Lesson 2-10, "The Priesthood: A Great Blessing"

It's nearly spring, so it is almost that time of year when we have a unit on the priesthood. I always like that the timing coincides with the time of year to mark the priesthood restoration, the first vision, General Conference, the YW broadcast and Easter - those are all happy occasions that make me think of growing, blossoming, and the end of winter & darkness (physical and spiritual). Notice that the word "Blessing" is in the title of 4 of the next 5 lessons (!!), so we'll be talking about that idea a LOT. I will be bringing out the "spiritual journals" that I created with them back in January and giving opportunity for reflection on their own blessings in a lot of those upcoming lessons. At our New Beginnings this week, there was an emphasis on linking Sunday lessons to Personal Progress, so I bet there are some value experiences that can connect to that.

"Blessing" has multiple meanings in Mormon thought and theology. In one sense, it's sort of generic, just anything good that has God as its source. In another sense, it's a specific gift--or message, even--from Heavenly Father, a specific evidence of his power and love in our lives. We also use the word to mean an ordinance, laying on of hands, conducted by someone who holds the priesthood that calls down divine power to comfort, sanctify, grant the Spirit or keys, set apart someone for a calling, etc. We use the word to mean the prayer we say before the Sacrament and before eating. In fact, Mormons use the word "blessing" a lot.

In some years, the lessons in this unit are so much the same that it almost begins to feel like overkill. I think this manual has the most balanced unit on the priesthood and strikes the right tone by focusing on how the priesthood is a blessing in the lives of all church members. If you are curious about how we've blogged about and handled the previous lessons on the priesthood and on some of the thorny issues that sometimes arise in teaching this to young women, all our past priesthood posts are here.

This lesson talks about the many ways that young women's lives are touched by the priesthood and what a joy/privilege it can be to have access to divine power, grace, healing, ordinances, the beauties of creation and all the other good things that come to earth through priesthood power.

The story of a miraculous healing is such a trope in Mormon culture - the one in this lesson is like so many others that I've heard - and I don't have any particularly dramatic one of my own (not that drama is needed, necessarily), so here's what I'm thinking of doing rather than just reading the story about a deaf convert who heard her confirmation blessing. I plan to bring in a stack of Ensign magazines, enough for everyone to have one, and give the girls a few minutes to look through it and find a story that mentions blessings through priesthood power. The Mormon Journal section usually is chock-full of them. And then we'll share what we found. Sometimes it's easier to share a story if it isn't directly about yourself, but I sure don't want to invite stories that start with "well, I heard..." because those tend to get a little bigger (or weirder) than the original account.