Sharing our toys

One of the very first instructions we received as children was the necessity of “sharing our toys”. This was a very difficult thing to do because our toys were ours.  We did not want to let go of them. “What if I don’t get it back, or it gets broken?  I am not sure I can trust anyone to take care of ‘my’ treasures”.  These fears resulted in our holding ever so tightly to our precious possessions reluctant to share them with anyone.  In time, we learned that not only will we get our toys back, but we will also find new friendships and joy in allowing others to be a part of the things that bring us happiness.

We have been blessed with a very precious possession. We have received the light and knowledge that God truly lives, that Jesus is the Christ and that the Church of Jesus Christ has been restored to the earth.  We know that God answers prayers, that we can be cleansed from our erring ways and that there is a living prophet on the earth today.  As precious as these truths are, we are reluctant to share them with those around us. We are not sure if we can trust them with these precious truths or whether they are “ready” to receive them.  Maybe they will be offended or take offence to the ideas or principles shared. We might also hear, “I don’t know who I would share my testimony with.  All the people I know already have a testimony. Everybody else surely wouldn’t want “my” gift of light”.

As we learned in our childhood, we will only truly appreciate our testimony as we share it with those we encounter every day.  We all want to walk in the light.  We all want to know that we have a loving Father in Heaven and we all want to know where we can find everlasting joy and happiness.  So many of us struggle to determine why we are here and where we are going and how do we get there.  The good news we bring to the world is that Jesus Christ has been sent here by our Heavenly Father to show us who we truly are and how we can return home to our heavenly parents to enjoy the happiness that we all seek.

Sharing the gospel is not that difficult, as long as we stop judging people and suppose that we need to “prepare” them to receive these divine truths.  Friendship need not precede the sharing of this wonderful message.  We can share the gospel with anyone, anywhere, anytime.  People cross our paths every day and each one would be blessed to have received the message we bear. We need only act upon the impressions and opportunities that present themselves.  Try this as a criterion.  If a person comes within five feet of you and is still breathing, he/she is ready and qualified to hear of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Just as the gospel brings joy into your life, so will it enrich the life of those others.

Will everyone we share the gospel with embrace it? Absolutely not.  Not every person is ready to accept such a gift, but at least we have lovingly offered it. The gift of agency allows each of us to embrace the things of this life we desire.  We do not all want the same things at the same time.  Our task is to step forward, share the gospel and provide the invitation to come unto Christ.

In my travels I have spent a significant amount of time in Africa helping care for many of the orphan children in the region.  One day I was in an orphanage with about 30 two-year-olds.  We were playing in the dirt courtyard just laughing and enjoying a brief time together.  During our playtime, the matron came into the courtyard carrying a cake with pink frosting shaped like a heart.  It was Valentine’s Day and somebody had donated the cake to the orphanage.  You must understand that an African orphan child has probably never had a piece of cake in his or her life. As this cake came closer, our frolicking immediately ended and the children were all fixated on this cake.  They were told to sit on the ground and they would each receive a piece.  They silently dropped to the ground, their eyes staring at this beautiful cake. Once the cake was cut up into pieces about one-inch square, each child held out their hands to receive their piece.  They were silent as they sat and just stared at their precious possession. As they enjoyed eating their cake with huge smiles on their faces, I watched a small boy who was standing beside me. He had a plan.  He wanted to save the best, the pink frosting, for last. He started to eat his cake from the bottom up.  As he was just about to enjoy his frosting, someone inadvertently bumped him and his frosting fell into the dirt. He looked down in horror to find his treasure and lunged down to retrieve it.  He blew off the dirt, put it in his mouth and bit it in half. He then turned around to find another little girl and handed her half of his frosting.  That day, this little boy taught me the true love of Christ.  He instinctively knew, he could not enjoy his precious possession unless he shared it with someone else.

Brothers and sisters, we will not fully enjoy the gospel of Jesus Christ unless we share it. Then it shall swell within us, we shall increase in joy and happiness and truly come unto Christ. It is my prayer that we will all share that which we have received and is most precious. May we stop judging and start inviting.

https://canada.lds.org/living-water

https://canada.lds.org/have-i-done-any-good-in-the-world-today