Most of the lessons I post on this blog will come from the crash course years of my life between 2012-2020, however, I wanted to start with one that had a huge impact on me as a young teenager and continues to shape my faith.
I grew up with a dad in the military, so we moved around a ton. My favorite place was South Carolina. I loved the people there. I made a lot of friends. We had parties and get-togethers--all kinds of social events. We had cousins nearby which made it even better. I also call the three years we spent there my growing up years--7-9th grade.
So, imagine my distress when my dad announced we were moving to Leavenworth, KS. What to me sounded like the middle of nowhere. I had to leave my friends, my school, my current crush--you get the picture. I was pretty mad about it.
I was also scared. It had been at least three years since I'd had to learn to make friends, and I was a teenager now, which made the task all the more daunting (I know now social anxiety was a contributing factor to the terror I was feeling at starting over).
But what could I do? Nothing. So, I followed my family and we headed to Leavenworth, KS.
We moved in the middle of the summer, which is often when Youth Conferences for our church are happening. This is where all the youth get together with their leaders and stay at people's houses while they attend classes and workshops.
My parents thought it would be a great opportunity for me to meet people and make new friends. They signed me up. Again, I was terrified. The idea of having what basically was a giant sleepover which a bunch of girls I didn't know sounded like a nightmare. I cried. I complained, but my parents insisted.
I remember being angry about it as I walked into the church building on Sunday. In front of the chapel was a giant poster all about the upcoming conference. At the top of the poster was the conferences theme:
"Fear Not I am With Thee," from the scripture in Isaiah 41:10. I felt suddenly humbled, and instead of being angry, I pleaded with Heavenly Father to be with me. To help me through it. To help me make friends. I felt peace as I trusted in the words of that scripture.
I went to the conference. I spent the night with three random girls. God gave me courage and confidence to talk with them normally. I did things out of my comfort zone. It worked. Those girls became some of my best friends. Throughout the year we lived there, we did lots together.
That experience strengthened my understanding of God as a loving Father in Heaven, and of the power of the Savior walking with us. To this day, that is one of my favorite scriptures because I KNOW that God does not leave us alone. Even when we think we are walking alone, the Savior is there.* He gives us the strength we need to make it through whatever trials and challenges we face. He upholds us.
"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am they God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold the with the right hand of my righteousness." --Isaiah 41:10 (King James Version)
*more on this lesson later, as later in my life during an especially difficult time, it was much harder to feel Him there
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