Editor’s note: This is the fifth in a series of profiles of people increasing their self-reliance through classes from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Part one on “Starting and Growing My Business” is here. Part two on “Emotional Resilience” is here. Part three on EnglishConnect is here. Part four on “Find a Better Job” is here.
Lesley-Anne Jones, from the Brooklyn New York Stake, learned from her mother — who just turned 100 years old — about the importance of education.
While serving as her ward’s Relief Society president, Jones heard about self-reliance classes from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and realized that she could continue learning in this way.
Circumstances had changed in her life, and she decided to take the Personal Finances class.
“I wanted to take control of my own finances,” Jones said, but she soon saw that the classes were about more than just numbers: “I wasn’t expecting the focus on spirituality.”
The class was developed by the Church to aid members with the spiritual and temporal necessities of life. Each class — meeting in a group setting with a facilitator — starts with a prayer and a gospel principle. Resources and instruction, group discussion and goal setting follow.
Jones said it is challenging to share her feelings with people she didn’t know. But when she saw that the others in the room were people she knew from her ward, she “felt at peace in the class.”
Over the 12-week course, she learned practical lessons, such as budgeting and planning for the future: “I tightened my budget and started investing.”
And she learned perspective: “If I’m doing my part, Heavenly Father will do His part.”
From living on the streets to finding direction
For a period of three years, Juanita Matthis, of the Westchester New York Stake, lived on the streets of New York and in a women’s shelter.
After joining the Church, she took her first self-reliance class, called Education for Better Work. Then she took Personal Finance and Emotional Resilience, which helped her maintain her emotions.
“My life has not been the same since I came to these classes,” Matthis said.
Today she helps facilitate a Personal Finance class and is taking college classes.
Even though she was on food and rental assistance, the finance class taught her how to live with a limited budget. “Now I like paying my bills,” Matthis said.
The religious principles taught in the classes have given her more direction for her future.
“The Savior likes it when you have order in your life,” she said, adding, “Every class has taught me something about myself.”
Matthis encourages others to take the self-reliance courses, saying, “You are not the only one going through struggles.”
Strengthening finances in marriage
Holman and Belinda Medina of the Fairfield Connecticut Stake have been married for two years and just completed the Personal Finance class together.
“I think it’s one of the best things spouses can do together. It can strengthen a marriage,” Holman Medina said.
Belinda Medina said they enjoyed spending time with people in their ward and sharing experiences during the classes. They also learned the importance of putting God first when making financial decisions, and the spiritual principles behind managing their money.
“Finances and the gospel go hand in hand,” she said. “It’s hard to help others when you are struggling.”
Marvalyn Richardson, of the Lynbrook New York Stake, took the classes with her husband as well — which she said had a profound influence on her family. They paid off the balance of their debt and continue to use the practices they learned in the class.
“It really helps you to grow your better self. You’re not just preached to, you are taught,” Richardson said.
The mother of three who served a full-time mission in her native Jamaica said the spiritual lessons learned in the self-reliance classes go beyond financial principles. She now feels more confident to find solutions for problems and figure things out.
If people think a class like this is not for them, Richardson would tell them: “It is for you. You just need to let the Lord be there to lead you.”
And Jones gave this advice to others considering a self-reliance course: “Look at your life and see where you could do better. There’s a class that can help you.”
— Elder Bob Hansen and Sister Lorraine Hansen, self-reliance missionaries in the New York New York City Mission, contributed to this article.
