I had the privilege of attending a class at BYU Education Week given by Stephanie at Diapers and Divinity. I was thrilled to see that she was able to share it on her blog. There is nothing like hearing her in person, but her blog post is excellent and thorough. Her presentation was both practical in nature but also inspirational. Be sure to watch the video clips she includes.

One of the ways we as Mormon women are able to tap into God’s power is simply to tap into His truth. As we seek Him through becoming devoted students of the gospel, we can find more about Him, about ourselves, about His plan, and about His Son.

p.s. I love her plea to “ask God, not Google.”

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Editor’s note: This is another article in our new series of BYU students sharing letters and reflections on scripture.

Setting Christ-centered Goals as a Family

by Ethan G.

After New Years my wife and I set many goals that we wanted to accomplish during the year, and habits we wanted to incorporate into our lives that would stay with us for our lifetime. Of course, with all New Years goals usually they never happen. Finally, a month later we got back into the groove of things and talked about our goals we had set and why they weren’t happening.

As we talked this past week a scripture came to mind from my reading in Helaman 5:12 which reads:

“And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.”

We then discussed how we both need to have our goals and desires based in Christ. We needed a united purpose and foundation to build on if we want to keep our relationship strong with each other and with our Heavenly Father. When we are united in our thoughts, desires, and actions we can become one with one another and as we aligned our desires with Heavenly Fathers will we would become one with the Godhead as well. The reason we talked about this was because our goals related to the will of God, we were just having trouble being motivated to get them done. And this came from purpose and remembering the big picture.

As we talked about our foundation and a vision of where we wanted to be the more motivated to get things taken care of in our lives. We then discussed Helaman 10:4-5 and replaced our names with Nephi:

“Blessed art thou, Nephi, for those things which thou hast done; for I have beheld how thou hast with unwearyingness declared the word, which I have given unto thee, unto this people. And thou hast not feared them, and hast not sought thine own life, but hast sought my will, and to keep my commandments. And now, because thou hast done this with such unwearyingness, behold, I will bless thee forever; and I will make thee mighty in word and in deed, in faith and in works; yea, even that all things shall be done unto thee according to thy word, for thou shalt not ask that which is contrary to my will.”

We have power within each of us. We can all receive the blessings of Heaven according to the will of the Father. It is all about what we have done and who we become. That determines that which is allotted unto us. So as my wife and I and whoever else is reading this, as we set our goals according to the vision of who we can become, we can have the same feelings as Nephi did when he heard a voice of the Lord those many years ago. We can become great if we would stay on top of the small and simple things. Thankfully now we are right back on track, working toward the greater good, improving ourselves, and preparing to be great influences on the lives of those around us.

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Articles of Faith #13
[I] believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, [I] may say that [I] follow the admonition of Paul—[I] believe all things, [I] hope all things, [I] have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, [I] seek after these things.

I have had a hard time for the past few years. Life events have stretched my hope and strength nearly to the breaking point. This Article of Faith has been on my mind a lot during this time. In particular, I have been thinking of what virtue means to me.

To me, virtue is something that keeps you standing tall, even if you feel tattered, ragged and besmirched with mud thrown from misunderstanding hands. It is an inner loveliness that surmounts all other forms and measures of beauty. It incorporates integrity, faith, duty, dedication, the Spirit of God, seeking everything praiseworthy, and all the things mentioned in this Article of Faith.

More than anything, I think it is the power derived from all these things.

Several times in scripture, the word “virtue” is used almost interchangeably with “power.” When the woman touched Jesus’s hem, He perceived that the virtue had gone out of Him—that some sort of power had gone from Him to her, healing her. In The Book of Mormon, in the book of Alma, they “try the virtue of the word of God“—preaching had more power than any other source of power they knew to change the hearts of men.

In one final example, Joseph Smith, the prophet through whom the Church was restored, tries to teach us how God’s power, the priesthood, is channeled; it comes through virtue and living according to virtuous principles.

I believe these principles apply to accessing the power of God in our individual lives. There is no true power except that which is gained through integrity, faith, and pure charity.

I am slowly being taught by the Spirit that by doing my best to follow God’s will, to live true to my faith in Him and my covenants, despite my failings, I can have access to the Savior’s virtue, and thus become, through His grace, more virtuous in my life. I can become changed — purified, sanctified, and eventually exalted.

Interestingly, I feel the struggles and pain I have been experiencing are helping me understand the virtue and power of God more. I am grateful for that. I am seeking to draw upon that power for hope and strength to face my trials, and to become better.

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“Future happiness and even the future of nations is linked to children. Families with children need to be re-enthroned as the fundamental unit of society. We simply must value children more than we do.”
Elder Russell M. Nelson Participates in International Conference on Families

Elder Nelson’s wife, Wendy Watson Nelson, also spoke at this conference, The World Congress on Families, which was held in Amsterdam “We need families who look to God and who remove anything from their lives that is spiritually corrupting….” Sheri Dew also participated, and spoke on the importance of sexual purity. “A virtuous life is…one of the most powerful keys to strengthening families and therefore to strengthening our world…. [T]oday I invite you to consider that the single most pervasive threat to the stability and future of the family is sexual immorality in all its forms. Nothing would do more to strengthen the families of the world than a resurgence of moral virtue, particularly sexual purity….”

Transcript from Elder Nelson’s talk

Transcript from Sister Nelson’s talk

More quotes from Sister Dew’s talk

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“When all is said and done, the most important thing about you and your testimony is that you base your beliefs on what Jesus Christ taught, and you try to follow Him by living your life in a way acceptable to our Heavenly Father and to the Lord. This is your foundation. It was Joseph Smith’s foundation. He said: “The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, he was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven; and all other things which pertain to our religion are only appendages to it.”
Elder Ballard Speaks at BYU Graduation (transcript here)

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Mormon Missionaries Provide Language, Hosting Assistance at World Games

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I have noticed that women often confuse the trait of being meek with being weak. While we strive to follow the Savior, we must understand that in order for us to do His work, He needs women who are strong–women who know of a surety who they are.

When the Relief Society Declaration was introduced in 1996, I felt a sense of recognition, a validation of what I knew was my role and purpose as a spirit daughter of God. However, it wasn’t until several years later, while reading the Ensign, that I came across a message from the Relief Society General Presidency towards the back of the magazine. It was a brief article about the Declaration titled, “Who We Are.” I had a feeling of excitement as I felt a prompting to write a new song that would take its inspiration from this important document. The song “Who We Are” was the result of that prompting.

I hope when women all over the world hear this song, it will cause them to stand a little taller as daughters of God, then go forward fearlessly doing what only daughters of God can do.

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