From the talk "Was It Worth It?" by Elder David F. Evans in April 2012 General Conference.
Dave
Orchard grew up in Salt Lake City, where most of his friends were
members of the Church. They were a great influence on him. In addition,
Church leaders in his neighborhood constantly invited him to activities.
His friends did the same. Even though he didn’t join the Church at that
time, his growing-up years were blessed by the influence of good LDS
friends and Church-sponsored activities. After he entered college, he
moved away from his home, and most of his friends left on missions. He
missed their influence in his life.
One
of Dave’s high school friends was still home. This friend was meeting
every week with his bishop in an effort to put his life in order and be
able to serve as a missionary. He and Dave became roommates, and as
would be both natural and normal, they talked about why he wasn’t then
serving as a missionary and why he was meeting frequently with the
bishop. The friend expressed his gratitude and respect for his bishop
and the opportunity to repent and serve. He then asked Dave whether he
would like to come to the next interview. What an invitation! But in the
context of their friendship and circumstances, it was both natural and
normal.
Dave
agreed and was soon meeting with the bishop himself. This led to Dave’s
decision to meet with the missionaries. He received a testimony that
the gospel is true, and a date for his baptism was set. Dave was
baptized by his bishop, and a year later, Dave Orchard and Katherine
Evans were married in the temple. They have five beautiful children.
Katherine is my little sister. I will be forever grateful to this good
friend who, together with a good bishop, brought Dave into the Church.
As
Dave spoke of his conversion and bore his testimony regarding these
events, he asked the question, “So, was it worth it? Was all the effort
of friends and youth leaders and my bishop, over all the years, worth
the effort to have just one boy be baptized?” Pointing to Katherine and
his five children, he said, “Well, at least for my wife and our five
children, the answer is yes.”
Sister
Eileen Waite attended the same stake conference where Dave Orchard told
of his conversion experience. Throughout the conference, all she could
think of was her own family and particularly her sister, Michelle, who
had long been away from the Church. Michelle was divorced and trying to
raise four children. Eileen felt impressed to send her a copy of Elder
M. Russell Ballard’s book Our Search for Happiness, together with
her testimony, which she did. The very next week a friend told Eileen
that she too had felt that she should contact Michelle. This friend also
wrote Michelle a note, sharing her testimony and expressing her love.
Isn’t it interesting how often the Spirit works on several people to
help one in need?
Time
passed. Michelle called Eileen and thanked her for the book. She said
that she was beginning to recognize the spiritual void in her life.
Eileen told her that she knew that the peace she was seeking could be
found in the gospel. She told her that she loved her and wanted her to
be happy. Michelle began to make changes in her life. Soon she met a
wonderful man who was active in the Church. They married and a year
later were sealed in the Ogden Utah Temple. Recently her 24-year-old son
was baptized.
Sharing Time: I am very thankful for the missionaries who found my dad and the friend who introduced my mom to the gospel. Because of them and my parents' decisions to join the Church, I have an eternal family. Every one of us in the Church is the result of missionary work, whether in this generation or a hundred years back. We all owe gratitude to someone for sharing the gospel with us or our ancestors. What is your story?
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