thoughts on becoming a more holy woman

This post will explore some of the thoughts I had while thinking about how I could apply my word of HOLY to my life in 2015.  This is by no means a comprehensive list and I am sure what I do and how I do it will ebb and flow as I go through my days, as I try to listen to the Lord's inspiration, and as I improve.

I will strive to be holy in  my HOMEMAKING by remembering that I am doing the work I believe God has given me—to be a wife and mother and homemaker.  I will work to have a holy attitude about my routine tasks (cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc.) by reminding myself that I am creating an environment where the Spirit of the Lord can dwell; where my family will feel safe and loved; and where visitors will feel welcome. I can be holy in my organizing by remembering that I am creating "a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God" (D&C 88:119).

I will be holy in my role as a MOTHER by remembering that these children are God's children that He entrusted to me to love, nurture, teach and raise.  I will be a holy mother by being patient with their mistakes; being patient when they are learning something new; teaching them gospel principles and other essential life skills; working to modulate my voice and facial expressions; and being WITH them and not letting electronic entertainment take so much of their time.

I will be holy in my role as a WIFE by remembering that my husband is not a mind reader and if I want him to help with something, I can ask him kindly; I will ensure we have regular dates and social events with our friends; and supporting him in his Church callings and responsibilities.  I can also be a holy wife by expressing frequent and sincere appreciation for all he does when I am busy doing my own church responsibilities (I'm 2^nd counselor in the Relief Society) and he takes over the home and family.

I will be holy with my FINANCES by remembering that God giveth all things, so I will honor Him by paying my tithing and fast offerings each  month before paying any other obligations; being on time with payments owed to others; and being wise with the use of our discretionary income (establishing/maintaining bank accounts for various expenses that come up through the year so we don't have to do things like charge property taxes to a credit card, etc.). 

I will be holy in my CHURCH RESPONSIBILITIES by: becoming a good friend to those sisters I visit teach; preparing visiting teaching messages to meet the needs of the sisters I visit teach; carrying out my Relief Society responsibilities as promptly and as thoroughly as I can; communicating with the Presidency members and the Board members I work with; thoughtfully choosing hymns for the sacrament service; fellowshipping other ward members, especially those who are less-active; and showing respect for my children's church responsibilities by being at church early. This is church-related, though not church-responsibilities-related—I can ensure that we have a holy Sabbath morning by preparing as much as I can on Saturday (clean the house, make sure all clothes are ready, have my lessons prepared and materials gathered, any advance food preparation done, etc.)

I can be holy in my SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT by studying the scriptures, not just reading them.  I can really pay attention in church meetings (so far as my children will let me) and find ways the presented messages can apply to my life.  I can prepare for bed a little earlier so I can have meaningful prayers with  my Father in Heaven. 

I can be holy in my efforts to take care of my PHYSICAL BODY by remembering that my body is a temple and it deserves the greatest care.  I can eat less of what I know is not good for me and more of what IS good for me.  I can exercise more and sit less.  I can ensure I get enough sleep and drink enough water and do little things that help me feel good physically such as washing my face nightly, applying moisturizer, getting regular haircuts, etc.

I can be holy with my HOBBIES by choosing to do things that uplift me.  I love to read and I can be wise in my choice of books.  I enjoy scrapbooking and I can remind myself that I am documenting my family's history, and my own.  I can remember that "whatever principle of intelligence we attain unto in this life, it will rise with us in the resurrection.  And if a person gains more knowledge and intelligence in this life through his diligence and obedience than another, he will have so much the advantage in the world to come" (D&C 130:18-19).  I can enjoy learning new things, and I can be holy in such learning by choosing to learn things that will benefit me, my family, my spirituality, others, and my future life.

As I thought about all the ways I could apply the phrase "What would a holy woman do" to the areas of my life, I realized that what I have written here is but a small part of the ideas I had.  No doubt as I go through 2015, and apply that question to different activities, I will be inspired in different ways.  

one little word 2015

One Little Word 2015: Holy

Some time ago, I heard about a book called "What Would a Holy Woman Do?" written by Sister Wendy Watson Nelson, wife of Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

She started out by sharing an experience that happened in 2007.  She and Elder Nelson had gone to Tonga for the rededication of the Tonga Temple.  They had gone a little earlier to inspect the temple prior to the rededication.  Everything looked perfect and Elder Nelson was ready to sign off on the inspection.  However, when they were leaving, they noticed something very important was missing from the temple.  This missing item was so important that if it was not put in place, the temple rededication could not happen!

What was missing?  On every temple of the Church, in the local language, appear these words: Holiness to the Lord.  The House of the Lord.  On the Tonga temple, these words were missing!  Elder Nelson informed the appropriate people, those words were placed on the temple and the rededication occurred on schedule.

After returning to Salt Lake City, Sister Nelson thought about that experience.  She thought about holiness—the meaning of the word, the placement of those phrases.  She asked herself what she needed to change in her life so the words "Holiness to the Lord" could be placed upon her life.

Sister Nelson asked six friends (ages 26 to 65) to try an experiment.  She asked them, for three days, to choose one of their daily activities and try to "be holy" while doing it, or do it as a holy woman would do it.

Some of the examples she offered as suggestions (and some of mine):  How would a holy woman start her day?  What would be on her to-do list?  How would she read to a child?  Clean her kitchen?  Do laundry?  Scrub the toilets?  Balance her checkbook?  Deal with a difficult situation?  How would she dress?  What would she listen to?  Watch?  Read?  Look at?  How would she pray?  Read her scriptures?  Prepare a lesson she needed to teach next Sunday?  How would she prepare for the Sabbath day?  How would she fast?  If she were married, how would she greet her husband when he got home from work?  If she were single, how would she interact with her roommates?  If she worked outside the home, how would she do her work? 

Much of the rest of the book is the stories shared by those who agreed to participate in this experiment, as well as some others who also tried the experiment.

Sister Nelson also asked the reader, "What is the Lord teaching YOU about holiness?"  She mentions that D&C 46:33 says that "Ye must practice virtue and holiness before me continually". 

Also, in D&C 60:7, the Lord says, "I am able to make you holy".

The verse about practicing holiness continually comes at the very end of section 46.  Before that, in verses 7-12, we are commanded to ask God for gifts of the Spirit which can help us become more holy.  And verses 13-16 list some of the gifts of the Spirit that are available.  These are only SOME of the gifts available.  We can ask for ANY gift that will help us in our desires to become more holy, to become more like the Savior and to continue in our journey through life.

Well, that book really touched me.  So much so, in fact, that I used it as the text for my talk at the Relief Society Christmas luncheon.  Several sisters told me that they felt inspired too and were making their 2015 resolutions based on the concept of "What Would a Holy Woman Do?"

I decided that my word for 2015 would be Holy, as a shorthand version of "What would a holy woman do?"

In my next post, I will share some thoughts about how I can apply this word/question to my life.