Lifting Others
Maichael’s church talk: Lifting Others
Hi brothers and sisters. I’m Maichael Macey. My family and I just moved to Murrieta about 2 months ago, and it honestly already feels like home. Thank you for being so friendly and welcoming. We are really excited to get to know all of you better.
I am going to let my husband tell you a little more about us and what brought us to California. But I will clue you in on a little tidbit about myself, I’m a bit of a word nerd. I have loved reading ever since I was a kid, and that love inspired me to become a Middle School English teacher. So when I get a topic, I like to really look at the words, definitions, connotations, and images that specific words create to give me a foundation for better understanding the topic. Let’s try it together, shall we?
When you hear the word “lift”, what do you think of?
If you’re a child, you might imagine a kite being lifted up with the wind
If you’re a parent, you could think of lifting a crying child from the ground and holding them in your arms
If you’re Elder Uchtdorf, you might see in your minds eye an airplane speeding forward so that its heavy body can be lifted off the ground
We lift up our eyes to the heavens in search of answers
We lift up our voices in prayer
We minister to and lift those weighed down with life’s hardships
Our Savior, Jesus Christ, was lifted on the cross. The ultimate lifting.
In describing a vision he had, Nephi said,“...the angel spake unto me … , saying: Look! And I looked and beheld the Lamb of God, … [who] was lifted up upon the cross and slain for the sins of the world.”4. Christ took our pains and sins, lifting them from us and putting them onto his own shoulders as he suffered in Gethsemane and then on the cross. The resurrected Christ himself said, “My Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; … that I might draw all men unto me, … and for this cause have I been lifted up.”5
Lifting seems to be an action that inspires hope. It draws people together. It heals. One of my favorite hymns declares:
Savior, may I learn to love thee,
Walk the path that thou hast shown,
Pause to help and lift another,
Finding strength beyond my own.
The scriptures make it pretty clear that lifting others is closely connected to our baptismal covenant and our promise to take Christ’s name upon us. In Mosiah 18, Alma asks
8…[if] ye are desirous to come into the fold of God, and to be called his people, and are willing to bear one another’s burdens, that they may be light;
9 Yea, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God… 10 Now I say unto you, if this be the desire of your hearts, what have you against being baptized…?
Yes, as baptized members of the Lord’s church, we are called to do some heavy lifting, but we aren’t required to do it alone.
Elder Uchtdorf gave a powerful talk years ago entitled Lift Where You Stand. In it he shares a story about a group of men trying to figure out how to move a very heavy grand piano. None of the men were professional movers, and the task seemed nearly impossible. They had plenty of ideas, but not one could keep the piano balanced correctly. Everything they tried failed. Then one man brought up a suggestion. He said, “Brethren, stand close together and lift where you stand.”
It seemed too simple. Nevertheless, each lifted where he stood, and the piano rose from the ground and moved into the cultural hall as if on its own power. That was the answer to the challenge. They merely needed to stand close together and lift where they stood.
Elder Uchtdorf relates this story to the importance of every member and every calling in the church. Whether you are serving in the bishopric or in the nursery. Whether you are the Relief Society president or a ward greeter, you play an important role in moving the work of the Lord forward. You can and should lift those in your sphere of influence. Later on in his talk, Elder Uchtdorf says, “You may feel that there are others who are more capable or more experienced who could fulfill your callings and assignments better than you can, but the Lord gave you your responsibilities for a reason. There may be people and hearts only you can reach and touch. Perhaps no one else could do it in quite the same way.”
Pondering this talk, I asked myself, “Where do I stand?” The answer for me is simple: most of my time I find myself standing in my own home, and there is quite a lot of ministering that can and should happen with the people within those walls. Harold B Lee taught, “The most important of the Lord’s work that you will ever do will be the work you do within the walls of your own home.” Sometimes we search for people in the world that need lifting, but lifting our spouse and children is just as important. We need to not overthink our efforts and simply just ask, “How can I brighten someone’s day today?” Can I spend some one-on-one time playing with one of my kids? Can I serve my family by helping with a chore that belongs to another? Can I share with my spouse a spiritual thought I had earlier? Can I be more patient with those around me? Can I offer a hug? These ideas seem obvious, and yet we are told time and time again that by small and simple means are great things brought to pass.
So I want you to ask yourself, where have I been called to lift? Who have I been called to lift? How can I minister to someone this week? Let the Spirit speak to your mind, and I challenge you to act on the promptings you receive as you ponder these questions.
To finish, I want to once again engage your creative mind and have you imagine a scene. Imagine you are climbing up a mountain side with your family. If your kids are anything like mine, it wont be long before one or two or even three little ones are clamoring for you to pick them up and give them relief from the arduous hike. Imagine you pause to lift a child into your arms or onto your shoulders. Now as you feel the weight of their body, you look down and realize you are standing in gooey mud. You can feel your feet slowly start to sink as the extra weight pushes you down, and it is hard to maneuver while your feet are sloshing around on the uneven ground. With that image in mind, I think it is safe to say that lifting is best done on a sure foundation. “Remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation;...which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.” Solidify yourself in Jesus Christ, in His gospel and in His love, then your own lifting efforts will be strengthened and magnified through His Redeeming power. For me, I feel like I am better able to serve those around me when I start my day with God. After nursing Wesley at 5 or 6 in the morning, it can sometimes be tempting to crawl back into bed and snooze until one of my other kids wakes me up. But on days when I choose to stay awake, I sit outside with my scriptures and I talk with my Heavenly Father. I have a few minutes of quiet contemplation and spiritual study to start my day, and then I feel like I am better prepared to lift my family and lead with love.
Brothers and Sisters, I am grateful for this church and the myriad of opportunities we find here to lift one another and be edified by each other. I am grateful for my savior, Jesus Christ, and His perfect example of how to love others. I pray that we can all find ways this week to lift where we stand and solidify ourselves and our homes in the gospel. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
