64. Be Ready Always
- L Rshaw
- Dec 1, 2019
- 6 min read
Updated: Jun 12, 2022
"To expect the unexpected shows a thoroughly modern intellect"
--- Oscar Wilde (Irish poet & playwright; 1854 - 1900)
Do you know what's worse than public speaking? Not knowing that you're going to have to do it beforehand. Being put on the spot is a terrible feeling, at least to me. We like to feel in control, don't we? But we don't always know what's to come. That's why preparation is key.
Click to Navigate (Table of Contents):
IN AN INSTANT
It was Father’s Day now, Sunday, June 14, 2015. The Buena Vista Ward had gone on their monthly trip to the temple in Monterrey, Mexico the day before (See "Temples: Holy Houses of the Lord" and "2nd Area: Buena Vista, Matamoros"). One of the bishopric counselors started the sacrament meeting by inviting a few of the members to briefly share their testimony and feelings about the temple trip. I wish I could have gone with them but the temple was outside the mission boundaries (See "Mission Administration"). Then again, they had to wake up at 4:30 in the morning in order to leave on time and then take a long trip (about 170 miles as the crow flies) in a hot muggy bus that they all pitched in to rent. But although it might sound undesirable, the financial and time sacrifices were evidence of their faith and love of the temple. Sometimes I think we take the temple for granted being so close to so many, especially in Utah. This was one of those things that I didn’t appreciate fully until it was gone.
When they finished sharing their testimonies, the counselor got back up at the podium. Elder Gomez and Elder Torres had been asked just two days earlier to speak in sacrament meeting and they had excitedly prepared to do so. It was as if for those two nights, after planning and reporting, that was how they spent their nights. I'd never seen anyone so excited to get to speak in Sacrament Meeting!
Then the counselor spoke:
“We will now be pleased to hear from our missionaries. First we will hear from Elder Robertshaw who will then be followed by his companion, Elder Chavarria.”
And then he sat down. I sat there for another ten seconds locked in a staring contest with him, waiting for him to get back up and correct himself. The room was dead quiet. When I realized that all eyes were on me and waiting on me to get up and speak, and the counselor was undeterred, I unzipped my scriptures and made my way a bit shakily to the front of the congregation.
I knew everybody. They all knew me by this point. But still, public speaking is not usually on the list of people’s favorite things to do, and certainly not mine. It wasn’t full-out Glossophobia, but I am among the seventy-five percent of all people who experience some degree of discomfort or anxiety when it comes to public speaking, and that’s normal. It’s opportunities to step outside of our comfort zone that allow us to grow. I was a missionary. All I did was talk to strangers on a daily basis; it wasn’t always easy but it became easier with experience. The more I think about it, the more grateful I am for the opportunities that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints gives its members to practice public speaking whether that’s giving a talk in church or teaching a class. It’s a useful thing to be able to do, especially when having to do it at a moment’s notice like I did.
My words were a bit scattered at first, surely, my Spanish wasn't terrible but it wasn't advanced either, but my thoughts kept returning to two things:
1) You're a missionary. Your purpose is to represent Jesus Christ. Testify of Him.
2) You're a missionary talking to members of the Church. Talk about member missionary work.
So that’s what I did. First, I testified of the divinity and love of Jesus Christ. As I started talking, with my scriptures before me, everything just flowed like a movie. As soon as I finished one scene, it moved to the next. The Holy Ghost absolutely enabled me to connect thoughts in an incredibly smooth and understandable way that I never really had to stop and wonder what to say.
I told them about a family in my Ward back home who had joined the church four years earlier after waiting about twelve years to be baptized. They’d come to church every now and then and were friends with the whole Ward but the kind father was determined to keep his family Catholic, as per family tradition. One day, he asked the missionaries to help move their heavy piano. Miraculously, these two young missionaries were able to lift and move the whole piano by themselves. I can't even imagine that! I can barely move my couch with someone helping me. Well, that night, the father had a dream where his mother came to him and told him that it was finally time to join the church. And that is what he did— him and his entire family. Everyone was overjoyed! At the time I shared their story, their oldest son was serving a mission himself in Nevada.
The other experience of member missionary work was my own. I shared the story of how I read the Book of Mormon from cover to cover for the first time in High School and shared it with a few friends (See "The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ"). I shared a scripture that came to my mind which was Doctrine and Covenants 11:21,
"Seek not to declare my word, but first seek to obtain my word, and then shall your tongue be loosed; then, if you desire, you shall have my Spirit and my word, yea, the power of God unto the convincing of men."
I felt prompted to testify that God has a plan to bring His children to the gospel in His time. Sometimes it takes a long time but with faith, patience, service, and love, God will bless us for our efforts. I testified of the importance of church members working together with the missionaries in the hastening of the work. While the work of the Lord is advancing faster than ever, I think it’s important to remember that we are just kingdom-building instruments, not the ones in charge or in control. A hammer without a builder can do nothing of himself. Isaiah said:
“Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? Or shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it? As if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself, as if it were no wood.” (Isa. 10:15)
God expects us to work hard but we cannot rush another’s conversion to fit our convenience. Ultimately, one of the greatest gifts of God is the gift which Heavenly Father's Plan of Happiness honors in our "agency" or our ability to choose (See "Return of the King -- Part 1"). Moreover, true conversion can only occur when one has a willing and committed heart. (See "Sí, Dios Quiere")
Sometimes it does take time for people to come around. Says the Book of Ecclesiastes, “To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven…” (Eccl. 3:1-8). But one thing I know is that “The time shall come when all shall see the salvation of the Lord; when every nation, kindred, tongue, and people shall see eye to eye and shall confess before God that his judgments are just.” (Mos. 16:1)
Another thought came to mind and left my lips which surprised even me which is how I know it was prompted by the Holy Ghost, “Why is it that God sent me 1300 miles from home for two years to learn a new language to share my testimony when each of you could walk next door and do the exact same thing?”. Members have such an advantage in finding people for the missionaries to teach, and often they do. We must never forget that working together is what God intends and that the responsibility of sharing what we know to be true applies to everyone, not just the full-time missionaries.
After I spoke and sat down, I thought about that serendipitous opportunity to bear testimony. Said the Apostle Peter, “…sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you…” (1 Peter 3:15). Thomas S. Monson said it this way, “When the time for decision arrives, the time for preparation is past”. We will often find ourselves facing unplanned opportunities and it is up to us to be sure that we are ready when they come. It is something that I have tried to live worthy of. I want to be sure that when the Lord needs something done that he can count on me to be ready, willing, and worthy. Ephraim Hanks back in the late 1800s said, "Being worthy when your opportunity arrives is a lesson that took me years to learn. It is for me, what a good life is all about". May we be ready for whatever the future brings.
Comentários