Finish What You Start

Finish What You Start
Family Home Evening Lesson
By Jimmy Smith
February 2017

2
At the end of his
mortal life, Jesus
prayed to the Father:
“I have glorified thee
on the earth: I have
finished the work
which thou gavest me
to do.” (John 17: 4.)

3
The Apostle Paul
said: “Let us run
with patience the
race that is set
before us, Looking
unto Jesus the
author and finisher
of our faith; who
for the joy that was
set before him
endured the cross”
(Hebrews 12:1-2).

4
Paul also said: “I have
fought a good fight, I have
finished my course, I have
kept the faith: Henceforth
there is laid up for me a
crown of righteousness,
which the Lord, the
righteous judge, shall give
me at that day” (2 Tim. 4:7-
8).

5
In 1972, President Thomas S.
Monson shared this poem in his
talk entitled, Finishers Wanted:
Stick to your task ’til it sticks to you;
Beginners are many, but enders are few.
Honor, power, place and praise
Will always come to the one who stays.
Stick to your task ’til it sticks to you;
Bend at it, sweat at it, smile at it, too;
For out of the bend and the sweat and
the smile
Will come life’s victories after a while.
—Author Unknown

6
Even Computers have to finish
what they start
• Computer languages, such as XML and HTML,
require programmers to close everything they open
<html>
<body>
<p>
</p>
</body>
</html>
Open
Open
Open
Close
Close
Close

7
Instructions to a Robot
to Make Waffles
• Get out waffle iron and plug it in
• Get out big bowl
• Get out ingredients
• Put ingredients in bowl
• Stir ingredient together
• Put away ingredients
• Open Waffle iron
• Pour in batter
• Close Waffle iron
• Wait 2 minutes
• Open Waffle iron
• Take out waffles. Place on plate
• Close Waffle iron
• Get out syrup
• Pour syrup on waffle
• Put syrup away
• Wash and put away bowl
• Unplug and put away waffle iron

8
A similar literary structure, called a chiasm, is found in the
scriptures. Notice the mirror imagery / symmetry:
Psalms 3:7–8 reads: “7. Save me, O my God, for thou has
smitten all my enemies on the cheek-bone; 8. The teeth of the
wicked thou has broken; to Jehovah, the salvation.”
Save me,
O my God,
for thou has smitten
all my enemies
on the cheekbone;
The teeth
of the wicked
thou hast broken;
to Jehovah,
the salvation.
Chiasms

9
Chiasms Teach Need to Finish,
Complete, and Other Truths
• The scriptures are replete with examples of chiasms
• Genesis 7:21–23
• Mosiah 3:18–19
• Mosiah 5:10–12
• Alma 41:13–15
• Alma Chapter 36
• The entire books of Job and First Nephi
• The Lord is communicating important principles
through the use of chiasms
• The need for completeness and wholeness
• That something that is started must be finished
• That we need integrity, unity, and “at-one-ment”

Celestial Kingdom
Terrestrial
Kingdom
Telestial Kingdom (Earth)
Plan of Salvation Resembles a Chiasm
Pre Earth Life
with spirit body
Eternal Life
with physical body

11
Endure to the End and
Finish What You Start
• We began a journey when we left Heavenly
Father’s presence and chose to come to earth
• “We will make an earth whereon these may dwell; And
we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all
things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command
them.” Abraham 3:24-25
• Let us finish that journey by exercising faith in
Christ so we can return to dwell with God
• “Behold, I am the law, and the light. Look unto me, and
endure to the end, and ye shall live; for unto him that
endureth to the end will I give eternal life.” 3 Nephi 15:9

12
Problems When You Start But Don’t Finish
• Messes are from things started but not finished
• Clothes were gotten out but never put away
• Books gotten off the shelf but never put back
• Not finishing what you start makes for more work
in the long run. For example:
• Dishes left undone are 2 or 3 times as hard to clean later
• Messes make things harder to find, causing frustration
and losing countless hours looking for stuff

13
True Story
• Liza asked me to tape a
painting to her wall
• I dropped the roll of tape on
the floor and it took us five
minutes to find it

14
Half eaten muffin
left on the floor
• Take time to clean it up now
• Or clean it up later
• PLUS clean up ANTS

15
• Wet Wipes opened but not closed and the dry out
• Means spending money to buy more wet wipes
• Means less money to spend on other things

16
Batches: Finishing,
Just Not Right Away
• Batch= a group of similar tasks
done at same time
• Batches of Laundry
• Ideally, as soon as we take off
clothes we would clean them and
put them away, but that’s not
practical
• We put things in laundry baskets
to hold them until we have enough
to do a load, or batch, of laundry
• Dirty dishes in the dish washer is
another example of batching

17
We Are Lost without Jesus and Need
Him to Help Us Finish Our Journey
• “Wherefore, all mankind were in a lost and in a
fallen state, and ever would be save they should
rely on this Redeemer.” 1 Nephi 10:6
• “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be
made alive.” 1 Corinthians 15:22

18
• “There could be no
redemption for mankind
save it were through the
death and sufferings of
Christ, and the
atonement of his blood.”
Alma 21:9

19
• All people are
“relying alone upon
the merits of Christ,
who was the
author and the
finisher of their
faith.” Moroni 6:4

Finish What You Start

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

Similar to Finish What You Start

Similar to Finish What You Start (20)

More from Jimmy Smith

More from Jimmy Smith (20)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (17)

Finish What You Start

Editor's Notes