Transitions

These times of transition are strange, but we can be grateful for both sides--the things we enjoyed before and the great things after. The grass is usually green on both sides. As long as we are diligent to remember and follow the Lord, we can trust that there will be good things on both sides of the various transitions and changes in our life.

I look forward to the many blessings the Lord has in store for me and all of us, foreshadowed by the many blessings given heretofore.

I am happy for the many blessings that await our newest members and future missionaries here in Mongolia, and I hope they will learn from the strippling warriors in the Book of Mormon who, though wounded in battle, nevertheless stood fast in the liberty wherewith God had made them free; and they were strict to remember the Lord from day to day, observing to keep his statutes and his judgments, and his commandments continually.  Their faith was strong, and I plan to keep my faith strong.  Attention to obedience is the key, because that unlocks those blessings we need to be happy.

Happy Thanksgiving

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving.  I won't be consuming any turkey, as there isn't even a common word here for that.

Final exams for my English students are coming up soon--probably next week--so we will be reviewing this week.  Then I'll give the exams, issue the grades, and be finished with the semester.

We are looking forward to a baptism this coming Friday; that will be exciting.

At this point in my mission, this scripture comes to mind:

"I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work."  (John 9:4)

I'm trying to work as hard as I can.

A few thoughts from the Steppes

Alma 27:29 tells us of the Anti-Nephi-Lehites who would rather die than commit sin--they didn't want to take up arms again and kill as they had done in the past, having repented of this sin. This makes them a special case, of course, and their desire is more important than simply not wanting to sin.  There are many times when we justify sin, like when we get angry to get our way, yell at someone to stop something from happening that we don't like, or lie to protect ourselves or our pride. The reasons that justify our incorrect actions seem important to us, and perhaps the sin of our reaction seems small.  But if we remember the Anti-Nephi-Lehis, who were willing to die rather than repeat serious sin, we should remember that to suffer frustration is better than to get angry, to be humble is better than to justify our pride.  Just my thoughts today.

Stake Conference was this past week.  One sister is the Japanese wife of a ward's Mongolian Bishop. She gave her talk entirely in Japanese and had it interpreted.  It was pretty cool to listen to.  Our work here is going well and we are preparing the wife of one of our members for baptism; we hope to help prepare him to do the ordinance.  We are teaching a lot of people right now.

One note about being on a mission for nearly two years now:  I can say I know how to cook eggs tastily and correctly: omelette, poached, sunny-side up, and more!

Happy Halloween

I told six different English classes about Halloween and Trick-or-Treating this week.  It's always a fun topic for my English students.

I have some photos from the last baptism I mentioned.  Things are going well with my new companion.  I have set some goals for the end of my mission, and one of them is to be the best trainer I can be.  I've learned a lot on my mission, but I know there's plenty to learn after I come home, too.

I believe that those who serve most in the Church learn the most.  Certainly, the New Testament shows us that the Lord's Apostles learned the most during His ministry.

I was reading in Ephesians 4 this week, which includes the teaching that anger is sin. Actually, the Joseph Smith Translation clarifies part of v. 26: "can ye be angry and sin not?" Anger in times of frustration or annoyance, even a little, is natural to all of us, but through the Atonement of Christ we can put such things away and be more Christlike. We need to replace anger with Christlike attributes.

Also I was reading in Mosiah 2.  All the Lord asks of us is to keep the commandments, and if we do, he blesses us!  It reminds me of the Primary Song: "What doest he Father ask of us? What do the scriptures say? Have faith, have hope, live like His Son, help others on their way."

Have a great week!  I plan to.

My new companion, me, our newest 9-year-old member, his mom, and my other companion. 

Last Transfer

We had a baptism last week: the 9-year-old son of a new member.  He's a good kid, and he's read the Book of Mormon Stories picture book like 5 times.

I would have missed the baptism at transfers last week, but I was transferred within the same area, and so I was able to attend the baptism.  I am now training a new Elder; he's really great. So, now until the end I will just focus on being a good trainer.  I'm sure the time will fly and we will be so busy.

We are teaching the wife of a member, and she is doing well.  I think she will be baptized soon.  The weather is getting really cold, but there's no snow on the ground yet.  

General Conference

We got to watch General Conference this weekend, a week later than everyone else because of the time difference. We American missionaries were able to get together to watch in English. This will be my last time watching Conference in Mongolia.

I liked a lot of the talks, but here are a few that stood out to me:

Elder Linn Robbins, who asked which way we face.
Ted Callister, who reminded me of important habits and priorities.
Elder Klebingat, reminding us to have confidence before the Lord.
Elder Craig Christensen, who taught about knowing the truth for ourselves.  A lot of speakers seemed to focus on the need for and power of personal revelation.
President Uchtdorf, whose talk on "Is it I?" was very powerful.
Elder Godoy, who talked about reaching our potential with the Lord's help.

And I could go on. I liked hearing the non-English speakers, but I would prefer to only hear them and to read subtitles rather than hear a translator.

Hey, look on page 3 of the October 2014 Ensign magazine.  You'll see a photo of a young girl praying.  The Book of Mormon on the bed is Mongolian, as is the girl!  Just thought that was cool.

I had an interesting thought during Conference.  The word "mission" comes from the Latin root that means "to send."  We send missionaries out all over the world.  But every member is also a missionary. How are we "sent" when we don't leave home?  We are sent to live in this world, this Babylon. We don't keep to ourselves or live in an isolated community, but we are sent into the world by the Lord to share the Gospel with everyone.  So, every member is a missionary! I hope to remember that when I leave my formal mission and return home.

Winter Descends

It snowed!  Winter has begun. Some say it will melt and warm up one last time before winter, but it has been pretty cold lately.

We have had some great successes lately with less active members attending Church more regularly.  We are happy to see families coming together.

In 2 Nephi 33:4 Nephi has already seen in a vision that his people will eventually be destroyed, but he prays diligently for them--and he knows of a surety that the Lord will 'consecrate his prayers for their gain'. I think that is interesting wording. In our mission, sometimes we pray things for our investigators and such. A little while ago, we invited a man to come back to Church. We fasted that he would come to Sacrament meeting, and we both felt it was right.  But he didn't come. Still, I don't feel that our fast has gone unanswered.  I know the Lord will bless that member because of our faith and prayers. It doesn't matter if the Lord brings him back right when we ask. Sometimes He will bless the way was ask and sometimes another way, but He will always consecrate our prayers for the gain of those we pray for. That's my feeling, anyway.