I just found out that I am speaking in sacrament meeting on Sunday. Lucky me...here's the rough draft I created today.
If you ever get an
email from the Bishopric, don’t open it. Just close your laptop and walk away.
But in all seriousness,
this bishopric is wonderful, even if they ask you to speak in sacrament
meeting. I feel their love for all of you every time they bear testimony of
this wonderful gospel. Listen to their council because they always have the
best intentions in mind.
For those of you who
don’t know me, which I can safely say is almost everyone here, my name is
Danielle Jones. I, like many of you here, am from Alpine Utah and I graduated
from Lone Peak High School. I feel like I can’t even walk out my front door
without seeing someone I know from high school. Sometimes I feel like BYU is
actually Lone Peak College.
Even though my Provo
experience has been very different from the rest of yours, I am still going
through the same circumstances as the rest of you. I know what you guys are
going through and I know that God loves each and every one of you.
My topic today is “My
Faith in Christ Helps Me Serve Others.” To be honest when I read that topic I
was surprised. I did not think that I would be able to eloquently give a ten
minute talk on such an obscure topic. How can having faith in Christ help me
give service? Faith and service seemed like two completely unrelated
things.
I soon noticed faith
and service go hand in hand.
Moroni 10:20-21 states:
Wherefore,
there must be faith; and if there must be faith there must also be hope; and if
there must be hope there must also be charity.
And
except ye have charity ye can in nowise be saved in the kingdom of God; neither
can ye be saved in the kingdom of God if ye have not faith; neither can ye if
ye have no hope.
This sounds pretty
harsh, right? Faith creates charity, and without charity you can’t be saved?
What kind of a world
would we live in if small mistakes stop our progression and ultimately hinder
our salvation?
Moroni 7:25-26 says:
Men began to excercise
faith, they did lay hold upon every good thing; and thus it was until the
coming of Christ.
And after he came men
also were saved by faith in his
name; and by faith they became the sons of God.
The Phrase that stands
out to me here is “saved by faith.” Did you know that we can be saved by faith?
Aside from being the first principle of the gospel, faith actually has the
power to save us.
The phrase “saved by
faith” is very similar to the phrase “saved by grace” which is a common phrase
used among members.
2 Nephi says:
We
know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do
What does this scripture
mean, and how does it apply to faith and charity?
In Brother Brad Wilcox’s
speech “his grace is sufficient,” he gives some wonderful insights about grace.
In this talk, Brother
Wilcox teaches about how we aren’t earning grace, we are learning grace. We do
believe in grace and the fact that we are saved after all we can do, but we are
here on this earth to become more like Christ. We will be saved because of
Christ’s great sacrifice, and we are here on the earth to choose what kind of
life we want to have after we die.
Brother Wilcox states: The older I get, and the more I understand
this wonderful plan of redemption, the more I realize that in the final
judgment it will not be the unrepentant sinner begging Jesus, “Let me stay.”
No, he will probably be saying, “Get me out of here!” Knowing Christ’s
character, I believe that if anyone is going to be begging on that occasion, it
would probably be Jesus begging the unrepentant sinner, “Please, choose to
stay. Please, use my Atonement—not just to be cleansed but to be changed so
that you want to stay.”
The
miracle of the Atonement is not just that we can go home but
that—miraculously—we can feel at home there.
We aren’t earning
grace, we are learning grace.
A wise Sunday school
teacher once taught me his version of the differences in character between the
three kingdoms. He explained that in the telestial kingdom, everyone is selfish,
and puts their needs above the needs of others. He believes that in the
terrestrial kingdom everything is fair. If you give me charity, I will give you
charity, but nothing more. An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. In the
celestial kingdom, everyone focuses completely on the needs of others. You
never have to think about yourself, and you don’t want to. Happiness comes from
giving service to others, which is why the Celestial kingdom is a place of
never ending happiness.
“Charity is the pure
love of Christ.”
By striving to have
charity, we are becoming more and more like Christ. That’s our whole purpose of
being here; to become like Christ so that we will be comfortable in his
presence in the life to come.
Brother Wilcox gives
another example of a child practicing the piano. He says:
“Christ’s
arrangement with us is similar to a mom providing music lessons for her child.
Mom pays the piano teacher. How many know what I am talking about? Because Mom
pays the debt in full, she can turn to her child and ask for something. What is
it? Practice! Does the child’s practice pay the piano teacher? No. Does the
child’s practice repay Mom for paying the piano teacher? No. Practicing is how
the child shows appreciation for Mom’s incredible gift. It is how he takes
advantage of the amazing opportunity Mom is giving him to live his life at a
higher level. Mom’s joy is found not in getting repaid but in seeing her gift
used—seeing her child improve. And so she continues to call for practice,
practice, practice.
If
the child sees Mom’s requirement of practice as being too overbearing (“Gosh,
Mom, why do I need to practice? None of the other kids have to practice! I’m
just going to be a professional baseball player anyway!”), perhaps it is
because he doesn’t yet see with mom’s eyes. He doesn’t see how much better his
life could be if he would choose to live on a higher plane.
In
the same way, because Jesus has paid justice, He can now turn to us and say,
“Follow me” (Matthew 4:19), “Keep my commandments” (John 14:15). If we see His
requirements as being way too much to ask (“Gosh! None of the other Christians
have to pay tithing! None of the other Christians have to go on missions, serve
in callings, and do temple work!”), maybe it is because we do not yet see
through Christ’s eyes. We have not yet comprehended what He is trying to make
of us.
The
child must practice the piano, but this practice has a different purpose than
punishment or payment. Its purpose is change.”
In this sense, every time we do something that is good,
we draw closer to God. We practice by keeping the commandments, and striving to
become like him. We have faith in the atonement, and therefore have charity,
which is the pure love of Christ.
Moroni 7:48 says:
“Pray
unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with his
love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus
Christ’ that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall
be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we
may be purified even as he is pure.”
It’s all about becoming
like God, and reaching our potential as his sons and daughters.
The famous primary song
“I’m trying to be like Jesus” explains this concept in a beautiful way.
I'm trying to be like
Jesus;
I'm following in his
ways.
I'm trying to love as
he did, in all that I do and say.
At times I am tempted
to make a wrong choice,
But I try to listen as
the still small voice whispers,
I'm trying to love my
neighbor;
I'm learning to serve
my friends.
I watch for the day of
gladness when Jesus will come again.
I try to remember the
lessons he taught.
Then the Holy Spirit
enters into my thoughts, saying:
Chorus
"Love one another
as Jesus loves you.
Try to show kindness in
all that you do.
Be gentle and loving in
deed and in thought,
For these are the
things Jesus taught."
Brothers and sisters,
Jesus Christ was the perfect example of charity. I testify that he loves each
and every one of you.
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