This is a quote from one of the Latter-day Saint Prophets, President Ezra Taft Benson. I have seen evidence of these elect spirits in my own home. Each child is choice and has such strength and conviction. I am humbled by the opportunity to be their mother, and continue to feel this way now that my youngest is 17. And, as I visited the next generation, I see that the Lord indeed has sent even stronger spirits, with conviction, dedication, an overflowing amount of patience, and goodness, and love in his next generation. My sweet 7 year old grandson, Adam, is such a young man... so hard for me to think of this sweet little boy that I used to snuggle near me and sing "Blaaauuump, Went The Little Green Frog One Day" to (yes, Sister Taylor, just like I used to hear you sing. I really even tried to include the cute face you always made!) as a young man, but his Spirit is already wise beyond those seven years. My sweet Adam is forever patient. I see the love he feels and shows to his full of life little sister. She was so tired and having a hard time getting a book selected to read before bed, and tired little girls sometimes make mistakes, so she wasn't going to get to read a favorite book, and that made her very sad. So, Adam got to pick one, and...right you are, he picked HER book for us to read. Such a gem. He is so kind to his baby brother...Joshy just loves Adam and you can see it in his eyes, and in his sweet beaming smile!!! Yes, even at just 7 years old, Adam is a true, kind and loving big brother. While a great big brother, he is also a wonderful friend. He had a new bicycle from Papa and Grammy, and never even blinked when a neighbor came up and asked if he could ride it. Adam was so kind to share and he was not the least bit jealous or possessive. That is just the way he is...Such a chosen Spirit.
There are many great things all rolled into this seven year old package, but none stands out more than this...One of his birthday gifts from Daddy and Mommy was his very own Book of Mormon, with a colored marking pencil, to read on his own. Mommy said that if he read 1 page plus 1 column every day, he would finish it by his next birthday, his 8th birthday-the one where he is old enough to choose to be baptized. Now, for me, this was his best gift, for I love the Book of Mormon. I love to read and learn of what happened on the American Continent before, during and after the Savior's birth, life, death and resurrection. I read it over and over...start to finish and then start again. I read every morning, and it was so wonderful for me to think that this sweet young grandson of mine might be able to accomplish what many adults have not accomplished. I awoke the next morning, got out my scriptures, and began my morning reading. He came out of his room and did the same. We talked about the scriptures and I showed him how I had marked mine-that I pick things that make me feel special when I read them, or things I really want to remember, and included little stories and quotes on papers that I had glued in. The next morning, I looked and saw that he had his new marking pencil sharpened, and had already marked the most important thing he had read: the testimony of Mom and Dad that they had each written in the front. Oh, Adam, how special that must have made you feel. What a perfect start to your Book of Mormon reading. Again, what a choice and elect Spirit to know how much those words mean now, and will mean all your life.
While there is so much to see in the world that is bad, and sad, and discouraging, this sweet 7 year old, the full of love and life little sister, and the fervent and strong baby brother, and many others like them, show me that the Lord did reserve this little ones, with very large and strong Spirits, for the last days: when there is so much evil in the world, they show us that there is goodness, and kindness, and happiness. I get an almost front row seat to the spectacle that is these sweet grandbabies of mine. They are strong, they are brave, they are fearless, they know Christ, and they want to do the right thing. I know why their mommy and...I am sure..their daddy were so strong and valiant: so they could be the parents of these steadfast and immovable spirits.
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