Inspiration

I feel like I passed a huge test last night. As the 2nd counselor in the Relief Society presidency, I'm in charge of the Relief Society activies. Last night was my first one. It was the Christmas Program. Talk about pressure!

Since the new presidency was just called at the end of October, we felt like we didn't have enough time to plan something big and complicated, which was fine with me. I prefer simple. I wanted to do something that would focus on Christ, that would share the Christmas spirit, would involve several sisters, and would be simple. Good music, especially Christmas music, always helps me feel the Spirit, and we have several musically talented sisters in our ward. But I felt like we needed to have something more than just musical numbers, so I thought it would be nice for some sisters to share a special Christmas memory. I had no idea who to ask, and inspiration took over. I love how that happens!

The four musical numbers and the four sisters who shared stories brought exactly the spirit I was hoping for. We were uplited, inspired, touched, and brought closer together. The decorations were another inspiration; my trusty assistant, Carlyn, felt like she should ask a certain sister to be in charge of the decorations and they were perfect. She set the small stage with a cozy setting: a Christmas tree decorated with pictures of Christ, an old-fashioned record player on a table next to it, and a rocking chair, surrounded with pointsettias and lights. For the center-pieces on the tables, I asked a few sisters to bring a nativity. Simple, easy, perfect!

I'm learning a lot in my new calling. One thing is that when you're striving to help your sisters feel the Spirit, it will happen despite doubts or feelings of inadequacy. It was my turn to give the presidency message last Sunday, and I was very nervous. I've never taught a class for adults before, only young women and children. I knew what topic I was going to speak on, Hope, I just wasn't sure about how to present my message. After praying and thinking and reading some conference talks about hope, I wrote down my thoughts and trusted that it would all come out how it should. And it did. One of the thoughts I came across in studying for my lesson is that hope is expectation based on experience. So now I can have hope that my next activity, or my next lesson, will turn out well as long as I strive to help my sisters feel the Lord's Spirit.