My Sacrament Meeting Talk

I have received so many blessings from the priesthood being exercised faithfully. I wish to share with you the peace I have found in my life because of this, as stated in Malachi:

(2) 4 And ye shall know that I have sent this commandment unto you, that my covenant might be with Levi, saith the Lord of hosts.
5 My covenant was with him of life and peace…
The priesthood is the eternal power and authority of God. Through the priesthood God created and governs the heavens and the earth. Through this power He redeems and exalts His children, bringing to pass "the immortality and eternal life of man" promised in (Moses 1:39). God gives priesthood authority to worthy male members of the Church so they can act in His name for the salvation of His children. Priesthood holders can be authorized to preach the gospel, administer the ordinances of salvation, and govern the kingdom of God on the earth. The priesthood, or covenant with Levi, blessed the partakers with peace.

Those who carry this power and authority of God are charged to live righteously, following all of the commandments, and to come unto Christ. I have thusly been blessed through baptism, the gift of the Holy Spirit, weekly sacrament covenants, priesthood blessings, fathers blessings, a patriarchal blessing, and the blessings of the temple. Now, I don’t particularly want to talk about each individual blessing that a priesthood holder has given me, but I want to speak to you about how those blessings and ordinances and covenants have blessed my life because some of you may not have these things in your lives, and it is hard to know how wonderful it can be if you have never experienced such things.

D&C 121:36 …the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and… the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness.

At different stages in the lives of priesthood holders they prepare themselves to receive different responsibilities, they hold different offices in the priesthood, such as deacon, teacher, or priest in the Aaronic Priesthood and elder or high priest in the Melchizedek Priesthood. But, while men hold the priesthood and carry with them the power of God in all its offices, women too take part.

“The man holds the Priesthood, performs the priestly duties of the Church, but his wife enjoys with him every other privilege derived from the possession of the Priesthood. This is made clear, as an example, in the Temple service of the Church. The ordinances of the Temple are distinctly of Priesthood character, yet women have access to all of them, and the highest blessings of the Temple are conferred only upon a man and his wife jointly” (Priesthood and Church Government [1965], 83).
While women have been given the power of life, it is the priesthood, which binds our families together into a unit. One cannot exist without the other. My family is much stronger because of the men in my life who have taken the initiative to be righteous. They make a conscious effort to be a little kinder, to make good choices, and to create peace in the home. The priesthood binds our families together through temple ordinances such as in sealing power, but also as a presiding power to unite our families with purpose.

Although the authority of the priesthood is bestowed only on worthy male members of the Church, the blessings of the priesthood are available to all—men, women, and children. We all benefit from the influence of righteous priesthood leadership, and we all have the privilege of receiving the saving ordinances of the priesthood. Every person is invited to enter the waters of baptism, and even to enter into the temple. Every person is invited to ask others for a personal blessing when needed.

God, for his part, declares with an everlasting oath that all who receive the priesthood and obey the covenants that pertain to that priesthood shall receive “all that [the] Father hath.” (See D&C 84:38.)

The most important exercise of the priesthood takes place in the family. Each husband and father in the Church should strive to be worthy to hold the Melchizedek Priesthood. With his wife as an equal partner, he presides in righteousness and love, serving as the family's spiritual leader. He leads the family in regular prayer, scripture study, and family home evening. He works with his wife to teach the children and help them prepare to receive the ordinances of salvation. He gives priesthood blessings for direction, healing, and comfort.

Many members do not have faithful Melchizedek Priesthood holders in their homes. However, through the service of home teachers and priesthood leaders, all members of the Church can enjoy the blessings of priesthood power in their lives. Priesthood holders must remember that the priesthood should be a part of them at all times and in all circumstances. It is not like a cloak that can be put on and taken off at will. Any ordination to a priesthood office is a call to lifelong service, with the promise that the Lord will qualify priesthood holders to do His work according to their faithfulness.

Priesthood holders must be worthy in order to receive and exercise priesthood power. The words they speak and their everyday behavior affect their ability to serve. Their behavior in public must be above reproach. Their behavior in private is even more important. Again I share with you that Through the Prophet Joseph Smith, the Lord declared that "the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness" (D&C 121:36).
Personally… in my life… I have been blessed to have a father who wields the power of the priesthood as righteously as he knows how. He blessed me to be made clean in the waters of baptism that I might partake of the sacrament each week and be sinless at the beginning of each week. I was also blessed with the gift of the Holy Spirit to guide and direct me, to comfort me through life and to be a light in the darkness.
In college I had faithful home teachers who would strive to see me every month. They watched over me, and did their part to keep each commandment to the fullest, that they may be worthy to exercise the priesthood power they had been given, should the moment arise. They were a wonderful example to me, and their strength gave me the strength to kneel in prayer to make sure I was supposed to marry the man that I have since married. Their example gave me the insight that we must all pray to know truth, or to receive promptings.

Now, my husband holds the priesthood. Though I see his faults much more than I have seen the faults of any other man, simply because I know him better than I have anyone else in my life save my son, I know that he truly strives to do the best he can… and when he falls short, he remembers that the Savior made the ultimate sacrifice that he might be able to repent, and continue to preside over and protect our family. He is such a great example of striving for perfection. He loves the temple, and the peace it gives. He loves the sacrament and the peace it gives. He is wonderful when he leads our family in prayer as he tries to become closer to the Savior. He understands so well the learning curve of life, and appreciates its true purpose of personal growth. I was fortunate to receive the blessings of a temple sealing with my husband, and to be washed and anointed and given the power, which comes from a temple endowment with him as well. The peace in our home from these blessings makes the trials of life so much easier to bear. I cannot adequately explain the peace I feel when I am in the temple, but I know that the power of God brings peace, which is far distant from the tumultuous lives most of us lead.

The passed few months have held hardships for my family. Though we have recently been blessed with a special new life to remind us of the important things, we have also had to bear the trials of illness. Before I went to the hospital, each time I asked my husband for a blessing… When I came home, I also asked a ward member to give me a blessing because I knew that my husband was so emotional from everything that had happened that he needed a chance to clear his head. But I needed the strength that a priesthood blessing gives, I needed that peace of mind, and I received it. My husband also called on ward members to help and give him blessings to comfort him, and give him peace. These blessings have helped us to remember that we have a purpose, and must endure this life to be strengthened, uplifted, and edified.

I want to tell you that having worthy men in my life… people who strive for the best, to be able to wield the power of God is such a blessing to me. This is what gets us through the hard times, and this is what gives us hope for the future. I have been blessed with knowledge, with comfort, with discernment, with power over my life, with health, with children, and with peace. Above all I have been blessed with peace. Christ Himself was the prince of peace, and I know that when the priesthood is exercised that it is through our Lord.

Heb. 7: 24-25
24 But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. 25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

Rom. 8: 34.
34 Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.

I know that the power of the priesthood is the power to move mountains. Though we may not move them every day, mountains have been moved in my life. Each week as I take the sacrament, which has been blessed by righteous hands, I am washed clean that I may start anew and receive exaltation and eternal life. I can feel that power through the Holy Spirit, and these memories are a huge blessing to me. The memories tide me over when I am not feeling particularly spiritual.

Luke 10: 19
19 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Through the power of the priesthood we have been given the power to overcome even Satan, should we have to stand with him face to face. Gladly we do not need do that, because Christ withstood such temptation for us, but we have the power to be clean and remain removed from sin.

All that we must do to receive the blessings that we stand in need of is to adhere to our covenants, to keep the commandments, and to cry out unto the Lord in need or in gratitude.

Moses 6: 7
7 Now this same Priesthood, which was in the beginning, shall be in the end of the world also.

Num. 25: 12-13
12 Wherefore say, Behold, I give unto him my covenant of peace:
13 And he shall have it, and his seed after him, even the covenant of an everlasting priesthood; because he was zealous for his God, and made an atonement for the children of Israel.

The zeal I feel for the gospel of Jesus Christ has given me the strength to do so many things. I am so grateful to share this feeling with a righteous priesthood holder. The priesthood is the manifestation of the power of God in man, the biggest difference between this church and the other churches of the world. I am blessed each and every time a righteous man has exercised the priesthood in my life. I stand before you because of it, I have a testimony of eternal life and family because of it, I feel the power of the Holy Ghost because of it, and I have peace because of it. At the end of the day, I say a prayer to my Father, and can rest knowing that this life has been planned, and that I can do all things through Him.