W for What should I share?

 

The A-Z of Ministering by Duncan Horne

Ministering describes the collective and organised effort in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints where members keep in regular contact with one another to offer spiritual support and welfare assistance

"W" Post

To minister can be a challenge at the best of times. There is no set outline of how exactly you should minister, and what exactly you should talk about, share, or teach. There are probably many times before where you feel you have hit a wall and have no idea what to share.

Ministering to others need not be difficult or complicated. Perhaps there was a talk you particularly enjoyed listening to recently at church - you could talk about that. Maybe a lesson really hit home with you that you could share with someone and discuss together.

What have you learned in your daily study of the scriptures?

Do you have a favourite hymn that fills you with peace?

What are the latest words of the prophets and apostles from General Conference or in the Church magazines?

What does this individual or family need, and what gospel principle or teaching would help them realise that need?

There are many simple messages that we can share to make a difference in other people's lives. Choose something you like, and share it with those you minister to, TODAY!

K for Keep standards high

 

The A-Z of Ministering by Duncan Horne

Ministering describes the collective and organised effort in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints where members keep in regular contact with one another to offer spiritual support and welfare assistance

"K" post

It is true that we can't lift someone up if we are not up there ourselves first. In order to strengthen someone else's testimony, our testimony must first be thriving.

To effectively minister to others, we must know how to minister to ourselves by continually seeking nourishment through prayer, revelation, and scripture study.

Even small daily steps will ensure that we are keeping our standards high. Then we can be a kind and gentle yet firm and true influence to those we minister to.

Take some time to review your daily habits and how you daily refresh yourself with spiritual sustenance. Then consider what things you could share with others as you minister to them.

NO-ONE is out of reach of repentance and forgiveness

While studying the book of 3Nephi, it suddenly became alarmingly apparent that NO-ONE is out of reach of repentance and forgiveness.

While most attention in 3Nephi is often placed on the appearance and administration of the resurrected Jesus Christ (which is the highlight of the entire account, and which is usually a first reference that our missionaries turn to when introducing the Book of Mormon), it is the first nine chapters that have stoked my intrigue on this occasion.

The book of 3Nephi opens with the remarkable fulfillment of earlier prophecy concerning the birth of Jesus Christ. An ancient American prophet named Samuel had predicted a new star arising at the time of Jesus' birth, along with three straight days of light. This miraculous phenomenon occurred just as unbelievers were about to put to death those who clung to the words of this prophecy.

"for behold, at the going down of the sun there was no darkness; and the people began to be astonished because there was no darkness when the night came.

And there were many, who had not believed the words of the prophets, who fell to the earth and became as if they were dead, for they knew that the great plan of destruction which they had laid for those who believed in the words of the prophets had been frustrated; for the sign which had been given was already at hand.

And they began to know that the Son of God must shortly appear; yea, in fine, all the people upon the face of the whole earth from the west to the east, both in the land north and in the land south, were so exceedingly astonished that they fell to the earth...

And it came to pass that there was no darkness in all that night, but it was light as though it was mid-day. And it came to pass that the sun did rise in the morning again, according to its proper order; and they knew that it was the day that the Lord should be born, because of the sign which had been given...

And it came to pass that a new star did appear, according to the word."

(3Nephi 1:15-17, 19, 21)

Following this astonishing event, things took a turn for the worse as unbelief spread. A band who were known as the Gadianton Robbers (kind of like a present-day ISIS) began terrorising and murdering, killing the governors of the land and conspiring to overthrow the government. Wars between the Robbers and the Nephites took place, the government was broken up and the people divided themselves into tribes, each with their own laws.

Emissaries of God preached repentance to the people. Here it became apparent to me that even amongst such terror and carnage and murderous intentions and behaviour, the message of repentance was still being offered. 

The reality that even the hardest of hearts can change and be softened is one of the overwhelming messages of the Book of Mormon. 

NO-ONE is out of reach of repentance and forgiveness.

The Nephites were so quick to forget Deity, so quick to fall into sins and wickedness. In a number of instances, they deteriorate from God-loving, humble people into prideful, persecuting people, committing all kinds of degrading behaviour. 

I marvel at just how fast they gave up the standard of truth and holiness. Yet prophets constantly offered repentance and a way back. 

NO-ONE is out of reach of repentance and forgiveness.

The Book of Mormon exposes the sins of evil-designing people and the consequences of such sustained behaviour accompanied by rejection of repentance. In 3Nephi chapter 8 we read from the record that a chain of natural disasters occurred over a 3-hour time period, resulting in the death of the more reprobate population and causing what is described in the record as a "vapor of darkness" which was so thick and consuming that candles, torches and fire couldn't be lit, and the sun, moon and stars couldn't penetrate the darkness. This horrifying condition lasted for three days. The people were aware that this phenomena coincided with the death of Jesus Christ in Israel.

And so I arrived in my reading at 3Nephi chapter 9. After being gripped by the political intrigue, terrorism, murderings and wickedness, as well as the silent minority who believed in Jesus and practised holiness, and reading of the natural disasters which re-shaped the whole land, I approached the message of salvation:

The voice of Jesus Christ was heard throughout the whole land.

After detailing the destruction of the wicked and the lands in which they resided, I couldn't help but well up with tears when I read from verse 13 the calm, gentle and re-assuring voice of Jesus Christ to all who survived, and which felt like a face-to-face with me:

"O all ye that are spared because ye were more righteous than they, will ye not now return unto me, and repent of your sins, and be converted, that I may heal you?"

NO-ONE is out of reach of repentance and forgiveness.

I don't know if there is a more beautiful sentence in the Book of Mormon. As I read it, it filled me with hope, with love, with a longing to find this Jesus who can be so merciful to his people who are repeatedly going astray and forsaking him and his gospel.

He continues in verses 14-15 and 22:

"...if ye will come unto me ye shall have eternal life. Behold, mine arm of mercy is extended towards you, and whosoever will come, him will I receive; and blessed are those who come unto me. Behold, I am Jesus Christ the Son of God...Therefore, whoso repenteth and cometh unto me as a little child, him will I receive, for of such is the kingdom of God. Behold, for such I have laid down my life, and have taken it up again; therefore repent, and come unto me ye ends of the earth, and be saved."

It is clear that no matter how far we have fallen, how deep we have waded into sin, how thoughtlessly we have abandoned Him, His love and mercy is constantly offered through repentance and pious behaviour. These words were spoken to the people of the ancient Americas almost 2,000 years ago, but are extended to me and you today.

Regardless of who we are, where we are, or how our life is being lived, we are invited by the Son of God Himself to repent and turn to Jesus and be partakers of his salvation.

What a stress-busting, peace-inspiring, hope-filled, anxiety-easing, burden-lifting, re-invigorating and life-changing message that is!!!

The clear and crisp message I'm getting from the Book of Mormon is:

NO-ONE is out of reach of repentance and forgiveness!

Starting Anew

This post is a response to a post last month titled Swamped down by the world where I revealed my struggles with getting away from worldly things as it interfered with my spirituality.

Below is my video message addressing those issues and how I have tried to overcome them for the last month:

Swamped down by the world; lifted by the word

I have had a lot of worldly things on my mind for a long time. While it can be exciting, important and oftentimes necessary, being too absorbed in these things has rather swamped me down a little. I have had a recent desire for a return to balance and a larger space for spirituality.

The bulk of this post is contained in this video I prepared where I talk candidly about this topic. Have a look and see if there is anything you can relate to:

I'll be posting a follow-up post soon to let you know how my dip in the word of God went.

Underperforming?

This is one post in an A-Z series of 26 where I am writing about living as a Mormon in the wilderness of Kuantan

Am I underperforming spiritually?

This is a question which regularly crops up in my mind and one I asked myself after listening to some Christian friends in the back of my car discuss their study of the Old Testament. They talked about 1Kings and I probably couldn't have joined the conversation right there.

Am I underperforming spiritually?

It's a question you may have asked yourself before.

Sometimes when we hear others speak of the scriptures with an obvious certain level of knowledge, we begin to question ourselves.

Am I underperforming spiritually?

We often tie this question and the accompanying feelings to comparisons with others. But is the acquiring of spiritual knowledge really a competition between people? Do we compete with others to see who has the highest level of scripture mastery?

The answer should always be 'No.' Simply because we cannot force spiritual things the same way we can force children to memorise academic information. Regurgitating scriptures is one thing, but real spiritual wisdom comes from application of spiritual principles outlined therein. It also comes from careful slow study, meaningful lengthy consideration, and diligent speedy recording of thoughts, feelings and impressions garnered from a study of the Word.

There are people of faith everywhere who are at different levels of spiritual knowledge. We are all progressing at our own pace. Our common Father in heaven has no regard for how intelligent I am compared to you. We were never placed here to learn of God as some sort of contest to prove ourselves against others.

What matters is that we are proving ourselves to God. What matters is that we are a little better today than we were yesterday. What matters is that today we bite our tongue and hold our peace when yesterday we emitted a vocal act of impatience. What matters is that we are humble enough to listen and learn from the Spirit when it acts upon us through our study, prayer, pondering or listening to others.

Our relationship with God is intensely personal. Nobody else's spirituality, knowledge or intelligence, however great and mighty, can actually save us. We are all working for our own salvation. Only our very own prayer, study, meditation, faith, knowledge and works can ultimately prepare us for spiritual safety here and in the life to come.

So, am I underperforming spiritually?

When we view this question as a personal, relationship-with-God goal, and not a competitive fear, we will be able to set aside inadequate worries, learn freely at our own pace, and make plans for healthy self-improvement.