April Theme: Come Take Your Place as A Woman of Knowledge

By Robin McLean

"Seek ye diligently," said the Lord, "and teach one another words of wisdom; year, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith" (D&C 88:118)

We begin to learn from the moment we are born, and should never stop. Sister Camilla Kimball, wife to President Spencer W. Kimball, set an example of continued learning. She enrolled in one or two college classes each year, even when she was in her seventies. Sister Kimball said, "Learning means keeping the mind open to all kinds of experiences."

Whatever our situation in life, we can seek light and truth for ourselves and others. In "Providing in the Lords Way", we read, "When we have knowledge and wisdom, we are able to discern truth from error and make better choices. We are better able to understand God and our fellowmen, and we have a deeper love for them...To become self-reliant, we should:

*Improve our ability to read, write, and do basic mathematics.
*Study the scriptures and other good books.
*Learn to communicate effectively with others.
*Take advantage of opportunities to gain more knowledge.

To further our study of women of the Old Testmanet, we read of Deborah in the book of Judges. Deborah was chosen by the elders in her tribe to dispense justice beneath her palm tree headquarters in the hill-country of Ephraim, she was a charismatic leader, a judge, a prophetess, called by the Lord to deliver the northern Israelite tribes from Canaanite tyranny.

Although women didn't hold the priesthood and did not have equal authority with the prophets, prophetesses inspired women with strong testimonies called upon by the Lord to perform various tasks - did not seem unusual in ancient Israel. Deborah followed the pattern of other Old Testament women in recognizing and heeding the word of the Lord, and acting accordingly. She acted with honesty, integrity, courage, obedience and wisdom. She judged her people righteously; heard and acted upon what the Lord told her to do; and she accompanied the Israelite army in victory over the Canaanite power.

Deborah had wisdom, which is the proper application of true knowledge. Not all knowledge has the same worth. The most important knowledge for us to have is the saving knowledge of the gospel and of Jesus Christ. Can you ever be truly educated if you can't answer these questions: Where did I come from? Why am I here? Where can I go in the next life? And the most important question...What think ye of Christ? The world cannot teach us these things.

Read about Deborah in the book of Judges: in chapter 4 there is a narrative of the war; in chapter 5, the Sond of Deborah, which is a hymn of praise written after the victory. My favorite erse is Judges 5:7, when the word of the Lord came to deborah, the Old Testament says, "I Deborah arose."

We are told to seek "out of the best books words of wisdom." Such books must include the scriptures. We cannot know God and Jesus without studying about them and then, like Deborah, we will be prepared to arise in knowledge and wisdom to act what we know to be true.