Meridian Magazine :: Can Do Youth: Diamonds and Disciples

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Diamonds and Disciples
By Vickey Pahnke-Taylor

Editor's Note: If you've always wanted to sail to Alaska, you can do it in the company of Vickey Pahnke-Taylor and Meridian Magazine. Click here for information. And if you want to sail with her through the Panama Canal, here's the link.

Diamonds get a lot of press. Engagement rings, anniversary presents, the “bling” that people wear advertise for these precious gems. But diamonds, with all their facets, brilliance, and reflection of light, began in a very different state.

Far beneath the surface of the earth (75 to 120 miles below), immense pressure bears upon carbon (coal material) in order to create diamond crystals. Going from a coal state to a diamond state is a long process (thousands of years) that requires a lot of heat and exacting reactions under pressure. These diamonds are carried to the surface by volcanic eruptions.

Phew! What a process! And of so many could-be diamonds, only a small percentage of them make it to that dazzling state.

We may come to learn that we are diamonds in the making. Far from our Father's celestial sphere, we find ourselves under immense pressure on occasion. It may be a long process, with a lot of “heat” aimed in our direction. We may be required to fulfill exacting details and persevere with faith and trust rather than react in a way that would disturb the formation of our better character.

In a world where we deal with obstacles and suffer tribulation, many may stumble. The percentage of believers who place their trust in heaven and are carried to a higher plane and a loftier point of view may be relatively small. The chance to become gems lies within our purview, and is up to how we react under pressure.

Stick to Our Jobs

Malcolm Forbes once made an interesting observation:

“Diamonds are nothing more than chunks of coal that stuck to their jobs.”

If we, like those chunks of coal, stick to our jobs, we will find that we come to a more polished form, full of brilliance and light. Our job is to learn about the gospel truths, pray for increased understanding and incorporate the understanding into our sometimes complex and difficult lives.

Sticking to our job grants us grace under pressure. That, and our faith when being inundated with forces that seem beyond our capability to cope with, grant us eventual brilliance that would otherwise be unattainable. Because of our firm commitment to the polishing process, we are strengthened as an iron rod.

The word “diamond” comes from the Greek word “Adamas.” It means indestructible. A diamond is the hardest material on Earth, as far as we know. We, as diamonds, may become indestructible with regard to our testimony and our faith, standing strong against even the most adversarial blows.

Disciples, like diamonds, are developed in a process of time and heavy pressures, and both the disciple and the diamond reflect and magnify the light that comes through them (Elder Neal A. Maxwell, Wherefore, Ye Must Press Forward, p.125).

Forget the “bling” that this world advertises. We may get no press, but we get the satisfaction of ever-growing discipleship. We have to go through the pressures and stresses of mortality — faithfully doing our job — to become true disciples of Christ.

In so doing, our Father blesses us with a brilliance that reflects his heavenly light and grants us every privilege offered to the Lord's faithful. No diamond ever shined so brightly or reflected more light!

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About the Author:

Vickey is a songwriter/producer, vocalist, and professional speaker, and has performed and/or taught in numerous venues. Her compositions include the theme songs for the Special Olympics program (state by state selection), the Make A Wish Foundation, the Especially For Youth program of the Church, and the Families In Focus program. She is a Billboard award winning songwriter, with hundreds of songs to her credit.

She has enjoyed participation in the Church Education System’s youth and family programs for almost two decades, having taught for Know Your Religion, Campus Education Week at BYU-Provo, BYU-Hawaii, and BYU- Idaho, Especially for Youth, Best of Especially for Youth, and BYU Conferences and Workshops.

Studying musical theater at BYU, she has used that learning experience in the music field as a way of enhancing the teaching of correct principles. Her latest gospel works include the collaborative projects "Women at the Well" with Kenneth Cope and "My Beloved Christ" with Randy Kartchner. Vickey has contributed to numerous EFY albums over the years and as a chapter contributor for many yearly EFY books; and as contributor the best selling LDS compilation, Sunshine for the Latter Day Saint Teenage Soul. She authored the book K.I.S.S.: Gospel Guidelines for Better Relationships for Bookcraft Publishing Company. For two years she was editor and columnist for "Gems for Youth" on the web at LDSWorld.com, formerly the Church’s electronic arm.

Vickey’s performance/teaching experience includes venues from participation with a nationally touring Repertory Theater Company to Symphony Halls to corporate conventions throughout the U.S. She has been commissioned to write scripts for the Faith & Values Channel; and created and directed the Bi-Centennial celebration for the Hampton Roads, Virginia area.

She holds a masters degree in interpersonal communications and currently resides in Salt Lake City, Utah. She is married to Dean Taylor and together they have eight children and two grandchildren.