Randy D Funk | Come into the Fold of God | April 2022 General Conference | Faith To Act

Come into the Fold of God
By Elder Randy D. FunkShow more

Of the Seventy

Within the fold of God, we experience the Good Shepherd’s watchful, nurturing care and are blessed to feel His redeeming love.

As young parents, Brother and Sister Samad learned the gospel of Jesus Christ in their simple two-room home in Semarang, Indonesia.1 Seated around a small table, with a dim light that seemed to provide more mosquitoes than illumination, two young missionaries taught them eternal truths. Through sincere prayer and the guidance of the Holy Ghost, they came to believe what they were taught and chose to be baptized and become members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. That decision, and their pattern of living since, has blessed Brother and Sister Samad and their family in every aspect of their lives.2

They are among the early pioneer Saints in Indonesia. Later they received the ordinances of the temple, and Brother Samad served as the branch president and then district president, driving throughout Central Java to fulfill his responsibilities. For the past decade, he has served as the first patriarch of the Surakarta Indonesia Stake.

As one of the missionaries in that humble, faith-filled home 49 years ago, I have witnessed in them what King Benjamin taught in the Book of Mormon: “I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual.”3 The blessings that flow into the lives of those who follow the example and teachings of Jesus Christ, who choose to be counted among His disciples, are numerous, joyful, and eternal.4

The Fold of God
Alma’s baptismal covenant invitation to those gathered at the Waters of Mormon begins with this phrase: “Now, as ye are desirous to come into the fold of God.”5

A fold, or sheepfold, is a large enclosure, often constructed with stone walls, where the sheep are protected at night. It has only one opening. At the end of the day, the shepherd calls the sheep. They know his voice, and through the gate they enter the safety of the fold.

The people of Alma would have known that shepherds stand at the narrow opening of the fold so that when the sheep enter, they are numbered6 and their wounds and ailments noted and cared for one by one. The safety and well-being of the sheep depend on their willingness to come into the fold and to stay in the fold.

Among us there may be some who feel they are at the edge of the flock, perhaps thinking they are less needed or valued or that they don’t belong in the fold. And, as in the sheepfold, in the fold of God we sometimes step on one another’s toes and need to repent or forgive.

But the Good Shepherd7—our true shepherd—is always good. Within the fold of God, we experience His watchful, nurturing care and are blessed to feel His redeeming love. He said, “I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.”8 Our Savior has graven upon His palms our sins, pains, afflictions,9 and all that is unfair in life.10 All are welcome to receive these blessings, as they “are desirous to come”11 and choose to be in the fold. The gift of agency is not simply the right to choose; it is the opportunity to choose the right. And the walls of the fold are not a constraint but a source of spiritual safety.

Jesus taught that there is “one fold, and one shepherd.”12 He said:

“He that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. …

General Conference Sunday Afternoon Session April 2022

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