- The young woman in our Mia Maid class presidency who chose this lesson is named Grace.
- Grace wanted to learn more about grace. :)
- Grace specifically wanted me to teach the lesson.
- There are four leaders who teach the Mia Maid class (we have many active members in our ward!), thus, we rotate through a monthly teaching schedule and never know where we'll fall on that schedule, due to others being out of town, etc.
- As I prepared our class' lesson schedule, I was amazed that my turn to teach happened to fall on the "What is Grace?" lesson, :)
- Yesterday just so happened to be the very last Sunday that Grace's family attended our ward because they are moving to a new home.
I didn't know that last bullet point was happening yesterday. I knew her family was moving, yes, but I thought it wouldn't be for at least another month. Thus, even before I went to church yesterday, I was simply excited that "our" Grace was able to have the lesson she wanted taught, by the teacher she wanted to teach it!
When I heard that Grace would be leaving our class, tears came to my eyes. This darling and mighty talented girl has contributed so much to the fun factor in our Young Women! The tears were also there because of the fact that Grace was able to have her very last lesson in our ward be taught about the topic she wanted to know more about: grace! Thus, I was so happy I prepared well for our lesson. I spent a lot of time researching, listening to the talks and creating my handout (below).
Late Saturday night, I felt inspired to print out g r a c e in very big, bold letters to put on our classroom's chalkboard. (Actually, it was very early Sunday morning, due to Daylight Savings, but to me, it was still Saturday night!) Before I created it, I thought, "I've never done a chalkboard printout like this before, why should I do it now? I already have the beautiful handout I spent so much time designing. Why should I do more? And I have my cute little easel to put my handout on, and my favorite picture of our Savior to display. Isn't that enough?" (I wish I could share my picture here, but due to copyright restrictions, I can only share the name: "Christ and the Rich Young Ruler," by Heinrich Hofmann.)
But the thought of g r a c e wouldn't leave my mind, so I knew the chalkboard sign was supposed to be a part of my lesson. I logged back onto my computer and began creating g r a c e. I made the font as big as would possibly fit one letter to a page and cut out the letters so they were almost circular. They were simple, but looked pretty cute—if I do say so myself! :) I packed everything up in my "Time Out For Women" tote and got ready for bed.
So it was really no surprise when we found out it was Grace's last Sunday. I thought to myself, "Ah ha! Now I get it!" I knew right then and there that Heavenly Father was giving Grace (and the rest of us) a little sign {g r a c e} that He is very aware of each and every one of us! I knew that He wanted Grace to feel just how loved she is by Him and our ward's Young Women organization. He wanted Grace to know that He knew of the importance of the lesson she wanted taught...by the teacher she wanted to teach it...on the very last day she would be able to attend the ward she was raised in!
This event was no small matter, and I made certain my Mia Maid class understood that as I was putting g r a c e on the chalkboard with magnets—Grace loved seeing her name up there! :) Of course, I made sure that all of my Mia Maids know they are equally loved and important! (But none of them will be going through as huge of a life change this week as Grace—leaving the only home she's known since birth.)
Here are the amazing talks I listened to this past week—I'm certain I'll listen to them again!
Each of those talks brought tears to my eyes as I thought about the eternal love our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ have for each and every one of us! It blows my mind! :)
While I wasn't able to delve into the above-listed talks in class as much as I wanted (due to time constraints), I felt happy that (I think!) my Mia Maids left our class with a better understanding of His Grace. I also found no coincidence in the fact that the closing song of our sacrament meeting was "O Savior, Thou Who Wearest a Crown"—it was meant to be! I shared these lyrics with my Mia Maids, for they went along perfectly with our lesson!
"No creature is so lowly,Yes, we all have access to His Grace, and for that, I'm incredibly grateful! As much as I understand grace (sorry, I won't write more about it here because I need to go eat dinner with My Gregor!), I know my soul will only fully comprehend the magnitude of His Grace once I get to the other side. I expect that to be true for everyone. Until then, I'll be focused on this glorious scripture that is beloved across eternity!
No sinner so depraved,
But feels thy presence holy
And thru thy love is saved.
Tho craven friends betray thee,
They feel thy love's embrace;
The very foes who slay thee
Have access to thy grace."
"I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." – Philippians 4:13I love it!!!
Thank-you for this post, particularly, the links to the two talks...one by President Uchtdorf and one by Elder Bednar. I recognized and remembered Elder Bednar's talk within reading the first few words and recognized that I needed to hear it again.
ReplyDeleteIt was the same with President Uchtdorf's talk.