Faith change things

As you may know, Gladys Knight has an LDS gospel choir called Saints Unified Voices. And guess where they came for a series of firesides? That's right--the Texas Dallas Mission. On Friday we went with a less-active sister and two of her non-member friends, and it was REALLY impressive. It was also unlike anything I have ever seen in an LDS chapel in my entire life--there was clapping, "amen's," live electric piano and bass guitar, the whole shibang. Imagine if a baptist preacher and his choir converted and was put in charge of our Sunday services, and that might give you an idea. 

   A sad truth I have learned as a missionary is that literally about 85% of people have their TV on at any given hour of the day, and such was the case when we stopped by the home of a less-active family yesterday. As we talked to them in their living room, I caught 5 seconds of a commercial that really struck me. It showed a young boy, about 8 or 9 years old, staring at a cashier on the other side of a counter. He placed a couple of dollar bills and some coins on the counter, and then the shot showed the cashier looking at him as if to say, "that doesn't come even CLOSE to how much this product costs." The camera then showed the boy staring back at her, fully and naively expecting that it was enough, and that he would get whatever it was he wanted to buy. Then she looked up behind the young boy and saw his father, who showed her his credit card. She then took the child's change as if it were enough.

    It immediately made me think of the Savior. Many times what we offer God is so, so small in comparison with the true cost of the blessings He blessings He promises. And sometimes the trap we fall into is not that of thinking the Savior isn't capable to help, change, or save us, but that we, being so imperfect, short-sight, and flawed, do not deserve His grace. In that five seconds I was reminded of one of the most important lessons of the gospel--that we can have full confidence that we can receive the blessings of the gospel, and even receive eternal life, not because of our own efforts, but because the Savior stands behind us to offer the Father everything we cannot. 

    I know Jesus is the Christ, and that faith changes things. 

Love,

Elder Gaughan