Good morning brothers and sisters! My name is Devyn Phillips those
of who don’t know I will be serving in the Brazil Sao Paulo Interlagos Mission.
I’m going to be set apart tomorrow night and will be a real live missionary of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Later Day Saints! I am so excited to start this
new adventure of my life. My heart is so full of love for each and every one of
you. I want to thank you all for supporting me and coming to listen to me speak
today.
A lot of people ask me what made me decide to go on a
mission… and don’t worry it will some how tie into my talk. The main reason
that I decided to go on a mission was when my friend/coworker Courtney decided
to go on a mission. She would share quotes and her own thoughts on a mission
with me. Seeing her readiness to serve the Lord with all her heart really
touched me and brought me to my knees in prayer to ask if a mission was right
for me. I received my answer and now I am here. Courtney taught me through her
example, to be obedient and do the things that the Lord asks. I know that
through my obedience to serve a mission I will be blessed in so many ways as I
go about blessing others lives with the gospel. The topic I was given is
Obedience Brings Blessing from the last General Conference by Thomas S. Monson.
I’m sure we all remember it because it was such an amazing talk.
Something to think about during my talk is a quote by Ezra
Taft Benson, “When obedience ceases to be an irritant and becomes our quest, in
that moment God will endow us with power.” What are we doing to make obedience
our quest?
I wanted to start off with my thoughts of what “obedience
brings blessings” means to me and then take some thoughts from the actual talk.
After I got my topic to speak on I was reading a story from one of my ancestors
and I found a quote that I thought would fit in perfectly. She wrote, “I had
never thought of that before nor had I thought of the principle of obedience
planted within me. It was not to gain my mothers favor. It was to show the
reverence I had for my mother from a child”. When I read this I thought of our
relationship between us and our heavenly father and how obedience is showing a
reverence and respect to our Father in heaven.
We are not just trying to gain favor in his sight we are showing a love
and respect in following his ways.
Article faith #3 says, “We
believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by
obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel”. In the guide to the scriptures it says in a spiritual sense
obedience is doing God’s will. In D&C 105:6 it says, “People must be
chastened until they learn obedience”. The word chastened means a correction or
discipline given to individuals or groups in order to help them improve or
become stronger. Throughout our whole lives we are learning obedience and we
will never be completely perfect. We all make mistakes and that’s where the
atonement comes in. I asked one of my friends what obedience brings blessings
means to him. He said, “I have trouble thinking if you are perfect then you
will be blessed but no one is perfect and if we are being obedient then we are
using the atonement constantly which is the true blessing”. This is well said. The atonement is one of our greatest
blessings. When we are being obedient we use the atonement to make ourselves
clean again and worthy to enter in the sight of our Father in Heaven.
From preach my Gospel it says, “Obedience is the first law of
heaven. It is an act of faith. You may sometimes be required to do things you
don’t completely understand. As you obey, you increase in faith, knowledge,
wisdom, testimony, protection, and freedom. Strive to be obedient to the Lord
and the living Prophet”. These are all such beautiful blessings of being obedient.
Sometimes you are commanded to do something just to show pure obedience to your
Heavenly Father. Obedience often times requires faith because you may not know
the reason why except that you are growing closer to your Heavenly Father, which
in its self is such a wonderful blessing.
L. Tom Perry says, “The Discipline contained in daily
obedience and clean living and wholesome lives builds an armor around you of
protection and safety from temptations that beset you as you proceed through
mortality”. The commandments aren’t meant to hold us back they are meant to set
us free. They are meant to keep us clean, safe, and out of Satan’s grasp so we
can return worthy to our Father in heaven. 3 nephi 14:21- Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord,
Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of the
father who is in heaven. D&C 14:7-
And, if you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God.
Our greatest blessing is the opportunity to
return to our Heavenly Father. We can’t just say that we want to enter into the
kingdom of Heaven we have to show that we are worthy to enter by following the
commandments and using the blessing of the atonement.
I love this scripture:
Mosiah 2:41
- And moreover, I would desire that
ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold,
they are blessed in all things, both temporal
and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with
God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these
things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it.
The thing I love
about this gospel is the happiness it brings and this happiness is from our
obedience to our Heavenly Father. And I can’t wait to bring this happiness to
others and see it influence their lives.
From “Obedience Brings Blessings” the talk given by President
Thomas S. Monson he tells a story from when he was 8 years old. Him and his
friend wanted to clear the dry grass out for a campfire that evening with some
friends. They thought they could light the grass on fire and it would somehow
magically burn out after it made a perfect circle. They were forbidden to use
matches without adult supervision yet little Thomas S. Monson went in a got
some matches struck the rock and watched the dry grass burn. They then realized
what they had done and that there was danger so they ran for help. All the
adults helped put out the fire before there was any terrible damage done. He
tells of the lesson he learned that day about the importance of obedience. He
states, “ There are rules and laws to help ensure our physical safety.
Likewise, the lord has provided guidelines and commandments to help ensure our
spiritual safety so that we might successfully navigate this often treacherous
mortal existence and return eventually to our father in heaven.” This makes me
think that our commandments are our true blessings if we are obedient to them
they will bring us right back into our Fathers arms.
We can also receive knowledge to help us on our journey
through this mortal life. At the beginning of the talk he says, “A knowledge of
truth and the answers to our greatest questions come to us as we are obedient
to the commandments of God”. What a beautiful thing to know that every question
can be answered through our faith and obedients. In a revelation given to
Joseph Smith the Lord states, “He that keepeth God’s commandments receiveth
truth and light until he is glorified in truth and knoweth all things.” All
humans search for an understanding of life and our purpose and finding
happiness. And I know that this knowledge is available to all of us as we keep
the commandments. We came to this mortal life to grow and to learn and being
obedient to the God’s commandments will give us a better understanding and
purpose to our lives.
A quote that I really liked as I read this talk was, “A
loving Heavenly Father has plotted our course and provided an unfailing
course-even obedience”. Through being obedient to our father in heaven we will
never lose our way. The commandments are the way for us to make it back home.
They are our guide.
One of the many examples
given in this talk from the scriptures is the story of Nephi. Nephi knew that
the Lord would always provide a way for us to obey all His commandements.
1 Nephi 3:7
it says, “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father:
I will go and do the things which
the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men,
save he shall prepare a way for them that they may
accomplish the thing which he commandeth them”. And then in 1 Nephi 17:3 he
goes on to say, and thus we see that the commandments of God must be fulfilled.
And if it so be that the children of men keep the commandments of God he doth
nourish them, and strengthen them, and provide means whereby they can accomplish the thing
which he has commanded them;
Nephi always trusted in the Lord and did
the things that were asked of him and was blessed accordingly. Our loving
Heavenly Father will always provide a way. A way that is better than what we
could ever imagine for our selves and that way is found by keeping the
commandments set for us. They will always lead us in the right direction, they
will strengthen us, give us knowledge, and bring us such great happiness to our
lives.
20 There
is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this
world, upon which all blessings are predicated—
21 And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated.
This
scripture sums it up. Our blessings come through obedience. We are only saved
into the kingdom after all that we can do. So lets be obedient. Not just
obedient, but show strict obedients to the Commandments of God.
I would
like to end my talk with my testimony. I know that through obedience we can and
will receive blessings. This Church is true and I can’t wait to bring this
gospel to the people in Brazil. It may be crazy but I already feel such a great
love for the people there. I am so excited to meet them, serve them, and teach
them the Gospel. I know that we are all sons and daughters of Heavenly Father.
He loves each and every one of us completely. We are so precious to Him and He
wants us all to return to live with Him some day. I know that Joseph Smith was
a true prophet of God and translated the Book of Mormon and restored the true
church back on the earth. I know that the Book of Mormon is true. I have read
it and have felt the spirit testify to me the truthfulness of it. I know that
Thomas S. Monson is the true and living prophet today. You can see in his eyes
and hear in his voice that what he is saying is true. Our Prophet today will
never lead us astray. He will help guide us back into our Heavenly Fathers
arms. I know with all my heart the power of prayer. I feel my Heavenly Fathers
loving arms around me as I pray. I know that He will always listen and answer
our prayers. I love my beautiful family and I am so grateful to be ceiled with
them through time and all eternity and live with them forever and I am so
grateful for their love and support. I love this church and gospel and I want
to be able to share its message with everyone I meet!
There is a
last quote I wanted to share from Thomas S. Monsons talk.
“The
knowledge which we seek, the answers for which we yearn, and the strength which
we desire today to meet the challenges of a complex and changing world can be
ours when we willingly obey the Lord’s commandments”
I say these
things in the name of Jesus Christ Amen.
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