Letter 7-31-2012

:)

It was SUCH a busy week. So many things have to be done in preparation for baptism. Finish hanging lessons, go over baptisimal interview questions, get the DL to do the interview, orchestrate weddings between unmarried couples (I got an awesome blue/grey tie for the marriage though so it was worth it totally), get the clothes ready, prepare two talks on baptism, get the program set up... phew. But it happened. All three of our investigators on date showed up to their baptism and sacrament meetings for their confirmations. Both of their wards were at the same time so we went on splits. Quite the experience. It was nice to get to know these "golden investigators".

While Sonya and Dominic were having their baptisimal interview, their three children under the age of 5 were content just to massacre me. I decided it was better just to keep them off the others so I layed on the ground and let them crawl on me. My shirt had a lot of chocolate milk marks and such. At some point I just stopped feeling I guess, so I had a pretty good "nap" while they ran an electric foam fan they found in E Davidson's backpack over my nose, "pumped me up" with a small bicycle pump, and drew pictures of the current events. Kids are fun.

We had Zone Conference on Thursday. It clarified a lot of the confusion the missionaries were having as the mediators between the bishops/ward mission leaders and the mission president. He made it very clear what we were to be doing. The last thing Nephi in 3 Ne 7 talks about is baptism. Jesus Christ while in the "cloud" in 3 Ne 9 talked about baptism. In 3 Ne 11 the first thing Christ addresses is - baptism.

I did some of my own research and found out something very interesting to me. In every single account that we have of Christ physically coming down and ministering on the earth - Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and 3 Nephi - Christ begins AND ends his ministry with discussion of baptism. What's the first part of all the gospels? John the Baptist and the importance of Christ "fulfill[ing] all righteousness". (See 2 Ne 31 on definition of fulfill all righteousness). Each ends with Christ leaving the apostles with a challenge to "feed my sheep", to "follow thou me", to preach "repentance and remission of sins", and, to show what all those equate to in Matthew, to "teach all nations, baptizing them". The BoM account starts with Christ instituting baptism in 3 Ne 11 and again finishes with Christ teaching His doctrine of faith, repentance, baptism, the holy ghost, and enduring to the end.

Personal study is what keeps me sane. That time is sacred. This week I finished 2 Ne and decided it'd be nice to have the knowledge of Jesus the Christ. I feel a kinship to Talmage since I took a ton of classes in the building named after him at BYU :) There's so much to learn in there. I remember trying to read it during college and quickly losing interest as I felt everything was going over my head. Just since then though, I now find myself reading it just like I would Harry Potter. My gospel understanding is growing so fast. I hope to finish Jesus the Christ by the end of this month while still spending time in Preach my Gospel and the BoM each day.

Oops, I was talking about zone conference. Baptism. Afterwards he unveiled our standards of excellence - a baptism a week. Intense. He also showed us a new plan to keep people on date. We're to make little calendars for potential investigators that we want to put on date. It's fun to schedule lessons and such in pencil, ready to change but giving them a part in their baptisimal process. It also makes the stress on us that I was talking about earlier much smaller, which is nice. My favorite part is giving them scripture chunks to study each week. Yay scriptures.

We're really going to work on finding new investigators to put on date this week. Losing three means we have to pick up two more to meet our goal of four for next month. (we already have two on date for August). I think I can, I think I can...

Thanks for all the support everyone is giving to me. It's really nice!

(trudge, trudge,) Trudging along through mortality--
Elder Chandler
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uhh, spiritual thought for the week. I gave the baptism one so uhh... more cool phraseology. Getting through the Isaiah chapters wasn't too bad - though none of it really applies directly to missionary work so it's not very colorful (at least compared to 2 Ne 29-32...). The phrases Isaiah uses though are awesome. "The cry of the blood of the saints shall asend up to God from the ground against them". "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb... and a little child shall lead them". "ensign to the nations". "For all his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still".

I guess I have another one. After the Isaiah chapters, Nephi gives some specific ways we can come to understand the writings of Isaiah. I think what he says also applies to any other book of scripture. 2 Ne 25.

1) "they know not the manner of the prophesying among the Jews" - Nephi describes how, because he came from Jerusalem and knew the Jews, he understands the words of Isaiah more than his children born in the promised land. This is what makes modern-day revelation so important. It really is easier to understand. It's of us. Sadly it keeps the scriptures foreign, so as far as that goes this is kinda moot.

2) "they are plain unto all those that are filled with the spirit of prophesy." - Nephi goes on to say that we can get the spirit of prophesy "according to the spirit which is in [us]". Invite the spirit before studying scriptures. It will intensify and clarify what they are saying.

3) "my soul delighteth in plainness." - Nephi really tried to keep things simple so we could understand.

4) "in the days that the prophecies of Isaiah shall be fulfulled men shall know of a surety" - Being here during the time that things from Isaiah are being fulfilled is a massive blessing to know what the scriptures are talking about. "For I know that [my words] shall be of great worth unto them in the last days; for in that day shall they understand them; wherefore, for their good I have written them." Isn't that a great promise? The words are for us. We can understand them because they're about us. Cool beans.

I'm buying a bike today, just so you know. I don't know how expensive it will be but I want it to last through college so it might cost quite a bit... Tell the Ericksons thank you for me, they gave me a nice gift card to Five Guys in the area. Also tell them I'm steering clear of the funeral potatoes.