Farewell Talk

So yesterday was my farewell! It was such a lovely day and I am so grateful I got to spend it surrounded by friends and family ❤ Here is the transcript of my talk if anyone is interested in reading it.

How God Cares For All His Children Through Missionary Service

Today I was asked to speak about how God cares for all his children through missionary service. Talk about a broad topic. As I thought about what I wanted to talk about I honestly had no idea where to begin so I decided (with the help of my dad) “why not start simple and narrow it down a little?” I began by taking the question apart to figure out what is being asked. To me, the phrases to care for and to bless are in a lot of ways synonymous when it comes to our relationship with our Father in Heaven. The verb to care is defined as feeling concern, interest, affection or attaching importance to something. I’m sure that most of us are very familiar with verse 10 in Section 18 of the Doctrine and Covenants which reads “remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God.” That sounds like attaching importance to me, and I am sure that God feels concern, interest, and affection towards us, as we are His sons and daughters. Caring can also be defined as looking after or providing for the needs of someone or something. Now, keep that in your mind and let’s look at the definition of the word blessing. This is defined as God’s favor and protection, or a beneficial thing for which one is grateful; something that brings well-being. God gives us blessings as a way of providing for our needs and of showing us that he cares about and loves us. 

So today I’ve decided to talk about some of the blessings that come to God’s children through missionary service. Again, talk about broad. Here is a short list to begin; 

· The knowledge that life continues after death and that families can be sealed together for eternity

· Access to the ordinances that actually seal families together

· The power of the priesthood

· A world-wide support system that provides for the members of the church no matter where they are

· A knowledge of our Savior and the atonement

· The knowledge and insight found within the pages of the Book of Mormon

· A strengthened relationship with our Father in Heaven

· Enduring peace in this life and the life to come

· A fullness of joy, and the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. 

· Not to mention the countless hours of Christ-like service performed by missionaries all over the world every single day. 

I really did a great job of narrowing that one down, right? Not exactly… I could take up this entire meeting talking about any one of these precious blessings, but I want to talk about one of those key blessings that come as a direct result of missionary service in this lifetime. We know that God will provide a way for ALL his children to hear the good news of his gospel and participate in the ordinances necessary for salvation and that all His children will eventually receive every blessing that He has promised us, if we so desire. But which of these blessings is the most uniquely significant to this lifetime? To me it is the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost to guide us, sanctify us, and provide enduring peace as well as a fullness of joy even during our most challenging times. 

To me, this blessing is so unique because the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost is a gift the can only be received after baptism by the laying on of hands by priesthood holders worthy to administer this sacred ordinance. But God does not leave us without guidance in this life, in Moroni 7:16 we read that “the spirit of Christ is given to every man, that he may know good from evil.” Another name by which the light of Christ is known is our conscience. The difference between the light of Christ and the Holy Ghost is this, the light of Christ is not a person. It is an influence from God that prepares us to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost and His constant companionship. This is not to say that the Holy Ghost does not communicate with those who have not yet received this gift. In D&C 84:46-47 we read; “And the Spirit giveth light to every man that cometh into the world; and the Spirit enlighteneth every man through the world, that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit. And everyone that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit cometh unto God, even the Father.” In the guide to the scriptures it states that “the power of the Holy Ghost can come upon a person before baptism and witness that the gospel is true.” So every person, acting in accordance with the light of Christ which is given to each of them, is able to feel the Holy Ghost witnessing to them the truth of God’s plan for them and lead them to God. 

How amazing though, that after our baptism (as long as we remain worthy) we are provided with constant guidance from a member of the Godhead, one who has far more insight into our lives and God’s plan for us than we have. And he will continue to guide us until we someday return to our Father in Heaven. 

As I mentioned earlier, the Holy Ghost does not only provide constant, daily direction from our Father in Heaven, the Spirit helps to sanctify us and provide enduring peace and joy in this lifetime, even in the midst of our trials. The more I learn about this gospel, the more I realize it is not so much about doing; but about becoming. Becoming more like Christ. That is what sanctification means to me, working towards and becoming more like our Savior, and perfect example, Jesus Christ. We are told over and over that God cares more about our hearts than the sum total of our good and bad actions while we are here on the earth. The Holy Ghost helps us to change our hearts and become like Christ by leading us to make decisions that will bring us closer to Him. The Holy Ghost also assists in the process of our sanctification by humbling us and helping us to know when we need to apply the atonement of Jesus Christ in our lives, repent, move forward, and repeat. This process, repeated throughout our lifetimes, sanctifies us and prepares us to receive the blessings of eternal life and exaltation in the life to come. What a beautiful promise. 

Another name for the Holy Ghost is the comforter. As we seek to be sanctified, we are promised that the Holy Ghost will be there to help us along in our journey. In Moroni 8:26 it says; “And the remission of sins bringeth meekness, and lowliness of heart; and because of meekness and lowliness of heart cometh the visitation of the Holy Ghost, which Comforter filleth with hope and perfect love, which love endureth by diligence unto prayer, until the end shall come, when all the saints shall dwell with God.” We are promised comfort, hope, and perfect love through the gift of the Holy Ghost that will endure throughout the entirety of our lives on this earth, and all we need to do in order to receive these things is ask diligently. This is something I have seen so often in my day to day life, especially now as I am preparing to enter the mission field. The peace that the Holy Ghost provides is such a blessing to me and one that I would not have if it weren’t for faithful missionaries who answered the call to serve and invited my ancestors and family members to be baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. 

Preach my Gospel clearly defines the purpose of each and every missionary as this; to “invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end.” God desires to bless His children and as missionaries (whether we are set apart as full-time missionaries, or member-missionaries) we are instruments in His hands as he cares for all His children here on earth. Bishop Keith B. McMullin in his October 2008 general conference address said this; “An important source of help comes through man’s service to his fellowman. The commandment is to ‘love thy neighbor as thyself.’ Because we are all brothers and sisters, we are all ‘neighbors,’ though separated at times by distance, culture, religion, or race.’ The Lord sets the example, ‘for he doeth that which is good among the children of men; … and he denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God.” 

As a missionary, I have chosen to devote the next 18 months of my life to the service my fellow men by sharing with them the good news of the gospel and helping to bring our brothers and sisters to a knowledge of the beautiful gift of the Holy Ghost. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to be a literal instrument in the Lords hands to care for his children and bless the lives of the people of Ventura California through missionary service.