The Lord is in Need of People Who Say Yes

  

Yesterday as I sat in the temple I pondered upon the covenants I have entered into and thought about the words of the sealer at my sealing. He said that there will be opportunities that will come into our lives where we can say yes or no, but that these opportunities will teach us things and help us grow in ways that we cannot receive in any other way and that if we say no those opportunities will not present themselves in that way again.  

   I realized that what we say to those opportunities greatly define who we are and who we can become. I'm not saying that we are doomed if in a weak or tired moment we say no instead of yes, but I think of the many people in my life that say yes when they could have said no and I see the blessing they are in my life and I can't imagine what would have happened if they had said no. As the article down below shows we are living in a time where billions have their eyes on us, they anxiously await to see how we will use our time and the gifts we have been given. They yearn for us, they hope for us. They are aware of the traps and snares that lie in wait for us and they anxiously hope to help and assist us in this battle. I hope that we can learn to say yes when opportunities come, that we can mold our characters to be people who say yes when the call to help, assist and serve comes to us, no matter how big or small the call may be. The Lord is in need of people who will say yes, who will ponder to see what more they can do and how they can serve. I am amazed by my great grandfather who kept saying yes to hard work and service even when things didn't go the way he hoped and planned. Because of his example he shows me that I can face hard things, that I can have faith even when things seem to be crumbling and when life is what it is, hard. He shows me even now how far empathy and compassion can go, how sweet it is to have someone who knows pain and heart ache and reach to comfort another instead. The Lord is in need of people who say yes.

"For nearly six thousand years, God has held you in reserve to make your appearance in the final days before the Second Coming of the Lord. Every previous gospel dispensation has drifted into apostasy, but ours will not. True, there will be some individuals who will fall away; but the kingdom of God will remain intact to welcome the return of its head—even Jesus Christ. While our generation will be comparable in wickedness to the days of Noah, when the Lord cleansed the earth by flood, there is a major difference this time. It is that God has saved for the final inning some of his strongest children, who will help bear off the Kingdom triumphantly. And that is where you come in, for you are the generation that must be prepared to meet your God.

All through the ages the prophets have looked down through the corridors of time to our day. Billions of the deceased and those yet to be born have their eyes on us. Make no mistake about it—you are a marked generation. There has never been more expected of the faithful in such a short period of time as there is of us. Never before on the face of this earth have the forces of evil and the forces of good been as well organized. Now is the great day of the devil’s power, with the greatest mass murderers of all time living among us. But now is also the great day of the Lord’s power, with the greatest number ever of priesthood holders on the earth. And the showdown is fast approaching.

Each day the forces of evil and the forces of good pick up new recruits. Each day we personally make many decisions that show where our support will go. The final outcome is certain—the forces of righteousness will finally win. What remains to be seen is where each of us personally, now and in the future, will stand in this fight—and how tall we will stand. Will we be true to our last-days, foreordained mission?

Great battles can make great heroes, but heroes will make great battle. You will never have a better opportunity to be a greater hero in a more crucial battle than in the battle you will face today and in the immediate future. Be warned that some of the greatest battles you will face will be fought within the silent chambers of your own soul. David’s battles in the field against the foe were not as critical as David’s battles in the palace against a lustful eye. We will each find our own battlefield. The tactics that the enemy will use against us will vary from time to time; he will feel after our weak spots. We must be alert to the devil’s devious designs, to the subtle sins and clever compromises as well as the obvious offenses.

Fortunately for us, we have the privilege of fighting under the Lord’s banner. While the devil hates us and seeks to make all men miserable like unto himself (see 2 Nephi 2:27), the Lord instead loves us and seeks for us the fullness of joy which He possesses.

Christ lived on the earth and was subject to all manner of temptation, but He won every battle. He is the most successful warrior that ever walked the earth, and He wants to help us win every battle, be it personal or public. When we fall short, His atonement will cover for us on certain conditions....Jesus knows that His kingdom will triumph, and He wants you to triumph with it, too. He knows in advance every strategy the enemy will use against you and the Kingdom. He knows your weaknesses and He knows your strengths." (In His Steps...Ezra Taft Benson)