Missionary Work

The moment I understood the will of my Heavenly Father I felt a determination to go at all hazards, believing that he would support me by his almighty power and endow me with every qualification I needed. –Heber C. Kimball

I have been contemplating what it means to be a missionary. What makes a great missionary? What does it mean to be a missionary? These are questions that have been bouncing around in my head.

Do I need to be like the Sons of Mosiah, the rebels turned righteous “preaching the word of God in much tribulation, being greatly persecuted by those who were unbelievers”? (Mosiah 27:32). Or maybe I need to be like the great prophet Alma who fled the court of wicked King Noah and baptized thousands in the waters of Mormon (Alma 18). Or perhaps I need to embody to greatness of Helaman who led 2,000 stripling warriors into battle, or the great Captain Moroni who writes an insightful epistle on faith, hope, and charity (Moroni 7).

I felt so small next to all these ancient missionaries. I have never experienced persecution, had to flee before evil kings, I didn’t baptize or lead thousands, and I haven’t written great works of scripture. How then am I supposed to become a great missionary?

Love of God

I got my answer while listening to a talk by Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf. He shared the story about his family living in postwar Germany and the devastation that was all around them. In the middle of their darkness they learned about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the healing message of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.

“This message made all the difference; it lifted us above our daily misery. Life was still thorny and the circumstances still horrible, but the gospel brought light, hope, and joy into our lives. The plain and simple truths of the gospel warmed our hearts and enlightened our minds. They helped us look at ourselves and the world around us with different eyes and from an elevated viewpoint.”

I thought about President Uchtdorf’s words “light, hope, and joy” and I thought back to a song I played this morning. In it are the words:

Our Savior’s love
Shines like the sun with perfect light,
As from above
It breaks through clouds of strife.
Lighting our way,
It leads us back into his sight,
Where we may stay
To share eternal life.

“The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord” (Prov 20:27). The message of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Savior’s love, is the perfect light. Our candle, lit by the gospel of Jesus Christ, will lead us back to the presence of our Heavenly Father. And our candle will help not only to lead us, but to lead others back home.

You don’t have to be a great prophet, a captain of thousands, or a great writer of scripture. All you need is the light of Christ. All you need is the love of God. “Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having… a love of God and of all men… this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father… and of the Holy Ghost” (2 Ne. 31:20, 21). Alma taught that, “every man should love his neighbor as himself” (Mosiah 23:15).

Moroni later taught us that charity is the pure love of Christ and that we should pray so we are filled with that love (Moroni 7:47-48). When you are filled with the love of Christ there is nothing that can hold you back. There is no mountain so tall you can’t climb it, and there is no ocean so wide you can’t cross it. When the love of Christ permeates our heart there are no “manner of –ites; but [we are] in one, the children of Christ, and heirs to the kingdom of God” (4 Ne. 1:17), and we will be able to say as Moroni, “I am filled with charity, which is everlasting love; wherefore, all children [of God] are alike unto me” (Moroni 8:16).

There are people who are here today because of you, because you reached out your hand to them, because you smiled at them, because they felt the love of Christ through you. Just by being here today, you are being a missionary witnessing that you are willing to take upon you the name of Christ, to always remember him, and keep his commandments (Moroni 4:3). Your very presence gives testimony to those around you that you know you are a child of God, that he has a plan for you, and that his gospel has been restored in our day through the Prophet Joseph Smith.

Open your mouth

Your attendance here today is step one in the journey. This is just one of the ways Heavenly Father is helping to prepare you to be a tool in his kingdom. The next step is to open your mouth. Through his prophet Joseph Smith, the Lord has declared, “thou must open thy mouth at all times, declaring my gospel with the sound of rejoicing” (D&C 28:16).

Does this mean that every word that comes from your mouth needs to be scripture? No. Perhaps understanding the word “gospel” will shed some light on what I mean. In Greek, the words gospel means good news. With the sound of rejoicing, we should be sharing the good news we have in our lives. President Boyd K. Packer taught:

“Oh, if I could teach you this one principle: a testimony is to be found in the bearing of it! Somewhere in your quest for spiritual knowledge, there is that “leap of faith,” as the philosophers call it. It is the moment when you have gone to the edge of the light and stepped into the darkness to discover that the way is lighted ahead for just a footstep or two.

“It is one thing to receive a witness from what you have read or what another has said; and that is a necessary beginning. It is quite another to have the Spirit confirm to you in your bosom that what you have testified is true. Can you not see that it will be supplied as you share it? As you give that which you have, there is a replacement, with increase!

“To speak out is the test of your faith” (The Quest for Spiritual Knowledge, 1982).

A simple “hello” may be all someone needs in order to felt the love of Christ that day; or perhaps sharing a pass-along card with someone. Elder Bednar taught us that members are the full-time finders and the missionaries are the full-time teachers. You don’t need to have a vast knowledge about the gospel in order to share it. All you need is to open your mouth and the Lord will do the rest. “Behold, the Lord requireth the heart and a willing mind” (D&C 64:34).

Your Heavenly Father has made a promise to you saying, “Neither take ye thought beforehand what ye shall say; but treasure up in your minds continually the words of life, and it shall be given you in the very hour that portion that shall be meted unto every man” (D&C 84:85).

The Lord has made a promise to you that if you will study your scriptures, he will fill your mouth with the words someone needs to hear. Preparation invites revelation. Preparation will lead you to those who are ready to hear and accept the gospel. It is a promise as sure as I am standing here. “I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise” (D&C 82:10).

You can do the Lord’s work

Years ago a man told this experience. He was 17 years old and with his companion stopped at a cottage in the southern states. It was his first day in the mission field and was his first door. A gray-haired woman stood inside the screen and asked what they wanted. His companion nudged him to proceed. Frightened and somewhat tongue-tied, he finally blurted out, “As man is God once was, and as God is man may become.”

Strangely enough, she was interested and asked where he got that. He answered, “It’s in the Bible.” She left the door for a moment, returned with her Bible. Commenting that she was a minister of a congregation, she handed it to him and said, “Here, show me.”

He took the Bible and nervously thumbed back and forth through it. Finally he handed it back saying, “Here, I can’t find it. I’m not even sure that it’s in there, and even if it is, I couldn’t find it. I’m just a poor farm boy from out in Cache Valley in Utah. I haven’t had much training. But I come from a family where we live the gospel of Jesus Christ. And it’s done so much for our family that I’ve accepted a call to come on a mission for two years, at my own expense, to tell people how I feel about it.”

After half a century, he could not hold back the tears as he told me how she pushed open the door and said, “Come in, my boy. I’d like to hear what you have to say.”
Like this young missionary, there may be more power in your testimony than even you realize. The Lord said to the Nephites:

“Whoso cometh unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, him will I baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost, even as the Lamanites, because of their faith in me at the time of their conversion, were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and they knew it not” (3 Nephi 9:20; emphasis added).

Testimony comes as growth, not as a startling spiritual experience. A testimony can be just as simple as saying, “I know God lives and I know he loves me.” Your testimony born of the experiences you have had in life will be a lasting witness to you and those around you of the love of Christ. It all comes back to light, hope, and joy. This is the gospel of Jesus Christ, the message that will take our brothers and sisters back to the presence of God.

Brothers and sisters, there will be days and nights when you feel overwhelmed, when your hearts are heavy and your heads hang down. Then, please remember, Jesus Christ, the Redeemer, is the Head of this Church. It is His gospel. He wants you to succeed. He gave His life for just this purpose. He is the Son of the living God. This is the good news!

I ask you, along with Alma, “And now behold, I say unto you, my brethren (and sisters), if ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?” (Alma 5:26).

If you can’t feel it, find it. If you can feel it, share it. Extend a hand to those around you and share the good news! This is the Lord’s Church! Jesus is the Christ! The Book of Mormon is true! There presides over us a prophet of God! Of this I bear my humble witness in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.