John Bytheway

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From Prom to Pulpit

October 23, 2015 3 Comments

A few years ago, something happened at our stake conference that, to me, was quite interesting. I thought it was so wonderful that I used it as the introduction for a book.  See if you agree!

From Prom to Pulpit

Something remarkable happened at our last stake conference. A priest and a Laurel spoke to the large congregation assembled in the Sunday morning session. Jordan talked about his role as a member of a family, and Victoria described the recent passing of a friend and how the gospel helped her through it.

Not so remarkable? Well, there’s more. Somewhere in Jordan’s talk it came out that he had attended the school’s senior prom. I suppose lots of seniors go to senior prom, so perhaps it still may not seem so remarkable. Then it came out that the girl he had invited to go to senior prom just happened to be Victoria, the Laurel who was also speaking. Interesting, huh! But not remarkable, you think?

Actually, I’m still not finished. The senior prom took place the night before. In other words, twelve hours earlier, two of the stake conference speakers were at a dance. And at ten o’clock the next morning, they were sitting on the stand — both with big smiles, both showing quiet confidence, and both completely comfortable with the situation.

I thought to myself, “Those two young people don’t even know how remarkable they are.” And that, in itself, is also remarkable. Jordan would probably say, “What’s the big deal? I’ve given talks in church before—we all have.”

It’s true. As members of the Church, we see this sort of thing all the time. The world might think it a little odd that two kids could go to senior prom one night and speak in church the next day — because high school proms are becoming a pretty worldly event.

But not here. These two kids go to their senior prom Saturday night, then get up Sunday morning and speak in church—no guilt, no regrets, no hangover, alert, awake, and excited.

I was near the back row with my six kids, listening the best I could in between picking up Cheerios and crayons, but I couldn’t get over what an interesting situation this was with these two remarkable youth!

Some might say, “Well, those kids aren’t really normal. They’re probably brainwashed fanatical misfits.” Actually, Jordan was a varsity basketball player and a student body officer. And Victoria was a junior varsity lacrosse player, a gymnast, and a member of the seminary council.

The world is right about one thing, however: “They’re just not normal.” Correct. These kids are not normal. They’re amazing. They’re remarkable. And while we’re on the subject, so are you. Yes, you. You are a teenager reading a book—a religious book, no less. And you, my friend, like Jordan and Victoria, probably don’t even realize how remarkable you are.

You’ve been reading an excerpt from Life Rocks: How Firm is Your Foundation?

 


Comments

  1. Sarah says

    October 23, 2015 at 3:13 pm

    When my daughter went to Junior Prom a few years ago, she and her friends arranged to have dinner early enough that they could attend the adult session of Stake Conference in their formal attire before going to Prom at their high school across the street. It was so amazing to see these beautiful young people sitting with their families having prioritized their evening to include listening to their Stake Leaders and visiting Authorities.

    Reply
    • Bea says

      October 23, 2015 at 6:34 pm

      And that they were modestly dressed to attend both a Stake Conference and a Prom in the same evening.

      Good kids making good choices!

      Reply
  2. Kara says

    October 25, 2015 at 4:02 am

    I like how they knew where they were going the next day. Going to prom and leaving what truly has become a worldly event can be scary for parents as well as teenagers, and I know that the Lord holds our hands through those events. The music at the junior prom I went to last year and it wasn’t the best , but singing hymns in church the next Sunday felt like a gentle brush smoothing out the tangles that bad music caused.

    Reply

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JOHN BYTHEWAY served a mission to the Philippines and later graduated from Brigham Young University. He has a master's degree in religious education and is a part-time instructor at the BYU Salt Lake Center. John is the author of many bestselling books, audio talks, and DVDs, including How to Be an Extraordinary Teen; Life Rocks; and his first children's picture book, The Sacrament. He and his wife, Kimberly, have six children.

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