'Simple recipe' will assure happiness
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Offering a "simple recipe which, if observed, will assure your happiness," President Gordon B. Hinckley addressed the young women of the Church on Saturday evening, March 24.
"You young women are on the threshold of life," the Church president said during the broadcast of the General Young Women Meeting from the Conference Center in Salt Lake City. "You are old enough to have been baptized. You are young enough that the future world of which you dream still lies ahead of you. Each of you is a child of God. Each of you is a creature of Divinity. You are literally a daughter of the Almighty. There is no limit to your potential. If you will take control of your lives, the future is filled with opportunity and gladness."
President Hinckley, who was accompanied by his counselors in the First Presidency, President Thomas S. Monson and President James E. Faust, was the main speaker during the annual broadcast for young women ages 12 to 18, their mothers and Young Women leaders. Also speaking were Young Women General President Susan W. Tanner and her counselors, Julie B. Beck and Elaine S. Dalton.
In his address on a warm spring evening, President Hinckley explained that the "simple recipe" of which he spoke is a "simple four-point program. It is as follows: pray, study, pay your tithing and attend your meetings."
President Hinckley then elaborated on each point:
- "With reference to the first item — personal prayer. You are a daughter of our Heavenly Father. He is your heavenly parent. Speak with Him. Each night and morning get on your knees and express unto Him the gratitude of your heart. Speak of the blessings which you desire and need."
- "The second item on my list is study. What is included in this
simple five-letter word? First is a study of the scriptures."
President Hinckley recounted the First Presidency challenge in 2005 to read the Book of Mormon before the end of the year. "It is amazing how many met that challenge. Everyone who did so was blessed for his or her effort. As they became immersed in this added witness of our Redeemer, their hearts were quickened and their spirits touched. Some of you were too young to have read it then, but you are not too young to start to read it now."
Continuing, President Hinckley urged the young women to gain as much education as possible. "You may plan on marriage, and hope for it, but you are not certain that it will come. And even though you marry, education will be of great benefit to you. Don't just drift along, letting the days come and go without improvement in your lives. The Lord will bless you as you make the effort. Your lives will be enriched and your outlook broadened, as your minds are opened to new vistas and knowledge."
- "The next item is the payment of tithing.... While tithing is
paid with money, more importantly it is paid with faith. I have never met
an individual who paid an honest tithe who complained about it. Rather, he
put his trust in the Lord, and the Lord never failed him."
President Hinckley related how, as a young boy, he visited with his bishop every December for tithing settlement. "He wrote out a receipt and recorded the amount in the ward record. The amount may have been so small that it cost more to record it than it was worth. But it established a habit which continued through all of these years. With the payment of tithing have come innumerable blessings as the Lord has promised."
- "The fourth item — attend your meetings, your sacrament meetings. There is no substitute for partaking of the sacrament of the Lord's Supper. It is a solemn, sacred, and wonderful undertaking to be able to partake of the bread and water in remembrance of the body and blood of the Savior of mankind.
President Hinckley also counseled young women to encourage their parents to have family prayer, if they are not already doing so. "Prayer is the bridge over which we approach our Father in Heaven. It costs nothing. It requires only faith and effort. There is nothing more rewarding than kneeling in humble prayer. It speaks of love for Deity, as the giver of all that is good. It speaks of respect for self. There is no substitute for it. It is personal communication with God."
"There is no other event in human history as significant as the atoning sacrifice of our divine Redeemer. Nothing else compares with it. Without it life would be meaningless. It would be a dead-end journey. With it we are assured of eternal life. Death is not the end, but rather a passing on to a more glorious existence."
In his closing remarks, President Hinckley said: "If you will do these four things, I promise you that your lives will be fruitful, that your happiness will be great, that your accomplishments will be tremendous and satisfying in every respect."
Performing music for the meeting was a choir of young women from the Provo, Utah, area with Merrilee Webb directing and Linda Margetts accompanying. Playing the French horn, flute and harp for some of the selections were, respectively, Mary Wood-Lampros (member of the Orchestra at Temple Square), Kathleen Ellingson (Salt Lake Holladay South Stake) and Sarah Edwards (North Salt Lake Utah Stake). Hillary Olsen of the Alpine Utah Stake offered the opening prayer; Rosey Bassett of the Salt Lake Jordan North Stake gave the benediction.
E-mail to:julied@desnews.com
