Missionaries help those who are converted prepare for baptism, confirmation, and membership in the Lord’s Church.

• Keep the Sabbath day holy.

Exodus 20:8 Remember the ^asabbath day, to keep it ^bholy.

9 ^aSix days shalt thou ^blabour, and do all thy work:

10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy ^astranger that is within thy gates:

11 For in ^asix days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord ^bblessed the sabbath day, and ^challowed it.

Keeping the Sabbath day holy is really a difficult thing in our busy lives. It is hard not to see it as a day to catch up on school work or hang out with friends, but when one takes a look at how much we can be doing while focusing our time on the things of God, our day is suddenly full, and we no longer have time for worldly things.

• Follow the prophets.

Amos 3: 7 Surely the Lord God will do nothing, ^abut he ^brevealeth his ^csecret unto his servants the ^dprophets.

The prophets have and have had the keys and authority to receive revelation from God for us. We are never expected to follow blindly, but to take things under careful prayer and consideration, so that the Spirit can witness to us the truthfulness of the things that we do.

• Live the law of chastity.

D&C 42: 22 Thou shalt ^alove thy wife with all thy heart, and shalt ^bcleave unto her and none else.

23 And he that ^alooketh upon a woman to lust after her shall deny the faith, and shall not have the ^bSpirit; and if he repents not he shall be cast out.

24 Thou shalt not commit ^aadultery; and he that committeth ^badultery, and repenteth not, shall be ^ccast out.

25 But he that has committed adultery and repents with all his heart, and forsaketh it, and doeth it ^ano more, thou shalt forgive;

Being chaste involves more than just our physical actions, whether or not we have actually committed any sexual sin, it also involves a purity of mind and heart, our intentions are perceived and taken under careful consideration .

• Obey the Word of Wisdom.

D&C 89 contains the Word of Wisdom, the health code that we follow as members of the Church. Many things contained therein were revealed to Joseph Smith long before any heath professional had said that they were bad for one's body. One example is tobacco: in the early church, almost everyone used tobacco, and then it was taken under consideration by the prophet whether those things were good for our bodies, he prayed and received the 89th section of the Doctrine and Covenants.

We are given this promise if we are to keep these words of wisdom:
D&C 89: 18 And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, ^ashall receive ^bhealth in their navel and marrow to their bones;

19 And shall ^afind ^bwisdom and great ^ctreasures of ^dknowledge, even hidden treasures;

20 And shall ^arun and not be ^bweary, and shall walk and not faint.

21 And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the ^adestroying angel shall ^bpass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them. Amen.

• Live the law of tithing.

Malachi 3: 10 Bring ye all the ^atithes into the storehouse, that there may be ^bmeat in mine house, and ^cprove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not ^dopen you the ^ewindows of heaven, and pour you out a ^fblessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

11 And I will ^arebuke the ^bdevourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts.

12 And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the Lord of hosts.

The law of tithing is not a new idea. It is a great act of faith for those of us that have not been blessed with a lot of income to actually give ten percent of our increase to the Church. But I have a firm testimony, and I have seen it not only in my own life, but in the lives of others that the Lord blesses those that have the faith to impart of their substance for His work and His cause. These funds go to help build temples and churches, fund the church's universities, and feed and assist the poor and the hungry all over the world.

Covenants and ordinances necessary for exaltation are received in the house of the Lord.

■ Elder Russell M. Nelson explained how proclaiming the restored gospel leads to the temple on the path to eternal life:

“The temple is the house of the Lord. The basis for every temple ordinance and covenant—the heart of the plan of salvation—is the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Every activity, every lesson, all we do in the Church points to the Lord and His holy house. Our efforts to proclaim the gospel, perfect the Saints, and redeem the dead all lead to the temple. . . .

“Temple ordinances, covenants, endowments, and sealings enable individuals to be reconciled with the Lord and families to be sealed beyond the veil of death. Obedience to temple covenants qualifies us for eternal life, the greatest gift of God to man [see D&C 14:7]. Eternal life is more than immortality. Eternal life is exaltation in the highest heaven—the kind of life that God lives”

As investigators come unto Christ and prepare to become Church members, they must understand the covenants associated with saving ordinances and be willing to make and keep these sacred obligations.

The first five verses of chapter 6 are the important ones for this point, but I threw in the rest of the chapter because of the beauty that it contains. Sometimes we forget that this is how the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is operated, and we lose sight of how wonderful that is.

Moroni Chapter 6
1 And now I speak concerning baptism. Behold, elders, priests, and teachers were baptized; and they were not baptized save they brought forth ^afruit meet that they were ^bworthy of it.

2 Neither did they receive any unto baptism save they came forth with a ^abroken ^bheart and a contrite spirit, and witnessed unto the church that they truly repented of all their sins.

3 And none were received unto baptism save they ^atook upon them the name of Christ, having a determination to serve him to the end.

4 And after they had been received unto baptism, and were wrought upon and ^acleansed by the power of the Holy Ghost, they were numbered among the people of the ^bchurch of Christ; and their ^cnames were taken, that they might be remembered and nourished by the good word of God, to keep them in the right way, to keep them continually ^dwatchful unto prayer, ^erelying alone upon the merits of Christ, who was the author and the finisher of their faith.

5 And the ^achurch did meet together ^boft, to ^cfast and to pray, and to speak one with another concerning the welfare of their souls.

6 And they did ^ameet together oft to partake of bread and wine, in ^bremembrance of the Lord Jesus.

7 And they were strict to observe that there should be ^ano iniquity among them; and whoso was found to commit iniquity, and ^bthree witnesses of the church did condemn them before the ^celders, and if they repented not, and ^dconfessed not, their names were ^eblotted out, and they were not ^fnumbered among the people of Christ.

8 But ^aas oft as they repented and sought forgiveness, with real ^bintent, they were ^cforgiven.

9 And their meetings were ^aconducted by the church after the manner of the workings of the Spirit, and by the ^bpower of the Holy Ghost; for as the power of the Holy Ghost led them whether to preach, or to exhort, or to pray, or to supplicate, or to sing, even so it was done.

This is revelation given to the prophet Joseph Smith:

D&C 45:9 And even so I have sent mine ^aeverlasting ^bcovenant into the world, to be a ^clight to the world, and to be a ^dstandard for my people, and for the ^eGentiles to seek to it, and to be a ^fmessenger before my face to prepare the way before me.

This is all preparation for the Second Coming, as has been spoken of since the beginning of any record that we have. Making covenants is an integral part of what we do in this church.

But what is a covenant?

“[A covenant is] an agreement between God and man, but they do not act as equals in the agreement. God gives the conditions for the covenant, and men agree to do what he asks them to do. God then promises men certain blessings for their obedience.

“Principles and ordinances are received by covenant. Members of the Church who make such covenants promise to honor them. For example, members covenant with the Lord at baptism and renew those covenants by partaking of the sacrament. They make further covenants in the temple. The Lord’s people are a covenant people and are greatly blessed as they keep their covenants with the Lord” (Guide to the Scriptures, “Covenant,” 55).

Missionaries help those who are converted prepare for baptism, confirmation, and membership in the Lord’s Church.

There are some things that are absolutely necessary before one can be baptized.
These commandments are:

• Keep the Sabbath day holy.

• Follow the prophets.

• Live the law of chastity.

• Obey the Word of Wisdom.

• Live the law of tithing.

Using Time Wisely 2

D&C 109: 8 Organize yourselves; ^aprepare every needful thing, and establish a house, even a ^bhouse of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of ^corder, a ^dhouse of God;

That's pretty clear, we need to be organized and organize for God.
What are we doing that could be done better?
How can we use our time to accomplish more in a day?

Dallin H. Oaks said:

“Our priorities determine what we seek in life. . . .

“Jesus taught about priorities when He said, ‘Seek not the things of this world but seek ye first to build up the kingdom of God, and to establish his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you’ (Joseph Smith Translation, Matthew 6:38; in Matthew 6:33; footnote a).

“‘Seek . . . first to build up the kingdom of God’ means to assign first priority to God and to His work. The work of God is to bring to pass the eternal life of His children (see Moses 1:39), and all that this entails in the birth, nurturing, teaching, and sealing of our Heavenly Father’s children. Everything else is lower in priority. . . . As someone has said, if we do not choose the kingdom of God first, it will make little difference in the long run what we have chosen instead of it. . . .

“Our priorities are most visible in how we use our time. . . . With time, we have only one opportunity for choice, and then it is gone forever”

And M. Russel Ballard made a good point when he said that: “Missionaries cannot do this work by just saying, ‘Well, what are we going to do?’ Missionaries have to set goals. In companionship study two missionaries set their goals. They realize that if they have good goals, they will be much more successful in finding, in teaching, in progressing investigators, and in baptizing them so that they can be confirmed and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost”

WE NEED TO MAKE GOALS AND PROGRESS TOWARD THEM.

Using Time Wisely

Finding people to teach is a responsibility for missionaries and Church members.

D&C 123:12 For there are many yet on the earth among all sects, parties, and denominations, who are ^ablinded by the subtle ^bcraftiness of men, whereby they lie in wait to ^cdeceive, and who are only kept from the truth because they ^dknow not where to find it—

13 Therefore, that we should waste and ^awear out our lives in bringing to light all the ^bhidden things of darkness, wherein we know them; and they are truly manifest from heaven—

14 These should then be attended to with great ^aearnestness.

This scripture was taken out of context, but it does seem to apply in this situation in the sense that there are many that were blinded by the subtle craftiness of men. People are searching for truth, and they do not know where to find it.

This statistic about members and their role in finding investigators is incredible:

Members are important in finding investigators who will eventually be baptized and stay active and faithful. Elder L. Tom Perry of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said: “Not long ago we did a study on convert baptisms, and only 10 percent of the investigators being taught by missionaries were found through referrals from members. But 60 percent of the investigators who were baptized came from those referrals” (The Role of Members [address at seminar for new mission presidents, June 24, 2003], 3).

We are supposed to make every effort to talk to everyone we can about the church while we are on our missions, and as members we are to help find people for the missionaries to teach.

I've made a point of being very clear and very blunt about my intentions as a missionary, both to my friends and my church leaders. I will never be a part of selling a religion, or making a competition about the pursuit of truth that people might be going through.

I am only there because God told me to be there, and I will be a representative of the church in every way that I can, but I am there to find people that want to listen, not to try to convince people of what I believe.

The rejection of the Savior, His teachings, and priesthood authority resulted in the Apostasy of the New Testament Church.

Paul prophesied of apostasy.
Acts 20: 29 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
30 Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.

Acts 8: 11 ¶ Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a ^afamine of bread, nor a ^bthirst for water, but of hearing the ^cwords of the Lord:

The world fell into apostasy before the coming of Christ. They killed the prophets and had perverted the teachings that had been standing for thousands of years. John the Baptist was the last actually holding the authority to baptize as having been passed down by the ancient prophets.

After Christ's crucifixion and the deaths of the apostles, the teachings were gone, and so was the authority.

The Second Coming of Christ is to be preceded by a falling away.

2 Thessalonians 2: 1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

Even when the apostles were still alive, the people that they were teaching were fading in the faith and adopting many perversions into the Gospel that they practiced. The reason for all of the epistles was to correct these!

The European Reformation helped prepare the was for the final Restoration

Protestant churches began to branch out of the Catholic church, believing that they had strayed from the original teachings of the primitive church. This rejection made it more possible for people to find the restored Gospel.

M. Russell Ballard: “In 1517 the Spirit moved Martin Luther, a German priest who was disturbed at how far the church had strayed from the gospel as taught by Christ. His work led to a reformation, a movement that was taken up by such other visionaries as John Calvin, Huldrych Zwingli, John Wesley, and John Smith. I believe these reformers were inspired to create a religious climate in which God could restore lost truths and priesthood authority. Similarly, God inspired the earlier explorers and colonizers of America and the framers of the Constitution of the United States to develop a land and governing principals to which the Gospel could be restored.”

I also know that those men were inspired.
We are given a great gift.

Talking of the last days before the second coming, the prophet Joel wrote:

Joel 2:28 ¶ And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will ^apour out my ^bspirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall ^cprophesy, your ^dold men shall ^edream dreams, your young men shall see ^fvisions:

Much like today?

The Book of Mormon is convincing evidence of the Restoration.

1 Nephi 13: 40 And the angel spake unto me, saying: These last records, which thou hast seen among the Gentiles, shall establish the truth of the first, which are of the twelve apostles of the Lamb, and shall make known the plain and precious things which have been taken away from them; and shall make known to all kindreds, tongues, and people, that the Lamb of God is the Son of the Eternal Father, and the Savior of the world; and that all men must come unto him, or they cannot be saved.

The prophet Gordon B. Hinckley explained it best when he said:

“If the Book of Mormon is true, the Church is true, for the same authority under which this sacred record came to light is present and manifest among us today. It is a restoration of the Church set up by the Savior in Palestine. It is a restoration of the Church set up by the Savior when he visited this continent as set forth in this sacred record.
“If the Book of Mormon is true, the Bible is true. The Bible is the Testament of the Old World. The Book of Mormon is the Testament of the New. The one is the record of Judah, the other is the record of Joseph, and they have come together in the hand of the Lord in fulfilment of the prophecy of Ezekiel. Together they declare the Kingship of the Redeemer of the world, and the reality of his kingdom” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1959, 119).
“We are to use the Book of Mormon in handling objections to the Church. . . .
“. . . All objections, whether they be on abortion, plural marriage, seventh-day worship, etc., basically hinge on whether Joseph Smith and his successors were and are prophets of God receiving divine revelation. Here, then, is a procedure to handle most objections through the use of the Book of Mormon.
“First, understand the objection.
“Second, give the answer from revelation.
“Third, show how the correctness of the answer really depends on whether or not we have modern revelation through modern prophets.
“Fourth, explain that whether or not we have modern prophets and revelation really depends on whether the Book of Mormon is true.
“Therefore, the only problem the objector has to resolve for himself is whether the Book of Mormon is true. For if the Book of Mormon is true, then Jesus is the Christ, Joseph Smith was his prophet, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true, and it is being led today by a prophet receiving revelation.

Under the direction of Jesus Christ, the priesthood and the Church were restored through His servants.

Acts 3:20 And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:
21 Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.

HE'S TALKING ABOUT A RESTORATION AFTER CHRIST LEFT!
Protestant Christian belief is that the original church had fallen away after the death of the apostles, which we can see evidence of in these records. Not only that, but the record talk about everything being restored at a later time!

D&C 13:1 Upon you my fellow servants, in the name of Messiah I confer the Priesthood of Aaron, which holds the keys of the ministering of angels, and of the gospel of repentance, and of baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; and this shall never be taken again from the earth, until the sons of Levi do offer again an offering unto the Lord in righteousness.

I have a sure testimony of the Priesthood and its power and authority to act in the name of God. As such, it most assuredly must be concluded that Jesus was and is the Christ, that the priesthood was restored to Joseph Smith, that Joseph Smith was a true prophet, and that this is God’s true church on the earth today.

If God really cared enough to do all of this, then God will doubtlessly care enough to tell any that ask Him if He really did it. It's the only way to know for sure.

Apostasy

The Lord provides truth, priesthood authority, ordinances, and organization through His prophets.

Amos 3:7 Surely the Lord God will do nothing, ^abut he ^brevealeth his ^csecret unto his servants the ^dprophets.

God has an order and a way of communicating with us here on earth. It is either by revelation given to good men that are called of God as prophets, or by revelation given to each of us personally. But it is good to know that for any major event, we can look to the prophets past or present to prophecy and tell us what we need to do to prepare.

2 Thessalonians 2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, ^aby the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,

2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, ^aor be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by ^bletter as from us, as that the ^cday of Christ is at hand.

3 Let no man deceive you by any means: ^afor that day shall not come, except there come a ^bfalling away first, and that ^cman of ^dsin be revealed, the son of perdition;

Amos 8: 11 ¶ Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a ^afamine of bread, nor a ^bthirst for water, but of hearing the ^cwords of the Lord:

12 And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall ^arun to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it.

The day of the Lord will com after a falling away. There shall be a famine of the word of the Lord. How could we get any more obvious? This is why things needed to be restored. Seekers of truth have found that a falling away has already come to pass, and they have led others in an honest pursuit of the word of the Lord.

■ Elder M. Russell Ballard explained how God helped create an environment where the gospel could be restored:

“In 1517 the Spirit moved Martin Luther, a German priest who was disturbed at how far the church had strayed from the gospel as taught by Christ. His work led to a reformation, a movement that was taken up by such other visionaries as John Calvin, Huldrych Zwingli, John Wesley, and John Smith.

“I believe these reformers were inspired to create a religious climate in which God could restore lost truths and priesthood authority. Similarly, God inspired the earlier explorers and colonizers of America and the framers of the Constitution of the United States to develop a land and governing principles to which the gospel could be restored” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1994, 85; or Ensign, Nov. 1994, 66).

Degrees of Glory

Heavenly Father prepared degrees of glory for His children.a
1 Corinthians 15: 40 ^aThere are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the ^bcelestial is one, and the glory of the ^cterrestrial is another.

41 There is one glory of the ^asun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the ^bstars: for one star ^cdiffereth from another star in ^dglory.

42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in ^acorruption; it is raised in incorruption:

Without modern revelation, this statement is really unclear to me. I can see that many of the plain and precious truths really have been taken out of the bible. Whether by intention or mistranslation, it's hard to be sure.

D&C 98: 18 Let not your hearts be troubled; for in my Father’s house are ^amany mansions, and I have prepared a place for you; and where my Father and I am, there ye shall be also.

Joseph Smith quoted the words that the savior said in John 14:2 when he was explaining the afterlife.
I am grateful for this knowledge. There are still many things that I do not understand, but I believe that that is to be expected in anyone that is trying to get a grasp on our infinite lives and purposes.

The Atonement of Jesus Christ makes it possible to overcome the obstacles of spiritual and physical death.

2 Nephi 2: 25 ^aAdam ^bfell that men might be; and men ^care, that they might have ^djoy.

26 And the ^aMessiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may ^bredeem the children of men from the fall. And because that they are ^credeemed from the fall they have become ^dfree forever, knowing good from evil; to act for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment of the ^elaw at the great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given.

27 Wherefore, men are ^afree according to the ^bflesh; and ^call things are ^dgiven them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to ^echoose ^fliberty and eternal ^glife, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be ^hmiserable like unto himself.

This is a perfect representation of the doctrine of the Church about the plan of Salvation. We are here to progress, to learn, and to be like our Heavenly Father. We are given the means and the choices to do so, and are judged only according to what we know.

Alma 34:8 And now, behold, I will ^atestify unto you of myself that these things are true. Behold, I say unto you, that I do know that Christ shall come among the children of men, to take upon him the ^btransgressions of his people, and that he shall ^catone for the sins of the world; for the Lord God hath spoken it.

9 For it is expedient that an ^aatonement should be made; for according to the great ^bplan of the Eternal God there must be an atonement made, or else all mankind must unavoidably perish; yea, all are hardened; yea, all are ^cfallen and are lost, and must perish except it be through the atonement which it is expedient should be made.

10 For it is expedient that there should be a great and last ^asacrifice; yea, not a ^bsacrifice of man, neither of beast, neither of any manner of fowl; for it shall not be a human sacrifice; but it must be an ^cinfinite and ^deternal ^esacrifice.

This one not only talks about the Atonement that Christ made, but also the fulfillment of the Law of Moses. I still don't understand how all of that worked or why, but if one reads throught the Old Testament one can find countless similarities between the sacrifices that were made and the eternal sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

Heavenly Father's Plan

There are three stages of Heavenly Father's plan: premortal, mortal, and postmortal.

Jeremiah 1:5 Before I ^aformed thee in the belly I ^bknew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I ^csanctified thee, and I ^dordained thee a prophet unto the ^enations.

God is confirming the idea that we exist before we are born, before we are even formed in the womb. Things like this, plain and simple things, cannot be denied and cannot be questioned if one believes that the Bible is the word of God.

Alma 12:24 And we see that ^adeath comes upon mankind, yea, the death which has been spoken of by Amulek, which is the temporal death; nevertheless there was a space granted unto ^bman in which he might repent; therefore this life became a ^cprobationary state; a time to ^dprepare to meet God; a time to prepare for that endless state which has been spoken of by us, which is after the resurrection of the dead.

25 Now, if it had not been for the plan of redemption, which was laid from the foundation of the world, there could have been no ^aresurrection of the dead; but there was a plan of ^bredemption laid, which shall bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, of which has been spoken.

This speaks of all three staged of our existence. It is a hard thing to come to a real understanding of what all of these things really mean. Contemplating the infinite within a finite existence is something that man has been trying to do since we came here.
Ultimately, all that we can do is find out if these words came from God, and then trust God and leave it at that.

This life is a probationary state, we are given trials and tests to determine where we will stand in the next life. All of us will fall and fail miserably, and without this great plan of redemption it would be impossible for us to live with God again.

I know this only because I have been given a sure witness that God lives and that these are His words.

Companionship of the Holy Ghost

There were four main doctrines and principals to understand in this chapter:

• The Light of Christ is a power for good in the lives of all people.
• The Holy Ghost is a member of the Godhead.
• There are many ways that the Holt Ghost influences out lives for good.
• Sensitivity and obedience to the Spirit is one of a missionary's greatest resources.

So we'll start with the first,
The Light of Christ is a power for good in the lives of all people.

Moroni 7:16-19 says that the Spirit of Christ (Light of Christ) is given to everyone to help them to know good from evil. All that is makes one want to do evil is from the devil, and all that makes one want to do good is from God.
It is built into us. Everyone know when they are doing something seriously wrong whether they admit it or not. And should they not know at all, they are not held accountable.

That brings up my questions about accountability once again.

D&C 84:46-47 tells us that not only is everyone given the Spirit and the Light of Christ, or the knowledge of good and evil, but if we listen to the promptings of that Spirit we will be enlightened and gain knowledge of God from it.
It makes sense to live in a way that one truly believes is good and right. I don't think that anyone in the world is truly satisfied because we're not perfect, but I've met people that really try and make an effort to do nothing but good things with their lives, and they really do seem very much on a different level and have a closer relationship with God than myself and most of the people that I know.
The Spirit of Christ or the Light of Christ should not be confused with the Holy Ghost. The Light of Christ is something natural within us all, not a being or a messenger.

The April 2005 Ensign phrases it that "missionaries are not planting something foreign or even new into and adult or child. Rather, the missionary or teacher is making contact with the Spirit of Christ already there. The gospel will have a familiar ring to them."

The Holy Ghost is a Member of the Godhead.

John 14:26 But the ^aComforter, which is the ^bHoly Ghost, whom the Father will send in my ^cname, he shall ^dteach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
The Holy ghost is the Lord's messenger. As Elder Robert D. Hales said: "(The Holy Ghost) testifies of Jesus Christ, His work, and the work of His servants upon the earth."

D&C 130: 22 The ^aFather has a ^bbody of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of ^cSpirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not ^ddwell in us.

This is a controversial idea that we bring up in our church. God being a personage of flesh and bone, visible, tangible and separate from the Holy Ghost and Jesus Christ. Our entire faith is predicated on the fact that Joseph Smith saw God and Jesus Christ as two separate people. If that didn't happen, not a word of what I've been talking about is true.
But the funny thing about that is that when one reads the Book of Mormon, and follows the promise made by Moroni to pray about the words, and ask God in the name of Jesus Christ if those words are true, the Holy Ghost will enter your heart and "dwell within you" and give you the undeniable witness that it is of God.
Things will most assuredly come about when a person is honestly in search of truth. A loving God would never leave one of us in the dark, we only need to be willing to change ourselves and follow if we are given the knowledge that these things are true. I can't think of many people that would not be willing to change if they believed that God himself had shown them a sign that something was right.
One scripture that really says it is D&C 6:22 Verily, verily, I say unto you, if you desire a further witness, cast your mind upon the night that you cried unto me in your heart, that you might ^aknow concerning the truth of these things.

23 Did I not speak ^apeace to your mind concerning the matter? What greater ^bwitness can you have than from God?

There are many ways that the Holy Ghost influences our lives for good.

The best and most reliable way to describe what the purpose and influence of the Holy Ghost of the Holy Ghost is is to read the words of Christ.

In the book of John, Christ calls the Holy Ghost the Comforter and the Spirit of truth, one that will teach us, bear witness not only of Christ but of all truth, bring those things to our remembrance, show us things that will come. (See John 14:26, 15:26, and 16:13)

I have a personal knowledge that when we petition God in honest and determined prayer, with the intent of our hearts to do as God instructs us to do, God will show us the truth of all things.

Personal Worthiness

There were three main qualifications that the manual emphasized and they were:

1. Clean thoughts
2. Moral Cleanliness
3. Keeping the Commandments

Personal Worthiness is Necessary to Accomplish Missionary Work
D&C 38: Christ is only pleased with cleanliness. If we are not one we are not his. We need to be living the commandments of Christ in order to have his Spirit and to properly share our testimonies.
D&C 133 talks more about remaining clean and proclaiming the word. "Go ye out from Babylon, from the midst of wickedness, which is spiritual Babylon...But let not your flight be in haste, but let all things be prepared before you." We need to rid ourselves of wickedness and prepare ourselves before we can become clean, basically. The rest of the chapter was full of prophecies about the coming of Christ, the weak being made strong, and the raising of the dead.

The manual was full of really intimidating quotes about what we needed to be doing and changing in our lives, and all the standards that we are held to. But there was one really wonderful thing that stood out to me that seemed to speak to my current feeling and situation:

"We are not asking for perfection. The work of the Lord is done by ordinary people who work in an extraordinary way. The Lord magnifies those who put forth the effort. Nowhere is this more evident than in missionary service...With small means the Lord accomplishes His marvelous work." ("Missionary Service," First Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting, Jan. 2003, 17-18)

Personal Worthiness Allows us to Receive Temple Blessings
Psalms 24- The only people that dwell with the Lord are those with clean hands and a pure heart. Essentially, keep the commandments, repent and forsake your sins and you will be saved.
D&C 109- As we receive our temple blessings, we are armed with God's power to do good, and we are given angels to watch over us. We will bear tidings of joy and truth. No one will prevail against us.
I really don't understand the things that go on in the temple, or the importance of them. I haven't been through the temple, it makes sense. But those sound like blessings worth having, and worth keeping my covenants for.


The Repentance Process Allows us to Become Worthy

Isaiah 1:16 ¶ ^aWash you, make you ^bclean; put away the ^cevil of your doings from before mine eyes; ^dcease to do evil;

17 ^aLearn to do ^bwell; seek ^cjudgment, ^drelieve the oppressed, ^ejudge the fatherless, plead for the ^fwidow.

18 Come now, and let us ^areason together, saith the Lord: though your ^bsins be as scarlet, they shall be as ^cwhite as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

19 If ye be ^awilling and ^bobedient, ye shall eat the ^cgood of the land:

20 But if ye refuse and ^arebel, ye shall be ^bdevoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.


Isaiah always did have the words to make you never want to sin ever again.

Helaman 14:13 And if ye ^abelieve on his name ye will repent of all your sins, that thereby ye may have a remission of them through his ^bmerits.

It's been a topic of conversation with friends of mine about why we believe that works are so important and why we have to do more than have faith enough to believe in Jesus Christ and claim him as our Redeemer. My answer to that has always been: "Why would the Lord spend all that time and effort filling the mouths of prophets with commandments to do good and with cries of repentance if it were just a suggestion?

Another scripture about repentance for those that are concerned that if they have sinned they will not be worthy of the same blessings.

D&C 58:42 Behold, he who has ^arepented of his ^bsins, the same is ^cforgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more.

43 By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins—behold, he will ^aconfess them and ^bforsake them.

We need to forsake the sins, confess them, and then forget them and stop feeling bad about our past. There's no use in beating ourselves up over things that we've done if we have faith that Christ is our Redeemer, and if we have a determination to change.

Isaiah 43:25 I, even I, am he that ^ablotteth out thy ^btransgressions for mine own ^csake, and will not remember thy sins.

Hebrews 8:12 For I will be merciful to their ^aunrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I ^bremember no more.

Alma talks about his repentance process and the experience that he had of having his sins lifted from him, which were great and many:

Alma 36:18 Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart: O Jesus, thou Son of God, ^ahave mercy on me, who am ^bin the ^cgall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting ^dchains of ^edeath.

19 And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my ^apains ^bno more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.

20 And oh, what ^ajoy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!

Gathering of Israel and Such

I guess that I read Jeremiah a little too soon on that last one. The first set of scriptures here are about the gathering of Israel.
By the way, two wonderful sources of information that I've read on the lost tribes of Israel and/or the gathering of them are: The Trial of the Stick of Joseph by Jack West, and The Dead Sea Scrolls (I don't rightly remember the author). Both books are a little old but still contain numerous references about the studies of ancient America and the roots and ancestry of the people.

!st Nephi 22 was a really heavy chapter. We can already see some of those things coming to pass as we look at the world around us. The world over is beginning to learn of Christ and there is a certain unity amongst Christians on a whole. On the same note, we can also see the perversions of the Gospel that cause people to be confused and to argue over doctrine. There is and oppositional force and it does its best to divide us.

One can see that the only way to solve something like that is for the people doing the deception to fall into their own trap as described. Verses 13-15 talk about the fall of that Great and Abominable Church and all the nations that war against Israel. In a short time, the Old Testament might not seem so old.

D&C 29 might be even more graphic than the last scripture, what with the maggots eating people's flesh and eyes falling out of their sockets.
To bring up a question of mine from the last entry, in verse 47 the issue of accountability is brought up again:
Wherefore, they cannot ^asin, for power is not given unto Satan to ^btempt little children, until they ^cbegin to become ^daccountable before me;

I still have unresolved questions about that issue.

Doctrine and Covenants 110: It contains a vision as seen by Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdry in the Kirkland Temple in Ohio. The contrast between this and the scriptures before it is immense. First, Jehovah (Christ) appeared to them, accepting the temple. Then, Moses. After that, Elias. The last was Elijah. The keys of the gathering of Israel were committed to Joseph with a promise that the great and dreadful day of the Lord is near.

1 Nephi 6:4: Nephi's intent is to have the plates occupied with the most precious things of God, and he makes certain that his brother, Jacob, understands this when he passes the plates on in Jacob chapter 1. Jacob just restates the issue.

2 Nephi 25 is a prophecy about the ministry of Christ, that he will preach in a "tabernacle of clay", and the fulfillment of the law of Moses.
He made it sound like everyone should know about how obviously the law of Moses was bound to be fulfilled. He said that every sacrifice that took place and every ritual was a type and shadow of the coming of the Messiah. I guess that the doctrine is deeper than what I know at this time, but that is something of interest to me and I will look into it.

In Jacob 1, he talked about his labors to bring his people unto Christ, and he told of their iniquities and said that their sins would be on his head if he did not declare the word of God with all diligence. As people that have knowledge of something good, it is right to share it. But never to force it down the throats of those that do not want to hear it. I want to be clear in my stance and interpretation of sharing the gospel and what it means to me to declare the word of God with all diligence.

A full time missionary call comes from the Lord through his authorized servants.


Alma 42 the Fall of Adam and the need for mercy, justice and the plan of redemption through Christ. Basically, If man desires to do evil and does not repent, evil is done unto him in the hereafter. In verse 31, it says that we are called of God to teach the word so that souls may be brought to repentance and that mercy may have claim upon them.

D&C 11:15 was one that I quoted in the last blog. I still think it's one of the best scriptures that I've had the pleasure of finding.

While I do find most of the scriptures that we read inspiring, I really can relate more to the actual mission stories in the chapter, and modern events in which it is obvious that God was involved and so much so that it cannot be denied. The stories in this chapter were fantastic.

My dad has told me so many stories about his missionary experience in Nigeria. He baptized over 100 people that were just waiting to hear word of something better than what they were doing at the time. He described events where they would come in large numbers to be taught and baptized, seeing visions and having visitations that told them to go and listen to the Mormon missionaries. The normal practice in that area of Nigeria was to rely on witch doctors and idol worship, and once they were baptized they were faithful all of their lives without faltering.

Finding those that are in need of a change for the better is why we go. The Lord is always preparing people that are looking for truth and He makes what needs to happen happen.

Call to Serve

When reading the suggested scriptures in the study guide, I tried to make a point to read the whole chapter so that I could know and understand the context of the verses.

The first set of scriptures talked about baptism being the only way to our salvation and the gospel of Christ being the Power of God unto the redemption of our souls. I have a few questions about those verses that still need to be answered, so I will study further before I write anything on them.

The next set of scriptures in the guide talked about the field being white and ready to harvest. To me that means that the time is now to join in the work of the Lord, that we need to be ready to serve immediately. I've been particularly concerned with my lack of scriptural knowledge as I am about to serve a mission at the end of the semester. In D&C 11, in the prophecy that Joseph Smith gave, verses 15-22, I found something that seemed to speak to me personally.

It reads:
15 Behold, I command you that you need not suppose that you are ^acalled to ^bpreach ^cuntil you are called.

16 Wait a little longer, until you shall have my word, my ^arock, my ^bchurch, and my gospel, that you may know of a surety my doctrine.

17 And then, behold, according to your desires, yea, even according to your ^afaith shall it be done unto you.

18 Keep my commandments; hold your peace; appeal unto my Spirit;

19 Yea, ^acleave unto me with all your heart, that you may assist in bringing to light those things of which has been spoken—yea, the ^btranslation of my work; be patient until you shall accomplish it.

20 Behold, this is your work, to ^akeep my commandments, yea, with all your might, ^bmind and strength.

21 Seek not to ^adeclare my word, but first seek to ^bobtain my ^cword, and then shall your tongue be loosed; then, if you desire, you shall have my ^dSpirit and my word, yea, the power of God unto the ^econvincing of men.

22 But now hold your ^apeace; study my word which ^bhath gone forth among the children of men, and also ^cstudy my word which shall come forth among the children of men, or that which is ^dnow translating, yea, until you have obtained all which I shall ^egrant unto the children of men in this generation, and then shall all things be added thereto.

The scripture in D&C 33 did not strike me as strongly, but the heading contained some good words. It said that as Joseph Smith was recording that revelation he said that "the Lord is ever ready to instruct such as diligently seek in faith".

D&C123:11-17 contain the very reasons for going on a mission. Verse 12 in particular gave a description of the people that I need to find. The verses themselves say more than I ever could.

11 And also it is an imperative duty that we owe to all the rising generation, and to all the pure in heart—

12 For there are many yet on the earth among all sects, parties, and denominations, who are ^ablinded by the subtle ^bcraftiness of men, whereby they lie in wait to ^cdeceive, and who are only kept from the truth because they ^dknow not where to find it—

13 Therefore, that we should waste and ^awear out our lives in bringing to light all the ^bhidden things of darkness, wherein we know them; and they are truly manifest from heaven—

14 These should then be attended to with great ^aearnestness.

15 Let no man count them as small things; for there is much which lieth in futurity, pertaining to the saints, which depends upon these things.

16 You know, brethren, that a very large ship is ^abenefited very much by a very small helm in the time of a storm, by being kept workways with the wind and the waves.

17 Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us ^acheerfully ^bdo all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the ^csalvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed.

Jeremiah 16:14-17 talks about the gathering of Israel. It tells of lands that the lord has scattered the house of Israel to, and that the Lord will bring them back to the lands of their inheritance. In reality, there are only so many lands on the face of the earth that they could have gone. I read a set of lectures called the Trial of the Stick of Joseph a short time ago, given in 1954. It quotes from native writings and legends that tell stories from the Old Testament, found in South America when the Conquistadors came. A quote from a scientist on the sight read, "If these people are not the Lost Tribes of Israel, who are they?"

I spent a good three to four hours in the mountains behind the school studying these scriptures and praying for guidance. When I was finished, I did not feel that I had been shown anything great, but now that I have gone back over them a day or two later, I see that I really did accomplish something. The Spirit does bear witness of truth and I pray everyday for the knowledge to help others to search as well.