Sharing the Gospel

Several sections of the Doctrine and Covenants call particular people to missionary service. In section 80, Stephen Burnett is called upon to “declare the things which ye have heard, and verily believe, and know to be true” (v. 4) and told “Wherefore, go ye and preach my gospel, whether to the north or to the south, to the east or to the west, it mattereth not, for ye cannot go amiss” (v. 3).

Why do you think the Lord would say it didn’t matter where Stephen Burnett went to preach? Could it be that so many people were hungry for the gospel that Brother Burnett would find someone wherever he went? Or could it be that, at that time, the Lord was more focused on Stephen Burnett and how he would be changed through testifying of the gospel? (Or maybe there is another reason entirely?) I think the Lord told Stephen that it didn’t matter where he taught because he truly could not go wrong. There were so few missionaries, back in 1832 when this revelation was given, and there were also next to no members and no people who knew about the gospel. I believe it wouldn’t have mattered where he would have gone because anywhere he went, there may be people who wanted/needed to hear the gospel at that time. It could have quite possibly been tailored to the fact that Brother Burnett needed a missionary experience altogether to increase his testimony and love for the Atonement and teachings of the Book of Mormon so it wouldn’t have mattered where he went. I don’t know if we will ever know the true meaning of why the Lord told him to serve wherever he wished. But I know the Lord knew that Brother Burnett would have grown spiritually and would have bought others to the light of the gospel wherever he chose to work as a missionary.

What experiences have you had with missionary work? I have had a few experiences with missionary work, mostly with close family members and friends. All of which I had because of promptings of the Spirit. One of my experiences was several years back. I had this really close friend that I had known for 3-4 years and knew my family and I very well but knew little about our religion and what we believed. He lived directly across the street from me and we would be inseperable during the summer times. I often felt like I should invite him to church, a church activity, or FHE but I never did. A few years later he moved about 30 min away and I hardly saw him. His birthday was coming up, I always sent him something for his birthday, and I kept getting this strong feeling to give him the BofM. I finally gave in. I wrote a long 4 page letter to him bearing my testimony of the gospel and of the BofM. I had the package with the book and my letter addressed and ready to go……but I could not get myself to mail it. I was so afraid of his reaction. Would he be mad? Would he never want to be my friend again? Would he ever talk to me again? But I sent it. A few weeks later I get a phone call from him. He was so grateful for the package I had sent him and he absolutely loved it. I was shocked, in a good way, by his reaction. I pray that someday he may come to find the truthfulness of the gospel for himself.

Who has the greatest change wrought upon them? Why? I feel like this is a trick question. Both the one receiving missionary work and the one giving it has great change come upon them, but on different levels. The one who is receiving missionary work is receiving truth that they had never heard before, truth that could bring so much happiness and fulfillment in their lives, but their “great change” will only happen to them if they allow it. Their heart needs to be softened and they need to be ready to receive those messages for it to change them. As for the missionaries, they will have change wrought upon them as they seek out and study the principles of the gospel that they need to know in order to be able to teach. They will also gain the experiences and testimonies that come when listening to and acting upon the promptings of the spirit. They will grow a great love for those they serve and teach and a love for the Lord.

What is the importance of declaring “the things which ye have heard, and verily believe, and know to be true” in coming to know something? What is the point of knowing something to be true without a doubt in your mind, yet keeping it to yourself? That is the question I often ask myself. I feel that it is important to declare what you believe and know to be true because others may not have had the opportunity to have been taught what you know. For example: when I learn things (from any of my classes) at school while doing assignments or listening to lectures, I will often times share those things with a close friend or two and especially my mother. My mom never went to college; she never had the opportunity to learn some of the things I am learning so I love to be able to share some great principles of truth to her from a variety of subjects. I know she benefits from it as much, if not more, than I do.

How might what you have observed effect your efforts to teach one another in this course? I think it affects my efforts because I have realized that some people could greatly benefit to learn what I have learned. Sometimes I get caught up in thinking that everyone knows exactly what I know because we are taking the same course. But the thing is, that isn’t always the case. I know that some of what I have learned has come about inspirationally, others in the course may not have received that same inspiration so it would be good on my part to share my thoughts with the rest of the class