Relief Society · Elders Quorum · 25 minutes
President Timothy L. Farnes · Young Men General President · Saturday Afternoon Session
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When we take Christ's name through the sacrament, we promise to minister as He did, so we pray for eyes to see the people God places in our path and then act with compassion.
Skip retelling the full airport story step by step and the Good Samaritan background; use the Elder Oaks temple story as the main example and give the airport story one or two sentences.
Before Sunday
This Sunday: Divine Appointments (President Farnes)
This week, read or listen to President Timothy L. Farnes's talk "Divine Appointments" from the Saturday afternoon session of general conference. He tells about a stranger in a temple dressing room and a frightened missionary in an airport, and he teaches that the people God places in our path are a chance to minister as the Savior did. Ponder: Who has been put in your path lately that you may have looked past?
Pick one opening
Think of a time someone noticed you on a hard day, maybe a stranger, a neighbor, or a ward member, and did something small that made a real difference. You don't have to share details. What did they do that told you they actually saw you?
Think of a time someone noticed you on a hard day, maybe a stranger, a neighbor, or a ward member, and did something small that made a real difference. You don't have to share details. What did they do that told you they actually saw you?
President Farnes was a new stake presidency member, still a bishop, with five young children and a business. After a meeting where his question felt dismissed, he wanted to skip the temple. His wife Linsey said he needed to go. In the dressing room, Elder Dallin H. Oaks asked how he was. He said, "Everything's great!" Elder Oaks waited and asked, "Brother, tell me how you are really doing." Years later, Elder Oaks didn't remember it at all.
President Farnes notes that in the Good Samaritan story, others saw the wounded man as an inconvenience or an interruption. What kinds of people or moments in an ordinary week feel like interruptions to you?
Teach this first
Each Sunday at the sacrament we witness that we are willing to take upon us the name of Jesus Christ, so people who meet us should experience something of His kindness, patience, and love. We keep that covenant during the week by seeing the people God puts before us, letting compassion move us, and acting. President Farnes calls these moments "divine appointments."
President Farnes teaches that when someone meets us, they should experience something of Jesus Christ: His kindness, His patience, His hope, His love, His compassion.
Ask the class
If time remains
Helping the young missionary did not take much, yet it became an experience President Farnes and his wife will always treasure. He teaches that we only need to see the person, look with compassion rather than judgment, and act.
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Counsel together
Last 3–5 minutes
Each morning this week, pray for eyes to see the divine appointments God places before you, then act on at least one prompting to minister to the person in front of you.
President Farnes teaches that the Lord meets our promise of willingness with His promise that we can always have His Spirit with us, so we can minister as the Savior would, with His power and loving kindness.
Your witness: Share briefly a time someone ministered to you as the Savior would, or when you felt prompted to notice someone, and what that taught you about Jesus Christ.