Dear Sisters and Elders,
One of the great opportunities we have as missionaries is to find “them that will receive you” (D&C 42:8). We have used the example of the three gardens to illustrate the three different phases of missionary work.
Without the planting garden, there are is no cultivating garden or harvesting garden. Our gardener here at the mission home, Raul, loves his work of taking care of the beautiful plants and flowers of the mission home. One of his favorite things is working with the rose bushes. We have approximately 87 of them here in front of the mission home. These are his “investigators!” His joy is full because he has so many to work with and cultivate. How would he feel if we only had 2 or 3 rose bushes?
And so it is with our work as missionaries. When our planting garden is full with new investigators, we experience the joy of teaching the Gospel to many investigators with the faith and hope that they will exercise their in faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repent, be baptized, receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost and remain faithful members of the Church. When our planting garden is barren, we do not feel the joy of our calling to teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Here are some important principles to remember in finding new investigators:
· Your success as a missionary is measured primarily by your commitment to “find”, teach, baptize, and confirm people and to help them become faithful members of the Church who enjoy the presence of the Holy Ghost. (PmG pg 10). Our ability to magnify our calling and reach our potential as the Lord´s servants in the Chile Santiago North mission all begins with our level of commitment and dedication to finding people to teach.
· We must strengthen our faith that the Lord is preparing people to receive us and the restored gospel.(PmG pg 155) In our recent zone conferences we discussed the importance of recognizing that we are totally 100% dependent on the Lord for any success we achieve in this life. Increasing our faith to find comes from increasing our obedience with exactness in all that we do so that we can “find with exactness!”
· “Finding with exactness” comes by having and following the promptings of the Spirit. Finding by the Spirit is as important as teaching by the Spirit. As in teaching, your efforts in finding will be effective if you are guided by the Spirit. Have faith that you will know what to teach and what to do to find those who will receive you. (PmG pg 156)
· As you move swiftly to planned activities, pray for the ability to see unplanned opportunities to serve and teach those who may be “perishing in unbelief.” Pray for the spiritual sensitivity to recognize opportunities. You will find that God will place in your path His children who are being prepared to receive the restored gospel. (PmG pg 156) In Alma 40:3,9 we read about the power of “inquiring diligently”:
3 Behold, he bringeth to pass the resurrection of the dead. But behold, my son, the resurrection is not yet. Now, I unfold unto you a mystery; nevertheless, there are many mysteries which are kept, that no one knoweth them save God himself. But I show unto you one thing which I have inquired diligently of God that I might know—that is concerning the resurrection.
9 Therefore, there is a time appointed unto men that they shall rise from the dead; and there is a space between the time of death and the resurrection. And now, concerning this space of time, what becometh of the souls of men is the thing which I have inquired diligently of the Lord to know; and this is the thing of which I do know.
Are we inquiring diligently each and every day to know what the Lord would have us do to find those that will receive us? Are we setting meaningful goals and making careful plans each day to find those that the Lord has prepared? Are we being accountable to the Lord for our efforts in finding new people? When we fall short of our goal to find, are we evaluating our efforts and seeking for ways to accomplish our goal to find those that the Lord has prepared?
· Work with members of the Church to find people to teach. The ideal situation is when members invite others to be taught and are present for the teaching.
As we diligently do these things we show the Lord our level of commitment to find those He has prepared and He will bless us with many new people to teach. May the Lord bless us in our efforts to bring many souls to the waters of baptism!
We love you and pray for your success,
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Monday, July 27, 2009
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Seek Counsel from our Leaders
As I continue to study the Book of Mormon, I want to testify of the truthfullness of what President Ezra Taft Benson taught us, “There is a power in the book which will begin to flow into your lives the moment you begin a serious study of the book. You will find greater power to resist temptation. You will find the power to avoid deception. You will find the power to stay on the strait and narrow path.”
In my personal study of the Book of Mormon this week, I was reminded of an important principle that applies to all of us as representatives of Jesus Christ, the willingness to seek and follow the counsel from others, especially our leaders. In Alma 39:10 we read the following:
10 And I command you to take it upon you to counsel with your elder brothers in your undertakings; for behold, thou art in thy youth, and ye stand in need to be nourished by your brothers. And give heed to their counsel.
Alma is commanding his son Corianton to seek counsel and ask for help from his older brothers. Corianton had been struggling in his life to do the right thing mainly because of the following:
2 For thou didst not give so much heed unto my words as did thy brother, among the people of the Zoramites. Now this is what I have against thee; thou didst go on unto boasting in thy strength and thy wisdom.
Corinaton was proud and relied more on his own strength and wisdom which led to many wrong choices and serious consequences. In the recent April 2009 General Conference, Elder Russell M. Ballard shared a story that emphasizes the importance to seek and follow the counsel of leaders and those that have experience:
“Years ago when I was in business, I learned a very expensive lesson because I did not listen carefully to the counsel of my father, nor did I heed the promptings of the Spirit giving me guidance from my Heavenly Father. My father and I were in the automobile business, and the Ford Motor Company was looking for dealers to sell their new line of cars. Ford executives invited my father and me to a preview showing of what they thought would be a spectacularly successful product. When we saw the cars, my father, who had over 35 years experience in the business, cautioned me about becoming a dealer. However, the Ford sales personnel were very persuasive, and I chose to become Salt Lake City’s first—and actually last—Edsel dealer. And if you don’t know what an Edsel is, ask your grandpa. He will tell you that the Edsel was a spectacular failure.”
Our ability to seek the help of our mission leaders, especially in time of difficulty such as lack of success, discourgagement, etc, shows our humility and are willingness to be submissive (Mosiah 3:19). We should not be compelled to do so as was Corianton because of his pride but rather we should follow the counsel found in Preach My Gospel, Chapter 8 in the section of Accountablility:
Seek to learn from your leaders, and invite them to suggest ways you can improve.
This implies that we should take the initiative to ask for help and counsel, accept it humbly and follow it. We should apply and have faith that over time, the Lord will bless us. Elder Uchdtorf shared a story about the importance of patiently following counsel:
A friend of mine recently wrote to me, confiding that he was having a difficult time keeping his testimony strong and vibrant. He asked for counsel. I wrote back to him and lovingly suggested a few specific things he could do that would align his life more closely with the teachings of the restored gospel. To my surprise, I heard back from him only a week later. The essence of his letter was this: “I tried what you suggested. It didn’t work. What else have you got?”
It is important that we not only seek the help and counsel from leaders but also understand is part of the Lord´s plan as taught to us by President Henry B. Eyering in the October 2007 General Conference address entitled, O Ye That Embark:
· The Lord will bear you up and will at times do it by calling others to stand with you.
· One is to recognize and welcome those whom the Lord sends to help us.
· We can expect in our service to have help sent to us at the right time who will see strength in us and lift us up.
· And we can look forward to being the one sent by the Lord to encourage another.
It is my prayer that we will humbly seek the counsel and help of our leaders in time of need and we will follow the counsel we receive with a humble and willing heart. As we do so the Lord will pour out his blessings upon us as we bring many souls to Christ through faith in Him, repentance, baptism, reception of the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
We love you,
Presidente May
Read more!
In my personal study of the Book of Mormon this week, I was reminded of an important principle that applies to all of us as representatives of Jesus Christ, the willingness to seek and follow the counsel from others, especially our leaders. In Alma 39:10 we read the following:
10 And I command you to take it upon you to counsel with your elder brothers in your undertakings; for behold, thou art in thy youth, and ye stand in need to be nourished by your brothers. And give heed to their counsel.
Alma is commanding his son Corianton to seek counsel and ask for help from his older brothers. Corianton had been struggling in his life to do the right thing mainly because of the following:
2 For thou didst not give so much heed unto my words as did thy brother, among the people of the Zoramites. Now this is what I have against thee; thou didst go on unto boasting in thy strength and thy wisdom.
Corinaton was proud and relied more on his own strength and wisdom which led to many wrong choices and serious consequences. In the recent April 2009 General Conference, Elder Russell M. Ballard shared a story that emphasizes the importance to seek and follow the counsel of leaders and those that have experience:
“Years ago when I was in business, I learned a very expensive lesson because I did not listen carefully to the counsel of my father, nor did I heed the promptings of the Spirit giving me guidance from my Heavenly Father. My father and I were in the automobile business, and the Ford Motor Company was looking for dealers to sell their new line of cars. Ford executives invited my father and me to a preview showing of what they thought would be a spectacularly successful product. When we saw the cars, my father, who had over 35 years experience in the business, cautioned me about becoming a dealer. However, the Ford sales personnel were very persuasive, and I chose to become Salt Lake City’s first—and actually last—Edsel dealer. And if you don’t know what an Edsel is, ask your grandpa. He will tell you that the Edsel was a spectacular failure.”
Our ability to seek the help of our mission leaders, especially in time of difficulty such as lack of success, discourgagement, etc, shows our humility and are willingness to be submissive (Mosiah 3:19). We should not be compelled to do so as was Corianton because of his pride but rather we should follow the counsel found in Preach My Gospel, Chapter 8 in the section of Accountablility:
Seek to learn from your leaders, and invite them to suggest ways you can improve.
This implies that we should take the initiative to ask for help and counsel, accept it humbly and follow it. We should apply and have faith that over time, the Lord will bless us. Elder Uchdtorf shared a story about the importance of patiently following counsel:
A friend of mine recently wrote to me, confiding that he was having a difficult time keeping his testimony strong and vibrant. He asked for counsel. I wrote back to him and lovingly suggested a few specific things he could do that would align his life more closely with the teachings of the restored gospel. To my surprise, I heard back from him only a week later. The essence of his letter was this: “I tried what you suggested. It didn’t work. What else have you got?”
It is important that we not only seek the help and counsel from leaders but also understand is part of the Lord´s plan as taught to us by President Henry B. Eyering in the October 2007 General Conference address entitled, O Ye That Embark:
· The Lord will bear you up and will at times do it by calling others to stand with you.
· One is to recognize and welcome those whom the Lord sends to help us.
· We can expect in our service to have help sent to us at the right time who will see strength in us and lift us up.
· And we can look forward to being the one sent by the Lord to encourage another.
It is my prayer that we will humbly seek the counsel and help of our leaders in time of need and we will follow the counsel we receive with a humble and willing heart. As we do so the Lord will pour out his blessings upon us as we bring many souls to Christ through faith in Him, repentance, baptism, reception of the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
We love you,
Presidente May
Read more!
Monday, July 6, 2009
The mission experience
This is the anniversary of the day I started my mission, to Santa Cruz, BOLIVIA, back in 1977...
Queridos Hermanas y Elderes,
Hoy dia es el aniversario de cuando empeze y termine mi mision. Hace mucho tiempo yo entre en el CCM en Provo para empezar mi mision. Yo recuerdo aprendiendo tanto en el CCM en cuanto al evangelio. Yo era miembro un poco mas que un año y habia mucho que yo no sabia de la Iglesia. Senti un espiritu muy especial en aquel tiempo. Mi llegada en el lindo pais de Bolivia empezo una epoca de mi vida mas hermosa y especial. Aprendi y senti mucho de lo que ustedes estan experimentando diariamente aquí en Chile invitando a las personas a venir a Cristo. Yo recuerdo que uno de mis metas en la mision fue de tomar cada dia uno por uno y hacer todo posible de lograr lo que El Señor esperaba de mi. Yo recuerdo pensando si yo puediera dar mi mejor por siete dias, seria una semana buena, y cuatro semanas buenas seria un mes bueno. Nuestro tiempo es el recurso mas valioso que tenemos en la vida.
Me di cuenta de la importancia de nuestro tiempo al estar solo sin Hermana May por ocho dias. Como ustedes saben, ella asistio el casamiento de nuestro hijo mayor en los Estados Unidos. Ella volvio ayer!. Ella es una bendicion tan grande en mi vida. Ella ama al Señor y siempre me esta invitando a venir mas a El. Ella ama a cada uno de ustedes y siente tan bendecida de estar con ustedes.
Cada cosa que hacemos en la mision siempre tiene que nacer de nuestro objetivo de invitar a todas las personas a venir a Cristo. Si es nuestra fe, obediencia diligencia o tambien nuestros ejercicios, estudio personal,estudio del idioma, etc. Todo debe estar enfocado en ayudarnos a “magnifcar” nuestro llamamiento y lograr todo que El Señor espera de nosotros. Aprovechemos cada dia para llevar mas almas al Señor. Es mi oracion que cada uno de nosotros cada dia nos levantemos con mucho animo y energia pensando, ¿A quien podemos invitar a venir Cristo hoy dia?
Les amamos y confiamos en ustedes,
Presidente May
Read more!
Queridos Hermanas y Elderes,
Hoy dia es el aniversario de cuando empeze y termine mi mision. Hace mucho tiempo yo entre en el CCM en Provo para empezar mi mision. Yo recuerdo aprendiendo tanto en el CCM en cuanto al evangelio. Yo era miembro un poco mas que un año y habia mucho que yo no sabia de la Iglesia. Senti un espiritu muy especial en aquel tiempo. Mi llegada en el lindo pais de Bolivia empezo una epoca de mi vida mas hermosa y especial. Aprendi y senti mucho de lo que ustedes estan experimentando diariamente aquí en Chile invitando a las personas a venir a Cristo. Yo recuerdo que uno de mis metas en la mision fue de tomar cada dia uno por uno y hacer todo posible de lograr lo que El Señor esperaba de mi. Yo recuerdo pensando si yo puediera dar mi mejor por siete dias, seria una semana buena, y cuatro semanas buenas seria un mes bueno. Nuestro tiempo es el recurso mas valioso que tenemos en la vida.
Me di cuenta de la importancia de nuestro tiempo al estar solo sin Hermana May por ocho dias. Como ustedes saben, ella asistio el casamiento de nuestro hijo mayor en los Estados Unidos. Ella volvio ayer!. Ella es una bendicion tan grande en mi vida. Ella ama al Señor y siempre me esta invitando a venir mas a El. Ella ama a cada uno de ustedes y siente tan bendecida de estar con ustedes.
Cada cosa que hacemos en la mision siempre tiene que nacer de nuestro objetivo de invitar a todas las personas a venir a Cristo. Si es nuestra fe, obediencia diligencia o tambien nuestros ejercicios, estudio personal,estudio del idioma, etc. Todo debe estar enfocado en ayudarnos a “magnifcar” nuestro llamamiento y lograr todo que El Señor espera de nosotros. Aprovechemos cada dia para llevar mas almas al Señor. Es mi oracion que cada uno de nosotros cada dia nos levantemos con mucho animo y energia pensando, ¿A quien podemos invitar a venir Cristo hoy dia?
Les amamos y confiamos en ustedes,
Presidente May
Read more!
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