Fiftieth Week - January 5, 2015

Hello, everyone!! 

Well, Happy New Year everyone!  I hope everyone had a great start to their New Year and were able to see some great fireworks.  For us, we were able to go to a member's home and watch fireworks from the pier that his home is next to.  We were able to go and watch the 9pm fireworks and then were taken by him in order to be home by 9:30.  While the 9pm show did not compare to the midnight show we still had a great time nonetheless! 

This week's post is a follow-up from my experience with David last week.  For this past week, I have continued to study and ponder for David whenever I see the opportunity.  We were able to have a follow-up lesson with David last week, and it ultimately came down to him saying, "I will be baptized next week if I receive an answer from God."

I fasted, along with my companion, for David yesterday and we called him yesterday to discuss with him and to see what he had decided.  He talked with us and told us that he still wasn't sure.  Later in the call, he came out and said that he knew that God was right and that we were right.  I in turn stated that he had received his answer and that he was ready to be baptized.  He then told us that while he had received his answer that he still didn't want to be baptized as wanted to give up the Word of Wisdom over the course of 3 months rather than immediately.  

After discussing more and then ending the call, I sat there wondering what more we could do, what more I could do, and what more that Heavenly Father could do in helping him enter the waters of baptism.  We had all played our roles.  Heavenly  Father had given him the answer he asked for, and we had taught him everything he needed to make a decision.  As I sat there contemplating what more we could do, I heard a familiar and a favorite scripture come into my mind from the Doctrine and Covenants saying, "Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed."  At that point in time, I along with my companion had done all that is in our power.  I feel with confidence that as I continue to be faithful, and more importantly obedient, that the Lord will stretch forth his arm in David's life.  This small and humbling moment brought a smile and a peace to which I knew that the Lord knew we had done our part and that as we continued to be cheerful, regardless of how hard it may seem, the Lord will provide a way as he always does. 

The second thing I would like to share is that this week we met a man on the whose first words were, "I'm going to be one of the hardest people for you to convert."  I looked at him and smiled and said, "Good thing we don't convert, the Spirit does!"   After that point we got into a conversation about the Book of Mormon and time after time he tried to shoot it down as it had no archaeological evidence to back it up whereas, in his opinion, the Bible did.  As he continued to try and put us down, I looked up at him and met his eyes and said, "I know the Book of Mormon to be true.  I know that it contains the fullness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  I have  received a witness of the divinity and truth of the Book of Mormon and I know that God knows it."  In that moment things went silent and he sat there, I did not break my gaze into his eyes but I smiled and said, "I know that you can know this for yourself."  

What is the Book of Mormon?

(Click on the above link to see a short 5-minute video that gives insight as to what the Book of Mormon is.)

In that moment, a shiver shot through my body and I felt more strong (not in the physical sense) and confident than I ever had before.  The man recognized this and tried to sway the conversation in a different direction; however, I continued to testify to him of the divinity and power of the Book of Mormon.  The man said that he would go do research on the Book of Mormon and that he would try to find out more about it.  My teaching, as the Savior taught, is that when called upon we must be able to stand with boldness and conviction for the things we know to be true.  Such is the case as Christ passed through the whole process of the Atonement after he had been betrayed and rejected by the very people he was trying to save.  I, being the least of Christ's servants, in no way infer that what I did compares to the Atonement but that we all must stand for what we know to be true no matter how big or small the situation is. 

I hope we all have a great week in drawing and bringing others nearer unto the Savior. 

Love,

Elder Wilde