Friday, September 23, 2016

Primary Programs & Children's Testimonies

When I first decided to revive this blog, I couldn't remember why I had stopped writing in it the first place. There are many reasons, of course, but a major one is just the time! I've literally sat down to write in this blog three times since last week but someone needs my attention, the computer has to reboot, the laundry is suddenly done and....you get the picture. I've also been doing some food preserving lately. We've done three different jam varieties, corn, pears, applesauce, and dehydrated apples. I have a whole new respect for my grandmother's and mother's generations, who preserved food all during harvest. Man, it takes a lot of time!

But for the topic at hand. My children had their primary program on Sunday. I look forward to the primary program all year and I'm always just a little sad when it's over, knowing we won't have another one for a full year. I love watching the children. The smiles, the shy turns of heads, the exuberant (or barely voiced) songs, the parts so diligently memorized and forgotten, and most especially the testimonies.

One of the things I love most about children is their zest for life. They wake up happy in the morning; they make friends; they forgive and forget; they go to bed happy--and then they do it all over again. That zest and excitement for life is so eagerly applied to their love for the gospel. It's an infectious love! It would be nearly impossible to attend a primary program, to listen to those children sing "I Love to See the Temple" or "Scripture Power" and not notice & be affected by their testimonies of the words they are singing.

The spirit was definitely present at this meeting. Every moment the presence of the Holy Ghost could be felt but I want to specifically mention a couple songs. One of the songs the children had prepared was "Praise to the Man." This is a powerful song anyway but I was so struck by the children singing it. The first verse was sung by a small group of the oldest boys in primary, as well as all the boys who have left primary this year to join the young men as deacons. Oh! I wish I had words to express the feeling I had when those boys started to sing that song. It was so powerful! I had chills and goosebumps.


Another amazing song was "We'll Bring the World His Truth." The change was almost physical, felt throughout the entire chapel. You could just tell there was something about this song that touched the hearts of the members of my ward--myself included. As I was listening I realized it was that song that put the desire to serve a mission into my heart when I was young. The Lord's plan for me was different than my own (hence getting married instead of serving a mission) but this song made me want to serve a mission so badly! I could see in the eyes of some of the children singing on Sunday that they felt the same way! And the presence of the Holy Ghost was unmistakable. It was beautiful!



Our children have such powerful testimonies and when they all combine their testimonies together, it can create a life changing, deep, spiritual feast. I hope I am never too busy to listen to the testimonies of my children. I hope I am never too impatient to wait for them to share their best with me. I hope I am never too proud to remember my children are my greatest teachers.

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