In “Anchors of Testimony,” Sister Mary N Cook speaks to the young women of the church. She opens the talk by describing water lilies. She explains that they grow in stagnant ponds and that they have stalks to root them firmly in place. This anchors them during the torrential storms that come their way. She compared the girls to the lilies with their anchors being their testimonies.
Sister Cook then challenges the girls to pray that their testimonies may be strengthened. She urges this especially if they are having a difficult time understanding or living a principle of the gospel. She then encourages the girls to also study the scriptures and the words of the prophets, because they will guide them in the quest for truth and help to strengthen their testimonies.
Sister Cook then emphasizes the importance of making commitments and choices now to live the standards of the church. She shares the stories of four young women who did this. The first one realized that her younger sister was being influenced by her poor choice when it came to modest clothing, she changed and her sister did as well. The second story is about two sisters who realized that the music they listened to was inappropriate and chose to stop. The third story is about a young woman who chose to remain active in the church when her family did not. Eventually her example helped her mother and sister to come back to church as well.
Sister Cook urges the girls to rise above heir circumstances and to look to Christ to find the comfort and strength that they will need during the difficult times in their lives. This is a wonderful talk. I think that the principle of making choices now is an important one to follow. If we can teach our children so that they make the decisions now, then they will have so much more strength when it comes time to handle the difficult decisions and situations.
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Young Women: “All Times, All Things, and All Places”
Young Women: “Stand as a Witness”