Thank you for being here today. Thank you, choir, for your beautiful work. I am grateful for the support and wonderful care given to me by those who work in University Relations, my family, and all those who participated or listened while this address came together.
Brothers and sisters, I am here to share my witness that Heavenly Father is mindful of each one of us. He wants us to come back and live with Him, and He has made a way for us to prepare for that day. In addition to that, He has prepared a way for us to have meaningful lives and to live each day in a purposeful way. God wants us to live remarkable and divine lives.
A testimony is a witness based on our own experiences or the experiences of others that helps us understand what is real. We are encouraged by prophets to seek our own witness that what they share comes from God.
With that in mind, after the last general conference, I sought my own witness about ministering. I wanted to understand what the transition from home and visiting teaching to ministering meant. I also wanted to know if there was something more that Heavenly Father wanted me to understand that I currently did not understand well enough.
I asked myself the following questions: What would happen if I purposefully thought about, prayed for, and then acted upon the inspiration I received to help another person? Would my relationship with God change? Would the way I saw and interacted with people around me change?
Knowing that my experiences alone are not a sufficient witness, I enlisted the help of 20 BYU-Idaho students who agreed to participate, and practice ministering every day for two weeks and record their experiences in their journals.
I didn’t know what we would learn together, but I had faith that God revealed something to President Russell M. Nelson that was meant for us to better understand. The only way to understand something better is to engage with it, so that’s what I hoped the students and I could do.
In May, I extended an invitation for the students to participate in deliberate, daily ministering. I asked them to pray for inspiration from Heavenly Father about who they could minister to each day. I asked them to write down their impressions and what happened when they acted on them. I shared scriptures and quotes from prophets with the students to guide them. One of the quotes I shared was from President Spencer W. Kimball:
"So often, our acts of service consist of simple encouragement or of giving mundane help with mundane tasks, but what glorious consequences can flow from mundane acts and from small but deliberate deeds!"[1]
During the two weeks, I checked in with the students to find out how they were doing. One student related by email the following experience she had. This is an excerpt from the email she sent me:
On May 30th, I was saying my morning prayers and asked Heavenly Father to inspire me to know who He needed me to minister to that day. While I was reading my scriptures, I had a distinct impression from the Spirit I needed to send a postcard to my great-aunt in Washington. At first, I questioned the idea. No one sends postcards anymore, and I haven't talked to my great-aunt in years. Questions like, "What if she doesn't remember me? What if she thinks it’s weird to get a postcard with pictures of a religious school for a church she is not even a member of?" crossed my mind immediately after I felt the impression. Once the doubt subsided, I realized that was the answer I received to my prayer and knew I needed to act on it—no matter how odd it sounded. I knew it had to be the Spirit because I would have never thought of my great-aunt or a postcard of all things. That day I bought a postcard at the bookstore and was able to get her address from a relative. On the back of the postcard, I didn't write anything profound. I just wrote about how I felt I needed to let her know I was thinking of her and wanted to let her know I loved her. I reminded her of the time I visited her a few years ago and my memories of the beautiful trees by her house. I told her I hoped she was doing well. With a leap of faith, [I] sent the postcard in the mail. Four days later, I received a phone call from a number I didn't recognize. I picked up the phone, surprised to hear my great-aunt’s voice. She told me she was having a rough day. She informed me that she had just had surgery on both of her feet a few days previous. She said she was feeling so low all day until her husband came in with the mail. In the mail was the postcard I sent to her. She said it was just what she needed in that moment. She said it really lifted her spirits and made her day to know someone was thinking about her.
She concludes:
I had no idea she was having surgery on both her feet, but I know Heavenly Father did. I know that He knows my aunt individually and is aware of her circumstances. I am grateful I felt that prompting from the Spirit and chose to act immediately. I was able to see that I was an instrument in the Lord’s hands that day and [I] was able to make a difference in the life of my aunt. I learned that we can minister to those we don't know very well and that it doesn't have to be anything big. It can be as simple as a postcard. I also learned the importance of listening to the Spirit and then acting on those promptings no matter how silly we think we will feel. I know that Heavenly Father is aware of all His children and He will help us be an answer to the prayers of others if we are willing to obey.
I want to share my witness along with Abby’s that I know when we seek to engage in the work of ministering, our Heavenly Father will lead us to meet the specific needs of others.
After the two weeks, the students and I got together in small groups of four to six to talk about our experiences and what we learned. I wish I could show all of the conversations, but we recorded about 90 minutes, and President Eyring strongly encouraged me not to play the whole thing. He actually didn’t say anything other than I needed to keep this to about 25 minutes. So, in the interest of time, I selected a few pieces of our conversations that I hope represent the feelings of most of the students. I sincerely thank the students for their willingness to participate and for the amazing video crew that helped produce these segments.
In this first segment, the students and I talked about how their prayers to Heavenly Father changed as they began to seek revelation to guide their daily ministering. Let’s watch and listen to their responses.
The students had varying responses, but for the most part, something about their prayers changed. Their prayers seemed to be more earnest, and they showed a willingness to hear the word of the Lord for them. In the case of Analise, she had already been praying for experiences, but she became more aware of the people around her.
In this second segment, the students and I talked about how the way they saw other people changed as they sought for opportunities to practice daily ministering. Let’s watch and listen to their responses.
Wow! Did you hear what they said? The way they saw others did begin to change. The people around them were no longer obstacles to happiness but people to get to know and people to love.
In this third segment, the students and I talked about how their interactions with other people changed as they sought to apply the revelation they were receiving from their prayers. Let’s watch and listen to their responses.
One of the key results the students identified as we spoke was that as they engaged in ministering, their focus or their vision moved from focus on self to focus on others. They were more willing to engage with the people around them, at their apartments, on campus, while they traveled, and with friends and family at home.
In the final segment, the students and I talked about experiences and thoughts they had as they practiced daily ministering. Almost all the stories were too long to include in the segment, but they witnessed of how well God knows His children’s needs and, if we choose, we can serve Him in meeting those specific needs. Let’s watch and listen to their responses.
What wouldn’t we give to see others through Christ’s eyes, for Christ to be our vision? Many of the students repeated the feeling that they wanted to continue practicing daily ministering because of the changes they were feeling in themselves and others.
Discussion
Now, I’d like to apply what we have learned and felt so far to the parable of the good Samaritan. In devotional last week, Brother Bryce Mecham asked you to ponder why Christ used a Samaritan in the parable. I want you to pay attention to the connection between sight and doing while I read the following verses in Luke:
25 And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
26 He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou?
27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.
28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.
29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?
30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.
33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,
34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?
37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise. [2]
First, I want you to remember that the parable of the good Samaritan was given in response to a series of questions that first began with, “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?”
Second, I think we can agree the thieves, priest, and Levite all saw the man travelling from Jerusalem to Jericho different than the Samaritan saw him. The thieves, I believe, saw him as an opportunity to get something for nothing. The priest and Levite saw him as someone to be avoided because they would have to give up something for nothing in return. The Samaritan saw the dying man as someone of intrinsic worth and was willing to give up his time and his money to bring the man back to life. Please spend time reflecting on who the thieves, priest, Levite, and Samaritan represent.
Now, can I ask you a few hard questions? I’ll take your silence as a “yes.”
- How do you see other people? Do you see other people and your interactions with them as an opportunity to get something or to be avoided because you may have to give up something? Or do you see other people as they really are, as God sees them? Are you willing to give what you have to help their lives be just a little or a lot better without thinking about what you’ll get in return? Another way of thinking about this is, Do you see your interactions with people as a transaction—I am kind to you because I want you to be kind to me? The other way—Christ’s way—is to say, I am kind to you regardless of how you are to me.
- Who are you practicing to become each day? The difference between how well you perform at anything will almost always come down to the amount of time you spent practicing it. When I was a teenager, I became frustrated with how I played basketball, which wasn’t well compared to star players I knew. However, one day, I realized that for the amount that I practiced, I was actually pretty good. That totally changed how I felt about my ability to play. So are you practicing becoming like the thieves, the priest, and the Levite? Or are you practicing becoming like the Samaritan? The thieves, priest, and Levite all behaved very naturally. The Samaritan was the only one who did a thing that was truly remarkable, truly divine.
Conclusion
Like the lawyer who correctly understood what he needed to do to inherit eternal life, or exaltation, we must keep the first and second commandments. I testify that we cannot keep those commandments without ministering to those who are around us. When we engage with our Heavenly Father in His work, He will give us revelation on how He wants us to help Him. While I was preparing for this devotional address, the Lord must have sensed that I was still holding back in my desire to serve. I still wanted to avoid it because I wasn’t sure I would get what I wanted. An impression came into my mind that I want to share with you: “Don’t complain. I really can do my own work without you. I choose to let you help me.” I believe God chooses to let us help Him—not because we are great at it but because we need practice becoming like Him. Exaltation will come to those who practice being like our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. That practice is ministering. Christ’s Atonement makes it possible for us to practice, make mistakes, and try again, in faith that we will improve and that there is a reason to improve. As we engage in God’s work, we will come to know Him better, we will begin to see people differently, and we will treat people differently. The only way to keep the first and second commandments is to engage in the work of the Lord. Our efforts in practicing ministering through divine assistance can bless the lives of all we encounter. Most importantly, it prepares us to become like God and live with Him, eternally. I thank God for a prophet who leads us in this, our day. Please join with those who have already chosen to “rise up” [3] and assist in the work of the Lord. I invite you to live a truly remarkable, truly divine life. Please do not live one more forgettable day locked inside of yourself. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Notes
[1] Spencer W. Kimball, “Small Acts of Service,” Ensign, Dec. 1974.
[2] Luke 10:25-37.
[3] Russell M. Nelson, “Ministering with the Power and Authority of God,” Ensign, May 2018.