so this last week we had our pinewood derby race with the missionaries our car weighed 8 oz and we won twice so that was cool
i cant even remember most of what happened this week it was all a blur honestly but was had more lessons this week 16 and we contacted 3 of the referrals from the tracting blitz. so many people werent home again. we did service one day this week and worked on our talks for sunday. we had some awkward moments with people avoiding us... eh mission life. we had a good turn out for our wards come and see and had 3 non member youth there that we have been getting to know!
we have had a crazy week. we got transfers calls and cleaned and the sister packed on saturday and we started their goodbyes. here is my talk from church. i added a few things later but youll get the idear. we all matched on sunday for our last sunday and everyone LOVED IT. ohhh the trio.
well love you all! xoxo
sister wasden
talk below.
opening question: How can we more fully keep the covenants we have made?
→ most of us here in this room have made the baptismal covenant . so lets have a little refresher of what we actually promised!
in mosiah 18:8&9 it reads:
8 And it came to pass that he said unto them: Behold, here are the waters of Mormon (for thus were they called) and now, as ye are desirous to come into the fold of God, and to be called his people, and are willing to bear one another’s burdens, that they may be light;
9 Yea, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death, that ye may be redeemed of God, and be numbered with those of the first resurrection, that ye may have eternal life—
elder zeballos said this last general conference in his talk “if you will be responsible”:
What responsibility do we have as members of the Church of Jesus Christ? President Joseph Fielding Smith expressed it as follows: “We have these two great responsibilities. … First, to seek our own salvation; and, second, our duty to our fellow men.”2
These, then, are the main responsibilities that our Father has assigned to us: seeking our own salvation and that of others, with the understanding that in this statement, salvation means reaching the highest degree of glory that our Father has provided for His obedient children.3 These responsibilities that have been entrusted to us—and which we have freely accepted—must define our priorities, our desires, our decisions, and our daily conduct.
→ he reminds us just as the scripture in mosiah says we have freely accepted these responsibilities. in mosiah alma is telling us we must be willing. so are we willing to live up to the promises we made and responsibilities we have accepted?
→ in preach my gospel it says: “A covenant is a binding and solemn agreement between God and man. God promises to bless us, and we promise to obey Him. God sets the terms of gospel covenants, which we either accept or reject. Keeping covenants brings blessings in this life and exaltation in the life to come. Covenants place us under a strong obligation to honor our commitments to God. To keep our covenants, we must give up activities or interests that prevent us from honoring those covenants.” When I was younger my mom was called as the relief society president in our ward and I remember thinking sometimes why does my mom have to be gone all time, why does she have to be in meetings all the time or constantly off to visit a sister in need. obviously it was a little dramatised because i was young but the principle is still the same, she knew the covenant she made with her heavenly father was important and she willingly did all that he asked.
elder zeballos gives us 4 points on how we can fulfill the desire to be responsible to our Heavenly father. he says
“1. Learning Our Duty
If we are to do God’s will, if we are to be responsible to Him, we must begin by learning, understanding, accepting, and living according to His will for us. The Lord has said, “Wherefore, now let every man learn his duty, and to act in the office in which he is appointed, in all diligence.”5 Having the desire to do what is right is not enough if we do not make sure to understand what our Father expects from us and wants us to do.”
→ D&C 107:99 reads:
99 Wherefore, now let every man learn his duty, and to act in the office in which he is appointed, in all diligence.
2. Making the Decision
Whether we have learned about the Restoration of the gospel, a particular commandment, the duties associated with serving in a calling, or the covenants we make in the temple, the choice is ours whether or not we act according to that new knowledge. Each person chooses freely for himself or herself to enter into a sacred covenant such as baptism or the temple ordinances.
3. Acting Accordingly
After learning our duty and making the decisions that are associated with that learning and understanding, we must act accordingly.
The path that we have chosen to walk is narrow. Along the way are challenges that will require our faith in Jesus Christ and our best efforts to stay on the path and press forward. We need to repent and be obedient and patient, even if we do not understand all the circumstances that surround us. We must forgive others and live in accordance with what we have learned and with the choices we have made.
4. Willingly Accepting the Father’s Will
Discipleship requires us not only to learn our duty, make correct decisions, and act in accordance with them, but also essential is our developing the willingness and the ability to accept God’s will, even if it does not match our righteous desires or preferences.
I have seen in my own life how these steps apply. in college i had righteous desires, to continue my education, hopefully soon get married in the temple etc. yes they were all good and i need to do them but a mission wasnt in my plan. i prayed and searched the scriptures but my desire to serve wasnt quite there yet. i knew my answer was i needed to serve a mission so i first learned my duty. and made the decision to serve, submitting my papers was the 3rd step to act accordingly and finally accepting the fathers will. i came on a mission to be obedient to what god had in store for me rather than what i wanted although they were still all good things.
elder zeballos concludes his talk saying:
“Over time, I have come to understand that the condition he gave me—to be responsible for that decision—meant being responsible to my Heavenly Father and seeking my own salvation and that of my fellowmen, thereby becoming more as my Father expects and wants me to become.”
→ sometimes being responsible might not always seem fun or enjoyable especially in high school and college, or when raising children, but elder sitati reminded us in his talk that “Laboring in the spirit of charity is not a duty but a joy. Challenges become opportunities to build faith. We become “witnesses of [the goodness of] God at all times and in all things, and in all places that [we] may be in, even until death.”
In our day, living prophets and apostles continue to lift their voices to invite each one of us to become fully engaged in the work of salvation according to our abilities and opportunities.
The starting point of a response that yields much fruit is to “be meek and lowly in heart.”4 We can then more fully come unto Christ as we yield to the enticings of the Holy Spirit and keep all the covenants we have made.5 We can seek and receive the gift of charity and have power to invite our own families, our ancestors, and our member and nonmember neighbors and friends to receive the gospel of Jesus Christ.
→ he goes on to say “All of us can and should become fully engaged in the work of salvation. The Savior has given us the following responsibility with a promise: “I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.”
→ so how can we be fruitful, develop charity and obedience and do as both elder zeballos and sitati tell us to help others come unto Him and seek salvation?
→elder sitati said that “We become fruitful as we abide in Christ and as we “take upon [ourselves His] name [and] … serve him to the end”3 by helping others come unto Him.
that answers how we can become fruitful to serve Christ and helping others come unto him. but how do we develop charity?
I feel like a lot of times we don't know where to start to develop attributes such charity, obedience, patience and to accept the fathers will. sister silvia allred gave some good counsel for developing charity in her talk charity never faileth. she said “We must first have the desire to increase in charity and be more Christlike. The next step is to pray. Mormon exhorts us to “pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that [we] may be filled with this love.” This godly love is charity, and as we are filled with this love, so “we shall be like him.”
→ if you dont have the desire to increase in charity and be more christlike then skip step one and pray for the desire then restart with step one. once we have the desire and pray, the third step is to read our scriptures. She says”
“Reading scriptures daily can bring our minds to the Savior and to a desire to be more like Him.”
→ i promise that daily scripture study and prayer will help us be able to share what we learn and god will bless us and help us as we do his work and will.
→ so now we know that we need charity and how to begin to develop it, but what is charity?
→ LDS.org defines Charity as the pure love of Christ. It is the love that Christ has for the children of men and that the children of men should have for one another. It is the highest, noblest, and strongest kind of love and the most joyous to the soul
→ elder holland said in his talk The Cost—and Blessings—of Discipleship says:
“Pure Christlike love flowing from true righteousness can change the world. I testify that the true and living gospel of Jesus Christ is on the earth and you are members of His true and living Church, trying to share it.
→ elder holland goes on to say:
“Be strong. Live the gospel faithfully even if others around you don’t live it at all. Defend your beliefs with courtesy and with compassion, but defend them. A long history of inspired voices, including those you will hear in this conference and the voice you just heard in the person of President Thomas S. Monson, point you toward the path of Christian discipleship. It is a strait path, and it is a narrow path without a great deal of latitude at some points, but it can be thrillingly and successfully traveled, “with … steadfastness in Christ, … a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men.”
→ are we seeking and living the gospel? our devotion and love of the gospel is shown by our outward devotion to share it!
in preach my gospel it says:
“Members who share the gospel experience joy and have the Spirit of the Lord more abundantly. As we share the gospel, we appreciate how precious and meaningful it is to us, and we feel a greater love for God and others. The Lord commanded His followers to preach the gospel in all the world, giving every person the opportunity to accept or reject it. When people are baptized, they make a covenant to always stand as witnesses of God. They are commanded to share the gospel with those who have not yet received it. As they live the gospel faithfully, they will set an example, showing their family members and friends the great blessings that come from living the gospel. They should also take advantage of opportunities to answer questions, share printed or audiovisual materials, and invite others to learn more about the message of the restored gospel. Members should pray for those who are not members of the Church. They should pray for missionary opportunities—to serve those who are not of our faith and share what they believe. The Lord promises to help members know what to say and do as they share the gospel.”
→ i promise that as we live and share the gospel we can more fully keep our baptismal covenants.
when i was little my parents taught me to be a member of the 10% club, my mom told me that often times 10% of the people do 90% of the work. i want to challenge all of you to become members of the 10% club. its not always easy but i know that its worth it. lets all be in the 10%s club especially when it comes to sharing and living the gospel. i challenge you to truly feel the missionary spirit and actively share the gospel. i know that as we develop charity, obedience, willingly accept god’s will for us we will become fruitful and be better disciples of our savior, jesus christ.
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