Study 1

I'm going to walk you through my daily gospel study.  Because I enjoy learning about the gospel and sharing what I've learned.

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Conference Talk:  "Because She Is a Mother," Jeffery R. Holland, April 1997.

I first loved the reference to Lois and Eunice as mothers and grandmothers who, from the very beginning, taught Timothy to know and understand the scriptures.  In my sister's and my favorite book, these two women are portrayed as examples of divine nature, and I believe that in being faithful mothers and grandmothers, they did the utmost to fulfill their divine nature; nothing draws us nearer to God than to serve and act in utter selflessness as parents, just as He does for us.

I also loved the letter from a young mother, who often felt discouraged but always kept in the back of her mind the remembrance that she was doing the work of God.  It says over and over in the scriptures that the Lord will not forget those who follow Him and serve Him faithfully, and that mother understood this truth, and clung to the strength and support of her Heavenly Father as she fought to fulfill her ultimate duty from Him day after day.

This quote struck me particularly: "If you try your best to be the best parent you can be, you will have done all that a human being can do and all that God expects of you."  So often in the world it is easy to list off the many things that we are supposed to do as human beings to make a difference, but the most powerful influence undoubtedly comes from righteous parents who raise up children in faith and strength to overcome Satan's ever-increasing power.  And not only will we fulfill our responsibility as a human being, but we will accomplish all that God asks and wants from us.  What a beautiful promise that is!

My lessson in Relief Society on Sunday was on strong women in the scriptures, so it was wonderful to see all the examples listed in this talk of great women who have established for us a "great tradition" that we are more than capable of carrying on.  I also loved the example at the end of the women who touched Christ's robe, daring embarrassment and fighting anxiety and fear, as many of us do as we struggle to fulfill the expectations set before us, but who, as we can, reached Christ, and was counseled, "Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole."

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I typed up my scripture study too, but blogspot decided to delete it, and I am not about to type the whole thing out again.
So I'll give you scriptures along with my conference talk tomorrow.