Yes, Pikus-Pace is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (Read her Mormon.org profile here — obviously written before Sochi.) If you look at photos of her wearing her silver medal, you might also see her wearing the Young Women torch necklace (see our Facebook page) or the Young Women medallion. The torch is a reminder to stand and shine Christ’s light to others, and the medallion is a symbol of years of work of goal-setting and faith-building efforts through the Personal Progress program.

You’ve probably already heard her Skeleton story — from being at the top of the charts in the sport a decade ago (and, looking back, realizing that her sport came before family), to missing the Turin Olympics due to a freak (and serious) leg injury (a bobsled ran into her), to barely missing a podium spot in Vancouver, to retirement after Vancouver, to re-entering her sport after a devastating miscarriage (at 18 weeks) and prayerful, partnership-focused consideration.

The catch to her coming back to compete? Her family would travel together to everything.

How was this possible? Friends and family helped, and eventually she got a sponsorship, but the story that brought me to tears this week was about a couple who had a chance meeting with Noelle and decided to quietly hand her a card with a $30,000 check in it a week before they were set to start traveling.

Mormons talk about how important marriage and family are. It’s wonderful to see such a powerful, primetime-sports example of a family who lives that reality. Did you watch the video showing how she jumped into the stands to get to her family? And how she said, “Remember who you are and what you stand for!”? I love to see how Noelle and her husband works together (he even designed and built her sled: e.g., “For Pikus-Pace, the custom sled is a reminder of the couple’s enduring partnership. ‘It’s never been only me crossing finish line,’ she said. ‘It’s always been us.'”) I love seeing their determination to make this dream work, and only make it work if the family could do it together. Although their situation is definitely unusual, and the miracles that made this possible were significant, the principles of putting family (and faith) first are applicable to us all. (See this simple photo of Pikus-Pace attending LDS Sunday church meetings in Sochi.)

I’m reminded of a quote we read yesterday in Relief Society:

“Do you spend as much time making your family and home successful as you do in pursuing social and professional success? Are you devoting your best creative energy to the most important unit in society–the family?” (Joseph Fielding Smith)

p.s. Besides the smile and tears I experienced as I watched the last run online, hearing the commentator talk about how she started her run with eyes closed (the commentator assumes in prayer), and how it was her family that was everything as she did that last run, I cracked up to hear that she has 2 kilos of chocolate taped into her sled.

** Image from Noelle Pikus-Page Facebook fan page.

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A key facet of teachings of leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is based in prioritizing our lives so that the things that matter most get our time and energy. We are encouraged to build our relationship with God, and, as expressed here, build relationships with those we love and care about.

Another quote that illustrates this teaching is from M. Russell Ballard, who said:

In the Church, our belief in the overriding importance of families is rooted in restored doctrine. We know of the sanctity of families in both directions of our eternal existence. We know that before this life we lived with our Heavenly Father as part of His family, and we know that family relationships can endure beyond death…. What matters most is what lasts longest, and our families are for eternity. (What Matters Most is What Lasts the Longest

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“Man’s greatest happiness comes from losing himself for the good of others.” (David O. McKay, from this talk)

Service is an answer for unhappiness. (Please understand that I am not saying that service is the answer for clinical depression or other mental illnesses, that is a hugely different issue.)

Many years ago I became acquainted with a wealthy woman (wealthy by my standards). One day we got onto the topic of paying tithing. She said, “Getting paid more doesn’t mean that paying tithing is any easier. It gets harder because that check is so large. You look at it and think, ‘Wow, that could almost buy a car!'” I realized that she was right, it hadn’t occurred to me before. Her statement stuck with me and recently I realized that I had that attitude, but in relation to service.

Recently I’ve been frustrated by the responsibilities my husband and I have at church. It seemed overwhelming that so much is asked of both of us. How could we take care of everything in our lives and perform the duties necessary at church? When I asked it of myself, of my husband, and of God, I thought it was a rhetorical question. Turns out God gave me an answer. The answer is that I have too many useless cares. I have too much good and better but not enough best.

This morning the lines to the hymn ‘Come Come Ye Saints’ [“saints” in our church simply means “members”] came into my mind:

“Come, come, ye Saints, no toil nor labor fear;
But with joy wend your way.
Though hard to you this journey may appear,
Grace shall be as your day.
’Tis better far for us to strive
Our useless cares from us to drive;
Do this, and joy your hearts will swell—
All is well! All is well!”
– William Clayton (LDS Hymns #30)

Specifically I thought of the line, “our useless cares from us to drive….” The service I perform is important, to some in desperate need it could even be called essential. My children and husband would say that my service in our home is essential. That is something worth caring about. What isn’t so obvious is what isn’t worth caring about, the useless cares. It is a waste of my precious energies to worry and care for useless things. Useless cares may be different for each individual; right now TV is on my list of useless cares, but it might not be one of yours.

A care that I thought was less important, but not exactly useless, was housework and maintaining a reasonably nice home. I am realizing that this is important and effects my family. After I cleaned the kitchen and cleared everything off the kitchen table, my son said, “Mom I like what you did with the table.” It was a little clue to me that I hadn’t been creating the right environment in my home. At the end of each day that I make an effort towards keeping a nice home I feel good. I’m not saying that this is something you need to care about (just like you’re not going to tell me to care about TV), but for me, and where I’m at in my progression, it is something that God wants me to care about.

I have to trust God enough to let Him lead me in a direction that roots out the useless cares of my life, choosing the path of selfless service. To me that is what the hymn means when it says, “No toil nor labor fear.” Choosing service usually involves a period of stress where I renegotiate my own priorities and find useless cares to eliminate. Through this process I find greater happiness, please God, and have the great benefit of aiding those in need.

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What Matters Most — President Thomas S. Monson counsels us about focusing on what matters most. “Never let a problem to be solved be more important than a person to be loved.”

You’re Never Alone: Sister Elain S. Dalton shares an experience running a marathon where she hit a wall, prayed for help, and received insights that can apply to all of us in our lives.

The Women in Our Lives

Are We Christians?

Elder Gary Coleman talks of growing up as a devout Christian, and how his conversion to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints added to the knowledge he already had and loved about faith. He talks about what he learned about the Godhead, about the Book of Mormon as another testament of Jesus Christ, about priesthood authority.

Choose This Day

The post Links We Like: Videos on trusting God, faith and prayer, priorities appeared first on Women in The Church of Jesus Christ.