I can't believe it's almost February! The time really just
seems to be flying by. It can be a little overwhelming sometimes. BUT that's
what happens when you work hard I suppose. This week was really good!
Monday: On Monday we had Preparation day and our preparation
days have been really lazy lately. We get all the things done that we need to
and then we sleep because we are TIRED. Spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ is
the best thing I've ever done but man does it make you tired.
Tuesday: On Tuesday we had a lesson with our investigator
Mary. It was the best. We had a really good talk about the Plan of Salvation
(God's plan for our lives). It was really neat and the spirit was really strong
especially at the end. We talked about The Book of Mormon and the difference
that it can make in our lives and in our relationship with Jesus Christ and it
was a really neat topic. The Book of Mormon truly does testify of Jesus Christ
and will bring you closer to Him. We also met a member of the ward and we
talked to him and his girlfriend and set up an appointment to go back and get
to know them a little better. It was really fun to meet them. After that we
drove up to West Plains, Missouri to go on exchanges with the Sisters there. I
was on exchanges with Sister Mueller. We went to Walmart to talk to people and
when we went in there was like NO ONE there. It was so sad but we needed to
find someone to talk to so we just picked an isle and walked down it. There was
a worker stocking shelves. We started talking to him and he was telling us
about his job and stuff and then I asked him about his wedding ring and who he
was married to. He told us he and his wife eloped but that for their 5 year
anniversary they wanted to get married again in one of her temples, because
"she's a Mormon." He had no idea that we were the missionaries for
that church so we exchanged numbers and set up a time to go see them. It was
really neat. The Lord truly does guide his work!
Wednesday: On Wednesday we were on exchanges until about
dinner and then we went home. When we got home we quickly ate and then went to
mutual. We taught a mutual for the young men where they read through the points
of the Plan of Salvation, picked out the things they would teach someone and
then tried to teach their leader. It was a really good mutual and the young men
did an excellent job teaching! I was thoroughly impressed!
Thursday: On Thursday we had to drive back up to West Plains
to meet with our Mission President for our interviews that we have with him
once a transfer. It was really good. We talked about the smartphones our
mission will be getting next week. On that note I should let yawl know that I
will be allowed on Facebook as a missionary in this mission! However, my
purpose on Facebook will solely be missionary work so, do not panic when you
see me on there. :) But we also met with our mission president and got to talk
to him which is always fun. After that we had lunch and played Bump with
President Loveland. Small Bragging moment: I ALMOST won one of the rounds. It
was me and an elder left and sadly he was just better than I was. After that we
drove home and the rest of our night was just spent visiting people in the ward
that we didn't know.
Friday: On Friday we were able to have a really good day! We
had a meeting with our ward mission leader and then we were able to do some
service for an elderly couple in our ward. She needed some help around her
house and with her IPad. We also went out to visit a family who had expressed
an interest in meeting with the missionaries but their schedule never worked
out and so we set up a time to meet with them! It was awesome! After that we
had dinner with a lovely member of our ward, Sister Harvey and her grandson John
who just got baptized in December. After that we had a Plan of Salvation
lesson with an investigator named Sarah and then we came home for the night! It
was a really good day.
Saturday: On Saturday we did service at Baxter and it was
way fun! Sister Garner played the Ukelele for them and I played the piano. They
kept asking for "one more song" and so she played one and then they
asked for one more and she handed the ukelele to me. I played "You are my
Sunshine" and they all joined in and then we left. After that we had a
lesson with our recent convert, Ethan about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and what
that entails. It was a really good lesson. After that we had dinner and then
went and visited some members of our ward. To end the night we came home and finished
weekly planning.
Sunday: On Sunday we had church which is always good. In one
hour we talked about keeping the Sabbath day holy and that was a really good
lesson. There is no where better you could be on Sunday than worshiping God in
church. It's so important. After church we went and had lunch and then we went
to go visit some members. We tracted a little bit and then had dinner with some
really wonderful members. After that we had a lesson with a lady in our ward
and her friend who is not a member of the church on the Restoration of the
Gospel. It was really neat because we got to talk a lot about what a prophet is
and the need for a prophet now. It was a really good discussion.
I'm so grateful to know that God loves his children. Because
He loves us he gave us tools and blessings so that we could learn and grow. One
of those tools is a family! Another is prophets. The purpose of a prophet is to
be a mouthpiece for God and to let God's children know what He would have them
know. You can see all through the Bible the cycle of people listening to a
prophet, doing well, and then ignoring the prophet and suffering the
consequences of sin. The people then needed a prophet to help them know what
God would have them do. When Jesus Christ came His purpose was to be the
Redeemer of the world, but while he was here he acted as a prophet because He
taught the people what God wanted them to know. Unfortunately even though He
was the perfect teacher and the perfect example, He too was ignored and then
eventually crucified. However, we know He rose again and that is the good news
of the gospel. However, because the people rejected Christ they did have to
suffer the consequences of sin, which was that the Gospel was taken off the
earth and with it went God's authority. However, there were still good people
who tried to teach people all of the good things that Christ taught while He
was here, which is why there are so many churches who teach about Christ and
try to help people come closer to Him. But, in 1820 a young boy named Joseph
Smith knelt down and prayed and asked God which church to join. He said of his
experience "I saw a pillar of light, exactly over my head. Which descended
gradually until it fell upon me. When the light rested upon me, I saw two personages
whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the
air." One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to
the other, 'Joseph, this is my beloved Son. Hear Him.'" Because of
this prayer and the divine answer Joseph was able to restore the Church that
Jesus Christ organized while He was here. With it came another book of
scripture, The Book of Mormon, which is another testament of Jesus Christ.
Intended neither to add to nor take away from the Bible but to also bear
witness of Christ and the love He has for us.
I'm so grateful to know that God has a prophet who leads and
guides the church today and to know that He loves me enough to never leave me
wondering what is expected of me. I love my Savior and I'm so grateful for the
Bible which tells of the perfect life He lived and the miracles He worked in
Jerusalem. I'm grateful for the Book of Mormon which talks of the visit He
made, after His Resurrection, to the American people. I'm grateful to know that
God loves His children and that Jesus Christ's gospel has truly been restored
to the Earth. If you have questions about this I'd invite you to contact your
local missionaries, read the Book of Mormon and pray about it. Whether you've
been a member of the church your whole life or you've never heard of it before.
It will be a blessing to you your whole life. I love my Savior, I love my
Father in Heaven and I love yawl. Have a great week!
--
~Sister Madisen Lloyd
The purpose of a prophet was to prophesi the future, preach repentance and the coming of Christ. Jesus was the fulfillment of the Old Testament types, shadows and prophesies. John the Baptist was the last prophet, sittting on the threshold between the new and old covenant. See Luke 16:16. Jesus is now our prophet, priest and king that reins forever. He is the only prophet we need now. We don’t need men or a church to make us right with God. You can go straight to God himself and not through men. See Heb 1 1-2. You have to pick between the gospel of Jesus or the gospel of Joseph. You cannot have both because they are different gospels. Read your New Testament with the eyes of a child and you will read of a gospel of Grace and love and peace, not works, busyness with “church duties” or trying to work out your own plan of salvation. Your works in front of a holy God are filthy rags. Galatians makes it clear; those who try to earn their salvation fall from the grace of God. Please study with your partner the book of John to learn who Jesus is, Romans 1-8 to read about the true gospel, and Galatians to learn about grace vs. works. God will open your eyes if you seek him! Your life will chance when you understand grace, which will lead you to WANT to do good works NOT forced upon you to try to earn righteousness with God. Bless you my friend.
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