I have mentioned before that I am a young women adviser (teacher/class & lesson facilitator). I have been anxiously awaiting the month of June for the opportunity to explore the doctrine of the priesthood more with our young women. This doctrine to me is exciting; I believe truth about priesthood to be expansive and inclusive, layered in meaning and ever-applicable to every facet of Mormon life and beyond. I think a lifetime is not enough to ponder what priesthood means, but I love pondering it.

There were so many possible ways to approach this lesson, and these thoughts are more about what I’ve learned, not necessarily what I will “tell” the young women. But what I hope for the young women this week is that they can think beyond the obvious and understandable (but I believe potentially reductive) question of “Why do only young men/men hold the priesthood?” to think about the blessings and power and opportunities and responsibilities that flow into their lives because the priesthood of God has been restored.

(Because our site is also designed to address questions from those not of our faith, I hope some of these thoughts can be helpful for those readers, too. Priesthood in our doctrine truly is more than just a who-does-what in the organization kind of thing. Much more.)

I personally believe that so much of the restoration of priesthood keys and authority is about receiving what God has to give us and then helping others also receive. The work of the restoration is, as I said above, expansive. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints claims to have the authority within the functioning of our Church to fill the earth with a knowledge of Christ and to allow all of God’s children, living and dead, the opportunity to receive the ordinances of salvation. Young women are not bystanders in this work. I like to think about how the different restored keys relate to the work that young women can do, now.

I also think of the woman at the well. What Jesus wanted was for the woman to know and understand that what He had to give her was beyond any solution she could find on this earth. Once she came to know who Christ was, how much He loved and knew her and wanted to give her, she was compelled to testify to others so they, too, could come to Him and drink of His living water.

Even as the work of the Church is so expansive, at a personal level, to me, priesthood keys are what figuratively can open up the well for us each to come to know Jesus Christ and to partake of His goodness and His living water. Filled with His love, we then are filled with the desire to help others come to Him and feel His love and participate in ordinances and the work of salvation that bring us closer to God and each other, and make the Atonement fully effectual in our lives.

Let me say here that we as Mormons don’t believe or claim we are the only ones on the earth doing work for God. I am moved and inspired by so many of different faiths (or no faith at all) doing amazing things to serve others, to relieve suffering, to defend the family, to build faith in God, and more. My faith has been strengthened by so many not of my faith! Still, understanding priesthood keys and authority and why and how they matter can help explain what we believe our unique mission includes.

So thinking of my young women, I have thought about what a young woman can do, now, to drink of Christ’s living water and to share it with others. More specifically, what blessings, opportunities, and responsibilities are hers as part of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, made possible through priesthood keys? These are the kinds of questions I plan to ask the young women. Following are some of my own thoughts about this. In another post, I’ll share more of the things I’ve read that have helped me ponder these questions.

– She can receive the ordinances of baptism and confirmation (receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost), as the Savior has taught is necessary for salvation (John 3:5). [A whole lifetime could be spent studying what these ordinances mean and why they are important, but the bottom line is that they are about pointing our souls and minds to Christ and His Atoning sacrifice, and choosing to commit and submit our lives to God. He then promises to keep us clean through the Atonement and to someday receive us into His kingdom.]

– She can receive the sacrament each week, which keeps the promised blessings of baptism and confirmation alive and present in her mind and heart. The continued promise of having the Holy Ghost with her is a gift beyond price.

– She can go to the temple to serve and receive the ordinances of authorized baptism and confirmation on behalf of those who have died and not been able to receive them. Joseph Smith taught much about the importance of baptism for the dead in Doctrine and Covenants 128. (I recently went with my children to the temple for the first time and that scripture came alive to me all the more. This work that the youth do in the temples MATTERS, a lot. God works across generations. This work is about binding generations to each other and to God.)

– She can do family history work to learn more about her family and also to make temple ordinance work possible for her own flesh and blood who have passed on. This service centered on the temple both helps her remember and ponder her own baptism and confirmation, but also can bless her life with more of God’s power and strengthen family ties and a sense of belonging and understanding of herself.

– She can serve by doing indexing work to make it easier for others to do their family history and/or temple work.

– She can study the scriptures every day and be familiar with and loyal to the teachings of modern-day prophets, thus tapping into the power of the authorized channels (prophets) God has used throughout all dispensations of the gospel for revealing gospel truth, particularly truth about the Atonement of Jesus Christ. This is a way to connect with God, to drink of living water every day.

– She can serve as a missionary, both formally when she turns 19, but also informally now. The Holy Ghost can help her know what to say and how to reach out and teach others in simple ways. Sometimes it’s just about letting people ask questions.

– She can receive her patriarchal blessing, which can help her understand all the more her eternal worth and help her gain insight into her specific, personal mission and blessings for her here on earth and beyond.

– She can serve in callings when called. In our church, youth start serving formally in their teenage years, working directly with adult leaders, including those who have keys. They formally become part of the body of Christ that is spoken of in 1 Corinthians 12.

Consider this quote:

e.g., “When a bishop places his hands on the head of a [young women] class president, it is with the full power of the priesthood that he gives her the delegated authority to lead her class. Her calling to serve is no less potent or real than that of the Sunday School president, the Relief Society president, or any other position in the ward.” See Young Women and the Blessings of the Priesthood for more thoughts on this topic. )

– She can be a force for good in her home through the power of covenants and by participating in family councils.

I’m reminded of Sister Beck’s teaching that women (and I think this can extend to young women) have a responsibility and opportunity to

“help your home be a home that is blessed every hour by priesthood power. It isn’t just when Dad is there. It’s not just when Mom is there. It’s not just when a priesthood ordinance or blessing is being performed. It’s every hour as covenants are kept” (emphasis mine).

– She can study, ponder, and champion the doctrine of marriage and the family. [The work of the priesthood is all about . helping individuals and families come to Christ. Eternal life in our doctrine is not just about life with God, but about life within families, with God. This is a key reason why temples are so important to Mormons. The doctrine of eternal families is a key doctrine, part of the living water that has been revealed through the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ.]

– She can be a force for good in her community through service and example, by letting the light of the gospel shine out through the way she lives her standards and the way she loves and reaches out to help others.

– She can prepare to receive temple ordinances for herself when she becomes an adult. [More layers of the doctrine of the priesthood are understood in the ordinances of the temple…doctrine to be pondered over a lifetime.] She can prayerfully continue to keep her heart open to what the Spirit can and will teach her about the priesthood and her role as a woman in God’s plan as she continues faithfully seeking insights.

– She can prepare to serve in her future — including preparing for the eternal roles as wife and mother if the opportunity comes (and trusting in God’s promises if those opportunities don’t come in this life); preparing temporally so as to have skills that can enable her to have influence in other ways that she may feel guided to in her life; and ultimately to prepare to be present (either in the flesh or after death) when the Savior comes again.

These are just some of my thoughts, but on Sunday, I look forward to hearing the insights of the young women about how they feel the priesthood has blessed their lives. I believe I love this year’s theme for the youth, because the notion of standing in holy places sums up so beautifully how young men and young women alike can tap into the power and blessings that are available to them through priesthood ordinances and covenants. It’s not just those who hold the priesthood who benefit from the priesthood; the priesthood keys restored in this dispensation benefit us all and are designed to benefit all of God’s children — across all the nations of the earth, and throughout all generations since the beginning of time. As was described in the article above for young women,

“the priesthood to the lifeblood that flows through every part of the body [of Christ — see 1 Cor. 12]. The power and blessings of the priesthood nourish each member and are the source of strength just as blood is to the body. It circulates throughout, that power of God that ‘worketh all in all.'”

And these keys help us prepare the world for the Savior’s Second Coming:

The keys of the kingdom of God are committed unto man on the earth, and from thence shall the gospel roll forth unto the ends of the earth, as the stone which is cut out of the mountain without hands shall roll forth, until it has filled the whole earth.
Yea, a voice crying—Prepare ye the way of the Lord, prepare ye the supper of the Lamb, make ready for the Bridegroom.

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This is part 2 of a response to a reader’s question about Mormon beliefs regarding grace and works, baptism, and more. You can read part 1 here.

Dear Katie,

In my first post, I gave a little background as to why some of the beliefs of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints may seem a bit unfamiliar when looking at Biblical teachings. I’ve explained a little about the Restoration, and about how God has continued to speak through living prophets and apostles, just as He did in ancient times in the Old and New Testaments. We are so grateful to share this message with others — that God has opened the heavens again and continues to speak in these “latter days.” Jesus has restored and leads His Church once again through apostles and prophets. We have additional scriptures that we use with the Bible, namely the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price.

That said, much of what you ask can be addressed by using the Bible. Book of Mormon teachings and teachings of living prophets amplify those teachings, but so many of them are Biblical. (p.s. If you are interested in reading more about what latter-day leaders teach on these subjects, you can read prophetic teachings at lds.org, especially under the “General Conference” section.)

Mormons Believe in Grace!

For example, our belief in grace is full and deep (you shared some of the scriptures on that topic). You can read more on this topic of grace at mormon.org, where various Mormons share their thoughts on the doctrine of grace. You might also consider searching lds.org and/or the scriptures on the topic of grace.

But we also believe in works in the sense that we have choices we can make about how we spend our time, where we place our hearts and focus and attention, etc.  This is a Biblical teaching. This truth is explored by James in the New Testament, for example, in James 2, where he addresses how works and grace dance together.

Mainstream Christians may not commonly use the word works, but those who are committed to Christ show through their actions and choices and words that they are committed. (And you can feel it when they do! The fruits of a committed heart testify of God’s grace and love and power.) For example, they seek to pray, raise children in truth, be chaste and pure, help the poor and needy, testify and teach of Jesus, etc. These are all ways we can show our love to God. These are ways we can open our hearts to God’s grace as well. And these are ways we can invite others to find the wonder of Christ’s grace in their lives. We don’t do this to glory of ourselves or to save ourselves, but rather, to show our love to God, to invite Him into our lives, and, as the Savior taught In Matthew 5:14-16, to shine light outward, “That [others] may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

This reality that grace and works are both part of the Savior’s truth is something understood and experienced over a lifetime, through personal experiences with God’s mercy as we continually do fall short of doing all that God wants all of the time in perfect ways. In Mormon doctrine, we often talk about this as we talk about the principle of agency. We believe God placed us on earth to give us an opportunity to grow in faith as we seek to use our time for good and to remember and glorify and follow Him and His Son. He knew we would make mistakes. As you wisely note, no matter how hard we try, we will ALWAYS fall short. God’s mercy and grace is absolutely essential. The “all we can do” at some level is to repent, be baptized, and then just keep trying to do our best to remember and follow Jesus. To keep choosing to give our hearts to Him and to remember and try to make choices that reflect our belief in the Savior.

But then we wait for Him to change our hearts. We can’t even make good choices fully of our own accord. We need His help and grace to change our hearts because our mortalness can so often get in the way. But God is not surprised by our imperfection. He gave us laws and commandments both to help us know how we can seek to show our love to Him, but also as a regular reminder about how much we need Christ’s grace!

Why baptism as part of our commitment to Christ?

Baptism is an outward sign to God that we are committed to follow Him. It’s an outward reminder that our ‘old self’ and ways of doing things need to be buried and that in Jesus, we can have new life. It’s a reminder of Jesus’ death and the reality of His resurrection, and a testimony that we will all be resurrected someday.

This doctrine of baptism, too, is Biblical in its roots. Jesus Himself commanded His apostles to go and teach His gospel and baptize people. He showed us the example by being baptized (by one who had the authority to baptize…the Biblical connections with the Restoration to me are so amazing — the very person who baptized the Savior came to restore the authority to baptize in our day!). The Book of Mormon teaches us more about why He was baptized. Even though He was perfect, He did something to show the Father that He was willing to do all that God commanded Him…and to show us the way to be on the path back to the Father.

Again, we are mortal and cannot perfectly do all that God commanded us, and this reality is central to our doctrine, but we seek to follow Jesus’ example by being baptized and making covenants with Heavenly Father that we will seek to do His will and give Him our hearts. We take the sacrament (instituted by the Savior before His death) to help keep our minds and hearts focused on the Savior and to recommit each week to our covenants with God.

How do we know we have done “all that we can do?”

How do we know when we have done enough? This is another “question of a lifetime,” really. But a verse in the Book of Mormon teaches one way to know:

[T]he remission of sins bringeth meekness, and lowliness of heart; and because of meekness and lowliness of heart cometh the visitation of the Holy Ghost, which Comforter filleth with hope and perfect love, which love endureth by diligence unto prayer, until the end shall come, when all the saints shall dwell with God.

As we seek to follow Christ and obey God’s commandments (after all, He is the one who said that we show our love to Him by keeping His commandments), He blesses us with a change of heart. Through the grace available through Jesus’ sacrifice and love, we can become more meek and lowly and God’s Spirit can more fully bless our lives and give us hope and a feeling of peace and love. The offering we bring to God is our efforts to keep trying to connect with Him each day through prayer and seek to follow His truth and His Spirit each day. We repent when we err, and then because of Jesus’ grace, we can be forgiven. And eventually we can have the opportunity to live with God again.

I sometimes think of it in terms of the scripture where Jesus says, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock.” He’s always there. His grace is always available. Salvation is free for the receiving (and because of Jesus salvation from death is free for everyone through the resurrection), but the fullness of God’s blessings now and eternally can only come if we choose to receive Jesus actively into our lives and hearts and minds.

Imagine your courtroom example. If jail and bail were the required punishment but someone came and posted bail (“paid the price”), the prisoner could only truly be free if he/she chose to accept that gift by moving their feet and choosing to leave the prison. True freedom after prison would then come not from mindlessly continuing past behaviors, but actively trying to make changes to be a better person and have a happier, more healthy, more full life. It’s not a perfect metaphor, but the full blessings of being freed by Christ aren’t only about the price being paid, but also about the choices being made. We invite the blessings of Christ’s mercy by choosing to obey God’s commandments and repent when we sin or make mistakes. Which we will always continue to do, which means we continue to rely on Jesus to help us.

Jesus has taught us through ancient and modern prophets how we can open that door, how we can continually seek to walk the path of freedom He makes possible. Indeed, His grace is there with any effort to seek to follow Him and acknowledge Him. But the fullness of the blessings He has promised come through the path He has prescribed, which includes ordinances that can bind us to God and remind us of Jesus and what He has done for us. As one author, Brad Wilcox recently wrote (and I’m paraphrasing) it’s not about earning salvation, it’s about learning it. About learning about Him and His power in our lives.

I hope some of this might be helpful. But I hope more than anything, though, that you will continue to do your own study and pray for God’s guidance. If you haven’t already done so, I invite you to read the Book of Mormon and ask God if it’s true. See what it has to say about Jesus and His grace. For me, the Book of Mormon has helped me understand Jesus and His Atonement in life-changing ways. I feel God speak to me through all the scriptures; they work together in beautiful ways to magnify the role of Jesus Christ in God’s plan for all His children collectively — and in my life personally as a daughter of God.

God bless you,

Michelle

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Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints shares some thoughts on how we can come unto Christ.

Read more about how our belief in and focus on Jesus Christ is central to Mormon belief.

The post Come Unto Christ appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.

Read part 1here

Emily is center back, in white. She is seen here with her dance instructor, who performed her baptism, and his family.

Now that Emily is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, she sees herself differently.

“I have found a role and purpose as a woman, as a daughter of Heavenly Father – it has changed everything about me as a woman.”

In a world where Emily once felt very alone, she now has a church full of sisters. That is how the women in the LDS church refer to each other, as sisters. In addition to those loving and friendly ties at church Emily does have family connections.

Although Emily has little connection to those family members who caused her great harm as a child, she has a place in her extended family. When the traumatic events of her childhood forced her into foster care, Emily went to live with her grandmother, where they developed a loving relationship.

The LDS church believes that family connections can be continued after death through sacred ordinances that take place in temples. Emily knew that she wanted to have this eternal connection with her grandmother she loves dearly. So after being a member of the Mormon Church for only one week she was given permission to have eternal ordinances performed for her extended family. This included Emily’s opportunity to be baptized, by proxy, for her grandmother.

Now Emily continues the pattern she learned during her conversion process – taking life step by step. Because of the neglect Emily suffered as a child she has ongoing health concerns. The most serious of these is a heart condition called Cardiomyopathy, scarring of the muscles in her heart. She must go in every 6 months for procedures to remove and monitor the scarring in her heart. Each time this happens there is a chance that Emily will not live through the procedure. She is a young woman, with much of life ahead of her.

Despite all of Emily’s adversity she remains hopeful. She has relied on a talk by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf [a member of the Church’s First Presidency] as she prepared for her medical procedures and fights the fear that is so natural in this situation. These are a few exerpts that Emily highlighted (notice the references to the heart, as she battles real heart-related health issues):

Hope has the power to fill our lives with happiness. Its absence – when this desire of our heart is delayed – can make ‘the heart sick.’

Despair drains from us all that is vibrant and joyful and leaves behind the empty remnants of what life was meant to be. Despair kills ambition, advances sickness, pollutes the soul, and deadens the heart. Despair can seem like a staircase that leads only and forever downward.

Hope is not knowledge, but rather the abiding trust that the Spirit will fulfill his promise to us… It is confidence, optimism, enthusiasm, and patient perseverance.

Fear not… Never give in… Never surrender… Never allow despair to overcome your spirit… Embrace and rely upon the Holy One of Israel, for the love of the Son of God pierces all darkness, softens sorrow, and gladdens every heart.

When I asked Emily how she knows that God loves her she said that just being alive is enough to let her know God’s love. Then she said that she feels God’s love in knowing His plan, including the atonement of Jesus Christ. The fact that he taught that plan to her, step by step in a very personal way, communicates his love. Lastly, she knows God’s love for her because,

“When there was every reason in the world for me to believe the opposite, he sent this Deaf girl to dance, of all things, so that I would have a language to understand him and his love.”

Let’s all pray for Emily this week, as she is undergoing the medical procedures necessary to keep her heart going, so that our hearts will be knit together with hers in unity and strength. Pray that God will mercifully give her strength to continue on in this miraculous journey of healing that is such an inspiration to us all.

**Update: Emily’s procedures have gone well. The scarring in her heart has not recurred and the doctors reduced her medications. The hospital has even given her a scholarship, reducing Emily’s financial burdens. Many prayers are being answered!

The post Conversion Stories: Emily (part 2) appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.

We are so grateful to know that there are prophets and apostles alive on the earth today, here to guide us and help us follow the Savior, Jesus Christ.

If you feel inspired to do so, please consider sharing your thoughts about what you have heard on this video, or about how General Conference messages helped you.

The post <i>Review, Reflect, and Return</i>: General Conference Highlights Video appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.

Find answers to some frequently asked questions here.

If you are interested in knowing more about the purpose of temples, you can go here and here for some articles and talks about temple worship and the purpose of temples. Find articles and talks about the endowment here. You can read more about the temple garment here.

You can browse content about temples on our site here, and read some people’s thoughts and feelings (or share your own!) about the temple here.

You can see a map of completed and dedicated temples around the world here.

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