Lexie gave a Fantastic talk today!

“The Touch of the Masters Hand”

~ (Introduce yourself) ~

In an April 2001 General Conference, President Boyd K. Packer said:

     All of us sometime, and some of us much of the time, suffer remorse from things we did wrong or things left undone. That feeling of guilt is to the spirit what pain is to the physical body. But guilt can be harder to bear than physical pain. Physical pain is nature’s warning system that signals something needs to be changed or cleansed, perhaps even removed by surgery. Guilt cannot be healed the same way. If you are burdened with depressing feelings of guilt or disappointment, of failure or shame, there is a cure. We all make mistakes. … It is then in our nature to feel guilt and humiliation and suffering, which we alone cannot cure. That is when the healing power of the Atonement will help.

    The third article of faith teaches, “We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.” The Atonement offers redemption from spiritual death and from suffering caused by sin. It is a power that applies to our everyday life. When we are overcome with trials and tribulation, the touch of the master’s hand can take all our pains away as long as we seek his love and guidance. When we turn towards our Lord and Savior, he will heal us from any blemish and bless us with the gift of happiness.

Those who have felt the touch of the Master’s hand somehow cannot explain the change which comes into their lives.  There is a desire to live better, to serve faithfully, to walk humbly, and to be more like the Savior.  

You Are Special
by Max Lucado

The Wemmicks were small wooden people. Each of the wooden people was carved by a woodworker named Eli. His workshop sat on a hill overlooking their village. Every Wemmick was different. But all were made by the same carver and all lived in the village. And all day, every day, the Wemmicks did the same thing: They gave each other stickers. Each Wemmick had a box of golden star stickers and a box of gray dot stickers. Up and down the streets all over the city, people could be seen sticking stars or dots on one another.

The pretty ones, those with smooth wood and fine paint, always got stars. The talented ones got stars too, those who could jump high or sing pretty songs. But if the wood was rough or the paint chipped, the Wemmicks gave dots. If you didn’t have much talent or weren’t as pretty, you got dots.
Punchinello was one of these. He wasn’t very talented, his wood was scratched up and he often made mistakes. After a while he had so many dots that he didn't want to go outside. In fact, he had so many gray dots that some people would come up and give him one without reason. "He deserves lots of dots," the wooden people would agree with one another. "He's not a good wooden person." After a while Punchinello believed them. "I'm not a good Wemmick," he would say.
One day he sat near a window and watched the wooden people as they scurried around giving each other stars and dots. "It's not right," he muttered to himself. And he resolved to go see Eli, the woodworker. Maybe he could help. He walked up the narrow path to the top of the hill and stepped into the big shop. His wooden eyes widened at the size of everything. Punchinello swallowed hard. Then he heard his name.
"Punchinello?" The voice was deep and strong. Punchinello stopped. "Punchinello! How good to see you. Come and let me have a look at you." Punchinello turned slowly and looked at the large bearded craftsman. "You know my name?" the little Wemmick asked.
"Of course I do. I made you." Eli stooped down and picked him up and set him on the bench. "Hmm," the maker spoke thoughtfully as he inspected the gray circles. "Looks like you've been given some bad marks." "I didn't mean to, Eli. I really tried hard." "Oh, you don't have to defend yourself to me, child. I don't care what the other Wemmicks think." They're Wemmicks just like you. What they think doesn't matter, Punchinello. All that matters is what I think. And I think you are pretty special." Punchinello thanked the woodmaker and began to leave. In his heart he thought, I think he really means it. And when he did, a dot fell to the ground.
…………………………………………………………………………………………….
 The world tells us that our worth is dependent on what we do or own, how many friends we have, or even the number of mistakes we made.
When our sense of self-worth hinges we often feel like we are being covered in those grey dots. In times like these, we can reach out to our Maker and receive the reassurance of his unconditional love for us and the touch of his hand. Instead of listening to the voices of the world, we can listen to the promptings from the Holy Spirit. And when we diligently seek him and begin to follow his promptings we will feel the touch of the masters hands in our life.
~ (Testimony) ~

I know that atonement of Jesus Christ is real. He took upon his own life for us because he loves us. And I know that if we apply the atonement to each and every day of our lives, that he will bless us and we will feel closer and closer to him. It’s possible for us to touch the hands of the Master. I know because I have felt them in my life. And they are outstretched towards us continually. I know that he loves each and every one of us and he wants us to return to him again.  

I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ amen.