Preparing for a Mission

Dear Friends and Neighbors: 

          Everybody’s talking about the new revelation on missionary work!  In this MTC, we’re going to be inundated with “youngsters” and with passions aplenty!  Imagine putting together in one building 100-200 18 to 19 year-old beautiful and handsome, well-groomed teenagers all exploding with multitudinous  desires, uncurbed enthusiasm, high over-the-top-energy and a committed zeal without bounds!  Save me!! (Am I getting too old for this?!).  It’s good that they’re cutting the time down to just 13 days in the MTC.  (It gives the President and his wife a 36 hour break every two weeks instead of every 3 weeks!) 

          The Lord must know what He’s doing!  He’s unleashing a power which will change the world!  Who can resist an unyielding, unbending army of stripling spiritual warriors going out into the world with a faith and a trust which nobody, including many of us leaders can comprehend!  Only the prophets and the seers can see where this is going—but it’s sure going to go somewhere amazing!  Hang on to our hats (I don’t have a hat) and on to our chairs (I’m afraid mine is going to be a rocking chair soon!).  Any young person or older planning to go on a mission or helping someone to go on a mission better read Sister Taylor’s article, “Preparation Before and After a Mission” attached. 

 

Hurrah For Israel,

Love,

GT & DT

George & Debra

Terry & Debbie

 

How to prepare before and after your mission!

Being called on a mission is one of the most exciting times of life. It is a transition from adolescence to adulthood. There can be many conflicting feelings of anticipation, freedom, curiosity, joy, anxiety, and even fear.  A mission is an educational micro life experience.  It is a time to “live in the world, but not of it.”  It is a chance to prevent or eliminate destructive addictions and establish worthy habits.  Would there be a better thing to do than to “give” our children or ourselves unto the Lord as Hannah did with her son Samuel?  Who knows better than our Father in Heaven as to what we each need to learn?  Is there a better tithe than offering our hearts, might, mind, and strength for a short moment of time?  Our goal is to come unto Christ, then invite others to do the same!  We do it together!

President Spencer W. Kimball said: “The setting apart may be taken literally; it is setting apart from sin, apart from the carnal; apart from everything which is crude, low vicious, or vulgar; set apart from world to a higher plane of thought and activity.” PMG p. 4

Today I have been thinking a lot about preparing for a mission.  None of these things that I suggest are new, just very important. 

Before our mission:

Pray together morning and night

Read to and with your children, especially the Book of Mormon

Learn to play the piano

Keep a personal journal of insight, inspiration, and revelation

Play together

Eat together

Hold Family home Evening with other family members and friends

Give assignments to everyone and rotate them (Give everyone a chance to listen, speak, and do something)

Visit Family, friends, and neighbors weekly

Express Gratitude in verbal and written form

Teach your children how to use proper phone etiquette

Set limits on the TV and the internet

Set regular patterns for arising, going to bed

monitor comings and goings as a matter of respect

Require regular household duties such as: dishes, wash, bathrooms, vacuuming, windows, cars, lawn, weeds, garbage, shopping, cooking, and menu planning (work together and rotate).  If they need a friend, bring one in.

After our mission:

Our goal still remains to “Invite others to come unto Christ!” We do it together!

Our goal is not to “Get back to normal!” as I have heard expressed.  We want our mission to have changed us.  We want to feel, know, and say with a surety, that God is our Heavenly Father, He loves us personally, Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer, that the Holy Ghost is our constant companion, that Joseph Smith restored the Church of Jesus Christ upon the earth for the last time, and that the Book of Mormon is the word of God.

We support each other and gain a renewed testimony by:

·                     Spending one on one time with a new return missionary.

·                     Letting them share their experiences without interrupting.

·                     Praying and reading scriptures with them.

·                     Encouraging them to share a power point presentation for a Family Home Evening about their mission. 

·                     Not making the newest movie our highest priority for them to see.

·                     Giving them a church job, home teaching, visiting teaching, and      service involvement.

·                     Treating them as adults.

How best can we see the face of God and prepare for the Second Coming of the Savior than by preparing to serve and serving a mission.                                                                   

 

 

 

 

 

I am Serving a mission because of my sister!

Do you ever do something because of another person?  Do you sometimes do something for someone else?  I think missionaries serve because of a strong influence of another person upon them.  Even the Lord, our Savior served because it was the will of His Father—He loved, he suffered, he died, because He wanted to do His Father’s will.  He said, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”  (John 15:13).  You should read Sister Taylor’s attached experience in one of our recent MTC Relief Society Meetings.        

President Taylor

I am serving a mission because of my sister!

Today in Relief Society, I asked the new missionaries to introduce themselves by giving their name, where they were from, which mission they will be serving in, and tell us who influenced them to serve their mission. About halfway through the introductions, one sister stood and told us that she had always wanted to serve a mission from the time she was a little girl, but because she had a “Special Sister” with severe handicaps she needed to remain at home to help her parents.  She prayed and asked Heavenly Father what she should do.  Then one month before she turned 21 her sister died peacefully in her sleep. With tears running down her cheeks she said, “I love my sister! Because of her I am here today. I will be the best missionary that I can possibly be. I want everyone I know to learn about the plan of salvation.”

After this sweet testimony our sister from Taiwan gave the closing prayer in broken English. As she prayed with deep emotion the spirit was so strong I felt we were in the presence of God. All of a sudden she stopped her prayer, knelt down in front of the class, then continued pouring out her pleadings for our dear missionary sister and for each of us.

The World is Mine

Dear Friends and Neighbors: 

          It’s time for Thanksgiving!  Here in the Philippines, everyday is thanksgiving day!  I have never seen a people who are generally “so much grateful” for so very little.  They are happy, humble, appreciative, and always express great thanks!  No wonder the Lord loves them so much!  I think that you should read Sister Taylor’s favorite poem—one that she has honored and lived since the day that I met her – “The World Is Mine!”    

 

Thank You,

GT & DT

George & Debbie

The world is mine 

Today on a bus, I saw a lovely girl with silken hair
I envied her, she seemed so gay, and I wished I was so fair
When suddenly she rose to leave, I saw her hobble down the aisle
          O God, forgive me when I whine
          I have two legs, the world is mine

And then I stopped to buy some sweets
The lad who sold them had such charm
I talked with him, he seemed so calm, and if I were late it would do no harm,
And as I left he said to me “I thank you, you have been so kind”
It’s nice to talk with folks like you. You see, I’m blind
          O God forgive me when I whine
          I have two eyes, the world is mine

Later walking down the street, I saw a child with eyes of blue
He stood and watched the others play; it seemed he knew not what to do
I stopped a moment, then I said, why don’t you join the others dear”
He looked ahead without a word, and then I knew he could not hear
          O God forgive me when I whine
          I have two ears, the world is mine

With legs to take me where I’ll go
With eyes to see the sunsets glow
With ears to hear what I would know
          O God forgive me when I whine
          I’m blessed, indeed, the world is mine

          By Joy Lovelet Crawford

Patience

Dear Friends and Neighbors: 

            Oh, the time is short and the art is long!  Give me some patience right now!  Do I need some drugs!  Sister Taylor’s medicinal prescription of patience will be healing to your soul.  Please patiently read her attached essay. 

Love, GT & DT. 

Patience

                Since I have been in the Philippines I have been impressed and intrigued by a strong cultural characteristic of the Philippine people. They are patient, calm, soft -spoken, polite, and modest with others.  They demonstrate incredible patience even when experiencing natural disasters!  AND unbelievably, when driving in the city!

                As I look around me and interact with them, I wonder how they came to be this way and why I am different.  I am trying to practice patience but find that I am impatient with my patience.

                Here in the MTC, we have missionaries from many cultures.  I wanted to see how they viewed the attribute of “Patience.”  I decided to do some research; here is what I found:

                Patience, one of the “SEVEN HEAVENLY VIRTUES”, derived from the Psychomachia (“Battle for the Soul”), written by Prudentius, alleges to protect us from the “SEVEN DEADLY SINS: humility against pride, kindness against envy, abstinence against gluttony, chastity against lust, patience against anger, liberality against greed, and diligence against sloth.”  Judaism lists Patience in the Talmud as an “important personal trait”. Christianity values Patience as one of “the most valuable virtues of life and a fruit of the Holy Spirit”. Muslims believe that Patience is “the best and most valuable virtues of life” which enables “an individual to grow closer to God and thus attain true peace.” Buddhism believe that Patience “’is one of the perfections’”.

                Reemphasizing that Patience is a universal virtue makes it even more important, but none-the-less difficult to attain.  I am certainly aware of the negatives and disadvantages of impatience, to name a few: depression, anger, inadequacy, retaliation, anxiety, and lowered self esteem.  So I have questioned my basic paradigms or beliefs as to why I often choose impatience over patience.   Here are a few insights that have come to my mind in question form:

·   Am I impatient because I believe that my personal desire, need and agency is more important, and should override the laws of nature, and the rights and agency of others?

·   Do I feel that anger justifies my response of impatience?

·   Do I transfer responsibility by being impatient?

·   Do I believe that Patience is passive, and a sign of weakness and vulnerability rather that an active process?

·   I want to have the benefits of Patience like forbearance, endurance, steadfastness, fortitude, contentment, peace, perseverance, constancy, striving, mindfulness, organization, growth, success, faith, joy, accomplishment, self control, health, competence, perfection, and the Spirit.  I just need to figure out how to acquire Patience.

·   Do I really know and trust as stated in D&C 122:7, that all things will give me experience and be for my good?

·   Do I believe that with charity, the pure love of Christ, I can do all things--even obtain Patience (D&C18:19, Moroni 7:44, 45)?

·   Am I sure that I am a free agent to act for myself and that biology and nature can change (Nephi 10: 23)?

·   Do I live in the present more than the past or future?

·   Do I breathe regularly from the breath of life?

 

                I recommend the reading of Preach My Gospel, Page 120.  As I come to conclusions in my quest for Patience, I realize that the virtue of Patience is the very foundation of my survival and my ability to thrive.  With the grace and mercy of God I can gain the spiritual gift and attribute of Patience!   

 

DST 09-12

Hide-N-Seek

Dear Friends and Neighbors:

            Do you ever get lost?  I do!  I’m petrified about getting lost out in the Manila traffic.  You go down one street but can’t come back the same way.  And then the “crocodiles” (those are the policemen who look for you to give you a ticket and then take away your driver’s license!) get you!    

            Do you ever feel lost?  I do!  I’ve spent a lot of my life wondering and wandering--where am I?, who am I?, and where am I going?.  Like the Cheshire Cat says, if you don’t know where you’re going, it doesn’t matter which road you take.  It’s really good that the Gospel helps me and tries to tell me where I was, why I’m here, and where I’m supposed to go!”  But I get pretty lost along the way sometimes.    

            My first mission in London, England was great, because I was nearly “always in a fog!”  I think the fog has never left me, except when the sunshine burned it out for awhile while we were in Las Vegas.  My clouded mind often has its rain storms—sometimes monsoons!  Yes, Manila and the Philippines has been the perfect place for me!   

            Do you remember the L’ll Abner cartoon of Joe Bfs@t*stk or something like that.  He always had a little dark cloud following him around everywhere he went.  Do you ever feel like that?  Do you ever feel your lost and fallen state and the nature of our clouded condition?  Do you ever feel like a lost soul!  I hope someday to better find myself and not to feel lost.  I’m so glad that there is One who is clear-headed and who knows the path and leads the way!  Quick!!  You’d better read Sister Taylor’s article, “Hide-n-Seek,” attached.   

 

Love, George & Debbie

Hide-n-Seek

Today in the temple, it dawned on me that Gods children have been playing “Hide–n—Seek” with Him from the beginning of time.  You remember the game?  The goal is to be the last person found. One player, the Seeker, closes his eyes at the home base, then turns his back away from everyone for a brief period of time, and then counts to 100 while everyone hides. The Seeker then opens his eyes and tries to find those hiding. The first to be found is the next Seeker. The last to be found or to return to home base while the seeker is away looking for the others, is the Winner!

People play this game all over the world.  In Spain ‘Hide-n-Seek” is called “el escondite,”  in France, “jeude cache-cache,” in South and Central America, “tuja,” in Equador and Chili, “escondidas,” in Israel, “machboim,” in South Korea, “sumbaggoggil,”  in Romania, “de-av-ati ascunselea,” in Nigeria, “oro,” and in Greece, “kry fto.”  

In Genesis 3, we read of Adam and Eve disobeying and partaking of the fruit of “the knowledge of Good and Evil”?  You remember when they heard the voice of the Lord God calling, “Where art thou?”  They ran and hid.  Do you think that God only called once, or did he count to 100? Am I still playing Hide-n-Seek with God? Sometimes I even think that if I close my eyes, God won’t see me.  Is my goal to be the last one found?

Can you imagine how much time God spends calling and searching for us? He is the great Seeker!  How much better would it be if we became the Seeker?  Isn’t the gospel of Jesus Christ trying to teach us how to seek, find, and listen when the voice of God calls to us?  Maybe the last one found is really “the Loser!”  Wouldn’t it be better if we became the seekers and searchers of God and for His children? What would my life be like if I ran to God as soon as I make a mistake instead of hiding? What kinds of blessings would he bestow upon me? I might even become more like Him and rejoice when I am found.

Debra Taylor 9/2012