Last week I was asked to teach the lesson for Relief Society
on Sunday. As I opened up the lesson I felt as though I had so much work to do in
order to hopefully help/teach myself along with the women in our ward.
Lesson #20 – Showing love and concern for all of Gods
children.
I started the lesson off about briefly tell my story about
the T-home (the group home I lived in). This was such a beautiful place for
learning and love. I made friends there
whom I was so quick to judge in first meeting. My heart was completely melted
by the love they each showed for me and not even worried about “my story”. These
were kids who were once addicted to drugs, kids who once had an alcohol
problem, kids who once were in Foster care and had grown out of the system. It
would have been so easy for me to just put head phones in and live there while
going to school and working and not worrying about anyone else. I learned I
needed them, I needed them to listen, and I needed them to love and needed them
for the friendship they offered. We spent countless nights outside just
shooting the breeze while we waited for curfew wishing it would never come. I
loved them as though they were my sibling and guess what? In Gods eyes they are
my siblings! The kids I lived with got me through some of the darkest times in
my life. I learned there how to help and care for Gods children but, I can
certainly do more of this in my daily life.
The lesson talked about loving thy neighbors as thyself. We
talked about how easy it is to get angry with a neighbor but, what does that
teach our children? If our children don’t learn to love their neighbors growing
up how will they ever know how to love their future neighbor(s)? What a
thought, not even thinking about the hurt and contention it causes in our own
heart we must think of the example we must be for our children! The example was
given to “kill them with kindness” if someone offends or hurts our feelings.
The lesson talked about service- Oh, boy. I need to serve
others more often. I have so much work to be doing that sometimes I forgot that
there is something else I can be doing for someone- serving meals to our
missionaries is one way Ryan and I try to serve weekly- a home cooked meal and a
family to share it with. I talked about the choice Ryan and I made to go
towards to Foster Care adoption instead of adoptions that would cost us a lot of
money out of pocket. Adoption is truly a beautiful thing and Ryan and I were
most certainly blessed by getting three babies but, I tell you what my heart
would have been content helping a Foster child over the age of 5 that no one
else wanted to adopt. Heavenly Father has a plan for each of us.
I learned so much having the opportunity to teach this
lesson. This was only a few key points to the lesson. We all have the opportunity
to love or show concerns for someone today, take it! We will have the
opportunity to serve someone this month; I challenge each of my friends to
serve someone this month!
Remember that everyone has a story and most people just want
to tell it, maybe that act of service is simply sitting down and listening to
your neighbor tell their story.
Go forth and serve!
