19 August 2009

Two more baptisms tonight (Tiago and Joce)! You can understand my excitement as that means that Elder S. Costa and I have kept up one baptism per week on average until now. The sad news is that I will not be around to see it, and here comes to big news:

I have been transferred!

In fact, I am not writing from Guarapuava at this moment, but from the city of Curitiba. I received the news on Monday night, so I had a couple of hours during the day yesterday to say goodbye to many of the members, recent-converts, and investigators that I have grown to love. It was not, however, fun to leave on a bus at three o’clock in the morning.

My new companion here is Elder Gonçalez. We live in a house with two other missionaries: the district leader Elder Hewitt and his companion Elder Pettigrew. I am now serving in the Novo Mundo Ward, which, being translated, is the New World Ward. New world indeed, Curitiba is very different from the interior from what I can see.

Thank you for the birthday e-card. It was a welcome treat. Also, I’m glad Amanda arrived safely, and I hope that she settles in nicely. Does this mean I won’t have a bedroom to come back to?  :) 

While preparing a lesson for the grandparents of a recent-convert this week, I viewed a set of scriptures in a way that I had never thought of before. I would like to talk about the time when the Savior came to visit the inhabitants of this country shortly after His resurrection. The people were all recovering from the great destructions that had taken place, and they began to gather at the temple in the land Bountiful. I would now direct your attention to 3 Nephi 11:3-7:

      3  And it came to pass that while they were thus conversing one with another, they heard a voice as if it came out of heaven; and they cast their eyes round about, for they understood not the voice which they heard; and it was not a harsh voice, neither was it a loud voice; nevertheless, and notwithstanding it being a small voice it did pierce them that did hear to the center, insomuch that there was no part of their frame that it did not cause to quake; yea, it did pierce them to the very soul, and did cause their hearts to burn.

      4  And it came to pass that again they heard the voice, and they understood it not.

      5  And again the third time they did hear the voice, and did open their ears to hearit; and their eyes were towards the sound thereof; and they did look steadfastly towards heaven, from whence the sound came.

      6  And behold, the third time they did understand the voice which they heard; and it said unto them:

      7  Behold my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, in whom I have glorified
    my name—hear ye him.

As we read here, the people heard a voice three times. The first two times they did not understand it, but they heard it! They knew that it was speaking; they felt that there was something different about it, but they did not understand it. It was only the third time that they *all* began to understand the voice and when they *all* turned their heads in the direction of the voice.

Oftentimes, we talk to our friends, our neighbors, our coworkers, etc. about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Not as official representatives of His Church and usually not using missionary lessons, but we talk to them. Our Father in Heaven many times does not talk directly to His children. He does that through the Holy Ghost and through His servants on the earth. When we talk to others about the Gospel of Jesus Christ (even in the smallest ways) we are testifying, “Behold the Beloved Son, in whom the Father is well pleased, in whom the Father has glorified His name—hear ye him.”

And yet they do not understand. They do not know what the voice is saying. They know that a voice is speaking, and they know that it is different, yet they do not understand it. That does not mean we should desist. Had Heavenly Father desisted after the first time with the Nephites, many people would have been unprepared for the appearance of the Savior. We must continue testifying. We must never withhold the invitation, “Hear ye Him!”

Unfortunately, my time is up, but please know that Jesus Christ lives and that the Father is testifying of Him. He is speaking through His living prophets today. This is the testimony I leave with you in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Until next week,
Elder Daniel Floyd