So Proud- But Humble!

So today was awesome! My twelve year old son gave his first talk in sacrament meeting. The fact that we don't have a paid ministry is something I really love about our church. Everyone in our church has the opportunity to bare their testimony and share the blessings they have received from our Heavenly Father. We all have unique experiences and we all study the scriptures as part of our daily routine, so we all receive revelations from the spirit that help guide us in oue lives, so why shouldn't we all share with eachother those experiences.

This Sunday it was my sons turn to testify about his faith. As a youth speaker he was given a topic to prayerfully study and his topic was humility or being humble. The teacher in me insisted that he write his talk all on his own and the mommy in me wanted to hold his hand and do it for him.  But my son surprised the mommy in me and took his responsibility to heart. We discussed the steps he should take to prepare- beginning with a prayer for guidance, then researching the scriptures for references to humility, then seeking revelations and talks from prophets and apostles, and finally any personal experiences or stories.

He did just that and spent his week preparing. On Friday night we reviewed his research and he spent some time organizing his thoughts on the topic. The teacher in me gave him instructions on how to structure a talk and the mommy in me bit her fingernails while he wrote. My apprehension was unneccessary because never once did he complain or say that it was too difficult, quite the opposite actually. He dilligently went to work and then humbly presented his talk to me to review.  I read it and was so proud.  Sure there were a few grammatical errors and a few sentences that I suggested be rearranged, but overall it really was great.

The most difficult part was the actual reading of the talk because my son has a few issues with speech. It can be very difficult to understand what he is saying, but he practiced multiple times and even practiced looking at the audience. When it came time for him to actually speak he did so like a champ. Sure there were still parts where he mumbled a bit, but overall he was awesome and even remembered to make eye contact. I am so very proud of my son and will post his talk later for you to read. He really is a shining example of one of our Heavenly Fathers' greatest creations and I humbly accept the opportunity to be his mother.