SPEAKER IN THE HOUSE

Today Sam had to give a talk in sacrament as one of the youth speakers. She did such a great job and was such a good sport about it since this was the day of Cade Brough's Farewell which meant we might as well of had Stake conference.....it was almost that full in there..LOL. Any way I am so proud of her, not just because she took the challenge and got up their and talked, but for the fact that she wrote the talk herself. No help from anyone. It was done all on her own.....well except for the help she got from Gordon B. Hinkley. Using one of his quotes fit right into her talk. So I thought I would post this talk because it was very good.

****Brother Peterson asked me to talk on a value in the "For the Strength of Youth" booklet. When he called me and asked me, my brain said no but my mouth said yes. So here I am. I decided to talk on friends. Friends can really make or break you. When you choose your friends you should choose carefully. They should have the same values as you do. If they don't they may influence you to do things you normally wouldn't. That doesn't mean you can't be friends with people who aren't very righteous. You may influence them to be righteous. Also when you choose your friends you should take into consideration do you feel you can be yourself around them. To have good friends you have to be a good friend. Let all your friends know you care about them. Treat everyone like you would want to be treated. Go out of your way to help a friend who may be shy or feels left out. Invite non-members to go to church with you. Try to make them feel welcome. Even if they don't go with you should still be their friend and try to influence them to be righteous. You should try to be a friend to everyone. Even if everyone thinks they are weird that doesn't mean you have to. You never know..they may turn out to be one of your best friends. You should try to treat everyone the same. President Gordon B. Hinkley wrote "I do not like labels, I don't like to categorize people. We are all individuals men and women, sons and daughters of God, not a mass of look alikes or do alikes. All of us are very much alike. In our capacity to think, to reason, to be miserable, if you please. In our need to be happy to love and be loved. We are subject to the same pains, the same sensitivities, the same emotions. We are all individuals living together hopefully with respect for one another not withstanding our unique personal situations." You don't have to br everyone's best friend. You can just be their friend. A simple smile or hello can make a big impact. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen****

Again I am very proud of Sam for giving this talk. Sam has faced many great and wonderful things with great and wonderful friends. But there was a time when Sam had some enormous hardships with friends because she always fought for the underdog. She became ridiculed and tormented because of this. So I know this talk comes from her heart, her experiences and her strenghts that have emerged through her trials. We are all proud of her!