Scatter the Sunshine of Christ

"Serve the Lord with gladness: 

come before his presence with singing."

Psalm 100:2

"Let your Light so shine before men,

that they may see your good works,

and glorify your Father

which is in heaven."

Matthew 5:16

 

Just exactly what does it mean to exhibit a generosity of spirit? 

What does it look like? How does it feel 

when we are the recipients of it? 

Why is it so important in our lives 

and those of others? 

We know that "doing good is a pleasure, a joy beyond measure." 

It is what the Savior did. 

He wants us to be generous. 

He wants us to go about doing good.

 

Generosity of spirit is about cheering up the sad 

and making someone feel glad. 

Generosity is about sharing, 

lightening burdens, 

helping others on their way, and giving hope.  

As the Savior taught, 

"It is more blessed to give than to receive." 

When we manifest a generosity of spirit, 

we are behaving in a Christ-like fashion. 

We are blessing others. 

 

Generosity comes in many forms and sizes. 

Often when it is given, 

it is puzzling if not troubling for some of its recipients. 

Generosity is all about giving from the heart.  

Generosity of spirit is evident in unexpected listening, 

genuine compliments, 

expressions of gratitude, 

the sharing of talents, 

unmerited patience, 

and all kinds of giving. 

 If we are to become disciples, 

discipleship must be practiced 

and evidenced every day. 

"God loveth a cheerful giver."  

We love cheerful givers too. 

In this regard, 

do those who experience you up close and personal, 

feel your cheerfulness, 

especially when you give? 

Are you known for scattering sunshine--

His sunshine? 

Elder Holland has taught: 

The word generosity has the same derivation as the word genealogy, both coming from the Latin genus, meaning of the same birth or kind, 

the same family or gender. 

We will always find it easier to be generous 

when we remember that this person being favored 

is truly one of our own.

When we manifest a generosity of spirit we are 

bighearted, 

unselfish, and 

openhanded. 

Our hearts and hands are open to giving. 

When we are stingy of spirit, we are miserly, selfish, and tightfisted. Our hearts and hands are closed to giving. 

We are not "kindly affectioned one to another."

When someone reaches out to us in a spontaneous and thoughtful fashion, 

we are generally touched by his or her actions. 

President Thomas S. Monson captured my feelings when he wrote: 

"God bless all who endeavor to be their brother's keeper, 

who give to ameliorate suffering, 

who strive with all that is good within them 

to make a better world. 

Have you noticed that such individuals have a brighter smile? 

Their footsteps are more certain. 

They have an aura of contentment and satisfaction, 

even dedication, 

for one cannot participate in helping others 

without experiencing a rich blessing himself."

Great blessings attend those who 

authentically reach out to the others, 

who scatter sunshine. 

Unexpected generosity leaves lasting 

and 

powerful impressions upon others and us.  

We are blessed in profound ways when we, 

like the Savior, 

go about doing good; 

when we scatter sunshine. 

 

We can look for 

spontaneous opportunities 

to touch, to lift, and to carry.    

 

We can make a difference in the lives of others by 

scattering sunshine--

His sunshine. 

Our Father in Heaven wants us to be instruments in his hands by being worthy of and 

responsive to 

the Spirit. 

Our Father in Heaven is 

counting on us 

to mirror 

His generosity and 

that of His son. 

I know that you and I 

can be more generous. 

We can manifest a generosity of spirit 

in all we do. 

As we sing the closing hymn, 

I hope we will willingly and cheerfully 

"scatter sunshine," 

remembering that our slightest actions 

often meet the sorest needs. 

In the name of Jesus Christ, 

amen.

Excerpts from the talk:

Scatter Sunshine by Brother M. Winston Egan

History of this Hymn

“Scatter Sunshine” has its roots in the late nineteenth-century Gospel Song movement, and is the most widely published hymn from the pen of prolific hymnist Lanta Wilson Smith. It was first published in Edwin Othello Excell’s Triumphant Songs No. 3 (1892). 

Atlanta Augusta Wilson, or “Lanta” as she was known to her family, was born on July 19, 1856, at Castine, Maine. The youngest of four daughters born to the Reverend William Jones Wilson (1818-1899), a Methodist minster, and his wife Sedelia Abigail (Follett) Wilson (1825-1904), Lanta spent her early childhood in various cities and towns throughout the state of Maine, including Belfast, Wiscasset, Thomaston, Ellsworth, and Surry.

Lanta Wilson Smith is estimated to have written more than 500 hymns, the most famous of which are “Scatter Sunshine” and “This, Too, Will Pass Away.” Her hymn “Scatter Sunshine” was voted the official song of the International Sunshine Society, an organization whose object was to “incite its members to the performance of kind and helpful deeds, and thus bring the sunshine of happiness into the greatest possible number of hearts and homes.” (Adams).

Among the well-known musicians with whom she collaborated are T. Martin Towne, Edwin O. Excell, Asa Hull, William J. Kirkpatrick and many others. An accomplished musician herself, she sometimes composed the music for her own hymn texts, and occasionally wrote the music for hymn texts by other authors.

Smith was a prolific poet, contributing poems to many different publications including the Inter Ocean, Zion’s Herald, Ram’s Horn, and the Sunday School Journal, to name only a few. Her best-known poem, “This, Too, Will Pass Away,” was first published in the Zion’s Herald on February 4, 1885, and was later set to music with a tune composed by herself. It made its first appearance as a hymn in The Finest of the Wheat, No. 2 (1894). Smith published at least one volume of verse, Wreaths of Remembrance(1905). In addition to her writing, for a time she also edited a Sunshine department in the Church Woman’s Magazine.

Due to the itinerant nature of her husband’s profession, Lanta Smith never lived in any location more than a few years. 

Early into his third year at Willimantic, Reverend Smith began to experience health problems, and after several months of illness died on February 25, 1921 at Brookline, Massachusetts. After her husband’s death, Lanta Wilson Smith moved to Providence, Rhode Island, where she lived for many years with her son, Elmer, and his family. Around 1929 she was moved to the Attleboro Springs Sanatarium, a nursing home in Attleboro, Massachusetts.

In December 1937, shortly before Attleboro Springs was shut down, Smith removed to Taunton, Massachusetts, where she spent her remaining years. She died in Taunton, Massachusetts on October 18, 1939, and was interred beside her husband at the North Burial Ground Cemetery in Providence, Rhode Island.

Lanta Wilson Smith was the mother of two children

The piece for which Lanta Wilson Smith is perhaps best remembered today is “This, too, will pass away,” due to its inclusion (as “This, too, shall pass away”) in the anthology The Best Loved Poems of the American People (1936), edited by Hazel Fellman. 

The book’s continued success has ensured that this poem has not fallen into obscurity like most of Smith’s other works.

Scatter Sunshine

In a world where sorrow

Ever will be known,

Where are found the needy

And the sad and lone,

How much joy and comfort

You can all bestow,

If you scatter sunshine

Ev’rywhere you go.

Scatter sunshine all along your way.

Cheer and bless and brighten

Ev’ry passing day.

Scatter sunshine all along your way.

Cheer and bless and brighten

Ev’ry passing day.

Slightest actions often

Meet the sorest needs,

For the world wants daily

Little kindly deeds.

Oh, what care and sorrow

You may help remove,

With your songs and courage,

Sympathy and love.

Scatter sunshine all along your way.

Cheer and bless and brighten

Ev’ry passing day.

Scatter sunshine all along your way.

Cheer and bless and brighten

Ev’ry passing day.

When the days are gloomy,

Sing some happy song;

Meet the world’s repining

With a courage strong.

Go with faith undaunted

Thru the ills of life;

Scatter smiles and sunshine

O’er its toil and strife.

Scatter sunshine all along your way.

Cheer and bless and brighten

Ev’ry passing day.

Scatter sunshine all along your way.

Cheer and bless and brighten

Ev’ry passing day.

Text: Lanta Wilson Smith

Music: Edwin O. Excell, 1851–1921