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I just wanted to give an update from my point of view. Saturday – my husband went to the Priesthood Leadership Meeting. The theme of the meeting seemed to be “Cherish your spouse and children” which was meaningful to him (and to us technically). I think I am under-estimating the meaning and spiritual experience my husband had while going to the meeting.
While there was a Women’s meeting at the same time, I was not able to go because one of our daughters was sick.
Sunday morning (Special Stake Conference) – I could have gotten more from it from the beginning had we decided to sit in the R.S. room from the beginning and recognize that I was not ready to push myself around huge crowds yet. For me, his talk was very generic advice about raising multi-generational families (even though he did not mention that phrase specifically). At the end, he gave us an apostolic blessing specifically mentioning those who are parents (check), those who are struggling spiritually (check), those who are getting an education (check), and those who deal with physical or mental illnesses (check). This blessing has meaning to me, but I am not sure what it is yet. I know that part of it is because of the items he mentioned.
May you find wisdom as you navigate the tensions of life. It would be simple and easy if it was black and white, good guys and bad guys. Life seems to be so ambiguous. Sometimes I feel that we need a good story to help define life and our role in it. This can be a good thing. A good story can make life better, crisper, more joyful, fully and vibrantly lived.
AmyJ wrote:
At the end, he gave us an apostolic blessing specifically mentioning those who are parents (check), those who are struggling spiritually (check), those who are getting an education (check), and those who deal with physical or mental illnesses (check). This blessing has meaning to me, but I am not sure what it is yet. I know that part of it is because of the items he mentioned.
What if a Beehive got up and gave a Beehivic blessing mentioning parents, people that struggle spiritually, people seeking an education, and people that deal with mental illness? Would that blessing comfort as much as a blessing given by an apostle? Why or why not? Are we Naaman and the Beehive Elisha’s messenger?
What about our inner voice? Does our inner voice have the healing power of an apostolic blessing? Why or why not? Are we Naaman and our inner voice Elisha’s messenger?
I ask these questions because once I was at a place where I didn’t know how to forgive myself. It took an Elder Holland or someone similar to give an apostolic blessing to help me feel worthy again. His voice carried authority. What happens when we discover that same authority was buried deep within us all along?
That realization was both a blessing and a curse to me, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
nibbler wrote:
I ask these questions because once I was at a place where I didn’t know how to forgive myself. It took an Elder Holland or someone similar to give an apostolic blessing to help me feel worthy again. His voice carried authority. What happens when we discover that same authority was buried deep within us all along?That realization was both a blessing and a curse to me, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
I was actually thinking along similar lines during the conference. Because I could not sit in the sea of people in the cultural hall of the stake center, we wound up in the Relief Society room – where it was less crowded, blessedly dim, and there were tons of other parents with young children – so I did not have to worry about my 2 bothering anyone else with their kid-ness. In a lot of ways, it was like General Conference for me.
I think that part of the meaningfulness of this blessing it is is a reminder that I am not alone, and that I can do this. Whether there actually is a power being invoked in the blessing, or whether I act like there is additional power being invoked in the blessing and pull out extra strength from my reserves because I believe they have been sanctified and extended by God, the result is the same to me.
Apostolic blessings are a wonderful tradition. I am glad you had your experience. nibbler wrote:
What if a Beehive got up and gave a Beehivic blessing mentioning parents, people that struggle spiritually, people seeking an education, and people that deal with mental illness?
I know this is just a rhetorical device, but I really, really, really want to see this. I laughed so hard, especially at the incredulous looks I imagined on the faces in the congregation. It made my morning.
nibbler wrote:
I ask these questions because once I was at a place where I didn’t know how to forgive myself. It took an Elder Holland or someone similar to give an apostolic blessing to help me feel worthy again. His voice carried authority. What happens when we discover that same authority was buried deep within us all along?That realization was both a blessing and a curse to me, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
My wife struggles with anxiety. I think often she needs someone else to say things like this, because when she tells herself, she has a hard time believing it. I think sometimes she needs to hear it from someone who she believes speaks for the creator of the universe.
As an aside, I’m really glad to hear more evidence of mental illness being destigmatized.
Reuben wrote:
My wife struggles with anxiety. I think often she needs someone else to say things like this, because when she tells herself, she has a hard time believing it. I think sometimes she needs to hear it from someone who she believes speaks for the creator of the universe.
There was a time when my wife was seriously blaming herself for the loss of our unborn daughter. I told her many times that she was not to blame. I even gave her priesthood blessings to that effect. the RS president visited and said that she felt impressed by the spirit that DW might be blaming herself – The RS president said that DW was not to blame. This was meaningful for DW and she recalled this story for many years afterwards as a turning point.
I was somewhat jealous. This person that we did not know well and was not as close to and familiar with the situation – Why did her words carry more weight than my own.
Over time I have come to realize that we tend to give more authority to the people that are not as close to us.
No prophet is accepted in his own country. nibbler wrote:
No prophet is accepted in his own country.
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