On March 17, 2012, the Relief Society will commemorate its 170th anniversary. As part of the anniversary they have come out with the new Relief Society Poster and bookmark and are now available for copy here.
On the bookmarks are the 3 purposes of Relief Society. I absolutely love the 3 purposes. They come from the Visiting teaching message here by Sister Beck.
The Purpose of Relief Society
When our presidency was first called, we were given some resources about the history of Relief Society. We studied them prayerfully, wanting to know the purpose of Relief Society and what the Lord would have us do. We learned that the purpose of Relief Society as established by the Lord is to organize, teach, and inspire His daughters to prepare them for the blessings of eternal life.
To fulfill this purpose of Relief Society, the Lord has commissioned each sister and the organization as a whole to:
- Increase in faith and personal righteousness.
- Strengthen families and homes.
- Provide relief by serving the Lord and His children.
We can do this work in the Lord’s way only when we seek, receive, and act on personal revelation. Without personal revelation, we cannot succeed. If we heed personal revelation, we cannot fail. The prophet Nephi instructs us that the Holy Ghost will show us “all things what [we] should do” (2 Nephi 32:5). We must allow ourselves to be still enough and quiet enough to listen to the voice of the Spirit.
Sisters, we have a vital role to play in helping build the kingdom of God and preparing for the Lord’s coming. In fact, the Lord’s work cannot be accomplished without the help of His daughters. Because of that, the Lord expects us to increase our offering. He expects us to fulfill the purpose of Relief Society as never before.~Julie B. Beck, Relief Society general president
I love the 3 things because they are 3 key things to be doing in our life, but put simply. If we woke up daily and remembered these 3 things our days would go so much better. The Lord expects us to fulfill these purposes! So I made this as a daily reminder to put in a place I will see often!
Here is where I need your help….
We are celebrating our Relief Society Birthday on Thursday and I have to stand up and talk a little about our Purpose to Strengthen Families and Homes. I mostly know what I want to say, but I would love any thoughts my blogging friends have to share about this topic! What does it mean to strengthen our homes and families? How do we fulfill this purpose in our daily lives?
I have prayerfully considered this at the beginning of the year and one thing we are focusing on in our family is exact obedience. If we put the Lord first in all that we do and are exactly obedient to all gospel principals we will be strengthened and more easily guided by the spirit. My prayer is that if I try my best to have a “house of order” my children will be disciplined in all areas off their lives especially when it comes to making and keeping sacred covenants. So if at times my children think I am, quote “the meanest mom in the world” for not wavering from a house rule. I lovingly tell them,” I say what I mean, and I mean what I say and rules keep us safe”.
Strenghthening homes and families is probably the most important thing we as mothers can do. And not only our own family, but helping others also. Of course the things we do each day (prayer and scripture study) are the building blocks to a strong family, but ultimately I think teaching our children to think about Christ and treat others like Christ would treat them is what will strengthen our families. If Christ is the main focus of our lives, He will be the main focus of their lives and that will be a protection and guiding force in their life and influence every decision they make.
Part of the Young Womens theme its also to strengthen home & family. I believe its because women have such a huge impact in the home & on the family.
I really loved your post on the Relief Society. I am just so amazed at how it helped me raise my children. I now have many grandchildren and it is still helping me be a better grandmother. I am noting that the children of today are very self willed. You have to tread carefully so as not break this will because I think they will need it in these last days. The better prepared you are to teach your children with the spirit is the key. If they can learn how to feel and know the spirit in their lives they will be successful in all that they are required to do.
You might like to review The Family Proclaimation. True to the Faith gives explanation of many topics and For the Strength of the Youth may spark some inspiration. In our full and busy lives we have a wealth of resources…Pray for guidance, FIRST!!! let the Holy Spirit guide…