I had the opportunity to speak in the leadership session of our Stake Conference this last Saturday. I enjoy giving talks, but the prompt for this one was particularly difficult. A discussion with and feedback from my parents, plus lots of prayer and study, resulted in this talk.
How did the Savior minister?
He served with gentle hands.
And I can also use my hands,
Helping others when I can.
The first verse of one of our new hymns asks an inspired question. The Savior used his hands to heal the blind, to feed the five thousand, to raise the dead. Mosiah 3:5 says: “...(T)he Lord Omnipotent… shall go forth amongst men, working mighty miracles, such as healing the sick, raising the dead, causing the lame to walk, the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear, and curing all manner of diseases.”
Think about your own experience with ministering. How have your hands been instruments to help others? When my oldest son, who is currently serving a mission, was a baby, I felt overwhelmed by some of the responsibilities of motherhood. My visiting teachers, the predecessors of ministering sisters, asked if they could come visit. I said yes, and joked that I might make them fold my laundry. Their eyes lit up and they said they would LOVE to fold laundry. So, when they came to my house that week, I welcomed them to our small living room, which was piled high with clean clothes. We folded together while we chatted and it was a huge gift. I felt so loved and cared for. Folding my laundry was ministering.
We can use our hands to make food for someone, to hold a fussy baby, to play a game with a child, or to give comfort by holding the hands of someone whose heart is broken. This is all ministering.
The second verse of the song says:
How did the Savior minister?
He was a friend to all.
And I can also be a friend,
Lifting others when they fall.
In Matthew chapter 22, when asked what the greatest commandment was, Christ answered, “...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. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” Jesus lived this.
With that in mind, ask yourself these questions. Have I introduced myself to those I minister to? Do they know who I am? If I saw them in the hallway at church, would I recognize them? Could I call them by name? Have I spent time with them? Have I visited them in their home? Do they know that they can come to me for a ride or a meal or a listening ear? Have I ever invited them to my home? Or to join me at the temple? Do they know they can come to me either because I can give them a blessing or because I can connect them with someone who can? Do they know they are safe with me? Have I put in the time to be their friend?
The third verse says:
How did the Savior minister?
He prayed for all with love.
I’ll pray for others lovingly,
Seeking blessings from above.
In the New Testament and The Book of Mormon, we see the Savior praying. He prayed for those he taught. He prayed for those he led. He prayed for us and everyone that ever lived or will ever live.
What if the people that you’ve been asked to minister to have said no? What if all you have is a name on a slip of paper? You can pray. You can pray for the person by name, even if you haven’t met them. And what if you know them, but don’t know how to minister to them? First, ask them. Ask how they want to be ministered to. Then, ask God for help in fulfillinging that wish.
In his October 2024 General Conference talk, Elder Juan Pablo Villar said, “We can rely on the guidance and inspiration of the Holy Ghost to discern what kind of help is needed, whether it is temporal support like emotional comfort, food, or aid with daily tasks, or spiritual guidance to help others in their journey to prepare, make, and honor sacred covenants.”
In April 2018, when home teaching and visiting teaching were retired and replaced by ministering, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland spoke in General Conference about what this new form of loving our neighbors should look like. He taught that instead of reporting at the end of each month and checking boxes, we would counsel with our Relief Society and Elder’s Quorum presidencies during ministering interviews to let them know the needs of those we serve.
I was one that benefitted from checking the box. Knowing I had to report each month helped my brain. I liked the monthly visits and lessons. I’ve floundered in the switch from visiting teaching to ministering. And I think that’s because I missed a vital piece. Listen carefully to what Elder Holland said during that talk: “We will continue to visit homes as possible, but local circumstances such as large numbers, long distances, personal safety, and other challenging conditions may preclude a visit to every home every month. As the First Presidency counseled years ago, do the best you can. In addition to whatever schedule you establish for actual visits, that calendar can be supplemented with telephone calls, written notes, texts, emails, video chats, conversations at Church meetings, shared service projects, social activities, and a host of possibilities… (W)ith these adjustments we want more care and concern, not less.”
Did you catch what I missed when I heard this in 2018? “We will continue to visit homes as possible…” and later in the quote, “In addition to whatever schedule you establish for actual visits…” I got stuck on the parts about emails and text messages and I missed that we’re still encouraged, where possible, to minister and gather in homes. We were never meant to do less, instead, we’re invited to do more.
In April 2026 Kristen M. Yee taught, “When we choose to minister in our inspired assignments and our daily interactions, we are helping to bless someone’s father, someone’s sister, someone’s son. When we minister, we are helping to answer each other’s prayers. We are the Savior’s hands. Oh, how I am grateful for all those who have blessed families like mine by ministering with compassion. Ministering is truly loving and caring for others as the Savior would. It is a way of being; it is the way of our Savior, Jesus Christ. It is not a program or a checklist; ministering is the essence of who God is and who we can become as we follow Him.”
Each verse of this new song ends with the chorus:
I want to live as Jesus did
And serve in loving ways.
He showed how I can minister
As a child in latter days.
In case the word child in that last line makes you think this message isn’t for you, remember you are a child of God in the latter days. We can minister the way Jesus did. I say this in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
