I have a cool story for you... :D
When my husband, Miles, was 14, he couldn't read very well; he struggled just to read simple one syllable words due to learning differences (which some call "disabilities," but we know better than that ;).
One day Miles came home and saw two young men wearing suits, ties, name badges, and holding books in their hands. The moment Miles saw these young men and a book they were holding - everything in his life began to change.
Miles recognized the Bible, but there was another book he didn't recognize. He was intrigued by the book so turned his head sideways to get a better view of the letters without seeing them upside down or sideways. As he struggled to read the title... a good feeling came over him as well as a voice into his mind that told him "this book is true..."
The title of the book was The Book of Mormon.
As he struggled daily to read the Book of Mormon, Miles learned to read. He read it because he wanted to know what it said; he had been blessed with a testimony that the words in the book were true before he even read it, so his desire to read it was great. And though he had tutors at school who tried to teach him to read for many years... nothing worked like simply reading from the scriptures.
A few years later, from the ages of about 21-23, he followed in the footsteps of the fine young men who visited his home and introduced the Scriptures to him and his family by joining the rank of "Missionary." How can you not want to share with others something that has totally changed and made better your life? Miles served a full time mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Utah (what a great place to be for a new convert of the church who was still learning the gospel). {BTY - An elderly woman he knew sold cinnamon rolls during his mission to help support him while he was out serving. This has always been a blessing to Miles and has caused him to want to serve others more. Cool, eh? ;)}
Today, this fine young man of mine is now a strong and faithful member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints who reads from the Book of Mormon to our children daily (usually :) along with the Bible etc.
And when our children struggled to learn to read... you can probably guess what I did... That's right, I pulled out the scriptures, and they too, learned to read. :D
9:30 PM... later the same day I posted this blog post...
PS. See the comments section for more history on the kids' reading history. ;D
PPS. Miles went on to get a Masters Degree in college and start his own business as a sailboat dealer. He is also creating an online boating publication that is absolutely amazing! He is amazing! The things a person can overcome are amazing! Isn't life amazing? :D
When my husband, Miles, was 14, he couldn't read very well; he struggled just to read simple one syllable words due to learning differences (which some call "disabilities," but we know better than that ;).
One day Miles came home and saw two young men wearing suits, ties, name badges, and holding books in their hands. The moment Miles saw these young men and a book they were holding - everything in his life began to change.
Miles recognized the Bible, but there was another book he didn't recognize. He was intrigued by the book so turned his head sideways to get a better view of the letters without seeing them upside down or sideways. As he struggled to read the title... a good feeling came over him as well as a voice into his mind that told him "this book is true..."
The title of the book was The Book of Mormon.
As he struggled daily to read the Book of Mormon, Miles learned to read. He read it because he wanted to know what it said; he had been blessed with a testimony that the words in the book were true before he even read it, so his desire to read it was great. And though he had tutors at school who tried to teach him to read for many years... nothing worked like simply reading from the scriptures.
A few years later, from the ages of about 21-23, he followed in the footsteps of the fine young men who visited his home and introduced the Scriptures to him and his family by joining the rank of "Missionary." How can you not want to share with others something that has totally changed and made better your life? Miles served a full time mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Utah (what a great place to be for a new convert of the church who was still learning the gospel). {BTY - An elderly woman he knew sold cinnamon rolls during his mission to help support him while he was out serving. This has always been a blessing to Miles and has caused him to want to serve others more. Cool, eh? ;)}
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| Miles and one of the Elders he served with. Miles is the Elder on the right. |
And when our children struggled to learn to read... you can probably guess what I did... That's right, I pulled out the scriptures, and they too, learned to read. :D
9:30 PM... later the same day I posted this blog post...
PS. See the comments section for more history on the kids' reading history. ;D
PPS. Miles went on to get a Masters Degree in college and start his own business as a sailboat dealer. He is also creating an online boating publication that is absolutely amazing! He is amazing! The things a person can overcome are amazing! Isn't life amazing? :D
Wow! Great minds think a like on our post today :) I truly believe that these books can help improve our children's reading {or teenagers reading} Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteLove it, and I have found it to be so true! All of my children learn to read as we struggle our way through the scriptures each morning. They learn to pronounce and sound out words they have never seen anywhere else. They are all at the top of their classes in reading now. I really belive that we can help them as we strive to follow the teachings of the prophet in our lives. Love the story!!
ReplyDeleteKendra - We are great, aren't we? ;D
ReplyDeleteMy twins were severely behind in reading when I pulled them out of public school at the end of 3rd grade. They have LD's and AS, so their work was cut out for them. Thanks to reading the scriptures together... when I sent them back to middle school for one year (I needed a break!) at age 13, only one of them was still behind in reading; the other was actually reading at grade level! :D I'm hoping that when they are tested again they will both be above grade level. Homeschooling and scripture reading... are AWESOME!
Thanks for your comment.
Patty Ann - No doubt about it. Reading the scriptures makes poor readers really good readers, and good readers amazing readers! Those books ROCK!
PS See comment above... I'm happy for our kids. :)
I've taught The Native's that if they can read the scriptures, they can read anything! So, that is how they learn to read. The scriptures!
ReplyDelete