Elder & Sister Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
Tuesday devotional, January 14, 2020
Tuesday devotional, Elder and Sister Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, January 14, 2020
Sister Ruth L. Renlund:
- God the Father is a personal God. He loves us. He desires that we repent so that we can return to Him.
- As we learn to trust in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, our faith grows.
- God love each of the persons in the world as well.
- We seek out those who will receive us one at a time. We are to find the one that is ready to receive the gospel.
- We receive ordinances one by one.
- You will feel God’s love as you serve His children.
- She shared the story of a missionary who was re-assigned to serve in South Africa as he awaited a visa for Zimbabwe. He was not pleased that he had to be re-assigned, but he was assigned to work in a city where he found the elder that was instrumental in his conversion. The elder had drifted into inactivity, and the re-assigned missionary help his friend come back into activity while he awaited his visa. When the visa was approved, he left for Zimbabwe with his missionary friend now participating fully in the gospel again. There are no coincidences in the work of the Lord. God knows where we need to be and when we need to be there.
Elder Dale G. Renlund
- Thank you to the choir for the sermon you taught in that beautiful hymn, “Lead Kindly Light”.
- You are all showing your faith by being here.
- There is an old proverb that says, ‘If the only tool you have is a hammer, every problem is a nail.”
- You cannot use what you have not acquired. Doctrine and Covenants 84:85 tells us how to fill up our tools box with useful tools. It says, “Neither take ye thought beforehand what ye shall say; but treasure up in your minds continually the words of life, and it shall be given you in the very hour that portion that shall be meted unto every man.”
- Verse 77 of that same section says, “And again I say unto you, my friends, for from henceforth I shall call you friends; it is expedient that I give unto you this commandment, that ye become even as my friends in days when I was with them, traveling to preach the gospel in my power;”. He commands us to become His friends. He will then bless us and look after us.
- Verse 80 of Section 84 says, “And any man that shall go and preach this gospel of the kingdom, and fail not to continue faithful in all things, shall not be weary in mind, neither darkened, neither in body, limb, nor joint; and a hair of his head shall not fall to the ground unnoticed. And they shall not go hungry, neither athirst.”. If we go forth and are faithful, He will protect us. We must do our part.
- Verse 85 (shown above) tells us that we should take no thought beforehand what we should say, but we must still plan and prepare in order for the Spirit to inspire us. Treasure up the words of life in your hearts. The Holy Ghost cannot bring to remembrance that which has not been previously learned.
- Alma 17:2 states, “Now these sons of Mosiah were with Alma at the time the angel first appeared unto him; therefore Alma did rejoice exceedingly to see his brethren; and what added more to his joy, they were still his brethren in the Lord; yea, and they had waxed strong in the knowledge of the truth; for they were men of a sound understanding and they had searched the scriptures diligently, that they might know the word of God.” We must wax strong in the knowledge of the truth. The words of life are those words, that if hearkened to, will lead to eternal life. The words of life have no meaning if they are not tied to obedience and repentance.
- You are to invite people to repent. To do so you must:
- Treasure up the doctrines that you hope to share, the doctrines that if understood will help people change.
- Treasure up the promises that will b ring a certain effect in the lives of people. They are found in the scriptures and in Preach My Gospel chapter 3.
- Treasure up answers to questions that people have about the message of the Gospel. See Preach My Gospel page 21.
- These things don’t just happen automatically. Continually ask yourself what doctrines, what promises, and what answers will bless those you are teaching. Build your lesson plans around these needs.
- There are multiple doctrines, multiple promises, and multiple answers to questions. Your treasuring up will never end. There is a time in every missionary day in which you can ‘treasure up’. Unfortunately, many missionaries struggle with how to use their study time effectively.
- To make study time effective, focus on the doctrines, promises, and answers to questions that are needed by those you are teaching.
- What doctrine, correctly understood, would motivate a member to give you a referral? Make promises and help them make commitments.
- Effective missionaries teach, testify, and invite others to come unto Christ. Welcome suggestions and counsel from others.
- The Lord promises in Doctrine and Covenants 84:88 that He will be on our right hand and on our left, and that His spirit will be in our hearts. When you trust Jesus Christ as your friend He will keep your feet and back you up.
- You and I share an apostolic calling. We are called to share the gospel with others, to preach His gospel, to be a witness of Him. I pray God’s richest blessings upon you.
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