LOCAL LEADER MESSAGE
Rescue the Less Active
When we fulfil our responsibilities to reach out to those who are struggling, we can overcome the challenges and adversities which we will face.
Being a member of the Church for the past 13 years, I love visiting less-active members to see how they are doing and to share with them the love of Jesus Christ for His children. I remember one Saturday, kneeling down and praying to Heavenly Father to help me to reach those who need my comfort and to understand Christ’s love for them. When I finished my prayer, I felt a prompting of the Spirit to visit one of the less-active sisters. She hadn’t been to church for a long time. When I gave her a call, she told me she was in the hospital and was diagnosed with a serious illness. Although I am blind, I decided to go by myself to visit the sister, even though I didn’t get anyone to go with me to the hospital.
When she saw me, she was filled with joy and said, “You are the first person who visited me”. I shared with her the story of Lazarus, and how, because of his faith, Christ raised him from the dead (see John 11:1–44).
A few weeks later, this sister came to church and gave her testimony about her first visit by a member of the Church. She shared how it strengthened her testimony and gave her a new hope in life to understand our Heavenly Father’s plan for His children.
When we visit less-active members, we are following Jesus Christ’s example to find the lost sheep (see Matthew 18∶12–14). When we do this, we are not only helping others, but also are helping our own testimony to be strengthened.
Ministering to His children who are less-active participants in Church activity is one of our Heavenly Father’s commandments. When we fulfill our responsibilities, we can overcome the challenges and adversities which we will face. We find the promised blessings in Alma 37∶16: “But if ye keep the commandments of God, and do with these things which are sacred according to that which the Lord doth command you, (for you must appeal unto the Lord for all things whatsoever ye must do with them) behold, no power of earth or hell can take them from you, for God is powerful to the fulfilling of all his words.”