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

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