On this Easter Sunday, I would like to put a culmination to my thoughts on how to magnify our calling as priesthood holders. It is evident that the priesthood blesses the life of he who holds it, but only as the holder uses the priesthood to look outward to bless others, both temporally and spiritually. It is evident that the priesthood has a critical place in the family, as a governing force that leads the most basic but most important social unit toward salvation. It is also evident that sisters have a critical role in upholding the priesthood, that they may become joint heirs. The system of the Lord involves man and woman working together to create an eternal bond, bolstered by the priesthood, between themselves and their family as a whole, creating a type of blessings and responsibilities to come. A Melchizedek Priesthood manual explained:
“In the perspective of the gospel, ‘leadership’ does not mean the right to dictate, command, and order. On the contrary, it means to guide, protect, point the way, set the example, make secure, inspire, and create a desire to sustain and follow. Literally, the husband is to lead the way” (The Savior, the Priesthood and You [Melchizedek Priesthood course of study, 1973–74], 172).
While the father is the leader in the home, “his wife is his most important companion, partner, and counselor” (Family Guidebook [1999], 2). A husband and wife must work together to strengthen their family and teach their children the principles of the gospel. By fulfilling her role as counselor to her husband, a woman can reinforce her husband’s position as head of the home and encourage greater family unity.
Yesterday, at the 180th General Conference of the Church, Julie B. Beck, the General Relief Society President said that "so much depends on the daughters of God." She explained that there has never been a greater need for strong families and homes, so important for the sisters and everyone to understand. She referenced this to our ability to qualify for the Spirit and respond to personal revelation, which she said was "the single greatest thing we can learn in this life."
In that same session President Boyd K. Packer gave a beautiful dissertation on the priesthood, and its relation to the family. He said that in the world we will never dominate by numbers, but we have the priesthood, which is the power to act in God's name. He said that it is crucial for the sisters to know what is expected of the brethren, for the priesthood "will not have the power it should have until its power is firmly fixed in the family."
Today is a day of rebirth. We set out plastic, candy-filled eggs as a symbol of a newness that embodies the season when the Savior was resurrected, providing us all the chance to live again in glory with Him and with Heavenly Father.
In the spirit of rebirth, I invite all priesthood holders to gain a renewed perspective on their duties, and how their duties apply to service of the whole human race. I know that we are only truly happy when we use our authority to serve, by "persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned; by kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy, and without guile."
The Savior desires to enlarge our souls. Let us let Him do so. Let us truly love those around us, and truly reverence the priesthood and the responsibility that comes with it. Let us also reverence women, who complete the priesthood so perfectly as to grant us all the blessings that this life has to offer, if we are but willing to accept them. It is my hope that we all may remember this on this Easter Sunday.
Have a great week!
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