Previously in Relief Society…
Sister Shelley Turner shared what she called “an extended spiritual thought.” She presented the thought “one is the loneliest number that you’ll ever do,” confessing, humorously, the line originates from a hit single she enjoyed in her junior high years. “Yet, we all can relate to the feeling of being alone, lost or the only one. Jesus knew all about that, and his life and teachings and example teach us over and over about the number one.”
Camille Fronk said, “Even when surrounded by multitudes, Jesus singled out and attended to the ‘one’. To the Savior there was never a sea of faceless people. Rather, a multitude was made up of individuals, each with a name, a unique circumstance, and an unlimited potential.”
Matthew 18:11-13 reads, “The Son of Man is come to save that which was lost and to call sinners to repentance. How think ye? If a man have an hundred sheep and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray? And if so be that he find it, verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth more of the that sheep, than of the ninety and nine which went not astray.”
What do we learn about the Shepherd from this parable?
Joyce Jeffres, “We are all so important – those who are lost need help from us.”
Does the Shepherd not care as much about the 99?
Jan Ormond, “When one child strays, the others may feel slighted. It is important to reinforce our love and appreciation for them.”
Who is the one?
We are all the “one.” Isaiah 53:6 reads “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the lord that laid on Himself the iniquity of us all.”
“Jesus taught, ministered and even atoned one on one and one by one. In dong so, he demonstrated what brother Steven R. Covey calls, ‘an invaluable principle of human influence: the way to inspire and preserve the many (the ninety-nine) is in the treatment given to the one. Going after the one “lost sheep” results not in neglecting the ninety-nine but in effectively reaching them. Everyone is the one.’ “
Kathryn Turley, ”When I meet with groups about Hands of Heaven, a lot of women react by saying, ‘Well, I just don’t have girlfriends like that” but if you want good friends, we need to be good and kind friends. We need to be able to open up and let others in.”
Janice Sansom, “Simple things help. Sometimes I think I can’t help because I don’t have time to make a big, full-course meal for them…my friends who had experienced tragedy were able to offer little services that made a huge difference.”
Betsy Chamberlain, “Sometimes we are afraid to mention or ask about someone’s sorrow, afraid they will experience more sorrow. I had a friend who just needed someone to listen and was relieved when someone asked.”
Nicole Berry, “I have witnessed so many times in this ward a reaction of acceptance without judgment.”
“The key to the 99 is the one. Or put in another way, the key to the group is the one individual who tests you. The key to the family is the most difficult child. The key to a ward is its struggling members. Some ways to nuture each one are: Be generous with praise, be happy for the success of others, not envious, do not take offense, be a light – not a judge, forgive, be faithful in our stewardships.”
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