Come, See the Miracle

My ten year old daughter had two BFFs this year (yes, had. So much for the last "F"). In all fairness to her, the termination of her relationship with these BFFs was not her doing or theirs, it was mine. After several trips to the principal's office for these three, the principal, their teacher, the other moms, and I all decided it was time to call it quits on behalf of these children. Oh, there was weeping, wailing, gnashing of teeth, running away, and extremely loud, unkind words as my daughter entered the very depths of despair, but miraculously, within a couple of weeks—even days, the sweet daughter I had known pre-BFFs was back. I don't believe that it was the BFFs fault for my daughter's BFF behavior, but outside of BFF influences, she has been able to get in touch with her true self and do what she knows to be right, rather than allowing another person or relationship define her. But post BFF life has not been all peaches and roses. Without her BFFs

The Young Women Theme states: "We are daughters of our Heavenly Father, who loves us. . ." I love that reminder that I am a daughter of God, and because of that, I have divine qualities within. Here is the first goal for the value Divine Nature: "What are some of the divine qualities of a daughter of God? Read "The Family: A Proclamation to the World"; 2 Peter 1; Alma 7:23-24; and Doctrine and Covenants 121:45. In your own words, list the divine qualities discussed in your reading. Think about how you can discover and develop each of these qualities. Record your ideas in your journal." Journal--July 9, 2011 Divine Qualities of a Daughter of God: Charitable Virtuous* Confident Humble* Submissive* Gentle Easily entreated Patient Long-suffering Temperate Diligent in keeping the commandments* Asking God for whatever she needs, temporal or spiritual Serves others Thankful Faithful* Hopeful* Abounding in good works Testimony* Keeps herself apart from the

After I finished my first goal and journal entry for faith, I had some other thoughts come to me. This is the journal entry with my additional thoughts: July 9, 2011 So, I started this goal as an imperfect pray-er, and I ended imperfectly. I do pray in the mornings pretty consistently, since I get up early specifically to pray and study the scriptures before my family wakes up, but it's praying before going to bed each night where I fall short, usually because I fall asleep on the couch while watching TV with my husband at the end of a long day. For a while I wondered if I would learn anything about faith from this goal because I didn't significantly change my habits (again, I'm already a pretty prayerful person). But I did realize a couple of things: I do pray more. I am going to the Lord more frequently in prayer during the day, even if I don't get a prayer in at bedtime. And the more I go to Him, regardless of the time of day, the more He helps me. I was al

For anyone who is not familiar with Personal Progress, it is a goal-setting program for 12-18 year old girls who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. There are 8 values: faith, divine nature, individual worth, knowledge, choice and accountability, good works, integrity, and virtue. The young women participating in the program complete value experiences designed to increase their understanding of each of the values, and increase their testimonies of Jesus Christ. After the girls complete six experiences for each value (four for virtue), they complete a value project for each value, requiring at least 10 hours of work. There is a beautiful medallion that is awarded to each girl who completes the requirements, and an "honor bee" award for those who go beyond the minimum requirements. While I did complete a few of the goals as a youth, I didn't complete very many, and the program has been changed a little since I was 18. So, I decided to star

A couple of months ago I was preparing a Relief Society lesson on developing talents. As part of my preparation, I went to the Personal Progress manual, which was recently revised and updated, to see what it said about my lesson topic. It spoke of "reaching your divine potential," which is the greatest desire of my heart. But, alas, I never completed my Personal Progress. I was always active in church and in the Young Women program, but I never caught the vision as a teen of the blessing and benefit of Personal Progress. I had other things to do and focused on those things instead. Fast forward a few (okay, many) years, and now I wish I had put forth the effort to complete it. But more than that, I want the spiritual benefit of Personal Progress NOW, at this point in my life. I want to enjoy the structure of the program as I set and pursue goals. I want to learn more about my divine purpose and potential. I want to strengthen my testimony of Jesus Christ.