Former Young Women General President Elaine S. Dalton spoke in a devotional at BYU-Idaho on Tuesday.
In her address titled “The Lord Will Lead Thee by the Hand,” Dalton talked about becoming a faithful covenant leader.
“Today I would like to speak with you about your preparation to become covenant leaders in these latter days and the power that you can access to lead as you draw close to the Lord by developing a covenant relationship with him,” Dalton said.
In an interview with BYU-Idaho Radio, Dalton shared her inspiration behind her chosen topic.
“I drew inspiration from the scriptures, of course,” Dalton said, “and then from everything that we know about our Father in Heaven, but especially, about making a covenant with our Father in Heaven and Jesus Christ and that relationship that He promises that He will always be with us. So, you know, it's just a wonderful thought to think that the Lord will lead us by the hand.”
Dalton defined what she believes a covenant leader is and that charity is one of the greatest powers one can possess as a covenant leader.
“A covenant leader is one who is familiar with the character of Christ,” Dalton said. “They study His words, they pray in His name, and they follow Him. They listen to His voice, and they act. And above all, they love others.”
Dalton said she had a deep love for a former prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, President Thomas S. Monson, who she says is one of the greatest examples of what being a covenant leader truly means.
“President Monson demonstrated that to me almost daily,” Dalton said. “And he did so many things that a covenant leader would do very quietly. He might be late to a meeting at one point, and you'd find out later that he just had a prompting to go visit someone. And he immediately obeyed the prompting.”
Dalton ended her address with a powerful testimony and promise to those who choose to become faithful covenant leaders.
“You will be able to hear the voice of the Lord. You will walk with the Savior by your side. You will never be alone,” Dalton said. “As powerful covenant leaders, this is your time to prepare and to set the pace. This is your time to run on the covenant path with grit, courage, commitment, and focus.”