Simplifying Ministering | A How I Lead Interview with Sarah Randall

Sarah Randall grew up in Salt Lake City, Utah, served in the
Portugal Lisbon South mission, and graduated from Utah State
University in Elementary Education. She has served in many ward
Primary, Young Women, and Relief Society presidencies in Iowa,
Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, and Alaska. Sarah and her husband have six
children and together they love to backpack, hike, bike, and kayak
all over Alaska. Sarah recently served as a facilitator for the
Church’s new “Emotional Resilience-Strength in the Lord” course and
was thrilled to find that it covers the stages of the grief cycle.
She has found that understanding the grief cycle has been pivotal
in processing the losses in her own life, in therapy, and as a
leader in the Church seeking to minister as Christ would.
Understanding that the grief cycle applies to any loss in life
including trauma and betrayal (not just death) has enabled her to
be a better instrument for Christ to honor people’s pain—to learn
how to support them through that grief process—to mourn with those
who mourn. She also has loved sharing some of her family’s favorite
kids' books for grieving, gaining empathy, and connecting with joy
in their Anchorage Stake Women’s Conference, which can be found on
her Instagram @strength.through.stories. Highlights 02:15 Sarah
Randall’s background. 06:45 Sarah talks about her experience in the
Relief Society Presidency and their approach to ministering. 14:45
Connecting with sisters from all different backgrounds and
experiences. Honor their experiences and validate them. 20:50 How
to get to the point where people actually do open up to you.
Removing the reporting dynamic when it comes to ministering
interviews. Asking questions like, “what do you want?” or “how can
I help you?” 25:25 Sarah shares a personal experience of how she
was able to help a sister in her ward who had had a lot of neglect
and trauma in her life. 28:10 Codependency is enabling unhealthy
behavior. When we are reaching out to help someone they need to be
engaged in the process. As a leader you can invite them to take
action instead of doing it for them. 33:00 Other questions to ask
someone in need: Who have you already asked for help? Do you have
an extended family that can help? 35:40 When people came to Jesus
he would always ask, “what do you want?” He didn’t want to take
away people’s agency. 37:45 One thing that leaders should really
understand and get familiar with is the grief cycle. Honor other
people’s feelings. 39:00 There are lots of unhelpful phrases like,
“everything happens for a reason.” Links My Approach to Ministering
Interviews | A How I Lead Interview with Sharon Kaye Fisher
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