THE BLACK NAME TAG
-Unknown
Black name tag upon our chests,
We are men, the Church's best.
Some may boast. Some may brag,
But very few wear the Black Name Tag
Twenty four months without a date
We are tough, we can wait.
Our girl's at home, they never brag,
Their brave men wear the Black Name Tag.
Back at home our young girls wait,
But not for long-she starts to date.
Her interest soon begins to lag,
She "Dear Johns" the Black Name Tag
On return home, we resume life.
Start the search to find a wife,
But finds are few, and efforts lag,
Such is the life for the Black Name Tag
You find a Babe, she has a man,
You find a chick, she has a plan,
You find "The One", and what a drag,
'Cuz now she wears the Black Name Tag.
My name is Beth
Spencer and I have received my mission call to the Brazil Campinas mission. I
leave on Wednesday to go to the Provo MTC and I am very excited to go and
serve! For the past year, I have been attending Brigham Young University and am
looking at studying either child development or communication disorders, I’m
still trying to decide. My parents have been helping out at the Young Single
Adult Ward. So if you haven’t seen much of us in the past while, that is why.
As many of you know,
the Lord is beginning to hasten his work here on the Earth. He has changed the
missionary age making it possible for girls to serve missions at age 19 and men
to serve missions beginning at age 18. However, this does not end there. The
Lord is also asking ward members to become member missionaries and share their
religion more.
Elder Bednar has
outlined seven steps that can help others share their religion more.
The First step was to
live our religion. A latter-day Saint’s life is his or her best sermon. Our
conversations ought to be open, genuine, and engaged in with a spirit of
kindness. As followers of Jesus Christ,
we are most believable when our actions are in harmony with our beliefs.
When my brother was
on his mission, he taught a woman who had moved from New York down to Utah. She
was so impressed with the Mormon’s and their kind example that from there she
became interested in learning more about the church.
I’ve often heard it
said that people do not care how much you know until you show them how much you
care. By always striving to live our religion, we can show them that we do care
about them.
When Christ was on
the Earth, always taught others and showed love towards individuals.
Christ gave of himself to the outcasts of society. A despised
leper worshiped the Lord and said, “Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me
clean.” The scripture records—note it well—that “Jesus put forth his hand, and
touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was
cleansed.” (Matt. 8:2–3.)
In one of his most dramatic miracles, Jesus still paid attention
to individuals. As he prepared to raise Lazarus from the dead, he saw Mary
weeping, and, the record states, “he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled.”
And then, “Jesus wept.” (John 11:33–35.)
Just as Jesus taught through his example and actions, so can we.
The second step was
to establish a foundation. Rather than responding to random questions, it might
be helpful to establish a foundation. It can be helpful to explain to others
that we embrace Jesus Christ as our Savior and accept the Bible’s teachings,
but believe that the Christian world departed from basic truths, and so Christ
needed to restore His church.
Helaman 5:12 says: “And now,
my sons, remember, remember that it is upon thearock of our Redeemer, who is
Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your bfoundation; that
when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the
whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty cstorm shall beat upon you, it
shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless
wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a
foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.”
One of the most
commons myths that I have heard is that Mormons do not believe in Jesus Christ.
If we explain when we get simple questions that we do believe in Jesus Christ
and attempt to share some of the founding basics of our religion, many of the
myths about what we believe will dissipate. By establishing a foundation, we
can show others that we most certainly do believe in Jesus Christ and the
teachings of the bible as far as they are translated correctly.
Often times by living
our religion, we will get questions arise about what we believe. This is where
Elder Bednar brings in his third point. He says to connect the dots. Try to
discern the gospel principle at the heart of a question, and connect the answer
back to the Savior. We do not need to be complicated, sophisticated arguments
when the principles we try to live by come from the Son of God.
Sometimes in our
lives, “connecting the dots” is just the same as living by faith. The Lord
doesn’t give us the “full” answer or vision typically. We only have a part of
it. If we are only asked one question, by answering it and connecting it back
to the Savior we may spark an interest or another question in that person.
In order to answer other people’s questions, we
need to know scripture stories and have a testimony of Jesus Christ and the
works that he did. During his mortal ministry, Christ went out of his way to go
to Samaria. In John 4 it tells the story that at Jacob’s well, Christ took the time to teach
a woman of Samaria some glorious eternal truths. She accepted his testimony
that he was the Messiah and returned to the city to testify, “Is not this the
Christ?” (John 4:29.
Christ went out of his way to teach the woman
at the well. It was not convenient for him to go to Samaria, and it was out of
the way and not the normal route to take. However, this did not stop him.
Christ went and taught this woman even if it was not the most convenient thing
for him to do. In our own lives, there can be people that we can tell the
gospel to. It may not be the most convenient thing and it may take us out of
our comfort zone to teach others, but just as Christ went out of his way, if we
go out of our way, we may be an influence for good.
The fourth point that
Elder Bednar gives is to share experiences. Answering questions is not about
reciting memorized answers. Sharing genuine, personal experiences can invite
the Spirit to bear witness and carry the message into the listener’s heart.
Being able to start
talking about the experiences you have in your life will make others more
interested. One thing in particular that I have noticed is that by recording
the tender mercies that I find in my own life, it helps to create more
opportunities for me to share experiences with others.
When my family was
getting ready for my sister’s wedding, my mom ended up needing more help than
we initially thought we would for the reception out in Utah. As the reception
was coming up, my mom got an email from a friend asking if she would need any
help because she was out in Utah and was willing to help. It didn’t stop there.
When my sister was at the temple, waiting to go in to be sealed, my mom found
an old friend who also offered to help out. Although for these friends it was a
simple offer to help, it was a God send for us.
There was one time
when my mom asked me to go the store. I ran upstairs to grab my wallet.
However, we had just gotten back from a trip to Utah so I had not yet had time
to unpack and organize everything. I quickly realized that I did not know where
my wallet was, but I knew that I needed it soon because we were in real time
crunch. I quickly kneeled down and explained the situation to my Heavenly
Father and told him that I knew that he could help me find my wallet and asked
him if he could help me. After I finished my prayer, I immediately started to
look again. It wasn’t long after looking that I found my wallet in some obscure
pocket of my travel bag.
When my brother was
going through cancer treatments, my parents always made a point to point out
the tender mercies and the hand of the Lord in our lives. Whether it would be a
meal that someone would prepare for us, a kind word of encouragement, someone
coming down to the hospital to visit my brother, or even just someone helping
to give us a ride somewhere.
As we share the
experiences that we have with others, it can help them to know more about our
faith and what we believe. It does not have to be some big story of how the
Lord saved your life, but it can be a small story of how the Lord blessed your
life and made your day better. The Lord does care about us and blesses in our lives. As we share our experiences
with others, it can help them to know as well that the Lord does care about
them as well.
In my life, I have
known for quite some time that I would be serving a mission, I just was not
quite sure on the timing. When the Lord changed the missionary age required for
service, there began to be a ton of people who were excited about missions.
Just as I am excited for my mission and love to talk about with anyone who will
listen to me long enough, sharing the tender mercies and stories that we have
in our lives can help to change another person’s life.
The fifth point that
Elder Bednar mentions is to understand your audience. The same conversation
isn’t going to work for everyone—we all have different backgrounds. And
remember that a casual question doesn’t require a half-hour lecture as a reply.
Be sensitive to interest, comfort, and level of understanding. Signal that
sensitivity so that those who are curious can feel at ease.
Elder Bednar says
that “the gift of discernment operates best when we are listening. So while
talking about the Chruch, remember that it may help to ask clarifying questions
and to do as much listening as we do talking.
My family has a
neighbor that dealt with a serious illness in their family. When we would go
over there to visit, we would always say “we are praying for you” as we left.”
Not after long, we soon learned that this particular phrase really annoyed this
person because he was an atheist. Rather than being a comfort like we had meant
it to be, it was more of an annoyance. When we found this out, we switched our
words to some that would relate to him better. We would tell him “You are
looking great today” or “that small trip you went seemed like so much fun.” We
remained positive with this young man to help him know that we were still
thinking about him.
When a friend asks
you a question, you don’t always have to explain the entire gospel at once to
them. When Christ was on the Earth for his mortal ministry, he did not sit
everyone down and tell them everything all at once. He lived by his example and
answered questions that people had as they arose. As you are talking to your
friends and neighbors, questions may arise about the word of wisdom with why we
do not drink coffee or tea, or why we
pay tithing or have temples. With the new temple being built in Fort Collins,
it provides a great opportunity for us to bear our testimonies to our friends
about the importance of temples and of family. Maybe your testimony will help
to spark an interest in them. In church statistics it shows that in order for a
person to become serious about what we actually believe, they have to be
exposed to the church many times. By sharing your testimony it can help to give
your friends a little bit more of an idea of what you believe and why you
believe it.
The sixth option that Elder Bednar talks about
is to use resources. Matthey 7:12 reads: “Say unto them, Ask of God; ask, and
it shall be give you; seek and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto
you.” The church has created online resources that can be helpful for members
to share with those who have questions. Church magazines are available online
and in print, and items available at distribution centers may be helpful.
Sharing a copy of the Book of Mormon may also be appropriate. You can also
create an online profile on Mormon.org.
One thing in
particular that I have found helpful is that you have to materials ready to
give to people or you have to be familiar with the information online to send
your friends where they need to be. Having or knowing where to direct people
online is a big step to utilize the resources that the church has given us.
My brother often
tells me that in the morning, he prays that he will be able to help someone out
during the day. However, due to the business of his days and all that he has
going on, he does not always remember his prayer. There was one day in
particular, when he told me that he also included in his morning prayer that he
asked Heavenly Father to help him remember throughout the day that he wanted to
help someone. As he was driving to walmart to get a few items, my brother saw a
homeless person on the side of the road and remembered his prayer from the
morning. He looked at her and thought that he might be able to help her. My
brother wasn’t quite sure what he had to give her, so he started searching
around the car to see what he had. He ended up with 67 cents and then he found
a Book of Mormon in his glove compartment that he always keeps there just in
case. After sitting and thinking for a minute my brother realized that the Book
of Mormon had changed his life for the better, so he figured that he could give
it to her. He parked his car, got out and went up and talked to the homeless
lady. As he started talking to her, he gave her the 67 cents and asked her to
look at each coin and find out what each of those coins had in common. She
responded that she did not know. He told her that each of those coins had the
words “In God we Trust” on there. As he bore his testimony about God, he gave
her the Book of Mormon and told her that this Book had changed his life for the
better. The lady did not know quite what to do getting a Book of Mormon and my
brother did not even know if this lady could read. But by bearing his testimony
and giving her the book of Mormon, he planted the seed for her. We don’t know
what will happen in that situation, but because he took the effort and taught
this woman a little bit about what he believes, her life may be better.
One thing growing up
that my parents have always done is kept a box of Book of Mormons in our closet
so that if we ever feel like we want to give a friend of ours a Book of Mormon,
we have some available to us. Growing up, my parents have taught me that it is
always important to share what you believe in with others. A few years ago the
church came out with a special ensign about Christ. We got some of these, and
we would give them out to family friends to let them know a little bit more
about what we believed.
Another good option
for sharing the gospel is keeping pass-along or Mormon.org cards in your wallet
or purse. When my brother was flying out to Colorado, he sat next to two people
on the plane ride. One person had his head phones in and was in his own world,
the other person my brother was able to talk to about his beliefs and the
church. Near the end of the plane ride, my brother gave this man a pass along
card with some information about the church on there. This was not a super big
effort, but it was just enough so that my brother was able to introduce the
church to this man.
When we use the
church resources to share with others, it does not always have to be some big
drastic experience for us or for them. We can simply share what we need to and
be loving about it.
The last point that Elder Bednar talks about is
to be a force for good. Members of the Church can help clear up misconceptions
and increase understanding of who we are and what we believe. People may see
differences between what they believe and what Latter-day Saints believe, but
they may also find common ground on which to build better relationships.
In Fort Collins, we
are lucky because we have a unique opportunity with a program with just serve.
Through this program, we can find out about different types of community
service and get involved.
Before I left for
college, there were plenty of opportunities that I had. For mutual we went to
the alpha center and made baskets for mothers who had decided to have their
baby after all. In the relief society, we made pillow cases and stuffed them
with hot chocolate mixes for little kids. These were not huge things that I
did, but they were easy to do and helped out. As we watch out for situations to
serve others, we will find that more and more opportunities arise.
When Christ was on
the earth, he showed the importance of serving others through his actions. He
was always helping someone else out and putting others before himself. In one
specific instance, Christ gathered together all of his disciples and washed
their feet for them. While this was maybe not the most fun job in the world,
Christ did what he did with love and by choice. With the attitude Christ had
and the works that he did, he was a force for good in the world.
By following the
steps that Elder Bednar has put forth, we can show our love to others, teach
them about what we believe, and be influences for good in the world. As I
prepare to go on my mission on Wednesday and put on my black name tag, I have
been getting very excited and also a little nervous. One of the things that has
really helped me out is the knowledge that I have that God loves me and that I
am his daughter. I know that we are all sons and daughters of God and that he
loves us all very much and wants the best for us. Even though I do not know the
people of Brazil, I know that God loves them and I am thrilled to be able to go
share that message with them.
