Last week we attended an
all mission conference in Independence. These meetings are held at the Stake
Center in Independence which is between Mission Office and the Visitor's Center.
Just across the street from the Stake Center is the Community of Christ
Temple. So this is all pretty sacred
ground where some significant things are to occur before, during and after the
Savior’s return.
Our visiting general
authority was Elder Don Clarke, and we really enjoyed all that he taught us. Part
of the purpose for his visit is the missionaries will be getting iPads and we
received some training on that subject. However he gave a lot of good advice on
a number of subjects. Here are some of my notes from his training:
Missionaries get lots of
prayers in their behalf.
After this life, it is
billions of years, why would we miss our opportunities in this life when we look
at what is ahead.
We are here to receive
revelation from the Holy Ghost.
How many of us have
bound ourselves to act, today is about changing.
Elder is the title of
the Prophet of God, the title of the quorum of the twelve, the title of the
Seventies and the title the male missionaries hold while serving in the mission
field.
Place a picture of
Christ on your mirror or some other conspicuous place and report to him each
day.
He call the young
missionaries attention to page 146 of Preach my Gospel having to do with
setting goals. He then told them that if they get that right it will triple
their income.
He addressed the Senior
Missionaries and said that as you help God’s Children, you have a right to pray
for your own children.
He cautioned the missionaries
about when using iPads to make sure they follow the established guidelines.
He said that he recently
watched a video of Ted Bundy and that he was raised in a Christian home, but
that he got hooked on pornography. That is what he blamed his behavior on.
He mentioned that boys
are now typically first exposed to pornography at age 8. They are addicted at
age 12.
He wanted everyone to
know of the dangers of pornography and how important it is for the missionaries
to make sure their heart is right and they are dedicated to following the
Savior.
He asked the audience
how many had read a book called, “Outliers”, he said Mormons are Outliers. The
book is not on the missionary reading list so, if they had not read it, they
would have to wait until they got home.
He said that BYU is not
the best school but we have the best students, because of all the return
missionaries.
He mentioned that some
Jewish rabbis came out to Salt Lake City to visit and they were concerned about
losing their youth.
They had three
questions:
- How we got people to pay tithing
- How we got young people to go on missions
- How do we keep young missionaries disciplined
A missionary that cares
more about the people is happy.
When he was a mission
president he loved the Sister Missionaries because they made the Elders better.
This was a little
surprising to me, he said that 10% of new converts pay tithing. He then quoted
President Hinckley as saying people will stay poor unless they are paying
tithing.
He quoted from a talk
given by President Kimball way back in 1974 titled, “When the World will be
Converted”(The talk printed in the
October 1974 Ensign from an address delivered at a Regional Representatives
Seminar on April 4th 1974. When I copied and pasted the talk in word
it was 20 pages long. Much of what President Kimball envisioned is beginning to
occur with mobile devices being used as missionary tools.)
This is the quote he
shared from the Talk:
“I believe that the Lord is anxious to put into our hands
inventions of which we laymen have hardly had a glimpse.”
(Is
it possible that President Kimball saw our day, and if so had he talked about
cell phones and hand held digital devices we would have had no clue. In that
talk President Kimball quoted from President McKay the following:)
President David O. McKay, speaking in the October 1966 conference
of the Church, said of the scientific discoveries of recent years which will
make possible the preaching of the gospel to every kindred, tongue, and people:
“They stagger the imagination.”And further: “… discoveries latent with
such potent power, either for the blessing or the destruction of human beings
as to make men’s responsibility in controlling them the most gigantic ever
placed in human hands. … This age is fraught with limitless perils, as well as
untold possibilities.”
(We are truly blessed with prophets in our day)
Elder Clarke also
referred to Elder Bednar’s talk at Education Week where he said, “The Lord is
Hastening his Work.”
Elder Clarke said, “if
you don’t like missionary work, you are not going to like the spirit world.”
For the last 5 years the
Church has had 3,000 missionaries using online devices as a pilot project.
The mobile devices will
be used to (1) Improve learning and teaching,(2) for the area book planner and
(3) online proselyting.
Don’t let desires become
needs.
I am not a prophet but
the next financial crisis will be worse.
Pride, two great talks
on pride were given by President Benson and President Uchtdorf.
Pride starts with, “I am
right, I am better than you.”
Nephi, with all he went
through, never complained.
Love problems, love life.
Under promise and over
deliver.
We need to take care of
the poor, Elder Clarke shared two stories to emphasize the point.
An emergency room doctor
had stopped at a gas station. While filling up his car, he noticed a car with
kids in the back but no adult. Then he saw a lady come out of a quickie mart
and she had dropped a nickel and was trying to find it. When he approached her
to offer help, she said, "Don’t let my kids see me crying. Two months ago in
Kansas City my husband left me. After 5 years of not talking to my folks, I
called them and they told me I could come home, so I am trying to make it home
with the kids."
This good man got her
gas and bought lunch for all the family, they had not eaten for some time and got
them on their way. As this lady was walking away she turned around and asked
this man that helped if he was an Angel. He said, “No, this time of year God
sends people like me.”
Elder Clarke grew up in
Idaho and shared a story about his grandfather years earlier. He said that his
grandfather was a farmer and had run into some financial difficulty and was
about to lose the farm. He gathered his family around him and told them of
their circumstances. Several days later he received a letter in the mail from a
Jim Drinkwater who was a crippled man in the ward. In the letter Brother
Drinkwater said, "I received the impression you might need some money, if you
need money I have money to help.
This crippled man who
never married and never served as a bishop, provided this great service to his
grandfather."
He said when he goes to the spirit world he wants to meet Brother Drinkwater who is no longer crippled and thank him for the service he provided to his grandfather.
He mentioned that this
is the last mission tour that he will do as a General Authority. He bore strong
testimony that he knew Joseph Smith saw the Father and the Son and that
President Thomas Monson is God’s prophet today.
