In the Arms of His Love

My throught on President Hinckley's talk "In the Arms of His Love"

I was hoping someone else would start because I didn't want my make-up to run down my face today.

I didn't see/here this when it was originally given and I haven't had a spare moment to hear/see it on the web but just reading it I could hear the Prophet's love for me so personally and so deep I was weeping when I first read this. (Very embarrassing when you are sitting on the sidelines at a soccer practice.)

I don't even know where to begin with this talk. I think every word is so perfect and so needed.

Well, as my mother always said, "Start at the beginning."

I will agree that even though the sisters are sometimes not the best, the organization of the RS is the best and greatest organization for women on this earth. DUH. But still we need to hear that when our local RS isn't meeting our needs as we see them it is often forgotten that it truly is the best and greatest organization for women.

I love what he said LDS stands for LOVE, DEVOTION, SERVICE. I want to make sure I stand for that too! Now for his answers to what does Relief Society really stand for? (Why not take one a day)

1. Love
2. Education
3. Self-Reliance
4. Sacrifice

He ends with these words (I cut and paste):

"This is what the Relief Society does for women. It gives them opportunity for growth and development. It gives them status as queens in their own households. It gives them place and position, where they grow as they exercise their talents. It gives them pride and direction in family life. It gives them added appreciation for good, eternal companions and children.

"What a glorious organization Relief Society is. There is nothing to compare with it in all the world. May the Lord bless each of you with these marvelous qualities that come of activity in the great Relief Society organization. For this I humbly pray, in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, amen."

(from another post)

This is the part that had me blubbering like an idiot. My sister is on the very last battle with brain cancer and she will not win this. She will be taken home before what I as a human think is the end (she leaves 9 children with the youngest only 9 years old). It is time for her to find "rest" in the biblical and eternal sense. For us we need the rest that can come from our knowledge of His love for us while walking this earth. Our rest comes from the knowledge that he didn't leave us alone. He gives us the Holy Ghost and his sweet (or not so sweet) whisperings when like that sister, feel like the world is on our shoulders and we are standing in quick sand.

I don't know how many times I am coming home from a meeting and think, "If I drive around the block a few more time, more lights will go out and I won't have to deal with them." But then I also think, "I also won't get that last, 'I forgot to tell you I love you and give you a kiss' from a child who said that six times already and has only been told lights out for the past 15 minutes." So, I pull in, race in the door and wait for the "Good mom is home," uttered from an exhausted hubby who then tags me and say, "you're it," and then disappears while muttering, "I don't know how you do it."

Well, we do it just like this sister was told, "But I can come to you."

I love the verbiage "can come", it doesn't say, "will come" but "can come." I think that denotes a chance for us to see our weakness and humbly bow and ask for Him to come to us and help us in our time of need and rejoicing. Well, our play break is over and I must now teach something else but I sure hope He "comes" now since I know I have come to my end of the rope for the day-I'm just going to hang on to the knot at the end.

(from another post)

LOVE- Relief Society stands for love. What a remarkable thing it is to witness the love of good women one for another. They mingle together in the bonds of love with friendship and respect for each other. This organization is actually the only resource that many women have for friendly association. It is the natural instinct of women to reach out in love to those in distress and need. The welfare program of the Church is described as priesthood based, but it could not function without the Relief Society.

What are your thoughts on the above? Does RS stand for love?

When I was RS president, I was given a long list of names. I had never met many of these sisters as they were inactive. Some were even on the DNC (Do not contact) list. I prayed over all of those names---the DNC and those whom I had never seen and those whose faces were so familiar to me they were like family and those that fell in between. As I prayed over those names and tried desperately to love them, I had one of the most amazing thing happen to me. EVERYONE of those sisters became real to me. The Lord gave it to me to love those sisters even though I had NEVER met some of them and other had rubbed me the wrong way. I truly loved those sisters. I have used that often when someone has done me wrong. I have prayed to know them and love them. I prayed to know how to serve and reach them the best way I could. I need to do that again as there have been some who have rubbed me the wrong way in this new ward. I know I'm supposed to be here, but I still am not what I called adjusted and fitting in to this ward. I guess I had better hit my knees so that I can LOVE my new sisters.

What about the mingling? My kids come pouncing in after RS is over. We have to leave so the next ward (who is usually on our heels) can have the room. Mingling is hard for me. BUT when I do mingle I start to develop those bonds of love and friendship. The statement that he makes about this being the ONLY resource for friendly association is very true for many of us HS. We don't have the school PTA and other activities to form friendships. We do have HS group, but many of those are cyber friendships or we are involved in a LDS group. Or at least that is my situation. I do not know my neighbors because I don't need to stand at the corner with my children waiting for the school bus. I don't associate with them because I don't hang out at the local coffee shop. I don't have lunch with my "girl friends" because I'm home teaching my children. (even if those friends are my LDS ward members---I'm working.) SO for me that statement is a statement of truth. RS is the ONLY place or me to find friendly associations. AND I'M NOT DOING A GREAT JOB IN FINDING FRIENDS---but that I think is my fault.

The natural instinct the Prophet is talking about is why RS was put together in the first place. The Prophet's wife and Sister Snow got together to help with the building of the temple. They saw a need, filled it and the Prophet Joseph took it to the Lord and viola---we have one of the most important groups on earth today.

(from another post)
Relief Society stands for education. It is the obligation of every woman of this Church to get all the education she can. It will enlarge her life and increase her opportunities. It will provide her with marketable skills in case she needs them. ~President Hinckley.

I believe in my heart this is a commandment from him. If you add this to the 88th section of the Doctrine and Covenants then you have a pretty powerful and all encompassing commandment. I also love the fact that he/He (Pres. Hinckley and Heavenly Father) didn't tell us how to do it. I don't hear the "GO BACK TO SCHOOL AND GET YOUR DIPLOMA!!!!" I hear increase your knowledge of the world around you, of history, of science, and other interests as well as in something you can use to earn money if the need arises.

If you take this statement, D&C 88:76-80 and the Proclamation to the Family then you as a sister, woman, daughter, female, wife, mother and what other adjective you can think of have the formula for the Lord's education for his Daughters. Pretty cool!

On a personal note I have learned more (and I'm talking in the "educational" sense of the word "learn") since I have begun teaching my children then all the days of institutional learning. I remember sitting in 10th grade when the teacher said a sentence with the word "world war TWO" in it and it floored me! If there was a WWII then there had to be a WWI !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was shocked! I didn't even have a clue. In my house when we spoke of "the war" we spoke of the war that tore my mother's family apart and it was NEVER called WWII, just "the war." In school it seemed like this is how the timeline went.

Columbus came and about two weeks later the pilgrims came. They had a thanksgiving feast and then the next year they got angry at King George and had a fight. That lasted about a year (had to go through the snow because of the bloody foot prints) then we were cool for a little while-maybe 10 years or so and then we had a civil war. I knew that one was long war-maybe two years? But then who really understood these things. Somewhere in all that mess the Saints and other people came west and all it was was fighting and fighting the Indians over and over again. Next thing I knew we were fighting "the war" and then while in my youth there was some "conflict" over in South Asia that in my town you didn't take sides. Then I graduated from school!

BOY! Have my eyes been opened. I now know about the French and Indian War, the Revolutionary War, the war of 1812, Mexican-American War, the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, WWI, WWII and all the modern wars as well. My eyes have been open and I have been able to digest all this and make sense of all the information. Glory be!!!! What an education I have received all because I decided to keep my kids home. We won't even start on the science---but I will say, "I hated science until about four years ago when I finally got it."

(from another post)

The sister who wrote President Hinckley wrote this: "As I pondered my patriarchal blessing and made it a matter of fasting and prayer, I was able to set some realistic goals in my life that have been used as a road map to keep me on track with the principles of the gospel. I attend my meetings, pray daily, and pay my tithing. I . . . take my calling as a visiting teacher very seriously. . . . "

Have you taken a good PONDERING of your patriarchal blessing as of late? Very interesting to see it in older eyes.

How are your goals? Are they in line with the "road map" of your blessing?

And then here is the $1,000,000 question: "How do you do your "duty" and "callings" when you essentially work full time?"

I don't have an answer for that last one at all. I struggle with it all the time. I'm so busy that I scarcely can breath some days and yet, I'm supposed to WHAT?

I know my schedule and as long as my VT sisters fit my schedule I can be 100% every month but alas they never fit my schedule 100%. Nor does my calling. Nor does helping my children fulfill their callings and duties. Nor does helping my husband fulfill his calling. Trying to juggle all these GOOD and GREAT things is very, very difficult and sometimes balls fall and things come crashing around my feet and I sit down and have a good cry. But I pick myself up and say, "I'll do better, I will." Only to fail again the next month.

How do you work full time at two jobs (that is what we are doing) and "be all that you can be"?

But I like the other questions better-I have answers for those. My blessing talks about getting an education and when my hubby proposed to me at 19 (no comments please!) and I went to the Lord and asked about how a sophomore in college could marry a senior and still fulfill the "education" clause in her blessing (we won't even touch the "missionary service aboard" part) I was dumbfounded by the answer and little did I know then (almost 20 years ago) that homeschooling would be how I got my education. When we moved to the Seattle area I thought that I would just walk into the UW, apply and get my degree. When it came time to turn in my paper work, I couldn't do it. I decided to take it to the Lord. He told me "not yet." And so I got a job to help us get out of credit card debt (we bought $500 worth of crappy furniture for our first apartment and needed to get rid of it). It was from that job that I met a fantastic doctor that solved our infertility issued (six children later) and had I not gotten that job and had the referral from a co-worker who knows where I would be. The Lord led me then, and a few years later when we asked the dumbest question of all "do we homeschool?" (now look at me---I'm getting smart!). (tongue firmly in cheek!)

So that "education" part of my PB is being fulfilled. I do hope to go back and finish my degree, although I would switch fields-I was in education believe it or not!-but it isn't "right now." (actually I'm sort of scared of the classroom setting again-I'm afraid I will forget to raise my hand to ask a question or go potty ~smile~).

(from another post)

Relief Society means self reliance.

I sometimes think in today's world we are at two extremes. We either depend on other a LOT or not at all. I remember some time ago that a friend of mine moved. She moved just a few blocks from their home, but still she had moved and didn't ask for help at all. She had three very small children, a hubby who worked and a very busy schedule. On the other hand I remember running by and saying hi to a "new" ward member (they moved from the neighboring ward) and finding our RS president there helping her set up her kitchen. This lady had four children (all school age and above), a hired maid or two, a gardener and here was the RS president helping her unload her kitchen.

In my perfect world I would have a pantry that could survive 3 months of no grocery store shopping and a garage or storage room that could go two years. Not sure I'm there (use to be).

I don't can (did it too much as a kid-had too and HATE it). I don't make bread (can't seem to get it right here in the Seattle area). I don't like to cook (I actually have a lady do 24 dinners for my family every month).

But I do sew! And my kids will never not have a book to read! If school is closed because of snow---well.

(from another post)

RS means sacrifice.

I need not say anymore to you on this list about sacrifice. I don't think one of us on here isn't a parent (we HS our CHILDREN)! If we don't know as mothers the meaning of sacrifice then we had better go look that word up in every possible dictionary. I know mine says, "Sacrifice see mother" We giver everything freely to our children and would give the other stuff we can't if allowed (think testimony, faith etc). It isn't easy doing it, but we do it for one reason---LOVE!

RS means faith.

It means putting first things first.

That is why I sacrifice my everything for my children-I put first things first. This why I get up in the morning and do what I do. I have faith that I will receive the blessings promised me.