Oct 16, 1990
Today’s Reading: Jarom 1:4, Alma 34:9-
Jaron 1:4- This exact situation exists today, and probably has existed throughout most of time. In fact, I would venture to guess that some received personal revelations after the apostasy. They did not however receive revelation on the behalf of mankind. As many as will have faith will be blessed with revelations and gifts of the Spirit.
Alma 34:9- This verse is pretty much self- explanatory. I would like to take this chance to express my gratitude for the infinite sacrifice that Jesus Christ made for me. I love the Lord with all of my heart. because of his sacrifice, I am able to enjoy the gifts of the spirit.
Verse 10: The only way that this sacrifice could possibly be made is through Jesus christ. no one else on this earth could have lived through such pain. Christ’s sacrifice is infinite and eternal. I’m not certain whether or not this means that christ is still suffering today. He is not suffering today the effect of His atonement is infinite and eternal.
Verse 11: None of us are worthy to atone for the sins of another. Neither is it necessary. Christ had all ready atoned for our sins. The only way for us to return to live with God is through the sacrifice of His son, Jesus Christ. I will be eternally grateful for His divine sacrifice.
Today was an absolutely awesome day! Probably the best day of my whole entire mission. We got so much done. We taught tow discussion and made two discussions and made two presentation. We taught the 6th discussion to Ser and Chai vang. Ser was concerned about what his friends would say if he didn’t drink with them. We told him that they would understand if he just explained his beliefs. We also told him to pray and ask the Lord to help him to keep the Word of Wisdom. He said that he wasn’t worries about it anymore and he would keep the Word of Wisdom.
We went over to Keng’s house today too. He is one of the ministers that we have been working with. He was very concerned that the Lord had not answered his prayers about the Book of Mormon. He had truly been striving for an answer, but had not received an answer. We talked for a little while about the different ways that the Lord answers prayers. Then I had a very, very firm impression that he had nee praying to Christ instead of to God. I asked him what he had been saying when he prayed. Sure enough, he had been praying wrong. we explained the proper way to pray to him. We then had him kneel down with us and pray right there. When he got up, he said he hadn’t gotten an answer. I asked him what his heart was like. He said, “peaceful.” I said,” Do you think that could be your answer?” A big smile spread across his face and he said yes. It is so neat to see the spirit change people’s lives.
October 17, 1990
Today’s Reading : Mosiah 3:9, Alma 34: 12-
Mosiah 3:9 The only way that salvation can come to the children of men is through faith on christ’s name. Even after all that Christ did for men, he was scourged and cruicified. I would like to think that I wouldn’t have been part of the group who killed Jesus, but even after all of the witnesses of the truth I have received, I still break commandments.
Alma 34:12 Since no man can atone for the sins of another, it was necessary that Christ’s atonement be infinite and everlasting. Christ’s atonement was made for everyone of us. I am still somewhat puzzled about why it is an infinite atonement. I think I’ll ask president Bott about that.
Verse 13: Christ’s sacrifice was the great and last sacrifice. As a result, it is no longer necessary to do sacrifices according to the law of Moses. Also, Christ’s suffering had ended. He suffered for every sin that has been or will be committed. In that sense it is infinite. He suffered for everyone’s sins, even those who do not repent. However, in order to take advantage of their sacrifice, we are required to repent.
Verse 14: The whole law of Moses points toward the sacrifice of the savior. The only one’s who though Christ did away with or took the law of moses away were those who did not understand the law. Christ fulfilled the law.
October 17, 1990
Well, today was mission conference. we all met at one of the stake centers here in Fresno. The first thing we did was to watch a driving evaluation film. It had 50 different situations on it and asked us if we would have driven like that or not. The problem was that mu answer was always, “It depends on what car I was driving, how big of hurry I was in, and who was in the car with me.” I always want a car that I can trust in a tight spot.
After that, we all went out to Woodward park. We played football, volleyball, and messed around a lot! I spent about 2 hours there listening to President Bott answer questions. i asked him about an infinite atonement. He basically told me that Christ is not still suffering, but to the human mind, his suffering there was infinite. He suffered for the sins of all of the worlds which God will ever create. These worlds are endless, so christ’s suffering was also endless, I think I understand better now, but that is probably a lousy explanation.
Tonight we had a banquet and testimony meeting. It was so awesome. I have not felt the spirit so strongly for a long time. It was wonderful!
I t was really good to see Elder Davis again. I didn’t realize how close I had gotten to him in the MTC. It was nice to be with somebody that understands. I tried to talk with Elder Jasperson a little, but he was pretty cold to me.
Oct 18, 1990
Today has really been a good day. I am so tired I can’t keep my eyes open. I’ll finish this tomorrow morning.
Yesterday morning we had the rest of mission conference. It was so good. Sister Bott spoke about how we are an army of the Lord. She had such a strong spirit. No wonder President Bott is such a good guy.
President Bott spoke to us for about 45 minutes just on problems missionaries have now. Things like abusing apartments, buying Playboys, buying & listening to rock music, dating, and all kinds of other things that missionaries should have absolutely no problems with whatsoever. What a shame to think of all of the wonderful things we could have learned, but instead spent our time listening to a review of some of the very most basic points of obedience. On the other hand, it did remind me to keep my guard up at all times. Once you break a little rule, it becomes much simpler to break the next one. Pretty soon, you’re breaking all of the rules.
I got a letter from Todd today. He seems to be doing well.
October 19, 1990
Today’s Reading: Mosiah 27:14, Alma 34:15-
Mosiah 27:14- Alma’s father had prayed with faith concerning his son. Because of the prayers of his father, Alma was brought to a knowledge of the truth in a manner far more powerful than the witness that most of us get. If we pray with real faith and sincerity, the Lord will bless us.
Alma 34:15- The purpose of christ’s sacrifice was to give us all of means whereby we can attain salvation. Before we an have salvation from our sins, we must have faith unto repentance. Christ’s sacrifice will only bring salvation to those who believe on His name.
Verse 16: If we will have faith unto repentance and obedience, we will be safe in the effects of mercy. However, those who do not believe in Christ will be exposed to the punishments of all of their sins. We must believe in Christ, or we will not be redeemed.
Verse 17: We must exercise our faith unto repentance. It we will but have enough faith to call on God’s name, he will strengthen our faith. As our works increase, so will our faith. As our works increase, so will our faith. As our faith increase, our works must also increase.
Verse 18: God has the power to forgive us, but we must ask forgiveness.
Verse 19: Asking for mercy once in not enough. We must humble ourselves before God at all times. We have all sinned, and we all need mercy. We all must pray constantly for forgiveness.
Oct 19, 1990
Today’s Reading: Alma 2:30, Alma 34:20-
Alma 2:30- I hope that at some point in my life I can say that I am a man of God, being exercised with much faith. I also hope to be an instrument in the hands of the Lord. The only way to be exercised with faith is to exercise my faith unto true repentance and many good works.
Alma34:20- We need to pray to God about our work and family. We simply must have His help in order to succeed in anything. If we want to be able to succeed in our field of labor, no matter what that field may be, we must have the help of God. Without that help, we will not be able to provide for our families as God sees fit.
Verse 21: This verse is a commandment to have family prayers 3 times per day. In America today, it is very race for an entire family to be home at midday. Maybe the best way for this to happen is for mother and children to say a family prayer after the kids arrive home from school. Then dad can pray with the family in the morning and in the evening. I feel impressed that the closer we get to the last days the more important these family prayers will become. Family prayers must occur 3 times per day.
Verse 22: We must cry unto the Lord as families, parents, and individuals that we be protected from the powers of Satan. Alma did not say to cry unto the Lord against our enemies, he only said against the power of our enemies.
Today was a really good day. We spent most of the morning over at Ser Vang’s house. Elder Watson went over to interview he and his wife for baprism. Elder Watson interviewed him for 53 minutes, which is very good. He must have asked him every question in the book. That way we know for sure that he is committed to the gospel. The afternoon was spent organizing the baptism for tomorrow. I found speakers and all of that kind of stuff. I am really looking forward to the baptism tomorrow. What a great, great opportunity. i think we will have Elder Watters baptize them. I think that that will really help the Watters get excited about the work.
Tonight we went to Tou Lee Moua’s to teach a new member lesson. It was kind of a let down because he and his wife were out farming. As a result we didn’t teach. We did however go and see two men who just arrived from thailand. We had never met them before. We drove by their house and Elder Brown said, “There’s some Hmongs” Something inside of me said to go teach them. So we turned around and went to see them. One of the men had had his shoulder severely hurt in the war. His deltoid muscle is completely missing. Anyway, we taught them a first discussion. They said they had been there two years and had been waiting for someone to come teach them about God.
October 20, 1990
Today’s Reading: Alma 14:26, Alma 34:23-
Alma 14:26- Alma and Amulek had faith that the Lord would deliever them. Miracles do not inspire faith. Faith opes the gate for miracles. Many people get that turned around. They think that if they see a miracle, then they will believe. Those are called sign seekers. Even when sign seekers see signs, the will not have faith enough to believe. Instead, they harden their hearts and deny the signs. As members of the church, we must be very careful to have faith before we ask the Lord for miracles. they asked for a miracle according to their faith, not a miracle to give them faith. This is one of the most important things we can learn about faith.
Alma 34:23- we must cry unto the Lord against Satan. Satan is the source of all unrighteousness and wicked things in the world. We must cry unto the Lord on behalf of our family against Satan. If we cry unto the Lord against Satan, the Lord will help both us and our family to overcome.
Verse 24: We must cry unto the Lord about our work. whether one is a homemaker, doctor, teacher, lawyer, buinessman, or janitor, if we want to prosper enough to provide for our families and further the Lord’s kingdom, we must rely on the intervention of the Lord in our behalf.
Verse 25: We must also cry unto the Lord on behalf of those whom we have stewardship over, that they might also increase in testimony and faith. In order to increase in faith they must necessarily increase in works.
Today was without a doubt the very most stressful day of my entire mission. To start it all off, we had appointments from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. I hardly had anytime to study.
At the baptism, Ser and his wife were one and a half hours late! Talk about a stress case! I thought I was going to absolutely lose my mind. The baptism today was really nice. We had Elder Watters do the baptisms. He was really nervous, but he really did a good job. hopefully that will get him more involved with the work. I feel absolutely beat, so I’m going to bed.
October 21, 1990
Today’s Reading: D&C 19, Alma 15:10, Alma 23:26-
Alma 15:10- This verse shows that if we are rebuked for sin and we repent in faith, we can truly be healed. We must truly repent however. Alma 30 is a very good example of what happens when we do not truly repent. repentance can truly make us whole. Repentance can restore our bodies and minds to their original states. This verse shows that repentance can truly restore the bodies of those who repent.
Alma 34:26- Besides praying as a family and a couple, we must pray in private. It is important that we also pour out the secrets of our soul to our Father in Heaven. Our God knows the thoughts and feelings of our soul before we tell Him, but He requires us to tell Him in order to receive blessings.
Verse 27: We should always have a prayer in our hearts. This can be done by always thinking on God’s name for help. Also, if we truly have charity in our hearts, we will be much better off. We will be able to constantly hope and pray for good to occur to others.
Verse 28: As faith, prayer without works is dead. We are expected to give to the needy. It is not enough to just give fast offerings. We must impart of our substance every chance we are given. In this way, we can have our prayers answered.
October 21, 1990
Today? well- today was at least as stressful as yesterday. Church was just an absolute zoo. We had a high counselor who requested not to have a translator. Do to the fact that no one understood what he was saying, I asked the executive secretary to ask President Darden to get translator. The guy acted all put out because President Darden asked for a translator. I mean, who does this guy think he is? I would like to go to an Anglo ward, give a speech in Hmong, and make every single one of them feel like retards for not understanding me. Sometimes these Americans make me so mad.
Tonight was much better though. We taught a new member lesson to Tou Lee moun and his family. We also taught another discussion to Keng, one of the ministers. During our discussion with Tou Lee, he told us about trying to get his family our of Laos and fighting in the war. He has seventeen bullet holes in his back, arms, and legs. He still has at least 2 bullets remaining in his body. The freedom I have always taken for granted certainly comes at an extremely high price. i am so grateful to be given such a precious gift for free.
Oct 22, 1990
P-DAY Today’s Ready: Alma 22:16, Alma 34:29-
Alma 22:16- In order to receive hope in attaining eternal life, the greatest of God’s gifts, we must have faith in Jesus Christ, we must repent of our sins. If we will do this and we pray to God in the name of Christ, this hope will fill our soul and we will always strive to do what is right.
Alma 34:29- Even if we believe in Christ, repent, and baptized, receive the Holy Ghost, go to the temple, it we do not show our love for other by doing food to them, we will simply not be saved at the lat day. We will be cast out oat the last day unless we use the talents with which the Lord has blessed us for the good and profit of others. The more a person is blessed, the more good works the Lord expects from him.
Verse 30: We have been given so many witnesses of the truth, why not come forth and repent. We must repent on a daily basis. It must be a constant process, but it will bring us much joy. We must not only repent, but we must bring forth good works to show and testify of our repentance and our faith. I hope that I can bring forth fruit unto repentance. It will certainly be a lifelong process.
Oct 22, 1990
Today was really a good P-day. Anyway, we went to the grocery store about 6:45 am. There are not to many people who are in a grocery store at 6:45 in the morning. We did our wash after we went to the store. I also did my scripture study while my wash was going. I HATE to wash clothes! It is not even a little bit fun!
As of today, my mission is one- fifth over. I have too much work to do for time to be going by so fast.
October 22, 1990
Dear President Bott,This last week has seen some unbelievable progress. The mission conference was definitely one of the high points. I think now we have things squad away to really get some work don this week.
The waters are doing just great. Since last Monday, they have been working very,very, hard. We have been trying to coordinate many of their translators.
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