Lesson for August 7, 2016

Lesson for August 7, 2016 Today was a Relief Society presidency lesson. It was given by Adele Hickman on “Approaching the throne of God with confidence” by Elder Jorg Klebingat. First we had Sister Linda Campbell tell us about her experience doing visiting teaching and how Bishop Roundy told her that if every member did their visiting teaching and home teaching, his burden and bishop would be lighter. Sister Hickman told us about her father and how he was her therapist and friend. He had a PhD in psychology, played the piano, and has a song in the Primary songbook. He was so kind and good that Adele is sure he could approach the throne of God with confidence. Elder Klebingat said that the adversary tries to put as much distance as possible between you and God and that there is no use in trying to do better. It’s a lie that Satan uses to confound us. As long as you allow these lies to chisel away at your soul, you will not live life in a healthy way. There are things we can do to gain spiritual confidence: (1) Take responsibility for your own spiritual wellbeing. Stop making excuses. The Lord knows your circumstances and also if you don’t want to live the gospel. Spiritual confidence grows when you take responsibility for your growth. (2) Take responsibility for your physical wellbeing and start at where you are and then you can increase your strength. You can be more confident if you feel well. (3) Be obedient. Confidence comes when you are obedient. Sister Jolley said when her son was getting ready for his mission, she thought it was genius to send out a self-centered young man to where he has to be 100% obedient and learn something. What a great time for them to learn. Her son learned so much about how much better life is when he was obedient. Sister Hickman said her son Adam played ice hockey and the championship game was on a Sunday. His teammates and their parents all tried to persuade him to play. He decided not to play and when Sister Hickman asked him why, he said “You taught me.” She was so happy. (4) Repent quickly. We get confident when we know we are right with God. Emily Campbell said her kids are learning to repent quickly. Another sister said that happy families and unhappy families fight the same number of times, but the happy families forgive each other quickly. In Dorothy Francis’s family they can say, “Erase, erase” when they say something wrong. Sister Hickman told the story of a family of quail where some fell in the drain on the street and they were able to get all but one out. The one would not cooperate. (5) Become really, really good at forgiving. Spiritual confidence increases when God knows you have no ill feelings toward someone else. Sister Boyadjian said that taking responsibility for your own actions and repenting quickly is like what they ask you to do in therapy. It’s our decision to be better and choose what to do. There are plenty of excuses, but we need to stop being the victim. In the Olympics yesterday in the women’s rugby a woman had cancer, but kept training in spite of her chemotherapy and now she is in the Olympics. (6) Accept your trials as part of mortality. You never know what will happen. Millions are being tested. Don’t feel like you are being punished, but that it’s part of the plan. Partner with God to do well to the end. Some of your experiences with be with you for your life and you need to just do your best to be acceptable before God all the time in spite of your shortcomings. God has planned many experiences for all of us that we signed up for and that will only happen in this life. We need to have an eternal perspective that we agreed. Adele’s son Brent was teaching at University of Chicago and was made bishop and had a family. He found that he had tumors in his sinuses and had to have serious operations. Adele asked him how he could go on. Brent said, “Heavenly Father knew I had these tumors when he made me the bishop.” Our Heavenly Father and His Son love us and put us here to succeed.