Testimony Meeting

I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. On the first Sunday of each month our church has a testimony meeting during our Sacrament services. Basically that means that they open the podium up to anyone who wants to stand and talk about how the feel about the church. It is completely voluntary.

Today I wanted to get up and bear my testimony, but I was suffering from stage fright. I knew if I got up that I would end up crying. Now I am feeling guilty that I didn't follow my heart. Had I been brave enough to stand up this is what I would have said:

"The last two weeks I have prayed harder than I think I ever have and I have cried harder than I have in quite a while. I was so worried that my friend wouldn't get her baby, that the placement would fall through and that she and her husband would end up going home to an empty house. I begged my Father in Heaven to not let that happen, I pleaded and at one point I even tried to bargain. At times I wanted to give up hope, how could my prayers make a difference? I am just one person. But I couldn't let go of the hope I had inside. This had to work, it just had to.

I had forgotten just how powerful a prayer can be. At first my prayers were "how can this be happening, it's not right." Then it was "please, don't let this happen to them. Can't you see they need this baby." Finally after several days of praying my heart seemed to calm down and I knew that things would work out the way they were supposed to. I didn't know for sure that the placement would happen, I just knew that it would go according to the Lord's plan.

I know I wasn't alone in my prayers and we must have prayed hard enough because things worked out and my friend was able to take this sweet little baby home."