Learning to Trust the Lord...

Sisters, in each of the units throughout the Stake today, the first Principle of the new Self-reliance programme should have been taught:

Principle One - Exercising faith in Jesus Christ.

Within this we saw a short video of a beautiful experience one family had as they chose to exercise faith in Christ and trust Him and his words:

The rest of the presentation of this principle can be viewed in the Self Reliance tab at the top of the page.

This was the Presidency message shared in one of our units in the Stake this week in the reminder of the time -

Sisters, what do you treasure most?  What is of most importance to you?  Ponder on that as you listen to the following story:

The cheerful girl with bouncy golden curls was almost five.  Waiting with her mother at the checkout stand she saw them, a circle of glistening white pearls in a pink foil box.

'Oh please mummy, can I have them?  Please, mummy please?'

Quickly the mother checked the back of the little foil box and then looked back into the pleading blue eyes of her little girls upturned face.

'A dollar ninety five, that's almost $2.00.  If you really want them I'll think of some extra chores for you and in no time you can save enough money to buy them for yourself.  Your birthday's only a week away and you might get another dollar bill from Grandma.  As soon as Jenny got home she emptied her penny bank and counted out 17 pennies.  After dinner, she did more than her share of chores and she went to the neighbour and asked Mrs McJames if she could pick dandelions for ten cents.

On her birthday Grandma did give her another new dollar bill and at last she had enough money to buy the necklace.  Jenny loved her pearls.  They made her feel dressed up and grown up.  She wore them everywhere - Primary, school, even to bed.  The only time she took them off was when she went swimming or had a bubble bath.  Mother said if they got wet, they might turn her neck green.

Jenny had a very loving daddy and every night when she was ready for bed, he would stop whatever he was doing and come upstairs to read her a story.  One night when he was finished the story he asked Jenny, 'do you love me?'  'Oh yes, Daddy, you know that I love you,'  'Then give me your pearls.'  'Oh Daddy not my pearls.  But you can have Princess - the white horse from my collection, the one with the pink tail.  Remember Daddy, the one you gave me, she's my favourite.'

'That's okay honey, daddy loves you.  Good night.'  And he brushed her cheek with a kiss.

Then we paused - and read from the scriptures - Mark 10:17-22 and then considered for a while.

The rich young man was asked to give up something that was precious to him, just as little Jenny was.  Sometimes we too are asked to do that same thing.  For us, it may not be riches or precious treasures but we all have something the Lord asks us to put aside:

Maybe we have a person we choose not to forgive, we know we have to one day but for now we feel good in being angry and right and justified.

Maybe it is our favourite sin / weakness - that we know we shouldn't really do, but we just don't want to have to change yet.

Maybe it is the choices of how we spend our time - when it is time to go VT, do we?  Or do we choose the TV and that show we really want to watch.  Or when it is time to study the scriptures, do we chose the warm bed which we just cannot face leaving just now.

Maybe it is riches and worldly items, maybe when offered an extra shift at work which just happens to be on a Sunday we choose to do it.

What was it the young man chose?  He chose his worldly goods but actually his choice was far, far more important than that.  He chose the world over the Saviour.  He chose not to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.  Is it possible that out choices are the same, are we choosing something over the Saviour?

Listen to the rest of Jenny's story:

About a week later, after the story time, Jenny's dad asked again 'Do you love me?'

'Daddy you know I love you.'  'Then give me your pearls.'  'Oh Daddy not my pearls, but you can have my baby doll.  The brand new one I got for my birthday.  She is so beautiful and you can have the yellow blanket that matched her sleeper.'

'That's okay, sleep well.  God bless you little one.  Daddy loves you' and as always he brushed her cheek with a gentle kiss.

A few nights later when her daddy came in, Jenny was sitting on her bed with her legs crossed Indian style.  As he came close, he noticed her chin was trembling and one silent tear rolled down her cheek.  'What is it Jenny?  What's the matter?'  Jenny didn't say anything but lifted her little hand up to her daddy.  And when she opened it there was her little pearl necklace.  With a little quiver she finally said 'Here Daddy, it's for you.'

With tears gathering in his own eyes, Jenny's kind daddy reached out with one hand to take the dime store necklace, and with the other hand he reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue velvet case with a strand of genuine pearls and gave them to Jenny.  He had had them all the time.  He was just waiting for her to give up the dime store stuff so he could give her the genuine treasure.

Sisters, sometimes we forget that the reason the Lord wants us to choose Him, to follow Him, to be righteous is because He loves us and has much greater things in store for us.

As we think about this coming year, will we be content with our little pearls that might turn our neck green or are we willing to make those small changes and become a better disciple of Christ.  As Elder Neal A Maxwell said "If you have not chosen the Kingdom of God first, it will in the end make no difference what you have chosen instead."