The Lesson of the Pencil

By Sister Tracy Y. Browning

Second Counselor in the Primary General Presidency

From an interview with Lori Fuller Sosa.

Once I visited some Primary children in Jamaica. I asked them to draw a picture of something they could do that week to show Heavenly Father that they love Him. Two girls were sitting near each other.

The younger girl had just a teeny, little pencil with no eraser. She was struggling to draw her picture. The older girl noticed the younger girl needed help. She handed her own pencil to her. The younger girl smiled, took the pencil, and started drawing.

I watched the older girl wait patiently while the younger girl finished her drawing. Then the younger girl handed the pencil back. They took turns using the pencil without saying any words. The older girl was willing to help, and the younger girl was just so grateful and accepting of that help. They knew they could depend on each other.

When everyone finished their drawings, I told the older girl that I saw her share her pencil. I asked, “Why did you do that?”

She said, “I just saw she needed help.”

Then I asked the younger girl, “How did you feel when she helped you?”

She said, “I was so grateful!” It was very sweet.

Sometimes we may wonder how to keep our covenants. We might think that it’s a big, complicated thing. But it isn’t! I watched a child teach me how to keep covenants by helping others in need.

I testify that as you do those simple things to help and serve others, you are keeping your covenants. And when we keep our covenants, we can feel God’s power in our lives.