I plead with my sisters to take your rightful place in your home {and the world and the church.} (I’m not sure who she was quoting there – probably President Nelson.)
“Every man and every woman who makes and keeps covenants with God has direct access to his power through those covenants.” – President Nelson
What is our preeminent role in the gospel? It is to hear Him and follow Him.
President Spencer W. Kimball explained: “To be a righteous woman during the winding up scenes on this earth, before the second coming of our Savior, is an especially noble calling. The righteous woman’s strength and influence today can be tenfold what it might be in more tranquil times.”
Do women today believe that? Do they value it?
“The Lord loves effort, because effort brings rewards that can’t come without it.”
Russell M. Nelson
President Nelson’s response to these precious children extends to each one of us. The Lord loves effort, and effort brings rewards. We keep practicing. We are always progressing as long as we are striving to follow the Lord. He doesn’t expect perfection today. We keep climbing our personal Mount Sinai. As in times past, our journey does indeed take effort, hard work, and study, but our commitment to progress brings eternal rewards.
We keep climbing … even when climbing feels like we aren’t making any progress.
President Nelson said, “I plead with you to increase your spiritual capacity to receive revelation.” Our prophet’s words are continually with me as I contemplate women’s ability to step forward. He pleads with us, which indicates priority. He is teaching us how to survive spiritually in a sin-sick world by receiving and acting on revelation. As we do so, honoring and living the Lord’s commandments, we are promised, even as Emma Smith was, “a crown of righteousness.” The Prophet Joseph taught of the importance of knowing that the path we are pursuing in this lifetime is approved of God. Without that knowledge, we “will grow weary in [our] minds, and faint.”
Even with that knowledge we may grow weary and faint at times.
Brothers and sisters, we all seek God’s power in our lives. There is beautiful unity between women and men in accomplishing God’s work today. We access the power of the priesthood through covenants, made first in the waters of baptism and then within the walls of holy temples. President Nelson taught us, “Every woman and every man who makes covenants with God and keeps those covenants, and who participates worthily in priesthood ordinances, has direct access to the power of God.”
My personal admission today is that as a woman I didn’t realize, earlier in my life, that I had access, through my covenants, to the power of the priesthood. Sisters, I pray that we will recognize and cherish priesthood power as we “cleave unto [our] covenants,” embrace the truths of the scriptures, and heed the words of our living prophets.
While we exercise the power of the priesthood in administering covenants that is not the limit of how we can use the power of the priesthood and if we think it is we are missing out on most of the power available to us.
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