Forming a Fresh View - April 2, 2013

If they are not willing to act, move on!

 

This last week has been great! Hope your Easter was great! Time to jump in to the nitty gritty.

 

We were asked to meet with our Bishop and coordinate what is happening in our area. Bishop Dyer is incredible! He is 29, a lawyer, and blessed his 5th child in Sacrament Meeting yesterday. He is very simple, direct, and to the point, he loves the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and he is the perfect Bishop for a ward as diverse as ours. We had a report with information about the Recent Converts, Less-Actives, and Investigators we are working with. Of our dozen or so investigators, only 4 or 5 are progressing. Generally this coordination is supposed to focus on Recent Converts. Immediately, he started teaching us by the Spirit about how we were working. He talked about an experience he had early on as a lawyer where his clients had not been paying what they were supposed to, so he was working many hours for free. At this time, he was miserable going to work each day. He described that he let one person into his client base that didn't pay the amount needed up front. After that, it was much easier to let others like that into his clientele. One rotten apple spoiled the bunch. He then related this perfectly to our teaching pool (the investigators that are currently being taught). He told us that we can't let our teaching pool be a public pool. It needs to only be a place for the elect. Doctrine and Covenants Section 29 verse 7 states "And ye are called to bring to pass the gathering of mine elect; for mine elect hear my voice and harden not their hearts." The elect are ready for the Gospel. The elect are those that receive the Gospel and the ordinances of Baptism and Receiving the Holy Ghost willingly. He told us to change our teaching pool from a "public pool" to a "Teaching Kingdom." Only can the clean be received into the Kingdom of God (see Alma 7:21, Book of Mormon).

 

Lately we have been bogged down in our area by those non-progressing investigators. We implemented this in our area the following day and since last Wednesday we have dropped a two families that weren't progressing. We love them and we want to see them succeed, but you can't force anyone to do anything. It was sad to drop them, but we both feel that it was definitely the right thing to do. We feel a lot more freed up and now have the opportunity to harvest. "The field is white already to harvest," we cannot spend our time watching plants grow. We should stop in and check on them, but only when they are ripe should we spend our time harvesting. For you can't really call it harvesting unless you have something to show for your work. 

We had Easter dinner with a less-active member who is coming back to activity and her nonmember extended family. We shared the video "Come See the Light" (watch it on reflectionsofchrist.org) with her nonmember brother and sister-in-law. We preceded it by giving an brief overview of the Book of Mormon and talked about Christ's resurrection and Easter. It is incredible the Spirit this video brings normally, but especially in reflection to the Savior and His Atonement. They felt the Spirit and both requested copies of the Book of Mormon. They both read the bible very regularly and were open to listening. We hope to see them at General Conference this weekend! We taught her brother Jay when I first got to the area 3 months ago, he was not very willing to listen about the Book of Mormon and the Restoration then. It is a miracle! The Spirit is wonderful thing and God will prepare the hearts of His children to be ready, we have to move along and help them when they are!

 

Easter Sunday was wonderful! Fast and Testimony meeting was particularly full of the Spirit. I felt impressed to share my testimony about something I learned earlier in the week. In Preach My Gospel, Chapter 3, Lesson 3, it says "Repentance includes forming a fresh view of God, ourselves, and the world." This has stuck with me. I am constantly thinking of forming a fresh view. If I am not, I am complacent. I have need to repent daily, as we all do. But it is in daily repentance, turning our will to God, and consecration that the work of God progresses.

This is my invitation to you all: to pray and ask God, and seek answers through the Book of Mormon, about how you can "form a fresh view" of yourselves. It is tough, it takes humility, but it is possible. After all, if I can do it, you can do it. God loves you and wants you to succeed! I promise you that if you watch and listen and ponder over General Conference this weekend, your answer, specific to your individual needs, will come. I love you all so much and I hope you enjoy General Conference!

Love,

Elder Zachary R McKenzie

Iowa Des Moines Mission

    D&C 6:34, 36

Doubt Not, Fear Not.
Nothing Less than 550