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For the Strength of Youth!

As I sat teary-eyed for most of Sacrament Meeting today, I reflected on how much responsibility and faith the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints gives to its youth. To my knowledge there is no other church in the world who does so. 16 year old young men bless the sacred emblems representing the flesh and blood of the Savior of the world. It is then passed by 12 and 13 year olds to members of the congregation. In our particular ward, the organist is 15 and the chorister who leads the entire congregation in hymn singing is 16. Both are vibrant young women.

Today every sermon came from youth. The first one was from a 15 year old young woman named Emma Fong. She taught a truth about how each person needs to develop their own relationship with God for themselves. No one can do it for them. She compared this to a recent experience she had of having her wisdom teeth removed. She said she was given instructions on how to care for her recovering gums, stating that if her parents took the prescribed medication and iced their cheeks it would have done her no good. She had to do that for herself, much like she needs to read her scriptures, pray, attend meeting and seek that relationship with God herself. It was beautiful and well thought out.

The next two speakers were 18 year old Austin Bartlet and 19 year old McKenzie Weaver. Both will be serving the Lord and the church by dedicating  two years and 18 months to missionary work respectively. They too discussed the need for "self reliance" as Austin put it. Each individual is responsible for gaining his or her own testimony and like a new engine will run better if better cared for. Each of them shared their own testimony and their desire and willingness to serve missions.

I have been blessed to be the chorister in Primary for the past 16 months. The innocence of budding testimonies touches my heart weekly. I learn so much from even the youngest children. One of my favorite song we learned this year is called, "Seek the Lord Early." The words are a simple prescription for developing a personal relationship with deity. The words are as follows:

I'll seek the Lord early while in my youth,
And He will help me to know the truth.
I'll search the scriptures and find Him there,
Then go to our Father in fervent prayer.
I'll seek the Lord early, and I'll obey
His living prophets in all they say.
I'll keep his commandments; His love will abound.
I will seek the Lord early, and He will be found.
 
 

This song will be included in the annual Primary program in which the entire service is presented by children ages 3-11. They will speak, sing and recite short memorized truths. A couple youthful pianists will prepare to accompany a song sung by the children. It is a favorite Sunday of everyone. Today everyone present had the opportunity to be spiritually fed and uplifted by the young people who participated today. My heart is full.

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