Lesson for March 18, 2018

Today our lesson was given by Camille Maynard on a talk by Elder W. Craig Zwick, “Lord, Wilt Thou Cause That My Eyes May Be Opened.” Camille started the lesson by discussing what we learned from past weeks abut inviting the Spirit and seeing good in others and how previous lessons relate to this lesson. Sometimes if we only see things from our point of view, we don’t see things as they truly are. We must see things through the eyes of our Savior, because we rarely have the knowledge of everything as they are. It can be difficult to see all we should be seeing. When we have the eternal perspective we have the chance to see things more as they are. People are on different spectrums. God made us all that way and there may be certain things that are valued by God that we don’t possess. They look at commandments in different ways, not necessarily wrong. The way we can creatively look at each other is good for all of us. We want to value others and find the good in them. Perhaps there are valid reasons. It might be good to try to understand the backstory. The times that we are filled with anger, it might be ourselves that is at fault. If we can approach others with love, we can feel more love. Sometimes it is pride that makes us feel others need to get on board with what we think is right. We can ask them what they’re going through. Sometimes we think we know what is going on with someone, yet there may be other things going on. Elder Zwick said he interviewed a young man on his mission who wanted to go home. Each weekly interview brought up the same problem. Elder Zwick said he asked the young man what was wrong and found that the missionary didn’t know how to read. Elder Zwick found he needed to listen. Maybe we may think we know what is going on and we need to ask. If you feel like a judge, take the opportunity to serve that person. Help instead of judge. Then you’ll learn to love the person and serve others. Serving people helps you love them. We can choose to serve. We can’t get to know everyone, so if we can get to know people who are different from who we are we will have the experience necessary to help more people. What a blessing it is to learn what God wants us to do. Elisha woke up one day to find an army surrounding their city. Elisha said not to worry for those that were with them were more than those that were attacking. He could see the people they had to help. When we’re helping others, we should assume people are doing the best they can. Elder Zwick discussed differences. He said that loving others does not mean to accept the things that are wrong that they believe. Accepting other people who believe something other than what we believe means we can be loving and kind to them. We can accept people without condoning what they do. We can be kind to others, eve if we’re not alike. We can all love each other and learn from them. Experience the fun things and understand that the strange things they do are their choice. The scripture in 1 Samuel 16 when it says that the Lord looks upon the heart and not with what people look like. When we have Jesus Christ in our lives, our eyes can be opened. If we do keep Christ-centered, we can be blessed with the ability to treat people better. When the Lord talked with the woman who committed adultery, he was kind. He didn’t want her to sin again, but he was kind. elder Zwick told about a boy who died when the all-terrain vehicle flipped over on him. The boy’s family got his cell phone and a reminder popped up on the phone to remember to make Christ the focus of his day. What a blessing for his family to know he felt that way. A sister wrote down everything negative about her husband, but when she took the sacrament, she felt like she should delete all those negative feelings. It took some fort, but she did and realized that those feelings didn’t matter.Sometimes it comes down to letting go, even if we recognize what the problem is. We do have the ability with the Lord’s help to we people as the Lord sees them if we ask for the Lord’s lessing.

Lesson for March 11, 2018

Our lesson was taught by Lana Horrocks based on the talk by Jeffrey R. Holland, “Be Ye Therefore Perfect—Eventually.” Lana began the lesson by saying she was a recovering perfectionist and she forgot it was Daylight Savings today. She believes that we should focus on positive things so they can be embedded in our minds. She quoted Elder Holland about how the command to be perfect is the final nail in the coffin and beyond our reach, but surely we can at least work on it. We discussed examples of being perfectionists. Some of us are perfectionists and get anxious and teaching our children about being organized. We should focus on “People are more important than stuff.” While we’re all focusing on perfectionism, we need to remember that being perfect is related to being whole and complete. Sometimes in our lives we need to start in the corner and work out. When we move into times when we have to do harder things, we have to remember not to feel bad about ourselves. Our self-esteem can be damaged, so we put things off when we don’t think we can be perfect. We can pray to Heavenly Father to help us with what we have to do. Lana told the story of a little boy whose father told him to move a huge rock and do it using every resource. The boy struggled and went back to his father who said have you used every resource? The boy said he had and his father said, You haven’t asked me for help. Young people sometimes thin of commandments are curses, but every commandment comes with blessings. For example, tithing, the Word of Wisdom, and Family Home Evening bring us blessings. Elder Holland said the willingness to repent can help us achieve perfection. We discussed issues with body image. We can help each other feel good about ourselves and love ourselves. We should remember that our bodies can help us serve others and do many other things. We need to focus on the positive aspects of our bodies and know how capable and worth loving. We should not be ashamed. Exercise and eating healthy are not a punishment, but should be how we treat a valued body. As a Mormon society we have perfection issues. God intended how we treat out bodies, it is a tribute to God and the bodies He gave us. W need to not treat God and His Son despitefully. The Atonement of Jesus Christ speaks to our peace. Lana showed a part of the video of Elder Holland’s talk—the part about the servant who owed some money and who then would not forgive another dead. Elder Holland said the larger debt was supposed to be incomprehensible and that story is supposed to be about us and the debt we owe to God. We would have remained in debt and prison forever but for the Atonement. It is an unfathonable debt for an incomprehensible amount, just as our debt is to Jesus Christ who has made the point that it is doable. Christ paid a billion dollars to our hundred dollars, but it is doable. We can speak a little bit more God-like. What change could you make as you speak to your family, friends, co-workers. If we approached each other acknowledging that we really don’t know everything about each other we can understand more about how you can. We can be more friendly with our faces to uplift others. We can be courteous. Lana gave us a handout about how we can be more Godlike. We all want to be better than we are. We should refuse to let these desires make us cynical. Instead, we should work on being complete. Many of the negative thoughts are in our heads, but not in our thoughts. If we say our thoughts alone in prayer, we can partner with the Spirit to help us address our negative thoughts. Every thought we say may not even be from ourselves, but it may be from Satan. In a talk from the last April Conference on weakness, we can get inspiration. If you have the desire to improve, we can glory in our magnificent God-like heritage.

Lesson for March 4, 2018

Today our lesson was given by Andrea Gerber on “Strategies for Better Relationships.” Andrea is a counselor in the Relief Scoiety Presidency. Andrea started by giving handouts about better relationships. She said one of her hobbies is studying audio books about relationships. We need strategies based in gospel principles so we know what to do. The Marriage and Family Relations Manual. Andrea talked about being a “content communicator.” A lot of us are hint droppers rather than communicators. It means meaning what you say and saying what you mean. Find a kind and tactful way to say what you mean. Otherwise you are not being fair and you are setting yourselves up for frustration. No one is going to fulfill all our expectations in life, so don’t expect someone to read your mind. Stop withholding praise. Perhaps the other person didn’t do a perfect job. Joseph Smith said that if we withhold praise we can’t expect improvement. If you praise the good the other person is going to gravitate toward the good. Notice the good. Saying why something needs to be done, it helps the other person understand the true need. When we have built up resentment toward someone we will need to be worked on even harder. Especially in a marriage, there is a language of equals when you don’t tell people what to do, but you ask with respect. That kind of language is what we should use. Soften how you start a conversation where there is a disagreement. You need to step back and soften how you talk to the other person. 1. Be a content communicator 2. Stop withholding praise 3. Use a language of equals 4. Soften your “startup” in disagreements 5. Complain but don’t criticize 6. Remember the 5:1 positive/negative ratio 7. Edit Yourself 8. Be consistent We broke into small groups and talked about these principles. We discussed some successful tips on how to handle difficult situations. We wondered if we have trouble knowing why we’re upset. If we don’t communicate well, our people won’t know. We also need to be clear about reasonable expectations. using praise and hugs can be major motivations. We can express gratitude for what they do right. Praying together can be a form of communication. To wrap up we went over some quotes, suc as “Keep your heart in wonder of the daily miracle that is your partner, family, and friends.” The Holy Ghost is our best teacher.

Lesson for February 25, 2018

Today our lesson about “Remember Him“ was given by Lana Horrocks. She always prays that the Lord will speak to our hearts. She especially wanted to talk about the sacrament. President Eyring asked if we could imagine Moroni and his last years and inspiration as he remembered the greatness of God and his patience with us. She asked Paige Gibson to play a piece to help us think of Christ as she plays “Our Savior’s Love.” Lana asked us to think of a favorite picture of Christ, a favorite story of Christ, a time we felt loved by Christ, what we need to do better, and the progress we are making in our relationship with Christ. She handed out paper and pens so we could write these things down. We need to remember the Savior and the price he paid. Heather Cantrell showed pictures she has of Christ, including one by her son. Haruko showed us a picture with Christ smiling. Other sisters showed or told about Christ that had meaning for them. Then sisters told stories that mean a lot to them. More than one sister told about the woman with the issue of blood and how the Savior reacted to the woman by accepting her. Heather said she felt like each of her children was sent to her by the Lord. More than one sister told of how they felt close to the Savior when they gave birth to their children. Another sister told of how the Savior stood by her during her divorce, which brought other stories of finding peace. Each of us has to come to a knowledge that God wants us to grow, not suffer. The Savior gave us the ordinance of repentance and the sacrament to make up for our sins and turn it over to the Lord. He can help us not blow up and take care of other problems in our lives. We often need extra help. Remember the progress you are making and you will have hope. Lisa Anderson said she keeps a journal to keep track of Improvement. There is joy in not giving up and learning more. Lana said she is strengthened by hearing what we have gone through. She has a good relationship with Christ now after struggling. He is so important to all of us.

Lesson for February 18, 2018

The lesson today was about “Abiding in God and Repairing the breach” a conference talk by Sister Neil F. Marriott. Thanks to Carly for teaching the lesson. Carly spoke about the call to action to live to have the Spirit with us to manage opposition. We need to get to the point of wanting feelings of offense from us and we can turn to God. If we turn to Goght d to change ourselves we can resist being offended. We can realize that being offefended is widespread and we can resist offending others. We discussed the story in church history about Sister Marsh who agreed to share milking strippings that influenced Governor Boggs in expelling the Saints. Yet Brigham Young accepted chastisement from Joseph Smith with humility that had a positive result. Brother Marsh came back to the Church years later, saying the Church lost nothing by his absence, but he lost a great deal. Carly asked how it felt to be forgiven. An answer was that it felt free and light. Whenever we feel offended we lose something. We have something missing. When we can make amends we can feel forgiven. Is there someone in your life who needs your forgiveness? As we do forgive others, we will feel more free. It is impossible to be offended if we don’t choose to be offended. We don’t have to worry about others. Don’t let somebody else push your buttons. Try to understand why they would behave that way. There is a difference between forgiveness and trust. We’re much happier if we can trust Christ. We can ask God to help us to forgive and grow. We can also ask to know when we should change and how to change. Some people may need to work on something and may have their own problems. We should have the perspective that they have their own reasons. How can being offended take us away from friends? We need to know those we love and know what their friends needs are. Offenses can be huge, but we can be true to who we are and do our part. It’s important to see that people are imperfect. We can learn to be kind and forgiving. Our eternal perspective can change due to circumstances that will influence us and our families forever. The choices we make have eternal consequences. It would be easier in the long run to choose to not be offended. The gospel is true even if people are not perfect.

Lesson for January 1, 2018

Today we are starting a new curriculum for the new year. Today we talked about scripture study in a discussion led by our president Suzy Sullivan. Suzy began by explaining the new structure. Which is that on the first Sunday we have a council. So we split up into groups to discuss the topic. She said she is trusting us to guide our discussion. She said she has a testimony of scripture study. Several sisters told about the blessings they’ve received for being consistent about scripture study. Consistency seems to be the key. The more we read the Book of Mormon, the more we find it pertains to our own lives today. We can find protection and inspiration by being consistent. It is a force that opens up our minds. We split up into four groups to counsel with each other on what works and what helps.

Lesson for December 10, 2017

Today our lesson was given by Maggie Kopp about Lesson 25 “Move Forward with Faith.” Maggie began the lesson by reading a quote from the first section: the one thing needed to succeed is faith, a practical pragmatic faith. Get on your knees and pray and go forth and make it happen. President Hinckley said it is action. It isn’t abstract, but follows principles. It is a living vital force that motivates us to action. Faith includes works. It takes faith to keep the commandments. President Hinckley said he worked for the railroad and found that a railroad journey is a series of short journeys Illuminated by light, so we can apply this to our lives by taking one step at a time. Do you have the faith to do the little everyday things. The manual tells a story of President Hinckley who was asked by the mission president to go to a publisher and lodge a complaint about a book being published that contained false information about the church. President Hinckley went to the publisher and had a civil conversation with the publisher who then recalled all the copies of the book and inserted a page that said the book was a work of fiction and not meant to offend anyone. Maggie gave three principles: (1) Accept the challenge with faith; (2) call on the Lord; (3) go to work. We all face circumstances that cause fear. fear is the antithesis of faith. Dealer can make us frozen. It consumes us and stops us from moving forward. Satan tries to keep us from making good choices that help us move forward. Fear doesn’t come from the Lord. It helps to see other people who have faced the situation successfully. Sometimes we need to plan differently so we have our lives in balance. We feel joy by focusing on Jesus rather than on ourselves. The scriptures say not to run faster than we have strength. We can only do so much. We should not over schedule ourselves. Sometimes everyday life can be what we fear. There are ways to overcome our fears. We can compare our trials with people who have overcome more than we have had to or remind ourselves what we have accomplished in the past. It helps to look upwards, have conviction, confidence, courage. Identify the next action steps and take it so you know what to do next. Maggie said there was a time when she was very anxious and found that she had to focus on one problem at a time. Just because we’re some way, we don’t need to stay that way. We can learn how to cope. We can focus on something peaceful and realize that most things pass. The things in our lives that are hard right now won’t be the same in five years. Sometimes we have to learn the hard way. Start with one thing and take into consideration the well being of the family or yourself. That way you will be strong. Having a different perspective can help. Relying on the Lord can help us, especially if we make the decision to follow the Lord before we are confronted with any situations. Imagine the Savior beside you cheering you on what would you do? Would you feel braver and more able to are things on? President Hinckley was an optimist and knew that everything will work out. He said the testimony of Jesus will light a lamp that lights the way to the celestial kingdom.