When President Nelson spoke during the general women's broadcast of general conference, he issued four invitations to help us, the women of the Church, answer his "prophetic plea . . . to shape the future by helping to gather scattered Israel."
President Nelson's first invitation asks us to prayerfully consider our use of media and then "to participate in a 10-day fast from social media and from any other media that bring negative or impure thoughts" to our minds. Immediately, I (and I'm sure many of you) started to assess the books I was reading, television shows I was watching, and movies I had on my watchlist. Could any of these be considered a negative influence? I think of this initial assessment as the first phase of this invitation. The second phase is the actual fast. In my experience, the first day felt as long as the subsequent nine! The more time spent away from Instagram, the easier it was not to click on that icon. The third and final phase of this first invitation from our prophet is to self-reflect. He suggests answering the following questions: "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--even just a little? I urge you to record and follow through with each impression."
The second invitation President Nelson extended was to read the Book of Mormon by the end of the year, marking each verse that refers to the Savior, then, talking about Him with our friends and family. Wowzers! The Book of Mormon is long. 530 pages! He asked us to read it in under 3 months. During the holiday season? I don't know about you, but my mind was reeling a bit when I heard this. But listening to all of President Nelson's message, which sprinkled prophetic promises between his calls to action, and I knew I wanted to participate. "You and [your families and friends] will be drawn closer to the Savior through this process. And changes, even miracles, will begin to happen." I want those blessing for my family and friends! So, my daughters who are still at home, my husband and I are blazing through the Book of Mormon faster than we ever have. I even found that marking all the references to Christ made reading the Isaiah passages in 2 Nephi more enjoyable!
When I heard President Nelson issue his third invitation to "establish a pattern of regular temple attendance," the first thought I had was I HAD a habit of regularly going to the temple twice a month--and then it closed! Initial pouting aside, I appreciate that President Nelson didn't qualify our attendance with anything more than the word "regular." Individually, we can decide what "regular" temple attendance looks like to each of us. Driving 2 hours each way and paying $24 in tolls has certainly impacted my temple attendance, but I can still attend regularly. I also appreciate that President Nelson invited those who don't live near a temple "to study prayerfully about temples in the scriptures and in the words of the living prophets." Adding that to my personal study can be part of my new regular temple routine. In his opening remarks in general conference, President Nelson mentioned the strength of the adversary, noting that we need counter-strategies to combat Satan's. Then, in his closing address, the prophet said that our need to be in the temple on a regular basis has never been greater. I know I feel that on a personal level. When life's circumstances look bleak or tragedies happen to those I love, I can always count on having a peaceful heart when I am within the walls of the House of the Lord.
President Nelson's fourth and final formal invitation is "to participate fully in Relief Society." He expanded on this by urging us to study the current Relief Society purpose statement and to study the Relief Society declaration. Did you know or remember that the Relief Society purpose statement had been revised in 2017? I didn't! Here it is: “Relief Society helps prepare women for the blessings of eternal life as they increase faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and His Atonement; strengthen individuals, families, and homes through ordinances and covenants; and work in unity to help those in need.” As part of my study of the new purpose statement, I read the announcement on the change, found here: https://www.lds.org/church/news/sister-burton-announces-updates-to-lds-relief-society-purpose-statement?lang=eng. The Relief Society declaration can be found here: https://www.lds.org/bc/content/shared/content/images/gospel-library/manual/31114/31113_000_005_01-declaration.pdf?lang=eng. Before accepting President Nelson's fourth invitation, it had been an embarrassingly long time since I'd read the declaration. I feel like it is a beautiful mission statement for women who understand their divine relationship with deity.
Sisters, we are lucky to have full lives with calendars full of good ways to spend our time. But, I hope that of all the invitations and evites we receive, we jump at the chance to accept these four invitations from our living prophet. I know that as we follow our prophet, the Lord's blessings will pour down on us. I'm counting on it!
-Mendy Hunter
(Second Counselor, Stake Relief Society)
