Visiting Teaching Message
Self-Reliance
Prayerfully study
this material and, as appropriate, discuss it with the sisters you visit. Use the questions to help you strengthen your
sisters to make Relief Society an active part of your own life. For more information, go to reliefsociety.lds.org
Self-reliance is the ability,
commitment, and effort to provide for the spiritual and temporal well-being of
ourselves and of our families.¹
As we learn and apply the
principles of self-reliance in our homes and communities, we have opportunities
to care for the poor and needy and to help others become self-reliant so they can
endure times of adversity.
We have the privilege and
duty to use our agency to become self-reliant spiritually and temporally. Speaking of spiritually self-reliance and our
dependence on Heavenly Father, Elder Robert D. Hales of the Quorum of the
Twelve Apostles has taught: “We become
converted and spiritually self-reliant as we prayerfully live our covenants –
through worthily partaking of the sacrament, being worthy of a temple
recommend, and sacrificing to serve others.”²
Elder Hales counseled us to
become self-reliant temporally, “which includes getting a postsecondary
education or vocational training, learning to work, and living within our
means. By avoiding debt and saving money
now, we are prepared for full-time Church service in the years to come. The purpose of both temporal and spiritual
self-reliance is to get ourselves on higher ground so that we can lift others
in need.”³
From the Scriptures
Matthew 25:1-13; 1Timothy
5:8; Alma
34:27-28; Doctrine and Covenants 44:6; 58:26-29; 88:118
From Our History
After the Latter-day Saints
had gathered in the Salt
Lake Valley,
which was an isolated desert, President Brigham Young wanted them to flourish
and establish permanent homes. This
meant the Saints needed to learn skills that would allow them to become
self-sufficient. In this effort,
President Young had great trust in the capacities, talents, faithfulness, and
willingness of the women and he encouraged them in specific temporal
duties. While the specific duties of
Relief Society sisters are often different today, the principles remain
constant”
1.
Learn to love work and avoid idleness.
2.
Acquire a spirit of self-sacrifice.
3.
Accept personal responsibility for spiritual strength, health,
education, employment, finances, food, and other life-sustaining necessities.
4.
Pray for faith and courage to meet challenges.
5.
Strengthen others who need assistance.4
What Can I Do?
1. How am I helping the sisters I watch over
find solutions to their temporal and spiritual needs?
2. Am I increasing my spiritual self-reliance
through preparing for the sacrament and sacrificing to serve?
Notes
1. See Handbook
²: Administering the Church (2010), 6.1.1
2. Robert D. Hales, “Coming to Ourselves: The Sacrament, the Temple, and Sacrifice in Service,”
Ensign, May 2012,34.
3. Robert D. Hales, “Coming to Ourselves,” 36.
4. See Daughters
in my Kingdom: The History and Work of
Relief Society (2011), 51.
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