Farewell Talk

Good afternoon, brothers and sisters. For those of you who don't know me, my name is Coleman Tew, soon to be Elder Tew. I recently received my Mission Call to San Juan, Puerto Rico, speaking Spanish. My mission boundaries include some of the US and British Virgin Islands. I am so excited to get out and teach and serve some of the world's prettiest islands. The bishop asked me to give a talk on how the gospel of Jesus Christ changes lives. As I thought about this topic, I was inspired to talk about what the gospel of Jesus Christ is to me, how the gospel of Jesus Christ has changed my life, and how the gospel of Jesus Christ can change the lives of others.

As I started to ponder the question, "What is the gospel of Jesus Christ?" I asked my dad where to learn about it. He told me to read Matthew 5, where Jesus is teaching the Sermon on the Mount. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus preached to a crowd of 5,000 people. Jesus taught, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, blessed are the merciful, blessed are the peacemakers, blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Earth." In other words, "Blessed are the selfless, who are humble." "You have heard that it has been said, 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth,' but whosoever shall smite you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also. That any man who sew thee at the law, and take thy cloak, leave him thy cloak also" "Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who despitefully use you and persecute you." In other words, be humble, be humble, be humble. From these teachings and what I've been told my whole life, the gospel of Jesus Christ is humility, loving God, and loving thy neighbor.

I want to share a story about my experience with the gospel of Jesus Christ and how it changed my life. Last summer, I was not doing the most incredible things, but I had been taught that there was a God, and I had the gift of the Holy Ghost from baptismal covenants that I had made when I was younger. So, I knew what I was doing was probably wrong, made evident through the Holy Ghost. One day, I felt miserable and tons of guilt and shame. But why did I feel so guilty? I didn't even know if the Church was true or if I believed that God even existed anymore. I had been told my whole life from my dad that if you ever had doubts, you should pray to gain your testimony, pray to find answers. You can't rely on others' experiences and what they believe. So, I found myself in my bed, praying for the first time in my life with actual intent to find answers.

The prayer went something like this, "God, are you even there? Are you even real, or are you just something people think of to make themselves feel good? Show me a sign that you're there, show me a sign that you exist." I heard a voice that wasn't mine saying, "Second Nephi 2." So, I opened up my scriptures and started reading. I got to verse 14, which reads, "And now, my sons, I speak unto you these things for your profit and learning; for there is a God, and he hath created all things, both the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are, both things to act and things to be acted upon." As soon as I read these words, I knew that and felt God was listening and had answered my prayer. There I was in my room, knowing that God is real, with a knowledge that He's there. He knows me, and He still wants to talk to me. But I hardened my heart, not knowing myself enough to repent and turn to Him. Then, immediately, my mind went to "God doesn't want me" and "He didn't want my forgiveness." I knew there was a God now, but I thought I was a lost cause. Mind you, I hadn't done anything unforgivable. I believe this was the adversary trying to keep me with him, trying to make me fail. He did some work and didn't want to lose it.

A few days later, I was watching YouTube. Those of you who know me know that I love videos, anything videos. I love making videos, I love watching videos. There I was, watching YouTube videos, a Fortnite video. I wandered off for a minute and let the video continue to play. If you know me, the YouTube algorithm and YouTube technology are smart. When the video ends, they recommend another one similar to or something you're interested in based on hashtags, and similar creators, and content. They want to make fun of you. The more you're on the app, the more money they make. You get the point. YouTube isn't going to feed you a church video after watching a Fortnite gaming video. That's not how YouTube works. So, when I came back to my phone, there was a video of some guy in prison clothes. "What the heck is this?" I thought. I clicked on the screen and saw the title: "The Savior Wants to Forgive." So I thought, let me watch this. It's a story about a guy named Mark. He got arrested for attempted burglaries that he did to pay for his addiction to heroin. He ended up in prison for five years. He hadn't even been out for a few days and started drinking and smoking pot again. And soon enough, he got in trouble again. It became an incentive for him to find out what he was doing and who he was supposed to be in his life. He started to believe God was reaching out, but he couldn't understand why. So, he got down on his knees, and it was the first time he prayed with any genuine sincerity, and he said, "God, I believe you're there and that you're trying to help me, but what I don't understand is why. I'm a convict, I'm an addict. Why are you trying to help me?" He got an answer to the prayer, and it was, "Mark, it's because I love you." He got out of prison and started getting his life together. He was dating a girl from BYU, and after about six months, the day he asked her to marry him, she decided to break up with him. Later that week, he had a dentist appointment to get a root canal. The dentist prescribed him pain pills, and immediately, a warning went off in his head, but he ignored it. He was supposed to take one to two pills every 4-6 hours, but ended up taking 4-6 pills every one to two hours. Not only did he relapse again, but he ended up living on the streets, and he ended up in the worst addiction he's ever got. He ended up getting involved in a robbery again. He just walked into the store and said, "Guy, I just need your money. I don't want to hurt you." And he left. When he was hiding in the bushes, he saw all the cop cars go by and realized what an absolute phony and hypocrite he was. The man's reaction in the store replayed in his head, and the look of fear he had in his eyes. He thought, "How could I even do that to another human being?" He felt like he was the biggest failure on earth. God had saved his life once before, and he threw it all away. He figured out how to get the safety off the gun and put a bullet into the chamber. All of a sudden, the world went silent, and he heard God's voice say, "I'm still here." He said, "How can you be, after all that I've done? How can you still be here for me?" He heard again a voice that wasn't his say, “Mark, it’s because I love you.” He ended up spending 9 years in prison for that burglary. He believed that was a small price to pay to know that God was always in his life and loved him, even at his hardest times when he wasn’t perfect. 

That video plays, and I was in shock. I had been feeling the same things as him. I'm thinking, why would God want to forgive me? I was just some stupid teenager who was taught better, but my actions proved otherwise. I learned about Jesus but hadn't exactly been following him. The next video automatically played as I was thinking these things, and it was a talk by Elder Holland. And it said, "However late you think you are, whatever mistakes you think you have made, whatever chances you think you have missed, however far you think you have traveled from God and Christ, believe me, you have not traveled beyond the reach of divine love. It is not possible for you to sink farther than the infinite light that Christ's atonement shines. Whether you are not of our faith or were once with us and have not remained, or if you are with us and feel you are not good enough, there is nothing in either case that you have done that cannot be undone. There is no problem that you cannot overcome, even if you feel you are the lost and last person he wants to see. The Lord of the vineyard still stands beckoning. I promise the renewing power of God's love and miracle of his grace. His concern is the faith in which you finally arrive, not the hour of that day that you get there. It's never too late, so long as the master of the vineyard says there's time."

I'm in shock again. I knew that in that moment, God knew me and knew that he could reach me through video. I knew it was no accident that those videos were played for me. God had placed thos there because he was trying to talk to me and reach me personally. He knew that he could speak to me, and it was through video.

I started to wonder why he told me to read the whole chapter when I had prayed instead of just verse 14. I felt he had more things to communicate with me. So I went and read 2 Nephi 2 again. This chapter is Lehi speaking to his son Jacob, and it teaches that redemption comes through the holy Messiah. Freedom of choice is essential to progression. Adam fell that men might be, and men are free to choose liberty and eternal life. As I studied these fine concepts, I finally started to understand the entire gospel of Christ. I finally understood why he asked me to read the whole chapter. Anytime I am feeling doubtful, stressed, nervous, or fearful, I've gone back and read this chapter, and each time the spirit testifies to me, "We are not here to be perfect. God knows we are going to make mistakes. It's his only desire that we humble ourselves and repent."

Through this experience, I have come to know how the gospel of Jesus Christ has changed my life. My heart was changed.

In the scriptures, there are many examples of how the gospel changes people's lives. One of my favorites is the story of Ammon. As the son of King Mosiah, Ammon got into a lot of trouble. When the angel appeared to Ammon, Omner, Aaron, and Alma the younger, Ammon recognized the reality of Christ's existence. This reality caused him to quake and fall to the earth. This experience caused a mighty change in Ammon's heart. He and his brothers were brought to humility. Evidence of this exists in Mosiah 29 when each of his sons offered to be the king of the Nephites and all the clans. Instead, Ammon chose to go and serve as a Nephite missionary among the Lamanites, the people who hated the Nephites. On one hand, he had the choice to be king, and on the other hand, he had the choice to be a missionary. What would cause you to choose to serve among the people who hated you instead of choosing a life of pleasure? As I thought of this, the answer seemed pretty clear to me. The only reason I would want to be king is the choice of pride and vanity that it brings. Ammon took the route of humility to go and serve others over being king. I think you have to be pretty humble to do this.

When he was brought before King Lamoni, the king asked him to marry his daughter. For the second time, Ammon had to choose between a life of luxury or the tougher path of continuing as a missionary. He chose to be a missionary. Upon this, Ammon saved the king's sheep. He did not want any praise. He went back to work. He was feeding King Lamoni's horses and was called in to see the king again. Lamoni offered Ammon his entire kingdom. Again, for the third time, Ammon had the choice of a life of luxury or the path of a missionary. Again, Ammon chose to be a missionary, and the king was intrigued. Ammon ended up converting the entire household.

Later, Ammon and Lamoni were headed to free Ammon's brothers from prison. They meet up with King Lamoni's father, who was king over all the Lamanites. He asked Lamoni why he was with a Nephite. King Lamoni told his father about Ammon and his brothers who were in prison. In anger, Lamoni's father ordered Lamoni to kill him. Lamoni said no. Lamoni's father had tried to kill Lamoni. Ammon stepped forward to protect Lamoni, but Lamoni's father tried to kill Ammon. But he defended himself and removed the arm of Lamoni's father. When Lamoni's father saw that Ammon could kill him, he offered up half of his kingdom if he would spare him. This was Ammon's fourth time being offered a life of luxury, and again he said no. All he wanted was for Lamoni to keep his kingdom and for his brothers to be released from prison. Four times, Ammon was offered to be a part of the kingdom or be king. Once by his father, twice by Lamoni, and once by Lamoni's father. Each time, Ammon turned down the offer to choose and chose to serve the Lord.

Ammon was tempted by Satan four times to be king. Maybe that's something very appealing or tempting to him, which is why Satan kept offering it to him. Ammon's ability to resist temptation and stay on the righteous path would only have happened if he had a sincere change of heart. This is how the gospel of Jesus Christ changes peoples lives. 

So why did he want us to repent? Same reason I do. When you have been forgiven and you have the gospel in your life, you begin following Jesus Christ's teachings. You feel peace, comfort, and joy. You feel happiness and hope. You will feel his grace and mercy. You will feel forgiven and that you can change your life. Your heart's changed to repent and do better. The main thing is that you have a change of heart. So I think there was the gospel changes lives, it changes people's hearts. This is why I like the story of Ammon. It represents the power of when your heart's changed. Ammon's ability to resist temptation, serve his fellow man, and convert so many to the gospel is a great example of the power that comes with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I wanted to end with my testimony of forgiveness, the Book of Mormon, and how the gospel changed my life. The Savior wants to forgive. He truly does. I have experienced his grace and mercy. He wants us to come back to him. I can testify I know he wants you to return to him in this life so you can be a candidate for exaltation and live with him for eternity. He wants you to come back today. He doesn't want us to wait. Starting today, you can restart, reboot, re-look at our lives or the world. Starting today, you can repair, repent, reconcile. Whether it's one time, seven times, or 70 times seven times. We can reevaluate, re-examine everything starting today. All because of how one day started 2000 years ago. Jesus left the tomb behind, so we can leave our past behind if we hear him, love him, and follow him. His teachings can reshape us and rescue us. He can reunite us.

The Book of Mormon is the word of God; I know that to be true. The first time I read it with real intent, I knew it was true. The Book of Mormon brings peace, joy, and comfort. I remember thinking how can one book could talk about Jesus Christ so much; it truly does make you happier by reading it. I know it's a true book through prayer and fasting; it was made evident to me. Every time I ask, "Is the Book of Mormon true?" following Moroni's promise, the Lord answers with 2 Nephi 2. "Why would I give you a scripture from a book that's not my word?" That's what I get told. Every time.

Finally, I wanted to talk about the Gospel of Christ and how the Atonement has truly changed my life. Because of the Atonement and repentance, I am serving a mission, and because of my experience with prayer, Jesus Christ did redeem me. He saved me; He brought me back to Him, and because of that, I am serving a mission. I’m sure a mission will be hard. I had to cut my beautiful, long hair that I loved. I had to quit my job that I loved with the best coworkers on the planet. I had to leave home, my friends, and especially my family for two years. That is hard. When I get home, I’ll be two years behind others in work and school. But I wouldn't change anything for this Gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Christ. My heart has changed, and I’ve become obsessed with this Gospel. I’m obsessed with reading scriptures, and I have a burning desire to serve. I have so many questions, but every time I pray to get answers from God, God answers. I’m obsessed with it, and I love it. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.