Did you know? President George Albert Smith served three full-time missions and also served two years as a mission president. No wonder he was such a huge advocate of missionary work. He had learned how much sharing the gospel blesses lives--those that listen and those that do the sharing.
What do we love about the the gospel? Marilyn Bullock suggested that the gospel enlarges our hearts (kind of like chocolate enlarges... the rest of us).
Doctrine & Covenants 4:4 says, "The field is white already to harvest." Nancy reminded us that so many people are ready for the gospel.
"So, as we go forward, each of us, each having an influence with our neighbors and our friends, let us not be too timid. We do not need to annoy people, but let us make them feel and understand that we are interested, not in making them members of the Church for membership, but in bringing them into the Church that they may enjoy the same blessings that we enjoy." [p. 138]
Margaret Ord told a story about her son, Michael. He was on the high school football team in San Diego. He invited one of his teammates to come to church. The friend said that if he came to church, his whole family needed to come with him. They came to church--and the whole family of five was baptized three months later. The friend's dad was a "hardcore Marine" and not someone Margaret's family would have really seen joining the Church. They have since been sealed in the temple and have seen many miracles in their lives.
Nancy told of her own conversion to the Church. She grew up in a small town in Iowa. For K-8 she attended a Lutheran school. She was happy with her life. In high school, she questioned the minister of the Lutheran congregation about infant baptism and the 3-in-1 concept of God. In college, she found a church (Campus Crusades for Christ, if I got it right...) that believed in baptism at the age of 8. She had a friend who moved to Texas and joined the LDS church and encouraged Nancy to accept lessons from the missionaries, but Nancy wasn't interested. However, on her own, she looked for information in the college library, the local library, and a Christian bookstore. None of those places offered very much information, and they all had anti-Mormon literature. Nancy saw a Book of Mormon at the library, but she was afraid to read it because she had been taught to avoid "other scripture." Although she loved her college, she felt compelled to transfer to the University of Iowa. She did so--just in time to meet up with her Texas friend and that friend's family. (You know, the ones who had joined the Church.) They invited her to church and had several sets of missionaries show up at her apartment, but Nancy turned them away. Finally she was persuaded to go to a harmless Homemaking meeting to make crafts and eat yummy food. She was so touched by the sisters' friendliness that she agreed to go to church. Eventually she was baptized, but without her family's approval. Nonetheless, she has always been happy that she found the gospel and has seen so many blessings in her life because of it. She is grateful to have been married in the temple and to see her children and grandchildren strong in the gospel. She loves temple work. When her first husband passed away from cancer, that was her own parents' first time to enter an LDS chapel. They felt the spirit there and finally told Nancy that they understood why she had joined the Church.
Nancy told us, "Don't be afraid to share the gospel!"
Paula Fellingham's daughter Missy was visiting from Connecticut. Once her stake president told people that he didn't want them reading their scriptures on iPods, etc. when they are in public. Instead, he asked everyone to read the standard, blue "missionary" Book of Mormon--and not to be shy about just leaving a copy out in sight here and there as they went about their work, classes, and so forth. Then if anyone asked them about it (and so many people did ask), they could just hand over their copy. During the challenge, the senior Primary and the youth handed out over 100 Books of Mormon!
Terri Pontius commented that she's heard it takes an average of 10 contacts with a member of the Church before anything "sticks" in someone's mind. Don't worry about if you're #1 or #9. Just speak up, live the standards, and you may find missionary opportunities more abundant than you anticipated.
Marilyn Bullock said when she's in Texas people are really friendly and it's easy to strike up a conversation about the gospel. You can try it here too.
Pearl Wilding said she's happy to report that she has 7 grandchildren who are currently serving missions.
If you want to give a light to others, you have to glow yourself.
President Thomas S. Monson
