A Royal Priesthood

My thoughts on President Monson's talk "A Royal Priesthood"

I wasn’t sure how I would take to President Monson as our new prophet. I didn’t doubt his being the new prophet, well I guess technically he has been a prophet for a long time, but THE Prophet or President? Well, I wasn’t sure. Last Sunday when I heard of President Hinckley’s passing I wasn’t shocked, no, I was saddened at our lost. I was happy for his reunion with the Savior and his beloved Marjorie and many others of his family as well as past prophets that no doubt stood in line to hug him as they welcomed him home.

But in all honestly as I thought about the secession of the prophets I hesitated just a moment when I thought about President Monson as President, Prophet and all for our church. The hesitation was just a moment, kind of a double take when you aren’t quite sure what you just saw. I then remembered that during sacrament that afternoon I had read his talk he gave to the priesthood brethren. I didn’t question his calling.

It was confirmed again the moment he stood up to conduct President Hinckley’s funeral (boy did he look old that day) and then when he spoke, I had a wave of confirmation come over me.

My children and I listened to the press conference on Monday when they announced the first presidency. (He looked young again.) We missed the first 5 minutes (technical difficulties) but we heard him answer questions from the media and again that wave came rushing over me. I could love him as THE prophet and president. Not that President Kimball, Benson, Hunter, Hinckley will be pushed out as they all have a place in my heart (Lee would too, but I was way too young when he passed to really remember him), but there is room in my heart for Pres. Monson too. It is kind of like adding more children to your family. No one is replaced; the heart just gets enlarged for more.

He talks about MARKS. As I work out in the gym every morning I notice marks on people. Marks as tattoos as well as scars. I think of the marks on me. I can tell you how almost every scar came about. The one where I took a knife and stabbed myself, not on purpose, but through careless actions. The stretch marks from baring children. The marks of worry around my eyes. I wrote a poem about these marks.

Life Line
dedicated to my children
What are those lines I see
Staring so faintly back at me?
Lines around my clear blue eyes,
From worries of the days gone by.
Lines around the mouth I fear,
From smiling, giggling from ear to ear.
Lines on knuckles snarled with scars,
From driving with our teens in cars.
Lines in places not many view,
From babies that were long ov'r due.
Lines of love, joy, worries and fears,
Because I've loved you all these years.

These are marks of a mother’s love. The marks Pres. Monson talk of are also marks of love, love for the Savior who we represent, some by holding priesthood and all by the waters of baptism.

The mark of vision. Do we really see what we can become? Do we really see us how the Lord sees us? Do we see us as others see us?
The mark of effort. “… we may find that there are times in our lives when we falter, when we become weary or fatigued, or when we suffer a disappointment or a heartache. When that happens, I would hope that we will persevere with even greater effort toward our goal.” How many of us just go through the motions sometimes because we know the blessings that come? How many of us just “do it” because? How many of us “do it” with a bit more in the hope that we will “catch it.” I love how Pres. Monson tells us all that we will all hold a calling where we need to show forth effort. It is all about effort!
The mark of faith. Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is the first principle of the gospel. I love this sentence, “Friendships, we know, may alter and change, but the Lord is constant.” He echoed those words in yesterday’s press conference. To paraphrase, the classes and other things may change but the gospel is constant.
The mark of virtue. If you have the above marks then this mark just follows. It isn’t hard to keep when you are committed to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The mark of prayer. Even if you are totally committed, sometimes we let this one slip a bit. I often think my prayers are bouncing off the ceiling. My mom use to tell me then go pray outside. I chuckled when she said that, but there was some comfort in her words. He hasn’t moved, we need to move. He is listening, always; are we talking. He is speaking, always; are we listening.

What kind of marks are you going to have on your person? Are they marks of love or foolishness?