Remember and Nourish Them

©Darrell Wyatt

We had the opportunity yesterday to attend Sacrament Meeting in a ward we attended six years ago.  One of my husband's former deacons was giving his missionary farewell talk, and he had asked us to come.  He did such a fantastic job.  He spoke eloquently and from the heart, and it was incredible to see this young man, whom we had known as a thirteen year old boy, have such a strong testimony of the gospel.  He was taller and his voice was a little deeper, but he still had that mischievous, playful look in his eyes that we remembered. 

Every time we go to a missionary's farewell or homecoming, I am in awe of the maturity and dedication that these young men and women have toward spreading the gospel.  I look at my own kids, and other kids in the neighborhood, who are not much younger than these missionaries.  Many of them struggle with their testimonies, as I'm sure nearly every teenager does.  Some of them bounce back and forth between inactivity and activity, while some relish every opportunity to attend a church function.  I sometimes wonder if we, as adult members of the church, are doing everything we can to ensure that the youth feel welcome and loved as members of our ward families.

And after they had been received unto baptism, and were wrought upon and cleansed by the power of the Holy Ghost, they were numbered among the people of the church of Christ; and their names were taken, that they might be remembered and nourished by the good word of God, to keep them in the right way, to keep them continually watchful unto prayer, relying alone upon the merits of Christ, who was the author and the finisher of their faith. (Moroni 6:4)

We focus so much, in the church, on retaining new converts.  We strive to make them feel welcome.  We try to remember them and make sure that they are comfortable and involved.  When I read this verse, I didn't think of new converts - even though I'm sure that's what Moroni was speaking of.  I thought of my almost seventeen year old daughter and some of her friends, who are trying to figure out who they are and where they belong.  I think that sometimes I am so focused on people outside of my home that I forget to look inside.  I forget that my kids' testimonies need to also be "nourished by the good word of God".  They need my help to stay "in the right way", as do all of our youth.

There is a period of time, right around sixteen or seventeen, where I've noticed that kids really have a tough time knowing what their place is within the gospel.  I'm not a child psychologist by any means, but I have been that age myself, and I've been around enough kids to be able to see a little bit of wavering.  I think that these kids are just going through so very much.  They'll soon be done with school, out of the Mutual program, and there is kind of a feeling of being in "limbo".  They're not quite ready, in most cases, to assume all the responsibilities of being an adult, but when it comes to attending church, they move from their youth classes into the adult ones literally overnight.

I wrote of my experience with Relief Society, and I am so grateful that the women back then took me under their wings and made it good experience.  I know that it doesn't always happen that way.  Unfortunately, I must admit that I have probably not done my part as well as I could have when it comes to making young women feel welcome when they first move up into this inspired organization.

It is tragic to see any member of the church fall away into inactivity, but that tragedy is magnified when the loss could have been avoided.  If the other youth are anything like my daughter, and I'm convinced that they are, a simple hug or compliment can make all the difference in the decision to want to attend their church activities.  I love the youth of the church.  In them, I see so much promise and hope for the future.  We cannot afford to fail them.  We must do all that is within our power to make sure that not even one falls through the cracks.  We must, as Moroni said, remember and nourish them.

Click here to read what I read today: Moroni 6