Brothers and Sisters,
Hello and happy Sabbath day to you. We hope you have had a wonderful opportunity today to renew your commitments to your baptismal covenants and to feel the Holy Spirit testify to you of truth and fill your heart with peace.
One thing that brings peace to my heart and mind is the love Christ has for each of us. He is mindful of what we are going through. He knows our pains, our fears, our anxieties, our troubles. He can succor us, he wants to succor us, he will succor us. Have faith, he is the good shepherd.
This past week in Come, Follow Me we studied about a revelation given to Joseph Smith for his brother Hyrum. In section 11 of the Doctrine and Covenants, I love how it starts:
"A great and marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men." and then twice the command "give heed [un]to my word".
In our family study this week we talked about the sickle. In verse 3 and 4:
"Behold, the field is white already to harvest; therefore, whoso desireth to reap let him thrust in his sickle with his might, and reap while the day lasts, that he may treasure up for his soul everlasting salvation in the kingdom of God."
"Yea, whosoever will thrust in his sickle and reap, the same is called of God."
We talked about the difference between a sickle and a scythe. A sickle takes one had to operate and is very focused and slow. A scythe requires two hands and works quickly but with less control.
I've pondered as why sickle was used instead of scythe. When operating a sickle, one hand is used to hold the sickle and the other is used to hold the harvest. Use of a sickle can be more difficult that a scythe. Scythe can take large swaths whereas sickle can not and a sickle requires more work and effort to harvest the same amount as a scythe. The advantage of sickle over a scythe is the focused part. With a sickle you are more able to work around that which you do not want in your harvest, think wheat from tares. With a sickle you get right down into the harvest, close. Your free hand is used to select the harvest and hold it firm and it is cut.
Compare that to the the harvest in verses 3 and 4. The work of salvation, we know, is hard work "Let him thrust in his sickle with his might" and not "let him swing his scythe with ease". With a sickle you are right down with the harvest. The work of salvation is all about individuals and the connections we make as we share our love for Jesus Christ with others. The use of the free hand to hold the harvest, whether it's a hand of friendship or fellowship or a hand in work and service, these are essential to sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with others.
A scripture that holds special meaning to me as I served as a full-time missionary:
Doctrine and Covenants 18:10:
"Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God;"
And verses 15 and 16:
"And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!"
"And now, if your joy will be great with one soul you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!"
The work of salvation is eternal. It is the work and glory of our Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ. We are so fortunate to be able to participate in this work and glory. May we, with our sickle in hand, reap with our might and share our love for our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ with those around us, in acts of love and service and how great will be our joy!
The Washington Utah Stake Presidency
Noel Jackson
Stake Presidency First Counselor.
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