Reed's Farewell Talk

 Missionary Farewell Address - Vineyard 12th ward

Reed Helm — August 18, 2024

Vancouver, Washington Mission

Good afternoon, brothers and sisters. I'm Reed Helm, and I have been called to serve in the Vancouver, Washington mission! I'm super excited and super nervous to start this next step in my life. I've been told I'm a pretty alright guy, so I hope being an alright guy will be enough.

Now, I apologize to the bishopric. My talk might be a little shorter than you asked me to talk on. I'm just gonna say it's because I don't want to yap up here and make even less sense, but I'll try and extend it as much as I can.

Well, I'm going to start my talk off with a little story so that the few of you who will fall asleep during my talk will think I did a good job. I recently had my family's 12th annual boys' backpacking trip into the upper Uintas. It's one of my highlights of the year. We hike and camp at a lake for a couple of days; we fish, swim, and hike around—just have fun, you know?

This year was awesome. I had so much fun. The lake was huge, we had good fishing, minimal bug bites, and good weather. Now, on this hike, we knew it wasn't going to be the easiest hike we had been on, but we were hopeful and not expecting how steep and long this hike was going to actually be.

At about 2 to 2-1/2 miles in is when it really started to get steep, and my homies were starting to really want to tap out. Well, they definitely wished the steep uphill climb would have stopped after that first hill—or according to my 9-year-old cousin Van, "Pooper Valley"—but it continued, and we all struggled the entire way up to the lake where we were staying.

Now you're probably like, "Reed, why are you telling us this story? You suck at telling stories." I know, I'm working on it! But the reason I really wanted to share that with y'all is because of what I saw while we were all out there struggling and pushing through the pain. While everyone could have been complaining, instead I saw smiles, and every once in a while a comment from someone appreciating God's beautiful creation.

I thought that was incredible and an amazing thing to see firsthand: just being able to stay positive and keep pushing forward even when we might be facing adversity and challenges in life. I think that experience is just what I needed to continue getting ready for my mission, because I know it's not gonna be easy—far from it. But I hope I can stay positive and continue to appreciate this opportunity God gave me to be out there.

Today I've been asked to talk about my testimony of Jesus Christ, His restored gospel, and the joy of sharing the gospel and serving others.

Now, I don't know about the rest of y'all, but I love having friends and could not be here without them. I have some great friends, and I got super lucky with mine. I have seen Christ in all my friends an absurd amount of times, and I'm so grateful for them. Recently I listened to a conference talk by Ryan K. Olsen, and in it he says:"In the Gospel of John, the Savior taught we are His friends if we do what He asks us to do."

When I heard that, I was like, shoot, I guess it would be pretty awesome to have one more amazing friend! But in all seriousness, it really touched me. What more could I ask for than to have our Savior Jesus Christ cheering me on while I'm doing His work? The Savior's example is the greatest example, and I could not do what I'm about to go do without Him.

Diving further into my testimony of Jesus Christ, another keystone in my testimony is the joy the Savior promises to us through following Him. In the April 2024 conference, Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf said:"The gospel of Jesus Christ is truly the 'good news of great joy'! It is a message of matchless hope! A message of yoke-bearing and burden-lifting. Of light-gathering. Of heavenly favor, higher understanding, holier covenants, eternal security, and everlasting glory!"

I know that the joy the Lord has promised us is only promised to us when we are faithful and strive to follow God. That quote has influenced so many of my actions and is truly one of the solidifying things in my testimony, because I know that the joy I feel and the joy I see around me is from God. As I continue to strive for joy, I will continue to grow in so many areas of my life.

Now, back to the whole friendship thing. One of the greatest things about having good friends is growing your relationships with them. Strengthening your relationship with our Savior is not any different. Reading, praying, and constantly striving to better know your Savior is the only way to further strengthen your testimony and relationship with Christ.

I would like to share this quote by Tad R. Callister. He says:"If one will take the time to humbly read and ponder the Book of Mormon, as did my friend, and give ear to the sweet fruits of the Spirit, then he or she will eventually receive the desired witness."

This to me is what we fundamentally have to live by if we want to continue to grow our faith and strengthen our relationships with Christ. Now, as I have started to prepare for my mission, I have prayed a lot—whether that was for guidance, for strength when I'm getting second thoughts, or about what I needed to do that day to strengthen my relationship with Christ.

I'm gonna share this quote by President Henry B. Eyring. He says:"President Nelson has taught us how to grow in spiritual power. When we take repentance as a joyful opportunity because of our growing faith that Jesus is the Christ, when we understand and believe that Heavenly Father hears our every prayer, when we strive to obey and live the commandments, we grow in our power to receive continuing revelation."

Between that, the earlier quote by Tad R. Callister, and personal prayer, my testimony has been strengthened so much. I could not be more excited to go and serve others, help people, and help my future and present friends come closer to Christ.

Now, I've touched on almost all the things that I was asked to talk about, but I'm not finished yet.

Recently I had the opportunity to go to Nauvoo, walk old Nauvoo, and learn the history of the early Latter-day Saints while the Church was being restored. It was incredible and one of the biggest faith-building experiences I've ever had. Seeing the Saints face all their personal trials—outside of being constantly persecuted by mobs—and their faith in the Church was incredible.

This made me so proud to be part of this Church. But the more I thought about this, the more sick I felt about how much I take advantage of the opportunities I've been blessed with through Christ's sacrifice and the Saints.

In the October 2020 conference, Milton Camargo shared an experience where he was studying a Come, Follow Me lesson, and in it this prompting stood out to him:"As you read about the great blessings God gave the people of Nephi, ponder the great blessings He has given you."

As I thought about this, it made me so grateful for the friends and family I have and the opportunity I have been given. We are all truly blessed. I know it's not gonna be easy for me to change—I can be a super lazy person at times—but it gave me the desire to further my knowledge and serve those around me to the fullest of my ability, which is why I'm truly so excited to serve a mission and continue restoring and helping in the gathering of Israel.

And so with that, I would like to end by thanking a couple of my best friends who have been with me through everything, who have influenced me, and who have helped me grow every step of the way. Through their amazing example, I am able to serve.

I'll start with my dad, whose example and faith are so incredible. I'm so blessed to have such an amazing, caring, hardworking, and loving father, boss, bishop, and—most importantly—one of my best friends.

Moving forward to my mom, who's the most genuine, compassionate, loving, and faithful person I've ever met. She blesses everyone around her and has taught me so much. I wouldn't have the testimony I have without the both of them.

And to my third best friend, who's definitely not last on my list, but just happened to be read in this order: my Savior, who through His sacrifice and His love allows me to live and serve with all my friends for all eternity.

I would like to bear my testimony that I know that our Savior Jesus Christ has left a work for all of us to do. By following Him and striving to strengthen our relationships with Him and with the people around us, we are able to help complete the Lord's work. By doing so, we will have joy, strength, and the promised blessings from our Lord.

And I say that in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.