Things I Learned from Hermana Lewis:
As missionaries we don't represent the people to Jesus, we represent Jesus to the people. (Which way do you face)
09 January 2015
The bread helps us remember Jesus Christ and the water shows our commitment to follow the commandments. If ye build upon these things..."where is your rock built? Come to church!" Pray always...pray by the spirit.
Don't let anyone partake of the sacrament unworthily, don't kick them out, they can still come and you can still be kind to them, you never know when they will come back and if you can be the means of that, how great is your joy! Christ's arms are always open to us.
To be courageous is to be god-fearing. When people make mistakes, a lot of the time is because of peer pressure. Stay God fearing and stay courageous.
10 January 2015
Jesus Christ came to the Americas and went over the covenants that were made with the house of Israel. He commands them to cease to pray, but that was because he was going to talk to them and he commanded them to have a prayer in your heart. In preach my gospel, it says that we should pray for our companion when we aren't talking and I think it brings a whole new spirit. Prayer is so important, Christ spends a lot of time teaching it to the people in the Americas. Prayer is so attacked and it is weird to me that people grow up without a habit of prayer, it's so important and powerful.
Faith, to me, is a little bit like hope, but faith is trust. Trust in the lord and "have thy will be done". Faith is trust, and hope is confidence. We can build our faith and hope as we serve others.
12 January 2015
The sign of the gathering of Israel is the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. It talks about how America will be a free land and that's how the church will be restored. It's amazing to see how the promises have been fulfilled and gives us a little bit more confidence that the other prophesies we have will be fulfilled as well.
"Ignorance is bliss" is false. PMG says no man can be saved in ignorance. So, "Ignorance is condemnation". We have to know the commandments in order to live them to live in the presence of God again. We need to live the gospel of Jesus Christ by entering into the waters of baptism and receiving the ordinances of the temple.
13 January 2015
When we teach the law of tithing we refer our investigators to the ways that they have already been blessed by tithing. They have their Book of Mormon, the pamphlets, the meeting house, and everything else!
13 January 2015
The servants of the lord will be protected no matter where you are. Live righteously and you'll be fine. Jesus Christ commands us to read and study the words of Isaiah. Christ commanded that the things of Samuel the Lamanite to be written. Why is the event of Samuel the Lamanite so important that Christ told them to include it in the Book of Mormon?
It is interesting that in PMG they only talk about the fruit and not multiply and replenish the earth. They focus on the agency of Adam and Eve had and exercised to fulfill the plan of God.
14 January 2015
Christ mentions the words of Samuel, Isaiah, and Malachi. Malachi was talking about tithing. The wicked will be burned at the last day unless they repent then they will be saved. Malachi also talked about the turning the hearts of the fathers to the children. When studying temples and family history we learn that as endowed members of the church we can receive daily strength and renewal from the covenants we have made. After we go through the temple, we can have more power because we have more knowledge and we know with a greater understanding what the purpose of life is, i.e. the plan of salvation.
15 January 2015
We need to take upon ourselves the name of Christ, we need to take upon ourselves "the good reputation of Jesus Christ", to go back and live with our Father in Heaven. CES devotional from January 2014. The church of Jesus Christ not only needs to have his name but needs to be built upon his gospel. That's the difference between our church and other churches of Christ. We believe in the ""primitive church" namely apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists and so forth".
There is no point in doing missionary work if we don't hold on to the fruits of that labor, we need to strengthen our members to show the lord that the ward can take care of new members. Everyone needs a friend, nourishment from the gospel, and a calling. When we go home we should still keep in contact and live worthily of the trust of our investigators and members.
On Sunday's, we need to sit with the members and investigators whom we are fellowshipping rather than sitting in groups of missionaries. We should seek revelation to know who to sit with on Sunday's. We need to involve members in fellowshipping our investigators so that they always feel that they have someone who they can talk to and they won't grow frustrated with the changes that come with life after baptism.
16 January 2015
Learning about the three Nephites, we learn that they will stay on earth and teach and see the prophesies fulfilled. It says in the scriptures that they are among the Gentiles, Jews, and the lost tribes of Israel. They are going to be among us and teach us if it be the will of God. Their bodies were changed, they were changed so satan could have no power over them and that they would be holy. Then they will be resurrected after.
God will answer our prayers and personal questions in a way that is unmistakable. His answers will come in his own time and in his own way so we need to learn how to recognize that and be patient. First, we need to study the scriptures. Our investigators, and ourselves, need to read the Book of Mormon with the desire to know of its truthfulness and not with an intent to doubt or disprove. Second, we need to ponder the things we read, prepare our minds to receive truth, and remember how merciful God is. We rejected prophets, God blessed us with more. We killed Christ, the atonement still applies to us. Third, we must ask with sincere heart, real intent, and faith in Christ if the things that we read are true. Fourth, we need to apply what we learn to our lives. In order to understand, we need to live it. In order to know if something is true, we need to live it. We have a promise of God, who is bound by his word, that we will receive an answer by the power of the Holy Ghost. A testimony of this gospel will bless your life more than anything else in this life, that is a promise from Heavenly Father. I know this church is true. I know why it is true. And I love it.
17 January 2015
Those who shall reject His latter day revelations shall be cursed. If you want to know what not to do, read third Nephi when they say WO WO WO. WO unto him who fight against this great work. Whoever is writing the end of third Nephi closes with his testimony in a clear way. They declared what was wrong was wrong and what was right was right.
The more we incline our hearts to God, the more light hits our hearts. Every time we do this we show to God that we are ready to learn more. Conversion isn't a one time thing. We need to continue grow our testimony so the light doesn't fade. Your testimony will come and it will be glorious. If we do our part, that is. President uchtdorf testifies of truthfulness once again!
As I read in preach my gospel, I realized that Christ hasn't given up on us. He didn't give up on his mission and if he did, we all wouldn't be here. He stayed and he pushed through. Every day, especially when times are rough, we have the atonement of Jesus Christ to push us through.
18 January 2015
4th Nephi was really good. Something that has been impressed on my mind a lot on my mission has been unity and seeking the kingdom of God first. People after his coming to America, were rich in Christ and were blessed exceedingly, and then after they were blessed temporally and they got prideful. Church is not a fashion show but needs to be humbly beautiful. Getting dolled up is nice but we should only be in our Sunday best and not making others feel bad. We should not be worried about having the latest this or that but be content with what we have and be grateful for that. The records got his up to be brought forth when the time was right again. We need to have faith hope and charity. Hope leads to faith and faith leads to charity and charity lets us enter the celestial kingdom.
19 January 2015
Mormon was ten years old when the prophet came to him and told him when he was 24 years old to go get the plates and write down everything he had witnessed. The Nephites and Lamanites went to war against each other and the miracles ceased because there was no righteous. Everyone had willfully gone against their God. There was witch craft and magics and the power of the evil one was raging. It's sad that the people went from amazing and seeing Jesus Christ to being super wicked. That just kind of shows that the power of the adversary is real. That's why it is so important to feast upon the words of Christ and the prophets so we can stay close to the spirit and know what to do.
Revelation is vital to our daily work. We have been promised inspiration and guidance in our work, we just need to be worthy of the Holy Ghost and ask for it. He will give us power to deliver the message. We need to have faith that we can receive revelation in our day to day work and to know what to do. He will tell us. We need to ask and we ask through prayer. We need to learn how to pray by the spirit, review what happened during the day and your plans for the next day, then listen for the promptings of the spirit. Pray about and study the scriptures to understand what to do.
Our investigators need to feel the liberty and freedom that comes from worshiping our lord. They, individually, can choose for themselves what they want to do. We as missionaries need to help them understand that. We cannot and will not force them to do things. Whatever they want for this life, whatever it is, you can have it through the gospel. If they don't keep the commandments, they cannot receive the blessings.
20 January 2015
At 16, mormon was in charge of the Nephite army because he was large in stature and was wise. He was in a moment of difficulty because his people were wicked but he still loved them even though they were little idiots. That must have stressed him out and broke his heart when the people saw a massive destruction coming and still didn't repent. We have an option to repent and be humbled or not to and be stuck in depression and sorrow because God will not deal with sin.
We need to start teaching right away at door approaches so that they can feel the spirit and let us in to their homes and teach them more fully. Always seek referrals from everyone all the time. Sometimes their desires aren't to share, or they may meet a new person, always ask because as you keep asking you will receive people to teach and the people you work with will have greater desire to do good. Talking about the importance of the family because they love their family and God loves them.
21 January 2015
Mormon is just watching his people grow more and more wicked, he tried to cry repentance unto them but they wouldn't listen! He was so sorrowful! The nephites tried to call vengeance on the Lamanites and the Book of Mormon says that is he lords job not theirs. In life, we need to worry about ourselves and repent of our actions and leave other people to the lord.
The plates were written so that people can know the gospel of Jesus Christ and to help the Jews know that they killed the savior.
Maybe we can't see how, but Heavenly Father will bless us with the things we desire if we are righteous.
Mormon feared God more than man. He knew which way he faced. He knew that going against the Lamanites was against the commandments and he stepped down.
Patience is doing the lords will with a happy countenance. Why is that important? We need to be happy to do the lords will and when we do that we will have the spirit with us. Diligence is working hard with a cheerful heart and a focused-purpose driven missionary. We need to avoid distractions and focus on our purpose. Sometimes we have days where our plans fall through but as we continue to do everything we can we will have the spirit and we will be led to where we need to be. When you really try your best you will be blessed. When you're obedient you will be blessed in increased faith and other things. Strive to be obedient!
22 January 2015
Everyone in this section of the Book of Mormon was just sad, so Mormon decided to help them out. He says basically that he didn't write these things to make us sad, he wrote them so that we could understand how corruption brings destruction. He wants all men to be persuaded to come unto Christ so that all of the covenants and promises Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ have given us can be fulfilled. Mormon promised that the prayers of the righteous will always be heard. Think about this day and age, there are a lot of wicked kids and righteous parents. Their prayers are heard and numbered. After, Mormon is dying and he is just so depressed because of the wickedness of the people. He is a true example of hate the sin, love the sinner. We don't need to be judging people for what they have done, doesn't mean we approve of their choices but we recognize that they are children of God. The Book of Mormon is written so that ye may believe the bible and if ye believe the bible ye shall believe the Book of Mormon. They go together and they are the fullness of the gospel.
When studying eternal marriage we can learn how we need to perform every command with exactness, it's not just for missionaries, it's a focus of our Heavenly Father and should be for the members. When we ask our investigators to be obedient, 1. We need to be living the things we ask, 2. It needs to be out of love and it shouldn't be out of manipulation. Obedience is important and it is important to teach our investigators that.
24 January 2015
"I have not friends, nor wither to go" just like Moroni, I can figure out what to do about going home. Mormon 8 talks about the coming forth of the Book of Mormon and our day. The Book of Mormon won't be of any worldly value but it will be invaluable for our spiritual well being. The Book of Mormon will come forth in a dark day, when leaders of churches raise up churches to themselves, a time during a time of wars and rumors of wars, and buying forgiveness, during a time of earthquakes and tempests, a time when leaders covet what their congregations have. Be careful and watch our lives. Make sure we are living in a way that we can be representatives of Christ, we need to be nice to all and not get so involved in obtaining things that we forget to care for those in need. Are our desires to have $200 boots or feeding a family who has gone out with a meal for a few days? You need food, clothes, and a roof over your head. If you have that, you're gonna be fine!
25 January 2015
Why are there different kingdoms of glory? Do you think you can be the scum of the earth and live in the presence of the supreme holy being? You're going to feel terrible! You need to repent, and do things worthily so that your sins can be forgiven you and you can live in the presence of God without doubting if they were worthy or not. We need to pray in faith to overcome the weaknesses of the world and so that we can grow our faith in Christ. The Book of Mormon was written in reformed Egyptian a language which no one else spake. The lord knew this! He prepared a way, Joseph Smith, for this work to go forth.
Our authority comes with responsibility to live the higher law, to go above and beyond, to be on time, to be courteous, to have Christlike love for those we serve. We actually need to love those we serve, ACTUALLY LOVE THEM! What do they need, what do they want, not what do I want or need for them but them themselves.
26 January 2015
Jared was talking to his brother to pray to the lord to ask for their language to not be confounded. Why didn't Jared just pray? Can we imagine the chaos that would have been there while everyone was confounded? The first thing they thought to do was to pray! "Pray He is there, speak He is listening". We should have that be our first reaction! When bad things happen, just pray. Jared continually asked his brother to ask the lord questions, it's kind of strange that he didn't ask himself.
In Go about doing good in PMG says that our faith to find people to teach is demonstrated through our acts. We should have planned acts of service, and we should pray to look for unplanned acts of service to find people as well. Follow the spirit! Do you want to be happy? Lose yourself in this great cause. If you want to be happy work hard and confide in leaders, like president Fenn. As we serve, people will recognize us as representatives of Jesus Christ.
27 January 2015
A promise from the Lord is that if the people who dwell in the promised land need to be righteous or they will be wiped from the face of the earth. That's a serious promise. Be good, always, or be swept off. That promise wasn't to only one family but to everyone! The brother of Jared didn't pray to the lord, was chastised, and began to build the boat. Then he had questions, how do we breathe, how do we steer, how do we see? The lord said he would prepare the way through the water of the great deep, and helped them find a way to breathe. But he asked the brother of Jared to make a game plan for how they can have light.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is amazing because through this process we can be healed through the atonement. Christs sacrifice helps us overcome the effects of justice, through mercy. We made a mistake, but we realized that, and went through the process of repentance, we will be able to be wiped clean! When we strive to keep the commandments and avoid sin, that's how we show our love to our savior. Through our faith, the saviors atonements can change the desires of our hearts, and heal us spiritually and physically.
28 January 2015
The brother of Jared sees the finger of the lord and the spirit body of Christ. When the brother of Jared was preparing rocks to provide light he didn't just pick up the first few rocks that he saw, he went to one of the tallest mountains and molted, or melted at an extremely hot temperature, 16 stones and then carried them back down the mountain. He put work into this plan and knew that the lord would help him. He said basically went to the lord and apologized for his weaknesses but he said he knew that the lord could do anything and if he touched the stones, they would be able to see. We have always been taught that we need to figure things out, but not just think about it. We need to labor like the brother of Jared and pray as if it depends on the lord and work as if it depends on us.
We have never seen the lord but we have all of the evidence in the world that tells us that Jesus is the Christ and that he is the savior of the world. We should never deny that.
29 January 2015
The Jaredites were on the sea for almost a whole year! Could you imagine getting stuck in a situation like that? Stuck with the same people and cooped up with animals? And they gave thanks everyday. Would we do that? The first thing they did was give thanks to God. It's pretty interesting that the lord has people go on treks, the Israelites, the Nephites, Jaredites, Mulekites, and Pioneers.
30 January 2015
There's a son and a dad, dad is righteous, son is evil, leaves, captures dad, but dad has more sons who are righteous, and the righteous capture the king back, and the cycle continues. The Kings support the prophets and so the people listened to them and then they started to prosper again! When we follow the prophet and repent we will strive and be successful. Also, it's interesting to think about the pioneers and how the lord brings everyone to the promised land through a trek. Do we take time to remember the suffering of the saints and the miracles of the lord during that time? Do we remember the blessings that we have received for their miracles?
The daughter of one of the Kings saw that he was sad and devised a plan to help him be happy. An evil plan. The whole downfall of that nation was pinned on her. There is a talk from conference that talks about the power of a righteous woman, as we learn from here, the influence is pretty grand! We also learn not to do things in secrecy or in "secret combinations" because that's how satan works not the lord.
We make covenants with God by accepting what he sets as terms. If you want eternal life with your families in the presence of God, you need to accept the terms and do the things he sets as standards to get there. Have we reflected upon our covenants frequently? How can we know if we are on the right path? When we feel the spirit we can know that we are doing our best to take upon ourselves the name of Christ, always remember him, and keeping his commandments. The sacrament helps us stay clean and renew our covenants. We are excited for Reyna to get baptized today so she feel for herself the joy of being baptized.
31 January 2015
Why do bad things happen? 1. People need to repent, the people did not believe the words of the prophets and so they were living in a world of sin, they didn't repent. When they saw they were going to die, they repented and when they had sufficiently repented, the lord blessed them. Sometimes the lord wants us to suffer so we can remember him more fully.
Book of Mormon answers questions of the soul. I know the Book of Mormon has answered deep questions of the soul, personal questions! The sincere questions that people ask us should be referred to the Book of Mormon and we should share testimony with them of our own experiences. Why does God let bad things happen to good people? 1. Everyone has their agency, bad people will always have their agency too, God won't take it away. 2. Sometimes God will let bad things happen to punish the bad, if they are truly righteous people when they are killed they will leave this world for an even better world. Gods ways are not our ways, have eternal perspective and trust in the lord. We just need to let God be God and let us be good. The Book of Mormon helps us understand that he commandments are guidelines that help us have a happier life, it can improve our relationships either as companions of as husband and wife. In a world evermore evil, the Book of Mormon has the power to heal the broken soul. You can have those questions of your soul answered. You just need to do your part! Read, pray, ponder.
02 February 2015
There is an actual account of someone moving mountains by faith in the Book of Mormon! There are miracles wrought after the trial of our faith! The baptism with Reyna was a huge miracle and it will take a lot of faith to work another miracle and to help Reyna get confirmed and Francisco baptized and confirmed. Things at home can heal and improve if we have faith and we act on our faith.
03 February 2015
There's a lot of wickedness, they wouldn't repent, the lord sent a prophet, they rejected him, and they kept going to battle. Don't be wicked. Listen to the prophets.
What is a successful missionary? Success isn't in the numbers. You're successful when you're obedient, can feel and follow the spirit, and when your greatest desire is to find, teach, and baptize and bring souls to Christ. Missions are here to change us and shape us, let it! Are we humble enough to let the mission shape us to be who the lord needs us to be? Why would we go through all of these hardships and not let it change us. What have we learned through our missions? Where have we seen faith that leads investigators to progress? When people read in and pray about the Book of Mormon. There hasn't been a person in my whole mission that has sincerely read and prayed about the Book of Mormon that has denied the truthfulness of that book. Involving members in the process of teaching and fellowshipping helps the investigators build a foundation of faith. The gospel blesses families and working with member families is the way to do that.
04 February 2015
We need to continually be nourished by the good word of God, which is something they didn't only do in Book of Mormon times but something that we should do now! Now a days as well, we need to be friends and associate with others who are not of our faith, how else can we spread the gospel? We need to set aside our differences, treat others with love and kindness. When we have a situation when we would normally jump down people's throats we should ask ourselves how Christ would handle the situation?
07 February 2015
Sometimes we work so hard with people, like Mormon working with his people, they completely ignore the words of the lord. It doesn't matter how many times they reject us, we need to do everything we can to help them come to Christ. If we cease to labor we shall bring under condemnation. We need to give them the opportunity to change. If we don't give them the opportunity, how can we expect them to change?! There is also a lot of chastity in Moroni 9, the Nephites were brutal. They denied the daughters of the Lamanites of that which was most precious to them, even their chastity and virtue.then they brutally murdered them and ate them. Chastity is important, that's why it's attacked today, and why Mormon decided to write that to his son. But even with all of this destruction and wickedness that was going on, Mormon wrote to his son to let virtue garnish his thoughts unceasingly and to always have faith in the atonement to help him through the tough times.
Our works of charity should not be about statistics and how many people we can help. It should be about love, loving God enough to love his children and loving his children enough to care for them. God is a god not of numbers but a god of love. It doesn't matter the number of baptisms, converts, key indicators, Joliet Jaguars, or anything else. He is worried about love. Have his children felt his love today, has someone come closer to a knowledge of their savior? That's what matters.
10 February 2015
I finished the Book of Mormon and that's pretty much all I did. So what'd you learn? Just kidding, I really love the Book of Mormon and I enjoyed learning from Moroni 10 this week. We need to do the things Moroni tells us, the way he tells us, and we will receive the promised blessings. God will not change. If he stops working miracles, it's not because he doesn't love us, it's because our faith is not sufficient. If we have faith we should have hope for a better life. If we have hope we need to develop charity. If we have not charity, we have nothing.
11 February 2015
The people in Jerusalem were obviously denying the prophets, but the lord still gave them many opportunities. That's why Lehi was sad, and that's why he was out seeking revelation when the lord told them to go preach repentance. So he did.
And here it was cool to know that the lord is preparing people and things for the future, for example when Nephi wrote an abridgment of lehi's story. That's an example of the lord being merciful already in the first few pages of the Book of Mormon.
Lehi left everything, all of his riches and belongings to follow the lord. That's like Mitt Romney up and leaving his riches and living in a tent! People would say he was crazy, but, he did it anyway. He just obeyed, he didn't murmur or stall, he did it.
In adjusting teaching to meet needs it says to adjust your lesson to fit the needs of the investigators. If the spirit tells you to change the lesson or teach it quicker, do it. Heavenly Father knows his children so trust in him and follow the promptings of the Holy Ghost.
12 February 2015
Well, Nephi is a pretty cool guy. After he was done talking to the lord He went to Lehi's tent. Lehi told him they had to go back to Jerusalem to get the plates. Nephi and Lehi had a lot of faith. He was asked to go back and they didn't have a way of communicating. Lehi didn't know if his sons would make it back or not, that was a huge act of faith. Nephi didn't know if Laban was going to kill him or not but he still went, they all went. And Nephi didn't lie. And he followed the promptings of the lord. It's weird that he commanded him to do something against the commandments of God , but I'll let God be God and I'll trust in him.
When people are overcoming addictions you need to replace the bad habit with a good habit and we need to testify of the healing power of the atonement and the power of God that is available to help people overcome their problems.
13 February 2015
The lord reveals his word to his prophets. The Book of Mormon talks all about the coming of the messiah and of John the Baptist and everyone. They were told what his name was going to be, what he was going to do and why it was important. The lord is so merciful because he gives us time and time again to repent. I learned something about the Holy Ghost today. It is the power of the Holy Ghost, which is the gift of God, unto all those who diligently seek him. The Holy Ghost is the gift from God as we diligently seek. How do we do that? We follow the gospel of Jesus Christ, and read the scriptures, and pray, and be baptized, and endure, and have faith! And then there is a warning. If you are found guilty at judgement, you will be cast out forever. Not a good thing, use the atonement, repent, do not deny the lord or his spirit. I don't know how people can deny that or think the savior hasn't come yet or that there is no God. The lord is just flippen merciful.
Men and women are shaped by those around you and by the people that we look up to. Who do I look up to? Jesus Christ is the only perfect example, we need to look up to him and know that by his sacrifice we will live with our father in heaven again. How we learn to adjust our lives in times of trials is dependent on the foundation on which we build. The lord has blessed us with technology in this day and age. It's a fantastic thing, that is the tool we can use to spread the gospel and help it flood the earth. It's also a way that satan can get to us that's why we have pornography and yucky stuff everywhere. Never before in the history of the world has here been a greater need for youth to have good examples, be strong, be faithful so your kids can be as well.
16 February 2015
I learned about revelation is that Nephi truly wanted to know, it was more than a desire. The lord knew that he was going to act on it and could trust him with it. The iron rod, the word of God, the Book of Mormon, leads to the tree of life, the love of God, the atonement. Once again, the lord is merciful and the Book of Mormon testifies yet again on how the lord is our savior. Nephi saw it all! The great and spacious building is the pride of the world, I always think of Vegas, vegas is like a fake city. It's like all of the imaginary good things of the world and isn't going to bring us true happiness. We need to have our own testimonies and not lean on other people to get us through. So do the things necessary to obtain a testimony.
17 February 2015
In this chapter of the Book of Mormon, it testifies that the record of the Jews or the bible was true but then there came changes to it through the great and abominable church but there was going to be a record from the Nephites to come forth to the Jews and there will be two records of one God and we can come unto Christ through the Book of Mormon. It was a great chapter that testifies of the truthfulness of this church and the Book of Mormon.
18 February 2015
I learned a lot today in the Book of Mormon and only in one chapter. If you (Gentiles) don't harden your hearts and you repent and make covenants, we will be adopted into the house of Israel. There are save two churches only, the church of the lord and the church of the devil. Which is it for you? Though the numbers of the church of the lord will be few, they will have his power. When we don't know something, we need to ask God.
19 February 2015
I have my new companion now, her name is Hermana Richardson, she is from...Stansbury Park, Ut! And she knows my cousins and my aunt and uncle. She is really awesome and is studying music in college and she can sing like a boss. So in sacrament, I just kind of hum the tune of the song under my breath so everyone else can hear her and not my ugly voice. Just kidding, I still sing but it still sounds terrible.
Hermana Rebekka Kunz
Illinois Chicago West Mission
July 2014 - January 2016
As missionaries we don't represent the people to Jesus, we represent Jesus to the people. (Which way do you face)
09 January 2015
The bread helps us remember Jesus Christ and the water shows our commitment to follow the commandments. If ye build upon these things..."where is your rock built? Come to church!" Pray always...pray by the spirit.
Don't let anyone partake of the sacrament unworthily, don't kick them out, they can still come and you can still be kind to them, you never know when they will come back and if you can be the means of that, how great is your joy! Christ's arms are always open to us.
To be courageous is to be god-fearing. When people make mistakes, a lot of the time is because of peer pressure. Stay God fearing and stay courageous.
10 January 2015
Jesus Christ came to the Americas and went over the covenants that were made with the house of Israel. He commands them to cease to pray, but that was because he was going to talk to them and he commanded them to have a prayer in your heart. In preach my gospel, it says that we should pray for our companion when we aren't talking and I think it brings a whole new spirit. Prayer is so important, Christ spends a lot of time teaching it to the people in the Americas. Prayer is so attacked and it is weird to me that people grow up without a habit of prayer, it's so important and powerful.
Faith, to me, is a little bit like hope, but faith is trust. Trust in the lord and "have thy will be done". Faith is trust, and hope is confidence. We can build our faith and hope as we serve others.
12 January 2015
The sign of the gathering of Israel is the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. It talks about how America will be a free land and that's how the church will be restored. It's amazing to see how the promises have been fulfilled and gives us a little bit more confidence that the other prophesies we have will be fulfilled as well.
"Ignorance is bliss" is false. PMG says no man can be saved in ignorance. So, "Ignorance is condemnation". We have to know the commandments in order to live them to live in the presence of God again. We need to live the gospel of Jesus Christ by entering into the waters of baptism and receiving the ordinances of the temple.
13 January 2015
When we teach the law of tithing we refer our investigators to the ways that they have already been blessed by tithing. They have their Book of Mormon, the pamphlets, the meeting house, and everything else!
13 January 2015
The servants of the lord will be protected no matter where you are. Live righteously and you'll be fine. Jesus Christ commands us to read and study the words of Isaiah. Christ commanded that the things of Samuel the Lamanite to be written. Why is the event of Samuel the Lamanite so important that Christ told them to include it in the Book of Mormon?
It is interesting that in PMG they only talk about the fruit and not multiply and replenish the earth. They focus on the agency of Adam and Eve had and exercised to fulfill the plan of God.
14 January 2015
Christ mentions the words of Samuel, Isaiah, and Malachi. Malachi was talking about tithing. The wicked will be burned at the last day unless they repent then they will be saved. Malachi also talked about the turning the hearts of the fathers to the children. When studying temples and family history we learn that as endowed members of the church we can receive daily strength and renewal from the covenants we have made. After we go through the temple, we can have more power because we have more knowledge and we know with a greater understanding what the purpose of life is, i.e. the plan of salvation.
15 January 2015
We need to take upon ourselves the name of Christ, we need to take upon ourselves "the good reputation of Jesus Christ", to go back and live with our Father in Heaven. CES devotional from January 2014. The church of Jesus Christ not only needs to have his name but needs to be built upon his gospel. That's the difference between our church and other churches of Christ. We believe in the ""primitive church" namely apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists and so forth".
There is no point in doing missionary work if we don't hold on to the fruits of that labor, we need to strengthen our members to show the lord that the ward can take care of new members. Everyone needs a friend, nourishment from the gospel, and a calling. When we go home we should still keep in contact and live worthily of the trust of our investigators and members.
On Sunday's, we need to sit with the members and investigators whom we are fellowshipping rather than sitting in groups of missionaries. We should seek revelation to know who to sit with on Sunday's. We need to involve members in fellowshipping our investigators so that they always feel that they have someone who they can talk to and they won't grow frustrated with the changes that come with life after baptism.
16 January 2015
Learning about the three Nephites, we learn that they will stay on earth and teach and see the prophesies fulfilled. It says in the scriptures that they are among the Gentiles, Jews, and the lost tribes of Israel. They are going to be among us and teach us if it be the will of God. Their bodies were changed, they were changed so satan could have no power over them and that they would be holy. Then they will be resurrected after.
God will answer our prayers and personal questions in a way that is unmistakable. His answers will come in his own time and in his own way so we need to learn how to recognize that and be patient. First, we need to study the scriptures. Our investigators, and ourselves, need to read the Book of Mormon with the desire to know of its truthfulness and not with an intent to doubt or disprove. Second, we need to ponder the things we read, prepare our minds to receive truth, and remember how merciful God is. We rejected prophets, God blessed us with more. We killed Christ, the atonement still applies to us. Third, we must ask with sincere heart, real intent, and faith in Christ if the things that we read are true. Fourth, we need to apply what we learn to our lives. In order to understand, we need to live it. In order to know if something is true, we need to live it. We have a promise of God, who is bound by his word, that we will receive an answer by the power of the Holy Ghost. A testimony of this gospel will bless your life more than anything else in this life, that is a promise from Heavenly Father. I know this church is true. I know why it is true. And I love it.
17 January 2015
Those who shall reject His latter day revelations shall be cursed. If you want to know what not to do, read third Nephi when they say WO WO WO. WO unto him who fight against this great work. Whoever is writing the end of third Nephi closes with his testimony in a clear way. They declared what was wrong was wrong and what was right was right.
The more we incline our hearts to God, the more light hits our hearts. Every time we do this we show to God that we are ready to learn more. Conversion isn't a one time thing. We need to continue grow our testimony so the light doesn't fade. Your testimony will come and it will be glorious. If we do our part, that is. President uchtdorf testifies of truthfulness once again!
As I read in preach my gospel, I realized that Christ hasn't given up on us. He didn't give up on his mission and if he did, we all wouldn't be here. He stayed and he pushed through. Every day, especially when times are rough, we have the atonement of Jesus Christ to push us through.
18 January 2015
4th Nephi was really good. Something that has been impressed on my mind a lot on my mission has been unity and seeking the kingdom of God first. People after his coming to America, were rich in Christ and were blessed exceedingly, and then after they were blessed temporally and they got prideful. Church is not a fashion show but needs to be humbly beautiful. Getting dolled up is nice but we should only be in our Sunday best and not making others feel bad. We should not be worried about having the latest this or that but be content with what we have and be grateful for that. The records got his up to be brought forth when the time was right again. We need to have faith hope and charity. Hope leads to faith and faith leads to charity and charity lets us enter the celestial kingdom.
19 January 2015
Mormon was ten years old when the prophet came to him and told him when he was 24 years old to go get the plates and write down everything he had witnessed. The Nephites and Lamanites went to war against each other and the miracles ceased because there was no righteous. Everyone had willfully gone against their God. There was witch craft and magics and the power of the evil one was raging. It's sad that the people went from amazing and seeing Jesus Christ to being super wicked. That just kind of shows that the power of the adversary is real. That's why it is so important to feast upon the words of Christ and the prophets so we can stay close to the spirit and know what to do.
Revelation is vital to our daily work. We have been promised inspiration and guidance in our work, we just need to be worthy of the Holy Ghost and ask for it. He will give us power to deliver the message. We need to have faith that we can receive revelation in our day to day work and to know what to do. He will tell us. We need to ask and we ask through prayer. We need to learn how to pray by the spirit, review what happened during the day and your plans for the next day, then listen for the promptings of the spirit. Pray about and study the scriptures to understand what to do.
Our investigators need to feel the liberty and freedom that comes from worshiping our lord. They, individually, can choose for themselves what they want to do. We as missionaries need to help them understand that. We cannot and will not force them to do things. Whatever they want for this life, whatever it is, you can have it through the gospel. If they don't keep the commandments, they cannot receive the blessings.
20 January 2015
At 16, mormon was in charge of the Nephite army because he was large in stature and was wise. He was in a moment of difficulty because his people were wicked but he still loved them even though they were little idiots. That must have stressed him out and broke his heart when the people saw a massive destruction coming and still didn't repent. We have an option to repent and be humbled or not to and be stuck in depression and sorrow because God will not deal with sin.
We need to start teaching right away at door approaches so that they can feel the spirit and let us in to their homes and teach them more fully. Always seek referrals from everyone all the time. Sometimes their desires aren't to share, or they may meet a new person, always ask because as you keep asking you will receive people to teach and the people you work with will have greater desire to do good. Talking about the importance of the family because they love their family and God loves them.
21 January 2015
Mormon is just watching his people grow more and more wicked, he tried to cry repentance unto them but they wouldn't listen! He was so sorrowful! The nephites tried to call vengeance on the Lamanites and the Book of Mormon says that is he lords job not theirs. In life, we need to worry about ourselves and repent of our actions and leave other people to the lord.
The plates were written so that people can know the gospel of Jesus Christ and to help the Jews know that they killed the savior.
Maybe we can't see how, but Heavenly Father will bless us with the things we desire if we are righteous.
Mormon feared God more than man. He knew which way he faced. He knew that going against the Lamanites was against the commandments and he stepped down.
Patience is doing the lords will with a happy countenance. Why is that important? We need to be happy to do the lords will and when we do that we will have the spirit with us. Diligence is working hard with a cheerful heart and a focused-purpose driven missionary. We need to avoid distractions and focus on our purpose. Sometimes we have days where our plans fall through but as we continue to do everything we can we will have the spirit and we will be led to where we need to be. When you really try your best you will be blessed. When you're obedient you will be blessed in increased faith and other things. Strive to be obedient!
22 January 2015
Everyone in this section of the Book of Mormon was just sad, so Mormon decided to help them out. He says basically that he didn't write these things to make us sad, he wrote them so that we could understand how corruption brings destruction. He wants all men to be persuaded to come unto Christ so that all of the covenants and promises Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ have given us can be fulfilled. Mormon promised that the prayers of the righteous will always be heard. Think about this day and age, there are a lot of wicked kids and righteous parents. Their prayers are heard and numbered. After, Mormon is dying and he is just so depressed because of the wickedness of the people. He is a true example of hate the sin, love the sinner. We don't need to be judging people for what they have done, doesn't mean we approve of their choices but we recognize that they are children of God. The Book of Mormon is written so that ye may believe the bible and if ye believe the bible ye shall believe the Book of Mormon. They go together and they are the fullness of the gospel.
When studying eternal marriage we can learn how we need to perform every command with exactness, it's not just for missionaries, it's a focus of our Heavenly Father and should be for the members. When we ask our investigators to be obedient, 1. We need to be living the things we ask, 2. It needs to be out of love and it shouldn't be out of manipulation. Obedience is important and it is important to teach our investigators that.
24 January 2015
"I have not friends, nor wither to go" just like Moroni, I can figure out what to do about going home. Mormon 8 talks about the coming forth of the Book of Mormon and our day. The Book of Mormon won't be of any worldly value but it will be invaluable for our spiritual well being. The Book of Mormon will come forth in a dark day, when leaders of churches raise up churches to themselves, a time during a time of wars and rumors of wars, and buying forgiveness, during a time of earthquakes and tempests, a time when leaders covet what their congregations have. Be careful and watch our lives. Make sure we are living in a way that we can be representatives of Christ, we need to be nice to all and not get so involved in obtaining things that we forget to care for those in need. Are our desires to have $200 boots or feeding a family who has gone out with a meal for a few days? You need food, clothes, and a roof over your head. If you have that, you're gonna be fine!
25 January 2015
Why are there different kingdoms of glory? Do you think you can be the scum of the earth and live in the presence of the supreme holy being? You're going to feel terrible! You need to repent, and do things worthily so that your sins can be forgiven you and you can live in the presence of God without doubting if they were worthy or not. We need to pray in faith to overcome the weaknesses of the world and so that we can grow our faith in Christ. The Book of Mormon was written in reformed Egyptian a language which no one else spake. The lord knew this! He prepared a way, Joseph Smith, for this work to go forth.
Our authority comes with responsibility to live the higher law, to go above and beyond, to be on time, to be courteous, to have Christlike love for those we serve. We actually need to love those we serve, ACTUALLY LOVE THEM! What do they need, what do they want, not what do I want or need for them but them themselves.
26 January 2015
Jared was talking to his brother to pray to the lord to ask for their language to not be confounded. Why didn't Jared just pray? Can we imagine the chaos that would have been there while everyone was confounded? The first thing they thought to do was to pray! "Pray He is there, speak He is listening". We should have that be our first reaction! When bad things happen, just pray. Jared continually asked his brother to ask the lord questions, it's kind of strange that he didn't ask himself.
In Go about doing good in PMG says that our faith to find people to teach is demonstrated through our acts. We should have planned acts of service, and we should pray to look for unplanned acts of service to find people as well. Follow the spirit! Do you want to be happy? Lose yourself in this great cause. If you want to be happy work hard and confide in leaders, like president Fenn. As we serve, people will recognize us as representatives of Jesus Christ.
27 January 2015
A promise from the Lord is that if the people who dwell in the promised land need to be righteous or they will be wiped from the face of the earth. That's a serious promise. Be good, always, or be swept off. That promise wasn't to only one family but to everyone! The brother of Jared didn't pray to the lord, was chastised, and began to build the boat. Then he had questions, how do we breathe, how do we steer, how do we see? The lord said he would prepare the way through the water of the great deep, and helped them find a way to breathe. But he asked the brother of Jared to make a game plan for how they can have light.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is amazing because through this process we can be healed through the atonement. Christs sacrifice helps us overcome the effects of justice, through mercy. We made a mistake, but we realized that, and went through the process of repentance, we will be able to be wiped clean! When we strive to keep the commandments and avoid sin, that's how we show our love to our savior. Through our faith, the saviors atonements can change the desires of our hearts, and heal us spiritually and physically.
28 January 2015
The brother of Jared sees the finger of the lord and the spirit body of Christ. When the brother of Jared was preparing rocks to provide light he didn't just pick up the first few rocks that he saw, he went to one of the tallest mountains and molted, or melted at an extremely hot temperature, 16 stones and then carried them back down the mountain. He put work into this plan and knew that the lord would help him. He said basically went to the lord and apologized for his weaknesses but he said he knew that the lord could do anything and if he touched the stones, they would be able to see. We have always been taught that we need to figure things out, but not just think about it. We need to labor like the brother of Jared and pray as if it depends on the lord and work as if it depends on us.
We have never seen the lord but we have all of the evidence in the world that tells us that Jesus is the Christ and that he is the savior of the world. We should never deny that.
29 January 2015
The Jaredites were on the sea for almost a whole year! Could you imagine getting stuck in a situation like that? Stuck with the same people and cooped up with animals? And they gave thanks everyday. Would we do that? The first thing they did was give thanks to God. It's pretty interesting that the lord has people go on treks, the Israelites, the Nephites, Jaredites, Mulekites, and Pioneers.
30 January 2015
There's a son and a dad, dad is righteous, son is evil, leaves, captures dad, but dad has more sons who are righteous, and the righteous capture the king back, and the cycle continues. The Kings support the prophets and so the people listened to them and then they started to prosper again! When we follow the prophet and repent we will strive and be successful. Also, it's interesting to think about the pioneers and how the lord brings everyone to the promised land through a trek. Do we take time to remember the suffering of the saints and the miracles of the lord during that time? Do we remember the blessings that we have received for their miracles?
The daughter of one of the Kings saw that he was sad and devised a plan to help him be happy. An evil plan. The whole downfall of that nation was pinned on her. There is a talk from conference that talks about the power of a righteous woman, as we learn from here, the influence is pretty grand! We also learn not to do things in secrecy or in "secret combinations" because that's how satan works not the lord.
We make covenants with God by accepting what he sets as terms. If you want eternal life with your families in the presence of God, you need to accept the terms and do the things he sets as standards to get there. Have we reflected upon our covenants frequently? How can we know if we are on the right path? When we feel the spirit we can know that we are doing our best to take upon ourselves the name of Christ, always remember him, and keeping his commandments. The sacrament helps us stay clean and renew our covenants. We are excited for Reyna to get baptized today so she feel for herself the joy of being baptized.
31 January 2015
Why do bad things happen? 1. People need to repent, the people did not believe the words of the prophets and so they were living in a world of sin, they didn't repent. When they saw they were going to die, they repented and when they had sufficiently repented, the lord blessed them. Sometimes the lord wants us to suffer so we can remember him more fully.
Book of Mormon answers questions of the soul. I know the Book of Mormon has answered deep questions of the soul, personal questions! The sincere questions that people ask us should be referred to the Book of Mormon and we should share testimony with them of our own experiences. Why does God let bad things happen to good people? 1. Everyone has their agency, bad people will always have their agency too, God won't take it away. 2. Sometimes God will let bad things happen to punish the bad, if they are truly righteous people when they are killed they will leave this world for an even better world. Gods ways are not our ways, have eternal perspective and trust in the lord. We just need to let God be God and let us be good. The Book of Mormon helps us understand that he commandments are guidelines that help us have a happier life, it can improve our relationships either as companions of as husband and wife. In a world evermore evil, the Book of Mormon has the power to heal the broken soul. You can have those questions of your soul answered. You just need to do your part! Read, pray, ponder.
02 February 2015
There is an actual account of someone moving mountains by faith in the Book of Mormon! There are miracles wrought after the trial of our faith! The baptism with Reyna was a huge miracle and it will take a lot of faith to work another miracle and to help Reyna get confirmed and Francisco baptized and confirmed. Things at home can heal and improve if we have faith and we act on our faith.
03 February 2015
There's a lot of wickedness, they wouldn't repent, the lord sent a prophet, they rejected him, and they kept going to battle. Don't be wicked. Listen to the prophets.
What is a successful missionary? Success isn't in the numbers. You're successful when you're obedient, can feel and follow the spirit, and when your greatest desire is to find, teach, and baptize and bring souls to Christ. Missions are here to change us and shape us, let it! Are we humble enough to let the mission shape us to be who the lord needs us to be? Why would we go through all of these hardships and not let it change us. What have we learned through our missions? Where have we seen faith that leads investigators to progress? When people read in and pray about the Book of Mormon. There hasn't been a person in my whole mission that has sincerely read and prayed about the Book of Mormon that has denied the truthfulness of that book. Involving members in the process of teaching and fellowshipping helps the investigators build a foundation of faith. The gospel blesses families and working with member families is the way to do that.
04 February 2015
We need to continually be nourished by the good word of God, which is something they didn't only do in Book of Mormon times but something that we should do now! Now a days as well, we need to be friends and associate with others who are not of our faith, how else can we spread the gospel? We need to set aside our differences, treat others with love and kindness. When we have a situation when we would normally jump down people's throats we should ask ourselves how Christ would handle the situation?
07 February 2015
Sometimes we work so hard with people, like Mormon working with his people, they completely ignore the words of the lord. It doesn't matter how many times they reject us, we need to do everything we can to help them come to Christ. If we cease to labor we shall bring under condemnation. We need to give them the opportunity to change. If we don't give them the opportunity, how can we expect them to change?! There is also a lot of chastity in Moroni 9, the Nephites were brutal. They denied the daughters of the Lamanites of that which was most precious to them, even their chastity and virtue.then they brutally murdered them and ate them. Chastity is important, that's why it's attacked today, and why Mormon decided to write that to his son. But even with all of this destruction and wickedness that was going on, Mormon wrote to his son to let virtue garnish his thoughts unceasingly and to always have faith in the atonement to help him through the tough times.
Our works of charity should not be about statistics and how many people we can help. It should be about love, loving God enough to love his children and loving his children enough to care for them. God is a god not of numbers but a god of love. It doesn't matter the number of baptisms, converts, key indicators, Joliet Jaguars, or anything else. He is worried about love. Have his children felt his love today, has someone come closer to a knowledge of their savior? That's what matters.
10 February 2015
I finished the Book of Mormon and that's pretty much all I did. So what'd you learn? Just kidding, I really love the Book of Mormon and I enjoyed learning from Moroni 10 this week. We need to do the things Moroni tells us, the way he tells us, and we will receive the promised blessings. God will not change. If he stops working miracles, it's not because he doesn't love us, it's because our faith is not sufficient. If we have faith we should have hope for a better life. If we have hope we need to develop charity. If we have not charity, we have nothing.
11 February 2015
The people in Jerusalem were obviously denying the prophets, but the lord still gave them many opportunities. That's why Lehi was sad, and that's why he was out seeking revelation when the lord told them to go preach repentance. So he did.
And here it was cool to know that the lord is preparing people and things for the future, for example when Nephi wrote an abridgment of lehi's story. That's an example of the lord being merciful already in the first few pages of the Book of Mormon.
Lehi left everything, all of his riches and belongings to follow the lord. That's like Mitt Romney up and leaving his riches and living in a tent! People would say he was crazy, but, he did it anyway. He just obeyed, he didn't murmur or stall, he did it.
In adjusting teaching to meet needs it says to adjust your lesson to fit the needs of the investigators. If the spirit tells you to change the lesson or teach it quicker, do it. Heavenly Father knows his children so trust in him and follow the promptings of the Holy Ghost.
12 February 2015
Well, Nephi is a pretty cool guy. After he was done talking to the lord He went to Lehi's tent. Lehi told him they had to go back to Jerusalem to get the plates. Nephi and Lehi had a lot of faith. He was asked to go back and they didn't have a way of communicating. Lehi didn't know if his sons would make it back or not, that was a huge act of faith. Nephi didn't know if Laban was going to kill him or not but he still went, they all went. And Nephi didn't lie. And he followed the promptings of the lord. It's weird that he commanded him to do something against the commandments of God , but I'll let God be God and I'll trust in him.
When people are overcoming addictions you need to replace the bad habit with a good habit and we need to testify of the healing power of the atonement and the power of God that is available to help people overcome their problems.
13 February 2015
The lord reveals his word to his prophets. The Book of Mormon talks all about the coming of the messiah and of John the Baptist and everyone. They were told what his name was going to be, what he was going to do and why it was important. The lord is so merciful because he gives us time and time again to repent. I learned something about the Holy Ghost today. It is the power of the Holy Ghost, which is the gift of God, unto all those who diligently seek him. The Holy Ghost is the gift from God as we diligently seek. How do we do that? We follow the gospel of Jesus Christ, and read the scriptures, and pray, and be baptized, and endure, and have faith! And then there is a warning. If you are found guilty at judgement, you will be cast out forever. Not a good thing, use the atonement, repent, do not deny the lord or his spirit. I don't know how people can deny that or think the savior hasn't come yet or that there is no God. The lord is just flippen merciful.
Men and women are shaped by those around you and by the people that we look up to. Who do I look up to? Jesus Christ is the only perfect example, we need to look up to him and know that by his sacrifice we will live with our father in heaven again. How we learn to adjust our lives in times of trials is dependent on the foundation on which we build. The lord has blessed us with technology in this day and age. It's a fantastic thing, that is the tool we can use to spread the gospel and help it flood the earth. It's also a way that satan can get to us that's why we have pornography and yucky stuff everywhere. Never before in the history of the world has here been a greater need for youth to have good examples, be strong, be faithful so your kids can be as well.
16 February 2015
I learned about revelation is that Nephi truly wanted to know, it was more than a desire. The lord knew that he was going to act on it and could trust him with it. The iron rod, the word of God, the Book of Mormon, leads to the tree of life, the love of God, the atonement. Once again, the lord is merciful and the Book of Mormon testifies yet again on how the lord is our savior. Nephi saw it all! The great and spacious building is the pride of the world, I always think of Vegas, vegas is like a fake city. It's like all of the imaginary good things of the world and isn't going to bring us true happiness. We need to have our own testimonies and not lean on other people to get us through. So do the things necessary to obtain a testimony.
17 February 2015
In this chapter of the Book of Mormon, it testifies that the record of the Jews or the bible was true but then there came changes to it through the great and abominable church but there was going to be a record from the Nephites to come forth to the Jews and there will be two records of one God and we can come unto Christ through the Book of Mormon. It was a great chapter that testifies of the truthfulness of this church and the Book of Mormon.
18 February 2015
I learned a lot today in the Book of Mormon and only in one chapter. If you (Gentiles) don't harden your hearts and you repent and make covenants, we will be adopted into the house of Israel. There are save two churches only, the church of the lord and the church of the devil. Which is it for you? Though the numbers of the church of the lord will be few, they will have his power. When we don't know something, we need to ask God.
19 February 2015
I have my new companion now, her name is Hermana Richardson, she is from...Stansbury Park, Ut! And she knows my cousins and my aunt and uncle. She is really awesome and is studying music in college and she can sing like a boss. So in sacrament, I just kind of hum the tune of the song under my breath so everyone else can hear her and not my ugly voice. Just kidding, I still sing but it still sounds terrible.
Hermana Rebekka Kunz
Illinois Chicago West Mission
July 2014 - January 2016