By Stacey Reed
Elder Henry B. Eyring spoke to an auditorium full of women Thursday about their role as peacemakers in the home and the peace they can gain from building defenses against contention.
'The peace we seek in our families is a gift from God, not our own creation,' Eyring said. 'It will only come out of selfless hearts.
Eyring, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, emphasized his message as one of gratitude and warning.
He spoke about the blessings of eternal families as well as the danger that can come from complacency.
'We give thanks for what God has done for our families,' he said. 'We have discovered the power of regular family prayer, of reading the scriptures as a family, or family home evening, of putting the temple at the center of our family aspirations.'
But within his message of hope, Eyring said there is still danger in complacency and danger in Satan''s tactics in destroying the family unit.
'Satan always uses selfishness as his destructive tool,' he said. 'That is his own nature.
Eyring''s eyes filled with tears several times during his talk.
Specifically when he spoke of the love God has for his children, and the pain he feels when they make wrong choices.
He spoke about Mother Eve''s and Sariah''s patience and hope through their tribulations - characteristics to defend ourselves against Satan.
'The pattern of selfishness leading to pride and greed and finally to conflict is still our challenge today,' he said. 'As peacemakers in families, you know what you must do to stop that escalation toward contention and hatred - you stop the terrible sequence at its root.'
He said stopping contention begins with a change of heart from selfishness to selflessness.
'This is an antidote to the diseases of pride, greed and dishonesty.'
President Susan W. Tanner, of the general young women presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ, also spoke about being a selfless people.
In addition to selflessness, Tanner said principles of sacrifice, forgiveness, hard work, obedience, and making and keeping covenants are essential to having true happiness.
'The key to a unified Church is a unified soul - one that is at peace with itself and not given to inner conflicts and tensions,' Tanner said.
Just as women before left behind examples of righteousness, Tanner said, the women today should leave a legacy of obedience.
'To be a righteous woman during the winding up scenes on the earth, before the second coming of our Savior, is an especially noble calling,' she said.
She spoke about the righteous mothers of the stripling warriors in the Book of Mormon.
'They provided spiritual sustenance,' she said. 'They taught them faith, courage and obedience.'
As she gave personal experiences and stories, Tanner emphasized women''s sacrifices as never going unnoticed.
'I seem to see engraved in their lives in capital gold letters a summons for each of us, ''The Lord has beheld our sacrifice, come after us.'''