I spoke in church yesterday. I have no idea what I said, haha. I get so nervous that it is all a blur. I know that I took approximately 7 minutes. I know that I didn’t repeat what previous speakers said with the exception of paraphrasing 1 scripture, and I know I cut out huge chunks of my talk to stay to the time limit.
The talk was about the blessings we receive from keeping our covenants. It was so fun to get to prepare a talk. I love the deeper study and commitment it requires. I am ALWAYS the person who gets the most out of my talks.
Covenant keeping was a confusing topic when I was going through divorce. The term was used against me, as a threat. Although it was confusing, I was able to trust my knowledge in God’s character and brush the threats off to move forward in my life, but it wasn’t until now that I really pondered covenants.
I am going to include an actual copy of my full talk below. It probably won’t make a ton of sense becase I outline talks instead of write them out word for word, but one thing that I have learned that I didn’t include is how we can seek out the blessings we need based on the promises offered to us and choose to engage in those actions associated with the promises. I don’t know if the right word is “covenant” for this, because I feel “covenant” is a stronger, more large scale, and sacred term/action, but promises have been made by the Savior, God, prophets, and apostles for specific blessings IF we follow specific guidelines. So much like a covenant, but on a smaller scale. We can search and seek and engage our selves to the promised blessings and still, the Lord is bound to fulfill them if we keep our end of the agreement.
Here is the transcript of my actual talk:
Blessings We Receive from Keeping Our Covenants
- Intro of self and topic
- Intro of using Sister Jean B. Bingham’s conference talk from April 2022
- Quote from her: “There is nothing more important to our eternal progress than keeping our covenants with God.”
- Such a huge claim, but as we go through the blessings identified in her talk, we will see how they fulfill that claim.
- Explain that a covenant is an agreement between us and God where God has set the terms of the agreement. If we do this, then He promises that.
- Read D&C 82:10
- “I the Lord am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise.”
- Testify of promises.
- Used promises to build spiritual support system for me during divorce because was at high risk for Satan’s influence in my life.
- Discuss how covenants are private and personal.
- Don’t get public recognition for it.
- Are more subtle in our lives.
- Explain the list of blessings from Sis. Bingham’s talk will show how they are more private and not public
When we keep our covenants, we are blessed …
- To be in a position to help and influence others towards Jesus Christ.
- With a promise of being forgiven of our sins.
- With a way to live with Heavenly Father again.
- With the ability to tell right from wrong.
- With the companionship of the Holy Ghost.
- With the ability to decipher our way through confusion & negative voices in the world, allowing us to have peace in our lives.
- To be able to draw upon the Savior’s power.
- With the power to discern between truth and error.
- To be strengthened during trials
- With protection from the influence of the adversary
- With Being prepared for eternal glory
- With cleansing as we learn through experience.
- With lasting happiness
- Discuss how none are public, but private instead.
- Read President Nelson’s ‘The Honors of Men Fade’ in his 2018 address, ‘5 Lessons Life Has Taught Me,’ shared with a congregation at Safeco Field in the Seattle area.
- 3. The honors of men fade
- President Nelson said life has taught him that “the honors of men, exhilarating as they may seem at the time, fade into oblivion compared to what the Lord has in store for covenant-keeping children—the supernal gift of eternal life. That’s the greatest of all of God’s gifts.”
- This came clearly into focus years ago as President Nelson was traveling with four passengers on a flight from Salt Lake City to St. George Utah; during the flight, one of the two engines exploded, sending the small plane into a downward spiral.
- President Nelson said he felt strangely calm. “Events of my life rapidly flashed before me. I thought about all the framed degrees, awards, and honors on my office wall and the various uniforms, tuxedos, and doctoral robes that I’d worn in my life.”
- In his dying moments those honors meant nothing to him. What did matter was his wife and children—to whom he was sealed in the holy temple.
- “Miraculously, the free fall extinguished the flames,” he said. “I plead with you not to let the temptations of the world—including the time-consuming allurements of your occupation—distract you from the real reason you are here on earth. Will you use your agency to choose Jesus Christ and His gospel?”
- Read President Nelson’s ‘The Honors of Men Fade’ in his 2018 address, ‘5 Lessons Life Has Taught Me,’ shared with a congregation at Safeco Field in the Seattle area.
- I have chose two of Sister Bingham’s identified blessings to discuss:
- Deciphering our way through confusion and negative voices to find peace.
- Lasting happiness
- Deciphering through confusion to find peace:
- Knowing how to find peace in your life is powerful.
- Divorce was so confusing …
- Learned to recognize and follow peace in my life.
- Read scriptures:
- John 14: 1 Let not your heart be atroubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
- 2 In my Father’s ahouse are many bmansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
- 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will acome again, and receive you unto myself; that bwhere cI am, there ye may be also.
- 6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the away, the btruth, and the life: no man ccometh unto the Father, but by me.
- 15 ¶ If ye alove me, bkeep my ccommandments.
- 16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another aComforter, that he may babide with you for ever;
- 17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
- 18 I will not leave you acomfortless: I will bcome to you.
- 19 Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.
- 20 At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.
- 21 He that hath my commandments, and akeepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be bloved of my Father, and I will love him, and will cmanifest myself to him.
- 26 But the aComforter, which is the bHoly Ghost, whom the Father will send in my cname, he shall dteach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
- 27 aPeace I leave with you, my bpeace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be ctroubled, neither let it be afraid.
- Can you feel the peace the Savior offers through those verses?
- Here’s another one:
- D&C 6:23: 23 Did I not speak apeace to your mind concerning the matter? What greater bwitness can you have than from God?
- Most Favorite scripture D&C 50:40-42
- 40 Behold, ye are little children and ye cannot abear all things now; ye must bgrow in cgrace and in the knowledge of the truth.
- 41 aFear not, little bchildren, for you are mine, and I have covercome the world, and you are of them that my Father hath dgiven me;
- 42 And none of them that my Father hath given me shall be alost.
- Peace is our guiding force to the Savior and if offered as a blessing of keeping our covenant.
- Lasting happiness
- Pres. Nelson said: “If I have learned anything in my life, it is that our ultimate security and our only enduring happiness lies in holding on to the iron rod of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, complete with its covenants and ordinances. When we do so, we can safely navigate through rough waters because we have access to God’s power.”
- Add testimony of the constant and enduring happiness offered in the temple
- Close with Sister Bingham’s testimony: “I testify that as we choose to make covenants with Heavenly Father and access the power of the Savior to keep them, we will be blessed with more happiness in this life than we can now imagine and a glorious eternal life to come.”
- Add own testimony to this.
