“Missionary Moment: Talking about Prophets,” New Era, Apr. 2015, 38–39
Missionary Moment: Talking about Prophets
Ethan Parry lives in Utah, USA.
With general conference right around the corner, now’s a great time to tell your friends what it means to have a prophet today.
Photo illustration by Welden C. Andersen; backgrounds from iStock/Thinkstock
Imagine for a second that you’re eating lunch in your school cafeteria with some of your closest friends, who aren’t members of the Church.
One of them asks you, “What are you doing this weekend?” It happens to be the weekend of general conference. You may be tempted to skip over any talk of the Church, but it’s an easy and natural way to be a member missionary.
You might say, “On Saturday and Sunday, my church has a general conference.”
“What’s that?”
“Well, twice a year we receive guidance from God’s prophets and apostles.”
At this point, your friend may ask you what an apostle is. Or maybe he’ll look at you with doubt and say, “You mean like the ones they had in the Bible?”
What do you do next?
With general conference right around the corner, this situation would be a perfect chance to share the gospel!
Know the Basics
Of course, if you talk about general conference, you’ll want to be ready with a few things to say about what a prophet means to you. Here are some ideas:
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Prophets are inspired men who have been called of God to speak for the Lord.
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Just as there were prophets in ancient times, like Adam, Moses, and Isaiah, the Lord has called men on the earth today as prophets.
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Prophets testify of Jesus Christ and teach His gospel. They make known God’s will. At times, they may be inspired to prophesy of future events for our benefit.
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The President of the Church is also referred to as the prophet—the only person on earth authorized to receive revelation for the entire Church. Members of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles are also prophets with authority to counsel and guide us.
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You could share with your friends how you’ve been blessed by following the prophets.
What else could you say? Bethany D. from Arizona, USA, said to her friend about our relationship to prophets: “Prophets give us the guidelines of what Heavenly Father wants us to do. We can choose to follow them or not to follow them because we have agency.” And Brynn D. from Utah, USA, told her friends about how a prophet serves as a direct line of communication from God to His children.
Look for Opportunities
Look for opportunities with your friends, both in person and online, to share the knowledge that we have a living prophet. When you seek those opportunities and pray for them, you will have them. As you use general conference to strengthen your testimony of the living prophets and apostles and also to share that testimony with others, you’ll not only bless your life but the lives of those around you as well.