Relief Society Lesson

These are some of the notes and discussions I had during my Relief Society lesson on Sunday. Whereas this lesson is specifically for people in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS, or Mormons), I think this is pretty applicable to all "truth seekers" of all faiths. The lesson was taken from a talk given by Henry B. Eyring at Conference. For the full text of his talk, see http://lds.org/conference/talk/display/0,5232,23-1-851-7,00.html.

Brother Eyring begins by saying, "We have seen and felt evidence that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is both true and living." How is it true? "And ^atruth is ^bknowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come;" D&C 93:24. "He that ^akeepeth his commandments receiveth ^btruth and ^clight, until he is glorified in truth and ^dknoweth all things." D&C 93:24. "The ^aglory of God is ^bintelligence, or, in other words, ^clight and truth." D&C 93:36.

Brigham Young has said, "" 'Mormonism,' so-called, embraces every principle pertaining to life and salvation, for time and eternity. I want to say to my friends that we believe in all good. If you can find a truth in heaven, earth, or hell, it belongs to our doctrine. We believe it; it is ours; we claim it."

Brother Eyring states, "We know from prophecy that not only will the true and living church not be taken from the earth again, but it will become better. Our lives will be transformed for the better as we exercise faith unto repentance, always remember the Savior, and try ever harder to keep His commandments.

"The scriptures contain promises that when the Lord comes again to His Church, He will find it spiritually prepared for Him. That should make us both determined and optimistic. We must do better. We can. And we will."

There has always been a distance between gospel ideals and worldly values. The chasm is growing. We see and hear increasing wickedness in the world all around us. But the distance is also growing because of the steady improvement in our lives. We are getting better at fellowshipping others, at being missionaries and sharing the truths in our lives, at strengthening and protecting our families, at reaching out to the poor and those in need. The prophet Joseph Smith has said that as a person becomes truly converted, he or she will want to range across the earth caring for Heavenly Father's children. That is already beginning to happen.

Brother Eyring challenges us to measure the depth of our gratitude for a true and living church. Why is it important to be grateful? Without gratitude, you begin to take the important things in life for granted. When you are grateful for something, you will nurture it, care for it, give it an important place in your life, and keep it safe and living.