Highlights from 1978

 I was looking up this quote: 
"The cultivation of Christlike qualities is a demanding and relentless task—it is not for the seasonal worker or for those who will not stretch themselves, again and again."

Pres Kimball and his Camilla

by Pres, Kimball.  It was given in a special women's fireside in 1978. 


I love reading old talks. I love seeing how the answers remain constant. How the gospel is applicable whether we are teasing our hair into beehives or straightening it with flat irons. In a world that wants us "tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine"(Ephesians 4:14)...that can't make up their mind about anything, from which way to place our babies in their cribs to what style of jeans is most flattering, it feels so good to see that when the dust settles from of all the different opinions and swirling advice, the foundation of truth will have remained unscathed. 


That the way to happiness, how ever unfashionable, has and will always be unselfishness, righteousness, service and love. That fulfilment and joy are eternal quests, governed by eternal principles, whether we dwell in dessert tents or convenient suburbs. 


So here's some highlights. OR the whole talk "Privileges and Responsibilities of Sisters"


Enjoy.


[QUOTE]

Study the scriptures. Thus you may gain strength through the understanding of eternal things. You...need this close relationship with the mind and will of our Eternal Father. We want our sisters to be scholars of the scriptures...

You need an acquaintanceship with his eternal truths for your own well being, and for the purposes of teaching your own children and all others who come within your influence. 

Some young people think of happiness as a glamorous life of ease, luxury, and constant thrills, but true marriage is based on happiness that is more than that, one that comes from giving, serving, sharing, sacrificing, and selflessness. 

When I think of the women of the Church, I think of my own beloved Camilla and how greatly our family has been blessed because of her talents and leadership. What makes her—and literally millions of others of you like her—so trustworthy and so trusting? I think there are some realities to look at. 

For one thing, Mormon women are basically  

strong, independent, and faithful.

They have chosen to live by a creed and a way of life that can be demanding at best. From the earliest days of the Church, active membership has meant faith, fortitude, denial, selflessness, and good service.

Each of you should be grateful to be a woman! Self-pity is always a sad thing to see and especially when there is no justification for it. 

To be a righteous woman is a glorious thing in any age. To be a righteous woman during the winding up scenes on this earth, before the second coming of our Savior, is an especially noble calling. The righteous woman’s strength and influence today can be tenfold what it might be in more tranquil times. She has been placed here to help to enrich, to protect, and to guard the home—which is society’s basic and most noble institution. Other institutions in society may falter and even fail, but the righteous woman can help to save the home, which may be the last and only sanctuary some mortals know in the midst of storm and strife.

One of the important messages that emerges from the history of great women in all ages is that they cared more for the future of their families than for their own comfort. Such good women had a grasp of what matters in life. When called upon to do so, they could fashion a lovely city in the midst of a swamp or make the desert blossom as a rose. 

Selflessness is a key to happiness and effectiveness; it is precious and must be preserved as a virtue which guarantees so many other virtues. There are so many things in the world which reinforce our natural selfishness, and neither our men nor women should be partakers thereof. 

We have grown strong as a people because our mothers and our women have been so selfless. That ennobling quality must not be lost, even though some of the people of the world may try to persuade otherwise...We hope our women as well as our men will be conscious of the philosophies of the world which would attempt to reverse the wisdom of the Lord when he told us that we can find ourselves only by losing ourselves.

There is a constant need to develop and to maintain tenderness. The world’s ways harden us. The tenderness of our women is directly linked to the tenderness of our children. The women of the Church do so much to teach our sons and daughters and to prepare the rising generation. Let us make no mistake about it—the home is the seedbed of Saints!  

Women display a remarkable capacity to love, to cope, along with a remarkable empathy for others in difficulty, which moves women to service as they express their goodness quietly. 

Women, so often, are charity personified.

It is true of all of us that, as we progress spiritually, our sense of belonging, identity, and self-worth increases. 

Let us create a climate in which we encourage the sisters of the Church to have a program of personal improvement. It ought to be a practical and realistic program, which is determined personally and not imposed upon them. Yet it ought to cause them to reach for new levels of achievement. We are not asking for something spectacular but rather for the women of the Church to find real self-fulfillment through wise self-development in the pursuit of righteous and worthy endeavours. 

...Good women are articulate as well as affectionate....We know that women who will improve their relationships with the Father in Heaven will also improve their relationships with their neighbors.

The cultivation of Christlike qualities is a demanding and relentless task—it is not for the seasonal worker or for those who will not stretch themselves, again and again.

Each of you sisters has the right and the responsibility to direct your own life.This is a partnership. God and his creation. The Primary song says, “I am a child of God.” Born with a noble birthright. God is your father. He loves you. He and your mother in heaven value you beyond any measure. They gave your eternal intelligence spirit form, just as your earthly mother and father have given you a mortal body. You are unique. One of a kind, made of the eternal intelligence which gives you claim upon eternal life.

He has entrusted to his daughters the great responsibility of bearing and nurturing children. This is the great, irreplaceable work of women. It was never easy to bear and rear children, but easy things do not make for growth and development. 

Much is said about the drudgery and the confinement of the woman’s role in the home. In the perspective of the gospel it is not so. There is divinity in each new life. There is challenge in creating the environment in which a child can grow and develop. 

The Lord has never promised us that we will be free of problems and challenges. He has, however, promised that with faith we will have the strength to meet any eventuality in this life.

 Prepare for and live as full a life as can be your privilege.

[END QUOTE]

I think I will Pres. Kimball. I think I'll try today to live that life,  to remember the big picture and eternal significance of my efforts. The privilege my responsibilities are.