Tomorrow, August 16th I have to give a talk in sacrament meeting at church. They told me to go into Come Follow Me, go to the theme for August and choose one of the topics that were to be taught to the youth for that month. The topic I chose was "How Will Keeping A Personal Journal Bless Me and My Family?" from the Sunday School section.
I am hoping that all will go well and what I have prepared will be of knowledge to those in the congregation. Following is the talk I have prepared to give.
HOW WILL KEEPING A PERSONAL
JOURNAL BLESS ME AND MY FAMILY?
The
Lord and His prophets have emphasized the importance of keeping records.
Writing in a personal journal gives us an opportunity to reflect on our lives
and recognize the many blessings God has given us. Our journals can also be a
source of inspiration and strength to future generations of our families.
In
the scriptures we read time and time again about keeping records. In 1st Nephi, Nephi begins
writing the records of his people. In
verses 1 & 3 Nephi writes “…I make a record of my proceedings in my
days. And I know that the record which
I make is true; and I make it with mine own hand; and I make it according to my
knowledge.” In Moses 6 we learn
that Adam’s seed kept a book of remembrance in the language of Adam. Then in Jacob 1:2-3 “And he gave me,
Jacob, a commandment that I should write upon these plates a few of the things
which I considered to be most precious…that I should preserve these plates and
hand them down unto my seed, from generation to generation.”
Pres. Kimball tells us “Your
own journal, like most others, will tell of problems as old as the world and
how you dealt with them. Your journal
is your autobiography, so it should be kept carefully. You are unique and you
should truthfully record your real self and not what other people may see in
you.
Your story should be written now while it is fresh and
while the true details are available.
Write … your goings and your
comings, your deeper thoughts, your achievements and your failures, your associations
and your triumphs, your impressions and your testimonies”.
Some of what you write may
be humdrum dates and places, but there will also be rich passages that will be
quoted by your posterity.”
Many
people wonder what their great-grandparents were like, and our children will
wonder the same about us. The peace and
pleasure that descendants can find in discovering what their ancestors loved
and hated, what their trials and triumphs were, and how they faced challenges
can only be found if a journal is kept.
In
our home, we have the histories of our extended ancestors and each time I read
their writings there is something new that I learn and new qualities I can
incorporate into my life.
SHOW
DIFFERENT BOOKS AND EXPLAIN THINGS ABOUT THEM:
1.
Sand and Soil: This book is about Richard’s grandfather, Daniel Fredrick Madsen
who was born in Ephraim, Utah. Daniel
was born in the first home built outside of the fort in Ephraim. His parents were converts to the church and
came to America from Denmark. They were
sent to Ephraim to help settle the area with other Scandinavian saints.
2.
Dick’s Book of Remembrance: This is Richard’s Book of Remembrance that was compiled by his
Mother. She spent many hours typing
from journals that were kept by her family.
It includes pedigree charts, several generations of life histories and
is filled with pictures. The trunk that
she tells about, the one her father took with him to Denmark on his missions,
is still in our family today.
3.
My Life’s Review: This is the journal of my 4th great grandfather,
Benjamin Franklin Johnson. I read it
often and find great comfort in reading his words. At the age of 18, my grandfather became closely associated with
the Prophet Joseph Smith and from 1842 to 1844 acted as his business agent and
private secretary. My grandfather tells
of the night that Joseph was running from a mob. Grandpa stayed awake all night standing guard over Joseph while
he slept. When the Prophet woke and was
ready to go, he touched Grandpa on the top of the head and said “ for this
nights work, you will never have a single grey hair on your head.” My Grandfather never had any grey hair and
many of his descendants don’t either.
4.
Dad’s journal: A few years ago I gave my Dad a journal jar. In the jar were slips of paper and each had
a topic written on it. Each day he was
suppose to take a piece of paper out of the jar then write in this journal
about that topic. He writes with deep
feelings about things I didn’t know about him.
He didn’t get very far in his writings before he became sick and passed
away. This journal is something that I
will cherish forever.
My
mother is the most faithful journal keeper that I know. In 1982 her house burned down and she was
caught in the fire. She received burns
on 75% of her body and was not expected to survive. She was a fighter and survived.
When she was able to use her hands again, Mom started writing in a
journal of her experiences while in the hospital and after coming home. Every day she made an entry in her
journal. Thirty-three years later and
with many journals written she still is writing. Her posterity will know her and what was most important to her. They will know of her testimony and her love
for the Lord and how she served Him with all her might, mind and soul. Many will be blessed by the words she has
written.
Keeping
a journal can be done in a variety of ways.
It doesn’t necessarily mean you have to write with pen and paper. It can be done by video, audio, scrapbooking
or blogging. I journal by blogging and
at the end of the year it can be printed and bound. Some of my entries are heart wrenching, some are very spiritual
while others are filled with tons of humor.
One
of my spiritual experiences from my journal that I wrote in March of this year
has great meaning to me. This
experience is very fresh in my mind and heart.
I had emotional feelings that were hard to control and as I relate this
experience to others, I can still feel those emotions.
Tuesday, March 17, 2015
Every Tuesday night I attend the Monticello, Utah Temple
with my brother, Lane, and with my mother. Tonight Lane asked me if I was
taking one of the names I had found through for endowments and I told him no
that I did not have them ready for endowments yet. He handed me a card
from his names and asked if I would take one through for him. I knew that
he had been working on his wife’s line and thought that is where the name was
from. The name he gave me was Laurena
Priest and she was born in 1877 in Colorado.
About five minutes into the session my breathing changed, my heart started
beating different and I felt so
overwhelmed with everything around me.
I felt so faint and out of body. I kept thinking what is wrong
with me this is not normal. Then the floodgates opened and I was crying
and could not stop. I was beginning to feel embarrassed and didn’t know
what to do. I only had two tissues in my pocket and I had already soaked
one.
I started praying that I could get my emotions in control so I could
concentrate on what was being taught. Suddenly it hit me like being
struck with a brick….it is not you that is crying it is Laurena. She has
waited for so long for her work to be done and she is filled with joy that
you are doing this endowment for her. Almost immediately the tears
stopped, my breathing became normal, my heart was beating correctly and I could
concentrate once again. The session was beautiful and I was teachable and
humbled by this experience. Just before the session ended the tears
started again, but this time I knew they were tears of joy from Laurena Priest.
When we got into the car, I told Lane I had to tell him something that happened
in the temple. I told him about the crying, the change in my breathing,
how my heart was beating differently and how happy my sister was that I was
taking through the temple. I said to him “the only thing that would have
made this even more meaningful is if it had been one of our family names”. Lane said, “she was one of our Fuller family
members that you took through tonight.” Tonight I was in full spirit with
my family beyond the veil. Not to often are we able to experience this
type of closeness.
I see spiritual growth in myself as I write of blessings the Lord has poured
upon my family and me. I want my
family to know the real me and know that there have been trials in my life, but
I was able to pick myself up, shake myself off, stand tall and continue on down
this path of life. Along with the
trials, there have also been many great adventures and experiences.
Without the journals of our ancestors we will not know
them. How thankful I am for all the
journals that were kept in my family.
For the knowledge I have of their lives, their hardships and their
joys. I have received many blessings
because of the faithful men and women they have been in following our leaders
advice of keeping journals.
Jacob 4:3 - 4 “Now in this thing we do
rejoice; and we labor diligently to engraven these words upon plates, hoping
that our beloved brethren and our children will receive them with thankful
hearts and look upon them that they may learn with joy and not with sorrow…
concerning their first parents. For this intent have we written these things,
that they may know that we knew of Christ, and we had a hope of his glory.”
I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen
