The Seed

I'm going to try and post a few examples of my writing and talks I've given, so be aware that some of these will be religious, some of them highly philosophical and hard to understand, and others not so bad - first up is the talk I gave when I returned from my mission to my ward back home in Pinedale, WY.  As always, comments are appreciated.  The seed:

It is good to stand in front of you today. It has been more than two years since I last had the opportunity to speak to the Pinedale Ward, I had the opportunity to address you as I prepared for missionary service. I said at that time that I would not speak on missionary work for I did not yet fully understand it, but that perhaps upon returning I could better touch the theme. Rarely have I been so anxious as I have prepared to speak, I pray that what I say today might be accompanied by the Holy Ghost. It is now my desire to share with you what I have learned about missionary work.
When I last spoke to you I spoke of hope, a word that means a lot to me, about what it meant to me, about how it has helped me in my life - hope is a good thing, one of the best of things. We read in Alma 32:21 of a hope for things which are not seen, but which are true. Alma teaches us that our faith gives us that hope, and he proceeds to teach us of faith, how we might grow - he tells us to plant the word in our hearts as though it were a seed and that it will grow and enlarge our souls. “Now behold would this not increase your faith?” But what is that seed, or word, of which he speaks? Elder H. Brian Richards challenged us in his conference address a few short weeks ago to find out that answer, may I share with you what I have found...
The answer, he said, could be found in the 33rd chapter of Alma - here Alma has just addressed a people humbled by their circumstances and taught them of that word which they must plant in their hearts - not completely understanding they ask him more. I paraphrase from that chapter:

They sent forth unto him desiring to know...how they should plant the seed and Alma said unto them “Behold, ye have said that ye could not worship your God because ye are cast out of your synagogues. But...I say unto you, if ye suppose that ye cannot worship God, ye do greatly err, and ye ought to search the scriptures...Zenos, the prophet of old has said concerning prayer and worship...’thou art merciful O God for thou hast heard my prayer, even when I was in the wilderness... Yea, and thou wast merciful unto me when I did cry unto thee in my field...and thou didst hear me...And again, O God, when I did turn to my house thou didst hear me in my prayer...thou art merciful unto thy children when they cry unto thee...Yeah, thou hast been merciful unto me and heard my cries...and thou hast also heard me when I have been cast out and have been despised by mine enemies...And thou didst hear me because of mine afflictions and my sincerity; and it is because of thy son that thou hast been thus merciful unto me, for thou hast turned thy judgements away from me, because of thy son’...and Alma said unto them “do ye believe those scriptures? If ye do, ye must believe what Zenos said; for he said ‘thou hast turned away thy judgments because of thy son”...have ye read the scriptures? If ye have how can ye disbelieve on the Son of God? It is not written that Zenos alone spake of these things but Zenock also, he said ‘Thou art angry, O Lord, with this people, because they will not understand thy mercies which thou hast bestowed upon them because of they Son.’ This is not all; these are not the only ones who have spoken concerning the son of God...he was spoken of by Moses and a type was raised up in the wildernoess that whosoever would look upon it might live...but few understood the meaning of those things and this because of the hardness of their hearts.
Brothers and sisters, few understand it, few they are indeed who understand and comprehend what the true mercies of the son of God are. I am going to use a movie that we heard a great deal about in the mission field to illustrate my point. I’m sure you’ve all heard of the Passion of the Christ...at many doorsteps we were asked if we’d seen it, if we were going to see it, what we thought of it... once I responded that I had not seen the film and that we did not watch movies as missionaries, to this answer came the response “that’s because it’s the truth, and you can’t accept the truth.” What is this truth that people such as this woman don’t think we can accept? From my understanding of the movie it shows in graphic detail the brutal torture and crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ, and little else. Some people have come to a greater understanding of what exactly it was that the Romans did to Christ, the physical suffering he went through in his final hours - they perhaps begin to understand what he was willing to do for us, and for that the film should be commended.
Unfortunately such depictions cannot lead one to understand what Zenos and Zenock are teaching us... they have not spent the hours in prayer in all manner of circumstance crying out to Him, watching a movie cannot make us feel the true mercies of the Lord in our lives. No, nor can we understand the true miracle behind all that Christ has done for us. He was not the only man ever to be scourged and crucified... he was not the only victim to the Roman soldiers - they were masters of torture from years of experience... no, to say that the physical suffering there is what Christ did for us is to say that he experienced little more than the two thieves with whom he died.
Perhaps it is because we can more easily wrap our minds, our understanding, around the physical torture and pain - perhaps that is why we look to the physical suffering, we can more easily comprehend it. Brothers and sisters, the true miracle happened before Jesus was arrested, in a little garden spot called Gethsemane. There he prayed to the father and experienced and did something far greater than to allow men to spit upon him, or abuse and batter him. No man made device could cause such torment that one should bleed from every pore, try as we might we have not in our power to construct such devices. In those quiet moments the Savior of the World, the Son of God, our loving older brother took and drank of the bitter cup. We cannot comprehend the harrowing of a souls as he felt such exquisite agony... he did not take upon him only physical pain and death... no, in that garden spot as Alma tells us “He suffered pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sickness of his people. And he will take upon him death that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities.”
He felt everything, he overcame everything, the atonement of Jesus Christ is infinite. He not only suffered physically (more in the garden than at the hands of the Romans) but emotionally, mentally, spiritually, his soul felt everything you have ever experienced and more. He felt every bit of sorrow, loneliness, disease, heartache, distress, guilt... that he might understand and know how to succor his people, ho to help us according to the flesh. The spirit knows all things and could have told him of all these but as Alma tells us, he suffered so that he would understand it in the flesh - so that he himself had experienced it!
Imagine, if you will, how hard your life has been at times, some of your moments of greatest grief and difficulty... imagine all the trials, temptations, heartache, stress, and illness of your own life - imagine having to deal with all of those together, all together, in a space of 3 hours... everything you’ve ever felt - good and bad. Do you think you could handle it? Now imagine taking upon yourself not only those moments, those trials from your own life but adding upon them those of just one more person? It would destroy each and every one of us... and yet Christ took upon him not only the pains of one, or two, but billions of people - all who have ever lived. If the Passion of the Christ is how the rest of the world understands what Christ did for us they are missing out on the true miracle, the beautiful mercies of our Lord Jesus Christ. That’s why, brothers and sisters... we should have a greater understanding of exactly what that is, what the mercies of Christ are. After all, is there another church at the head of which sits he himself, our Redeemer Jesus Christ?
I am sure there are some who have a greater understanding of the mercies of Christ than that afforded by a movie... no movie can express what happened in Gethsemane. There may be some who have a fairly solid understanding of Christ and his love for us, but only through the truth can one come to fully understand these things.. And so it is that we mus first gain an understanding of the truth, we must plant that seed in our hearts.

Alma continues in chapter 33, his sermon on the seed:

“If ye could be healed by merely casting about your eyes that ye might be healed, would ye not behold quickly?...then cast about your eyes and begin to believe in the Son of God, that he came to redeem his people, and that he suffered and died to atone for their sins and that he rose again from the dead and brought to pass the resurrection that all men shall stand before him, to be judged at the last and judgment day, according to their works. And now my brethren, I desire that ye shall plant this word in your hearts, and as it beginneth to swell even so nourish it by your faith. And behold, it will become a tree, springing up in you unto everlasting life. And then may God grant unto you that your burdens may be light, through the joy of his son. And even all this can ye do if ye will.”

Matthew 11:28-30 reads “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” He has taken upon him everything, he understands when you’re sad, when you’re tempted, he has felt the pains of cancer, he has felt the anguish of a guilt-ridden soul...he has provided us a way to become clean of our sins, to return to live with him and our Heavenly Father with eternal life in our wings... he has provided a way to make life’s trials a growing experience rather than a destroying experience... he can lift us up from depression, from guilt, from pain, and from loss - we just need to trust in him, put his yoke upon us, and follow him.
“For I know that my Redeemer liveth and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.” I know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, I know that he loves and supports me, that he suffered incomprehensible agony and despair that I might not. I have felt his love and it has overwhelmed me, to the pint where at times the testimony, the spirit of his love, burns within me and I cannot, as the sons of Mosiah, bear that another should perish, not knowing of his mercies. I have planted the seed, it has a lot of nourishing and growth to go, but I know that when we have truly planted that seed in our hearts it burns withing us and we have to share it with others.
I am not yet to the point where my concern for others is anywhere near constant, but it is at times present, and I would invite you, brothers and sisters to plant and cultivate that seed... the mercies of the Son of God in your lives - and when it begins to grow you will share the gospel for you will truly begin to understand how valuable it is, just as Lehi immediately looked about to see with whom he could share the fruit of the tree of life. When you feel the love of God your instinct is to share it, for selfishness is the very opposite of the nature of the love of God.
Will you join me in gaining a stronger testimony of Jesus Christ? I know him, I love him, more importantly and more truly, he knows and loves me... I have begun to realize that the love I’ve felt, the desire to sing the song of redeeming love... I’m starting to see that he loves everybody else just as much as he loves me. If I love him how can I leave them without? The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true, it is guided today by Jesus Christ. Joseph Smith was his prophet and restored these wonderful truths to us in our day. Gordon B. Hinckley speaks to the Savior in order to guide us today. I know that Christ lives and loves us, I pray that we all might know of this more assuredly everyday, this is my prayer, this is my hope, this is my faith. He lives, knowing that is the key to the entire gospel, to all of missionary work. As we begin to develop this faith the church will not have 60,000 missionaries throughout the world but 12 million, and when that time comes that number will rapidly increase. It is not easy, nothing worthwhile ever was. There is a lot of work ahead, even after planting the initial seed, but I know it is the first and most vital step. He lives and loves us, I am so grateful for that. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.