General Relief Society 1st Counselor of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints speaks in Spectrum Devotional
A hush fell over the crowd of young adults and high school seniors Sunday evening as Sharon Eubank, first counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, entered the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.
The devotional began with Eubank asking the question, “How can Christianity be the plan?” Throughout her message, she offered several answers to her pondering thoughts.
Eubank described that “our mortal life is the first phase of what is an ongoing plan that will go in many different stages, and, in the end, all people will hear and understand and have a chance to understand those ordinances.”
Her message was one of linking the generations, connecting to the plan laid out before members of the church and keeping the covenants of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
She admonished those in the audience and reminded them of their responsibility as the future leaders of the church and referenced an experience she had while meeting with Jerry and Ruth Nelson, president and matron of the Logan Temple, earlier this weekend.
Nelson told Eubank of the astonishing number of young adults who fill the Logan Temple each Saturday, not only as visitors but as temple workers.
“That must make God so happy to see that kind of work being done in the temple,” Eubank said.
Sharon Eubank speaks to Young Adults of Cache Valley in a devotional with the Logan Institute of Religion. Eubank is the first counselor of the general Relief Society presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Bryant Ellis, a member of the LDSSA Council, enjoyed the happy spirit Sister Eubank brought to the student body during the devotional.
“One thing I love about Sister Eubank is every time I listen to her she is so personable,” Ellis said. “She makes me feel like life is full of hope and I can actually achieve that hope.”
Eubank acknowledged the struggles faced by many Latter-day Saints and mentioned the importance of waiting upon the Lord in those hard times.
“It doesn’t feel comforting to wait upon the Lord,” Eubank said. “But when other people are with us in our trials, it helps.”
Eubank relayed a story she read in Australia a few weeks ago of a personal trainer who passed a sheep on her morning run. The sheep was covered in heavy wool that hadn’t been sheared for many years.
The burden of wool for the sheep, named Chris, were immense and heavy. Those who helped examine the sheep explained that sheep was in bad shape and would most likely die if it weren’t given the proper shave and care immediately.
Eubank related this story to the burdens young adults face throughout their journey on Earth.
“When somebody sees us and recognizes what isn’t right and reaches out and calls other people to help, we can help each other get rid of the weight and the burdens that we carry and then live to a long life,” Eubank said.
Julie Ustach, an agricultural education major, was grateful for the simplicity of Eubank’s message and how applicable it was for her and her boyfriend, Jesse Smith.
“It was a really good moment of realization of what we needed to do and how we can be better,” Ustach said.
Smith, a mechanical engineering major, was reminded of the people in his life he has helped, just by being there for them in time of need.
He plans to apply Eubank’s message by looking for opportunities to be a better caretaker of those around him.
“I just want to be on the lookout a little more for people that need help and just look for opportunities to minister,” Smith said.
Eubank concluded her message by encouraging the congregation to think of the “sheep” in their lives, and how they could be a better “shepherd” to those people they thought of, while singing the hymn, “Dear to the Heart of the Shepherd.”
Michael Wood, a USU Event Services employee, was reminded of God’s plan through Eubank’s message.
“A big takeaway, for sure, was that God’s plan, no matter how small a role we think we play, it’s more significant than we think,” Wood said. “No matter where we’re at in life, God still has a plan and cares enough for us that we keep pushing forward.”
Eubank’s parting desire was to express her gratitude for the young adults in attendance for their service in the temple and to remember the power they have been blessed with to do good.
“I hope everybody walks out of the stadium feeling like ‘I have the power of my covenants,’” Eubank said. “I would just say how thankful I am for this rising generation. I just want to say thank you for that kind of dedication and gift to the rest of the world.”
—kortni.marie.wells@aggiemail.usu.edu
@kortniwells