Conference months can be a bit tricky when constructing a message to share with the women you visit teach. In my experience, most visiting teachers just relay the admonition to read or listen to all of conference. Well, if you can’t tell by now, I am not that kind of girl. I like to think about the messages I am sharing. I like to pray for the sisters I visit teach. I do my best to avoid rattling off a sterile, stock message which would then mean nothing to me or the recipient. Sometimes I put together a series of quotes that I liked best from conference, but most often, I select a talk that strikes me. So, for this month, I have chosen the awkwardly-titled, More Than Conquerors through Him That Loved Us by Elder Paul V. Johnson. In this message, Johnson targets those who are going through trials. I am going through a relatively trial-free period in my life (knock on wood), but I am well aware that the appearance of being trial-free is often powerfully wrong. Even President Henry B. Eyring reminded us in 2004 to treat everyone as though they were in serious trouble. So I would like to include Erying’s advice to treat everyone as though they are going through a personal trial. Although the purpose of Visiting Teaching is so that we can get to know and serve others, some trials are so personal that it may take years before people feel they can trust you enough to not judge with whatever it is they are fighting. Be sensitive to this, and you will be able to serve as an empathetic, listening friend, which is infinitely more valuable than serving as a rote lecturer.
