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Sister Kristin M. Yee, Second Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency, speaks during a devotional at the BYU–I Center in Rexburg, Idaho, on Tuesday, January 28, 2025. Photo by Jeron Thompson, BYU–Idaho, courtesy of Church News.All rights reserved.This story appears here courtesy of TheChurchNews.com. It is not for use by other media.
By Aimee Cobabe, Church News
Sister Kristin M. Yee, Second Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency, told Brigham Young University–Idaho students in a devotional on Tuesday, January 28, how she has learned by faith and developed a deeper covenant relationship with God, especially during uncertain times in her life.
“I know the Lord is aware of your needs, your family, your relationships, your concerns, your interests, your gifts and your individual path,” she said in the BYU–I Center in Rexburg, Idaho. “He loves you. And because He loves you, He will never miss an opportunity to love and bless you, including the opportunity to help you to grow.”
Sister Yee said she grew 14 different tomato plants this past summer. After transplanting the plants from their small, temporary containers and putting them in the deep plot of earth, the plants looked sad and leaned over to one side. But Sister Yee took special care, giving them extra water and small sticks to provide extra support.
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Sister Kristin M. Yee, Second Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency, greets students and faculty at a devotional at Brigham Young University-Idaho, in Rexburg, Idaho, on Tuesday, January 28, 2025. Photo by Hans Koepsell, BYU–Idaho, courtesy of Church News.All rights reserved.“These tender little plants began to get root, strengthen and grow,” she said. “When we get transplanted into new places, with new experiences, people and relationships, it takes us a bit of time to acclimate and in some cases to understand why we are there.”
She said she thinks the Lord is more interested in building a relationship with each person, rather than one’s comfort in knowing what lies ahead.
“Though growth and change is an essential part of our progression and what we’ve covenanted to do, there are gratefully some familiar constants in our lives that balance and anchor us in times of change,” Sister Yee said. “Those eternal constants are our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ — Their perfect love for you, Their complete awareness of you, Their power and covenant promises.”
Art School
When she was 16 years old, Sister Yee moved from her family’s home in Burley, Idaho, to San Francisco, California, to attend art school, with the hope of eventually working for Disney.
“It was there that I realized in a deep and personal way that I wanted my Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ in my life more than anyone or anything else,” she said.
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Students listen to a devotional with Sister Kristin M. Yee, Second Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency, at the BYU–I Center in Rexburg, Idaho, on Tuesday, January 28, 2025. Photo by Lauren Dominguez, BYU–Idaho, courtesy of Church News.All rights reserved.Sister Yee found comfort and peace reading Joshua 1:9: “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”
Sister Yee said: “I began counseling with the Lord and asking Him where He wanted me to go, what He wanted me to do.”
The answer was to attend Ricks College (which later became BYU–Idaho).
“Though I had gone to San Francisco for an education and an exciting career, I gained something infinitely more valuable — a deeper knowledge of who I was as a daughter of a loving and attentive Father in Heaven,” she said. “My roots of faith grew deeply that season as I stepped into what felt like a new, wide and rich plot of earth.”
Eventually, Sister Yee attended BYU in Provo, Utah. A few months before graduation, she received an art internship and later a job at a studio that was purchased by Disney.
“This opportunity came at a time when I had Christ at the center of my life, so gratefully it fell into its proper place,” Sister Yee said.
The House of the Lord
During this busy season of Sister Yee’s life, she felt impressed to receive her endowment in the temple.
“The house of the Lord became a safe haven and a much-needed constant in my life amidst change and demands,” Sister Yee said. “It is here I feel relief from the worries of the world, relief from feeling alone and relief in feeling God’s personal love for me.”
Sister Yee said receiving her endowment allowed her spiritual roots to thrive and expand.
“I found strength in an unending and essential supply of eternally rich nutrients. My covenant relationship with God grew and deepened,” she said.
What the Lord Had in Store
After 13 years of working for Disney, Sister Yee felt a clear impression that she was no longer supposed to be there. After leaving the stability of that job, she said she remembers thinking “so this is what faith looks like.”
“After letting go of everything I thought I had to have, I was open to what the Lord had in store,” she said. “Though I had stepped away from what seemed like a prosperous, stable place into an unknown desert, the Master of the vineyard took great care to nourish, comfort and strengthen me.”
Sister Yee concluded her message testifying that as one trusts in God and puts their covenant relationship with Him first, all opportunities and challenges that come will work together for one’s good.
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Students attend a devotional at the BYU–I Center in Rexburg, Idaho, on Tuesday, January 28, 2025 with Sister Kristin M. Yee, Second Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency. Photo by Lauren Dominguez, BYU–Idaho, courtesy of Church News.All rights reserved.Copyright 2025 Deseret News Publishing Company.