Relief Society

As I sit here (with a yucky sinus cold) listening for the second time to the General Relief Society Meeting talks given last night in Salt Lake City, I feel so grateful for this wonderful organization which is the Relief Society, which I am a part of along with tens of thousands of other women all over the world. What an inspired organization this is, how much love and concern our leaders have for us, for our spiritual well-being. Talks ranged from learning from the past, from history, recognizing and standing by our divine roles of women, mothers, wives, caretakers, nurturers, being beacons of righteousness, love, and service. That we, as sisters in Relief Society, need to utilize the power of the Holy Spirit to make choices and take on responsibilities of growing and nurturing rising generations in the restored gospel. Learning from the past, from history is important because it can change us, inspire us to do and be better, replace fear and doubt with hope and charity. I also loved the emphasis on visiting teaching and what a special calling that is. But I especially loved Pres. Monson's talk about not judging one another, some highlights below:

My dear sisters, each of you is unique. You are different from each other in many ways. There are those of you who are married. Some of you stay at home with your children, while others of you work outside your homes. Some of you are empty-nesters. There are those of you who are married but do not have children. There are those who are divorced, those who are widowed. Many of you are single women. Some of you have college degrees; some of you do not. There are those who can afford the latest fashions and those who are lucky to have one appropriate Sunday outfit. Such differences are almost endless. Do these differences tempt us to judge one another?
Mother Teresa, a Catholic nun who worked among the poor in India most of her life, spoke this profound truth: “If you judge people, you have no time to love them.” The Savior has admonished, “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.” I ask: Can we love one another, as the Savior has commanded, if we judge each other? And I answer—with Mother Teresa—“No; we cannot.”

I have always loved your Relief Society motto, Charity never faileth. What is charity? The prophet Mormon teaches us that “charity is the pure love of Christ.” In his farewell message to the Lamanites, Moroni declared, “Except ye have charity, ye can in nowise be saved in the kingdom of God.”

I consider charity—or the “pure love of Christ”—to be the opposite of criticism and judging. In speaking of charity, I do not at this moment have in mind the relief of the suffering through the giving of our substance. That, of course, is necessary and proper. Tonight, however, I have in mind the charity that manifests itself when we are tolerant of others and lenient toward their actions; the kind of charity that forgives; the kind of charity that is patient.

There is a serious need for the charity that gives attention to those who are unnoticed, hope to those who are discouraged, aid to those who are afflicted. True charity is love in action. The need for charity is everywhere.

Needed is the charity which refuses to find satisfaction in hearing or in repeating the reports of misfortunes that come to others, unless by so doing the unfortunate one may be benefitted. The American educator and politician Horace Mann once said, “To pity distress is but human; to relieve it is Godlike.”

Charity is having patience with someone who has let us down; it is resisting the impulse to become offended easily. It is accepting weaknesses and shortcomings. It is accepting people as they truly are. It is looking beyond physical appearances to attributes that will not dim through time. It is resisting the impulse to categorize others.I just loved that Ella cuddled next to me last night while I was watching and listening to the talks.

I want to get my soul and heart drenched in these deep spiritual fountains and always remember these words of council and testimony to increase my own testimony and hang on tighter to my convenants and be better in every way, to have an eternal family of my own with my sweet husband and daughter.