December 2004 Ensign - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

BACKGROUND: PHOTOGRAPH BY JOHN LUKE; INSET: PHOTOGRAPH BY MATTHEW REIER
VISITING TEACHING MESSAGE
Feeling the Love of the Lord
through Service
think of service, we
Prayerfully select and read
from this message the scriptures
and teachings that meet
the needs of the sisters you visit. Share
your experiences and testimony.
Invite those you teach to do the same.
How Does Service Bring Us Closer
to the Savior and His Love?
D&C 76:5–6: “I, the Lord, . . .
delight to honor those who serve me
in righteousness and in truth unto
the end. Great shall be their reward
and eternal shall be their glory.”
President Thomas S. Monson, First
Counselor in the First Presidency:
“As we love our God, as we love our
neighbor, we can be the recipients of
our Heavenly Father’s love. Of all the
blessings I have had in my life, one of
the sweetest is that feeling the Lord
provides when I know that He has
answered the prayer of another person
through me. As we love the Lord,
as we love our neighbor, we discover
that our Heavenly Father will answer
the prayers of others through our
ministry” (“How Do We Show Our
Love?” Liahona, Feb. 1998, 7; Ensign,
Jan. 1998, 6).
What Does It Mean to Serve
with Heart and Mind?
Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum
of the Twelve Apostles: “When we
usually think of the acts
of our hands. . . . It is
not enough to serve
God with all of our might
and strength. He who looks
into our hearts and knows our minds
demands more than this. In order to
stand blameless before God at the
last day, we must also serve him with
all our heart and mind. Service with
all of our heart and mind is a high
challenge for all of us. Such service
must be free of selfish ambition. It
must be motivated only by the pure
love of Christ” (“Why Do We Serve?”
Ensign, Nov. 1984, 12–15).
Kathleen H. Hughes, first counselor
in the Relief Society general
presidency: “[Heavenly Father] is a
vastly loving God, and it has always
been his intention to support us. . . .
We have accepted [the] challenge
to bear one another’s burdens.
Now bearing one another’s burdens
sounds like a chore, but it’s amazing
how lightened we quickly feel when
we do the work. Think for a moment
why that is. When we bear one another’s
burdens, we are acting as
an agent for Christ, and by so doing
we’re coming to Christ. . . . How
blessed and grateful we should be
that our Heavenly Father knew what
we would need and then provided
the means—Relief Society—
where these needs could be met
through the hearts and hands of
others who love” (“Serving and
Supporting One Another,” in The
Rock of Our Redeemer: Talks from
the 2002 BYU Women’s Conference
[2003], 53–54).
Elder Henry B. Eyring of the
Quorum of the Twelve Apostles:
“A call to service should be primarily
a matter of the heart. . . . You are
called to represent the Savior. Your
voice to testify becomes the same as
His voice, your hands to lift the same
as His hands. . . . The Father and
His Beloved Son will send the Holy
Ghost as your companion to guide
you. Your efforts will be magnified
in the lives of the people you serve.
And when you look back on what
may now seem trying times of service
and sacrifice, the sacrifice will
have become a blessing, and you
will know that you have seen the
arm of God lifting those you served
for Him, and lifting you” (“Rise to
Your Call,” Liahona and Ensign,
Nov. 2002, 75–78). ■
ENSIGN DECEMBER 2004 41