Talk

Good Morning brothers and sisters! I am Sister McGary and I am so excited to speak to you today! 

A little bit about myself. I grew up in California and have lived in Utah the last couple years. I love anything in agriculture and in performing arts. I am so excited to serve in Madison and I can't wait to get to know you all!

I was asked to talk about the talk by Sister Cordon, "Come unto christ and don't come alone" 

When I first read my topic for this talk I was so excited because this was a perfect opportunity to talk about missionary work! I will still touch on this subject  but as I prepared for this talk I started to be guided by the spirit to go in a different direction than I had originally planned. As I thought about this concept,come unto Christ and don't come alone, it reminded me of a part in the talk: this is our time. Elder S. Gifford Nielsen spoke about the 2 great commandments

"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

“This is the first and great commandment.

“And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” (Matthew 22:36–39).

I don’t know about you, but when I read these two great commandments, I detect a third, implied commandment: to love thyself."

I love this concept that he brought up that to be able to love others, you need to first love yourself. Now if we think about it: To be able to share anything with someone  you have to first have it yourself. To be able to share the gospel with others you first need to build your testimony or rebuild the testimony you once had.

Now how do we do this?

We first need to start by learning and understanding simple truths. We may even need to start at the very beginning asking if there is a God. Praying to know if he is truly there. I know that I have had to do this multiple times throughout my life and it took time but I always got my answer eventually. Everytime God helps me know that He is there and I've been able to feel His love. I think it is the amazing thing that one of the first truths we teach to people as missionaries is that God is our loving Heavenly Father. The principle God is our loving Heavenly Father helps us know that we are sons and daughters of God! 

Sister Cardon Said the the most important thing that our youth need to know is who they are and what their purpose is. This truth is so important for each of you to know as well!

We also need to have that personal witness that Jesus Christ is our Savior! In 3 Nephi 11 Jesus Christ asked the nephites to come up one by one to feel the prints of the nails on his hands. He didn't ask them to come in groups to see or look from afar but for each individual person to receive that witness that Jesus Christ was their Savior. While we may not be able to physically feel the prints of the nails on his hands we can still receive that witness by learning of Him and using His Atonement. As we do this, we can feel the peace, comfort and healing power that comes from Jesus Christ and His Atonement.

We then need to know if the true Gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored to this earth through the prophet Joseph Smith! 

We need to follow Joseph Smith's example and do as James 1:5 directs: " If any of you lack wisdom let him ask of God that giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not: and it shall be given him." He received his answer and so can you if you pray with a sincere heart wanting to know if it is true!

We then need to keep our testimony strong by praying, reading the scriptures and coming to church continually!

Now this process of building and keeping your testimony strong seems a little daunting but just know that you are not alone in doing it. You have amazing people here to support you! We are also here to help you grow your faith! And most importantly you have Jesus Christ with you every step of the way! 

Now how do we know if we have become truly converted to Jesus Christ? Elder Robert D. Hales spoke about the concern those who have been converted feel for others: “The scriptures confirm that the truly converted do more than just forsake the enticements of the world. They love God and their fellowmen. Their minds and hearts are centered on the Savior’s atoning sacrifice. From the moment of their respective conversions, Enos, Alma the Younger, Paul, and others turned wholeheartedly to the task of bringing themselves and their fellowmen to God”

I wanted to go into depth about Enos and his story of coming converted. He first heard the gospel truths from his father. Second, he let them sink deep into his heart and pondered about them. Then Enos had the desire to know for himself and prayed about it. He was forgiven of his sins and he felt the truthfulness, the power and the joy that comes from Jesus Christ's atonement. In verse 9 it says: 

"Now, it came to pass that when I had heard these words I began to feel a desire for the welfare of my brethren, the Nephites; wherefore, I did pour out my whole soul unto God for them."

Once he received his own personal witness that Jesus is our Savior and the true joy that he brings, he wanted to share it with everyone. Preach my Gospel says "As your understanding of the savior's sacrifice, also known as the atonement of Jesus Christ, grows, your desire to share the gospel will increase." This is a promise to us.

But how do we get over that fear of sharing the gospel to others? 

My whole life I was never one to want to do missionary work because it scared me. I never knew how to bring it up in a natural way and I felt like I didn't really know what to say.

When I received the answer from God that I needed to go on a mission, I decided to Trust him. To take that leap of faith. That fear was still there but because I received that personal witness that Jesus Christ was my savior I was so excited to share it with others. I continued to pray for courage and for an answer of how to be able to share the gospel. I was a couple weeks into my mission when we had stake conference and I will never forget what one of the speakers said. He said that he brings the gospel up with everyone he can because he doesn't want them to come up to him in the next life and ask why didn't you tell me. 

This was a mission changing moment for me. Now instead of being scared of saying something I started to become scared of not saying anything because the restored gospel of Jesus Christ can truly change someone's life. And I know it can because it changed mine.

Just like you were not alone in building your testimony, you are also not alone in sharing it! We are given the gift of the Holy Ghost to know exactly what to say and what to do!

Pray that God will give you the courage to share the gospel with others and that He will provide you with the opportunity to do so. I can promise you that as you do this, you will be the answer to someone's prayer.

One of my favorite scriptures from the Book of Mormon is Alma 26:15 which says:"Yea, they were encircled about with everlasting darkness and destruction; but behold, he has brought them into his everlasting light, yea, into everlasting salvation; and they are encircled about with the matchless bounty of his love; yea, and we have been instruments in his hands of doing this great and marvelous work." I've seen this a lot on my mission. God leads us to someone who is feeling completely alone and in darkness. 

When you are able to tell them about Jesus Christ you can see that light come into their life. You can be an instrument in God's hands! The phrase Come unto Christ and don't come alone doesn't say anything about just bringing people who don't know who Christ is. It includes everyone! Those who are in the church still face those hardships and that darkness but you can them too! You can bring back that light into their life!

Brothers and sisters each and every one of you individually is needed in this work.

Sister Cordon expresses how important you are to God's work"The Lord has a plan for you. He has prepared you for this day, right now, to be a strength and force for good in His mighty work. We need you! It simply will not be as grand without you!"

Bare testimony 

In the name of Jesus Christ Amen.