It's interesting how I have so many ideas of what to write home when I'm in bed about to fall asleep, but as soon as I sit down at the computer to start typing, all the ideas escape me ... so I will turn to my journal for ideas ...
We have been truly blessed this week with investigators! So many of our lessons have been amazing and each day we are finding people with such promising fruit. I definitely prefer when people come up to us - or seek us through referrals - than us trying to find that needle in a haystack through tracting. But amazingly enough, we've had new investigators through both ways. Being a missionary, we definitely experience all sorts of personalities. Some people are nice enough to listen to us but not interested in progressing, some just tell us they are not interested, others are down-right rude to us just because we wish to talk about our Savior, Jesus Christ. Thankfully, I am able to just let some remarks run off me like water. I am a collector of opinions, so I don't let other's comments bother me too often. There are times we can laugh off an interesting tracting experience, others we shrug off and continue forth, but every now and again, there is an extremely rude and uncalled for reaction to our desire to share the gospel. It gives us a touch into the life of Jesus Christ. How much sorrow He must have felt to see so many people reject him and persecute him, yet he still had that charity to suffer for their sins. It is truly hard to imagine having to endure that. But then I remember those times of joy when someone is interested in hearing our message, an invite into their home, a desire to learn, a commitment being kept ... then I know our work is truly worth it.
This last summer when I was an EFY counselor, I sat in on a class where the teacher had shared a few scriptures about suffering. One always stands out to me ... John 16:20-21
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.”
I love that! I do not know from personal experience the pain that goes into being pregnant and in labor, but how true it is that even though it can be the most excruciating of pain, all of that is forgotten when a child is born. The joy of bringing a new life in the world overpowers any thought of the past pain. That fits right along with opposition. The more we experience the pain and sorrow and difficulties of life, the greater we will understand the joy and the love and the beauty of those moments of God's tender mercies. How great will be our joy in the next life as we continue to endure the struggles that are thrown at us during this time on earth. We must have faith and trust in the Lord. We must be diligent in following the straight and narrow path. We must turn our desires and knowledge of the gospel into actions so we may become those elect saints, those choice people, those great and noble spirits of God.
TENDER MERCY: I TRULY HAVE A DESIRE TO LEARN AND TO GROW. I WANT TO SEE MY POTENTIAL AND TO OBTAIN IT. ALTHOUGH I HAVE MANY BAD HABITS THAT I NEED TO OVERCOME, I AM GRATEFUL FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SERVE THE LORD. TO HAVE WONDERFUL EXAMPLES OF MISSIONARIES AND MEMBERS AROUND ME TO SHOW ME THE WAY. AND BY HELPING OTHERS COME UNTO CHRIST, I BETTER UNDERSTAND HOW I MYSELF CAN BETTER AND MORE FULLY COME UNTO HIM.
‘Make no small plans: They have no magic to stir man’s souls.’ This is the vision I have for the South. I believe that one day the South will baptize more people into the church than all other English speaking missions in the world together. There are great hosts of marvelous Baptists, and members of the church of Christ, Methodists and Catholics who are honorable people, and have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and love him. As they see their church veering off to the right or to the left of these basic teachings, they will begin to search for the truth. And as pivotal teachers come into the church and have influence, we will see the time when we baptize hundreds and thousands, tens of thousands. In your day you will see a million members of the church in the South. There will be Temples plural in the Southern States. What a great call you have to serve with these marvelous people. ~Spencer W Kimball (1974)
