Lesson for May 14, 2017

Lesson for May 14, 2017 Today our Mother's Day lesson was given by Bishop Greg Jolley on "We Look to Christ." Bishop Jolley drew a tree and called it a specimen tree that is the ideal for that kind of tree, the perfect tree. Because it is Mother’s Day and women everywhere like to feel they are perfect, so he is going to describe the perfect woman. Listed were Christ-like, courageous, nurturing, loving, patient, kind, there, prayerful, loves children unconditionally, clean house, great cook, forgiving, flexible, involved, listener, (righteous anger), respectful. We’re all working on the kind of person that we are. Bishop Jolley said the lesson felt more like an Easter lesson than a Mother’s Day lesson. But there could be something helpful for each of us. Bishop Jolley had Megan Williams read a story about the Mesa Arizona Temple as local clergymen visited. A Protestant minister asked about the absence of the cross. President Hinckley said the cross is the representation of the dying Christ and we worship the living Christ. He said that our symbol for Christ is our lives as we live the commandments of Christ. The take away from this message is that the lives of our people must become a meaningful expression of our faith. We can do this through visiting teaching as a way to serve. If everyone would do their teaching as it should be, it would lighten the load of the bishop. Bishop Jolley recognizes the good work of the sisters. Sisters who live their religion to the best of their ability actually look different from other people. The light shines through them and it is unmistakable. It doesn’t mean that we are all the same, but we can be that expression of what our Heavenly Father wants us to be. Being Christlike is something we work toward. Some of the accounts of what Christ did have special meaning, such as the story of Mary and Martha, the woman taken in adultery and forgiven by Christ without condemning her, woman who had the issue of blood and touched Christ’s hem and was healed, a Greek woman who asked for Christ to heal her daughter and said even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall, the daughter of Jairus, the Samaritan woman at the well and he was compassionate. Bishop Jolley said he’s lost a few family members over the last year. He realizes that our natural man makes us judgmental and critical. Perhaps we lose the understanding that people are struggling. When our bodies separate from our spirits, we become less judgmental because we are no longer the natural man who tends to judge others. How do we take these stories and make them change us. When we repent and gain humility, we try to do what we should do, we can teach others to repent. The idea is that the way Christ taught with an extension of love and boldness, it had an impact on individuals. It is almost impossible to attain all of Christ’s attributes, but we can choose one and work on that one, then choose another one and work on that one until we gain more Christlike attributes. We read those passages of scripture about Christ and we can come to recognize the traits we have, good and bad, and know what to work on. If we search for what we need, we can find it. A lot of the stories are connected to faith and the idea that Christ is seeking after all of us, so he doesn’t seem so far away. When we try to emulate him, Christ will be familiar to us. President Hinckley said although he experienced terrible things, but Christ was still able to say as he died, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” He said that even though he suffered tremendously. How many times do we think about that? Do we think that our problems are because of someone else or do we own our problems. Bishop Jolley told of his experience playing soccer for BYU. For the first game, his friend was jealous of the bishop’s starting position and purposely made him late to the game, so the bishop lost his starting position. He didn’t find out until much later. He found out when he was ready to forgive and not blow up at the young man. One of those attributes is to forgive and we need the time to learn that. Bishop Jolley asked when was the last crisis of faith each of us had, when things are difficult. Those crises of faith are more often than we might think. We think we have to be a perfect person, but in reality God only expects us to try. The acquisition of understanding and motivation to be better come from three things: (1) read the word of the Lord, (2) serve, (3) pray. This is the invitation and the promise is sure. We know not what is ahead of us. We live in a world of uncertainty. There is accomplishment, disappointed, good health, sickness, sorrow, but we do know there is the Redeemer of the world, and the Rock of our Salvation. If Christ is the focus of our lives, we can get through anything.