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Intro.
1. The Lost Wedding Ring
A couple of weeks ago my daughter and her husband and their beautiful baby girl who live in Nevada went camping. They had a wonderful time and baby Avi took to camping like a raccoon takes to food left on a picnic table.
They were camped near to a stream, and as they gathered wood for a fire, my son-in-law Gunnar was on the other side of the stream, throwing sticks over the stream to their campsite. He was about done when he noticed that his wedding ring was missing. The fit of his ring had been such that depending on the temperature is either fit just right or was just a bit loose. Gunnar and Heather combed the area looking for it until it grew too dark, without any luck. They went to bed, sick at heart. Heather suggested that since they'd most likely need to get a new ring, Gunnar could pick a different kind if he wanted. He responded (very wisely for a young husband) that he just wanted the ring (or one like it) that she'd picked for him. That night it snowed. They were warm enough in their tent once they put another layer of blankets under the air mattress, but they knew that if there had been any chance of finding the ring, that chance had narrowed. Gunnar got the damp, cold wood to light for a morning fire and breakfast, and looked around more for the ring.
When they were ready to go, and Heather and Avi were ready in the truck, Gunnar said he wanted to go look one more time. They had been praying to find the ring, but he said another prayer and went over the area one more time. There, just barely above the water line, and just barely holding on to the bank above the stream, was his ring. That which had been lost was found.
What have you lost? Something important to you or a child lost
Have you ever been lost?
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Stories --
(Poster)
Lesson 18: “He Was Lost, and Is Found”," New Testament Gospel Doctrine
(Poster)
Purpose: To understand the joy that comes when we repent and when we help others repent.
(Poster)
Lost Sheep
Lost Coin
Prodigal Son – Lost son – how lost -- (the farmer --) the older son --
Ten lepers Dual Point of View
The Seeker for that which is lost
The One who is lost
Approaching the Lord in prayer, and at the Sacrament table, as one who IS LOST without his intervention and daily aid.
Dual Point of View (Poster)
Why lost? Whose fault? (preventable?)
What is it like being lost?
What it is like being the one seeking? and
What does it take to be found/find?
What is it like when the lost is found?
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Quotes:
President Gordon B. Hinckley said:
“Some of our own … cry out in pain and suffering and loneliness and fear. Ours is a great and solemn duty to reach out and help them, to lift them, to feed them if they are hungry, to nurture their spirits if they thirst for truth and righteousness. …
“… There are those who were once warm in the faith, but whose faith has grown cold. Many of them wish to come back but do not know quite how to do it. They need friendly hands reaching out to them. With a little effort, many of them can be brought back to feast again at the table of the Lord.
“My brethren and sisters, I would hope, I would pray that each of us … would resolve to seek those who need help, who are in desperate and difficult circumstances, and lift them in the spirit of love into the embrace of the Church, where strong hands and loving hearts will warm them, comfort them, sustain them, and put them on the way of happy and productive lives” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1996, 118; or Ensign, Nov. 1996, 86).
Elder Maynes in April Conference 2011:
This poem by C. C. Miller titled “The Echo” illustrates the importance and impact parents have as they influence their children:
’Twas a sheep not a lamb
That strayed away in the parable Jesus told,
A grown-up sheep that strayed away
From the ninety and nine in the fold.
And why for the sheep should we seek
And earnestly hope and pray?
Because there is danger when sheep go wrong:
They lead the lambs astray.
Lambs will follow the sheep, you know,
Wherever the sheep may stray.
When sheep go wrong,
It won’t take long till the lambs are as wrong as they.
And so with the sheep we earnestly plead
For the sake of the lambs today,
For when the sheep are lost
What a terrible cost
The lambs will have to pay. 6Referring to the parable of the prodigal son, President Gordon B. Hinckley said: “I ask you to read that story. Every parent ought to read it again and again. It is large enough to encompass every household, and enough larger than that to encompass all mankind, for are we not all prodigal sons and daughters who need to repent and partake of the forgiving mercy of our Heavenly Father and then follow His example?” (“Of You It Is Required to Forgive,” Ensign, June 1991, 5).
April Conference 2011 -- Elder Grow of the Seventy tells about his brother who "Like the prodigal son, “he came to himself.” 1 He began to reach out to the Savior and to make his way back home and to faithful parents who never gave up on him."
Bishop Merrill J. Bateman taught: “In becoming a whole person, the grateful leper was healed inside as well as on the outside. That day nine lepers were healed skin deep, but only one had the faith to be made whole” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1995, 16; or Ensign, May 1995, 14).
Elder Eyring – April Conference [earthquake, flooding]
They turned their feelings of sympathy into a decision to act on their covenants. I have seen the blessings that come to the person in need who receives help and to the person who seizes the opportunity to give it.
Elder Ballard – April Conference Finding Joy Through Loving Service
The Savior spoke of this principle when He answered the Pharisee who asked, “Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
“Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
“This is the first and great commandment.
It is only when we love God and Christ with all of our hearts, souls, and minds that we are able to share this love with our neighbors through acts of kindness and service—the way that the Savior would love and serve all of us if He were among us today.
When this pure love of Christ—or charity—envelops us, we think, feel, and act more like Heavenly Father and Jesus would think, feel, and act. Our motivation and heartfelt desire are like unto that of the Savior.
Sister Silvia H. Allred – The Essence of Discipleship
When love becomes the guiding principle in our care for others, our service to them becomes the gospel in action.
2. Search and Rescue story
Larry Hiller -- June 1993 Liahona
Search and Rescue
“Most of the time you won’t be on the ‘find’ team,” he says. After all, there are usually many teams on the job, searching various assigned areas. “On most of the jobs, you search an area and can say, ‘Now we know where the victim isn’t.’ It may seem like a boring job, but it has to be done.”
So, if there is little chance of getting a warm feeling from actually finding the lost child or the injured hiker, what keeps Tad and his team going? “It’s the thought of the victims,” he answers. “You can’t sleep if they’re out there.” It doesn’t matter if another team gets the thrill of finding the victims. “Just knowing that they’ve been found is a really great feeling.”
Tad and others like him still drop everything to come to the rescue.
As a team leader, Tad must constantly be aware of his team’s mental and physical condition. A team that is weak from exhaustion or hunger can make serious mistakes despite training. “My first responsibility is to my team—to keep them safe,” he says. “You can’t afford to have more than one victim.” It’s a duty Tad takes seriously.
Parallels -
seeking the lost
training
wearing a pager -- in tune with the Holy Ghost
For Tad Jessop, it’s pretty routine now to get called out any time of the day or night. Often the work is boring, like watching a mountain road in case a lost hiker appears. Sometimes the outcome of a search is tragic. Almost always the work is hard. What never becomes routine is the feeling of responsibility for his team and for the people they are trying to help.
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