I had the opportunity to speak during our Sacrament meeting this last Sunday (March 11, 2019) and I would like to share my talk with you. I pray that the Holy Spirit may be with you as you read this and that in some way my words may convey to you the words our Father in Heaven would have you hear.
While we are each unique, I feel it is safe to say that I don’t think they’re as ever been a reaction such as mine when I received the call Tuesday night and was asked to speak in church this. I was so excited I shouted “YES” right into the phone. This was the second time I have been asked to speak in church. The last time I spoke in church I actually volunteered to, the time before that I had asked my bishop why he had never asked me to speak in church before. Who does that, right? Maybe this talk can somehow explain that, at least in some way I hope.
Purpose of My Talk
I was asked to speak about a talk that was given by Bonnie D. Parkin at the 2002 General Women’s Session of Conference titled With Holiness of Heart. In doing so I wanted to do more than talk about her talk, I wanted to make it personal, relating it’s importance in my life, I want to be able to help someone by my example through my words, sharing portions of my life with you and choices I have made. I want to help each of you who may at times feel that you fall short on the things that you do (I know I feel that way sometimes). I want to help you see the great importance of the seemingly small things you do to help others. I want to help you see that you truly love and serve as our Savior did during His mortal ministry.
In an effort to achieve my goal with this talk I took to much studying, listening to this talk numerous times as well as a few other talks, reading the scriptures that were noted in this talk and turned to the Bible Dictionary for some extra help. I wanted to know more about this talk, I wanted to understand the very heart of Sister Parkin’s message. In my studies I was able to gain so much, I hope that with the help of the spirit I am able to convey the things I have learned to the heart of each of you reading these words.
Repeated Phrases
In some talks, there are words or phrases that are often repeated a time or two, sometimes more. I recall being taught by a former bishop that if you hear something in the scriptures more than once it is important. I have taken that to be true for conference talks as well. In this talk the phrase “Here am I; send me.” was said 10 times. How great then is the importance for each of us to answer the call.
In the Old Testament, we learn that things or places that were seen as holy, and I am going to add people here as well because one who held a sacred office was also thought of as holy, they “were set apart for a sacred purpose”. As I read that immediately the thought came to mind that I was set apart for a sacred purpose, each of us has been-I had just read it the other day in the scriptures as I was searching to discover my gifts and talents. That has been something I have been studying lately, trying to discover my purpose and who it is meant for. I found it in Jeremiah 1:4-5 “Then the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee”. We have each been blessed with a sacred calling from our Heavenly Father as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints we have each answered that call by saying “Here am I; send me.” in some way.
It goes on to say in the Bible Dictionary that “The Israelites were a holy people because they stood in a special relationship to Jehovah. Under the guidance of the Prophets it was seen that what distinguished Jehovah from the gods of the heathen was His personal character. The word holy therefore came to refer to moral character. Israel must be holy in character because the God of Israel was holy.” We as a covenant-keeping people, men, and women in Zion alike, are seen as holy, being moral in our character because we have a special relationship with Jesus Christ, we are under the divine guidance of a living prophet.
Insight & Perspective
Now that I had a better understanding of the word holiness I wanted to gain insight on the perspective that Sister Parkin had in regards to the covenants we make and keep as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Covenants are the binding promises we make with our Heavenly Father and vow to keep. As we make these sacred covenants with our Heavenly Father, He, in turn, teaches us how we can become like Him as we follow the example of His Son Jesus Christ.
As we grow to love Him with our whole heart He helps us to see and love others as well as ourselves, even as He loves each of us. The covenants we make in the temple further tutor us on the importance of obedience, being selfless, faithful, honorable, and charitable as well as making sacrifices and consecrating all that we have. Covenants bring about in us new growth and help us to lead others to do likewise. They keep us from needless suffering, are a protection to us and they can keep us as well as our loved ones spiritually safe and prepared as we put first things first.
As we renew our covenants with regular church and temple attendance our souls are quickened by His Spirit, giving us the needed energy and spiritual strength to press forward. Keeping our covenants brings about blessings greater than we can imagine.
Sounds pretty simple, doesn’t it? It is in the doing, our very acts and conduct with others, where we show our true character-the holiness of our own heart. For some it seems to come so naturally-whether born into the Gospel of Jesus Christ or baptized later in life, for others it can be at times a struggle in one aspect or another. I love this verse in Matthew 25:40 …Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. Each time we reach out to help another think of it as helping our Savior, that is in fact all we are doing. Just as the Savior with outstretched hands reached out to lift others, helping them to become greater and stronger, even better people, we in our efforts we can each do the same.
Personal Reflection
Sister Parkin asked “How do covenants define who we are and how we live?”, that caused me to reflect on the last six years of my life. While I understood what the covenants that I had made were and had noticed changes I had made in my life I never really gave it the kind of thought that brought me to such reflection as I was experiencing at that moment.
I became a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints 6 short years ago. Though my story differs from that of Miss Priscilla Staines the conviction of my heart and the covenants I made with Heavenly Father the day I was baptized are the same. Like her, all that truly mattered was that God had heard my covenant. That was a day that set in motion the many changes I was to experience. It was a day that began my journey to loving and serving those around me, wherever I may be, with holiness of heart…..and it wasn’t until this moment, as I was preparing for this talk that I was able to see the holiness that has developed within me.
I have seen for myself how covenants could have kept me from needless suffering-had I known anything about them or the Gospel so many years ago. I am grateful however for those things I have learned before coming into the light of His love and mercy, it has helped me to hold on more tightly when it would seem to have been easier to just let go and save my previous marriage-though it would have been outside of the church, outside the scope of Christ’s endless love, outside the fold- His flock- those who lifted me, encouraged and strengthened me, outside the light that had so richly blessed my life, even then in the few shorts years I had been a member.
Keeping Covenants in Times of Trial
By staying true to Him, the one who has saved me, rather than the man I had married, I was saved yet again-preserved for a divine purpose. By keeping the covenants I had made with my Heavenly Father I was lead away from further deception and the dangers that I am certain were ahead of me had I stayed in that marriage. Letting go of that marriage was difficult, I thought that we wanted the same thing to be sealed in the temple, I thought we were working toward that goal. I was doing my part and I was loving it-except for the fact that I felt I was doing it alone, without my husband.
Truth was, though I felt alone, Christ had never been more near. As difficult as it was for me to admit that my marriage was over it was far more difficult seeing for myself that Heavenly Father knew more about the man I was married to then than I was willing to admit I saw for myself. He was showing me, helping me to see more completely the man He knew I was with and what could happen should I choose to let go of my covenants and step off the path that He had in mind for me. It pierced my heart and awakened me to what needed to be done. I don’t even want to know how my life would be right now had I not held on with great conviction and determination to the covenants I have made with my Heavenly Father. They saved me from further suffering and have continued to bless my life and the life of my sweet family-a family I would not have or be a part of had I let go.
Blessings of Faithful Covenant Keeping
By faithfully renewing my covenants I was protected from being further “tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness,” It was in renewing my covenants on a weekly basis through church and temple attendance that gave me the strength I needed then and continues to strengthen me. It helps to keep me from being lead astray.
As I have faithfully moved forward since the end of that marriage, keeping my covenants and holding true to the one I have made them with I have been kept spiritually safe and prepared because I chose to put first things first-God, husband, family. I put my relationship with God before my husband, as it should be- my sweet husband now understands that’s how it must be for each of us. We cannot hope to lift, strengthen, teach, love, pray or do any number of good works between the two of us alone. We know that we need the Lord and His help in everything we do. Without the Lord and His Holy Spirit, our home wouldn’t be what it is centered on Christ. I grew up in a worldly home- where I never really felt at home. Though I didn’t fully understand then what was missing I do now and I feel more love and peace, kindness, compassion, understanding, and support with Christ at the center of our home and our life together.
Life Doesn’t Always Go As Expected
As you may have noticed my life has not worked out as I had expected. Though I am not sure what it was I expected. I never thought I would believe in Christ the way that I do. I never imagined I would or even could feel so lifted by someone sharing their life with me-not only helping me to see that wee all have similar struggles but also by showing me a better way to make it through them. I never thought I would study the words of the Lord as I have and do nor did I ever imagine I would or even could hear the Lord speak to me through those words. I never imagined I would feel so much love and encouragement, such compassion from people I barely knew. I never would have known the sweet tender mercies of the Lord had I not been willing to make and keep sacred covenants.
Tender Mercies of The Lord & Loving Examples
The sweetest tender mercy, I think the very first one of His many tender mercies, I have experienced in my life is found in a woman who proudly claims me as her daughter though I am not of her flesh and blood. She has been a shining example of loving and serving with holiness of heart in my life. She was there my first time in Relief Society, even before I had joined the church. She saw how uncomfortable I was being in a room with so many women I didn’t know. With a loving smile on her face, she invited me to sit next to her and was kind enough to point out in her book where the teacher was at in her lesson.
It wasn’t long after that where she asked permission to have me help her out in Activity Days, even though I was not yet a member. She was there when I was baptized and a few months later when I was asked to speak at a Relief Society activity. That was the night she first called me her daughter, it was the night she had spoke words to me that I thought I would never hear and I could feel that she truly meant them as she told me how proud she was of me.
She was with me when I went through the Salt Lake Temple to receive my endowments a year after I was baptized and has been through the ups and downs of my life in these last six years. She was even with me when I was sealed to my wonderful husband Kevin, telling me then how proud she was of me. She has made me feel so loved from the moment I met her. It is through her great love for the Savior, her conviction to keeping her covenants that she has been blessed to see a need in others and naturally move forward in helping them as she answers the call in her heart saying, Here I am, Lord; send me. Without her, my life would not be the same.
Finding My True Self
It has been in looking back on my life, through the covenants I have made, that I have been able to see how they have shaped me, how they have become a part of my very character. The covenants I have made have helped bring about in me my truer self, they have become a part of me, strengthening me along the way.
President Hinckley has said of the Relief Society sisters we are “a vast reservoir of faith and good works, … an anchor of devotion and loyalty and accomplishment.” As I read that I couldn’t help but turn to the words of our loving prophet President Russell M. Nelson as he spoke to us in the General Women’s Session of General Conference this last October. He wants each of us to gain a sense of how he feels about us. He said that when it comes to communicating Heavenly Fathers love “women have a special gift—a divine endowment.” We have the capacity to sense the needs of others, our very nature leads us to think of others first, we each have special gifts and talents that we are meant to share with those around us.
Take Time to Reflect
I ask you to take a moment and reflect on your own lives, how has your life been blessed by someone else who has been faithful to their covenants? Think of the people you come in contact with each day, your mother or father, brother or sister or another family member, maybe it’s a dear friend or possibly someone you just met.
Think of the countless ways we are blessed by those faithful brethren and sisters who have charge over us in our ward, stake and especially those in the First Presidency, our prophet, the general authorities of the church. If they were not true and faithful to the covenants they have made with our Heavenly Father they would not be able to guide and direct us, offer us the counsel that we at times are in desperate need of. We would not feel the peace and comfort that comes from their reassurance, in those moments, when we feel we fall short of the work we are called to do when they say to us “…we get credit for trying, even if we don’t succeed”, “Keep loving. Keep trying. Keep trusting. Keep believing. Keep growing. Heaven is cheering you on today, tomorrow, and forever.”
The Work Before Us
Just as sisters in Zion, along with you brethren, we all have a great work to do. Together as we follow the guidance and direction of our loving prophet President Russell M. Nelson we can and will accomplish all that we were sent here to do. Whether we have official church callings or not the work before us can at times seem overwhelming but like Sister Parkin, I know that we each do it, all that we can, because we have made covenants with the Lord, promises that are very sacred to each of us.
Each time we are kind to another, open our hearts to be more understanding, patient, loving, compassionate we are not only keeping our covenants we are also emulating our Savior Jesus Christ, even if in a small and simple way. As we reach out to another in genuine care and concern for them and their well being by lending a hand with a task or a listening ear to someone who just needs to get things off their chest we are in our own way saying to our Heavenly Father “Here am I; send me.”.
Small Acts Help Draw Us Nearer to the Savior
As we do this each day it draws us nearer to our Savior and Heavenly Father, it also brings about in us, little by little a more holiness of heart-connecting us to the true divinity within.
“Making covenants is the expression of a willing heart; keeping covenants, the expression of a faithful heart.” As you think of those poignant words from Sister Parkin I invite you to reflect on the covenants that you have made and how they have blessed your life and the lives of those around you; see how they have connected you to the divinity within you.
For those of you who are not members of The Church, I invite you to consider developing a relationship with our Savior Jesus Christ and experience for yourself the lasting effects of making covenants with our Father in Heaven. I leave these words with you and pray that they have in some way helped you as I have shared how making such sacred covenants with the Lord has blessed my life and brought out in me more holiness of heart, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
