How Great Shall Be My Joy!
How Great Shall Be My Joy is a weekly podcast, put out on Sunday afternoons, to help the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints be more effective member missionaries. It includes both actual experiences and training tips on how to more effectively share the gospel with others by being an instrument in the Lord’s hands. My desire is that by listening to these podcasts, members of the Church will have more frequent, fun, and fulfilling member missionary experiences and eliminate the guilt that many members of the Church feel when member missionary work is discussed. (See D&C 18:15)
How Great Shall Be My Joy!
Episode 34: My Missionary Mother
She’s named after her grandmother, and that’s a good thing. Her grandmother served on the general board of the Young Women’s Mutual Improvement Association for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for 25 years. Then she was called to be the president of the same organization and served there for another 25 years.
Her mother was the personal secretary to Dr. James E. Talmadge for many years. She helped Elder Talmage proofread the Book of Mormon and get it ready for its 1921 publication edition. She even found an error in the spelling of one of the names in the book and brought it to the attention of the general authorities. It was corrected with great praise and admiration.
It’s a wonderful thing to come from a strong heritage. I did that on both sides of my family, but since today is Mother’s Day I will focus on my mother’s story, particularly her abilities as a missionary.
I have bragged about her before on social media and in other ways. One of her great traits is that of being a missionary to those she’s around. Missionaries aren’t always preaching; they’re probably serving, studying, praying, and doing other types of work as much as they are teaching or preaching. My mother is no exception.
Enjoy this podcast which highlights seven traits of successful missionaries, be they full-time missionaries or member missionaries: their service, their focus on families, their happiness, their knowledge of the scriptures, their love of the temple, their knowledge of their role and how to fulfill it, and their obedience.