Easter Lesson

Mom, click on the highlighted links if you want to see the video. One day, I'll figure out how to input actual video into my entries.

Yesterday was my swan song in YW for a few weeks. It was harder than I thought it would be. I have really come to love all those girls, and I feed off the energy I feel from them.
Brad helped me as A/V guy for my lesson. I used the video clip that the Church quickly assembled from Elder Holland's fantastic talk (http://www.lds.org/) , and this photo montage put together to "I Know That My Redeemer Lives."
When the lesson was over, Brad and I were walking in the hall, and I asked him what he thought of the lesson. He said that I don't teach like a girl. That I teach like a man--to the point and no fru-fru. "Is that good or bad?" He said, "Like Tina Ray." Which, if you don't know her, that is a HUGE compliment. Then came this comment, "Less Elaine Dalton. Like Sheri Dew." Wow. I couldn't have been more pleased.

I love this picture of Christ walking on the water. I used this in my lesson, as well. Now, I know I'm a much better teacher than I am a writer, but I wanted to share my feelings and testimony of the Savior.
The man in this picture who is portraying Christ is a friend of ours. We lived in the same ward when we were newlyweds, way back in the BYU days. A few years ago, we ran into him and his wife, Noreen, when we were first cast in the Easter Pageant. He became good friends with my Micah because they had a very touching scene together. And each year, we've talked and reconnected during the pageant. This year, as busy as Robert was, he would always ask me about my family, how Brad's shoulder surgery went, seeking out Micah to touch his hand during the triumphal entry scene, even wrestling with Ben for a few minutes one night before the performance.
When this exhibit of pictures was first put together last year, I went down to the Mesa Temple's Visitor's Center to see it. Brad took part in one of the photo shoots, portraying one of the apostles in the ascension, and I wanted to see if I could find him. But when I saw this picture of Christ walking on the water, I was overwhelmed with emotion. Because of the kind of man Robert is, it gave me a small window into what it will be like for me to meet my Savior again. Christ knows me. He knows my family. He knows my name, where I live, and what I'm doing. And He cares. He is that personal, that intimate, that familiar to me. And every time I see this picture, I am reminded of the singular experience I had at that exhibit. If you haven't had a chance to see the video, you can watch it here. I promise it will change how you see and love the Savior.
Testimony is a tricky thing. It's hard to describe, personal and real. My meager words cannot do justice to the gratitude and the love I feel for my Savior, Jesus Christ. What a blessing it has been in my life and in the life of my family to participate in the Easter Pageant, becoming part of those momentous moments in the history of mankind. I have been forever blessed for that service.
Epiphany #64--I know that my Redeemer lives.