Week Six

Dear People,

The Primary program has the plan of salvation all wrong. When you think of the Plan of Salvation, what is the first thing you think of? Not Jesus Christ probably. It should be called "The Jesus Plan" 

There was a plan given by God that allowed us to be like him if we had faith in Jesus Christ.

 The Plan of Salvation needs to be the center of our lives, and Jesus Christ is the center of the Plan of Salvation. Do you know what the first thing Jesus taught was when he visited the Nephites? Go look it up. Do you know what Nephi declared the purpose of his small plates to be? Search for it. Do you know who completed the small plates of Nephi and restated their purpose in his testimony? It wasn't Omni. The Book of Mormon tells the best story on earth. Learn it.

Life is about to get ridiculously hard for everyone. Our testimony in The Book of Mormon's truth must be sure. Our testimony of where the priesthood is must be solid. If any of ye lack wisdom about who holds Gods keys right now, Let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not and it shall be given him. 

2 Nephi 26:23 For behold, my beloved brethren, I say unto you that the Lord God worketh not in darkness. 

24 He doeth not anything save it be for the benefit of the world; for he loveth the world, even that he layeth down his own life that he may draw all men unto him.Wherefore, he commandeth none that they shall not partake of his salvation.

He is ready to give his knowledge to the humble seeker, He is not a God of secrets. His gospel is for everyone.

I am obsessed with the parallel of a mission and earth life. My teacher puts so much emphasis on our purpose as a missionary. "Invite others to come onto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel of Jesus Christ through faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end." Every move I make, every word I say should be focused on this purpose.

When I get home, I want to write a new purpose statement for myself and change it in each stage of my life. It will be different in college, it will be different when I have kids, it will be different when I am retired. It will be very different in each phase but it will always have the word "progress" in it, and it will always have the name "Jesus Christ."

Fun story for those that have read this far. One of the younger districts asked their teacher-investigator in Korean to read "Moroni 9:8" instead of "D&C 9:8"

D&C 9:8 - "But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you;therefore, you shall feel that it is right."

Moroni 9:8 - "And the husbands and fathers of those women and children they have slain; and they feed the women upon the flesh of their husbands, and the children upon the flesh of their fathers; and no water, save a little, do they give unto them."

Then they asked the them: "Will you do this tonight?"

Yesterday there was a devotional by Joy B. Jones General Primary President. Her husband said that there are 17,000 hours in a two year mission. I wrote in my notebook that I have straight thrown away at least 30 hours of my mission so far. When I am not focused on the work, I am mocking my time here. I am mocking the knowledge I have be given.

This applies to everyone on their earthly mission: We are mocking the purpose of this earth and our bodies when we are not fulfilling our purpose of progression and Joy.

I bear my testimony of the Book of Mormon, of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young's priesthood keys, of John Taylor, of Wilford Woodruff, of Lorenzo Snow, of Joseph F. Smith, of Heber J. Grant, of George Albert Smith, of David O. McKay, of Joseph Fielding Smith, of Harold B. Lee, of Spencer W. Kimball, of Ezra Taft Benson, of Howard W. Hunter, of Gordon B. Hinkley, and of Thomas S. Monson, As God's chosen Prophets. I know they hold the Keys. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

With great anxiety,

-Elder Brown