Conference Talk of the Week

Overview

Elder Paul H. Sinclair begins with a Primary program. A boy named James buttoned his jacket sleeve to his lapel and got stuck. Elder Sinclair grew irritated as he watched, but the girl sitting next to James simply reached over and unbuttoned him. That moment taught Elder Sinclair that a true disciple of Jesus Christ is quick to help and slow to judge. He then turns to the Savior and the woman at the well in John 4. Jesus knew everything about her past, yet He spoke to her with dignity, listened to her questions, and offered her living water. Elder Sinclair applies this to how members treat friends and new converts who may fear judgment but need help.

Three Key Takeaways

• 1A child can show adults how to be more like Christ. The girl next to James did not stop to decide whether he deserved help; she saw what needed doing and did it. Watching her led Elder Sinclair to a change in himself that he calls, using Elder Patrick Kearon's words, "a radical reorientation" of his soul.
• 2At the well, Jesus focused on what the woman needed, not on the details of her past. Elder Sinclair notes that we do not know whether she was widowed, divorced, or abandoned, and those are not the details that matter. The Savior offered her living water, spoke to her with dignity instead of shame, and answered her questions by teaching her instead of mocking her.
• 3To help someone change, look past their history to what they can become. Jesus "did not hold her hostage to her history" and trusted her with truth. She came to the well as an outcast and left with a purpose.

Reflection Questions

• Think of a recent moment when, like Elder Sinclair at the Primary program, you felt irritated by someone's mistake. What would helping have looked like in that moment?
• Read John 4:1–42. What does the Savior say and do that helps the woman feel respected instead of ashamed?
• Is there someone in your ward or family you mostly think of in terms of their past? What might the Lord see as possible for them?