Our First Discussion

Yesterday we rode along with 9 other new missionaries, along the North Shore of Oahu, in a big van from the airport.  We were excited to meet, visit, and learn about this beautiful island.  The driver noticed our chatter and began asking questions about who we were. There was not a moment of silence before our leader, Sister Peterson, who was sitting next to me in the seat behind him, piped in confidently, telling him we were new missionaries to be serving at the PCC.  

“Have you ever heard of the PCC?”  She ask.

“I think so.  Is that where they have a big luau and dancing....up by a MormonTemple?”

“Yes!”  She said

“If I came to the PCC, could you get me in for free?”  He said kiddingly.  

“Only if you are a dancer.”  She said.

“Tell me about what you do in your temple?”  He said.

(a little silence) “We perform sacred ordinances and covenants.  We get married/sealed for eternity there.  Are you married?”  She said.

“Kind of.”  He said.

“If you want, you can walk around the Temple and go into the Visitor’s center for free, any time you want.  It’s beautiful there!”  She said.  

“Could I go inside the Temple?”  He said.

“Only if you are a member of the church.”  She said.  

“I think I remember something about your church that happened recently.....”. He said

(we finally realized he was talking about General Conference)

“What do you talk about in General Conference?  Do you hear new things every time?  Who can hear the Conference?”  He said.  

“It is an international broadcast that anyone can hear.  From leaders of our church.  About how we are all children of God and we should reach out to each other in love and kindness no matter where we are from.  About Jesus and his life on the earth.  His commandments...” We began to all chime in.

“Do you believe in the Bible?”  He said.

“Oh, yes.  His life on earth is for everyone to learn about.  The Book of Mormon is another testament of Christ.  Remember in the Bible when Jesus said  ‘There are other sheep I have, which are not of this fold:  them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.  The Book of Mormon is a record of those other sheep.’

After an impressive conversation that proved Sister Peterson’s knowledge of the Gospel and how to interact as a true missionary, we drove into the parking lot of our destination.  

Then, the driver’s words,  “I have a kind of confession for you.....”

(silence)

“I am a member of the church!”

We had just been duped.  His name was Jordan and was a returned missionary from Brazil.

 "Let God Prevail".  A talk given last October general conference by President Nelson.  This has been a meaningful talk this week in the "6 weeks of study" in preparation for April conference.   I could have copied the talk word for word, but the highlighted parts are where it speaks to my heart the most:

Let God Prevail

By President Russell M. Nelson

President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

My dear brothers and sisters, how grateful I am for the marvelous messages of this conference and for my privilege to speak with you now.

For the more than 36 years I’ve been an Apostle, the doctrine of the gathering of Israel has captured my attention.¹ Everything about it has intrigued me, including the ministries and names² of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; their lives and their wives; the covenant God made with them and extended through their lineage;³ the dispersion of the twelve tribes; and the numerous prophecies about the gathering in our day.

I have studied the gathering, prayed about it, feasted upon every related scripture, and asked the Lord to increase my understanding.

So imagine my delight when I was led recently to a new insight. With the help of two Hebrew scholars, I learned that one of the Hebraic meanings of the word Israel is “let God prevail.”⁴ Thus the very name of Israel refers to a person who is willing to let God prevail in his or her life. That concept stirs my soul!

The word willing is crucial to this interpretation of Israel.⁵ We all have our agency. We can choose to be of Israel, or not. We can choose to let God prevail in our lives, or not. We can choose to let God be the most powerful influence in our lives, or not.

For a moment, let us recall a crucial turning point in the life of Jacob, the grandson of Abraham. At the place Jacob named Peniel (which means “the face of God”),⁶ Jacob wrestled with a serious challenge. His agency was tested. Through this wrestle, Jacob proved what was most important to him. He demonstrated that he was willing to let God prevail in his life. In response, God changed Jacob’s name to Israel,⁷ meaning “let God prevail.” God then promised Israel that all the blessings that had been pronounced upon Abraham’s head would also be his.⁸

Sadly, Israel’s posterity broke their covenants with God. They stoned the prophets and were not willing to let God prevail in their lives. Subsequently, God scattered them to the four corners of the earth.⁹ Mercifully, He later promised to gather them, as reported by Isaiah: “For a small moment have I forsaken thee [Israel]; but with great mercies will I gather thee.”¹⁰

With the Hebraic definition of Israel in mind, we find that the gathering of Israel takes on added meaning. The Lord is gathering those who are willing to let God prevail in their lives. The Lord is gathering those who will choose to let God be the most important influence in their lives.

For centuries, prophets have foretold this gathering,¹¹ and it is happening right now! As an essential prelude to the Second Coming of the Lord, it is the most important work in the world!

  

This premillennial gathering is an individual saga of expanding faith and spiritual courage for millions of people. And as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or “latter-day covenant Israel,”¹² we have been charged to assist the Lord with this pivotal work.¹³

When we speak of gathering Israel on both sides of the veil, we are referring, of course, to missionary, temple, and family history work. We are also referring to building faith and testimony in the hearts of those with whom we live, work, and serve. Anytime we do anything that helps anyone—on either side of the veil—to make and keep their covenants with God, we are helping to gather Israel.

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After Jill’s father passed on, the word myopic kept coming to her mind. She opened her heart to understand even more deeply that myopic meant “nearsighted.” And her thinking began to shift. Jill then said, “Myopic caused me to stop, think, and heal. That word now fills me with peace. It reminds me to expand my perspective and seek the eternal. It reminds me that there is a divine plan and that my dad still lives and loves and looks out for me. Myopic has led me to God.”

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 Are you willing to let God prevail in your life? Are you willing to let God be the most important influence in your life? Will you allow His words, His commandments, and His covenants to influence what you do each day? Will you allow His voice to take priority over any other? Are you willing to let whatever He needs you to do take precedence over every other ambition? Are you willing to have your will swallowed up in His?18

You do not need to wander or wonder.

When your greatest desire is to let God prevail, to be part of Israel, so many decisions become easier. So many issues become nonissues! You know how best to groom yourself. You know what to watch and read, where to spend your time, and with whom to associate. You know what you want to accomplish. You know the kind of person you really want to become.

Now, my dear brothers and sisters, it takes both faith and courage to let God prevail. It takes persistent, rigorous spiritual work to repent and to put off the natural man through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.¹⁹ It takes consistent, daily effort to develop personal habits to study the gospel, to learn more about Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, and to seek and respond to personal revelation.

During these perilous times of which the Apostle Paul prophesied,²⁰ Satan is no longer even trying to hide his attacks on God’s plan. Emboldened evil abounds. Therefore, the only way to survive spiritually is to be determined to let God prevail in our lives, to learn to hear His voice, and to use our energy to help gather Israel.

Now, how does the Lord feel about people who will let God prevail? Nephi summed it up well: “[The Lord] loveth those who will have him to be their God. Behold, he loved our fathers, and he covenanted with them, yea, even Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and he remember[s] the covenants which he [has] made.”²¹

And what is the Lord willing to do for Israel? The Lord has pledged that He will “fight [our] battles, and [our] children’s battles, and our children’s children’s [battles] … to the third and fourth generation”!²²