Our lesson this week was on Missionary Work out of the Gospel Principles manual. Below is a summary:
When did missionary work begin? It has actually existed since the beginning, starting with Adam! The Lord loves all of His children, and wants all of them to have the Gospel in their lives, so of course this makes sense!
However, although it has been around for milenia, Missionary work has never been easy.
In the Book of Mormon, for example, we read of two men, Alma and Amulek that worked hard and suffered much to share the gospel with others and preach repentance. They were rejected by most, but some of those whom they taught were touched in their hearts and chose to follow the gospel of Jesus Christ. The wicked of the land, however, charged all those that believed to be killed, and the loving missionaries that had shared the Gospel with these people were forced to watch them die.
Although we probably won't (and hopefully never will!) have experiences like this, the principle is the same: even though the Gospel and missionary work are wonderful and incredible, that doesn't mean that it is going to be easy!
Missionary Work was reinstituted in modern days with the restoration of the Gospel. It started with one missionary, and since then over 1 million Elders and Sisters have served as missionaries throughout the world. This is a fulfillment of prophecy by Joseph Smith that indeed the Gospel would "fill North and South America....it would fill the world".
In the scriptures we learn that before the coming of the Savior "all nations and all people" will have the gospel of Jesus Christ preached to them. Step by step, slowly and surely this is coming true.
One thing that has helped in the advancement of the Gospel thorughout the world is modern technology. Planes, cars, computers, internet, social media and more all have helped to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the world. Even in the countries that are not open to the Gospel, individuals are being prepared by the Lord to recieve the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Now, when we speak of missionary work, we sometimes become stuck in the mindset of the word "missionary" - which to many brings to mind discussions and baptism. While this is an important step in missionary work with those around you, it is certainly not the first step! Missionary work starts little by little, piece by piece. It is quite rare for someone to jump into missionary work all gung-ho! Therefore when it comes to sharing the Gospel, we too can start with the small and simple things, for "by small and simple things to great things come to pass".
How can we, then, share the Gospel with others?
-Invite people to Family Home Evening
-Be a Christ-like example
-Have a home filled with the Spirit
-Have pictures on the walls of the Savior, temple and General Authorities
-Have small conversations with people about the Gospel
-Teach your children
-If there are questions on a difficult topic, imagine how you would teach a 5 year old about it
-Do the small and simple things
-When someone asks you about your weekend, don't skip over church!
In all of these things, please keep in mind that we are PROMISED that the Spirit will guide us. In that same breath, we too need to be listening for and heeding the promptings of the Spirit in how we can share the Gospel with others.
We testify that as we personally grow closer to the Lord through obedience and love, our desire to share the blessings of the Gospel will grow within us. Where there is desire, there is action, and the Lord will help us as we strive in whatever way we can to share the Gospel with the world around us.
We love you,
The PU2 Relief Society Presidency
