Nothing to do with J-E-N-O-V-A; haha. And yes, that is an
inside joke most people wont get. +10 to all who do.
Anyways, to explain last week: E. Madamombe and I were instructed to refill the spare gas tank before he was transferred. We left the apartment at 2 pm to fill the tank. We got at the place to do so around 2:40. We waited until 4 for the light to come back so the people could power the pump to fill the gas (actually, the had to fix the generator; either way, we got power). We then waited until 5:20 or so, in the rain, for a tro-tro to get back home. None came, but finally - after we lugged the tank a wee bit down the road to a better junction to catch a car at - we got a good Samaritan who picked us and dropped us at the junction leading to our house. We then found that no cars pass that area, so we had to lug the tank about 1/3 mile back to the apartment. Ok, so I honestly don't know the exact distance but it was somehow far. Anyways, we didn't get back until about 6:30. We then had to head over to Br. Quayson (the WML) for a meeting, and then finally got to cafe around 8:50. So, I had just enough time to send a quick letter to Pres. and a blurb to you guys. Sorry about that.
So, back to this week. It was very interesting. I had to go to Lebanon (area in my District) to be with another Elder while my companion left for home on Tuesday. I then went on transfer on Wednesday, and we didn't get back until about 6 due to traffic. We then had Zone Leader's Council on Thursday, finished that around 4 pm and due to traffic didn't get back until 9:20 pm; haha. I live in the boonies of Accra (technically, Tema, but it's all the city). Friday we then had to go to Tema for a baptismal interview at 4, the guy was late, and finally at 7pm said he wont be coming. Then, due to traffic, we got back around 9:30 so, Saturday and Sunday were the only days we could really proselyte, and Sunday evening was light-off, as was today. Hence why this letter is so late (but it won't appear that way to most of you anyway).
SO! As for the title. Guess who my new companions is! I'm willing to bet no one guessed it.
It's E. Nembaware!!! My first-born in the wilderness! Haha. He's been Zone Leader up in Koforidua for a while, and Pres. sent him here to help clean up the Zone. Pres. told us he put us back together because he knows that we're both very obedient and capable of the task this Zone will need. So, E. Nembaware's here so he can take the place over when I leave. It's really awesome to serve with him again. As E. Anderson put it "You got to start his mission, and now he gets to finish yours." I'm really happy for it. Also! E. Beafeaux is training! E. Larsen as well (he's even District Leader). It's just great.
Anyways, it's been light-off today, as I mentioned, so I can't say much. We are teaching some awesome people. Edmund is one of them. He's been a wee bit slow to accept things, but he's been reading the Book of Mormon, and slowly but surely I think he's growing a testimony of it. We had a nice spiritual experience with him where we read Alma's counsel to "watch and pray continually, that ye may not be tempted above that which ye can bear" (Alma 13:28). He read that (in an answer to his question) and then smiled and said to himself "It's the same thing as Paul!" The Spirit swept into the room and testified of the Book of Mormon's truthfulness, and he really liked it. We then explained how accepting the Book of Mormon doesn't detract anything from the truthfulness of the Bible; it simply accepts the fact that God has more truth for us today. He pondered that (I used two flashlights as an example) and then said "You now, each time I meet with you guys, I understand what you mean a little more." He's really coming along, and I think in a week or two he should have a testimony and be willing to be baptized. We shall pray and see.
Anyways, that's the Spiritual experience for the week. Benedicta traveled (not sure if I mentioned her before; more next week) so we hope to teach her this week. Hopefully she'll be baptized later in July.
Welp, here's Pres.'s letter. I hope you like it! It's a good one. I exhort each of you to follow the invitations in it, and to apply it in your own lives.
"Dear Elders and Sisters:
It only takes a short time living in Ghana to realize this country is a Christian nation. While there are non-Christians living in Ghana, the great majority of the citizens of Ghana identify themselves as Christians. A recent census reports 69% of Ghanians are Christian, 16% Muslim, 9% Traditional, and 6% have no religious affiliation.
Some people ask why Latter-day Saints spend so much time attempting to teach and baptize people who are already Christians. A part of the answer is found in the following story shared by a famous Protestant scholar:
On a recent trip to Japan I found myself late at night in a pastor’s study in one of the largest churches in Tokyo . . . . I had flown in that morning and had already endured a rigorous day of meetings. I wanted to check into my hotel room and go to sleep, but Japanese hospitality required this courtesy visit. The pastor pulled out a sheaf of papers and, through an interpreter, told me that during his entire career he had worried over this one issue but was afraid of speaking to anyone about it. Would I listen? I nodded for him to continue . . . .
For the next twenty minutes without interruption the pastor poured out in agony how he felt over the 99 percent of Japanese [people] who had not accepted Jesus. Would they all burn in hell because of their ignorance? He had heard of theologians who believed in people having a second chance after death and knew of the mysterious passage in 1 Peter about Jesus preaching to those in Hades [Hell]. Some theologians he had read seemed to believe in universal salvation although certain passages in the Bible indicted otherwise. Could I offer him any hope? . . . .
“I do not know the answer to your questions,” I said at last. “But I believe strongly that at the end of time no one will be able to stand before God and say ‘you were unfair!’ However [as] history settles out, it will settle on the side of justice tempered by mercy.” (Phillip Yancey, Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference? Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2006, pp. 38-40)
This learned man was not able to answer a question many have asked for thousands of years: "What happens to those who die without having had the opportunity of hearing of Jesus Christ and His gospel?" The answer seems simple to you and to me, but only because we are blessed to have been taught the restored gospel of Jesus Christ as found in the teachings of Latter-day prophets. Parts of the answer (as mentioned in the story above) are also found in the Bible in such passages such as 1 Peter 3: 16-19 and 1 Peter 4:6 (see also Hebrews 11:40), but one doesn't really understand the complete answer until they have been taught the Plan of Salvation as found in modern revelation.
How would you answer the pastor's question in the story above? While this Japanese pastor was concerned about the millions of Japanese people who had died never having heard of Jesus Christ, the same question can be asked of the millions upon millions of African people who have lived and died never hearing of the Savior. What will become of them?
Two of the best answers are found in the Doctrine and Covenants in Sections 137 & 138. I invite you to study these sections as a reminder of the wonderful answers contained in the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. I also suggest that as you teach your investigators, remember to look for opportunities to teach them gospel principles they do not already know.
Many of these principles are the "plain and precious things" that had been "taken away from the gospel of the Lamb" (1 Nephi 13:26). Be careful not to take the people you teach beyond what is found in Preach My Gospel, and to give them too much too soon, but there is so much to share. For starters, consider the following doctrines that are unique to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:
Salvation for the dead
Temples and temple work for the dead and the living
Pre-mortal life
Eternal nature of marriage and family relationships
Latter-day prophets, apostles, and seventy
Priesthood being held and administered by lay-members
The nature of God--- the Father and the Son as separate beings with glorified bodies of flesh and bone
Eternal progression of man and woman
Additional scripture and modern revelation
As you know, there are many, many more. Take the time necessary to study and learn the doctrines of the Restoration and how to teach them with power and in a way that can be understood by the people. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is more than just another "good church" it is the Kingdom of God upon the earth. The doctrines of the Restoration are often what will attract the full attention of the "elect"whom we are working so hard to find, teach, and baptize.
Be Respectful of Other Religions
Even though it is our testimony to the world that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is "the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth, with which . . . the Lord [is] well pleased" (D&C 1:30), we must not forget that there is much that is good in the other faiths as well.
Several years ago while I was on an assignment for the Church in the nation of Guam I had an interesting experience with the local mission president. We were sitting together in a priesthood meeting in a local branch when the quorum instructor began to speak negatively of many of the other churches on the island. After listening for a few minutes, the mission president raised his hand and gently corrected the instructor. He reminded him, and the others attending the class, how very grateful they should be for the early Catholic missionaries who brought Christianity to the islands of Guam hundreds of years before. He also described how these early Catholic missionaries had taught the people to read and to write, and to study the Bible in the many different languages that existed on the many different Islands in that part of the world. The instructor resisted the comment by the mission president and soon moved on to a different topic.
After the meeting was over, a man approached the mission president and explained to him how grateful he had been for the president's comments and explained that he was not a member of the LDS Church, but had come to the meetings that day with his wife and five children just to see how the Latter-day Saints worshipped. He expressed how he had become weary of the pastor in his own church continually criticizing the beliefs of others. He said that when he had heard the quorum teacher begin to criticize other churches he was just about to leave the meeting, collect his family and go home when the mission president had made his comment. He was deeply touched by the love the mission president had voiced the contributions of other religions. This man and his family were later baptized. We must have a spirit of tolerance and love as we work with those of other faiths.
As you teach, remember the following words of President Gordon B. Hinckley to those not of our faith: "Bring all the good you have and see if we can add to it" (BYU Devotional, November 4, 1997). Also, consider the following words of President Ezra Taft Benson concerning the "good men" of the earth who are not yet members of the Church:
God, the Father of us all, uses the men of the earth, especially good men, to accomplish his purposes. It has been true in the past, it is true today, it will be true in the future.
"Perhaps the Lord needs such men on the outside of His Church to help it along," said the late Elder Orson F. Whitney of the Quorum of the Twelve. "They are among its auxiliaries, and can do more good for the cause where the Lord has placed them, than anywhere else . . . . Hence, some are drawn into the fold and receive a testimony of the truth; while others remain unconverted . . . the beauties and glories of the gospel being veiled temporarily from their view, for a wise purpose. The Lord will open their eyes in His own due time. God is using more than one people for the accomplishment of His great and marvelous work. The Latter-day Saints cannot do it all. It is too vast, too arduous for any one people . . . .We have no quarrel with the Gentiles. They are our partners in a certain sense." (Ensign, July 1972, p. 59)
It is my prayer that we will teach the doctrines of the Restoration and at the same time be very respectful of the beliefs of those who are not yet members of the Church. Your respectful attitudes will be a part of what will eventually allow them to fully embrace the gospel. In the end, we must help them understand that the fulness of the gospel of Christ is only found in the restored Church. The Prophet Nephi explained:
For behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which they have. (2 Nephi 28:30)
There is a special spirit and power that will come into your own lives and the lives of those you teach as you strive to identify and to teach the doctrines of the Restoration.
I hope you find great joy in helping build the Kingdom of God here in Ghana. Some days are very difficult, but it is a joy for me to be engaged in this great work with each of you. Don't be discouraged when the difficult days come. Remember, "For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things" (2 Nephi 2:11, italics added).
I feel very blessed to be your president and your fellow missionary.
Much Love,
President Judd" (Plain and Precious Principles, 9 July 2012).
K, well, I love all of you! Read the Book of Mormon each day! I've also been reading the Conference talks. I would advise everyone to re-read through those as well. Maybe split your study time between the two. Or, better yet, make another time to go back through the Conference talks. All just depends on your schedule. But, do what you can. I promise each of you that it will bless you, you will find answers to your questions and your concerns, and you will feel yourself coming closer to Christ.
I love you all! Take care, and God bless!
--Elder Collings
Anyways, to explain last week: E. Madamombe and I were instructed to refill the spare gas tank before he was transferred. We left the apartment at 2 pm to fill the tank. We got at the place to do so around 2:40. We waited until 4 for the light to come back so the people could power the pump to fill the gas (actually, the had to fix the generator; either way, we got power). We then waited until 5:20 or so, in the rain, for a tro-tro to get back home. None came, but finally - after we lugged the tank a wee bit down the road to a better junction to catch a car at - we got a good Samaritan who picked us and dropped us at the junction leading to our house. We then found that no cars pass that area, so we had to lug the tank about 1/3 mile back to the apartment. Ok, so I honestly don't know the exact distance but it was somehow far. Anyways, we didn't get back until about 6:30. We then had to head over to Br. Quayson (the WML) for a meeting, and then finally got to cafe around 8:50. So, I had just enough time to send a quick letter to Pres. and a blurb to you guys. Sorry about that.
So, back to this week. It was very interesting. I had to go to Lebanon (area in my District) to be with another Elder while my companion left for home on Tuesday. I then went on transfer on Wednesday, and we didn't get back until about 6 due to traffic. We then had Zone Leader's Council on Thursday, finished that around 4 pm and due to traffic didn't get back until 9:20 pm; haha. I live in the boonies of Accra (technically, Tema, but it's all the city). Friday we then had to go to Tema for a baptismal interview at 4, the guy was late, and finally at 7pm said he wont be coming. Then, due to traffic, we got back around 9:30 so, Saturday and Sunday were the only days we could really proselyte, and Sunday evening was light-off, as was today. Hence why this letter is so late (but it won't appear that way to most of you anyway).
SO! As for the title. Guess who my new companions is! I'm willing to bet no one guessed it.
It's E. Nembaware!!! My first-born in the wilderness! Haha. He's been Zone Leader up in Koforidua for a while, and Pres. sent him here to help clean up the Zone. Pres. told us he put us back together because he knows that we're both very obedient and capable of the task this Zone will need. So, E. Nembaware's here so he can take the place over when I leave. It's really awesome to serve with him again. As E. Anderson put it "You got to start his mission, and now he gets to finish yours." I'm really happy for it. Also! E. Beafeaux is training! E. Larsen as well (he's even District Leader). It's just great.
Anyways, it's been light-off today, as I mentioned, so I can't say much. We are teaching some awesome people. Edmund is one of them. He's been a wee bit slow to accept things, but he's been reading the Book of Mormon, and slowly but surely I think he's growing a testimony of it. We had a nice spiritual experience with him where we read Alma's counsel to "watch and pray continually, that ye may not be tempted above that which ye can bear" (Alma 13:28). He read that (in an answer to his question) and then smiled and said to himself "It's the same thing as Paul!" The Spirit swept into the room and testified of the Book of Mormon's truthfulness, and he really liked it. We then explained how accepting the Book of Mormon doesn't detract anything from the truthfulness of the Bible; it simply accepts the fact that God has more truth for us today. He pondered that (I used two flashlights as an example) and then said "You now, each time I meet with you guys, I understand what you mean a little more." He's really coming along, and I think in a week or two he should have a testimony and be willing to be baptized. We shall pray and see.
Anyways, that's the Spiritual experience for the week. Benedicta traveled (not sure if I mentioned her before; more next week) so we hope to teach her this week. Hopefully she'll be baptized later in July.
Welp, here's Pres.'s letter. I hope you like it! It's a good one. I exhort each of you to follow the invitations in it, and to apply it in your own lives.
"Dear Elders and Sisters:
It only takes a short time living in Ghana to realize this country is a Christian nation. While there are non-Christians living in Ghana, the great majority of the citizens of Ghana identify themselves as Christians. A recent census reports 69% of Ghanians are Christian, 16% Muslim, 9% Traditional, and 6% have no religious affiliation.
Some people ask why Latter-day Saints spend so much time attempting to teach and baptize people who are already Christians. A part of the answer is found in the following story shared by a famous Protestant scholar:
On a recent trip to Japan I found myself late at night in a pastor’s study in one of the largest churches in Tokyo . . . . I had flown in that morning and had already endured a rigorous day of meetings. I wanted to check into my hotel room and go to sleep, but Japanese hospitality required this courtesy visit. The pastor pulled out a sheaf of papers and, through an interpreter, told me that during his entire career he had worried over this one issue but was afraid of speaking to anyone about it. Would I listen? I nodded for him to continue . . . .
For the next twenty minutes without interruption the pastor poured out in agony how he felt over the 99 percent of Japanese [people] who had not accepted Jesus. Would they all burn in hell because of their ignorance? He had heard of theologians who believed in people having a second chance after death and knew of the mysterious passage in 1 Peter about Jesus preaching to those in Hades [Hell]. Some theologians he had read seemed to believe in universal salvation although certain passages in the Bible indicted otherwise. Could I offer him any hope? . . . .
“I do not know the answer to your questions,” I said at last. “But I believe strongly that at the end of time no one will be able to stand before God and say ‘you were unfair!’ However [as] history settles out, it will settle on the side of justice tempered by mercy.” (Phillip Yancey, Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference? Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2006, pp. 38-40)
This learned man was not able to answer a question many have asked for thousands of years: "What happens to those who die without having had the opportunity of hearing of Jesus Christ and His gospel?" The answer seems simple to you and to me, but only because we are blessed to have been taught the restored gospel of Jesus Christ as found in the teachings of Latter-day prophets. Parts of the answer (as mentioned in the story above) are also found in the Bible in such passages such as 1 Peter 3: 16-19 and 1 Peter 4:6 (see also Hebrews 11:40), but one doesn't really understand the complete answer until they have been taught the Plan of Salvation as found in modern revelation.
How would you answer the pastor's question in the story above? While this Japanese pastor was concerned about the millions of Japanese people who had died never having heard of Jesus Christ, the same question can be asked of the millions upon millions of African people who have lived and died never hearing of the Savior. What will become of them?
Two of the best answers are found in the Doctrine and Covenants in Sections 137 & 138. I invite you to study these sections as a reminder of the wonderful answers contained in the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. I also suggest that as you teach your investigators, remember to look for opportunities to teach them gospel principles they do not already know.
Many of these principles are the "plain and precious things" that had been "taken away from the gospel of the Lamb" (1 Nephi 13:26). Be careful not to take the people you teach beyond what is found in Preach My Gospel, and to give them too much too soon, but there is so much to share. For starters, consider the following doctrines that are unique to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:
Salvation for the dead
Temples and temple work for the dead and the living
Pre-mortal life
Eternal nature of marriage and family relationships
Latter-day prophets, apostles, and seventy
Priesthood being held and administered by lay-members
The nature of God--- the Father and the Son as separate beings with glorified bodies of flesh and bone
Eternal progression of man and woman
Additional scripture and modern revelation
As you know, there are many, many more. Take the time necessary to study and learn the doctrines of the Restoration and how to teach them with power and in a way that can be understood by the people. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is more than just another "good church" it is the Kingdom of God upon the earth. The doctrines of the Restoration are often what will attract the full attention of the "elect"whom we are working so hard to find, teach, and baptize.
Be Respectful of Other Religions
Even though it is our testimony to the world that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is "the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth, with which . . . the Lord [is] well pleased" (D&C 1:30), we must not forget that there is much that is good in the other faiths as well.
Several years ago while I was on an assignment for the Church in the nation of Guam I had an interesting experience with the local mission president. We were sitting together in a priesthood meeting in a local branch when the quorum instructor began to speak negatively of many of the other churches on the island. After listening for a few minutes, the mission president raised his hand and gently corrected the instructor. He reminded him, and the others attending the class, how very grateful they should be for the early Catholic missionaries who brought Christianity to the islands of Guam hundreds of years before. He also described how these early Catholic missionaries had taught the people to read and to write, and to study the Bible in the many different languages that existed on the many different Islands in that part of the world. The instructor resisted the comment by the mission president and soon moved on to a different topic.
After the meeting was over, a man approached the mission president and explained to him how grateful he had been for the president's comments and explained that he was not a member of the LDS Church, but had come to the meetings that day with his wife and five children just to see how the Latter-day Saints worshipped. He expressed how he had become weary of the pastor in his own church continually criticizing the beliefs of others. He said that when he had heard the quorum teacher begin to criticize other churches he was just about to leave the meeting, collect his family and go home when the mission president had made his comment. He was deeply touched by the love the mission president had voiced the contributions of other religions. This man and his family were later baptized. We must have a spirit of tolerance and love as we work with those of other faiths.
As you teach, remember the following words of President Gordon B. Hinckley to those not of our faith: "Bring all the good you have and see if we can add to it" (BYU Devotional, November 4, 1997). Also, consider the following words of President Ezra Taft Benson concerning the "good men" of the earth who are not yet members of the Church:
God, the Father of us all, uses the men of the earth, especially good men, to accomplish his purposes. It has been true in the past, it is true today, it will be true in the future.
"Perhaps the Lord needs such men on the outside of His Church to help it along," said the late Elder Orson F. Whitney of the Quorum of the Twelve. "They are among its auxiliaries, and can do more good for the cause where the Lord has placed them, than anywhere else . . . . Hence, some are drawn into the fold and receive a testimony of the truth; while others remain unconverted . . . the beauties and glories of the gospel being veiled temporarily from their view, for a wise purpose. The Lord will open their eyes in His own due time. God is using more than one people for the accomplishment of His great and marvelous work. The Latter-day Saints cannot do it all. It is too vast, too arduous for any one people . . . .We have no quarrel with the Gentiles. They are our partners in a certain sense." (Ensign, July 1972, p. 59)
It is my prayer that we will teach the doctrines of the Restoration and at the same time be very respectful of the beliefs of those who are not yet members of the Church. Your respectful attitudes will be a part of what will eventually allow them to fully embrace the gospel. In the end, we must help them understand that the fulness of the gospel of Christ is only found in the restored Church. The Prophet Nephi explained:
For behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which they have. (2 Nephi 28:30)
There is a special spirit and power that will come into your own lives and the lives of those you teach as you strive to identify and to teach the doctrines of the Restoration.
I hope you find great joy in helping build the Kingdom of God here in Ghana. Some days are very difficult, but it is a joy for me to be engaged in this great work with each of you. Don't be discouraged when the difficult days come. Remember, "For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things" (2 Nephi 2:11, italics added).
I feel very blessed to be your president and your fellow missionary.
Much Love,
President Judd" (Plain and Precious Principles, 9 July 2012).
K, well, I love all of you! Read the Book of Mormon each day! I've also been reading the Conference talks. I would advise everyone to re-read through those as well. Maybe split your study time between the two. Or, better yet, make another time to go back through the Conference talks. All just depends on your schedule. But, do what you can. I promise each of you that it will bless you, you will find answers to your questions and your concerns, and you will feel yourself coming closer to Christ.
I love you all! Take care, and God bless!
--Elder Collings
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletethough some may be Cloudy on the J-E-N-O-V-A joke, i thought it was great. im proud of what your doing, but ill be glad when your back too.
Delete