The Worth
of a Soul
by
Ed J. Pinegar
The Lord made
it clear: "Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of
God; for, behold, the Lord your Redeemer suffered death in the flesh;
wherefore he suffered the pain of all men, that all men might repent
and come unto him. . . . And how great is his joy in the soul that
repenteth!" (D&C 18: 10-13). The Lord wants his children back,
and the last days are here. Never has there been a time when the
Lord has needed more disciples to do His work. This is the last
time the vineyard will be pruned.
And it came
to pass that the Lord of the vineyard sent his servant; and the
servant went and did as the Lord had commanded him, and brought
other servants; and they were few [In other words, we are
all that the Lord has].
And the Lord
of the vineyard said unto them: Go to, and labor in the vineyard,
with your might. For behold, this is the last time that I shall
nourish my vineyard; for the end is nigh at hand, and the season
speedily cometh; and if ye labor with your might with me ye shall
have joy in the fruit which I shall lay up unto myself against the
time which will soon come.
And it came
to pass that the servants did go and labor with their mights; and
the Lord of the vineyard labored also with them; and they did obey
the commandments of the Lord of the vineyard in all things.
And there began
to be the natural fruit again in the vineyard; and the natural branches
began to grow and thrive exceedingly; and the wild branches began
to be plucked off and to be cast away; and they did keep the root
and the top thereof equal, according to the strength thereof (Jacob
5:70-73).
This is our
role. Now is the time. We are the ones to go into the vineyard to
bring souls unto Christ. This is not a battle that should be left
just to the young. We are not to waste out our remaining days in
rocking chairs! I love the prophet Gordon B. Hinckley's words:
I am no longer
a young man filled with energy and vitality. . . . I'm given to
meditation and prayer. I would enjoy sitting in a rocker, swallowing
prescriptions, listening to soft music, and contemplating the things
of the universe. But such activity offers no challenge and makes
no contribution.
I wish to be
up and doing. I wish to face each day with resolution and purpose.
I wish to use every waking hour to give encouragement, to bless
those whose burdens are heavy, to build faith and strength of testimony.
. . . It is the presence of wonderful people which stimulates the
adrenaline. It is the look of love in their eyes which gives me
energy ("Testimony," Ensign, May 1998, 69).
As President
Hinkley says, the work we are all called to do is a work of love--that
is the kind of work that makes life worth living. It is the whole
basis of the Father's plan: "For God so loved the world,
that he gave his only begotten Son" (John 3:16). Why did God give
his only begotten Son? Because nothing is so precious as the souls
of Heavenly Father's children. The whole work of Heavenly Father
and our Savior is our immortality and eternal life (see Moses 1:39).
Everything they do is for us--premortal life, the creation, a savior
after the Fall, the plan of happiness, His gospel, the Kingdom of
God, and the resurrection of all mankind. Christ came that He might
provide a way for all mankind to return, especially the lost sheep
(see Matt. 18:11), for His joy is in our salvation.
There is great
joy--both in the heavens and in mortality--over those who repent
(see Luke 15:10; D&C 18:13). The sons of Mosiah could not bear
the thought of some of their brothers and sisters perishing, and
that included the Lamanites--their enemies! (see Mosiah 28:3). Alma
also described his feelings for the souls of men as he taught his
son Corianton: "And now I will ease your mind somewhat on this subject.
Behold, you marvel why these things should be known so long beforehand.
Behold, I say unto you, is not a soul at this time as precious unto
God as a soul will be at the time of his coming?" (Alma 39:17).
The Whitmer
brothers, Peter and John, were taught what was of most worth. Was
it a new car, a new home, a motor home, clothes, money, vacations,
time off, cruises, honor or fortune? No, they were told, "And now,
behold, I say unto you, that the thing which will be of the most
worth unto you will be to declare repentance unto this people, that
you may bring souls unto me, that you may rest with them in the
kingdom of my Father" (D&C 15:6).
Christ's beloved
disciple, John, also caught the vision of the worth of souls. Elder
Holland described the event:
The Apostle
John asked the Lord if he, John, might remain on the earth beyond
the normal span of life for no other purpose than to bring more
souls unto God. In granting that wish, the Savior said that this
was "a greater work" and a "nobler desire" even than that of desiring
to come into the presence of the Lord "speedily." Like all prophets
and apostles, the Prophet Joseph Smith understood the deep meaning
of John's request when he said, "After all that has been said, [our]
greatest and most important duty is to preach the Gospel" (Jeffery
R. Holland, "Witness Unto Me," Ensign, May 2001, 14-16).
Getting
Senior Missionaries in the Field
We should all
be ready and willing to serve and to help others serve. The following
sections outline several things we can do as a united Church body,
and as individuals, to help us move the great cause of missionary
work forward.
Priesthood
Leaders Can Encourage
Elder Robert
D. Hales recounts what our prophets have asked of priesthood leaders
concerning the need for more missionaries: "Bishops, there should
be no hesitation on your part to initiate a Recommend for Missionary
Service interview to discuss and encourage missionary couples to
serve a mission" (Ensign, May 2001, 27). Bishops do have
a responsibility to watch over their flocks, and keeping the flock
spiritually growing and building the kingdom of God is part of that
responsibility.
President Ezra
T. Benson stated that there are many types of missions bishops can
offer--the important point is just to encourage service.
A priesthood
leader can do much to assist and encourage individuals and couples
as they prepare to serve missions. The temple extraction and welfare
programs are blessed greatly by those who are in their senior years
and have opportunities to serve in this area (Come, Listen to
a Prophet's Voice, 71).
Elder David
B. Haight gave instructions on how to deal with this responsibility
with sensitivity and constructively:
When in doubt,
it is the bishop's responsibility to suggest to couples that they
think about going on a mission. He ought to have a list on his desk
of all those couples he thinks are eligible. He needs to know something
about their family, health, and financial situations. Then he should
call them in for a warm and friendly interview and say, "Now that
you're retired, you have the opportunity to be doing something more
to help build the kingdom. Have you ever thought about serving a
mission?"
We don't force
anyone! We don't say you have to go! But we are saying that there
is a need! Bishops can talk about the couple's possibility of going
in six months or a year if the couple isn't ready to go right now.
It doesn't have to
happen overnight;
the need of the Church is ongoing.
I think that
some bishops are a little reluctant to bring up the idea of a mission
to some couples because they are not sure of all the details in
a couple's life. In that case, a couple should go to the bishop
and say, "We're ready!"
We need to
improve communication from both directions, but it is ultimately
the bishop's responsibility to at least raise the question (Ensign,
Feb. 1996, 7).
Other Couples
Can Encourage
There are thousands
of couples and senior sisters just waiting for an invitation to
serve, or an encouraging word about serving a mission. You as individuals
can go to your priesthood and auxiliary leaders and promote a "Let's
go on a mission campaign." Your word could be what starts someone
else's desire to serve. The results: many lives are blessed in the
mission field, your families at home will be blessed, and you will
feel the joy of assisting the Lord by serving others, and helping
them to serve their fellowmen. Encouragement from others really
helps.
A senior missionary
explains how encouragement helped her:
One of the
things that has given me the courage to dare tackle a mission is
when my cousin's husband told us that we should serve a mission.
We told him that we really weren't missionary material, and he told
us that we would be very surprised at what we could do. He said
that we very well could know more about the Church than many members
in the mission field, maybe even the stake president. Our prayers
have been that we can and will be of use in the Palmyra area. We
are excited to do this--share what we know and are learning of this
wonderful gospel.
--Sister Higbee
Getting
the Word Out
Following are
some ideas to encourage senior missionary service. They should be
ongoing so younger members can also build up their desire to serve.
If we do so, we can all help encourage and plant the seed of desire
in the hearts of all the members of the Church. When the time comes,
the decision is already made and the price of preparation has been
paid. Then we are ready to serve the Lord as senior missionaries.
1. Have a joint
Priesthood/Relief Society Fireside or Sunday School class to help
members to gain a desire and be aware of the opportunities to serve
in all types of missionary activities.
2. Alleviate
fear by having returned senior missionaries talk at firesides or
in classes and explain how they overcame their fear. (See chapter
six for examples of such stories.)
3. Have a missionary
month with emphasis on setting a date to serve. It could include
Sacrament meetings, firesides, workshops (covering types of missionary
service, preparing to serve, etc.).
4. Make a list
of all possible and available seniors who could serve. Sometimes
people just need to be asked to serve.
5. Prepare
a handout for all those who could serve with statements by the prophets
and others which could inspire them to serve.
6. Review the
weekly missionary bulletin in all appropriate meetings to remind
people that they are desperately needed.
7. Always use
the ward bulletin and newsletter to encourage missionary service
and include success stories of senior missionaries.
Missionary
work needs to be our walk and our talk. The need is great. Souls
are precious to the Lord. We as Senior missionaries can make a difference.
Prepare every needful thing and get to the field.
Adapted from
Lengthen Your Shuffle, Covenant Books, by Ed J. Pinegar
Click
here to sign up for Meridian's FREE email updates.
© 2002Meridian
Magazine. All Rights Reserved.
|
