The Perfect Gift

In his October 2013 general conference address, Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles mentioned a specific gift that each of us could give the Savior for Christmas. He stated “that if every member, young and old, will reach out to just ‘one’ between now and Christmas, millions will feel the love of the Lord Jesus Christ. And what a wonderful gift to the Savior” (“Put Your Trust in the Lord,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2013, 45).

Two students in the Salt Lake City Utah West Campus Seminary program reached out and saw someone’s life change as a result.

Jacqueline Ibarra and Jocelynne Gonzalez are currently enrolled in seminary before school. Because they start each day with seminary, they often talk throughout the day about what they learned in class.

“We would just talk about what we would learn in class and our experiences,” explained Jocelynne, “and it just kind of grew from there.”

Jacqueline and Jocelynne happened to be friends with Marisol Rivera, who is not a member of the Church and comes from a Catholic background. Most of Marisol’s friends were LDS, and she learned a lot about the Church by listening to them talk about what they had learned in seminary each morning.

Marisol noticed something different about her LDS friends and became curious about the Church. “They seem to have guidance. They seem to know what to do most of the time—how to decide between wrong and right,” Marisol said. “I just wanted to be like that, to be able to know what’s wrong and right without doubting myself.”

Although Marisol declined Jacqueline’s initial invitation to attend early-morning seminary, she was still very interested in the Church. So, wanting to know more and knowing she could find the answers to her questions in seminary, she enrolled herself in a released-time seminary class.

“I just wanted another time to read and learn about what this really is about,” said Marisol. “It’s different than anything else I’ve experienced before.”

Marisol loved her first day in seminary. “We would read a scripture, and other people would give their input on what it meant to them. It was fun hearing how one scripture could be taken in many different ways.”

Before long, Marisol was attending seminary regularly and learning as much as she could. In fact, she recently gave the devotional in her seminary class and shared her testimony of the Holy Ghost. Marisol has even started sharing the gospel with her cousin, who has become curious about the Church since Marisol started attending seminary.

Roughly 25 percent of the students at West High School are LDS, and the seminary faculty members know that they, along with their students, have a great opportunity and responsibility to share the gospel with the nonmembers and less-active members there.

Adam Spere, the seminary principal, said, “We just try to get them [nonmembers and less-active members] in the building where we can meet them and they can ask questions.”

Twice each year the seminary collaborates with the six surrounding stakes to provide dessert for the students at the seminary building during lunchtime. This is a great opportunity for students to invite friends to come to the seminary building, meet the teachers, and see what it’s all about.

The blessings of seminary are a gift to those who attend, and each person who attends is a gift to the Savior. In Luke 15:4–6, He taught:

“What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?

“And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.

“And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.”

To those who are unsure about inviting their friends to seminary, Jacqueline gives these words of encouragement: “It just takes 30 seconds of courage, and it could save someone’s life.”