Lesson Summary: August 19, 2012

Today we heard from Lisa on the topic of "Doing our Part to Share the Gospel."

In post WW1 President Smith was serving as a president of the Europe mission. He struggled with a lack of young men to serve; often they couldn't get visas. Prejudices and false notions  about the church abounded.

We have all had misconceptions about the church brought to our attention. Several sisters shared experiences of living overseas and being confused with Amish or Muslims.  Others shared that people thought that we didn't drink milk or dance. People often find misinformation on the Internet. On a more serious note many believe that we are not Christian or believe Christ is our Savior. Some times misconceptions arise from our behavior, like believing that we only take care of our own. Do people look at us and know we are Christian by our actions?

"We should each do something every day to bring the light to our fellow beings... It is incumbent upon us to ascertain if there is not some means whereby we may  enable to do more than we have already done."- George Albert Smith

One resource for sharing is the Mormon.org website. It is easy to complete a profile and to share what Mormons are really like. A lot of our interactions are with other Mormons and we can be insular. Justserve.org is another website resource to find service opportunities outside the church.

"Peach the gospel at all times and if necessary use words." - President Uchtdorf quoting St. Francis of Assisi (attributed) 

It is our responsibility to share the Gospel. Lisa shared a story from her mission. One women every week would hold family home evening with friends and the missionaries. One week she went to their house and there were 27 people there for family home evening. Likewise, we can invite people to ward activities and the crèche exhibit and we need to be accepting and loving towards those that come. We need to be open to answering questions with no obligation to meet the missionaries. If we show people love and help them feel their divine worth whether or not they know that this comes from Christ we can make a difference. We can serve others.

We cannot be too focused on putting a good public face on the church. We should not be afraid to share our struggles, with faith and otherwise, and be real. Sometimes it isn't always sunshine and roses and it we should be honest about that.

President Kimball sayid that "in the last days will come because many of the good women of the world (in whom there is often such an inner sense of spirituality) will be drawn to the Church in large numbers. This will happen to the degree that the women of the Church reflect righteousness and articulateness in their lives and to the degree that the women of the Church are seen as distinct and different—in happy ways—from the women of the world."