When Jesus visited the Nephites and Lamanites after His resurrection, He instructed them to spend time together regularly. Immediately after introducing the sacrament to them, He said:
Ye shall meet together oft; and ye shall not forbid any man from coming unto you when ye shall meet together, but suffer them that they may come unto you and forbid them not;
3 Nephi 18:22
About 400 years later, Moroni explained that church members had adopted this practice, and he explained the purposes of these meetings:
The church did meet together oft, to fast and to pray, and to speak one with another concerning the welfare of their souls.
And they did meet together oft to partake of bread and wine, in remembrance of the Lord Jesus.
Moroni 6:5-6
Neither the Savior nor Moroni indicated the exact frequency or schedule of those meetings. It seems likely that church meetings were held weekly, following the pattern which Alma established when he organized the church at the waters of Mormon. Although even in Alma’s case, the meetings weren’t limited to once a week:
There was one day in every week that was set apart that they should gather themselves together to teach the people, and to worship the Lord their God, and also, as often as it was in their power, to assemble themselves together.
Mosiah 18:25
It seems like the Savior and Moroni, and even Alma, were more concerned with church members keeping in touch with each other—staying connected—and less concerned with the exact scheduling details.
Obviously, meetings only happen when people agree on a time and a place. Recurring meetings can help people organize their schedules and can create predictability and structure. But we must never lose sight of the “why.” We have an intuitive sense for when our relationships are becoming weaker. Sometimes we think, “I haven’t spoken to that person recently. I need to reach out.” It’s a reminder that personal interactions are the heartbeat of relationships, and that relationships tend to weaken if they are not regularly nourished.
Obviously how often we see one another depends on the nature of the relationship. But Moroni’s description of church members meeting together oft has reminded me to reach out to family members and to the people I minister to more frequently, to ensure that the communication lines don’t go cold. It also reminds me to take full advantage of the opportunities I have each week to strengthen my relationships with fellow church members.
Today, as I participate in church meetings, I will be grateful for the Savior’s admonition to “meet together oft.” I will focus less on logistics and more on the imperative to strengthen relationships by keeping in touch regularly.
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