5 Weeks Remaining -February 23, 2014

Well, it was an eventful week. We had an earthquake, our apartment flooded, and Elder Holland visited.

So on Saturday, Elder Holland and a Seventy came and did a missionary devotional. We all got to shake his hand which was cool.

Then he spoke to us for about an hour. His talk so great!! He definitely lived up to the hype. Here are some of the things he talked about:

>One of the few things left that the Quorum of the Twelve don’t delegate is assigning missionaries where they serve.

>You don’t have any idea what the Lord has prepared for you. We (Elder Holland and the leaders on the stand) were once where you are.

>We (Elder Holland and the leaders on the stand) don’t sacrifice our time, efforts, leave family and home to get up and do this every day for a "cunningly devised fable" (2 Peter 1:16).  If you don’t get anything else from my words, just get this - know that we know that this is true, and don’t you forget it!

>That no man in the history of the world was changed more by his mission than me. We fight about that amongst ourselves in the Quorum of the Twelve even to fists. Can you imagine me and Richard Scott duking it out? (He raises his fist) hahaha

>Put it all on the line on your mission. The results might be big or small, but God only measures your effort.

>From your mission we just want one convert. Yourself! You are the cake and any more converts are the icing and we want lots of icing!

>Would you want your converts to crash and burn after you get home? Then I really hope you won’t.

>You are God's investigators. He is teaching you right now. You want your investigators to repent, he wants you to repent! You want your investigators to pray more mightily, he wants you to pray more mightily! The habits you learn on your mission, are habits for the rest of your life.

>Your mission is the ascending curve in your eternal progression

>When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child (but when I went on my mission and came home), I put away childish things. (Corinthians)

>You've got to be a little bit more persistent. My wife has an Avon makeup lady that is more persistent than some of you. It seems like she is at our house every day. Some things are worth being persistent over. not obnoxious, but bold.

>KNOW the gospel. With preach my gospel, it’s different than the discussions. We give you the gospel and some outlines and scriptures, and then you have to do something with it. With the discussions, we taught them and had them come to us. With preach my gospel, we go to them and we take them with us through the Sacred Grove and to the Garden of Gethsemane.

>Why are missions so hard? My mission was the hardest work in my entire life (and I worked construction before my mission). Salvation is not a cheap experience. The gospel isn’t easy, repentance isn’t easy, and the decision to be baptized isn’t easy, so why would your mission be easy?

This is so hard because it was never easy for the Savior. You are going to have to go where the Savior went and do what He did. We are atoners like He was, a little bit on your mission. You are going to have to drag the cross for a bit like He did and shed some of the tears like He did. Then you'll know a little bit more about what He went through. Don’t plan on having a picnic here in Taiwan. The perfect situation doesn’t happen. It didn’t happen for the Savior and can’t for you, if you want to be his disciple. No, I’m not saying seek suffering, it will find you. Don’t whimper. Embrace it and know that it is the path to salvation.

>People at home don’t have a ghost of what a mission is, but they are proud of you and have you on a pedestal. So be your best self.

>Promise me you'll be faithful the rest of your lives. Promise me that and we'll change the world. We'll absolutely change the world!

Love,

Elder Chatman

As a side note, Jordan said he got to shake Elder Holland’s hand which he was excited about.  Jordan asked him if he knew his dad (Jeff) which he did. (He used to be the president of BYU when Jeff played basketball there.)  Then he said he grabbed his collar and said, “you’re my ball player!  You’re my player!  Then he asked if he was keeping in shape.  Lol  Jordan got a kick out of that!   

A picture of Jordan with his mission when Elder Holland came and spoke.  He is on the far right by the wall and curtain.