I was so touched by a talk President Uchtdorf gave at April's General Conference titled
"You Are My Hands", it has been on my mind a lot lately & so I thought I would share some of the parts that really stuck out to me in my mind. Here are some of my favorite excerpts from his talk:
"I hope that we welcome and love all of God’s children, including those who might dress, look, speak, or just do things differently. It is not good to make others feel as though they are deficient. Let us lift those around us. Let us extend a welcoming hand. Let us bestow upon our brothers and sisters in the Church a special measure of humanity, compassion, and charity so that they feel, at long last, they have finally found home.
When we are tempted to judge, let us think of the Savior, who “loveth the world, even that he layeth down his own life that he may draw all men unto him. …
“[And] he saith: Come unto me all ye ends of the earth, … [for] all men are privileged the one like unto the other, and none are forbidden.”
In truth, we “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” We are all in need of mercy. In that last day when we are called to the judgment bar of God, do we not hope that our many imperfections will be forgiven? Do we not yearn to feel the Savior’s embrace?
It seems only right and proper that we extend to others that which we so earnestly desire for ourselves.
I am not suggesting that we accept sin or overlook evil, in our personal life or in the world. Nevertheless, in our zeal, we sometimes confuse sin with sinner, and we condemn too quickly and with too little compassion. We know from modern revelation that “the worth of souls is great in the sight of God.” We cannot gauge the worth of another soul any more than we can measure the span of the universe. Every person we meet is a VIP to our Heavenly Father. Once we understand that, we can begin to understand how we should treat our fellowmen. "
Here is my FAVE part...
One woman who had been through years of trial and sorrow said through her tears, “I have come to realize that I am like an old 20-dollar bill—crumpled, torn, dirty, abused, and scarred. But I am still a 20-dollar bill. I am worth something. Even though I may not look like much and even though I have been battered and used, I am still worth the full 20 dollars.”
With this in mind, let our hearts and hands be stretched out in compassion toward others, for everyone is walking his or her own difficult path. As disciples of Jesus Christ, our Master, we are called to support and heal rather than condemn. We are commanded “to mourn with those that mourn” and “comfort those that stand in need of comfort.”
In the book of Proverbs we read that “a friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” Let us love at all times. And let us especially be there for our brothers and sisters during times of adversity. "
So good, so inspirational! I am sure most of you have heard it, read it, etc... I just felt like re-sharing it here on my blog. And the part above that I said stuck out to me the most, the part about what the lady said about the $20 bill. I've always realized that the worth of souls is great in the sight of God & that we are all beloved children of our Heavenly Father. This just help give me a great visual example & REALLY made it CLICK in my head. We really are all worth sooo much & even though we go through life & have our personal struggles & can get stained from the world, we still are worth the same amount. I love it, I love to know through all of my sins & repenting & oops, there I go sinning again & coming back to ask for repentance. Through my weaknesses & struggles, I am still worth so much in the sight of the Lord. And you know what, so is every single person around me. And THAT is how they deserved to be treated. It doesn't matter how tattered & torn they are, they are still worth the same amount as a crisp hardly used $20 bill.
Hopefully this speaks to you as much as it does to me. Thanks for reading. :)
