THE POWER OF A KIND WORD

This past month has been a busy one.....well actually that is an understatement!!! I am still trying to figure out how to balance everything on my plate. I have been a bit surprised at the time my calling requires. I assumed that it could not possibly be more time consuming than serving as the ward RS president and I did that for 3 years while Dave was in the bishopric so this would be a walk in the park compared.....WRONG. It is busy. I'm not complaining....I LOVE IT.....simply admitting my ignorance regarding the needs of the stake is all. March also brought with it 3 lessons to teach in the stake, the woman's conference ( a HUGE event) the girls basketball state tournament, the girls basketball awards banquet which I was in charge of, the starting of the track season, taxes to file, financial aid deadlines, scholarship deadlines, etc. I was stretched thin and a bit stressed. I wondered if it is possible to give 100% to so many things. I doubted myself....ya ya, I know I need to practice what I preach. I talk about this very thing with the sisters in the stake all the time. But I am human too. Just because I have a leadership position doesn't mean I don't struggle with the very same things everyone else does. Satan doesn't discriminate.....he can get to everyone....regardless of your callings! So in the midst of this self doubting phase I learned a great lesson. There is POWER in a kind word! It is so simple but we rarely remember to do it. Within one week I had a sister come up to me in the hall at church, very emotional, and thank me for a talk I'd given. I received an email from another sister expressing gratitude for my example, and I received a card in the mail from a 3ed sister saying some very nice things that I desperately need to hear that day. I felt lifted up.....I felt renewed strength to face some challenging issues that very day. I knew my Heavenly Father loved me and knew of my struggles that week. These 3 sisters taught me something very powerful.....STOP and take the time to say thank you! SLOW DOWN and look for the little things people do and then tell them you appreciate it! When you think to yourself, gosh that was really great...I should tell her what I think....DO IT. It's the spirit whispering to you that someone needs to hear from you. I am grateful to so many people and I will do better at saying so out loud now!