DON’T OPEN DEAD INSIDE

“DON’T OPEN DEAD INSIDE”

— Walking Dead

One morning this week I awoke to a small horror. In my sheets I found a translucent mite that had taken a blood sample from me. Upon further inspection of my mattress it became quite clear the bedding was infested with two stages of bedbugs. This experience has brought me closer to becoming a Kansan.

Left: Casing - these insects will shed their exoskeletons as they grow and mature.

Right: A happy, possibly female, bedbug that had fed the night before.

All of the protocol was followed and thus the worst of the situation is the difficulty of being comfortable through the night sleeping on a hide-a-bed in the living room. Not even that bad! The door to the infested room is on lockdown until the apartment can be treated.

The quarantine procedures felt like an apocalyptic adventure. Leave me my fun.

Unfortunately for Elder Bischoff and I, the discovery of these pests was made the morning of what was meant to be a wonderful opportunity of listening to the semi-annual general conference Saturday session. BOOOOO!! The good news is we are blessed with the means necessary to catch up by watching general conference on lds.org.

Bless the Conrady’s because they invited us to watch the Priesthood session in their home on a giant projector after dinner! I so much enjoyed President Uchtdorf’s address of which he spoke of spiritual healing by means of heavenly light. He teaches, “as a disciple of Jesus Christ, you are a bearer of light. Keep doing the things that will nurture His divine light.” Each of us have a responsibility to keep spirits healthy and to lift the spirits of others around us.

I had an interesting conversation with a young man claiming he was a ’satanist’ as I was on exchanges with a rather new missionary. Because the self-proclaimed satanist interestingly had a friend with him genuinely interested in the Book of Mormon, we did not pass quickly. Instead we taught the inquisitive friend as we dodged the many violent threats and dark words spoken by our sadistic company. This brave missionary and I taught with power and authority undaunted by the menace. Peace filled my soul instead as I made the decision to trust in the Lord as the hell-bent man brandished a weapon. We continued to deliver the message and left in peace. The Lord protects His servants.

I love to be a missionary. I am so grateful for the privilege to serve.

No Mortal Teacher

The zone convened for another conference. Of course, much of it addressed further the importance and blessing of having a wide array of technology in our mission. I was reminded of the importance of having the Spirit in the lessons we teach. Christ admonishes in section 50 of the Doctrine and Covenants, “Verily I say unto you, he that is ordained of me and sent forth to preach the word of truth by the Comforter, in the Spirit of truth, doth he preach it by the Spirit of truth or some other way? And if it be by some other way it is not of God.”

 Reunited. We think we are adorable.

Meeting with the refugee family most recently was excellent. Sister Laham and Brother Conrady met us and Ian one night to deliver a mattress and some bedding to them. Noticing what little they had, Brother Conrady was moved with compassion. He took us to Wal-Mart and bought a microwave, coloring books, crayons, and an antenna. Ian donated the television in his room and even supplied them with a DVD player. Sister Laham told Elder Bischoff and I she had not seen the father of that family smile so wide since his youngest son was born. I’ll never forget the gratitude and joy each of them had upon their faces. The blessings of giving are immense.

This past week there was so much noise about the world ending on the thirtieth of September. Something about a celestial body hurtling to Earth, I think. Of course sneaky missionaries use that to their advantage. “Oh, you think the world is ending? Well it might be a good idea to learn to repent now, wouldn’t it?”

Sunday brought a lot of drama. Though we did our best to console a few upset investigators after a blazing lesson of the word of wisdom in the gospel principles class, the poor souls decided to leave between the second and third hour. Although this was not desirable in the slightest, I’ve learned a valuable lesson since: love is not permissiveness. It’s wrong to teach in a flattering way. “If it be by some other way it is not of God.” It’s important to be sensitive, but it is wrong to be apologetic in teaching the truth.

I want to share seven things I have been taught to invite the Spirit into lessons. The first is prayer. Christ teaches, “The Spirit shall be given unto you by the prayer of faith” (D&C 42:14).

The scriptures bring very powerfully the influence of the Holy Spirit as well. “All​ ​​​scripture​ ​is​ given by ​​​inspiration​ of God, and ​is​ ​​​profitable​ for ​​​doctrine​, for ​​​reproof​, for correction, for ​​​instruction​ in ​​​righteousness​“ (2 Timothy 3:16).

It is important to bear testimony often in a direct and genuine manner. A stellar example of this was spoken of Alma, the son of Noah’s renegade priest, in Alma 5:47: “And moreover, I say unto you that it has thus been revealed unto me, that the words which have been spoken by our fathers are true, even so according to the spirit of prophecy which is in me, which is also by the manifestation of the Spirit of God.”

It is easy to take for granted the spiritual power in sacred music. In a revelation to the prophet Joseph for Emma Smith, the Lord teaches, “My soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads” (D&C 25:12).

A most powerful Christlike attribute and invitation to the Spirit is love, charity, the pure love of Christ. “And ​​​charity​ suffereth long, and is ​​​kind​, and ​​​envieth​ not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily ​​​provoked​, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things” (Moroni 7:45).

Spiritual experiences go hand-in-hand with bearing testimony and, if used synergistically, will invite the Spirit powerfully. The Lord cautions us, “Remember that that which cometh from above is ​​​sacred​, and must be ​​​spoken​ with care, and by constraint of the Spirit” (D&C 63:64).

Finally, we can bring the Spirit through priesthood ordinances. I’ll not soon forget the powerful influence of the Holy Ghost while administering the sacrament to home-bound brothers and sisters, providing blessings of comfort and counsel to the spiritually weary, or the blessings of healing the sick and afflicted in a somber hospital room. We are taught in the Doctrine and Covenants “Therefore, in the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is manifest” (D&C 84:20).

One of the very most important things I’ve learned is this: the Spirit is the true teacher.

“Only through the Holy Ghost can we accomplish the ultimate goal of gospel teaching--to build faith in Jesus Christ and help others become more like Him. The Holy Ghost bears witness of the truth, He testifies of Christ, and He changes hearts. No mortal teacher, no matter how skilled or experienced, can replace the Spirit” (Handbook 2: Administering the Church [2010], 5.5.4).

Food Bank with Ian!

Red-Handed

I extend warning to gymnast missionaries who might think their callouses have not softened over the course of time. They HAVE. I thought it might be a good idea to play on the high bars. I was having a blast until I saw one of my hands red with blood.

Lucky for me, the mission nurse was right across the street. Some peroxide, funny in-pain faces and bandages later I was just fine. This picture was taken the night of the mishap:

And one week later:

I’m glad it healed quick! It can always get worse! For example, and I think the universe is having too much fun giving me angst, we could be this deer we almost hit the other night. Unfortunately the deer was struck by two other vehicles and it’s life was ended.

How crazy can it get, right? Lucky for us, the rest of the week was quite tranquil. Elder Bischoff and I brought Amie to a mission president’s devotional. Ian had the opportunity to bear his testimony. That was something wonderful. Ian bore his testimony in the same manner as members of the church that have grown in this church longer than I’ve been alive. It was fantastic.

At the mission president’s devotional a recently converted woman told a story. Before she was baptized, she met with the missionaries and had a dream about the painting ‘Jesus Christ visits the Americas’ by John Scott. This woman dreamt herself in the scene of the painting, though Christ was no where to be found. All of the people around her were in much confusion as they argued. She knew Christ was the answer to the conflict and began to search for him. After spotting a figure in white on the horizon, she ran to the man and found the figure belonged to Jesus Christ. She pleaded with Christ to teach the people. Christ took her by the hand and led her back to the scene of the painting, taking His place and teaching the people the truthfulness of His gospel. When this woman awoke, she pursued the missionaries to learn more about the message they shared that so inspired this vision. Shortly after, she was baptized.

  

This week I had the opportunity to be interviewed by President McCuistion. Much of our conversation included how best we can use the recently bestowed technology to bless the lives of those we are teaching and how this will move the work of the Lord forward. We talked much of seers. Seer stones like the Urim and Thummim, and living seers such as the prophet and the apostles of Christ’s church. As President Uchtdorf has said:

“Not long ago, the Church published photos and background information on seer stones. People have asked me, “Do you really believe that Joseph Smith translated with seer stones? How would something like this be possible?” And I answer, “Yes! That is exactly what I believe.” This was done as Joseph said: by the gift and power of God.

In reality, most of us use a kind of “seer stone” every day. My mobile phone is like a “seer stone.” I can get the collected knowledge of the world through a few little inputs. I can take a photo or a video with my phone and share it with family on the other side of our planet. I can even translate anything into or from many different languages!

If I can do this with my phone, if human beings can do this with their phones or other devices, who are we to say that God could not help Joseph Smith, the Prophet of the Restoration, with his translation work? If it is possible for me to access the knowledge of the world through my phone, who can question that seer stones are impossible for God?

Many religions have objects, places, and events that are sacred to them. We respect the sacred beliefs of other religions and hope to be respected for our own beliefs and what is sacred to us. We should never be arrogant, but rather polite and humble. We still should have a natural confidence, because this is the Church of Jesus Christ.”

Before my interview with President, Sister McCuistion asked me, “What surprised you most about Kansas?” I took some time to think, but it came to me! I am shook because all of the brick roads I’ve seen in Kansas are RED! I don’t want to come across as bitter, but I must confess my disappointment.

Wichita sights featuring Ian