Power, Influence and Happily Ever After
If I were given the gift of power how would I use it? What an interesting question to ponder, there are some areas of my life that I have been given power over. My education, my choices and my actions are all things that I am governor of. In a recent Relief Society lesson given we learned about a General Relief Society President that was struggling with decisions that were made by the First Presidency of the church, she believed them to be wrong and desired for them to conform to her. She took her feelings to a fellow sister in the Gospel who in her wisdom asked her, “If you were given the choice between two gifts, power or the gift of mighty influence which would you choose?” She gave this very little thought for she knew the value of influence. The Lord has given all women the gift of mighty influence, to the other, man he gives the gift of power.
In the book Mary Martha and Me by Camille Fronk Olson, we learn of two very important influences that women can make in the lives of others, both being important parts. First, we learn to be charitable, attending, loving and always looking for ways to reach out to others. Martha knew that the Lord must eat, she recognized the duties of a host and she performed them diligently. Only when her feelings of power overcame her influence did she falter. “Lord dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? Bid her therefore that she help me.” To which the Lord introduces us to the second way women can influence others, “Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” Mary who was at her Saviors feet enthralled with his words and teaching was doing the one thing that was needful. She was learning the Gospel and understanding Christ so that she could pattern her life unto his. As we search diligently and sit enthralled reading the scriptures we are filling our minds, hearts and souls with the one needful thing that will guide us in being righteous influences.
I am obtaining knowledge, I am charitable and serving others, I am happily engaged in the Lords labor and I am sharing my influence with others. Only when I begin to complain, blame and find fault in others does my positives influence turn into a need for power over others. Not only did Martha criticize Mary but she accused the Lord of not being considerate or acknowledging the work she has performed. Mary was interrogative about the Lords power. My way is more efficient, exact and the most needful. Our gift from the Lord as women is the gift of influence, when we misapply this gift and yearn for power we are not choosing the better part we are taking away from God’s gift to man.
For some it is a hard notion to swallow, man having power above women. For others there is a sense of peace that charges their family with shelter and solace from the storms. The difference is God, when a man is one with God and guiding his family with righteous dominion it conveys harmony. Our Father in Heaven recognizes and appreciates the role of men, in The Family Proclamation to the World it states; “By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families”. What a profound responsibility that man has been given. As women we need to practice being influential to men and not robbing them of their God given power.
Recently my family delighted in watching a movie together at the theatre, Mirror Mirror, a version of Snow White. The story reflects this lesson to be learned. The wicked step mother takes control over her King, wanting for worldly happiness, while Snow White her step daughter is forced to stay in her room. At age eighteen, Snow White is encouraged by one of her servants to go to the village and see how poorly the people live, this she did in an effort to find a purpose in becoming stronger and more influential to relieve the people of poverty. As the story unfolds and she desires to aid the people her step mother endeavors to kill her. Through this challenge Snow White finds friends that help strengthen her, all of these friends being men, the Seven Dwarfs and the Prince. The final battle with her step mother becomes a point of judgment for Snow White. Does she look to her friends and Prince for strength? Snow White’s judgment leads her final decision; “Every story ever told the Prince saves the Princess, today I choose to rewrite that story”. She then proceeds to lock the Prince and dwarfs in their home and goes to battle counting on her own power to succeed. I cringed at the thought, every girl dreams of being saved and taken care of by Prince Charming, now my girls see that the story is rewritten. They can take over the responsibility of power from their Prince. This was not the Lords plan; the Prince through righteous living and his relationship with God, saves his Princess and together with her influence and his God given power they stand guard over their family. Now that is a happily ever after worth striving for.
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