I was asked to lead a group of Mid-Single Adults in Davis County. MidSingles are single adults ages 31-45 years old, some were never married, some divorcees, and some widows/widowers. Everyone has different life stories, but the one thing that we all had in common, was that we are all members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
In my calling-assignment to lead them- I was able to get to know a ton of people, and know their stories. There were a few common threads- life hadn't turned out how they had planned, disappointments, and what now? I'm not saying that their disappointments or frustrations were displayed in how they lived. In fact, about 60% of them were great examples of how to live happy. I felt privileged to be a person that they trusted to open up to.
One of my responsibilities, was to plan conferences for the MidSingles. Usually a conference would be a Thursday night at the temple, a Friday night activity, Saturday full of workshops, service and a fun activity, and closed on a Sunday with a devotional. I picked most of the speakers for these conferences. I had a great committee that helped with so much of the overall conference.
As I searched for speakers, I would pray and ask for guidance for what those attending would need to hear. During this time, I was going through my own issues of disappointments and stress. I had just broken up with someone, a friend of mine confided in me that he was gay- and wasn't ready to tell his family or anyone. I felt weighed down. There wasn't anything I wanted more than to be a wife and a mom, and I was disappointed, again. My mom called me one day, and told me I needed to turn the radio on to KBYU, to hear a BYU speech that they were replaying. It was this talk. It was a perfect talk for me, and I knew Dallan Moody was someone I needed to have come speak at my conference.
In my calling-assignment to lead them- I was able to get to know a ton of people, and know their stories. There were a few common threads- life hadn't turned out how they had planned, disappointments, and what now? I'm not saying that their disappointments or frustrations were displayed in how they lived. In fact, about 60% of them were great examples of how to live happy. I felt privileged to be a person that they trusted to open up to.
One of my responsibilities, was to plan conferences for the MidSingles. Usually a conference would be a Thursday night at the temple, a Friday night activity, Saturday full of workshops, service and a fun activity, and closed on a Sunday with a devotional. I picked most of the speakers for these conferences. I had a great committee that helped with so much of the overall conference.
As I searched for speakers, I would pray and ask for guidance for what those attending would need to hear. During this time, I was going through my own issues of disappointments and stress. I had just broken up with someone, a friend of mine confided in me that he was gay- and wasn't ready to tell his family or anyone. I felt weighed down. There wasn't anything I wanted more than to be a wife and a mom, and I was disappointed, again. My mom called me one day, and told me I needed to turn the radio on to KBYU, to hear a BYU speech that they were replaying. It was this talk. It was a perfect talk for me, and I knew Dallan Moody was someone I needed to have come speak at my conference.
"In those times of trial, despair, fear and worry, the stage is best set for God to show forth His Power. Indeed, it is often in the most dire of circumstances that God's arm is revealed most miraculously." -Dallan R. Moody
This is one of those talks that I refer to throughout the ups and downs of my life. I can't even imagine going through what the Moody's went through with their little Caleb. That's so hard. I remember in my initial reading feeling like I needed to toughen up, because my trials weren't nearly as bad as theirs. Since then, I've had an awakening to more than that. I've realized that even though my trials aren't nearly as bad as that, or as bad as so many other people have out there, that I don't need to feel guilty for feeling sad, disappointed, and weak. Everyone has their weaknesses and their own issues, but that's all part of the plan.
What if life gets one degree colder? What are you going to do? Make the choice to hold on to that hope. It's there! It may be rough now, but you can make it! There's a light to help you through!
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