Leadership for Saints: Part 47

What You Must Encourage Your People to Do
by Rodger Dean Duncan and Ed J. Pinegar

One should constantly remember that all leaders are teachers. Your influence often reflects the power of your teaching. In your own self development as a leader, make excellent teaching a priority. Then, as you teach to influence others to be and do better, encourage them to—

Recognize and Remember God’s Goodness, Mercy, and Covenants

People change when they recognize and remember the goodness of God. Until they recognize, until they acknowledge, until they recall and appreciate, until they respect and understand the things that God has done for them, they will not begin the process of growing and becoming like unto Christ and doing the will of our Heavenly Father. Until this recognition and remembrance are internalized, their performance will be mercurial at best.

We discover in the Book of Mormon that the first step the prophets and leaders took to help a wayward people was to call to their minds the great things the Lord had done for them. Nephi tried to inspire Laman and Lemuel. “Yea, and how is it that ye are forgotten what great things the Lord hath done for us, in delivering us out of the hands of Laban, and also that we should obtain the record?” (1 Nephi 7:11).

The first thing a person in this condition should remember, or be taught, is the tender mercies and goodness of God. The key is to remember. There are many ways to remember. You can select your own way—personal prayers, a note on your mirror or even a penny in your shoe—to remind you. “I must keep Heavenly Father’s commandments.”  “I must remember the goodness of God.” “I must stay on the straight and narrow path.” “I must do my duty.” Remembering is the key.

All the covenants we have entered into with the Lord, whether baptism, priesthood or temple, are linked to the sacrament and the commitment we make at that time. And in that prayer, the word remembrance or remember is mentioned twice. Remembrance becomes a key. At the sacrament table we not only recognize the goodness of God, but we remember it. Why? That we might have his spirit with us. We learn that when the Spirit is upon us, we are nurtured by the power of God and it will show us all things to do (see 2 Nephi 32:5) as well as inspire us to do them.

It is difficult, if not impossible, to influence people for righteousness if they are in a state of spiritual amnesia. Work to help your people remember who they are, remember what they have promised, and remember what has been promised to them.

Realize the Power of Love

As we recognize, remember and feel the tender mercies of God in our lives, our love for God increases. Our affection toward God, our concern for his will and our desire to serve him begin to grow. As we love him, we will do His will, we will keep his commandments (see John 14:15), we will do our duty, and we will be happy. In other words, happiness lies in keeping the commandments of God (see Mosiah 2:41).

We might describe our love for God like this: ultimate concern and devotion, to such an extent that we desire to serve him. Likewise, love for our fellowmen becomes a primary concern; we have a righteous desire to serve them. This love, this concern, begets righteous service. God loved us first through the gift of his Only Begotten Son. His work and his glory are in and for us. When we understand this, we appreciate Father’s goodness for all he has done. Then we can love. Then we will serve with all the heart, might, mind, and soul.

Yes, love is the binding power, the stimulus, for all that is good, both from God and from man. A person is genuinely different when he truly and deeply loves God. He seeks to do Father’s will. Duty becomes a pleasure and an honor.

We learn from the sad story of some of Adam and Eve’s posterity that when love is not complete and total we become carnal, sensual and devilish to one degree or another (see Moses 5:13). We cannot love both the world and God. Remember, “ No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24).

It is difficult, if not impossible, to influence people for righteousness if their love for God is superficial. Work to help your people develop a deep and abiding love for God and a desire to  become like him.

Gain Appreciation and Gratitude for the Atonement

Understanding the atonement of Christ and its relationship to our eternal existence is the greatest knowledge we can have. This knowledge is an absolute imperative in our eligibility to return to God our Eternal Father. The atonement is the supreme center of the gospel of Jesus Christ. When we apply the atonement’s principles to our lives, through faith unto repentance, baptism, and receiving the Holy Ghost, we become liberated from the fallen state we are in. We become free through Christ by obedience. Yet it is by the grace of God that we are saved, after all we can do (2 Nephi 25:23). This knowledge draws us to Christ and inspires us to do his will.

When people genuinely appreciate the atonement, they are more receptive to your righteous teaching.

Seek to Understand the Doctrines and Principles of the Gospel

The doctrines of the Kingdom of God are in the word of God. Alma taught this so plainly and simply in Alma 31:5. “And now, as the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just—yea, it had had more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else, which had happened unto them—therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the virtue of the word of God.”

Nothing does more to prepare people for your righteous influence than a love for the word of God. Use the scriptures as the launch pad for all your teaching.

Why? Because the Word has the power to change lives.

Quotes Worth Remembering

How do we take upon us the name of the Son? The Church is called by his name, and we are to remember that by partaking of the sacrament, we acknowledge his hand in our redemption from death, which is the gift to all men, and in the remission of our individual sins which comes through our obedience in keeping his commandments. – Joseph Fielding Smith

Each of us can, with effort, successfully root the principle of love deep in our being so that we may be nourished by its great power all of our lives. For as we tap into the power of love, we will come to understand the great truth written by John: "God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God." (1 John 4:16.) – Gordon B. Hinckley

There is no more wonderful doctrine in all of Christianity than the doctrine of the Atonement. I think about it – and thank God for it – every day of my life. – M. Russell Ballard

Remembering the voice of the angel who had spoken to him and the sons of Mosiah, he knew the power of conversion that accompanied that visitation. Now he and the sons of Mosiah were all in the ministry. The voice of the angel had done its work. – Mark E. Petersen

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