On June 3, 2018, President Russell M. Nelson and his wife, Wendy W. Nelson, invited all the youth in the Church to “enlist in the youth battalion of the Lord” and take part in “the greatest challenge, the greatest cause, and the greatest work on earth.”
That challenge is the “gathering of Israel”.
Are you ready to join and do your part?
The Lord has prepared all the means to do His Work and He will help us as we strive to share the Gospel with faith. Those are fabulous prophetic promises!
In the parable of the lost sheep in Luke 15: 4-6, the Savior teaches some principles that can help us to participate more actively in missionary work. I know for my own experience that such principles work very well. They are:
- Identify,
- Seek until you find,
- Invite to Come
- Invite to Help
- Invite to Stay
- Feel Joy
Identify:
Of all those you know, who greatly needs the blessings of the Gospel? Make a list, meditate on it, pray for inspiration and pray even more to receive confirmation, from whom you will contact so that he or she may come to know the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ
Seek until you find:
Once you know who to invite, think of all the ways to do it. Do not give up. Do it over and over and over again. Seek guidance from our Heavenly Father to find the best way to share the Gospel to whomever you have chosen.
Invite to Come
At this time you need to make more invitations than ever with the intention that people “come and see”. Invite them without fear, invite them with such fervor that people will feel interest because of your enthusiasm and sincere desire to share what is of great value to you. Invite them more than once and you can live great experiences with everyone you invite
Invite to Help:
All people have great desires to do good, invite them to “come and help”. There are many fun service activities that can give to your friends or family opportunities to feel comfortable, as a family or even at home. The more you invite them to do good, the more they will desire to learn from the Gospel.
Invite to Stay:
Regardless of the circumstances, invite them to stay. Do it again and again, with great fervor, with great love, with all the desires of your heart.
Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf in the October General Conference said: Understand that it’s not your job to convert people. That is the role of the Holy Ghost. Your role is to share what is in your heart and live consistent with your beliefs.
So, don’t be discouraged if someone does not accept the gospel message immediately. It is not a personal failure. That is between the individual and Heavenly Father. Yours is to love God and love your neighbors, His children.
Follow this path, and God will work miracles through you to bless His precious children.
Feel joy:
The Savior said, “Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God. … And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!” (D&C 18:10, 15)
You will not only have joy when you see your friends, neighbors or relatives joining to the Church. You will have joy by meditating on those who need the Gospel, joy in praying for them, joy in seeking them, joy in “inviting them to see, to help, and to stay”.
Remember, love without service is like faith without works. Do it! And I promise to you that your joy will be immense, and the blessings in your life will be like an endless torrent that comes from heaven.