Beech Tree News Network

On Saturday night, May 18th two local area students,  Jordan Bryant  son of Billy and Kelly Thomas Bryant and Coty L Havens son of Pete and Christy Minton Havens, received a 4 year diploma for attending Early Morning Seminary classes with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  Each day the students met with their teacher Karen Larsen at 6AM each school morning at the local Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints church building on Logansport Rd  for classes.  They spend this early morning hour studying the scriptures before heading off to school.  The Seminary program is available to all high school students.

At the Seminary Graduation held in Hopkinsville KY at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Stake Center which is the hub for surrounding units of the church,  Two of the graduating students spoke followed by talks by Chris Johnson, counselor in the Young Men Presidency and Shane Hadley, area Church Education System Coordinator.

Jordan Bryant from the Morgantown unit,  commented regarding his 4 years attending Seminary classes, "We are going out of the world for an hour to get ready to go back into the world". 

These youth find great strength in the opportunity to worship daily. Brother Johnson is a Special Forces soldier.  He told a story about his
recent tour overseas, "We are Special Forces.  We don't wear helments, we wear baseball caps." he then spoke about a day when one of the Special Forces soldiers happened to wear his helment and got shot in the head. "The next day all the Special Forces soldiers put on their helments when they went out on patrol!"  he then likened this incident to the "armor of God" mentioned by Paul in Ephesians 6.  "You have acquired a nice set of armor." he told the students, "As you go out into life you will be tested.  Maintain your spiritual armor."
The students have, indeed, acquired many parts of their spiritual armor over the last 4 years.  We wish them best of luck as they step out into their battlefield of life!