Monday, May 23, 2011

Motivational Monday: "The Parable of the Purse"


The pictures below are the purses I made for the ladies I visit teach. I used the free print out and instructions from See Me Visit Teach at this link: I think they turned out pretty cute and best of all, I didn't purchase anything ... I was able to find all the items I used out of things I already had on hand. Yea! 

I loved this idea. 
 This month we were able to choose a favorite talk from our recent General Conference. Because of this idea, I chose to do it on the Parable of the Purse from the talk by Elder Quentin L. Cook's, "LDS Women are Incredible!" here.  (below is only part of the talk. Click on the link to read the full talk. 
 When I was recently assigned to a conference in the Mission Viejo California Stake, I was touched by an account of their four-stake New Year’s Eve youth dance. Following the dance, a purse was found with no outside identification. I share with you part of what Sister Monica Sedgwick, the Young Women president in the Laguna Niguel stake, recorded:
 “We didn’t want to pry; this was someone’s personal stuff! So we gingerly opened it and grabbed the first thing that was on top—hopefully, it would identify her. It did, but in another way—it was a For the Strength of Youthpamphlet. Wow! This told us something about her. 
 Then we reached in for the next item, a little notebook. Surely this would give us answers, but not the kind we were expecting.
 
The first page was a list of favorite scriptures. There were five more pages of carefully written scriptures and personal notes.”
The sisters immediately wanted to meet this stalwart young woman. They returned to that purse to identify its owner. They pulled out some breath mints, soap, lotion, and a brush. I loved their comments: “Oh, good things come out of her mouth; she has clean and soft hands; and she takes care of herself.”
They eagerly awaited the next treasure. Out came a clever little homemade coin purse made from a cardboard juice carton, and there was some money in a zippered pocket. 
They exclaimed, “Ahh, she’s creative and prepared!” They felt like little children on Christmas morning.
What they pulled out next surprised them even more: a recipe for Black Forest chocolate cake and a note to make the cake for a friend’s birthday.  
 They almost screamed, “She’s a HOMEMAKER! Thoughtful and service minded."

Then, yes, finally some identification. The youth leaders said they felt greatly blessed “to observe the quiet example of a young lady living the gospel.”
Our women are not incredible because they have managed to avoid the difficulties of life -- quite the opposite. They are incredible because of the way they face the trials of life. Despite the challenges and tests life has to offer -- from marriage or lack of marriage, children's choices, poor health, lack of opportunities, and many other problems -- they remain remarkably strong and immovable and true to the faith. Our sisters throughout the Church consistently "succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees."

One Relief Society President who acknowledged this extraordinary service said, "Even when the sisters serve, they are thinking, "If only I could have done more!" Though they are not perfect and all face individual struggles, their faith in a loving Father in Heaven and the assurance of the atoning sacrifice of the Savior permeates their lives. 

5 comments:

Emilee said...

I have been trying to order the scripture picture books from the website you posted and I haven't heard anything back from them, do you have another way I can contact them?

Thanks, Emilee

emilou84037 at yahoo dot com

Welcome to the Garden of Egan said...

Beautiful.
You are an amazing Visiting Teacher.
That looks like a lot of work.

Rhonda said...

I loved this story, and wow this was a great idea. You are so creative and amazing. These women are lucky to have you as their visiting teacher.

Deerie said...

This is AWESOME! Thanks for the inspiration. This post makes me want to get my visiting teaching done. THANK YOU!

Valerie said...

You did such a great job! They are really cute.

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