Luduina Williams, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Cook Islands, leads Christian women across the 15 islands of the country in prayer each year, blessing her community, government, and fellow women.
“Always trust the Lord, and He will have an answer,” Williams said.
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The Cook Islands World Day of Prayer committee hosts a Bible workshop with women of several Christian denominations.© 2025 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.She has served as the Cook Islands World Day of Prayer Committee President for the last seven years. World Day of Prayer is an international movement that brings women of several Christian denominations together for an annual day of prayer in March and for faithful action and service throughout the year.
Each year, World Day of Prayer focuses its worship service and theme on a different country. In 2025, that country was Cook Islands. The 2025 World Day of Prayer theme, “I Made You Wonderful,” refers to Psalm 139:14: “I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.”
“What I hope that I, as a president, was able to show to the women of our country is love—to share love and to understand each other,” she said.
While women of more than 170 countries involved in World Day of Prayer prayed for the women of Cook Islands, Williams and the Cook Islands World Day of Prayer committee prayed for their nation’s government.
“We prayed for our Prime Minister to make the right choice in leading our country,” she said. “He came and met with me—him and his wife—and he thanked me for praying for him.”
Williams turns to Heavenly Father in prayer to help her lead her fellow Christian women of the Cook Islands World Day of Prayer committee the way Christ would.
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Williams (pictured on the far right) and other members of the Cook Islands World Day of Prayer committee visit the grave of Akaiti Ama who founded World Day of Prayer in 1972.© 2025 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.“There are a lot of things that we don't agree on, and there's a lot of differences,” she said. “I'm always asking the Lord to guide me today. ‘I am stuck with this decision…Help me or show me a way how I can solve this problem with the women.’ We have concerns, so I'm always taking my concern to the Lord to help me make the right decision.”
Read more about the importance of prayer for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints here.