In the section outlining the purpose, organization, goals, and structure of Relief Society, the Church Handbook states that at the beginning of Relief Society meetings, “sisters may counsel together about aspects of participating in God’s work of salvation and exaltation.”
Many wards have found huge benefits to holding these Relief Society councils, but other presidencies don’t know where to start or how to make it worthwhile. Luckily, General Relief Society President Camille N. Johnson has shared a few thoughts online recently to help us better understand how to structure these councils and what we should counsel about. Here are her answers to a few common questions.
Why should we counsel together in Relief Society?
President Johnson says that in her ward, these councils are “the best part of Relief Society,” because they can counsel together about the subjects that mean the most to them.
“It's a tender time where sisters have the opportunity to open up and share their most personal feelings about what's happening in their lives, all with a focus on our Savior Jesus Christ.”
You can hear more of her thoughts in the video player below.
How do we lead a Relief Society council?
A few weeks ago, President Camille N. Johnson also shared a story about a Relief Society council she recently attended in Costa Rica. Her video highlights a few excellent examples of how to effectively lead a Relief Society council. Here’s how their ward did it:
- The Relief Society Presidency prayerfully considered what subject they could counsel about.
- The council was treated as an open discussion—everyone in the room was invited to participate.
- Many sisters in the room contributed and offered new ideas and fresh insights.
- The Presidency and ministering sisters incorporated the feedback and ideas into their interactions with other sisters in the ward.
You can watch President Johnson’s full video in the Instagram player below.
What should our Relief Society counsel about?
The Relief Society sisters in President Johnson’s story counseled about how to increase the desire of the sisters in their ward to have a current temple recommend.
Other comments on President Johnson’s video offer additional suggestions, like the ones below.
We sent out an anonymous survey to all the sisters in our ward. The survey had two questions on it; what’s in your heart? And what keeps you up at night? We’ve had some very insightful answers and each week we prayerfully pick one.
We have loved counseling together as a Relief Society. We have been doing it since it was first introduced last year. We recently passed around cards for the sisters to write down things on their hearts that they would like to counsel on.
Same questions and topics for your Relief Society council
Other women commented on President Johnson’s Instagram video and included the topics their ward Relief Society councils have already discussed. Here are a few of our favorite examples.
We begin our counseling with asking our sisters, “What is on your heart?” We have had conversations about our sweet young women, those sisters with aging parents, praying to know how to help those who have specific needs, ministering, etc. We invite our sisters to ponder each week—even in silence—and we are counseled by the Spirit.
Ultimately, your Relief Society should counsel about the needs, concerns, or questions specific to your ward and your Relief Society members. The Church Handbook states that the “Relief Societies meet on Sundays … [to] strengthen faith, build unity, strengthen families and homes, and make plans to assist God in His work of salvation and exaltation.” Any topic that falls under one of those four categories could be appropriate for your Relief Society to discuss and counsel together about.
How should we balance the time between a Relief Society council and the Relief Society lesson?
The Relief Society Worldwide Instagram account also shared this video from Relief Society General Advisory Council member Andrea McConkie on how to make time for counseling and a lesson on Sundays. She points out that the Church Handbook says we can counsel together at the beginning of a Relief Society meeting, but that the majority of the meeting should be taken up by a lesson. She suggests that we respect the time and effort those Relief Society teachers have put into their calling and keep counseling to a short period of time.
She also recommends the following strategies for keeping the counseling to a limited amount of time.
- Have a Presidency member watch the clock or set a timer so that you have a defined period of time for counseling.
- If a discussion is going well after your allotted counseling time, you can pick up where you left off in your next Relief Society meeting. You could also consider moving the discussion to an email chain or group chat if that is how you communicate as a Relief Society.
- Send out the topic or question ahead of time earlier in the week to give sisters time to prepare and come ready to share what is on their minds and hearts.
You can watch Sister McConkie’s thoughts in the player below.
For more insightful thoughts on Relief Society councils and ministering, check out the articles linked below.
► Did you know Relief Society meetings can start with a council?
► 3 hurdles that keep us from ministering—and how to get over them
► What you can do to support your Relief Society president
► What my Relief Society learned about ministering long before the program started
