MARCH 31, 2013
Ashleigh gave her farewell talk on Easter Sunday in Orchard View ward. It was fun because her very best friend since 7th grade, Ashley Slaughter, was able to come and hear her talk.
This is her talk from that day:
Today is the
day we celebrate the Resurrection of the Savior. As I was preparing for this
talk I thought about the Resurrection and what it means to me. I was
reminded of a couple of experiences that touched me and strengthened my
testimony of the Resurrection of the Savior
My senior
year at Girls Camp, all of the senior girls got to put together a night
devotional. In that devotional we got to portray different women from the
scriptures and tell about the way that Christ touched their lives. I was asked
to portray Mary Magdalene and tell the story in John chapter 20 of when she saw
the Savior right after he was resurrected.
Mary came
with Peter and John to the sepulchre that Easter morning and they found that
they tomb was empty “for as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise
again from the dead. Then the disciples went away again unto their own home.
But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped
down, and looked into the sepulchre, And seeth two angels in white sitting, the
one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.
And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because
they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him. And when
she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew
not that it was Jesus. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? Whom sleekest
thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir if thou have
borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.
Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni,
which is to say, Master.”
As I told
that story at the devotional at Girls Camp, I was really touched and I was able
to feel just a little bit of how Mary must have felt when she saw the empty
tomb and was anguished and heartbroken because He was gone. And then I was able
to feel the joy when she saw and recognized that the Savior was not dead but
that he had been resurrected. This is just an amazing story.
The second
story that strengthened my testimony of the Resurrection happened while I was
up at BYU Idaho. Last semester I was able
to take an art seminar class. In this class we were able to listen to a few
guest speakers who were artists from around the country. Walter Rane, an LDS
artist actually, came to show some of his artwork to us and talk about them a
little bit. One of his paintings is of the empty tomb with the linen laying in
it. It really, really touched me because it communicated to me the central
message of the Resurrection that Christ lives and that death is conquered. I
really love that painting because it is
just a beautiful representation of what the Resurrection is.
That brings
me to the whole point of the Resurrection. It is not just a story. Christ
lives! And because He lives we are able to live again too. In Alma 7:12
it says, “and he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death
which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels
may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to
the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities.”
That
scripture reminds me of a couple of lines from the hymn, I Know That My Redeemer Lives: “He lives to silence all my fears,
He lives to wipe away my tears, He lives to calm my trouble heart, He lives all
blessings to impart. He lives and grants me daily breath, He lives and I shall
conquer death, He lives, my mansion to prepare, He lives to bring me safely
there.”
I want to
bear my testimony to you that I KNOW that Christ lives and I know that because
He lives, we are able to have life after death as well.
I am so
excited to go and share this message with the people of Kentucky. I am so excited
to serve the Lord and to strengthen my testimony. I say this in the name of
Jesus Christ, Amen
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| Easter Sunday |
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