As We Submit Our Time to the Lord, He Showers Us with Blessings

This talk was given at the 2019 stake women's conference.
by Bethany Bown, a Laurel

Hello. My name is Bethany Bown. I’m a senior class officer at Davis High, a ballerina at Clytie Adams school of ballet, and a shopaholic. This may give you the impression that I am a busy girl, which I am, but I know it doesn’t even compare to being close to busy as all of you women, mothers, and friends.

The past 21 days I’ve taken part in an amazing opportunity that has brought blessings and great peace into my busy days. This is an opportunity I’d like to extend to each of you today. It’s called the 21-day sacrifice. You focus on keeping your covenants for 21 days and sacrifice something in order to do so. It’s as simple as that.

Wendy Watson Nelson was the one to initiate it in her address at the BYU Women’s Conference in 2015. She promised this along with her challenge: “When covenant women keep their covenants, they have greater access to the power of God. The power of God flows into them, and that power, His power, generates a decrease in stress, an increase in energy, more and clearer revelation for their lives, renewed focus, courage to make needed changes, an increase in patience, and more time for what matters.”

I can testify that she meant what she promised. The past couple weeks as I’ve taken part in this challenge, I’ve been more relaxed and focused on what really matters. One Saturday afternoon, my mom and I decided to go to the temple. It was about an hour wait. Instead of leaving because we had other things to do that day, we decided to stay. This was so worth it.

This gave us time to ponder, and I read the Ensign while I waited. It allowed us to make time for study, instead of passing up on the opportunity and continuing with our day. That day we were full of peace and even rewarded ourselves with an ice cream cone because we felt so good and so filled with joy for sacrificing this time for Him in our busy day.

Another experience I had was one Sunday night I had a lot of homework left to do because of the end of term. That night we had family over to play games. Instead of sitting out of the games to do my math, I decided to play the games, and once the game night was over I still had time to do my math!

I can promise you that the more we make time for the temple and family in our busy lives, the more time we will actually have. You may not believe me, so you should try it out for yourselves and see.

I’ve also come across a couple scriptures as I’ve been studying covenants. One of my favorites was Mosiah 24:13-14, which reads, “And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord came to them in their afflictions, saying: Lift up your heads and be of good comfort, for I know of the covenant which ye have made unto me; and I will covenant with my people and deliver them out of bondage. And I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage, and this will I do that ye may stand as witnesses for me here-after, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their afflictions.”

I know that as we submit our time to the Lord, He will shower us with blessings. If we truly love Him then we will make time for Him, just like we would a friend here on earth. He is our greatest friend of all, our greatest protector, best supporter, and our #1 fan, so we should be all of that in return to Him.

I challenge all of you sisters, mothers, and friends to accept this 21-day challenge, and I promise that when you do, your burdens will be made light and your lives will be changed forever. I’m so thankful for this opportunity and I know that all of you can do it as well! I believe in you! And I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.