October 18th 2007
Mission is going good. You meet so many great unbelievable people. You start to recognize that everyone is a child of God, and you gain a love for them, a deep respect and admiration. It is such an amazing expiring, even if all you drop is meet God's children, that is enough. The experience was worth it.
The experiences of our lives fortify our belief in God, and our testimonies of His love for us. We are constantly building up a reservoir of treasured experiences that when recorded we can call upon them in our time of need. King Benjamin, a prophet in the pre-Christ Americas, said:
But this much I can tell you, that if ye do not watch yourselves, and your thoughts, and your words, and your deeds, and observe the commandments of God, and continue in the faith of what ye have heard concerning the coming of our Lord, even unto the end of your lives, ye must perish. And now, O man, remember, and perish not. (Book of Mormon, Mosiah, Chapter 4, italics added)
Remembering is a fundamental and saving principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Ever since the beginning of time man has been commanded to keep records. "Sacred records were kept by Adam and handed down to succeeding patriarchs, even to Enoch and Abraham, who also added their own writings to the collection (see Moses 6:3–6, 46; Abr. 1:31 in the Pearl of Great Price). Likewise Moses kept a record in his day (Moses 1:40–41). A collection of Old Testament documents and other writings was available in Jerusalem in 600 B.C., written upon plates of brass, and was obtained by Nephi from Laban (see Book of Mormon, 1 Ne. 4; 5:10–19)" (Bible Dictionary, Canon). And when the church of Christ was again restored to the earth, the first revelation they had on that day stated "there shall be a record kept among you" (Doctrine and Covenants, Section 21).
December 10th 2007
Sister Jean is incredible. She has set a date for her missionary experience and it has always been accomplished. She has developed that faith to continue to push on and the Lord blesses her because of it. She and her husband Steve are taking in their non-member nephew for the next little while, to help out. This is that result of her date setting and because Brother Jean has since become activated it has prepared him. The Lord's ways are so amazing. I love it. She is so in tune and willing to listen to all that the Lord has for her. It is incredible. I love to see it work, the tender mercies of the Lord. It is incredible, absolutely beautiful.
December 27th 2007
Mission is just a great growing experience. Talked with Brother Okey tonight, and he shared with us some scared experiences. He has lived an incredible life, and has had many beautiful experiences. He asked me to share my own experiences with others and often. That is how we continue to get gain. W need to recognize God's hand in all things and share those experiences with others. The Lord gives us experiences not just for us, a record must be kept, a voice must be heard. I will be that voice.
Our own experiences act as building blocks of faith, not just for us, but for all the those whose lives come and leave footprints in our hearts. Just as a home is built brick upon brick, so our lives are built and fortified upon bricks of experiences that strengthen our faith and our testimony.
My mission in 2007 to Arizona wasn't my first. I was originally called to serve in the South Africa Durban mission. I went there, on October 31st 2006. That experience change my life forever. I was not able to complete that mission of two years in South Africa. I was experiencing some major anxiety problems while there that I did not understand at the time. In my own mind, my dream had become a nightmare, and everywhere I looked I could only see pain and hurt. It was determined that I would return home only five weeks after I had started my mission there, and just after I actually arrived in Durban. The day before that happened, I wrote this in my journal:
November 22nd 2006
Well, I'm in the mission home now. I'm at Durban.
I wonder what it will be like when I look back at this entree in the future. How will I feel. What will I be doing. Will I still be on my mission. Will I have gotten over my homesickness. The future is so frightening, yet so thrilling and challenging. One can aspire to great things, with the passage of time. Terrible things can happen, and the causes, or effects of such things vary. I am now on the brink of my mission. I am on the bow of a wonderful journey. What will become of me, or my port, or my sail? My wind will always be constant, will I raise the sails, and my port always there, will I return? Life holds great voyages. Raise the sails! Feel the wind! Go forward, give it all you got, like you mean it! It's so short. Just do it now. Life happens. Just do it. God love you always.
This experience change my life. Everything I thought I knew was suddenly questioned. It was difficult for to recognize the hand of God when it seemed like everything was going against me. Yet I knew He loved me. I knew He was there. These experiences, the good and the bad, have made me who I am today, and more importantly, helped me to see who I truly am, and eternally shall be.
December 18th 2007
And there it is, the end of eleven. One whole journal devoted to a mission now. Incredible. Life is just so very fascinating. It can not be contained or held. It is free always moving. Always fleeting. One most really live it to live life. I am so grateful of this chance I have to live, and thus I make a record, for myself and for the benefit of others. That they may learn of the goodness of God in my life, and thereby see it in there own. And thus it is, to develop a testimony thereof.
Through these experiences, I know that I am a child of God. And I know that you and everyone on the earth is a child of God. He loves us, and we are His children. Every extinct we have in our life is calculated to draw us nearer to Him. Our duty is to find God's hand in every experience of our life, and never forget those experiences.
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