September Visiting Teaching Message

“Our Responsibility to Nurture the Rising Generation,” Ensign, Sep 2010, 7

Study this material and, as appropriate, discuss it with the sisters you visit. Use the questions to help you strengthen your sisters and to make Relief Society an active part of your own life.

From the Scriptures
Proverbs 22:6; Ephesians 6:4; Enos 1:1; Alma 53:20–21; 56:47; 57:27

Without nurturing, our rising generation could be in danger of becoming like the one described in Mosiah 26. Many youth didn’t believe the traditions of their fathers and became a separate people as to their faith, remaining so ever after. Our rising generation could likewise be led away if they don’t understand their part in Heavenly Father’s plan.

So what is it that will keep the rising generation safe? In the Church, we teach saving principles, and those principles are family principles, the principles that will help the rising generation to form a family, teach that family, and prepare that family for ordinances and covenants—and then the next generation will teach the next and so on.

As parents, leaders, and Church members, we are preparing this generation for the blessings of Abraham, for the temple. We have the responsibility to be very clear on key points of doctrine found in the proclamation on the family. Motherhood and fatherhood are eternal roles and responsibilities. Each of us carries the responsibility for either the male or the female half of the plan.

We can teach this doctrine in any setting. We must speak respectfully of marriage and family. And from our example, the rising generation can gain great hope and understanding—not just from the words we speak but from the way we feel and emanate the spirit of family.
Julie B. Beck, Relief Society general president.

From Our History
Addressing the sisters at the general Relief Society meeting on September 23, 1995, President Gordon B. Hinckley said: “The world we are in is a world of turmoil, of shifting values. Shrill voices call out for one thing or another in betrayal of time-tested standards of behavior.”1 President Hinckley then went on to introduce to the sisters, the Church, and ultimately people everywhere “The Family: A Proclamation to the World.”

In subsequent years this prophetic document has been translated into many languages and distributed to world leaders. It asks citizens and government leaders “to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.”2

The proclamation has become the foundation for Latter-day Saint beliefs about the family, a statement to which we can hold fast and know that by living its precepts, we are strengthening our families and homes.

What Can I Do?

1. How can I help my sisters use “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” to nurture the rising generation? You might consider sharing a copy of the proclamation and helping your sisters identify and mark those passages that would best teach key doctrines.

2. How can I nurture the rising generation? You might consider reaching out to members of your ward, branch, family, or community who could benefit from your attention and love.
For more information, go to www.reliefsociety.lds.org.

Notes

1. Gordon B. Hinckley, “Stand Strong against the Wiles of the World,” Ensign, Nov. 1995, 99.

2. See “The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” Liahona, Oct. 2004, 49; Ensign, Nov. 1995, 102.

September Newsletter

Download the September newsletter

Branch Relief Society President Thought

I handed out new visiting teaching routes for this month. I want you to know that a lot of thought and prayer went into each of them. On www.lds.org, the church states that the responsibilities of visiting teachers are:
Come to know and love your sisters.
Minister through regular contacts.
Learn of needs and offer appropriate assistance.
Look for specific ways to help.
Share and testify of gospel doctrines.
Notice that it says to make regular contact. There are several ways to contact your sisters-home visits, phone calls, emails and letters, etc. I encourage each of you to pray about your list. Pray about what kind of contact your sisters need. Reach out to those sisters on your list who need your help. Become friends with your sisters. Teach and discuss the lesson each month with them. Ask them about their temporal and spiritual goals and help them achieve them.
When you report each month (wilmingtonvt@gmail.com, 937-556-4227, 330-310-3622), let us know about how your sisters are doing and if they are in need of anything. Let us know about their goals and how they are doing with them. It’s not about if you did your visiting teaching or not-it’s about your sisters and their needs. If anyone needs help or would like me to do a visit with them-please call me. I would love to go with you. (937-383-2981).
Mindy Zeigler

Relief Society Meeting

Choose This Day
Making priorities & avoiding procrastination –
How do you choose what to do each day?

Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2010

7:00 pm at the church

(Childcare provided)

July Visiting Teaching

Visiting Teaching Message

If you haven't gotten out to do your visiting teaching yet- please get out soon! I depend on your reports to know how each and ever sister is doing. It amazes me how great each of you are and how you reach out to help those in need. Thank you so much!
Mindy Zeigler

Relief Society Meeting

Holy Place Sacred Space

I wanted to thank everyone for attending our meeting last night. We had a great turnout. Thank you also to Courtney, Amy, and Sandy for presenting! They did a great job.

The activity focused on this talk

Dennis B. Neuenschwander, “Holy Place, Sacred Space,” Ensign, May 2003, 71

Our holy places in our lives should be in our homes, Sacrament meeting, and in the Temple.

Here is a quote from the talk:

In holy places and in sacred space we find spiritual refuge, renewal, hope, and peace. Are these not worth every necessary personal sacrifice?

I would encourage all of you to read the talk and then ponder ways in your life that you can make each of these holy places, sacred space for you and your family.

Mindy

Holy Place, Sacred Space

Relief Society Meeting

Tuesday, June 22^nd, 2010

7:00 p.m. @ the church

Sometimes life gets busy and hecktic, and it is hard to find the spiritual and sacred in your every day life. How do you get anything out of sacrament meeting when your child is crying or hitting their sibling? How do you get to the temple when you can't afford a babysitter or your kids have nightly events that keep conflicting? How do you have a spiritual experience with family prayer or Family Home Evening when your missing family members to activities, and the ones home are squabbling?

Join us for some suggestions and hints in finding the Sacred Space and Holy Place in our lives. Sandy Steele will be focusing on the temple, Courtney Jenkins will bring ideas for your home, and Amy Frary will be sharing about Sacrament and other church meetings.

We'll see you there!

Sunday Lesson-Be Different In The World

Here are some thoughts from my lesson Sunday:

Elder L. Tom Perry gave a great talk entitled “In the World” in April Conference 1988 (Ensign, May 1988, 13). He talks about how we use the term “to be in the world, but not of the world” so often. He focused on the “in the world” part. Our prophets have told us that we are “to be mindful of our obligations while we are here in the world.” He tells us that we have a responsibility to show the world through our lives and actions what the gospel is about. We need to show them that obedience to the gospel principles brings blessings and solutions to problems.

He said, “The Lord help us to be able to prove to the world that we possess just what the world today is longing for, and when they see it, may they know, as you know, as I know, that the everlasting gospel is a light to the world…If we make the claim to hold the truth, it is obligatory upon every latter-day Saint so to live, that when the people of the world come, in answer to the call, to test the fruit of the tree, they will find it wholesome and good.”

He says that we do this by righteous living and by being distinctly different in the world which will have a great influence on those around us. In his talk, Elder Perry shares with us a way in which he avoided looking like the world and influenced other in the process.

Push play to hear in his own words (from an interview by Sheri Dew on Conversations http://radio.lds.org/eng/):



Sheri Dew, when she was a counselor of the Relief Society General Presidency said:
“Women of God who honor their covenants look differently, dress differently, and act and speak differently from women who have not made the same covenants. Thus women of God who know who they are have unusual and sometimes unexpected influence (Knowing Who You Are—and Who You Have Always Been, Sheri Dew, BYU Women’s Conference May 4, 2001).”

I have had many other similar experiences recently when I have been noticed or have noticed other people because they have been different in some way. Last summer we took a family vacation to Virginia Beach. One day we went down to the beach and played as a family. There was a family next to us that watched and smiled to us occasionally. That evening when we were at the hotel pool, the man sitting next to us at the beach came up to us and asked, “So, what ward are you in?” Not sure we heard him correctly, Phil said, “Did you just ask us what ward we are in?” The man told us that they had been watching us during the day and knew that we must be members of the church. His wife walked up and asked, “Was I right?” We told them we were LDS and she said, “I knew it. We watched you at the beach and knew you were different.” I am so glad they pointed it out to us because it has encouraged me to continue to try to be different and stand out and not try to blend in with the world.

In April this year we were in Miami at a conference for Phil’s company. At the opening dinner two couples we did not know were seated at our table. They were about our age and seemed like really nice people. They seemed “different” to me. I noticed the two women and how they were dressed. They had nice shirts on with cardigan sweaters over top. I quickly wondered if they were members of the church since, one, we were in Miami where it is warm, and two, no one else in the room (besides me) was modestly covered. They looked different than everyone else. As we continued to talk we found out that they were LDS and had wondered if we might have been also because they noticed we only had ice water at our place settings.

President Spencer W. Kimball has said:
“Much of the major growth that is coming to the Church in the last days will come because many of the good women of the world (in whom there is often such an inner sense of spirituality) will be drawn to the Church in large numbers. This will happen to the degree that the women of the Church reflect righteousness and articulateness in their lives and to the degree that the women of the Church are seen as distinct and different—in happy ways—from the women of the world. (Spencer W. Kimball, “The Role of Righteous Women,” Ensign, Nov 1979, 102)”

I know people are watching us to see if we are “different.” We have so many opportunities to be “different.” I also know that our friends, children, and our Heavenly Father are watching us. We do have influence and people will see if we are women (or people) who are different in happy ways and if we honor or covenants, or not. We should not shrink from or be ashamed of being different from the world. We should look for those opportunities to be different from the world so we can share a little bit about who we are and what we believe.

Here is a song from the 2009 EFY album by Hilary Weeks. It is entitiled "I Will" and sums up everything from my lesson.



Mindy Zeigler

Branch Relief Society President Thought

“When we invite the Holy Ghost to fill our minds with light and knowledge, He “quickens” us, that is to say, enlightens and enlivens the inner man or woman. As a result we notice a measurable difference in our soul. We feel strengthened, filled with peace and joy. We possess spiritual energy and enthusiasm, both of which enhance our natural abilities. We can accomplish more than we otherwise could do on our own. We yearn to become a holier person.” (Keith K. Hilbig, “Quench Not the Spirit Which Quickens the Inner Man,” Ensign, Nov 2007, 37–39)

I know it is imperative that we feel the Spirit in our lives each and every day. It can be difficult to set aside our busy schedules and daily tasks to make room for the Spirit to fill us. Each time I feel the spirit, it motivates me to be a better person, it opens my mind to inspiration to help me with my daily struggles, it keeps me on the right track, and it makes me happy. That is why I need to feel the Spirit each day.

Something I have found to help me feel the Spirit each day is by listening to uplifting music and talks on my mp3 player while I clean the house. Anytime I do the dishes, vacuum, do laundry, pick up after the kids etc, I put my headphones on and get to work. Each and every time I do this, I feel the spirit.

Here are a few places I have found great things to listen to while I work. They are mp3 files that you can download to your computer. Right click on each link and choose “save target as” to save them.
http://www.lds.org/mp3/newarchive/0,18615,5249-1,00.html
-Ensign, scriptures, General Conference, other manuals, etc

http://www.byub.org/talks/
-BYU Women’s Conference talks, Education Week talks, devotionals etc.

http://radio.lds.org/eng/programs
-Mormon Channel LDS Radio Station has several programs including “Conversations” –interviews with apostles etc, “Music with a Message”-inspirational music with spiritual thoughts, and many more.

Please share with us ways you have found to invite the Holy Ghost to fill your minds each day. We would love to share your ideas too!
leave a comment or email me any ideas you'd like to share!

Mindy Zeigler

June Visiting Teaching Message

“Renewing Covenants through the Sacrament,” Ensign, Jun 2010, 7

Teach these scriptures and quotations or, if needed, another principle that will bless the sisters you visit. Bear testimony of the doctrine. Invite those you visit to share what they have felt and learned.

Jesus Christ Instituted the Sacrament
“Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to his Apostles, saying, ‘Take, eat’ (Matt. 26:26). ‘This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me’ (Luke 22:19). In a similar manner he took the cup of wine, traditionally diluted with water, said a blessing of thanks for it, and passed it to those gathered about him, saying: ‘This cup is the new testament in my blood,’ ‘which is shed … for the remission of sins.’ ‘This do in remembrance of me.’ …

“Since that upper room experience on the eve of Gethsemane and Golgotha, children of the promise have been under covenant to remember Christ’s sacrifice in this newer, higher, more holy and personal way.”1
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

We Renew Our Baptismal Covenants through the Sacrament
“When we are baptized, we take upon ourselves the sacred name of Jesus Christ. Taking upon us His name is one of the most significant experiences we have in life …

“Each week in sacrament meeting we promise to remember the atoning sacrifice of our Savior as we renew our baptismal covenant. We promise to do as the Savior did—to be obedient to the Father and always keep His commandments. The blessing we receive in return is to always have His Spirit to be with us.”2
Elder Robert D. Hales of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

“I was with an eight-year-old girl on the day of her baptism. At the end of the day she said with all confidence, ‘I have been baptized for a whole day, and I haven’t sinned once!’ But her perfect day did not last forever, and I am sure she is learning by now, like we all learn, that as hard as we try, we do not always avoid every bad situation, every wrong choice …

“… It is not possible to make real change all by ourselves. Our own willpower and our own good intentions are not enough. When we make mistakes or choose poorly, we must have the help of our Savior to get back on track. We partake of the sacrament week after week to show our faith in His power to change us. We confess our sins and promise to forsake them.”3
Julie B. Beck, Relief Society general president.

Helps for Visiting Teaching
As you come to know a sister and her family, look for ways you might help her renew her covenants through the sacrament. If she does not attend sacrament meeting, could you invite her to attend or offer help for her to do so (transportation, assistance with children, a friend to sit by, and so on)?

Personal Preparation
Luke 22:19–20
1 Corinthians 11:23–28
3 Nephi 18:1–12

Notes
1. Jeffrey R. Holland, “This Do in Remembrance of Me,” Ensign, Nov. 1995, 67.
2. Robert D. Hales, “The Covenant of Baptism: To Be in the Kingdom and of the Kingdom,” Liahona, Jan. 2001, 8; Ensign, Nov. 2000, 8.
3. Julie B. Beck, “Remembering, Repenting, and Changing,” Liahona and Ensign, May 2007, 110–11.