For those of you reading this who may not be familiar with LDS meetings, today was what we call “Fast and Testimony Meeting.” On the first Sunday of each month (called “Fast Sunday”) members of the faith abstain from food and water (a.k.a fast) for 24 hrs. and give the money they would have used in those meals to the needy.
Today happened to be Fast Sunday. One thing unique about Fast Sunday is that members of the faith have an opportunity to stand up before the congregation and share their “testimony,” or witness of their faith. I’m not the best church historian out there so I’m not sure where this concept originated from, but I think it is there to provide the opportunity for members to learn and grow together through sharing personal experiences and sharing how the Lord works in our daily lives.
Over the years there have been some phrases that are typically repeated over and over again each fast Sunday. Again, I’m not familiar with where these phrases originated, but some key phrases one will be guaranteed to hear each Sunday are: “I know the Church is true,” “I know the Book of Mormon is true,” “Jesus is the Christ,” “I love my family, parents, etc.” Now, don’t get me wrong, these are all good phrases, but many times after hearing them over and over again it can be easy to drift off and think of other things. Plus, in my opinion, one starts to get the feeling that a person is just using these phrases sometimes as a “filler” to say something to fill the space.
Throughout the years I’ve heard members of other faiths mention how this isn’t uplifting to them. They come to church to learn and to hear a preacher educated and trained in the ways of religion. They do not want to take the time to go to church to hear other “uneducated” people talk about the same thing over and over again.
I’ll have to be honest, I was having similar thoughts today as people would get up and share their life history one after the other. I started getting a tad critical, thinking to myself “they’re not even referencing any scriptures,” or “how many times will I hear I know such and such is true,” etc. In the beginning of the meeting, the Bishop said the meeting would go as long as necessary and so people lined up one after the other. Normally the meeting lasts about an hour. Today at about an hour I noticed there was still a long line. I notice my bad attitude and said a quick prayer to help me be humbled to learn what the Lord would have me learn.
About this time a sweet little elderly lady got up and shared her experiences and her testimony. I won’t lie. It was a long testimony. However, something she said caught my attention. It was simple. She said she had 33 grandkids and went on to describe how the Lord had led her throughout her life and how grateful she was.
A thought then came to my mind: “Whatever the Lord touches, flourishes and lives…” Suddenly the meeting was interesting as I thought about this concept and reflected on scriptures of the Lord touching people and healing them. I thought of people in the scriptures who looked to Him and lived. I thought of His ministry to both the Jews and in the Book of Mormon and how people’s lives were bless simply by Him touching them.
I looked around the chapel and saw parents lovingly helping their kids and knew the Lord was pleased. I thought about the stories that were shared during that meeting and about how they were sharing these experiences because the Lord had touched their lives. I then considered how He had touched my life and how blessed I’ve been because of it. More people kept coming up and sharing experiences and I focused on the experiences they were sharing about how the Lord had touched their life and they had become more alive from it.
Almost 2 hours after the meeting began, we had said the closing prayer and were walking out of the chapel. I looked around at everyone there and felt in a small way what it is to be a part of the body of Christ. Jesus touches each one of us individually in the best way for us to learn and how open we are to learning.
Although we didn’t have an experienced and educated pastor sharing a sermon today, I feel that the Holy Spirit was able to educate me in ways I never would have considered and for that I’m grateful.
Grace for Grace 
3 comments
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March 2, 2008 at 10:28 pm
Jon W
I think the joy of a lay church is that a broad range of experience is brought to bare.
Traditional Pastor led churches to my mind get boring because the same speaker week after a week would lead, me at least, to zoning out. While some days I find Sacrament boring, I can say the best teaching I have recieved have come from new members with their simple testamonies.
As well I often find myself learning things from people that they themselves may not have realized because what they say takes on a special meaning.
This is not to say a pastor or priest could not do that I just think that lay members bring a way of thinking which can be special for completely different reasons.
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March 3, 2008 at 1:15 pm
aaronandbecca
I experienced the attempts at self-restraint and redirecting my thoughts to a positive light in Sacrament meeting yesterday as well. I was visiting a ward in Taiwan and this old old lady went up to the stand, starting her testimony as she would a prayer. I immediately recognized her as someone who had borne her testimony when I was visiting Taiwan last March and she had lost a little control–getting very emotional as she talked, almost yelling, and even falling down at the pulpit. When I saw her go again to the pulpit one year later, I wondered what drama we might see this time and how people might react to her antics.
Once again she rambled on and on and on and I could barely understand a word she said. I wondered when she was going to step down, but grateful at least that there was no screaming or falling. When she finally did step down, a young woman followed quickly after her. She said she was so grateful for this woman and her zeal and passion for the gospel. She said that even though she hardly ever understood a word of what the woman said (this made me feel a little less discouraged about my Chinese skills), she could feel the happiness the woman had in her life because of the gospel; she could feel the love the woman had for the Lord and for all those in the congregation; she made her want to develop her own love of the Lord, the gospel, and others so that she too could have the same happiness this old old woman had found.
And I sat there feeling horrible that I had only taken the woman’s testimony as a time to judge and become bored and consumed with myself and my own thoughts instead of using it as an opportunity to look inward and see what I could learn and gain from her sharing. It made me realize that anytime I have complaints about meetings, the solution is actually found within, just like Aaron shared today. We are the ones who dictate how much we get out of church, out of the scriptures, and out of life. I hope I can do better next Sunday!
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May 21, 2008 at 4:36 am
Diana
I think this post is very good. Fast and Testimony meeting can get very repetitive to me as well. Some weeks it blows me away, and others I can’t stop counting down the minutes. But, this was a good reminder to me that I can get the most out of church, when i am humble enough to listen to the heart of the message, and also to pray to have the spirit whisper to me personally. Church is much more beneficial if I do that, and it prompts me to change my life.
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