Lesson for 11 May 2014

Today our lesson was given by Randy Hickman on Mother’s Day, so the ladies would not have to give any lessons today. He said this is a first for him—he has never taught Relief Society. He told of going to a movie and realized he and his wife were the only white people there. He feels somewhat like that. His lesson is about “The Church and Kingdom of God.” If you have smart phones or tablets, the lessons are available. Also available are conference talks back to 1971. So we should use the technology we have to help us with the gospel. In the introduction President Joseph Fielding Smith said, at the age of 89, when he went into a meeting and fell down a flight of stairs and limped around like an old man. His leg was broken in multiple places. The reason for his dedication is that he knows that Jesus is the Christ, Joseph Smith is the prophet, and he knows it with every fiber of his being. Jeffrey R. Holland said he is more certain that the keys have been restored and the gospel than he is that he was standing there taking to everyone. Brother Hickman said he often wondered where his testimony came from. He believes that spiritual experiences are personal, but he asked if anyone wanted to share. Did anyone have an Alma the Younger or Enos experience. Crystelle Boyadjian said when the missionaries contacted her and then she went to see the prophet speak, she had a huge impression that he was the prophet. We often don’t have one single event, but thousands of little events stacked on each other. Heather Cantrell said she had experience with the devil as she was investigating the Church, and received a blessing and hasn’t had her faith waiver. Brother Hickman is a builder and thinks of a testimony like a brick mason laying bricks. When a brick mason sets up corner poles, they have to be perfectly vertical. He strings a line and slings mud on the brick, and cut a groove down the brick before putting it on the first bricks. He taps it so it’s level. Then he puts the level on the bricks and makes sure it’s really level. After about six or eight courses, he needs to check the mortar and raking the seams between bricks. The more he watches brick masons, he realizes that there is care and skill and patience to make sure each brick is laid just right. In our church, there are at least 60-70,000 bricks on the exterior. If you don’t lay the foundation of your testimony just right it won’t work as well. We will remember the effort it took to build our testimony. One small event after another are necessary to build a durable testimony, like brick on a building. Think of the bricks that built our own testimonies. Heather Cantrell said we also need a firm foundation or the bricks fall down. Brother Hickman said his bishop made him wait 3 months to get the priesthood, then he gave him the stake president as a home teaching companion, and they were to teach the bishop. His bishop was teaching him, laying bricks. Our bishop goes to visit the sick and gives blessings. Jessica Lewis said we are not given experiences just for ourselves, but to bear our testimonies rekindled and passed down. So we need to write them down so we can pass them down. Where are our testimonies and do we write them down? There is no stopping point. Now we’re all aware of where our testimonies come from, we need to write them down, and we also need to share them. President Smith said our service in the church expresses our Lord’s infinite love. It helps others as well as helps others as we serve. He also said that the man in the church who only does what is necessary is not working toward perfection. Sister Boyadjian said to know God you have to do what God does. Service is how we get to the celestial kingdom. Service is unselfishness. Never refuse to serve—President Smith is a prophet. When a presiding officer asks us to do something, we are under covenant to do so. This course brings joy and peace and those who don’t shrivel and die. Brother Hickman was asked to be the Gospel Doctrine teacher and found that he got more out of the lessons than he felt the students did. He thoroughly enjoyed it, although he felt very unprepared. He finds it interesting that service and testimony are intertwined. Something happens to you.