i spoke in church and said farewell

i'm warning you now, this post is long, but i hope you take the time to read it anyways. preparing this talk was a very spiritual experience for me, one that reaffirmed my decision to serve a mission. it was the first time i had ever been asked to prepare a talk that would last longer than 2 minutes (yeah – that's right, i'm the girl who somehow avoided the call to speak in church for years. the only time i was asked to speak in my singles ward was on easter, and even then it was more of a 3 minute testimony). writing a long talk felt impossible at first, but the holy ghost was my companion and together we created this…

I want to start off by saying how grateful I am for this opportunity to be here in front of so many I love, sharing the one thing I love most, the gospel. I don't particularly enjoy public speaking, but I’ve come to realize that the blessings that come from studying and preparing far outweigh the horrors of public speaking. I hope you learn as much from the spirit today as I learned while preparing.

While most of us know what the commandments are and who they came from, how often do we take the time to really think about why it is we follow them? is it out of fear? is it because our parents told us to? or… do we keep the commandments because we love heavenly father, his son – our savior, jesus christ, and this wonderful gospel they have blessed us with? I hope you’re all silently cheering in your heads right now “that one, that one! that is why we follow the commandments!”

I want to read some scriptures that can be found in matthew 22, starting with verse 37 (through 40).
"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets" – in these few lines of scripture, Jesus Christ teaches us that at the heart of all these "do's and don'ts" is a focus on loving God and loving the people around us.

So, the first great commandment: love the lord with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. let’s go back to the scriptures, this time to John 14 verse 15, “If ye love me, keep my commandments” – that scripture is so short, so simple, yet so powerful. if you take the time to look at the footnotes, you’ll discover that there is so much more to it. for example, the word “keep” can become more meaningful as we include the word “duty”. as members of the church, we have a duty – a responsibility and obligation – to keep the commandments of god. we’re given these commandments to help us become the kind of people who can one day return to live with our heavenly father. he provides the pathway, the commandments, and we must then use our agency to follow them and ultimately fulfill our duty as spirit children of god.
when people hear the word commandments they sometimes see it as a negative thing, a whole bunch of rules that tell us what we can and cannot do. let’s return to john 14:15 – “if ye love me, keep my commandments” now think of commandments as commitments instead. “if ye love me, keep your commitments”. do you see how the word commitment brings a whole new light and understanding to the topic? a commitment is the state or quality of being dedicated to a cause, activity, etc.. it is an agreement or pledge to do something. to commit is to show your  allegiance, attachment, constancy, and dedication. to commit is to be devoted, faithful, loyal, and steadfast. “if ye love me, keep your commitments”

if we turn the page in our scriptures to john 15:10, we read, "If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love." – it sort of comes full circle: we keep the commandments because we love god, and when we keep his commandments we then find ourselves in a position to ABIDE in his love. to abide in his love is to remain, to continue, and to stay with… essentially the lord can’t help but pour out his love. I can attest to this – it is at the times in my life when I’m striving to keep the commandments that I feel an increased abundance of love from above.

do you want to be the type of person who honors your duty and commitments to god? do you want to feel an abundance of godly love and heavenly influence in your life? then be the type of person who continuously strives to follow the commandments.

I'd now like to read a quote that comes from Dallin H. Oaks' october 2009 conference address. “God’s love is so perfect that He lovingly requires us to obey His commandments because He knows that only through obedience to His laws can we become perfect, as He is.” – first off, god LOVINGLY requires us to obey his commandments. we’re right back to where we started with this circle of love – god gives us commandments because he loves us, we follow those commandments because we love him, and then we’re blessed with an increase of his love in our lives. and as usual with the lord, we’re given so much more than is ever asked of us. back to the quote… Elder Oaks mentions that “through obedience to his laws we can become perfect” – but here’s the thing, we’re not perfect, and we won’t be perfect in this mortal life we now live. however, we CAN become perfect someday IF we keep the commandments of God AND utilize the atonement of jesus christ.

sometimes we fail to keep the commandments, but even then we must remember that our heavenly father loves us. in that same conference talk, Elder Oaks continues, "If only we will listen, we can know of God’s love and feel it, even when we are disobedient. A woman recently returned to Church activity gave this description in a sacrament meeting talk: “He has always been there for me, even when I rejected Him. He has always guided me and comforted me with His tender mercies all around me, but I [was] too angry to see and accept incidents and feelings as such.” – even when we disobey him, our father in heaven, time and time again, extends his hand of mercy towards us. heavenly father loves us so much that he sent his son to atone for our sins – jesus christ sacrificed himself for our pains, our struggles, and all matter of affliction. he gave us the atonement and we must use it so we can return to live with him someday.

I would now like to use much of President Monson’s latest conference talk from last april, entitled, obedience brings blessings. he expresses it far better than I ever could. He begins, "No greater example of obedience exists than that of our Savior.
Of Him, Paul observed: “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; (Hebrews 5:8–9.)
The Savior demonstrated genuine love of God by living the perfect life, by honoring the sacred mission that was His. Never was He haughty. Never was He puffed up with pride. Never was He disloyal. Ever was He humble. Ever was He sincere. Ever was He obedient. Though He was tempted by that master of deceit, even the devil, though He was physically weakened from fasting 40 days and 40 nights and was an hungered, yet when the evil one proffered Jesus the most alluring and tempting proposals, He gave to us a divine example of obedience by refusing to deviate from what He knew was right.13   Matthew 4:1–11.) When faced with the agony of Gethsemane, where He endured such pain that “his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground,”14 He exemplified the obedient Son by saying, “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.”15 - Luke 22:42."

So, one way we can show and receive love in our lives is to keep the commandments of God. I now want to focus on another means by which love is expressed and obtained. This part of my talk comes from Elder Eyring’s October 2011 Conference Address, and is entitled “A Witness” – I’m certain that Brother Wing was inspired to share that talk with me, could that title be any more perfect for a soon-to be missionary? – that’s what I’m about to become, a full-time witness of Jesus Christ. And how can I best do that? by being CHARITABLE.

According to the Bible Dictionary, charity is “the highest, noblest, strongest kind of love, [it’s] not merely affection; [but rather], the pure love of christ.” – A person filled with the love of God is anxious to bless others. this is exactly why I’m choosing to serve a full-time mission. I didn't always want to serve, in fact, it was the last thing I wanted to do. I kept ignoring the promptings to serve a full-time mission, but the Lord kept persisting, as he usually does.

this is the current kylee, hi! even now the inspiration continues to flow. isn't it neat to think about a god who never gives up? i think this experience in which the lord kept asking me to serve is also a testament that our heavenly father knows us personally, even better than we know ourselves. he knew that with time and through certain experiences i would finally accept that call to serve.

Eventually, I ran out of excuses and accepted that the Lord's plan for me was the plan I needed to accept for myself. Which is exactly what I did – I moved forward in the mission prep process, knowing that I was doing what the Lord wanted me to do. It wasn't until later that I had a change of heart and became the girl who was not only serving because the Lord wanted me to, but also because I wanted to. The circle of love I mentioned earlier played a vitol role in that change of heart. God loves not only me, but also the people I will meet in Washingotn DC. Because of this love, he has asked me to serve an 18-month mission. And, because I love the Lord, I have accepted this call. I have already felt an increase of love in my life as a result of this commitment to serve. Love from family members, neighbors, friends, and even strangers, but most of all I have felt so much love from and for my Heavenly Father ad Savior. the gospel has blessed me in so many ways that I understand what it feels like to anxiously seek the same blessings for others.

as Elder Eyring states in his address, "The Lord is keeping His promise to you as you keep yours. As you serve others for Him, He lets you feel His love. And in time, feelings of charity become part of your very nature." the love circle! heavenly father asks us to serve one another because he loves each of us on a very personal level. we undoubtedly feel god’s love when we take the time to serve others, and if we humbly accept similar acts of kindness, we are once again in a position to abide in His love. As Mosiah 2:17 says, “when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.” simply put, LOVE IS THE CENTRAL THEME OF THE GOSPEL.

"But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure." moroni 7: 47-48

I testify that true happiness in this life comes from living the gospel of jesus christ, keeping his commandments, and seeking opportunities to serve others. I also testify that the atonement is real. it’s personal, it’s everlasting, and it’s perfect. because of christ’s sacrifice we can overcome death and live again with our heavenly father. through the atonement we can be forgiven of our mistakes and shortcomings and re-enter that wonderful path to eternal life. I’m so grateful for this gospel and for the opportunity I have to serve not my mission, but the lord’s mission. the church is true, modern day revelation is real, and the book of mormon is truly another testament of jesus christ. I love this gospel and I’m grateful for a savior who knows me personally. i say these things in the name of jesus christ, amen.