Find Fulfillment in Sacrifice and Service, Brother Beck says
Contributed By By Kaisey Skipper, Church News contributor
Brother David L. Beck, Young Men general president, speaks at a BYU–Idaho devotional.
Article Highlights
- The world’s standards say products and services will make you happy, but the Lord says fulfillment comes in serving others.
- Making covenants, performing service, and sacrificing ungodly things are ways to come unto Christ and be fulfilled in Him.
- By being connected with Christ, individuals are able to do anything He asks them to do.
"Fulfillment is found not in materialism or self-gratification but in sacrifice and service in a great cause.” —Brother David L. Beck, Young Men general president
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Brother David L. Beck, Young Men general president, spoke on being fulfilled in Christ at a Brigham Young University–Idaho campus devotional on January 28.
Brother Beck began his address by comparing the world’s standard and the gospel of Jesus Christ’s standard and taught how to obtain fulfillment in life.
“Last year alone, U.S. companies spent nearly $500 billion advertising a variety of products and services that promise to make you happy,” Brother Beck said. “Your lives are saturated with messages about how you should look, what you should wear, and who you should be.
“The gospel of Jesus Christ teaches just the opposite. To find yourself, the Savior taught, you must lose yourself (see Matthew 16:25). Fulfillment is found not in materialism or self-gratification but in sacrifice and service in a great cause.”
Brother Beck said true fulfillment is “to gain eternal life [and] to be with our family in the presence of Heavenly Father.”
One way to be fulfilled in Christ is to come unto Christ, Brother Beck said. Drawing from the Book of Mormon, he read Moroni 10:32 to explain the principle of coming unto Christ. Making covenants and sacrificing are other ways to be fulfilled in Christ.
“Christ’s life was fulfilled by His sacrifice, and so is ours,” said Brother Beck. “Those for whom the Savior sacrificed are the precious fruit of His life. He will cause us to be fruitful when we do the same.”
Brother Beck drew attention to Moroni’s warning to “deny yourselves of all ungodliness.”
“It includes the toxic ungodliness of pornography; it can be idleness, mediocrity, and being distracted from our important duties,” he said. “Today’s world is saturated with ungodliness. To be fruitful, to find true fulfillment, we must be willing to sacrifice anything in our lives that is ungodly.”
Brother David L. Beck and his wife, Sister Robyn Beck, greet students after a devotional in the BYU–Idaho Center on January 28. Photo by Michael Lewis, Brigham Young University–Idaho.
Service is another way to become fulfilled in Christ, he said. When service is done with full capacity, people can identify and develop spiritual gifts to be used to serve others.
“When you love God, Church callings, home and visiting teaching, and other assignments are not burdens but opportunities to express the love you feel,” Brother Beck said.
Men’s choir performs for a devotional held in the BYU–Idaho Center on January 28. Photo by Michael Lewis, Brigham Young University–Idaho.
Using Joseph Smith’s experience as an example of Christ’s grace, Brother Beck spoke of how Joseph “frequently fell into many foolish errors and often felt condemned for his weakness and imperfections.” He also pointed out that Joseph “repented of his sins and served and sacrificed throughout the remainder of his life.”
“We all have challenges and adversity in the journey of life,” he said. “You will make mistakes and feel unworthy. … No matter what you have done, He has a work for you. He needs you to help Him complete the work He called the Prophet Joseph to do.”
By being connected with Christ, individuals are able to do anything He asks them to do.
Brother David L. Beck, Young Men general president, speaks at a BYU–Idaho devotional. Here, his son joins him at the podium. Photo by Michael Lewis, Brigham Young University–Idaho.
