LDS Missions President Handbook, p 44; “All members should look to the temple as the great symbol of their membership. The goal in retention is to help new members prepare to enter into the sacred covenants of the temple and endure to the end.”
Psalm 121:1; “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.”
There’s a song in Christianity called ‘I will lift my eyes’ by Bebo Norman that aptly describes the everyday life of a Christian.
We look to Him who saves and not unto ourselves who can only bury and destroy everything we come into contact with. If we weren’t experts in that venue we’d never need or seek Him out to rescue our sorry selves.
I’ve learned over the years and especially now with MS that I have to rely upon others for my daily existence. If it weren’t for my family, doctors and close friends I wouldn’t be here today.
The days of self-sufficiency are long gone and this directive in the Missions President Handbook reminds me of the futileness of how I used to live. How would I get to the temple regularly or do all that is required with my MS?
Where would my hope lie and what would be the symbol of my hope? It certainly wouldn’t be the temple if I couldn’t be there or engage in the necessary requirements!
If you would’ve asked me 15 years ago to imagine my life as it is today I would’ve brushed you off believing a simple car wreck would change everything. I was 35, young, vibrant, busy and had no such time to think upon such frivolous matters. That only happened to other people…
Guess what? The MS didn’t happen to just me. It ‘happened’ to my kids, my husband, my friends and the ministry.
The only thing that didn’t change was GOD. He’s the same today as He was back on August 16, 1999; the day that changed everything. A simple car wreck threw me into full blown MS. I went from a wife, mom of two young kids who taught Sunday School, ran a local babysitting club, a ministry, went hiking, camping, skiing, etc, to an invalid because someone answered their phone while driving.
If I was Mormon right now, what would be the symbol of my faith if I couldn’t do the things the Church requires? Their membership retention plan is full of empty busyness that’s bereft of Him who was crucified for me; Christ Jesus.
For us at the ministry we look at ‘convert retention’ by checking in on those who’ve confessed Christ to see how they’re doing and if their Bible studies are going well. We ask what new things they’ve learned about the Lord and what He did for them this week.
We have assurance God will take care of His converts. He began a good work in them that He’ll finish – Philippians 1:6 – which is a sign the HS is at work inside the believer. People, organizations, churches, ministries and everything else you can imagine isn’t what ‘governs’ those who are Christians!
Furthermore, someone asked me last week how many people we’ve led to the Lord.
My answer: we don’t know because we don’t keep count. Again, that business belongs to God, not us.
We obey Jesus’ command of witnessing and don’t add to what He said by keeping track of people or handing out permission slips for entrance into a certain building. That is strictly between you and the Lord, not you and man.
If you’re LDS, I pray you think upon the things we’ve shared here and verify what we’ve said with what the Bible says. We do NOT want you to just take our word for it – that is not a healthy thing to do spiritually, mentally or emotionally. Verify it for yourself!
When I got out of Mormonism and began ‘working’ in ministry I called my organization ‘All for JAXI’. Jaxi was a combination of my daughters’ names. My exodus from Mormonism was for myself, but I also held at the forefront of my mind that what I was doing would impact the lives of future generations who’d just begun living.
If you leave Mormonism or stay think upon those things. Everything you do will impact the next generation that’s involved in your personal life. Even if your kids are grown, your actions will impact their kids and so on.
I’ve seen this countless times in the 20+ yrs of ministry! Someone leaves and then their grown kids leave and the grandkids are raised in a completely different environment. They know Christ, they ‘re free from the law of man and begin new traditions they never knew or thought of before! PTL!
So my question for you is this;
What do those generations down from you see?
Do they see you looking at a building you’re obligated to or with bent knees lifting your eyes to Him on the hill? Do they see you praying? Do they see your life filled with hope and assurance?
Reblogged this on Compendium of Christian Blogs.
Excellent post!
Thanks for your kind words! My pastor’s sermon the other day focused on James 5:7-12 and the message was how James directed people to have bent knees looking to Jesus, not work. We’re a people of hope, not self-sufficiency and not slaves to what God put an end to! PTL! Whenever I think of how tired my mother always is I think of how sad it must be for her personally as that work will never end. 🙁