{"id":6686,"date":"2014-02-03T07:43:25","date_gmt":"2014-02-03T14:43:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.pierfamily.com\/wordpress\/?p=6686"},"modified":"2019-08-21T14:28:11","modified_gmt":"2019-08-21T21:28:11","slug":"president-andersons-letter-2-february-2014","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.pierfamily.com\/wordpress\/2014\/02\/03\/president-andersons-letter-2-february-2014\/","title":{"rendered":"President Anderson’s Letter – 2 February 2014"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/em><\/strong>I am posting the complete letter because I feel that the instruction he gives is important for all of us – especially me – to think about.\u00c2\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Dear Missionaries<\/p>\n

We will have the blessing of Elder and Sister Kopischke coming to our Mission Tour next week. We will have Zone Conference on Wednesday and Thursday (12th<\/sup>\u00c2\u00a0and 13th<\/sup>\u00c2\u00a0of February) from 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM. We will be at the Miami Lakes Chapel for the South four Zones on Wednesday and at the Boynton Beach Chapel for the North four Zones on Thursday. Come early and prepare yourselves to be taught by an amazing teacher.<\/p>\n

The more I read the Book of Mormon, the more I see how much it centers on Jesus Christ and the Atonement. As you all know, The Atonement is one of the greatest doctrines we teach; it is part of our \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153Purpose\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d; it is part of our own conversion.\u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0 I see how when prophets become converted with Jesus Christ and the Atonement, they are not concerned about themselves so much anymore, but they are concerned for others. Great examples in the Book of Mormon are:<\/p>\n

Lehi (2 Nephi 2:6-8)<\/p>\n

Jacob (Jacob 4:12)<\/p>\n

Enos (Enos 5-9)<\/p>\n

Abinadi (Mosiah 11:20-21)<\/p>\n

Alma (Mosiah 18:1-2)<\/p>\n

Alma the Younger\u00c2\u00a0 & the four sons of Mosiah (Mosiah 27:28, 29, 32-33)<\/p>\n

King Lamoni and his Father (Alma 19:31, 33, Alma 22:23)<\/p>\n

And there are many others. I hope you read and ponder these scriptures and apply them to you and your desire to share the Gospel because of your increasing testimony of Jesus Christ and his Atonement.<\/p>\n

Another example is when Nephi (young and desirous like you) became converted with the words of his Father:<\/p>\n

<\/i>\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153And it came to pass that I, Nephi, being exceedingly young, nevertheless being large in stature, and also having\u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0great desires to know of the mysteries of God<\/b>, wherefore,\u00c2\u00a0I did cry unto the Lord<\/b>; and behold\u00c2\u00a0he did visit me<\/b>, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words which had been spoken by my father; wherefore,\u00c2\u00a0I did not rebel against him<\/b>\u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0like unto my brothers.\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d(1 Nephi 2:16)<\/i><\/p>\n

As the truths are made known to him by the power of the \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153Holy Spirit\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d, his desire increases to be obedient and to share with his brothers these joyous truths of God:<\/p>\n

<\/i>\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153And I spake unto Sam, making known unto him the things which the\u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0Lord had manifested unto me by his Holy Spirit<\/b>. And it came to pass that he believed in my words.<\/i><\/p>\n

But, behold, Laman and Lemuel would not hearken unto my words; and being grieved because of the hardness of their hearts\u00c2\u00a0I cried unto the Lord for them<\/b>.\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d(1 Nephi 2:17-18)<\/i><\/p>\n

Nephi\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u2122s desires to share the truths of Jesus Christ and the Atonement increased from sharing it with others, to praying (crying) \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153unto the Lord for them\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d. The Lord now blesses Nephi with additional blessings:<\/p>\n

<\/i>\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto me<\/b>, saying: Blessed art thou, Nephi,\u00c2\u00a0because of thy faith<\/b>, for thou hast\u00c2\u00a0sought me diligently<\/b>,\u00c2\u00a0with lowliness of heart<\/b>.<\/i><\/p>\n

And\u00c2\u00a0inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper<\/b>, and shall be led to a land of promise; yea, even a land which I have prepared for you; yea, a land which is choice above all other lands.\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d(1 Nephi 2: 19-20)<\/i><\/p>\n

The Lord now doesn\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u2122t just give Nephi the manifestation of The Spirit of these truths, the Lord\u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153spake<\/b>\u00c2\u00a0unto\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d<\/b>\u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0Nephi. He received a greater level of communication with God because of his great faith and belief. He is not only sharing his testimony, he is praying (crying) \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153unto the Lord for them\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d. He then is blessed that he \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153shall prosper\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d.<\/p>\n

Missionaries, this increase level of communication can be yours. The Lord will not just give you the good and peaceful feelings of the Holy Ghost, but he will \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153speak\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d to you. This will come as promptings, inspiration, light and understanding, and revelation. Joseph Smith said \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153Salvation cannot come without revelation; it is vain for anyone to minister without it\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d.(PMG p.89)<\/i><\/p>\n

Again I say, hearken ye elders of my<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0church, whom I have appointed: Ye are not sent forth to be taught, but to teach the children of men the things which I have put into your hands by the power of mySpirit;<\/i><\/p>\n

<\/i>And ye are to be\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>taught from on high. Sanctify yourselves and ye shall be endowed with power, that ye may give even as I have spoken. (D&C 43:15-16)<\/i><\/p>\n

People feel the Atonement through you as you teach and serve them:<\/p>\n

\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153This week I saw a huge miracle! We were harvesting down a road and saw a woman working pretty hard outside her home…we decided to go up and talk to her anyways! She immediately stopped the work she was doing on her house and she had us say a prayer.\u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0 She felt the spirit so strong and she said that she’d be baptized. We found out she was moving in tomorrow and offered to help out! She gladly accepted! We told her we would love to help and share a message with all who are coming! She was happy to hear that too!!\u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0 When we came, there was a HUGE moving truck and only her and her husband showed up,\u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0they had no one else.\u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0 We helped, and then when we sat down to share the Restoration with them her husband just prefaced it by saying \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u02dcmy wife told me God sent two angels to help us today and I doubted but then, you showed up and I feel clarity right now; there’s no confusion, so I just wanted to say, I know God sent you.”<\/p>\n

They are feeling the influence of the Atonement as you boldly bare testimony and bless their lives:<\/p>\n

\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153… Right as we got ready to say the prayer with this [irreverent] family, a man walked over to the edge of the grass up along the fence. He just stood there waiting and waiting. After the prayer we looked up and he was still over there. He was a man with a Big, Big, Beard and kind of looked scary. WELL after we finished everything with this family my companion and I begin to walk off towards this guy with the beard that had been waiting. As we approached his direction, he walked over to us and said. \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u02dcHey guys I don’t want you coming over here to this house or neighborhood anymore. The people around here are crazy and the cops are always here\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u2122. We thanked him for warning us and looking out for us and then we had the prompting to share a prayer with him as well. So I looked over at my companion and then this man and said \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u02dcHey can we say a prayer with you that comes from God? You helped us now the least we can do for you is offer a prayer for you!\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u2122 He said sure!… We said the prayer and afterwards we asked \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153how do you feel?\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u2122 He said amazing, and we testified and told him that was the Spirit of God and we invited him to follow those promptings by being baptized just like Jesus Christ was. He\u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0 looked at us straight in the eyes and said, \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u02dcI want to, but I can’t. I’m a SINNER!\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u2122 We told him that Jesus Christ died for him and will give him the strength to become sin free. He smiled and with joy and hope in his eyes he said… \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u02dc yes elders I\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u2122ll try and do my best to prepare to be baptized on Jan 21st!!\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u2122 WELL, I was a witness of this man, literally changing his entire life for the better in 3 weeks. Changing it to become more like Christ. He went from smoking 3 packs of cigarettes a day, to as of Friday last week smoking ZERO!!! He did it! He stopped! God gave him the power and the strength. The scripture that kept him going the entire way was Alma 7:15 which talks about literally allowing Jesus Christ to remove the bands of sin from us. It was a blessing and a miracle to see him baptized and confirmed into the Church of Jesus Christ…!!!\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d<\/p>\n

They feel the influence of the Atonement as you teach and bare testimony of Doctrine:<\/p>\n

\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153We had gotten an investigator to church two Sundays ago. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0 What is interesting is that when we were trying to get her to come to church that week we had just come back from [a training] and she was the first Doctrine, Principle, Application lesson that we used. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0We felt a little awkward in the format but we were amazed by the results. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0She was clearly able to link coming to church with feeling the Spirit and receiving the forgiveness that she was looking for! \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0When she came to church she loved it and the baptism that followed. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0Early in that week we tried to stop by her again when suddenly, out of nowhere, she dropped off the face of the earth. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0Her parents didn’t know where she was, she wasn’t responding to our phone calls, we had no idea what to do. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0That whole week we tried calling and calling again and again with no success and when we stopped by at her parent’s place she was never home. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0We didn’t know what to do or what had happened … \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0On Thursday of this past week we finally decided we needed to drop her. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0That morning we knelt for \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u02dcmighty prayer\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u2122 and without mentioning her or the fact that we had dropped her we told the Elder praying, the people we needed prayers for. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0As he knelt to pray he began the prayer and I was surprised when her name was mentioned. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u02dcPlease bless that she will call and that she will be baptized this Sunday.\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u2122 \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0As he prayed I thought that it could happen. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0A little later another MIA investigator called us and told us she had prayed about Joseph Smith and that she was ready to be baptized. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0She’s amazing and is getting baptized this Sunday. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0We thought that that was God’s way of answering his prayer but later on that morning as we went out harvesting our phone rang and my companion looked up surprised. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u02dcIt’s her!\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u2122 \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0She was calling to say she had just gotten in from out of town and wanted to meet back up with us. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0We visited her in the park and she told us that she had been visiting with her grandparents in the hospital. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0They were suffering from smoke related diseases and as she watched them go through that she had pondered on what we had said about the Word of Wisdom and baptism as well. \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u02dcI haven’t touched a cigarette since we last talked and I am thinking of being baptized this Sunday.\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u2122 \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0She was and is amazing! \u00c3\u201a\u00c2\u00a0God is a God of tender mercies!\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d<\/p>\n

I know that praying for those you find and sharing the great message of Jesus Christ and the Atonement will give you additional \u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153Power and Authority\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d, and you will have a greater level of communication with God to invite. Some time ago a District Leader shared with me the following:<\/p>\n

<\/i>\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u0153This week has been a great one as I was able to teach my district the importance of accessing the Atonement. We were all edified in the training and we were taught by the Spirit knowing the things that we need to do differently in our lives. After the Training on Tuesday, my companion and I were so excited to go out. We went out with the attitude that we would teach this to our investigators that we would be teaching that day and invite them all to be baptized. We went out that day with so much excitement and with the Spirit and we were able to set 8 baptismal dates that day. It was absolutely incredible what can happen when we really internalize our purpose because when we do that, we rely on the Spirit and when we follow the promptings immediately we are led to those that are prepared.\u00c3\u00a2\u00c2\u20ac\u00c2\u009d<\/i><\/p>\n

Missionaries, keep inviting to access the Atonement through baptism as you help them feel the influence of the Atonement. Keep inviting to the special ordinances of Church, baptism and confirmation. I promise you the same blessings of Nephi,\u00c2\u00a0God will speak to you.<\/b><\/p>\n