I was in charge of my first "official" Mutual activity as Young Women President last night. I think it went pretty well, with only a few minor hang-ups.
The former president "planned" to play dodgeball. By "planned," I mean, she told me about it and let me put it all together. I borrowed the balls from a friend and got to the church early, only to realize that the Relief Society had tables set up in the gym for their "Jolly Junken" garbage sale, scheduled for the next evening. (They were having people drop off their donations on Wednesday night.) Thankfully, we were able to work out a compromise of moving the tables into an adjoining room, promising to carrying them back into the gym when we were done playing.
We started the activity with a little spiritual message about how life is like dodgeball. I had some of the youth (youth: "U-T-H. Youth." Jane Long spelling bee memories...) volunteer to read some scriptures, asking everyone to listen for the common theme (God's Plan of Happiness):
And the great God has had mercy on us, and made these things known unto us that we might not perish: yea and he has made these things known unto us beforehand, because he loveth our souls as well as he loveth our children; therefore, in his mercy he doth visit us by his angel, that the plan of salvation might be made known unto us as well as unto future generations.
And now, behold, I say unto you: This is the plan of salvation unto all men, through the blood of mine Only Begotten, who shall come in the meridian of time.
Now behold, it was not expedient that man should be reclaimed from this temporal death, for that would destroy the great plan of happiness.
Behold, will ye reject these words? Will ye reject the words of the prophets; and will ye reject all the words which have been spoken concerning Christ, after so many have spoken concerning him; and deny the good word of Christ, and the power of God, and the gift of the Holy Ghost, and quench the Holy Spirit, and make a mock of the great plan of redemption, which hate been laid for you?
And they began from that time forth to call on his name; therefore God conversed with men, and made known unto them the plan of redemption, which had been prepared from the foundation of the world; and this he made known unto them according to their faith and repentance and their holy works.
And now, the plan of mercy could not be brought about except an atonement should be made; therefore God himself atoneth for the sins of the world, to bring about the plan of mercy, to appease the demands of justice, that God might be a perfect, just God, and a merciful God also.
Here's a basic outline of the rest of the message:
Each of these scriptures talks about the plan of salvation, the plan for this life. Life is like dodgeball. There are ups and downs, challenges, opponents to our goals, temptations. The plan of salvation the way we can “dodge” these challenges and receive a fullness of joy. The plan includes the Creation, the Fall, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and all the laws, ordinances, and doctrines of the gospel. Moral agency, the ability to choose and act for ourselves, is also essential in Heavenly Father's plan. Because of this plan, we can be perfected through the Atonement, receive a fulness of joy, and live forever in the presence of God. Joseph B. Wirthlin tells a story about how he dodges life’s challenges (Most of the rest of this message is his words, but I condensed/added here-and-there....I'm just not exactly sure where!):
When I was young I loved playing sports, and I have many fond memories of those days. But not all of them are pleasant. I remember one day after my football team lost a tough game, I came home feeling discouraged. My mother was there. She listened to my sad story. She taught her children to trust in themselves and each other, not blame others for their misfortunes, and give their best effort in everything they attempted.
When we fell down, she expected us to pick ourselves up and get going again. So the advice my mother gave to me then wasn’t altogether unexpected. It has stayed with me all my life.
“Joseph,” she said, “come what may, and love it.”
I have often reflected on that counsel.
I think she may have meant that every life has peaks and shadows and times when it seems that the birds don’t sing and bells don’t ring. Yet in spite of discouragement and adversity, those who are happiest seem to have a way of learning from difficult times, becoming stronger, wiser, and happier as a result.
If we approach adversities wisely, our hardest times can be times of greatest growth, which in turn can lead toward times of greatest happiness.
Over the years I have learned a few things that have helped me through times of testing and trial. I would like to share them with you.
Learn to Laugh
When challenges, disappointments come your way, try to “go with the flow,” laugh about them and move on.
Seek for the Eternal
Don’t ask “Why me?” At one time or another, everyone must experience sorrow. No one is exempt.
Learning to endure times of disappointment, suffering, and sorrow is part of our on-the-job training. These experiences, while often difficult to bear at the time, are precisely the kinds of experiences that stretch our understanding, build our character, and increase our compassion for others.
Because Jesus Christ suffered greatly, He understands our suffering. He understands our grief. We experience hard things so that we too may have increased compassion and understanding for others.
Remember the sublime words of the Savior to the Prophet Joseph Smith when he suffered with his companions in the smothering darkness of Liberty Jail:
“My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;
“And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes.”
With that eternal perspective, Joseph took comfort from these words, and so can we. Sometimes the very moments that seem to overcome us with suffering are those that will ultimately suffer us to overcome.
The Principle of Compensation
The Lord compensates the faithful for every loss. That which is taken away from those who love the Lord will be added unto them in His own way. While it may not come at the time we desire, the faithful will know that every tear today will eventually be returned a hundredfold with tears of rejoicing and gratitude.
One of the blessings of the gospel is the knowledge that when the curtain of death signals the end of our mortal lives, life will continue on the other side of the veil. There we will be given new opportunities. Not even death can take from us the eternal blessings promised by a loving Heavenly Father.
Like in dodgeball, if you get “out” there will be more opportunities to come in another round.
Trust in the Father and The Son
“God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son.” The Lord Jesus Christ is our partner, helper, and advocate. He wants us to be happy. He wants us to be successful. If we do our part, He will step in.
Conclusion:
“Come what may, and love it.”
I know why there must be opposition in all things. Adversity, if handled correctly, can be a blessing in our lives. We can learn to love it. Just like in dodgeball, sometimes life hits us with challenges that could knock us out of the game for awhile. As we look for humor, seek for the eternal perspective, understand the principle of compensation, and draw near to our Heavenly Father, we can endure hardship and trial. We can say, as did my mother, “Come what may, and love it.”
Then, I went over the rules for the game (because there are "rules" to life, also.) And, I talked about how God knows we have challenges and gives us blessings to help us out with these challenges. I made some "blessing" cards to pass out to some of the youth/leaders. (Those who volunteered for the prayer/reading scriptures/playing piano/came on time/early, etc. got extra blessing cards)
Here's examples of the cards (I made 2 of each because we don't have that many young men/young women):
Repentance: You got knocked down, but this card entitles you to get back in the game! (May only be used once and cannot be used when down to just 2 players.)
Hold to the Rod: You stayed close to the Word of God and know your way back. Using this card, you may attack from the middle of the court.
Choose the Right: This card entitles you to choose one member of the opposite team to leave the game at any time, except when down to 2 players. (May only be used once, so choose carefully!)
Rescue a Soul: This card entitles you to “resurrect” one player from your team at any time except when down to just 2 players.
Eternal Life: This card entitles you to one round of “eternal life.” You may not be knocked out of the game until you are the last person on your team.
Called to Serve: At any time in the game, this card entitles you to call all the balls to your side of the court.
(During the game when a person wanted to their card, the game froze until the action was completed.)We drew names for teams and played a few rounds. After the blessing cards had all been played, I shuffled them up and passed the out again as blessings for being at the activity. After every few rounds, we'd switch up the teams and start again.
It turned out to be a great activity. Not bad for my first try!
