Mind the Gap

I want to mention a few gaps I see either in my own life or in the lives of others. The ones I will address tonight are the following:

First, the gap between believing you are a daughter of God and knowing in your heart and soul that you are a precious, beloved daughter of God.

Second, the gap between completion of the Young Women program and becoming a fully participating member of Relief Society – “the Lord’s organization for women.”1

Third, the gap between believing in Jesus Christ and being valiant in the testimony of Jesus Christ.

1. the gap between believing and knowing in your heart
• We need to accept His love, love ourselves, and love others.
• You need to be able to recognize the Lord’s approval. You need to know that the Lord is well pleased and has accepted your offering.
2. the gap between youth and adulthood (with regard to participation in the church)
• many might feel at the end of youth that they will participate as an adult after they have gotten married – but that is dangerous because life does not always go as planned.
• One work colleague who was not a member of our Church said to me, “Why do you continue to go to a church that puts so much emphasis on marriage and families?” My simple answer to her was, “Because it is true!” I can be just as single and just as childless outside of the Church. But with the Church and gospel of Jesus Christ in my life, I found happiness and I knew I was on the path the Savior would have me follow.
• Remember, it’s not just what you get out of active participation in Relief Society but what you can give and contribute as well.
• I testify to you that God loves you; He is mindful of you; He has a plan for you. He needs you to serve His children. He needs you to be active and faithful and fully participating in His Church.
• From Eliza R Snow: “There is {nobody} so isolated, and {whose} sphere {is} so narrow but what {they} can do a great deal towards establishing the Kingdom of God upon the earth.”
3. the gap between believing in Jesus Christ and being valiant in the testimony of Jesus Christ
• Many people believe in Jesus Christ … However, for us as Latter-day Saints, we know that we must do more than believe in Christ. We must:
• have faith in Him
• repent of our sins
• be baptized in His name
• receive the gift of the Holy Ghost
• endure faithfully to the end
• share our testimonies with others
• keep the covenants we have made with God