A Childhood of Change

My dad served in the U.S. Air Force for about 20 years. He was a strong man, though inactive for the majority of my childhood. We moved every few years, which was very difficult. Though I didn't have much consistency in my life, I always had the Church. A lot of people say this. Life changes, you get thrown curve balls, but God's love never wavers. However, there were different sources from which I felt God's love. It wasn't always through reading the scriptures, or praying that I felt loved. Through the periods of change, it was my stalwart friends that were so impactful at that time. That's not to say that other forms of worship were less meaningful, but I am convinced that God worked through my peers to give me the testimony It was His main medium for keeping me in the church despite my father's indecision.
It is only though retrospect that I know now how important those youth years are in the testimony of life-long members. It was only recently that I realized how influential it is to have good experiences at church and at youth activities. This breakthrough shaped who I am now as a Sunday school teacher, because I have hope that the kids I teach will have the good experiences they need to stay strong in their faith. And maybe one day the kids I teach will serve missions, share the gospel, and bear testimony like I have.
Teaching Sunday school, right now, might be my missionary work at this point in my life. Although I often wish I could do more, or I reminisce about my full-time service in Arkansas, I know that this is a new chapter, and God has called me to this work today. I'm still a missionary, and every Sunday I teach I am planting seeds, as well as exercising and strengthening my own faith. There's nothing sweeter than being a part of the work. I may never know the change or challenges my students are facing, but I learned from what I went through, and maybe that's why I'm called to this class at this time. Maybe they are going through similar things. I may never know, but I have hope that God has a plan and purpose behind the calling He extended to me.

Doctrine and Covenants 18:15

And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!


-This message was shared with my mother, who was asked to give a talk on how the gospel strengthened us as a military family

A Prayer for Strength

What is strength? According to Merriam-Webster dictionaries, strength is a "capacity for exertion or endurance." Nephi prayed for strength to break the bands with which his brothers had tied him.1 Nephi 7:16–20 Alma prayed for strength to bear his afflictions with patience. Alma 31:31

The strength I find most valuable it the strength to resist. The Adversary, (aka, the devil or Satan) tempts us every moment of our lives. He tempts us to commit sin, or to abandon our righteous pursuits. He weakens us little by little until he can deliver the fatal blow. Perhaps he convinces you that skipping church this week won't hurt anything. And then one week turns into another, and another. You find yourself falling into his pitfalls left and right. The strength you thought you had to resist has failed. 

As human beings, fallen, faulted, and weak, we can do little on our own. The strength we possess it nothing, especially compared to that of Christ. This is why we pray for His strength to be added unto ours. We merely borrow what power He has; it doesn't become ours. Thus, we must pray continually, each day, for that strength to remain with us. With each plea for His help, we renew the lease on his magnificent strength. 

Pray for strength, whether the strength you need is physical, emotional, mental, God loves you and wants you to succeed. All He requires is that you ask.