Gathering is more than drawing a crowd. A crowd can leave unchanged and still be a crowd.
The Lord gathers us out of isolation and into a people who can worship, serve, and prepare together.
The center of the gathering is Christ
A healthy gathering does not make a leader or a place more important than the Savior.
We come because we hear His voice. The flock is one only because the Shepherd is one.
“There shall be one fold, and one shepherd.”
John 10:16 ↗
Repentance turns us toward one another
Sin scatters. It makes us defensive and unwilling to answer for the harm we cause.
Repentance opens a different future. It gives people a way back to God and, where possible, back to each other.
Covenant makes the gathering durable
An event can inspire us for a day. Covenant asks what we will still do when the feeling has passed.
At the waters of Mormon, belonging to God included bearing another person’s burden. That is much more demanding than attendance.
“Ye are desirous to come into the fold of God... and are willing to bear one another’s burdens.”
Mosiah 18:8 ↗
Gathering needs a real place in life
People need actual time together. We need to pray, eat, learn, and make decisions in one another’s presence.
This should never be forced. A gathering that requires fear or reckless dependence has moved away from Christ.
The gathered Church is sent outward
The Lord does not gather us so we can avoid the world. He forms a people able to serve it without being ruled by it.
The Book of Commandments speaks of a great gathering. Its direction is toward Zion and the coming of Christ.
“A great gathering of my chosen people shall now commence.”
The Book of Commandments 8:8 ↗