Another Week

Wow, haha another busy busy week! This week we've had meetings almost everyday of the week since I last wrote! This week is the week of Zone Conferences which is always an enjoyable time. We have the opportunity to see the whole mission as well as to train the whole mission. It's funny I don't get nervous for any other training but this one. It's kind of intense to be training two full zones at the same time. I just hope that our training is what they need to hear. It's always so humbling to have the opportunity to train the entire mission on something. It's crazy to think that our trainings really do seem to set the tone for the mission and thus the tone for the lessons for each of their investigators as well. Needless to say we think quite a bit about what we're going to teach as well as trying to make sure that the training has everything in it and is explained well. This transfer we trained on the "process of purification" which I think I mentioned to you all last time? So far it's been going well, though I admit that for some reason Zone Conference Week seems to be one of the most difficult weeks of the transfer. The devil knows my weaknesses well and seems to attack non-stop during Zone Conferences to try and make sure that our training isn't as good as it needs to be. The devil is an astute one, he's very good at making you look at all your weaknesses and amplifying them a million fold! Yeah, this time was better than last though, I was able to recognize it a little quicker and fend him off a little bit easier, but it's still interesting to see how the devil attacks and the Lord defends right in the most crucial moments.

I've also been thinking about some other things dealing with conversion. It was interesting, the other night we passed by a less active guy's house and started to speak to him. He was nice enough but had left the church when he left home and he wasn't too interested. We testified briefly and invited him to listen to us to try and rekindle the faith of his youth. He declined and then we politely walked away as if we'd just had a normal conversation with the man with no greater significance than just that. As I was thinking about it afterwards I realized that I'm not nearly as converted as I would like to be. It's sad how we can sometimes become so casual in things that are of an eternal nature. I left wishing that I would have been truly "devastated", as Elder Holland says, because this man had no interest in receiving the gospel. Obviously it's good to be polite and respectful of another person's beliefs and practices, but I just got to thinking, man, I know this stuff is true, and I know that without it he's really not going to make it to the Celestial Kingdom, why was I so casual? I notice a similar attitude in many of the missionaries and sometimes members as well, where we understand that the Gospel will help people be happier and help them have better lives, a better family, etc. All good and necessary things; however, in the process we forget to look a little deeper. We forget to remember that we don't do missionary work "just to grow the numbers of the church, or to help people have better lives." We do missionary work in order to "open the doors of the Celestial Kingdom". And we are the only people in the entire world that can do that. It's something I think I need to strive to remember and recognize a little more frequently. Imagine the difference it would make if every time we did home teaching, or invited a deacon back to church, or knocked someone's door, or talked to someone in the street, if we could just see them as God sees them, and realize that we have that thing that will be of greatest value to them. I think that if we could do that it would make a world of difference. We would be filled with love for the people, we'd realize that we have to keep striving to share the gospel despite rejection or if those who are unreceptive. I guess you could say it was kind of a wake up moment. I believe that will be my focus for the course of the next month or so, striving to see these people as they are and recognizing the eternal significance of what we're doing. It's incredible to think that God really has entrusted us with the souls of these people underneath our stewardship... Anyways, besides those moments of reflection it's just been a go go go week! It's crazy to think that the transfer is already halfway over... Man, time just disappears, and we're left just wondering how it all went by so quickly. Still, at least it's happening, right! There really is nothing better than the mission!