Hello all! It was a great week! We saw half of Conference but it was sooo good! I am going to be ALL IN and STAND UP INSIDE for sure. I loooooovvee Conference!! It is like the supreme Bowl or a new movie coming out as a missionary - so good!
I can't believe it is already the last week of the transfer. Does anyone else feel like it just started? This week we saw miracles! Now I have talked a little about our Brazilian class where we teach Brazilians and Peruvians English every Saturday, but this week I will go a little more in depth. This week we had the Kawagoe Elders come up and help us teach because Elder Passos is Brazilian and he can translate for us. But after the lesson was over and we were casually talking to our students, one of them, Giovanna, comes up and just said she is amazed by the light we have with us every week and she said she wants to start taking the lessons and learn about our church and come to church on Sunday. Now I don't know if that is what Brazil is like every day but.. I liked it. I liked that moment. Good moment.
She and her daughter came to church and a member David translated. What a great week! They go faster and faster.
My brother wrote me and said "Jesus is the Christ. He truly can redeem anyone...and that is what I miss. I miss running from person to person to tell them that their weight, their pain, and their loneliness can be taken from them." Oh how that rang true with me. I am getting more and more scared of that day when I will not get to put on this name tag and tell one more of these I love that it is going to be ok, that they have a Father in Heaven who loves them, and a Savior who can take away all of the pain.
It makes me think every day, what effect am I having on these my people? Then the thought from President David O. McKay always comes to my mind. "A man radiates what he is; and that radiation effects everyone he comes in contact with." I have held onto that so much in my mission. Who am I? What am I radiating? Love, happiness, hope? How am I positively effecting those around me? Who am I striving to be? Am I brightening even one person's day each day? I have been so blessed to have been born with the knowledge of who I truly am and I need to give everything because it is not fair for me to be blessed with that knowledge and keep it to myself. Please never miss a chance to show love.
Sorry to dive deep into that. I don't want to bring any one down! I am so happy here:) it is the best place on earth and God's hands are all over it:) today I want to talk about God's hands and His love for a minute.. or five 😬
This week I was hit by the principle of Unity and being One. Honestly, as a missionary the importance is so constantly emphasized that sometimes it can become almost casual or "Ya I know, I know." "Unity again? Ok. I'm ready, I'm ready." But the more I pondered on Unity I realized it truly may be the most powerful force in this gospel. Ever. Unity and being One can literally pull down the powers of Heaven. Why? Because it was this power that created the Heavens itself! And honestly when we are in perfect unity nothing can stop us from performing a great work. It is almost scary how powerful we can be. Going back to the beginning of the world, we see the power in acting as one.
Genesis 11
1 And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech.
4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
5 And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded.
6 And the Lord said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.
Acting United can literally bring Heaven to Earth and Earth to Heaven! The line between Telestial and Celestial becomes blurred. The Father himself said that "NOTHING will be refrained from them, which they have imagined to do." Nothing. He had to confound their language to stop them from reaching Heaven's heights. Nothing could have stopped them. And nothing did stop the unity of the people of the City of Enoch from reaching Heaven's heights. The difference being they were United with the Lord's will. They exemplified the unity of the Father and the Son. And the Holy Ghost as well. The Godhead. So United in purpose that many in the world cannot even distinguish them as separate beings! They always act as one. "When the Father created the earth, He did so 'by [His] Only Begotten' Son." When acting as one, worlds can be created. When divided.. houses can fall. Even Heaven's house. Sadly, we were there to witness that.
Unity in Latin means one. We are told that the Father the Son and the Holy Ghost are one in Mosiah 15, on three occasions in 3rd Nephi, and again in Mormon 7. We see it in John and 1 John. And more in D&C. Their Unity is ever binding and unbreakable. Their unity is perfect to the point of fulfilling all righteousness in a perfect Plan of Happiness. Without the Father and the Son being One, the plan could not be accomplished to save God's children, as a Savior was needed to be perfectly aligned in His will and be about His business. (I think that is why they say it so much in the scriptures. To emphasize that it was essential to complete the plan. Not that they are one person.)
Furthermore, if we can be one with the Father and the Son we can access the power of that Plan.
Romans 12
5 So we, being many, are one body in Christ...
We must be one body as members of this church and be one with the Savior to be about in His business. But what is the one environment that is ringing in my mind as we speak on a topic such as this? Should it not be on the one place that is meant to be an extension of Heaven on earth? The home. The family. A family built in unity with the Savior lives in a home edified, pulling down Heaven's heights. As if pulling down a home directly from the City of Enoch. Or raising one up unto it.
The companionship of the Father and the Son is just that. A Father and a son. Family. Their relationship and unity is meant to be directly implemented in our marriages, our families, and I will add, in the companionship of two missionaries sent to do the will of the Father in place of the Savior. If we are to do as the Savior would do we must have a relationship with the Father as the Savior had. Or at least as close to it as we can. When unified we can accomplish anything! Satan would do anything to stop it. Look around. We live in Telestial horizons full of divided continents, nations, states, communities, and sadly... homes. Satan divides the home, so he can divide the world. It all starts at home. It starts within our own families
Again, in Preach My Gospel, it says that the home should be an extension of Heaven. But how can we perpetuate Heaven in our homes? Well, in my mind the home should be just how we picture what Heaven will be like when we enter after this life. Full of people waiting with open arms excited to see us. A place built off of the teachings of Christ. A place where the Spirit can dwell. Clean. A place of safety and rest. A place where we are not scared to be ourselves. A place of love, patience, learning, and growing. A place where everyone is one. A place where differences are overlooked.
We are all different. Everyone has weaknesses and falls short of the Glory of God time and time again. But love does not have to weaken because of another person's weakness!! We love each other in weakness. The strength of our love should not be based on other's people's strengths. We love each other for our weaknesses! Because that is what makes us, us. Because we should not see each other as we are, but as we can become.
Sometimes it might be hard and discouraging. Especially from the results of others agency. But don't give up! "Quitting won't make you feel better. Stopping isn't the answer. Keep your eyes on the Horizon. Keep your eyes on the Savior. All you have to do is keep working." -Elder Christofferson. Never settle for mediocre. Average is the enemy of excellent.
We should see a Telestial world as one Celestial. We should see our families as Celestial. We should see and believe in ourselves and others, one day being Celestial. And then live with love to bring that Celestial horizon to shore.
To all missionaries in the field, always be unified with your companion every day! Be united as one with Christ. Do His will and give everything! It brings the blessings of Heaven and you will do the work of the Lord no matter what the visual results are at the end of the day. Be patient with them. You don't have to like everything they do but you do need to love them and see them through a parent's eyes! Unlike in Genesis, the Lord will not confound your language but will rather give you the very words you should speak in he moment you should speak them. And treasure every day!
To married couples and families, please make your home an extension of Heaven. That does not mean being perfect, but it does mean trying a little harder to be more patient, more loving, not judging each other's actions or fighting (especially siblings Haha. I have been down that road), and communicating as openly as the Father and the Son. Daily!
But all of this perfect unity business is never found in coming unto each other. It is always found in coming unto Christ and meeting each other there. Humbly at His feet. We always stand at first and third base and He is at home plate. We can only come together by coming unto Him. Sorry that my thoughts his week are all over the place but my plea is just that we may be united as ONE in Christ as families, missionaries, members in our wards, etc. so that we may truly access Christ's atonement. At-one- ment. It was performed for the "one," but may I add that it was also performed so that we may be "one" with Christ. May we strive to live in Zion communities and have "Zion homes." On to Zion! May we ever be one! (Sorry I was all over the place but I thought Unity was pretty cool.)
Love,
Elder Trevor Aiken
No comments:
Post a Comment