This post is part of the General Conference Odyssey. This is the 454th week, and we’re covering the General Young Women session of the April 2006 General Conference.

This was a great session, and it was easy to forget that it was a Young Women session in between the references to the young women in the audience because the lessons were so generally applicable. I especially loved the first talk, “I Am the Light Which Ye Shall Hold Up”, by Sister Tanner.

One theme that often resonates with me is the reminder (which I seem to need to hear again and again and again) that there is a huge gap between what the world appreciates and what matters to the Lord. So when Sister Tanner says “some of us would rather help with hurricane relief than home relief. Now both are important, but home relief is our primary and eternal responsibility,” I’m here for that. It’s something I believe passionately, but is never easy for me to accept. 

So while the messages in this talk were geared specifically towards the concerns of young women, there was a lot for me to take to heart as well. 

Sister Tanner told the young women that “When you move from that stage [schools and jobs before children] to young motherhood, there is a dramatic drop-off in outside commendation. Yet in no other capacity is there more opportunity to serve selflessly as Christ would do,” I see that this is probably particularly acute for women, but the principle is for everyone. Here’s a story I particularly liked:

Small, seemingly insignificant things you do can make a big difference. I read about some small glowworms found in caves in New Zealand. Each one by itself produces only an insignificant pinpoint of light. But when millions of them light up a cave one by one, they produce enough light by which one can actually read. Likewise, each of our little deeds may share only a pinpoint of light, but added together they begin to make a significant difference.

In the end, this was her main thesis, in three points:

1. Each of you has a light.
2. Is there anyone who needs your light as much as your families
3. Jesus Christ is the light that we must hold up.

The stories we tell of Great Men and Women often seem to share a message, which is that in order to be able to qualify for Great status, you have to be willing to put your passion ahead of everything else. This applies in real life, where we not only seem to excuse the bad behavior of Steve Jobs or Bill Clinton, but almost attribute their lack of care for other people and basic morality to a kind of signification of their status. We do the same thing in fiction, too, where part of what makes James Bond who he is is the near sociopathic lack of commitment to other people. There’s a lot of reasons for this, and they’re not the same in every case, but the bottom line is that the world has a pretty clear message: if you want to be great, you have to put everything else–including your family and your morals–aside. That’s the default.

And you know what? It might even be true, when it comes to the glory of the world. That might be precisely the price you’re asked to pay if what your heart desires is fortune and fame. But it’s not true of Our Father’s kingdom, which is one where “he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.” (Matthew 23:11)