"Sharing the Gospel" taught by Bishop J.

Bishop J. began by expressing his wish that we would be blessed to understand some of the mysteries of God and feel His love, and then he quoted King Benjamin in his address to his people:

..."for I have not commanded you to come up hither to trifle with the words which I shall speak, but that you should hearken unto me, and open your ears that ye may hear, and your hearts that ye may understand, and your minds that the mysteries of God may be unfolded to your view." -Mosiah 2:9

"Members are the Key":
Bishop J. referenced a talk by Elder M. Russell Ballard several times in his lesson: https://lds.org/liahona/2000/09/members-are-the-key?lang=eng&query=ballard+relax+difference

Making a distinction between Missionary Work and Sharing the Gospel:
Bishop J.'s mission to Puerto Rico helped prepare him to share the gospel in some ways but not in others.
Missionary work is done by missionaries, while sharing the gospel is done by members.

Matt 28: 18-20:

18And ^aJesus came and spake unto them, saying, All ^bpower is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

19¶Go ye therefore, and ^ateach all ^bnations, ^cbaptizing them in the name of the ^dFather, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

20^aTeaching them to ^bobserve all things whatsoever I have ^ccommanded you: and, lo, I am ^dwith you alway, even unto the ^eend of the world. Amen.

Mark 16: 20

And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.

Christ has just fulfilled his mission on Earth and now he is telling his disciples to "go" and put his sacrifice to use. He wants people to come under the umbrella of the atonement and receive the blessings of this gift. As we "go and teach", the Lord will work with us and confirm what is taught.

What makes a member more able to share the gospel effectively?

There are about 30,000 people in our ward. All of them are children of our Heavenly Father and a part of our ward-- all with varying levels of engagement.

In the book, "How Americans View Mormonism", Gary Lawrence discusses the results of a National survey he conducted and the six levels of awareness or engagement that people can be grouped into.
Level 1: "Awareness" (about 40% of Americans)
Level 2: "Awakening" (about 25%)
Level 3: "Curiosity"- they want to know why they are hearing so much about Mormons. (about 11%)
Level 4: "Interested"- they want to listen. (about 9%)
Level 5: "Investigation"- they want to know if it's true. (about 5%)
Level 6: "Conversion"- they want to help build the Kingdom. (about 1.7%)

*If these numbers are semi-accurate for the 30,000 people who live in our ward boundaries, then there should be about 1,500 people who are in the investigation category almost 3,000 who are interested enough to listen.

Lawrence also studied reasons why people who were in the investigation category hesitated to ask for more information. One of the reasons was that they were worried about getting too much information or more than they asked for.

How can we share the gospel in natural ways?
-It's important to listen to others before we share too much. Think about what they are looking for and be open, rather than actively trying to convince them. Build relationships and let the conversations be natural.

-When you have a conversation with someone about what you did over the week or weekend, don't "hide" your church involvement/activities, but also offer multiple ways for others to "engage" with you (ex: I watched a church broadcast, went on a walk, and went to a soccer game). That way they can choose to ask more about the church activity if they are interested but that isn't their only option to continue the conversation. Seemingly innocuous questions about life can be opportunities to share the gospel.

-Share the central claim of our church-- that we are the re-established original Christian church. (Only 12% of people polled in Gary Lawrence's study knew this.) Supplying correct information in a gentle way can help clear up misconceptions. Let the spirit guide you as you testify of truths.

"Gentle Messengers with a Bold Message"

-Be gentle messengers with a bold message, not bold messengers with a gentle message.
We should "Be still" and know that He is God, but don't be comatose! Kay Ryan, a poet, said "Intention doesn't sweeten. It must be picked young and eaten."
-Be like an athlete-- relaxed but ready and prepared to act.

Working together with the missionaries:

The missionaries are ordained and given power from the Lord to teach the gospel to those who are investigating (see levels of awareness above). In our area they are no longer knocking on doors and are focusing on doing service.

By sharing the gospel in natural ways, we can help others get a toehold for the next step/level of engagement with the gospel so they are ready to be taught by the missionaries.

We can also help the missionaries become powerful teachers by inviting them into our homes to teach us and then giving them helpful and constructive feedback.

*While we probably aren't called to be like Abinadi and give our life for our beliefs, we can follow the example of Ammon and find the joy that comes from engaging with others in sharing the gospel.