For those of you that don't know, I'm laurel president and get the opportunity to go on visits and talk to some of the girls in my ward. A couple Sundays ago, my counselors and I went to go visit a less-active girl and invite her to a mutual activity with us. When we walked up to her house, there were a couple guys standing outside. We asked if the girl was home and one of the guys said that no, she had moved to Nevada and asked if there was a message he could pass along to her. I told him we were going to invite her to an activity with us, to which he asked if it was "a churchy thing". When I told him yes, he said, "Well, she's gone, but I'm sure she'll be there in spirit with you" and laughed and rolled his eyes at me. That little encounter really bothered me, and bothered me for a week after. One day in seminary, I was assigned to give the devotional and got up and told this experience and gave a scripture that went along with it. After sitting down, my seminary teacher walked by me and handed me a slip of paper. On it, it had the scripture Matthew 5:10-12 written.
That says:
10. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11. Blessed are Ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
These verses really got me thinking about Christ's life and about missionary work. Missionaries mimick Christ's life. They get up everyday, preach unto the people, and are sometimes mocked and shunned for their beliefs. But it's okay, because the gospel is true; and in the end, it will always be true. Christ suffered each and every day. He was mocked, scorned, beaten, spit upon, rejected....and why? Because He loved His father and would do anything to serve Him. Missionaries love the gospel. They love their Savior. No matter what they go through, that desire to serve and that passion for the gospel will not diminish. Even though Christ's entire life was full of being laughed at and persecuted, he never gave up. He never quit serving and he never quit loving everyone. To me, that's pretty amazing.
