Love is at the heart of God’s commandments, and the reason to keep the commandments is to show love for Him, explained the Young Women general presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Young Women General President Emily Belle Freeman and her counselors, Sister Tamara W. Runia and Sister Andrea Muñoz Spannaus, discussed the third chapter of the “For the Strength of Youth” guide, titled “Love God, love your neighbor,” in a video posted to the Young Women Worldwide Instagram account on Tuesday, May 6.
The chapter outlines eternal truths, invitations and promised blessings. Sister Runia began the discussion by explaining how love is at the heart of God’s commandments.
“When we feel love from God, it causes us to have love for God. So this relationship, this charity is something special, something unique, and the byproduct of this charity, this relationship with God, is it causes us to turn sideways and love like Him,” she said. “First we go up and then we go out. And I think that’s what this section is all about — loving God and then loving our neighbors.”
President Freeman encouraged those watching to recognize God’s love for them first and build a relationship with Him through praying and reading the scriptures.
“Every commandment, be thinking to yourself, how does this commandment show God’s love for me, and how does the keeping of this commandment show my love for God?” President Freeman said.
The two great commandments, as found in Matthew 22:36-40, are to “love the Lord thy God with all thy heart” and “love thy neighbour as thyself.”
The guide explains that the word neighbor means everyone, saying: “All people are your brothers and sisters.”
Sister Spannaus taught from the guide that when people serve their brothers and sisters — God’s children — they are serving Him.
“Sometimes we want to do something for God because we love Him so much,” Sister Spannaus said. “We start thinking, ‘How can I do something to show God that I love Him? God is not here with me.’ But there is a possibility — it’s to serve others.”
Mosiah 2:17 says, “When ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God.” In this way, people can be agents — they can act and do something, Sister Spannaus said.
The "For the Strength of Youth" guide promises that when people express their love through Christlike service, their relationships with others will deepen and they will find joy in making the world a more loving place.
Sister Spannaus found joy when she made blankets for babies in need and enlisted the help of family and friends. Sister Runia found joy on a trip to the Netherlands when she learned a few Dutch phrases to greet people she saw along her way.
President Freeman said on a recent rainy day, she had been feeling melancholy. She acknowledged that there are times when people feel that they are not enough or not doing enough. They might just need a reminder that God sees them and knows them.
She turned to the chapter’s questions and answers section on page 13 and read the first one: “How can I feel God’s love?”
The answer in the guide says, “Heavenly Father’s love is always available. Talk to Him often through prayer. Share your feelings with Him, and listen for impressions from Him. Read His words in the scriptures. Think about all that He has done for you. Spend time in places and activities where His Spirit is present.”
President Freeman explained how powerful it can be to listen for impressions and watch for God’s hand in her life.
“You may have been praying for something big for days or weeks — or some of us for years — and those are the times when maybe we do question, ‘If God really loved me, He would have sent me an answer,’” President Freeman said. “One of the things that I have learned to do when I’m waiting for that big answer is to watch for the little answers — those little things along the way. … Maybe those times when we don’t see His hand necessarily, we can look for His fingerprint.”
A gratitude journal is also helpful, Sister Spannaus added. She pointed out that youth can go to the JustServe website or app to find ways to serve other people because service is a wonderful antidote to sadness.
Sister Runia said words can be “our super power. … By our words we can change the way we feel or the warmth in a home.”
President Freeman invited young women to ponder the chapter on loving God and loving their neighbor and think about one thing they could try this week, whether it’s praying more or being in the scriptures or working on loving someone in their home or serving a friend. In these ways, their relationship with God and others will deepen.
