Sunday Stagefright = Delusions of Grandeur

Yesterday I taught the first lesson in Relief Society out of the Gospel Principles manual. When I heard that we would be teaching from this book for two years, I was delighted. Getting back to basics always seems like a good thing to me, and I have enjoyed consulting the book myself over the years to clarify or add to my knowledge of doctrine. In fact, when my son-in-law was baptized a member of the Church, the first gift I gave him was a copy of Gospel Principles.

That is why I was so surprised when this lesson turned out to be the hardest one I've ever prepared. Ever. Oh, not because it was so short I could have read the entire thing aloud in less than five minutes, though that did make for a lot more research and organization on my part. (Previous manuals have been loaded with information to the extent that I would generally spend the whole month trying to pare the lesson down rather than enlarge upon it.) But I'm fine with research and organization, so that really wasn't the issue. What evoked my anxiety in getting this lesson ready for primetime was the relative lack of guidance, coupled with the mind boggling significance of the subject matter. What's worse, I was presenting the first lesson, and if I didn't do it justice, my Relief Society sisters might start the year out feeling less than enthused about the new course.

As sometimes happens, I had delusions of grandeur. The lesson went wonderfully, and I think it's fair to say that I had very little to do with that. The spirit in the room was strong and loving as we discussed a subject dear to every woman in attendance...Our Heavenly Father. In fact, my reason for being so worried escapes me now, or at least it did until I got home and made the mistake of reading the title of my next lesson: The Creation. It was just as short as yesterday's, and I'm feeling anxious all over again!

But all will be well. Why? Because it's not about me. With time and experience, I'll learn to trust that my efforts will be magnified and have faith that, if I do my part, the Lord will do His. Hearts cannot help but be touched as we explore the foundational beliefs and principles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And again, I will probably have very little to do with it.

The following quote by Brigham Young is one that I added to the lesson. He said these sweet words to a group of Sunday School children assembled in the tabernacle on July 24, 1877: "Our Father in Heaven has eyes to see, and His eyes are upon all the works of His hands; He has ears, which are open to hear the prayers of little children, and He loves you, and knows you, for you are all HIs offspring; and His knowledge of you is so minute that, to use the language of the ancients, not a hair of your head falls to the ground unnoticed. This is the kind of God we worship."

I closed, as is my custom, with a poem:

A Daughter’s Prayer

©2010 Susan Noyes Anderson

Some of Thy children think of Thee

in terms that make no sense to me:

“…as large as life itself, yet small,

with no body or parts at all.”

Others claim Thou art as naught––

a figment of man’s fear and thought,

a panacea for the weak

to conjure up the peace they seek.

But I have felt within my soul

Thy perfect love, and I am whole

because Thou callest me by name

and whisperest of whence I came.

In Christ, and by the Spirit’s power,

Thou livest with me every hour.

This gift, dear Father, helps me see

Thy glory and my destiny:

To fill the measure of my birth,

To walk with honor on the earth,

To find my place eternally,

As Thy child, to become like Thee.

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

As Elder Holland said in his beautiful conference talk, The Grandeur of God, "How easy to love someone who so singularly loves you!"