Week 8 - Becoming a Leader by becoming like Christ

This week I had a cool experience that made me flash back to the kind of disciple and leader I was in high school.I never realized how much the little things I did made a difference but thats something I learned this week as I read for school and had this experience. The way you lead and are an example in this moment will still effect people years later.

I grew up in a small little town in Oregon called Lebanon. There are not many members of the church in this little town. I was also raised by the most missionary minded people so you can only imagine what life was like :) .. sharing the gospel and having friends take the missionary lessons was a normal occurance. Anyways this past week I got on facebook and received a message from a girl that I had gone to high school with. I rarely talked to her in high school but we were still friends on facebook. She asked if she could ask me a question. I was a little worried at first what she was wanting to ask me but I said yes of course. She then sent me this "how do you know that your religion is the right one? I mean how do you know for sure that you following the right path? and how would someone start on that path if they have strayed so far from it? sorry if it is weird for me to ask that but I just need some perspective you know."

This is like the ultimate question we all wait for to have that 'missionary moment'. I proceeded to talk about the restoration, book of mormon, and prayer. It was a really cool moment to reflect on my own testimony but to also realize that the person I was in high school made her confident in asking me those questions today. She knew I took my faith seriously. It made me realize that had I not upheld my standards and continued to be an example she might not have been asking me this question right now.

This isn't to brag, but to emphasize that really the little things do make a difference. I wasn't some outlandish amazing person in high school, I just set standards for myself and made sure others knew. No one cussed around me. No one invited me to parties. No guys tried moves on me. They knew what I believed and in turn were also effected by it. SO amazing how by small and simple things great things are brought to pass. I always want to be a leader and more importantly a follower of christ. Because I have already seen that as I follow him others see it and also want to follow him! Happy week!