MR says: How might you be opening someone's heart to the message of the restored gospel without even realizing it?
I did not grow up in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I was just baptized a year and a half ago. Many of my friends and colleagues knew me as a really nice girl who drank a lot of coffee. They were surprised to hear that I joined the church, and I would get these anxious calls that went something like this:
"Melissa, I heard the craziest rumor that you joined the church. Is it true??"
The tone of their voice when asking contained a bit of judgment (like are you crazy?) and fear. They were asking a question, but also making a statement about their opinions of the church. These interactions made me think about people, their hearts, and what underlies their fearful questions.
Experience has taught me that most people are looking for peace and happiness. The world teaches people that happiness comes through the pursuit of self, money, power, and numerous other false beliefs. In the U.S., we spend hundreds of millions of dollars a year on books and classes that promise to teach the path to happiness but often push people further away from God. Many people are searching, but how is it that people get to a point where their hearts are open to listening to the gospel message?
Does hitting people over the head with doctrine convert them? Does judgment compel people to come to Christ? Do arrogance and pride draw people in? I don’t think so.
I observed five characteristics of Latter-day Saints that made me want to learn about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They had something I desired, and I wanted to learn how to obtain it.