- Promised personal revelation comes when we ask for it, prepare for it, and go forward in faith trusting that it will be poured out upon us. I don't know if it was all the outlining in law school that did this to me, but I now think in bullet points and find myself putting everything I read/think/say/do into sections and subsections, so it really clicks for me when I get three-step instructions like this, e.g., to get personal revelation we need to (1) ask for it (2) prepare for it (3) go forward trusting it will come. Number three makes me feel like once I've done what I can,, I just need to forge ahead and bank on the fact that God will guide me, just like in the Book of Mormon when Nephi said "I was led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do." Know how they say you can't steer a parked car? Get this show on the road! After you do what's within your power to do (ask for personal revelation and prepare for it), it's time to move ahead, trusting that guidance will come. I've experienced that a hundred times but the get-off-your-butt-and-start-moving pep talk is always needed.
- The ability to qualify for, receive and act on personal revelation is the single most important skill that can be acquired in this life. Whoa. Not only is that the most important skill, but it's one you don't need to rely on anyone else to develop. A lot of what we do in life is contingent on other people, on their ability to choose (or not choose), but the most important skill we can develop is between us and God. We don't need a middle man. Hallelujah.
- This Eliza R. Snow quote she shared will be famous! Did you hear it and did it blow your mind like it did mine??
"We want to be ladies in very deed, not according to the term of the word as the world judges, but fit companions of the Gods and holy ones. In an organized capacity, we can assist each other in not only doing good but in refining ourselves, and whether few or many come forward and help prosecute this great work, they will be those that will fill honorable positions in the kingdom of God. Women should be women and not babies that need petting and correction all the time. I know we like to be appreciated, but if we do not get all the appreciation which we think is our due, what matters? We know that the Lord has laid high responsibility on us, and there is not a wish or desire that the Lord has planted in our hearts in righteousness but will be realized, and the greatest good we can do to ourselves and each other is to refine and cultivate ourselves in everything that is good and ennobling and qualifying for those responsibilities."
My constant desire for appreciation was covered in a recent post, but these ideas are significant and basically telling us to (wo)man up. There's plenty of important work to do, God is counting on us, we aren't dummies, we have a lot to offer and improve on and we can do it so get moving. - Finally, I was delighted to hear Sister Beck quote my very favorite part of Preach My Gospel that I clung to in the tough times of my mission. "When we have done our very best, we may still experience disappointments, but we will not be disappointed in ourselves. We can feel certain the Lord is pleased when we feel the Spirit working through us." WOOPWOOP! Maybe that's the rubric I should be applying to measure the success of my days. (p.s. I'm totally having a successful day, more on that later...)
Monday, April 05, 2010
The Becks: Are Julie and Glenn related? (just kidding)
It's no secret that a few years ago, I began to love General RS President Julie Beck after she spoke at my law school. That love is through the roof! She really knocked it out of the park this weekend with her outstanding talk on personal revelation. I'm looking forward to when the written version comes out (Thursday, I think?) but until then, I invite you to just bask in a few of the most spectacular parts with me. Woopwoop!
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Sister Beck is my sister...and so are you!
Glenn Beck is the brother we don't like to talk about.
amen.
loved the talk. love julie beck. loved that i felt like conference was empowering for parents. sometimes i get overwhelmed that we are up against so much in trying to teach our children to live the gospel when everywhere else they see otherwise, but i thought conference was full of good advice and hope.
although i told todd that men can be nurturers too, and that he can look to male penguins as examples in nature.
Loved her talk. Loved. Loved. Loved.
More coming on this in a post of my own, but yes! It is refreshing to hear from a powerful female speaker.
i remember hearing distinctly her talk about what real women of faith do and wrestling with being offended. obviously, and i knew it at the time or else i wouldn't have been wrestling with it, that i had been called out by the Spirit. there were areas of my life that i didn't consider as important, because i wasn't yet married perhaps or because i had been waiting so long to be married that i had perhaps begun to forget the fact that just because something hasn't happened to you YET doesn't mean it's not divine design.
ANYWAY.
such a difference this year. i LOVED sister beck's talk, mainly because it did seem so much like a pep talk. hers was the one that i teared up at because it seemed like it was talking to me at the very beginning, about how good women can never do everything they want and desire to do out of the goodness of their hearts because there isn't enough time or resources in the world to allow them to do so...and that personal revelation is the way to figure out how to prioritize.
such a seemingly simple answer to what makes my life complex every single day.
i love the gospel. and sister beck is slammin'. the end.
I'll do whatever she tells me to do.
And this one time when I saw her at the hospital, I winked at her and she smiled at me.
Girl crushes all around.
Yeah, Beck is awesome. Julie, that is. I'm so glad you posted this. I listened to that talk three times this morning but you brought out some really important points that I didn't notice.
This happened to be one of those great talks-similar to what we used to hear from Elaine Cannon. (I'm a little prejudiced.) I went to a RS training in the Tabernacle last week and Julie Beck and her counselors were fabulous. It was an extended version of this talk. Barbara Thompson was funny and REAL. I wish every Relief Society member could have heard their advice and counsel.
I also loved that Eliza R. Snow quote, as I have been feeling unappreciated. Time to be a woman, and trust that that righteous desire will be fulfilled in the Lord's time as I pursue a righteous life. I really loved Elder Holland's talk.
loved her talk too! thanks for providing the eliza snow quote...i shared it as well.
I really liked that Eliza R. Snow quote even if it did make me pout for a second because Im a first time pregnant person who is emotional and needs lots of coddling, ok?!
I also think that we too much in the RS treat women like these misunderstood creatures that need many accolades and petting for little things...when sometimes we just need to woman up and be tough like unto the pioneers.
Thats going to be my new motto: Woman up.
Like most everyone else who reads your blog I feel like you have highlighted things just for me, and I love it. Love it. Yup. Love you, too. Yup. Love you and yours. All of 'em. Yup. AND not only do I love your insight, but I do very much appreciate your willingness to share it. Good, good job!
Loved this post. The ERSnow quote was awesome. The phrase "the single most important.." rocked. It's true. What a quest for life!
I'll admit, I also like seeing how many people she offends (why are people so easily offended?), but I love her style and how she's so straight-forward and doctrinal. I sat in front of a friend in one of the sessions and during a certain talk by a sister who wasn't Julie Beck, she whispered to me, "Women speakers are the reason people think the Church is a cult." I've been laughing about that ever since. It made me grateful for a speaker who doesn't talk to us like we're four.
I loved it. I found it empowering and it prompted me to stop pitying myself (for a day or so). She is a rock star. A righteous one.
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