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  • It is wonderful to be with you, my dear and precious sisters.

  • Perhaps a recent experience will give you a glimpse

  • into how I feel about you.

  • Your supernal abilities separate you from the rest of the world.

  • You are endowed with such extraordinary capacity.

  • Well, by way of confession, I'll say that one day while I was

  • speaking to a congregation in South America,

  • I became exceedingly excited about my topic,

  • and at a pivotal moment I said, "As the mother of 10 children,

  • I can tell you that ..."

  • [LAUGHTER]

  • And then I went on to complete my message.

  • I did not realize I had said the word mother.

  • My translator, assuming I had misspoken,

  • changed the word mother to father,

  • so the congregation never knew that I had

  • referred to myself as mother.

  • But my wife Wendy heard it, and she

  • was delighted with my Freudian slip.

  • [LAUGHTER]

  • In that moment, the deep longing of my heart to make

  • a difference in the world--like only a mother does--bubbled up

  • from my heart.

  • Through the years, whenever I have

  • been asked why I chose to become a medical doctor,

  • my answer was always the same: "Because I could not

  • choose to be a mother."

  • [LAUGHTER]

  • Please note that any time I use the word mother,

  • I am not only talking about women

  • who have given birth or adopted children in this life.

  • I am speaking about all of our Heavenly Parents' adult

  • daughters.

  • Every woman is a mother by virtue of her eternal divine

  • destiny.

  • So tonight, as the father of 10 children--nine daughters

  • and one son--and as President of the Church,

  • I pray that you will sense how deeply I feel about you--about

  • who you are and all the good you can do.

  • No one else can do what a righteous woman can do.

  • No one can duplicate the influence of a mother.

  • Men can and often do communicate the love of Heavenly Father

  • and the Savior to others.

  • But women have a special gift for it--a divine endowment.

  • You have the capacity to sense what someone needs--and when

  • they need it.

  • You can reach out, comfort, teach, and strengthen someone

  • in his or her very moment of need.

  • Women see things differently than men do, and oh,

  • how we need your perspective!

  • Your nature leads you to think of others first,

  • to consider the effect that any course of action

  • will have on others.

  • As President Eyring pointed out, it was our glorious Mother

  • Eve--with her far-reaching vision of our Heavenly

  • Father's plan--who initiated what we call "the Fall."

  • Her wise and courageous choice and Adam's supporting decision

  • moved God's plan of happiness forward.

  • They made it possible for each of us to come to earth,

  • to receive a body and prove that we

  • would choose to stand up for Jesus Christ now,

  • just as we did premortally.

  • My dear sisters, you have special spiritual gifts

  • and propensities.

  • Tonight I urge you, with all the hope of my heart,

  • to pray to understand your spiritual gifts--to cultivate,

  • use, and expand them even more than you ever have.

  • You will change the world as you do so.

  • As women, you inspire others and set

  • a standard worthy of emulation.

  • Let me give you a little background

  • on two of the major announcements made

  • at our last general conference.

  • You, my dear sisters, were key to each.

  • First, ministering.

  • The supreme standard for ministering

  • is that of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

  • Generally women are, and always have

  • been, closer to that standard than men.

  • When you are truly ministering, you follow your feelings

  • to help someone else experience more of the Savior's love.

  • The inclination to minister is inherent in righteous women.

  • I know women who pray every day, "Whom wouldst Thou have

  • me help today?"

  • Before the April 2018 announcement

  • about the higher and holier way of caring for others,

  • the tendency of some men was to check off their home teaching

  • assignment as "done" and move on to the next task.

  • But when you sensed that a sister you were visiting

  • teaching needed help, you responded immediately and then

  • throughout the month.

  • Thus, it was how you visit taught

  • that inspired our upward shift to ministering.

  • Second, in the last general conference

  • we also restructured Melchizedek Priesthood quorums.

  • When we wrestled with how to help the men of the Church

  • be more effective in their responsibilities,

  • we carefully considered the example of the Relief Society.

  • In Relief Society, women in various ages and stages of life

  • meet together.

  • Each decade of life brings unique challenges,

  • and yet there you were, week after week,

  • mingling together, growing and teaching the gospel together,

  • and making a real difference in the world.

  • Now, following your example, Melchizedek Priesthood bearers

  • are members of the elders quorum.

  • These men range in age from 18 to 98--maybe more--with equally

  • wide-ranging priesthood and Church experiences.

  • These brethren can now create stronger fraternal linkages,

  • learn together, and bless others more effectively.

  • Remember last June, Sister Nelson and I

  • spoke to the youth of the Church.

  • We invited them to enlist in the Lord's youth battalion

  • to help gather Israel on both sides of the veil.

  • This gathering is the greatest challenge and the greatest

  • cause and the greatest work on earth today!

  • It is a cause that desperately needs women

  • because women shape the future.

  • So tonight I'm extending a prophetic plea

  • to you, the women of the Church, to shape the future by helping

  • to gather scattered Israel.

  • Where can you start?

  • May I offer four invitations:

  • First, I invite you to participate

  • in a 10-day fast from social media

  • and from any other media that bring

  • negative and impure thoughts to your mind.

  • Pray to know which influences to remove during your fast.

  • The effect of your 10-day fast may surprise you.

  • What do you notice after taking a break

  • from perspectives of the world that

  • have been wounding your spirit?

  • Is there a change in where you now want

  • to spend your time and energy?

  • Have any of your priorities shifted--just a little?

  • I urge you to record and follow through with each impression.

  • Second, I invite you to read the Book of Mormon between now

  • and the end of the year.

  • As impossible as that may seem with all

  • you are trying to manage in your life,

  • if you will accept this invitation

  • with full purpose of heart, the Lord

  • will help you find a way to achieve it.

  • And as you prayerfully study, I promise that the heavens

  • will open for you.

  • The Lord will bless you with increased inspiration

  • and revelation.

  • As you read, I would encourage you

  • to mark each verse that speaks of or refers to the Savior.

  • Then be intentional about talking of Christ,

  • rejoicing in Christ, and preaching of Christ

  • with your families and friends.

  • You and they will be drawn closer to the Savior

  • through this process.

  • And changes, even miracles, will begin to happen.

  • This morning the announcement was

  • made regarding the new Sunday schedule

  • and home-centered, Church-supported curriculum.

  • As has been taught here tonight, you, my dear sisters,

  • are a key to the success of this new, balanced, and coordinated

  • gospel-teaching effort.

  • Please teach those whom you love what you are

  • learning from the scriptures.

  • Teach them how to turn to the Savior for His healing

  • and cleansing power when they sin.

  • And teach them how to draw upon His strengthening

  • power every day of their lives.

  • Third, establish a pattern of regular temple attendance.

  • This may require a little more sacrifice in your life.

  • More regular time in the temple will

  • allow the Lord to teach you how to draw

  • upon His priesthood power with which you have

  • been endowed in His temple.

  • For those of you who don't live near a temple,

  • I invite you to study prayerfully

  • about temples in the scriptures and in the words of living

  • prophets.

  • Seek to know more, to understand more,

  • to feel more about temples than you ever have before.

  • In our worldwide youth devotional

  • last June, I spoke about a young man

  • whose life changed when his parents exchanged

  • his smartphone for a flip phone.

  • This young man's mother is a fearless woman of faith.

  • [LAUGHTER]

  • She saw her son drifting toward choices that could prevent him

  • from serving a mission.

  • She took her pleadings to the temple

  • to know how best to help her son.

  • Then she followed through with every impression.

  • She said: "I felt the Spirit guiding

  • me to check my son's phone at specific times

  • to catch specific things.

  • I don't know how to navigate these smartphones,

  • but the Spirit guided me through all the social media

  • that I don't even use!

  • I know the Spirit helps parents who

  • are seeking guidance to protect their children.

  • [At first] my son was furious with me. ...

  • But after only three days, he thanked me!

  • He could feel the difference."

  • Her son's behavior and attitudes changed dramatically.

  • He became more helpful at home, smiled more,

  • and was more attentive at church.

  • He loved serving for a time in a temple baptistry

  • and preparing for his mission.

  • My fourth invitation, for you who are of age,

  • is to participate fully in Relief Society.

  • I urge you to study the current Relief Society purpose

  • statement.

  • It is inspiring.

  • It may guide you in developing your own purpose

  • statement for your own life.

  • I also entreat you to savor the truths

  • in the Relief Society declaration published almost 20

  • years ago.

  • A framed copy of this declaration

  • hangs on the wall in the office of the First Presidency.

  • I am thrilled every time I read it.

  • It describes who you are and who the Lord needs

  • you to be at this precise time as you do your part to help

  • gather scattered Israel.

  • My dear sisters, we need you!

  • We "need your strength, your conversion, your conviction,

  • your ability to lead, your wisdom, and your voices."

  • We simply cannot gather Israel without you.

  • I love you and thank you and now bless you

  • with the ability to leave the world behind

  • as you assist in this crucial and urgent work.

  • Together we can do all that our Heavenly Father needs

  • us to do to prepare the world for the Second

  • Coming of His Beloved Son.

  • Jesus is the Christ.

  • This is His Church.

  • Of this I testify in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

It is wonderful to be with you, my dear and precious sisters.

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B1 中級 美國腔

姐妹們參加以色列的聚會。 (Sisters Participation in the Gathering of Israel)

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    So Ling Lee 發佈於 2021 年 01 月 14 日
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