RS Lesson Summary Feb 1st

Last Sunday Sister Call gave an excellent lesson on the topic of ministering. Dawn asked a lot of thoughtful questions to the group, and the first was this: Where does visiting teaching fit into the ward? 

Next we discussed the importance of ward councils. There are many sisters who don't know about the function of the ward council, or it's importance. All the leaders from every auxiliary get together with the Bishopric and discuss the needs of the wards. The human, real needs of families. Each auxiliary has it's stewardship, and each auxiliary comes together to help in whatever way they can. If the family has children in the ward that are primary age, assignments are given to the primary presidency, if the issues involve single sisters, either the Elder's quorum or the High Priests are asked to help. One of the big questions that is asked at these councils is: 'who is so and so's home teachers and visiting teachers'. The home teachers and the visiting teachers are the first real contact the ward council has with the membership of the ward. The leadership of the ward can't be everywhere all the time, so luckily we have great structures in place to take care of one another. The structure for us sisters is the relief society and visiting teaching.

Moroni 7: 47 " But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him."

How do we become unified? How do we obtain charity in our hearts? Both are really important to help in the Lord's work. Perhaps one of the first steps is that we pray for these things. If we realize a deficiency in ourselves, and we want to change, we pray to gain the thing that we are lacking. Ether talks about praying for charity. 

 Ether 12:34 "And now I know that this love which thou hast had for the children of men is charity; wherefore, except men shall have charity they cannot inherit that place which thou hast prepared in the mansions of thy Father."

Elder Eyring said: "The great day of unity is coming, the Lord Jehovah will return to live with those who have become his people and will find them united, of one heart, unified with Him and with our Heavenly Father." 

For those of us who have gone to the temple, we have made covenants to give our time and talents to the building up of the church on the earth. Every opportunity we see to lift another, help someone, provide a service, is our opportunity to fulfill that covenant. 

So perhaps you say, I don't know what I can do for that sister, or that person. I am struggling with my own burdens. I have my own life to live, my own problems. One of the best ways to help with another's burden is to simply relate to it. To empathize or sympathize. We may or may not be in a position to fix a problem, or relieve a burden but we can offer a shoulder, an ear, a tender heart. Sometimes the burdens we take help alleviate our own burdens. Our own hearts become lighter, our burdens seem easier to bear, when we lift another. Our capacity to help is highlighted by our strengths and our experiences. 

Sister Call mentioned that sometimes our loads and burdens overlap with others. Maybe you know someone who is lonely, maybe she's a widow, divorced, or single. Perhaps you are the widow or the single sister and you know a new mother who is struggling with her new baby and toddler. How do your burdens overlap? The lonely sister can offer to help the other by bringing some relief by simply coming over to hold the new baby for the mother for a couple of hours, or maybe the overwhelmed mother comes over to the single sister's home and chat for an hour while the little children play. There are lots of ways the scenario could play out. 

From the Church News an article entitled: "Visiting Teaching is a way of Life" by Sarah Jane Weaver Jan. 2010

"Visiting teachers have two major responsibilities: to teach and to minister. Most women in the church understand the visiting teaching part. Visiting a sister with a lesson each month is the teaching part, but it is 'not always ministering'.

After we visit our sisters, it is important to report back to our visiting teaching coordinator. She takes the reports back to the RS Presidency, and then the RS Presidency sees an overall picture of the needs of the sisters of the ward. Without our input, it would be hard to know what is happening all over the ward. When something is urgent and confidential, it is important to tell the RS immediately. She will involve the compassionate service coordinator or other leadership of the ward. 

Our wards are unique! We each have a wonderful opportunity to help and uplift the sisters in our ward. We are not islands floating around alone, we are in a sisterhood and we have something to contribute that is worthwhile and needed. 

It is also important to have our lives organized in order to help others. Having some back up groceries in your pantry to make a meal for someone in need was a suggestion. The question Sister Call posed at the end of the meeting was: what is standing in our way? Why are we not sometimes the servants the Lord needs us to be? What is our stumbling block? Our circumstances are different, our issues may be varied, but the needs of the ward are present and will always need the hands of the sisters. We do a work that no one else can do, in a way no one else can do it. If we look inside ourselves and see something that needs changing, we can ask the Lord to help us improve. We can rely on the Lord to help change our hearts, and help charity to take root. 

No matter what, this is the Savior's work, we are what the Savior has. 

"In the end, the number of prayers we say may contribute to our happiness, but the number of prayers we answer may be of even greater importance. Let us open our eyes and see the heavy hearts, notice the loneliness ad despair, let us feel the silent prayers of others around us, and let us be a instrument in the hands of the Lord to answer those prayers."- Excerpt from Daughters in my Kingdom