The Tree of Charity

And Now, a Special Blog Post from Elder Brower:

  

   As another beautiful day in August has come and gone, I’ve been once again pondering on the teachings of Christ and the beauty behind it all. I stand in awe at the incredible blessings that are poured out upon us from heaven as we seek to be more like Christ and follow his teachings. The one I would like to focus on tonight is that of Charity: the pure love of Christ. 

   From Alma chapter 32 in the Book of Mormon, we learn of the seed of faith and how it grows to be much more than what it was in the beginning. “Now, we will compare the word unto a seed. Now, if ye give place, that a seed may be planted in your heart, behold, if it be a true seed, or a good seed, if ye do not cast it out by your unbelief, that ye will resist the spirit of the Lord, behold, it will begin to swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will begin to say within yourselves – it must needs be that this is a good seed, or that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlighten my understanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me” (Alma 32:28). I love the incredible teachings of Alma to his sons as he directs them to follow Christ and be like Him. Faith is that first step to becoming who we are meant to be. Faith leads to a hope inside of us; a hope that Christ is the way and the light.  

   Similar to the way Alma compares faith unto a seed, we can easily compare hope unto that young, vulnerable tree that we all see and patiently ponder on: “When will this youngling grow into a tree bearing fruit?” So I ask, when will our faith grow into hope, and when will our hope grow into that tree of charity? As we live our lives with charity we begin to see the beauty in the world. Fear becomes faith, trials become lessons, and weaknesses become strengths.  

  

   A few months ago as I was serving in Kelseyville, California, my companion, Elder Gengler, and I had an incredible experience concerning charity. One nice Sunday afternoon as we were driving back to Kelseyville from our church meetings in Lakeport, we were headed south on the highway and noticed a white van pulled off to the side of the road with its hazard lights on. As we got closer we realized that the van's back left tire was blown out and a lady had gotten out of the drivers seat to examine the situation. Recognizing this as an opportunity to reach out to someone in need, we quickly pulled off to the side of the highway to offer our help. Little did we know, this was more than just a stranger with a flat tire.  

   We were caught by surprise as the lady's young daughter turned, pointed, and exclaimed “Hey! It's the missionaries coming to help!”. A little confused how they knew us, we got out of our car and went up to them to begin helping. The lady immediately thanked us for stopping and commented that we probably didn't recognize her. She then introduced herself: Sister Hall. A less-active member of our ward that we had been trying to get a hold of for 3 months. We were in awe that the Lord had put us in the right place at the  right time for this to occur. The tire change was a simple one and she knew that the Lord had blessed her by placing us there at the right moment. She asked when they could have us over for dinner and a lesson, and we set one up with out hesitation. A fire seemed to be rekindled in them and we continue to pray that they keep on putting one foot in front of the other towards Christ. In the Bible, Paul teaches that “Charity never faileth” and experiences like this testify to all that it is true. 

   I testify to all that Charity is the pure love of Christ. The scriptures teach: “And now abideth faith, hope and charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.” (1 Corinthians 13:13). When we nourish our faith and strengthen our hope, we will possess true charity that this world so greatly needs. Jesus is the Christ and was sent to redeem all who turn to him with full purpose of heart. I urge everyone to have charity, extend helping hands to those in need and think of others before yourself. This is the path back to our Father in Heaven and I leave these things with you in the name of our Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Amen.