blessings, increase their opportunities, comfort their souls, raise up friends, and pour out peace. Whoever will lose his life in the service of God will find eternal life” (The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson [1988], 361).
Sisters, May we stand on solid ground. May we heed the words our leaders have just spoken to us and cling to them as we STRENGTHEN our families and homes from the forces of danger all around us. We are in this together! WE CAN DO HARD THINGS! Faith and Action is what will keep us heading on the right path back to our Heavenly Father. I love you Sisters. I am so thankful for all the things I learn from you as I watch the great choices that you make each and every day in your service to the Lord both in and outside your homes. Have a great month! Meg
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