34 Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen?
we are all 'called' in some capacity or another. we are called to be leaders or examples or other areas of service. what does 'chosen' mean in this context? to me, it is synonymous with "effective" or "ideal" or "good" or "proper". therefore, to rephrase it, we all have work to do, but few are really good or effective at accomplishing the task at hand.
from here, we dig into why some people are good and effective at callings or leadership while others are not.
35 Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men, that they do not learn this one lesson—
reason number one why some people aren't so effective: their hearts are not in the right place; their intentions are not good. they want to lead in order to be popular or prestigious or to perhaps become wealthy from the position.
36 That the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness.
in a priesthood leadership context, some people want to be priesthood leaders to be popular; but they fail to understand that they must always be righteous and wise and just in order to be an effective and good leader.
37 That they may be conferred upon us, it is true; but when we undertake to cover our sins, or to gratify our pride, our vain ambition, or to exercise control or dominion or compulsion upon the souls of the children of men, in any degree of unrighteousness, behold, the heavens withdraw themselves; the Spirit of the Lord is grieved; and when it is withdrawn, Amen to the priesthood or the authority of that man.
leadership keys and priesthood authority may be granted us, but we lose that authority when we are prideful, vain or when we exercise control over people because of our position of authority. many are aware of the catholic church priest scandals; but even the LDS church has its own issues and history. as recent as this year, the news was filled with reports about a man named Joseph Bishop, who assaulted a sister missionary in the MTC of all places. there are many other cases of heinous behavior of leaders abusing their position of authority (see wikipedia entry on mormon abuse case).
there are two key lessons here:
1. don't assume a bishop or stake president or mission president or general authority are good people. reserve judgement and be mindful of never letting down your guard. speak up for yourself; tell a trusted adult if you've been the victim of such heinous behavior. DO NOT be silent about such matters; whether you've been the victim or if a friend or someone you know has suffered abuse.
2. if you are in a leadership position, you must set a higher standard for yourself. don't ever let your actions betray the trust of others.
as youth, you should be aware of on-going efforts by a bishop who lives in houston, who has made it his mission to make bishop interviews less sexually explicit. also, some people think it is a great idea to ensure there is more than one adult in the room when a leader interviews a child or young adult. for more information about this effort, see: http://protectldschildren.org/
38 Behold, ere he is aware, he is left unto himself, to kick against the pricks, to persecute the saints, and to fight against God.
do you know what the term "kick against the pricks" means?
a prick or an ox goad was a stick with a pointed piece of iron on its tip used to prod the oxen when plowing. The farmer would prick the animal to steer it in the right direction. Sometimes the animal would rebel by kicking out at the prick, and this would result in the prick being driven even further into its flesh. In essence, the more an ox rebelled, the more it suffered.
maybe a more modern-day application would be "tire spikes." maybe you've seen these in a parking lot, where you pay where you enter, but where you exit the parking lot, to prevent non-payers from entering, the lot has theses tire spikes. if you roll over the spikes while exiting the lot, the spikes fold down. but if you back up or go the wrong way over the spikes, it will pop your tires - a very costly mistake.
39 We have learned by sad experience that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion.
according to D&C 121, most people are power hungry - in that when they get power and authority, the begin to abuse it. this is a very stern warning for all of us - that we should be aware of our bias toward power.
40 Hence many are called, but few are chosen.
power hunger is the reason why so few are effective.
41 No power or influence can or ought to be maintained by virtue of the priesthood, only by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned;
no one can or should tell you what to do for the reason of: "because i said so; or i command you to ..." this really only works in the military. in normal day-to-day interactions, for anyone to be an effective leader, they must actually be good people.
up to this point in D&C 121, we've been talking about the traps of leadership. now it gets into how to actually be a good and effective leader.
you can't just boss people around.
use persuasion, reason, logic.
long-suffering simply means being patient with people.
anger never really works; the other end of the spectrum from anger is gentleness. how effective have your parents or leaders been when they get angry or upset? are you more willing to do what someone tells you when they are freaking out or when they are gentle?
love unfeigned - what does 'feign' mean? it means 'fake or false or to pretend'. do you like it when people pretend to love you or when they actually love you? it's an obvious answer. so the lesson here is: don't be fake. be genuine.
42 By kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy, and without guile—
similar to gentleness is kindness. again, think of when leaders have been kind to you. are they more effective or less effective?
pure knowledge - is it better when a leader gives you good reasons for doing something? or is it better when they just give opinions? we are all biased in some way or another. we assume we know, when in reality, we really don't know. many of us don't admit we don't know. it is always better to let data and sound knowledge guide us. this is what pure knowledge is.
being lead by good information and knowledge will prevent leaders from being hypocrites and it will give them confidence in their decisions (confidence = enlarging the soul).
guile is simply deception.
43 Reproving betimes with sharpness, when moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and then showing forth afterwards an increase of love toward him whom thou hast reproved, lest he esteem thee to be his enemy;
followers will sometimes disobey a leader. in those cases, the leader needs to provide feedback. the old-school style would typically involve yelling and foaming at the mouth - which is, less effective.
a better way to provide feedback (which really is the essence of "reproving someone") is to ensure the feedback is given in a timely manner. this is why your teachers assign homework and give quizzes in between tests. if a lesson has been given, but the teacher doesn't know you've learned the lesson until the final exam, that is not very timely feedback. even at work, all the employees are ranked once a year; but once a year feedback is not enough, therefore, we are coached frequently. failure is bound to happen, but we lose opportunities to teach and learn if we don't actually think about and learn from our failures.
after you provide feedback, be sure to give encouragement and try to make the feedback experience positive.
this whole concept is easily apparent in dog-training. you train your dog with positive reinforcement; not negative.
44 That he may know that thy faithfulness is stronger than the cords of death.
better to enjoy the kindness and confidence of a leader than the fear of hellfire damnation!
45 Let thy bowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.
charity is the greatest of all. see Moroni 7:45-48.
virtue (self-discipline, courage, justice, wisdom and the related virtues) should guide you in all your do as a person and as a leader. at one point in time "garnish" actually meant , in part, "to warn or defend" (link). If we apply this meaning in this context, we should let virtue guard our thoughts unceasingly or all the time - we should never let our guard down. in today's terms, i often hear that we need to "be mindful."
if we can guard our thoughts with virtue all the time, then we will be confident relative to our position with God and with others. we won't have anything to hide or feel guilt for.
pure doctrine - sound reason - real knowledge will seep (distil) into our minds like dew on grass. have you ever notice your grass or a field at night - does it have dew on it? no. but in the morning, it does. it's almost magic. that process of distillation happens over hours. if we practice virtue and learn right doctrine, then that knowledge will seep into our souls and minds.
46 The Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion, and thy scepter an unchanging scepter of righteousness and truth; and thy dominion shall be an everlasting dominion, and without compulsory means it shall flow unto thee forever and ever.
wisdom will be our constant companion. what else is the holy ghost but a means for teaching us what is right and wise and just? we want to have those virtues to be with us all the time.
a scepter is a symbol of true power and authority. kings and queens have scepters. when you are an effective leader, your symbolic scepter will be righteousness and truth.
your domain or sphere of influence, will grow. people will begin to seek you out; looking for your wisdom - all because you have take the time and effort to learn how to be an effective leader.
Showing posts with label Holy Ghost. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Holy Ghost. Show all posts
Saturday, June 09, 2018
Saturday, January 27, 2018
January Week 3 - The Holy Ghost Helps You Learn
Definition and Mission of the Holy Ghost
Have class search scriptures (Topical Guide, Gospel Topics, Bible Dictionary) for a definition and mission of the Holy Ghost.
Some key scriptures:
John 14:15-27
John 16:5-15
- v. 7 "it is expedient for you that I [Jesus Christ] go away" (prescribed)
Romans 8:1-17
- especially v. 13-17
Galatians 5:16-26
- fruits / feelings of vice & virtue
"counselor" - John 16:8
guides us, tells us to do the things of God; helps us pray - Romans 8
The Holy Ghost won't tell us to do anything contrary to the commandments or will of God. We know when we are feeling the Holy Ghost by the good fruits (see Galatians).
Case Studies
Spend some time discussing various examples.
- Nephi & Laban
- President Monson and other promptings to visit people
- Mission experience to establish area in Belize (Kekchi speaking people)
Elder Scott
"Once I had an experience that caused me immense anxiety. It had nothing to do with disobedience or transgression but with a vitally important human relationship. For some time I poured my heart out in urgent prayer. Yet try as I might, I could find no solution, no settling of the powerful stirring within me. I pled for help from that Eternal Father I have come to know and trust completely. I could see no path that would provide the calm that is my blessing generally to enjoy. Sleep overcame me. When I awoke, I was totally at peace. Again I knelt in solemn prayer and asked, “Lord, how is it done?” In my heart, I knew the answer was His love and His concern for me. Such is the power of sincere prayer to a compassionate Father." https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2007/04/using-the-supernal-gift-of-prayer?lang=eng
From the same talk:
"This guidance about prayer given to Oliver Cowdery can also aid you: “Behold, … you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me.
“… You must study it out in your mind; then … ask me if it be right, and if it is right … your bosom shall burn … ; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.”8
Then the answer comes as a feeling with an accompanying conviction. The Savior defines two separate ways: “I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost.”9
Answers to the mind and heart are messages from the Holy Ghost to our spirits. For me, response to the mind is very specific, like dictated words, while response to the heart is generalized, like a feeling to pray more.10
Then the Lord clarifies, “But if [what you propose] be not right you … shall have a stupor of thought.”11 That, for me, is an unsettling, discomforting feeling.
Oliver Cowdery was taught another way in which positive answers come: “Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter?”12 The feeling of peace is the most common confirming witness that I personally experience. When I have been very concerned about an important matter, struggling to resolve it without success, I continued those efforts in faith. Later, an all-pervading peace has come, settling my concerns, as He has promised.
Some misunderstandings about prayer can be clarified by realizing that the scriptures define principles for effective prayer, but they do not assure when a response will be given. Actually, He will reply in one of three ways. First, you can feel the peace, comfort, and assurance that confirm that your decision is right. Or second, you can sense that unsettled feeling, the stupor of thought, indicating that your choice is wrong. Or third—and this is the difficult one—you can feel no response.
What do you do when you have prepared carefully, have prayed fervently, waited a reasonable time for a response, and still do not feel an answer? You may want to express thanks when that occurs, for it is an evidence of His trust. When you are living worthily and your choice is consistent with the Savior’s teachings and you need to act, proceed with trust. As you are sensitive to the promptings of the Spirit, one of two things will certainly occur at the appropriate time: either the stupor of thought will come, indicating an improper choice, or the peace or the burning in the bosom will be felt, confirming that your choice was correct. When you are living righteously and are acting with trust, God will not let you proceed too far without a warning impression if you have made the wrong decision."
Gospel Topics and Essays
Holy Ghost
Revelation
Revelation at work: Race and the Priesthood
Other Links
Liquid Luck
Have class search scriptures (Topical Guide, Gospel Topics, Bible Dictionary) for a definition and mission of the Holy Ghost.
Some key scriptures:
John 14:15-27
John 16:5-15
- v. 7 "it is expedient for you that I [Jesus Christ] go away" (prescribed)
Romans 8:1-17
- especially v. 13-17
Galatians 5:16-26
- fruits / feelings of vice & virtue
"counselor" - John 16:8
guides us, tells us to do the things of God; helps us pray - Romans 8
The Holy Ghost won't tell us to do anything contrary to the commandments or will of God. We know when we are feeling the Holy Ghost by the good fruits (see Galatians).
Case Studies
Spend some time discussing various examples.
- Nephi & Laban
- President Monson and other promptings to visit people
- Mission experience to establish area in Belize (Kekchi speaking people)
Elder Scott
"Once I had an experience that caused me immense anxiety. It had nothing to do with disobedience or transgression but with a vitally important human relationship. For some time I poured my heart out in urgent prayer. Yet try as I might, I could find no solution, no settling of the powerful stirring within me. I pled for help from that Eternal Father I have come to know and trust completely. I could see no path that would provide the calm that is my blessing generally to enjoy. Sleep overcame me. When I awoke, I was totally at peace. Again I knelt in solemn prayer and asked, “Lord, how is it done?” In my heart, I knew the answer was His love and His concern for me. Such is the power of sincere prayer to a compassionate Father." https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2007/04/using-the-supernal-gift-of-prayer?lang=eng
From the same talk:
"This guidance about prayer given to Oliver Cowdery can also aid you: “Behold, … you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me.
“… You must study it out in your mind; then … ask me if it be right, and if it is right … your bosom shall burn … ; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.”8
Then the answer comes as a feeling with an accompanying conviction. The Savior defines two separate ways: “I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost.”9
Answers to the mind and heart are messages from the Holy Ghost to our spirits. For me, response to the mind is very specific, like dictated words, while response to the heart is generalized, like a feeling to pray more.10
Then the Lord clarifies, “But if [what you propose] be not right you … shall have a stupor of thought.”11 That, for me, is an unsettling, discomforting feeling.
Oliver Cowdery was taught another way in which positive answers come: “Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter?”12 The feeling of peace is the most common confirming witness that I personally experience. When I have been very concerned about an important matter, struggling to resolve it without success, I continued those efforts in faith. Later, an all-pervading peace has come, settling my concerns, as He has promised.
Some misunderstandings about prayer can be clarified by realizing that the scriptures define principles for effective prayer, but they do not assure when a response will be given. Actually, He will reply in one of three ways. First, you can feel the peace, comfort, and assurance that confirm that your decision is right. Or second, you can sense that unsettled feeling, the stupor of thought, indicating that your choice is wrong. Or third—and this is the difficult one—you can feel no response.
What do you do when you have prepared carefully, have prayed fervently, waited a reasonable time for a response, and still do not feel an answer? You may want to express thanks when that occurs, for it is an evidence of His trust. When you are living worthily and your choice is consistent with the Savior’s teachings and you need to act, proceed with trust. As you are sensitive to the promptings of the Spirit, one of two things will certainly occur at the appropriate time: either the stupor of thought will come, indicating an improper choice, or the peace or the burning in the bosom will be felt, confirming that your choice was correct. When you are living righteously and are acting with trust, God will not let you proceed too far without a warning impression if you have made the wrong decision."
Gospel Topics and Essays
Holy Ghost
Revelation
Revelation at work: Race and the Priesthood
Other Links
Liquid Luck
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
quotes and misc items from the back of my missionary scripture set
i've recently decided to focus on transferring my "highlights" from my missionary scripture set to my lds 'notes and journal' which is on-line. i've already completed my 'book of mormon inspection' via blog, but now i'm going back and transferring all my highlights and sidebar comments from my physical set of scriptures to my digital set.
as i've been doing this, i've found lots of little inserts and other quotes either sitting in the set or written in. i figured i could transfer these to a single post and have them placed here on this blog. each "item" is detailed below between the asterisks.
***
taken from elder loren c dunn's article in the june 1995 ensign: elder marion g romney said, "a testimony comes when the holy ghost gives the earnest seek a witness of the truth. a moving testimony vitalizes faith; that is, it induces repentance and obedience to the commandments. conversion, on the other hand, is the fruit of, or the reward for, repentance and obedience. (of course ones testimony continues to increase as he is converted)“Conversion is effected by divine forgiveness, which remits sins. The sequence is something like this. An honest seeker hears the message. He asks the Lord in prayer if it is true. The Holy Spirit gives him a witness. This is a testimony. If one’s testimony is strong enough, he repents and obeys the commandments. By such obedience he receives divine forgiveness which remits sin. Thus he is converted to a newness of life. His spirit is healed.” (see conference report october 1963)
***
i did have one non-quote item in my scriptures that i kept from december 1996 ... back then, we had to actually use pens and pencils and paper to write letters. we then had to fold the paper and put it in an envelop and mail it off which required postage. from guatemala, we would send our letters to the mission office who would put all the letters in a pouch which got delivered to salt lake city. the contents of the pouch were then dumped in the u.s. postal service system. so my letters to my family in the u.s. only cost me $.32 (compared to $.49 today). my family would send me books of stamps so i could write them back. i kept one stamp from december 1996. why did i keep it? not exactly sure, but whenever i look at this stamp, i get these warm nostalgic feelings - a reminder of home, i guess.
***
one quote is in spanish and is attributed to "dr. cristian barnard", but when i found the quote on-line, it is actually attributed to walter wintle. regardless, i like the quote.
If you think you are beaten, you are,
If you think you dare not, you don’t.
If you like to win, but you think you can’t,
It is almost certain you won’t.
If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost,
For out in the world we find,
Success begins with a fellow’s will.
It’s all in the state of mind.
If you think you are outclassed, you are,
You’ve got to think high to rise,
You’ve got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize.
Life’s battles don’t always go
To the stronger or faster man.
But soon or late the man who wins,
Is the man who thinks he can.
***
i had a clipping from a church news article (August 31, 1996) that summarized the various reasons people serve. this was from a talk given by elder dallin h oaks from the october 1984 general conference. here is the link to the whole talk: why do we serve?
***
some hand-written notes ... not sure where they came from ... maybe from a talk given at a zone conference.
at the top is the thought: there must be law or government from a supreme being for happiness to exist.
below that thought i have the word LAW circled. below is a line to two columns:
disobey - action - obey
punishment - consequence - blessing
misery - feelings - happiness
other notes
through diligent study, faith & prayer we gain knowledge.
knowledge allows us to decide wisely - to choose consequences.
we must decide what we want to receive.
who or what makes us act? we must be given choices and then choose
satan - enticement/agency - god
***
another couple of quotes; i got these from the church news as well.
the english writer william thackeray put it this way: to endure is greater than to dare; to tire out hostile fortune; to be daunted by no difficulty, to keep heart when all have lost it; to go through intrigue spotless, to forego even ambition when the end is gained - who can say this is not greatness? (the virginians)
henry wadsworth longfellow wrote a few lines that are frequently quoted:
the heights by great men reached and kept
were not attained by sudden flight,
but they, while their companions slept
were toiling upward in the night
(the ladder of st. augustine)
***
another non-quote item ... this is from my parents who were serving in the prague czech republic mission at the same time. they were on a church education mission, helping set up institutes and seminaries in central europe. my mom wanted to show me they were trying to memorize section 4 in the czech language.
as i've been doing this, i've found lots of little inserts and other quotes either sitting in the set or written in. i figured i could transfer these to a single post and have them placed here on this blog. each "item" is detailed below between the asterisks.
***
taken from elder loren c dunn's article in the june 1995 ensign: elder marion g romney said, "a testimony comes when the holy ghost gives the earnest seek a witness of the truth. a moving testimony vitalizes faith; that is, it induces repentance and obedience to the commandments. conversion, on the other hand, is the fruit of, or the reward for, repentance and obedience. (of course ones testimony continues to increase as he is converted)“Conversion is effected by divine forgiveness, which remits sins. The sequence is something like this. An honest seeker hears the message. He asks the Lord in prayer if it is true. The Holy Spirit gives him a witness. This is a testimony. If one’s testimony is strong enough, he repents and obeys the commandments. By such obedience he receives divine forgiveness which remits sin. Thus he is converted to a newness of life. His spirit is healed.” (see conference report october 1963)
***
***
one quote is in spanish and is attributed to "dr. cristian barnard", but when i found the quote on-line, it is actually attributed to walter wintle. regardless, i like the quote.
If you think you are beaten, you are,
If you think you dare not, you don’t.
If you like to win, but you think you can’t,
It is almost certain you won’t.
If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost,
For out in the world we find,
Success begins with a fellow’s will.
It’s all in the state of mind.
If you think you are outclassed, you are,
You’ve got to think high to rise,
You’ve got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize.
Life’s battles don’t always go
To the stronger or faster man.
But soon or late the man who wins,
Is the man who thinks he can.
***
i had a clipping from a church news article (August 31, 1996) that summarized the various reasons people serve. this was from a talk given by elder dallin h oaks from the october 1984 general conference. here is the link to the whole talk: why do we serve?
***
some hand-written notes ... not sure where they came from ... maybe from a talk given at a zone conference.
at the top is the thought: there must be law or government from a supreme being for happiness to exist.
below that thought i have the word LAW circled. below is a line to two columns:
disobey - action - obey
punishment - consequence - blessing
misery - feelings - happiness
other notes
through diligent study, faith & prayer we gain knowledge.
knowledge allows us to decide wisely - to choose consequences.
we must decide what we want to receive.
who or what makes us act? we must be given choices and then choose
satan - enticement/agency - god
***
another couple of quotes; i got these from the church news as well.
the english writer william thackeray put it this way: to endure is greater than to dare; to tire out hostile fortune; to be daunted by no difficulty, to keep heart when all have lost it; to go through intrigue spotless, to forego even ambition when the end is gained - who can say this is not greatness? (the virginians)
henry wadsworth longfellow wrote a few lines that are frequently quoted:
the heights by great men reached and kept
were not attained by sudden flight,
but they, while their companions slept
were toiling upward in the night
(the ladder of st. augustine)
***
Friday, September 10, 2010
The Voice of the Spirit
I watched this video on lds.org this week. It is one of the most touching and powerful videos I've ever seen or listened to.
After watching it several times, I tried finding the entire talk on the General Conference page, but I didn't find it there. I expanded my search using Google and eventually found it at BYU's speeches site. The audio of the video was taken from a talk President Faust gave at BYU on September 5, 1993.
You can find the text of that entire talk here: The Voice of the Spirit
Additionally, you can listen to the entire talk (something I highly recommend) by clicking here.
When I read this talk, I had one of those 'wow!-this-is-a-prophet-of-God' moments. This is the part of his talk when my eyes went wide open and my heart skipped a beat:
In your generation you will be barraged by multitudes of voices telling you how to live, how to gratify your passions, how to have it all. You will have up to five hundred television channels at your fingertips. There will be all sorts of software, interactive computer modems, databases, and bulletin boards; there will be desktop publishing, satellite receivers, and communications networks that will suffocate you with information. Local cable news networks will cover only local news. Everyone will be under more scrutiny. There will be fewer places of refuge and serenity. You will be bombarded with evil and wickedness like no other generation. As I contemplate this prospect, I am reminded of T. S. Eliot's words, "Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?" (The Rock [1934], I).
He gave this talk in 1993! True - the World Wide Web had just been born two years previous, but it was broadly unknown. It wasn't until 1996 that the real explosion of the information highway took place. Ever since then, we have indeed been overloaded with "voices." Read that paragraph over and over again. It was as if he wrote that in 2003 and not 1993.
Follow the prophets. Follow the voice of the Spirit.
After watching it several times, I tried finding the entire talk on the General Conference page, but I didn't find it there. I expanded my search using Google and eventually found it at BYU's speeches site. The audio of the video was taken from a talk President Faust gave at BYU on September 5, 1993.
You can find the text of that entire talk here: The Voice of the Spirit
Additionally, you can listen to the entire talk (something I highly recommend) by clicking here.
When I read this talk, I had one of those 'wow!-this-is-a-prophet-of-God' moments. This is the part of his talk when my eyes went wide open and my heart skipped a beat:
In your generation you will be barraged by multitudes of voices telling you how to live, how to gratify your passions, how to have it all. You will have up to five hundred television channels at your fingertips. There will be all sorts of software, interactive computer modems, databases, and bulletin boards; there will be desktop publishing, satellite receivers, and communications networks that will suffocate you with information. Local cable news networks will cover only local news. Everyone will be under more scrutiny. There will be fewer places of refuge and serenity. You will be bombarded with evil and wickedness like no other generation. As I contemplate this prospect, I am reminded of T. S. Eliot's words, "Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?" (The Rock [1934], I).
He gave this talk in 1993! True - the World Wide Web had just been born two years previous, but it was broadly unknown. It wasn't until 1996 that the real explosion of the information highway took place. Ever since then, we have indeed been overloaded with "voices." Read that paragraph over and over again. It was as if he wrote that in 2003 and not 1993.
Follow the prophets. Follow the voice of the Spirit.
Monday, April 12, 2010
Gospel Principles: The Holy Ghost
Sunday April 11, 2010
"Chapter 7: The Holy Ghost,” Gospel Principles, (2009), 31-33
Opening
Goal of the Lesson
To learn of the mission of the Holy Ghost and how He works in our lives.
Agenda
1. The Holy Ghost Came to Adam and Eve
2. Attributes of the Holy Ghost
3. The Mission of the Holy Ghost
Body
The Holy Ghost Came to Adam and Eve
Why did Adam and Eve need the guidance of the Holy Ghost?
• They would need to be led and guided in their life.
• Their children would need to be led and guided.
How is our need for guidance from the Holy Ghost similar to that of Adam and Eve?
• No Father would send His children off to a distant, dangerous land for a lifetime of testing where Lucifer was known to roam free without first providing them with a personal power of protection. He would also supply them with means to communicate with Him from Father to child and from child to Father. Every child of our Father sent to earth is provided with the Spirit of Christ, or the Light of Christ. We are, none of us, left here alone without hope of guidance and redemption. (Boyd K. Packer, “Prayer and Promptings,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 43–46)
o What is difference between Light of Christ and the Holy Ghost?
• Throughout the ages, many have obtained guidance helpful to resolve challenges in their lives by following the example of respected individuals who resolved similar problems. Today, world conditions change so rapidly that such a course of action is often not available to us. Personally, I rejoice in that reality because it creates a condition where we, of necessity, are more dependent upon the Spirit to guide us through the vicissitudes of life. Therefore, we are led to seek personal inspiration in life’s important decisions. (Richard G. Scott, “To Acquire Spiritual Guidance,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 6–9)
Attributes of the Holy Ghost
How does the Holy Ghost differ from the Father and the Son?
• His is a spirit (he has no body)
• He has a unique mission as a member of the Godhead
Why is that difference important to us?
• From the book, “the Holy Ghost is the revealer and testifier of all truth.”
• From the book, “the Holy Ghost is our Heavenly Father’s messenger and is a special gift to us.”
• Joseph Smith said, “There is a difference between the Holy Ghost and the gift of the Holy Ghost. Cornelius received the Holy Ghost before he was baptized, which was the convincing power of God unto him of the truth of the Gospel, but he could not receive the gift of the Holy Ghost until after he was baptized. Had he not taken this sign or ordinance upon him, the Holy Ghost which convinced him of the truth of God, would have left him. [See Acts 10:1–48.] (“Chapter 7: Baptism and the Gift of the Holy Ghost,” Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith, (2007),88–100)
The Mission of the Holy Ghost
What are some of the truths that the Holy Ghost reveals to us?
• He bears witness of Jesus Christ in all ages (D&C 20:25-27)
• He reveals to us that we are children of God and that we can become like Him (Romans 8:16-17)
• He reveals the truth of all things to us (Moroni 10:5)
The Holy Ghost bears a special witness in a way that we cannot deny it.
From the book: “When a man has the manifestation from the Holy Ghost, it leaves an indelible impression on his soul, one that is not easily erased. It is Spirit speaking to spirit, and it comes with convincing force. A manifestation of an angel, or even the Son of God himself, would impress the eye and mind, and eventually become dimmed, but the impressions of the Holy Ghost sink deeper into to soul and are more difficult to erase.” (p. 33 emphasis added)
Commentary: I've never heard this quote before, and when I read it, I was a bit taken back. So powerful (and important) is the Holy Ghost, that even a visit from Jesus Christ is not as powerful as impressions from the Holy Ghost. Do we really understand how powerful a gift we have? What are we doing to use that precious gift? Jesus understood how powerful the Holy Ghost is as well. Read 3 Nephi 19:9-22.
“Now, if you have the Holy Ghost with you—and every one ought to have—I can say unto you that there is no greater gift, there is no greater blessing, there is no greater testimony given to any man on earth. You may have the administration of angels; you may see many miracles; you may see many wonders in the earth; but I claim that the gift of the Holy Ghost is the greatest gift that can be bestowed upon man. It is by this power that we have performed that which we have. It is this that sustains us through all the persecutions, trials and tribulations that come upon us.” (“Chapter 5: The Holy Ghost and Personal Revelation,” Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Wilford Woodruff, 46)
From the book, “As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we should make ourselves worthy to receive this special messenger and witness of our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.”
“You can know of things you need to know. Pray that you will learn to receive that inspiration and remain worthy to receive it. Keep that channel – your mind – clean and free from the clutter of the world.” (Boyd K. Packer, “Prayer and Promptings,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 43–46)
Share some times the Holy Ghost has helped you grow in your testimony.
Read of a personal experience I had after praying about the Book of Mormon. The Holy Ghost bore a powerful witness to me as I prayed.
Invite others to share times the Holy Ghost has helped them.
Closing
Bear testimony of the singular mission of the Holy Ghost and how we have the most important gift anyone could have.
"Chapter 7: The Holy Ghost,” Gospel Principles, (2009), 31-33
Opening
Goal of the Lesson
To learn of the mission of the Holy Ghost and how He works in our lives.
Agenda
1. The Holy Ghost Came to Adam and Eve
2. Attributes of the Holy Ghost
3. The Mission of the Holy Ghost
Body
The Holy Ghost Came to Adam and Eve
Why did Adam and Eve need the guidance of the Holy Ghost?
• They would need to be led and guided in their life.
• Their children would need to be led and guided.
How is our need for guidance from the Holy Ghost similar to that of Adam and Eve?
• No Father would send His children off to a distant, dangerous land for a lifetime of testing where Lucifer was known to roam free without first providing them with a personal power of protection. He would also supply them with means to communicate with Him from Father to child and from child to Father. Every child of our Father sent to earth is provided with the Spirit of Christ, or the Light of Christ. We are, none of us, left here alone without hope of guidance and redemption. (Boyd K. Packer, “Prayer and Promptings,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 43–46)
o What is difference between Light of Christ and the Holy Ghost?
• Throughout the ages, many have obtained guidance helpful to resolve challenges in their lives by following the example of respected individuals who resolved similar problems. Today, world conditions change so rapidly that such a course of action is often not available to us. Personally, I rejoice in that reality because it creates a condition where we, of necessity, are more dependent upon the Spirit to guide us through the vicissitudes of life. Therefore, we are led to seek personal inspiration in life’s important decisions. (Richard G. Scott, “To Acquire Spiritual Guidance,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 6–9)
Attributes of the Holy Ghost
How does the Holy Ghost differ from the Father and the Son?
• His is a spirit (he has no body)
• He has a unique mission as a member of the Godhead
Why is that difference important to us?
• From the book, “the Holy Ghost is the revealer and testifier of all truth.”
• From the book, “the Holy Ghost is our Heavenly Father’s messenger and is a special gift to us.”
• Joseph Smith said, “There is a difference between the Holy Ghost and the gift of the Holy Ghost. Cornelius received the Holy Ghost before he was baptized, which was the convincing power of God unto him of the truth of the Gospel, but he could not receive the gift of the Holy Ghost until after he was baptized. Had he not taken this sign or ordinance upon him, the Holy Ghost which convinced him of the truth of God, would have left him. [See Acts 10:1–48.] (“Chapter 7: Baptism and the Gift of the Holy Ghost,” Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith, (2007),88–100)
The Mission of the Holy Ghost
What are some of the truths that the Holy Ghost reveals to us?
• He bears witness of Jesus Christ in all ages (D&C 20:25-27)
• He reveals to us that we are children of God and that we can become like Him (Romans 8:16-17)
• He reveals the truth of all things to us (Moroni 10:5)
The Holy Ghost bears a special witness in a way that we cannot deny it.
From the book: “When a man has the manifestation from the Holy Ghost, it leaves an indelible impression on his soul, one that is not easily erased. It is Spirit speaking to spirit, and it comes with convincing force. A manifestation of an angel, or even the Son of God himself, would impress the eye and mind, and eventually become dimmed, but the impressions of the Holy Ghost sink deeper into to soul and are more difficult to erase.” (p. 33 emphasis added)
Commentary: I've never heard this quote before, and when I read it, I was a bit taken back. So powerful (and important) is the Holy Ghost, that even a visit from Jesus Christ is not as powerful as impressions from the Holy Ghost. Do we really understand how powerful a gift we have? What are we doing to use that precious gift? Jesus understood how powerful the Holy Ghost is as well. Read 3 Nephi 19:9-22.
“Now, if you have the Holy Ghost with you—and every one ought to have—I can say unto you that there is no greater gift, there is no greater blessing, there is no greater testimony given to any man on earth. You may have the administration of angels; you may see many miracles; you may see many wonders in the earth; but I claim that the gift of the Holy Ghost is the greatest gift that can be bestowed upon man. It is by this power that we have performed that which we have. It is this that sustains us through all the persecutions, trials and tribulations that come upon us.” (“Chapter 5: The Holy Ghost and Personal Revelation,” Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Wilford Woodruff, 46)
From the book, “As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we should make ourselves worthy to receive this special messenger and witness of our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.”
“You can know of things you need to know. Pray that you will learn to receive that inspiration and remain worthy to receive it. Keep that channel – your mind – clean and free from the clutter of the world.” (Boyd K. Packer, “Prayer and Promptings,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 43–46)
Share some times the Holy Ghost has helped you grow in your testimony.
Read of a personal experience I had after praying about the Book of Mormon. The Holy Ghost bore a powerful witness to me as I prayed.
Invite others to share times the Holy Ghost has helped them.
Closing
Bear testimony of the singular mission of the Holy Ghost and how we have the most important gift anyone could have.
Thursday, March 04, 2010
Spiritual Guidance and Earthquakes
Last Sunday, I taught a lesson in Elder Quorum about spiritual guidance. The lesson was based on two talks from General Conference. I spent most of the time discussing Elder Scott's talk.
Richard G. Scott, “To Acquire Spiritual Guidance,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 6–9
Russell M. Nelson, “Ask, Seek, Knock,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 81–84
The day before I gave that lesson, I watched the news reports on Chile being the latest nation impacted from a string of powerful earthquakes that have rocked many nations including Haiti, Japan, Taiwan.
The 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile, however, has brought about a very powerful faith-promoting story. Here is the link to the story found on the Meridian Magazine website. It is interesting to note, after reading Elder Scott's talk above, that of all the things he could have taught this mission president and his wife, he chose to council them on spiritual promptings. I'm sure we'll hear more of this story in General Conference next month.
Editor’s Note: President Larry Laycock and his wife, Sister Lisa Laycock head the Santiago Chile East Mission and had spent the two weeks prior to the 8.8 earthquake visiting each missionary apartment and preparing them for an earthquake. They brought specific instructions on what to do, supplied water purification bottles for the missionaries, told them how to create a 36-hour kit for emergencies and how to stay in communication should an earthquake strike. They prayed with each missionary and dedicated their apartments. Why? Because of a special experience that alerted them to what was coming. They told their missionaries, “If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear.”
They have 171 full-time proselyting missionaries in this mission.
Special thanks to the Laycocks for allowing Meridian to publish this letter that Sister Laycock sent to her family shortly after the earthquake sharing their remarkable experience of kindness from the Lord. They are in Chile with their son, Landon.
Dear Everyone,
I am writing to let you all know how very grateful we are for your prayers, concern, and love. Please keep praying! We need the Lord's help and guidance in order to do all He would have us do to learn what He would have us learn from this earth quake tragedy, and to minister in the way He would have us minister.
During the past few days, we have witnessed many events which serve to remind us that the Lord is in charge and that as missionaries and members of His church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we are performing His work, and as President Monson teaches, "When we are on the Lord's errand, we are entitled to His help." I want to share with you a few miracles that will help you to understand our profound feelings of gratitude.
When we were set apart for this calling, Elder Scott of the Council of the Twelve Apostles taught us many important lessons. He spoke from personal experience when he was a mission president in Argentina. One message that he shared with us is this: "At times, during your mission, you will be awakened in the middle of the night or the early morning hours with thoughts of specific things you should do for certain missionaries. Do not ignore these thoughts. They are promptings from the Holy Ghost who will communicate with you in the stillness of the night or the peace of the early morning hours. He will speak to you then because that is when you are still enough to hear."
Elder Scott further instructed us to keep a notebook beside our bed so that we could record these precious promptings. He said that by the next morning, we would be likely to forget the promptings if we didn't write them down.
We have been astonished at the fulfillment of Elder Scott's prophetic words. We have received many promptings in the exact manner that Elder Scott described. We are so thankful that Elder Scott taught us how to recognize and act upon these precious promptings. Had he not taught us, we may not have given these promptings the attention they require.
Nearly two-and-one-half weeks ago, I was awakened at around 4:00 AM by just such a prompting. I did not hear a voice, but the thought was as clear as if it had been in the form of spoken words: "There is going to be an earthquake. Prepare your missionaries." I sat up in bed and immediately remembered Elder Scott's counsel. That morning I told Larry what had happened. He immediately set to work organizing our missionaries to prepare for an earthquake.
In talking with our office missionaries to arrange for them to put together a list of everything we would need to prepare...in both Spanish and English...we discovered that the Lord had also let two of our office missionaries know of the possibility of an earthquake (in the form of dreams) and the need to prepare our mission.
We set a goal and arranged our schedule so that we could visit every apartment in the mission to check for safety and to review with our missionaries what to do in case of an earth quake. What a wonderful experience we have had as we have met with them and shared scriptures with them about being spiritually and physically prepared. "...if ye are prepared, ye shall not fear" (D&C 38:30).
We instructed every missionary to have a "go-bag" (36 hour kit). We reviewed our emergency action plan with them of where to go and what to do if they had phone service and in case they did not. We gave everyone a paper with all instructions in English and Spanish, and we reminded them that "this life is the time to prepare to meet God" (Alma 34:32-34). We shared with them our thoughts and feelings about the need for spiritual and physical safety.
Some of them became frightened and asked us if we knew something they didn't know. We smiled and repeated "...if ye are prepared, ye shall not fear." We didn't want to unduly alarm them, but we did want to impress upon them the need to be prepared. We tearfully reminded them of our recent transfer conference where we had shared our feelings about our dear Elder McKay Burrows who was unexpectedly called home in January while serving his mission in Romania...how he was prepared in every way to meet God. We reissued our challenge to "be prepared" in every way. Then we knelt with them in their apartment and dedicated each apartment, asking for a blessing of safety and security to be upon every apartment.
When the earthquake came, we were prepared. We did not experience the panic that many felt. We knew we were prepared. Because of the words of the Lord's chosen Apostle, Elder Scott, we had listened and heeded the quiet, but clear promptings of the Holy Ghost. We were blessed with peace in the midst of chaos. We learned an important lesson: our preparation helped us to avoid panic and fear, but the Lord, in His wisdom, allowed us to experience enough discomfort to know that He has all power. He is in charge. We are nothing without Him. We are dependent upon Him for every breath we take. Only He can save us from death and destruction. He is the way, the truth, and the life. He is our perfect example. If we follow Him, we will be saved through obedience to the laws and ordinances of His Gospel.
As the earthquake became more violent, the mission home groaned and wailed. The power died, so the whole city was black. The windows made a hideous screeching sound, and flying objects banged against swaying walls. The printer/fax machine, books, book ends, and fifty-pound television burst from the entertainment center and crashed to the floor, cabinets emptied, drawers flew open, the refrigerator moved, water sloshed out of the toilets, the floor jolted up and down as we ran across it trying to hold onto the walls to keep from falling down, and the piano toppled over like a small toy. As we made our way to the back yard, I remember thinking, "God is all-powerful. He is our only refuge from this horrible mess." I prayed and prayed for Him to still the earth.
When we reached the back yard, we watched in terror. By the light of the moon we could see the swimming pool water form giant waves and crash out onto the rocks. House and car alarms screamed into the night...some from being crushed by falling debris and others, I guess, from the bizarre movement of the earth. I am not sure if the intense rumbling sounds came from the earth itself or from everything else that was shaking so violently. Finally, it stopped.
When the calm came, we had to sit down because our legs were weak and unstable. My legs stayed wobbly all day and night yesterday. Today the muscles in my legs hurt like I ran a marathon. The aftershocks have been extremely unsettling. Each one begins like the one last night started. We just close our eyes and wait to see if it escalates or dies down. .I have never experienced anything like this!
We were awakened this morning by a very strong after shock. Larry jumped out of bed and yelled, "Welcome to another glorious day in Chile!" We just had to laugh. We moved a mattress into the floor in our bedroom and made Landon sleep in our room. He was in his room with the door locked the night before and we couldn't wake him up. He never locks his door, but he was playing a joke on Larry because every morning Larry wakes him at 5:30 AM for seminary by tickling him unmercifully. So Landon had decided to stop him.
When we couldn't open his door, in the middle of the quake, we thought he was trapped, so we screamed and banged. Landon thought that everything was falling off the walls because we were banging so hard on the door. I think we scared him more than the earthquake did!
Today, we attended a strong ward where Larry was invited to speak. The entire chapel and beyond was filled. People were so humble and so teachable. Larry taught the importance of doing the small things. He taught about Jesus Christ and the opportunity we have to love one another and to share what we have with others.
It was a great blessing for us to be with these beautiful Chilean people. Some have lost their homes...or at least parts of their homes. But they are strong and they want to serve the Lord. He taught of the scripture in Luke 21:11,13 which says, "and great earthquakes shall be in divers places...and it shall turn to you for a testimony." He also welcomed the sweet young woman who was in the congregation with the missionaries...her first time attending church...and then he invited her to be baptized from the pulpit. He asked her to please invite us to her baptism, and she said, "I will." The Lord always knows what His people need.
Landon was reading in Alma 15:17 today. He said, Mom listen to this. This is what is happening here in Chile just like in happened in Ammonihah. The people were humbled and "checked as to the pride of their hearts and began to humble themselves before God, watching and praying continually that they might be delivered from Satan, and from death, and from destruction."
Our hearts are filled to the brim with gratitude for all of the blessings we have received in the Chile Santiago East Mission. We see miracles every day. In the midst of great pain and suffering, we can always find our Savior. He stands with His arms open, pleading for all of us to humble ourselves and come unto Him. He loves us. He invites us to accept His gift...the atonement. He invites us to repent. He wants us to love one another and to serve one another. He wants us to bring our families and those we love to Him. We can do it. We can do all that He asks, no matter how difficult it may seem. "With God all things are possible"
We are having a devotional tomorrow for all of our missionaries to talk about the last week of Christ's life in preparation for Easter. We want to remind our missionaries to teach and preach with increased vigor of Christ. Last Monday in our office meeting, Larry suddenly stopped in the middle, and said, "During the prayer, I had a very strong impression that March 2010 is going to be our best baptizing month we have ever had in this mission."
Now we know why he received that feeling. We are going to prepare to bring many souls to the waters of baptism in March. Please continue to pray for us and for the people of Chile. Please pray for the missionaries to have strength and courage to do all that is being required of them, even in difficult times.
We are so thankful that the tsunami did not turn out badly in Hawaii. Who would ever think that an earthquake in Chile could threaten the shores of Hawaii? Thankfully, the Lord is in charge. He is the one to whom we must turn for refuge from every storm. He has the power to save us.
Editor’s Note:
The letter ends here, but President and Sister Laycock told us:
“We’ve never experienced anything like the earthquake. We have had 90 aftershocks, some stronger than others. Our legs are wobbly. It is a scary feeling to experience an aftershock because it brings back all the feelings we had during the earthquake.
“We love being with our missionaries. Because they were prepared, they were immediately able to turn their attention to helping others. They were never concerned about themselves. They were concerned with those who need help and by mid-morning the day of the earthquake, we were able to dispatch them to help others. We told them to investigate the needs of their neighbors and help in any way they could.
President Laycock noted, “The Spanish translation of Luke 21:13 says that there will be earthquakes in many places, and it will give you the occasion to bear testimony. We met with 10 sisters this morning, and one of them mentioned a neighbor next door whom they always asked if she would have time to speak with them, and she always said no. Yet in the crescendo of the toll of the earthquake, she was speechless with fear and not prepared. When the sisters said, ‘Could we pray with you?’, she answered, ‘I have time to pray with you.’ It opened the door to a teaching opportunity to share the gospel.
President and Sister Laycock said, “Everyone we talk to has been so willing to talk about Christ and God’s power. We’ve been sharing God’s love with them. We are seeing God’s love everywhere. People are reaching out to one another. They are serving one another. The news reports looting. We are seeing a different side. We are seeing people who want to communicate with God, who are sincerely looking for the truth.”
Richard G. Scott, “To Acquire Spiritual Guidance,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 6–9
Russell M. Nelson, “Ask, Seek, Knock,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 81–84
The day before I gave that lesson, I watched the news reports on Chile being the latest nation impacted from a string of powerful earthquakes that have rocked many nations including Haiti, Japan, Taiwan.
The 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile, however, has brought about a very powerful faith-promoting story. Here is the link to the story found on the Meridian Magazine website. It is interesting to note, after reading Elder Scott's talk above, that of all the things he could have taught this mission president and his wife, he chose to council them on spiritual promptings. I'm sure we'll hear more of this story in General Conference next month.
Editor’s Note: President Larry Laycock and his wife, Sister Lisa Laycock head the Santiago Chile East Mission and had spent the two weeks prior to the 8.8 earthquake visiting each missionary apartment and preparing them for an earthquake. They brought specific instructions on what to do, supplied water purification bottles for the missionaries, told them how to create a 36-hour kit for emergencies and how to stay in communication should an earthquake strike. They prayed with each missionary and dedicated their apartments. Why? Because of a special experience that alerted them to what was coming. They told their missionaries, “If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear.”
They have 171 full-time proselyting missionaries in this mission.
Special thanks to the Laycocks for allowing Meridian to publish this letter that Sister Laycock sent to her family shortly after the earthquake sharing their remarkable experience of kindness from the Lord. They are in Chile with their son, Landon.
Dear Everyone,
I am writing to let you all know how very grateful we are for your prayers, concern, and love. Please keep praying! We need the Lord's help and guidance in order to do all He would have us do to learn what He would have us learn from this earth quake tragedy, and to minister in the way He would have us minister.
During the past few days, we have witnessed many events which serve to remind us that the Lord is in charge and that as missionaries and members of His church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we are performing His work, and as President Monson teaches, "When we are on the Lord's errand, we are entitled to His help." I want to share with you a few miracles that will help you to understand our profound feelings of gratitude.
When we were set apart for this calling, Elder Scott of the Council of the Twelve Apostles taught us many important lessons. He spoke from personal experience when he was a mission president in Argentina. One message that he shared with us is this: "At times, during your mission, you will be awakened in the middle of the night or the early morning hours with thoughts of specific things you should do for certain missionaries. Do not ignore these thoughts. They are promptings from the Holy Ghost who will communicate with you in the stillness of the night or the peace of the early morning hours. He will speak to you then because that is when you are still enough to hear."
Elder Scott further instructed us to keep a notebook beside our bed so that we could record these precious promptings. He said that by the next morning, we would be likely to forget the promptings if we didn't write them down.
We have been astonished at the fulfillment of Elder Scott's prophetic words. We have received many promptings in the exact manner that Elder Scott described. We are so thankful that Elder Scott taught us how to recognize and act upon these precious promptings. Had he not taught us, we may not have given these promptings the attention they require.
Nearly two-and-one-half weeks ago, I was awakened at around 4:00 AM by just such a prompting. I did not hear a voice, but the thought was as clear as if it had been in the form of spoken words: "There is going to be an earthquake. Prepare your missionaries." I sat up in bed and immediately remembered Elder Scott's counsel. That morning I told Larry what had happened. He immediately set to work organizing our missionaries to prepare for an earthquake.
In talking with our office missionaries to arrange for them to put together a list of everything we would need to prepare...in both Spanish and English...we discovered that the Lord had also let two of our office missionaries know of the possibility of an earthquake (in the form of dreams) and the need to prepare our mission.
We set a goal and arranged our schedule so that we could visit every apartment in the mission to check for safety and to review with our missionaries what to do in case of an earth quake. What a wonderful experience we have had as we have met with them and shared scriptures with them about being spiritually and physically prepared. "...if ye are prepared, ye shall not fear" (D&C 38:30).
We instructed every missionary to have a "go-bag" (36 hour kit). We reviewed our emergency action plan with them of where to go and what to do if they had phone service and in case they did not. We gave everyone a paper with all instructions in English and Spanish, and we reminded them that "this life is the time to prepare to meet God" (Alma 34:32-34). We shared with them our thoughts and feelings about the need for spiritual and physical safety.
Some of them became frightened and asked us if we knew something they didn't know. We smiled and repeated "...if ye are prepared, ye shall not fear." We didn't want to unduly alarm them, but we did want to impress upon them the need to be prepared. We tearfully reminded them of our recent transfer conference where we had shared our feelings about our dear Elder McKay Burrows who was unexpectedly called home in January while serving his mission in Romania...how he was prepared in every way to meet God. We reissued our challenge to "be prepared" in every way. Then we knelt with them in their apartment and dedicated each apartment, asking for a blessing of safety and security to be upon every apartment.
When the earthquake came, we were prepared. We did not experience the panic that many felt. We knew we were prepared. Because of the words of the Lord's chosen Apostle, Elder Scott, we had listened and heeded the quiet, but clear promptings of the Holy Ghost. We were blessed with peace in the midst of chaos. We learned an important lesson: our preparation helped us to avoid panic and fear, but the Lord, in His wisdom, allowed us to experience enough discomfort to know that He has all power. He is in charge. We are nothing without Him. We are dependent upon Him for every breath we take. Only He can save us from death and destruction. He is the way, the truth, and the life. He is our perfect example. If we follow Him, we will be saved through obedience to the laws and ordinances of His Gospel.
As the earthquake became more violent, the mission home groaned and wailed. The power died, so the whole city was black. The windows made a hideous screeching sound, and flying objects banged against swaying walls. The printer/fax machine, books, book ends, and fifty-pound television burst from the entertainment center and crashed to the floor, cabinets emptied, drawers flew open, the refrigerator moved, water sloshed out of the toilets, the floor jolted up and down as we ran across it trying to hold onto the walls to keep from falling down, and the piano toppled over like a small toy. As we made our way to the back yard, I remember thinking, "God is all-powerful. He is our only refuge from this horrible mess." I prayed and prayed for Him to still the earth.
When we reached the back yard, we watched in terror. By the light of the moon we could see the swimming pool water form giant waves and crash out onto the rocks. House and car alarms screamed into the night...some from being crushed by falling debris and others, I guess, from the bizarre movement of the earth. I am not sure if the intense rumbling sounds came from the earth itself or from everything else that was shaking so violently. Finally, it stopped.
When the calm came, we had to sit down because our legs were weak and unstable. My legs stayed wobbly all day and night yesterday. Today the muscles in my legs hurt like I ran a marathon. The aftershocks have been extremely unsettling. Each one begins like the one last night started. We just close our eyes and wait to see if it escalates or dies down. .I have never experienced anything like this!
We were awakened this morning by a very strong after shock. Larry jumped out of bed and yelled, "Welcome to another glorious day in Chile!" We just had to laugh. We moved a mattress into the floor in our bedroom and made Landon sleep in our room. He was in his room with the door locked the night before and we couldn't wake him up. He never locks his door, but he was playing a joke on Larry because every morning Larry wakes him at 5:30 AM for seminary by tickling him unmercifully. So Landon had decided to stop him.
When we couldn't open his door, in the middle of the quake, we thought he was trapped, so we screamed and banged. Landon thought that everything was falling off the walls because we were banging so hard on the door. I think we scared him more than the earthquake did!
Today, we attended a strong ward where Larry was invited to speak. The entire chapel and beyond was filled. People were so humble and so teachable. Larry taught the importance of doing the small things. He taught about Jesus Christ and the opportunity we have to love one another and to share what we have with others.
It was a great blessing for us to be with these beautiful Chilean people. Some have lost their homes...or at least parts of their homes. But they are strong and they want to serve the Lord. He taught of the scripture in Luke 21:11,13 which says, "and great earthquakes shall be in divers places...and it shall turn to you for a testimony." He also welcomed the sweet young woman who was in the congregation with the missionaries...her first time attending church...and then he invited her to be baptized from the pulpit. He asked her to please invite us to her baptism, and she said, "I will." The Lord always knows what His people need.
Landon was reading in Alma 15:17 today. He said, Mom listen to this. This is what is happening here in Chile just like in happened in Ammonihah. The people were humbled and "checked as to the pride of their hearts and began to humble themselves before God, watching and praying continually that they might be delivered from Satan, and from death, and from destruction."
Our hearts are filled to the brim with gratitude for all of the blessings we have received in the Chile Santiago East Mission. We see miracles every day. In the midst of great pain and suffering, we can always find our Savior. He stands with His arms open, pleading for all of us to humble ourselves and come unto Him. He loves us. He invites us to accept His gift...the atonement. He invites us to repent. He wants us to love one another and to serve one another. He wants us to bring our families and those we love to Him. We can do it. We can do all that He asks, no matter how difficult it may seem. "With God all things are possible"
We are having a devotional tomorrow for all of our missionaries to talk about the last week of Christ's life in preparation for Easter. We want to remind our missionaries to teach and preach with increased vigor of Christ. Last Monday in our office meeting, Larry suddenly stopped in the middle, and said, "During the prayer, I had a very strong impression that March 2010 is going to be our best baptizing month we have ever had in this mission."
Now we know why he received that feeling. We are going to prepare to bring many souls to the waters of baptism in March. Please continue to pray for us and for the people of Chile. Please pray for the missionaries to have strength and courage to do all that is being required of them, even in difficult times.
We are so thankful that the tsunami did not turn out badly in Hawaii. Who would ever think that an earthquake in Chile could threaten the shores of Hawaii? Thankfully, the Lord is in charge. He is the one to whom we must turn for refuge from every storm. He has the power to save us.
Editor’s Note:
The letter ends here, but President and Sister Laycock told us:
“We’ve never experienced anything like the earthquake. We have had 90 aftershocks, some stronger than others. Our legs are wobbly. It is a scary feeling to experience an aftershock because it brings back all the feelings we had during the earthquake.
“We love being with our missionaries. Because they were prepared, they were immediately able to turn their attention to helping others. They were never concerned about themselves. They were concerned with those who need help and by mid-morning the day of the earthquake, we were able to dispatch them to help others. We told them to investigate the needs of their neighbors and help in any way they could.
President Laycock noted, “The Spanish translation of Luke 21:13 says that there will be earthquakes in many places, and it will give you the occasion to bear testimony. We met with 10 sisters this morning, and one of them mentioned a neighbor next door whom they always asked if she would have time to speak with them, and she always said no. Yet in the crescendo of the toll of the earthquake, she was speechless with fear and not prepared. When the sisters said, ‘Could we pray with you?’, she answered, ‘I have time to pray with you.’ It opened the door to a teaching opportunity to share the gospel.
President and Sister Laycock said, “Everyone we talk to has been so willing to talk about Christ and God’s power. We’ve been sharing God’s love with them. We are seeing God’s love everywhere. People are reaching out to one another. They are serving one another. The news reports looting. We are seeing a different side. We are seeing people who want to communicate with God, who are sincerely looking for the truth.”
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