The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles are counseling us during the COVID-19 outbreak in a series of addresses in The Church News (all are amazing and I encourage you to read over them). In Elder Neil L. Andersen’s address he talked of how this can be a time of great learning for us. He said that as we sincerely seek, we will be blessed with the same sure resolve: “All the world is in the hands of the Lord. All things are in His control…. COVID-19 did not surprise the Lord, and He will use it to accomplish His purposes.”
His purposes can be found in the grand scheme of things, as well as each one of our individual lives. He encouraged church members to “stand back and say, ‘There is something about this that will be important for me.’ Stay on your knees longer and see what the Lord will teach you. There are always compensatory blessings in these times.”
“One such compensatory blessing has been that the often-rushed pace of life for so many in the world has slowed down,” Elder Andersen said.
He recalled an experience several years ago, when his son bought a wood carving of the Savior. The piece was about three feet tall, and the artist had carved the Savior with his right hand outstretched in front — as if signaling or addressing others. Elder Andersen’s son took the carving home and placed it on his desk. When his 3-year-old daughter saw the carving, she turned to her father, and stretching out her arm like that of the wood carving, she said very seriously, “Daddy, Jesus says, ‘Slow down.’”
I love the perspective and honesty of children. They can teach us amazing things, it is no wonder that we are told to become more like them.
I have asked a few of our Primary children to share their thoughts and feelings they have experienced over the past couple months:
1. What have you missed most about being able to go to Primary?
• My teachers and learning about Christ – Trek Hansen
• Seeing my church friends & just being able to go to church- AudreyKartchner
• My friends & teachers (the most) and singing – Beckett Morrill
• My friends & singing time – Shaylee Kimber
2. What have you liked most about worshipping at home with your family?
• That it’s quieter and the sacrament bread is bigger – Trek Hansen
• Just being able to spend my entire church time with them – Audrey Kartchner
• I like the having the bread and water at home (Sacrament) – Beckett Morrill
• Less dressing up & I get to be with JUST my family (mom clarification: we do put church clothes on for church on Sunday, but no tights, shoes, perfect hair etc 😉 – Shaylee Kimber
3. How have you felt Heavenly Father & Jesus’ love for you during this time?
• Blessed me with comfort and family to help me through a lot of changes and challenges with online school – Trek Hansen
• They have kept me & my family safe and together happily during the pandemic and have let us still do church at home – Audrey Kartchner
• When I am with my mommy and daddy and Stockton – Beckett Morrill
• They gave us this earth to live on and have kept me & my family safe during the coronavirus – Shaylee Kimber
Family, friends, the gospel and all that it entails… these are the things that will last through the eternities. I have noticed the worldly things that have fallen out of my life during this time must not be too important, because they are not missed. In the slowness, there has been a silence created that has allowed me to hear the Spirit more. In talking to others, I know that we have all felt a sanctifying of our homes as they have become houses of worship. These are amazing compensatory blessings!
It is my hope that as we reopen our lives and the noise of the world increases we will remember to take time to sit in this new found stillness and be taught by the Spirit, that we may continue reach out to each other with the pure love of Christ and that we may remain focused on those things of “most importance”.
Lynette Taylor, Primary First Counselor