I have had an incredible week! I woke up this morning with so much gratitude in my heart. I had so many opportunities to become better and learn from the people around me. I made new friends and was able to see friends I hadn’t seen in a really long time (Welcome home Max!). I have been thinking a lot about the people the Lord puts in our lives and why He does it. I have a strong conviction that all the people the Lord puts in our lives are meant to teach us something. There have been so many people in my life who have helped me get to where I am today, and continue to help me become all that I want to become. They are tender mercies from a Father in Heaven that loves me. At the end of my mission, I wrote a poem that stands as my pledge to all those who have made me who I am. I had always struggled with how I would ever repay all those that had done so much for me until one day I realized the most powerful way to show my gratitude: live a life that honors all that they taught me. With that feeling in my heart, I wrote the following:
Faithful and True
I’ve often thought what I could give
To you who taught me how to live
From parents, leaders, teachers, friends
To God himself, my thanks extends
You taught me courage, strength, and love
As though directly from above
Faith and hope and service too
How to be faithful, how to be true
Your words and actions, my course’s guide
And never failing at my side
You’ve shaped my life that I may be
All that the Lord desires of me
You gave up time and energy
That my mentor you could be
A northern star throughout my life
Ever constant through trouble and strife
How can I repay sacrifice?
When such a gift is without price,
Then in my heart comes what I could give,
“All my love through the way I live”
And so I promise you my all
To rise and stand even if I fall
To firmly pursue the given course
Making love my driving force
To bless and rescue all in reach
And give to all that me beseech
To do my duty and fulfill my part
That I might gain a shepherd’s heart
To lose my life to save a soul,
Lift a heart, and make one whole
To cast off Satan’s wicked bands
That on earth I can be Christ’s hands
To be a man who gives his life
For the happiness of child and wife
With virtue, kindness, and gentle care
I’ll lead my family through earnest prayer
Yes, I cannot give you gifts of gold
Nor could such things my real love hold
So my gift of thanks to you
Is a life that is faithful, a life that is true
I am so grateful for all the angels in my life who take the shape of parents, sisters, cousins, uncles, aunts, grandparents, friends, coaches, leaders, and teachers. All have made an indelible impression upon my life. Thank you. I promise to honor this pledge to each one of you.
