The Remarkable Women of God

Neal A. Maxwell, “The Women of God,” Ensign, May 1978, 10

Divinely determined, in another place and time

Men were given the priesthood and leadership line

Paralleling, then, with an influence for good

The role of mothering was given to womanhood

Both foreordained before foundations of the world

Certain women were given tasks for history unfurled

Divine design brought Mary as the mother of Jesus;

And a woman to retrieve Moses hidden in the bullrush

Their's to demonstrate how a baby is a blessing

With love and promise in the purest form expressing

A mother, Lucy Mack influenced a whole dispensation

While Ruth's love for Naomi taught of loyalty's obligation

Verse 1] Divinely determined, in another place and time Men were given the priesthood and leadership line Paralleling, then, with an influence for good The role of mothering was given to womanhood Both foreordained before foundations of the world Certain women were given tasks for history unfurled [Pre-Chorus] Divine design brought Mary As the mother of Jesus And a woman to retrieve Moses Hidden in the bullrush Their's to demonstrate How a baby is a blessing With love and promise In the purest form expressing [Chorus] Foreordained before the world (before the world) A mother's call was given Foreordained before the world (to bless the living) Mary, Ruth, and every woman Held by heaven's hand (held by heaven's hand) Love and promise rising In the purest form we stand [Verse 2] A mother, Lucy Mack influenced a whole dispensation While Ruth's love for Naomi taught of loyalty's obligation Quiet faith can move a people through the hardest years And faithful hands can answer history with tears When you see a child, you see a gift from God A covenant of tenderness in the road we walk [Bridge] Not lesser, not later But chosen for the hour A hidden kind of power A patient, sacred power To gather, guard, and guide To lift the broken small (guide and lift and gather) And leave a light behind for all [Chorus] Foreordained before the world (before the world) A mother's call was given Foreordained before the world (to bless the living) Mary, Ruth, and every woman Held by heaven's hand (held by heaven's hand) Love and promise rising In the purest form we stand

God, with His perfect regard for women, insists that we give care
Unto the lonely widows who teach us of sacrifice and giving
One, with her last meal and oil, gave it all to Elijah, trusting there...
As, too, the widow's mite exemplifies the principle of  tithing

Imagine Elisabeth, with a babe within to carry
A promise to her fulfilled, though she was beyond in age
Then to know why as her fetus, leapt in recognition of Mary!
This, the greatest sign of anticipation recorded on any page!

Does it not tell us, too, of their intrinsic intelligence
When at the horrid crucifixion scene: the Lord at Calvary
Women suffered in sorrow, extending their love hence
And offered themselves in presence, their lingering... a litany

Keeping hope...filled with spiritual sensitivity
Too, they came to prepare the torn body of Christ
Mary Magdalena kept herself near, in proximity
And witnessed His resurrection, the risen hope of life

Is it no wonder God placed His trust in women
Known to forget their sorrows that comfort might be shown
Thus it is for women to bear and care for God's children
As... their compassionate service seems by instincts to be known

Verse 1] Rocking a child, gently She knows the world won't pass her by For she is holding tomorrow's future Tightly in her arms Throughout the world Comes the shaping sounds of lullabies And the soothing call for peacemaking That sweetly disarms [Pre-Chorus] As women of Zion They know their bodies are not their own So they guard what is sacred And they do not walk alone [Chorus] Women of Zion, rise Women of Zion, shine God has not left you behind Women of Zion, shine Beauty of the earth Blooming where you stand Heaven sees your hands Heaven knows your name [Verse 2] Thus, they refuse To make the sacred womb a dark fetal tomb Ever shaping society With hearts and hands at home Those without husbands or children Or even both Still know that God loves them They are noble and great [Pre-Chorus] That mortality Is but a season of trial, learning, and growth And in eternity Those special blessings await [Chorus] Women of Zion, rise Women of Zion, shine God has not left you behind Women of Zion, shine Beauty of the earth Blooming where you stand Heaven sees your hands Heaven knows your name [Bridge] Eternal partners, as equals Are supportive, sealed together In the temple, before the veil And the altar, the bond becomes clear Of our regal homecoming To our eternal Father and mother She, too, makes preparations Planning sights and sounds we'll hear [Chorus] Women of Zion, rise Women of Zion, shine God has not left you behind Women of Zion, shine Beauty of the earth Blooming where you stand Heaven sees your hands Heaven knows your name

Verse 1] God, with His perfect regard for women, insists that we give care Unto the lonely widows who teach us of sacrifice and giving One, with her last meal and oil, gave it all to Elijah, trusting there... As, too, the widow's mite exemplifies the principle of tithing [Chorus] Known to forget their sorrows That comfort might be shown It is for women to bear and care It is for women to bear and care () [Verse 2] Imagine Elisabeth, with a babe within to carry A promise to her fulfilled, though she was beyond in age Then to know why as her fetus, leapt in recognition of Mary! This, the greatest sign of anticipation recorded on any page! [Pre-Chorus] Does it not tell us, too, of their intrinsic intelligence When at the horrid crucifixion scene: the Lord at Calvary Women suffered in sorrow, extending their love hence And offered themselves in presence, their lingering... a litany [Chorus] Known to forget their sorrows That comfort might be shown It is for women to bear and care It is for women to bear and care () [Bridge] Keeping hope...filled with spiritual sensitivity Too, they came to prepare the torn body of Christ Mary Magdalena kept herself near, in proximity And witnessed His resurrection, the risen hope of life [Final Chorus] Is it no wonder God placed His trust in women Known to forget their sorrows that comfort might be shown Thus it is for women to bear and care for God's children Thus it is for women to bear and care for God's children

Rocking a child...gently, she knows the world's won't pass her by

For she is holding tomorrow's future tightly in her arms

Throughout the world, comes the shaping sounds of lullabies

And the soothing call for peacemaking that sweetly disarms

As women of Zion, they know their bodies are not their own

Thus, they refuse to make the sacred womb a dark fetal tomb

Ever shaping society by having hearts and hands at home

Thus the beauty of the earth is truly theirs to bloom

Those without husbands or children, or even both

Still know that God loves them,  they are noble and great

That mortality is but a season of trial, learning, and growth,

And that in the eternity those special blessings await

Eternal partners, as equals are supportive...sealed  together

In the temple...before the veil and the altar, the bond becomes clear

Of our regal homecoming, to our eternal Father.... and mother

She, too, makes preparations... planning sights and sounds we'll hear

[Verse 1] Rocking a child, gently She knows the world won't pass her by For she is holding tomorrow's future Tightly in her arms Throughout the world Comes the shaping sounds of lullabies And the soothing call for peacemaking That sweetly disarms [Pre-Chorus] As women of Zion They know their bodies are not "their own" So they guard what is sacred And they do not walk alone [Chorus] Women of Zion, rise Women of Zion, shine God has not left you behind Women of Zion, shine Beauty of the earth Blooming where you stand Heaven sees your hands Heaven knows your name [Verse 2] Thus, they refuse To make the sacred womb a dark fetal tomb Ever shaping society With hearts and hands at home Those without husbands or children Or even both Still know that God loves them They are noble and great [Pre-Chorus] That mortality Is but a season of trial, learning, and growth And in eternity Those special blessings await [Chorus] Women of Zion, rise Women of Zion, shine God has not left you behind Women of Zion, shine Beauty of the earth Blooming where you stand Heaven sees your hands Heaven knows your name [Bridge] Eternal partners, as equals Are supportive, sealed together In the temple, before the veil And the altar, the bond becomes clear Of our regal homecoming To our eternal Father and mother She, too, makes preparations Planning sights and sounds we'll hear [Chorus] Women of Zion, rise Women of Zion, shine God has not left you behind Women of Zion, shine Beauty of the earth Blooming where you stand Heaven sees your hands Heaven knows your name

Thoughts from:

Neal A. Maxwell
The Women of God
Ensign, May 1978, 10

Genuine Hope

Genuine hope
Is urgently needed
Lest love wax cold
Impatiently cheated

When trials furrow
Shall hearts wax cold?
Faith that's thorough
Sees beyond life's hold



Genuine Hope Is Needed



“Genuine hope is urgently needed in order to be more loving even as the love of many waxes cold; more merciful, even when misunderstood or misrepresented; more holy, even as the world ripens in iniquity; more courteous and patient in a coarsening and curt world; and more full of heartfelt hope, even when other men’s hearts fail them. Whatever our particular furrow, we are to ‘plow in hope,’ without looking back or letting yesterday hold tomorrow hostage (1 Cor. 9:10).”
Neal A. Maxwell, "Brightness of Hope,"Ensign, Nov. 1994, 3

Now That I'm Blessed with Wisdom

Now, that I'm blessed with wisdom
Shall I hold back my tongue
My hands, my heart, my ears
No, not even if the world jeers

To God, I'll consecrate my performance
Prayerfully, holding nothing back
For, with Him, my potential's enormous
As alone there is so much I lack

And as there is now so much more of me
To share of time, talents, and funds
I know I only hold one thing truly-
My agency to seek, choose, and find

Consecrate Thy Performance
Elder Neal A. Maxwell
April 2002 Conference

2 Ne. 32: 9
But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint; that ye must not perform any thing unto the Lord save in the first place ye shall pray unto the Father in the name of Christ, that he will consecrate thy performance unto thee, that thy performance may be for the welfare of thy soul.

Swallowed Up in the Will of the Father

Consolingly, God's grace flows
Not only to those who obey Him
But, to those who seek so to do
And plea for the blessings of heaven

There are those who love God valiantly
And, also acknowledge how they fall short
They with vows of consecration, live reverently
And are conscientious in prayer and exhort

A second group of members are honorable
They too fall short, yet seek not to do much more
They being neither wicked nor miserable
Have missed living deeply in the things we're here for

A third group lives their lives without the Master
Having minds upon the things of the flesh
This is but the path of pain and disaster
As estranged to the lord, to another they mesh...

We who've sufficient faith, do avoid major sins of commission
But, as we're the first group, we must get outside of our needs
And, strive to rise above the placid sins of omission
Unto a burning desire to tilt toward God with service as our deeds

As according to our desires shall it be done unto us
God can educate the very core of our souls if we so want
For as we align our natures to the path of Jesus
We are strengthened with His name upon us and become one

When we learn to ever pray before the Lord's alter
We allow ourselves to be swallowed up in His will
And as this is truly all we have to offer
Our submission assists us that our works fulfill

As we've trials, we humbly seek out inspiration
Through a process that requires, first, we believe
For it's through nothing save the spirit of revelation
That the highest blessings given to man, we receive

As we shed our old selves, do we lose our identity that makes us sing?
What of our roles, our time, possessions, and preeminence?
Well, gone would be the consuming preoccupations of lesser things
For we then become the creatures, we prepared for in the pre-existence

With submission comes enhanced capacity to live as Christ spoke
No longer weak, we expand deliberately ever outward with joy
And with confidence we square our shoulders to better bear the yoke
That we with our brethren might know what God would have us enjoy

May the malignant mole of materialism in us be removed
And the perplexing trials help us comprehend what we're here for
May we humbly trust and do as our Heavenly Father has behooved
And drop by drop fill our cup of consecration till it brims o'er

Elder Neal A. Maxwell
Swallowed Up in the Will of the Master
Ensign, November 1995, 22

D&C 46:9 For verily I say unto you, they are given for the benefit of those who love me and keep all my commandments, and him that seeketh so to do; that all may be benefited that seek or that ask of me, that ask and not for a sign that they may consume it upon their lusts.

D&C 11:17 And then, behold, according to your desires, yea, even according to your faith shall it be done unto you.

D&C 4:3 Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God ye are called to the work;

Mosiah 15: 7 Yea, even so he shall be led, crucified, and slain, the flesh becoming subject even unto death, the will of the Son being swallowed up in the will of the Father.

In Memory of Neal Maxwell

In memory of the faith's ultimate wordsmith
Who cut to the core as he taught gospel doctrine
He'd metaphors, similes and alliterations
And most of all, his life was an inspiration

He served through his cancer, as he shared of his life
And how he loved Colleen, his dear beloved wife
We cannot forget he left us with- His meekness in Christ
After 30 books- this as his legacy- sufficed

And if he could speak again what would he say to us?
That as a cancer patient, he'd a sharper focus?
And that as disciples we'll each have a difficult test
Of what's hardest for us to do... then comes Jesus' request!
(And, then of course comes the greatest blessing- eternal rest)


Thoughts from: Elder Neal A. Maxwell dies at 78
By Carrie A. Moore
Deseret Morning News
Published: July 22, 2004
If you click on the title- you can read the article

Who Lurks Around the Corner?

Who lurks around the corner
Laughing at the pain?
When an addict falls again
And grieves at the shame

In disguise there is Satan
Putting thoughts within
For the addict must straighten
If he wants to win

At the end of a dark road
A man fights for freedom
As he struggles disheartened
Only Christ can free him

Yesterday's experience
Does not offer nor lend
Guarantees from a relapse
For we're at risk till the end

We may know inside the mind
What is best for our soul
But, it may take quite some time
For us to reach our high goal

Being where there is darkness
Is not the way to change
In light there is much progress
As wants change and rearrange

Say goodbye to what's awry
Take the road that's straightened
Lest slip ups come to test and try
Along what's dark or shaded

Stay in the light and be guided

Thanks be to God, upwards righted

Stay in the light and be guided

Offering thanks, clean and righted

Elder Neal A. Maxwell wisely counseled,
“Even yesterday’s righteous experience
does not guarantee us against tomorrow’s
relapse. A few who have supernal spiritual
experiences have later fallen.
Hence, enduring well to the end assumes
real significance, and we are at risk
till the end!” (Ensign, July 1982,
“Thanks Be To God,” p.51)


Thoughts from reading
Backsliding into addiction
by Vickey Taylor
Meridian magazine
http://www.meridianmagazine.com/matters/080530addiction.html