Good morning brothers and sisters. For those of you who don’t know me, my
name is Emma Jensen, I am a senior at Perry High School, and as of this morning I am
from Appleby Ward, we’ll see if that’s true by the end of the day.
A little over a week ago, President Jones called me and asked me to speak
about something I have worked on in the past year to spiritually better myself. As soon
as I heard the topic, my mind went to one specific experience that changed me. In
March of 2018, I joined the laurel class. All the girls were so sweet. I had no issues with
anyone, but I also knew only 3 of the 10-15 girls. If I saw them in the hall at school I
would know their name and say hi, but if someone were to ask me to describe them, I
wouldn’t know what to say. This kind of bothered me as I never felt like I had a real
place in the class.
This feeling stuck with me until December 2018 when I was called to be laurel
class president. I was overwhelmed, but excited. I couldn’t wait to start. As soon as I
was called, I was asked to pick my counselors. I asked for a class roster because I
wanted to pray to make sure I considered each and every laurel, including the ones that
would be joining us in the new year. Turns out there was 26 of us, not 10-15.
So I called my counselors, they happened to be the 3 girls I knew. Initially I
prayed every night to keep an open heart to revelation about what I needed to do to
help my laurel class. My main goal was to create unity amongst us. I would occasionally
ask my counselors to pray too. Despite my efforts, nothing changed until I went to this
one fireside a little while later.
I am awful with names so I don’t remember who exactly was speaking, but I do
remember what he spoke about.
One of the things he spoke about was a young man who was in his ward growing
up. One summer they were all at camp and there was a mile long swim. I’m not sure
how many boys attempted the swim, but none made it as far as this young man. As he
was finishing up the swim, all his fellow young men were standing on the shore, calling
out his name, encouraging him to finish, and reassuring him that he could. Later in his
life, this man fell away from the church and he passed away without ever coming back. I
distinctly remember the speaker asking where all of the support had gone when this
young man started drifting away.
He warned us not to let this happen to anyone we knew, and as soon as he said
that, I couldn’t shake the feeling that we had someone straying on my watch. I asked my
counselor, who was also there, about it. She couldn’t figure it out either and assured me
there wasn’t one individual. I refused to accept this answer, so I made her come out to
my car with me and pray. I told her we were not leaving until I had an answer. I asked
who the person was, I went through each name in my head, I asked a million questions
that were all similar in meaning but different in wording until eventually I just sat there
and listened. Like a wave crashing into me, the answer hit me. My counselor was right.
There was not 1 individual, there were 26 individuals.
This whole time I was praying for the need of the class as a whole and I never
stopped to consider that maybe we were all different in our own ways and would need
our own form of help to feel included.
From then on out my counselors and I prayed for each girl individually. What
does this person need to feel loved and like they have a place amongst the Appleby
laurels? It became so simple from there, all we had to do was act on our promptings.
We started changing what activities we had scheduled for mutual so everyone
got to do something they loved, or share something they loved. We would have a
brunch once a month on Sunday so as to make sure more people could come to
activities since some people are busy on Wednesday nights. We started texting girls
invitations to class or activities individually and let the spirit guide our texts so that each
girl would feel like her presence was genuinely wanted, not just for a head count, but
because we loved her. The results were unreal.
I am proud to report that we reactivated 2 girls and they are some of the most
amazing girls I know. One of their names is Meredith. We all remember when Meridith
moved in. She had such a gentle, quiet, and sweet spirit. Eventually she stopped
showing up, stopped eating lunch with some of our laurels at school, and completely fell
off the radar. In January of 2019, she started coming to activities again and a few
months into 2019, she started coming back to church consistently. What worked for
Meridith was the unique and individual texts. Whenever inviting her to an activity, I
would reach out to the laurels who I knew were friends with her first and ask them if they
could go. After everyone would respond, I would ask the girls who could go if they were
ok being put in a group chat with Meridith to invite her. I would ask them to respond with
a yes and hopefully some enthusiasm and excitement to be going. I felt as though an
individual text to Meridith from me would not be as meaningful because I had yet to
make a real connection with her, so the Spirit prompted me to take this approach, and
clearly, it worked! She even came to girl’s camp with us and I wish you all could have
seen the impact she had on the girl’s she was over as a YCL. They all left camp happier
and more outgoing and it was very apparent. Meridith brings such a positive attitude
and uplifting energy to our laurel class and young women’s as a whole and I am
eternally grateful for her and can confidently say, I am not the only one who feels this
way.
As for the other girl, no one knew her. A few girls said her name sounded
familiar, but no one could put a face to the name. My roster had no contact information
on her and no one had anything further to provide me with other than the fact that she
had never really been active. The story of her reactivation is pretty much a miracle.
Turns out she had been in my seminary class since August 2018, but she kept to
herself so I never noticed her. Around February, we sat next to each other in class and
started talking and becoming friends, but I didn’t know how to ask her so late into the
school year what her name was, until one miraculous day, it was her turn to pray. As
she was walking up, I knew this was my chance to learn her name, as it would be
written behind her on the board with all the other assignments for the day. There it was,
opening prayer, Camryn, C-a-m-r-y-n. The image of my roster came flooding into my
head and I nearly fainted. As soon as she finished her prayer and came back to her
seat, I eagerly asked her if her last name was Sloan. She seemed a bit creeped out by
me, but said yes, her name is Camryn Sloan.
I am not sure I have ever felt so much joy and excitement in my entire life. I
explained to her that I was in her ward and was her laurel class president. I had been
trying to get in contact with her for 2 months and was over the moon that the girl I had
been looking for all along was one of my favorite classmates. I will never forget the way
she looked at me when I said this. Her face sunk into a smile of relief. She explained
that she hadn’t really been to church in awhile because she wasn’t sure she would have
a place there because it had been so long since she went. I reassured her that no
matter what, she had a place there with me. I offered to pick her up and she politely
turned me down, but I made her promise she would come hang out with me at church
the following Sunday so I had someone to sit with. I made sure she knew that I didn’t
want her there so I could check her off for attendance, but that I wanted her there
because we needed her there. She provided our class a quiet reassurance. Something
about her presence was so comforting and she always made our class laugh. Our class
of 26 would not have been the same without the one.
In addition to the reactivations, I got to watch these beautiful young women come
out of their comfort zones and express themselves. Paige used to timidly whisper
answers to questions and now she confidently bears her testimony everytime she
speaks, whether explicitly or implicitly and I hope to be as knowledgeable as her
someday. Autumn started smiling and laughing more, and might I just say that the
radiance of her smile comes from her Christlike light within. Her light is truly shining
from atop the mountain.
Some of these stories are still a work in progress and some we didn’t get to see
through to the end. I got released in July, but I still try to continue my work everywhere I
can because you don’t need a calling to love your neighbor. I say hi to Makae everytime
I see her and am slowly seeing a rise in her attendance. I always give Breanna a hug
and tell her I love her as much as possible and now when she strays, she knows she
can turn to me for support. Unfortunately, Darcey is at college now, but I still try to text
her and keep up with her and the Spirit planted a tiny mustard seed of faith before she
moved out.
I can’t speak for the girls on the other end of all this, but I know that I have never
felt so close to any group of young women before. As we kept our efforts up, I
developed a love so real and intense for these girls, that the only way I know how to
describe it, is an infinite love and appreciation. I was blessed to see these girls through
the Lord’s eyes and still to this day I can tell you why each girl was needed in our class
and what she specifically brought to our activities.
To my Appleby laurels of 2019, I love you girls more than you can understand,
because I can barely understand it. To my 2020 laurels after these new realignments, I
can’t wait to get to know you. I promise these changes will be for the better. Last time I
was asked to give a talk, it was about the Come Follow Me changes, and now I feel the
need to talk about the new ward and youth changes. I have loved every change the
Lord has put in my life... eventually. It may stink at first, it may rub you the wrong way or
make you want to push away, but I promise it is all for the better. I cannot wait to see
the youth become more united with all these new changes in our programs and I cannot
wait to make all these new friends in our new wards. If you ever need help feeling
included or making a place for yourself, ask the Lord what you can bring to your new
classes or what you can do for others. I hope you all come to love your new wards and I
hope you’re as excited as I am, and with this I say these things in the name of Jesus
Christ, amen.
From Libby:
President Hansen,
Here you go! It truly was a pleasure to serve with her!
I was lucky enough to work with Emma for 7 months as she served as Laurel Class President. During that time, I watched her grow from a loving, thoughtful friend, concerned about her class, to an inspired, devoted leader, seeking out the One. Emma sought to use personal revelation and personal connection to increase a love for the Savior in our Laurel class. Each month as we met, I was humbled at the energy and effort she put into daily prayers about individual class members. Her commitment was contagious, and I soon saw that behavior modeled by each member of her presidency. She put a plan in motion to visit each class member individually (we had 26 Laurels at the time!) and learn more about them, so they could plan activities that better fit the needs of the girls. This led to activities on alternate days, locations and times, which allowed more people to attend and build unity within our class. It should be mentioned that Emma carved this time out of a very full schedule. She is a member of her high school cheer team, a high achieving student in very demanding classes, an active member of National Honors Society, and a dedicated employee at an after school job. Yet, she prioritized her calling as a member of the Lord’s kingdom in a way that led to love and unity like we hadn’t previously experienced. I learned so much from watching her work, and consider it a great privilege to have learned at her feet.
On a separate note, I want to express thanks for a tender mercy that was given to Emma recently. On the Wednesday following the Stake Conference where Emma spoke, she got into her dream school, University of Utah. The following day, after much celebration, they found out the scholarship she received wasn’t as much as they expected her to receive. Her mom was faced with telling her daughter that she didn’t get to attend her dream school. As I sat on the phone with her mom, she literally couldn’t speak because her throat was choked with emotion. Suddenly, she cut the call short. I spent the next little while brain storming ways I could help both Emma and her mom on such a hard day. She called back a few minutes later to tell me she received a call from President Hansen explaining that Elder Pieper wanted to share Emma’s words in his biannual report. I was overcome with emotion, and said, “I’ve been trying to think of a single thing I could do for you today, and Heavenly Father already had you in mind. He already knew what you needed today.” It didn’t just feel like a tender mercy, it felt like a small miracle. On that day, one that was sure to go down as a major trial in Emma’s life, there was a buffer already in motion to soften the blow. Heavenly Father knows and seeks after The One, and we are so blessed to be able to learn from that perfect example. Thanks for all you do!
Libby Jones, Layton Lakes 1st Ward Young Women’s President.
From Bishop Cardon:
What a blessing it is to serve alongside this generation of youth and watch as they grow in the gospel. While Sister Jensen served as the Laurel Class President here are a few observations I noticed:
- She frequently made the young women in her class a topic of prayer and would pray specifically to know what they needed and act on impressions she received. There were several times where she would come in my office to share feelings she was having about the class after she made them a topic prayer.
- She was instrumental in helping re-activate some of the young women in the ward. Her relationship with them both at church but probably more so outside of church contributed to an environment where friendship and genuine concern could be developed and felt. She also worked well with the other young women's leaders to plan specific activities that would appeal to sisters that need a little more care and concern.
- She was an active participant in BYC and had detailed notes about things we discussed, and would report back on assignments that were made for specific young women in her class.
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