in His love

i gave the lesson today in relief society. i love giving lessons or presentations or basically anything to do with public speaking. today's lesson was on a talk from april 2010's lds general conference {click on link to see copy of talk}:

quenten l. cook's "we follow Jesus Christ"

honestly, i really liked this talk and used a ton of quotes from it for the bulk of the lesson. this talk was given on easter morning and it makes me ponder how i could make every day a celebration of what easter really means. i highly suggest reading the whole thing when you find the time. but here i'll just summarize some of what i got out of the talk. **just know that what i wrote here is probably more eloquent and collected that my lesson was - oh, and you don't get the blessing of hearing all the wonderful comments that were mentioned. but you get the gist...

elder cook discusses three ordinances and doctrines of great importance that were initiated during the Savior's last two days on earth before being crucified. these three things are {click on each for more details and explanations}:

1) the sacrament
2) love
3) the holy ghost

each one of these are vital to our gospel and of necessity to our salvation.

all three are extremely important to understand and utilize, yet i believe it is love that brings about the other two. more than that, love is the starting point for everything.

greg olsen's "in His light"

it is when we understand Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ's love for us that we truly yearn for the sacrament each week. it is also when we love our Savior that we desire to be clean in order to partake of the sacrament, thereby receiving blessings of strength, comfort, and of course, the holy ghost.

it is God's love for us that we have the gift of the holy ghost. the holy ghost is, essentially, God's love sent to comfort and guide in his stead.

i am grateful for these powerful ordinances and doctrines Jesus introduced to the world during His last days on earth. i stand in awe that instead of fretting about what was to come He taught and spent time with His disciples. Jesus Christ is our loving Savior and Redeemer. i know i could not do anything without His love.

greg olsen's "in remembrance of me"

on the topic of the holy ghost i shared my experience at the temple last night. there was over an hour-long wait. as i sat in a chapel inside the house of God i decided to get honest. we had a conversation that went kind of like this:

me:

Heavenly Father, if my future is going to just be more of the same... i just can't do it.

God 

{through the still small voice of the holy ghost}:

lacey, i know you can't do it ... by yourself. that's what i'm here for. you weren't meant to do it alone. 

i am grateful for the gift of the holy ghost and its comforting power. i am grateful for moments like these when i am reminded that i'm not alone.

i cannot wait to bask in His light and in His love.