On social media this week, Elder Gerrit W. Gong and Elder Ulisses Soares posted for the first time since their initial posts immediately after their call as apostles. Additionally, Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf and Sister Jean B. Bingham shared insights from their travels, while Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles addressed addictive technology and Sister Sharon Eubank shared her thoughts on Mother’s Day.
On Facebook, Elder Gong's account posted a message from his BYU Women's Conference address about what he called the “always-anxious treadmill of perfectionism.” He reminded members that perfection is found in Christ, and even referenced the iconic song “Let It Go” from Disney's “Frozen.”
“There may be some truth in the children’s song ‘Let It Go’ — if ‘let it go’ means let go of self-imposed worldly expectations that can never satisfy, and if it also means ‘hold on’ to the God-given heavenly hopes and promises the Lord offers,” Elder Gong wrote.
The Facebook account of Elder Soares shared a mosaic of the Savior that hangs in his office, which he says reminds him of the constancy of Christ.
“As I look at this beautiful mosaic and contemplate the peaceful countenance of the Savior, I remember that He is constant in our lives,” Elder Soares said of the mosaic. “I know He is always there for you, as He has been for me.”
Elder Andersen's Facebook was straightforward in posting that members need discipline and restraint in using their technological devices to feel the Holy Ghost. He quoted Adam Alter’s book, “Irresistible,” which discusses technology’s addictive nature.
“For the Spirit to dwell in us, we have to have time and space. Learn to put your smartphones down,” Elder Andersen wrote. “Insert time when your technology is intentionally not accessible.”
Elder Uchtdorf of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles frequently refers to his wife, Sister Harriet Uchtdorf, as the sunshine of his life. But his recent trip to Eastern Europe caused him to think of sunshine differently, according to his Facebook post this week.
As he recognized the lack of sunshine in Russia, Elder Uchtdorf reflected on how the sun is there even if you can’t see it.
“And such it is with our lives,” Elder Uchtdorf wrote. “During those times when we feel hurt, frustrated, confused, or scared, let us remember that the sunshine is still there — even though we may not see it at the moment.”
Sister Bingham, Relief Society general president, has also been on the road lately. According to a Facebook post on her account, her visit to BYU-Hawaii coincided with President Russell M. Nelson’s world tour.
Sister Bingham shared her testimony of President Nelson’s divine call.
“I am thrilled for his prophetic instructions and know that as we follow his counsel we will be blessed as sisters in the Lord’s church and daughters in His kingdom,” she wrote.
Finally, in preparation for Mother’s Day this weekend, Sister Eubank, first counselor of the Relief Society, shared her thoughts on Facebook. She acknowledged that Mother’s Day can be a “complicated holiday.”
“Here’s the truth: I’ve had my fair share of dreading Mother’s Day,” Eubank wrote. “But the lessons I’ve learned over time haven’t just changed my views — they’ve changed me.”
She shared those lessons in a blog post on LDS.org.
