Alyssa and Sister Motuga by the sign outside the Candeias chapel
Alyssa and Sister Motuga outside under an umbrella
A group of puppies licks Alyssa’s feet
What’s up guys? I hope everyone had a great week. Mine was great and challenging as I pray it always will be. I’d like to share an insight I had from this week’s “Come, Follow Me” reading.
In the 56th chapter of Alma, in a very well-known story, the 2,000 stripling warriors are faced with a question. They’ve been hoofing it all day trying to out-march the Lamanite army when suddenly, the Lamanites stop and they lose track of them. Helaman doesn’t know if they’ve stopped to try and lure his young soldiers into a hopeless battle or if the army of Antipus caught up with them from behind. He asks his youth army what they want to do if they want to go back and fight. They respond with a resilient “Let us Go Forth.”
The boy soldiers said “let us go forth” when in reality they we’re going back. They had to turn around and head into the battle not press on in their current direction. Sometimes we need to realize that in order to “go forth” we must “go back.”
I liked this story this week because it reminded me of what I’m doing. Me and my companion were thrown into this area with very little to go off. We knew nobody, didn’t know our way around, and we felt a little hopeless in the face of a lot of stigma about the area. Most missionaries when white-washing an area like to throw everything and everyone out the window and start finding all new people. Me and my comp felt that was not going to be an effective strategy. We felt that in order to “go forth” we too had to “go back”.
We re-found so many people who maybe in their first encounter with the missionaries weren’t exactly golden investigators and many still aren’t. But there were those who had been changed, had their hearts softened, and were now prepared to hear our message. One that stuck out to me was someone we called Friday night. We gave him a great lesson and at the end he said, “Thanks for not forgetting about me, I didn’t even know how much I was needing this.”
We can’t forget about the people that the Lord is still preparing. If they said no to you yesterday, you don’t have to carry that no with you into the eternities. Give them a little time and a little nurturing and eventually, they’ll come around. If you feel stuck in your spiritual progress and can’t seem to find a way around the obstacles in your path, maybe you need to “go back” before you can “go forth.” Who knows if there’s not someone in your past that you need in order to succeed in the future?
A selfie of Alyssa and Sister Motuga with a horse statue
Big surprise …*drum roll*… I got TRANSFERRED!!!!! …. again. In case you lost track this is my 7th area and 9th companion in 13 months. I promise I’m not a problem child, I just get moved around a lot.
Anyway, I’m in the Candeias ward, it’s pretty infamous for being a difficult area but until now, I’ve had a blast. It’s mostly street and member work, the area is almost entirely apartment buildings. But God is blessing us every step of the way. The best part of the transfer is my new companion…
I LOVE SISTER MOTUGA!!!! She is the sweetest human being on the planet. She’s Samoan but was raised in New Zealand and Australia. Her accent alone cures all my stress and frustration. She’s 25 and has 6 months on the mission. But everyone in the mission knows her as the niece of Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson!?!?!
I didn’t believe her at first ’cause who would believe something like that, but FamilySearch confirmed it so now I’m a believer. Unfortunately, she has no photos with him and can’t call him on P-day but we’re networking with her cousins to try to get him to make a video for the mission. I’ll update you if we make any progress.
I’d like to conclude this ramble with a spiritual thought.
Alma 52:10: “…Be faithful in maintaining that quarter of the land, and … seek every opportunity … to fortify and strengthen the cities round about, which [have] not fallen…”
When I feel worried about an area or absolutely lost in the work, I remember that God has trusted this place, this ward, and these people to me and my companion. We are here to be faithful in our stewardship, to fortify and strengthen what is already here and to seek every opportunity for growth. It’s a big responsibility but not one that we take on alone, He is at the head of this work. As His servants, we are entitled to His divine help and protection.
Alyssa and her zone, perform a musical number during zone conference (Alyssa on the Piano).
Alyssa, with her companions Sisters Flores, Zurita, and Quispe
Alyssa with her zone and mission president during zone conference
Hey guys!! I got to speak in church yesterday so my talk is now my email.
~Introduction~
While I was preparing for my mission, I had a conversation with a coworker. As I shared my enthusiasm for serving, this coworker began to question the motives behind missionary work. He didn’t believe it was right to go door-to-door or talk to people on the street about religion. In his own words, he said, “If someone wants to know Jesus Christ, they can bring themselves to Him. You shouldn’t assume they need Jesus.”
I was shocked. This coworker wasn’t anti-Christian or anti-Mormon; in fact, he was born into the church and had been sealed in the temple just weeks before this conversation. But he didn’t feel the need to share the truths, miracles, and blessings that the gospel has brought into his life with others.
And why is that? There are many reasons why we don’t feel the desire to preach the gospel today. Sometimes we don’t want to bother other people, even though our message will save them. Maybe we are shy or quiet, but aren’t we glad that someone wasn’t quiet when they shared the gospel with us? Or perhaps it’s a lack of time or difficult circumstances.
In these cases, I’m reminded of a quote from our Prophet President Russell M. Nelson: “Of course it’s hard. Everything to do with becoming more like the Savior is difficult. . . It takes effort, hard work, hard study, and it never ends. That’s good! It’s good because we are always making progress. . . The Lord loves effort, because effort brings rewards that can’t come without it.”
Each of us knows someone who will not accept the gospel easily. Some of us were those people. But the Lord is not here to force anyone to accept it. He only invites, even the members of the Church. He will not force you to help in His work, but He will always invite you to do so.
So why do we work in God’s work? Why do we want to gather Israel? What are the blessings of missionary work?
I shouldn’t have to explain to you the blessings of missionary work. You know better than I do. You have had your own experiences with missionaries, learning about the Church, and making the decision to join. You know how it changed your lives and your eternities. Now you have the opportunity to do the same thing in someone else’s life.
Matthew 10:32-33 teaches, “Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.”
If we want Jesus Christ to be a witness of our works in the last day, we need to be witnesses of Jesus Christ today!
Speaking of the covenants we made on the day of our baptisms, Elder Denelson Silva explained, “When I decided to be a disciple of Jesus Christ, I had accepted the task of not only defending the truth but also proclaiming it.”
We made a promise that we would help our brothers and sisters come to know the Savior and come unto Christ. We can and should be examples of true disciples of Christ, but we must also be proactive in proclaiming the truths of the gospel. In a few cases, the elect find us, but more often than not, we are the ones who have to find them.
Christ taught that we have the duty and privilege of teaching about His atoning power to our own families and friends. There are millions of examples of this that we can use, but I want to focus on just one story found in the New Testament. In Luke 5, we read about the faith that healed the paralytic. Christ was inside a house, praying, teaching, and healing people suffering from all kinds of afflictions when he said, “And, behold, men brought in a bed a man which was taken with a palsy: and they sought means to bring him in, and to lay him before him. And when they could not find by what way they might bring him in because of the multitude, they went upon the housetop, and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the midst before Jesus.” (Luke 5: 18-19).
We know that Christ healed this man, but He also tested, built, and strengthened the faith of each person who was there. This man’s friends could have given up when they could not find an easy way into the house. They might not have gone to their friend’s house to get him because they thought the same thing as my colleague, “If he wants to know Jesus Christ, he can take himself to Him.” But no, they were faithful, loving, diligent, and persistent.
This is what our prophet always teaches. “True disciples of Jesus Christ are willing to stand out, speak up, and be different from the people of the world. They are undaunted, devoted, and courageous.” Brothers and sisters, everyone knows someone who is afflicted in some way. Many are spiritually paralyzed, and they need our help to come to Jesus Christ. Share what you have—talents, love, time, and your testimony of the restored gospel.
In closing, I would like to read the promise of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, which is found in the missionary call: “Our Heavenly Father will reward you for the goodness of your life. Greater blessings and more joy than you have yet experienced await you as you humbly and prayerfully serve the Lord in this labor of love among His children. We place our confidence in you and pray that the Lord will help you become an effective [missionary/member/or disciple].”
I promise that these blessings are real. Your joy will increase as you dedicate yourself to the Lord’s work. I know that Jesus Christ is the Savior, and that He has saved us. I know that His true Church on earth is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I testify that all of our Heavenly Father’s children need Jesus Christ and the gospel He has given us. And I leave that testimony in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Hey hey hey!!! Hope everyone is well and loving life. This week had a few hiccups but we back in the game, ready to leave the past behind and get moving on to the future.
“Yea, and from that time even until now, I have labored without ceasing, that I might bring souls unto repentance; that I might bring them to taste of the exceeding joy of which I did taste; that they might also be born of God, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.” (Alma 36:24)
Sometimes we mess up, (by sometimes I mean every day) and we all wish we could take some of those mistakes back. There’s pain, hurt feelings, stress, and experiences that could’ve been avoided if we had just been a little wiser up front. But the good news is, God won’t hold those moments of weakness or failure against us. Those experiences helped us to learn so we could be a little wiser the next time around.
Instead of regretting or beating ourselves up over things that we did or people that we were, let’s focus on the positive changes we’ve already made and the ones we are working on. Like Alma, we can decide from this point on that we are going to “labor” with and for the Lord. Will we be perfect? Absolutely not, but that’s ok. God’s plan is perfect and for now, that’s enough.
Week-in-Review:
House Hunting! It’s impossible to sleep in our current apartment so we are looking for a new one. Unsuccessful so far but that’s ok.
No Green Dots! Green dots are people we are actively teaching and we unfortunately cut them all this week.
Sick Days! My comp got sick so we stayed home Friday and Saturday. It made Sunday pretty hard with no one at church but I got to binge-watch “The Chosen” so it’s kinda a win.
Marked a Baptism! Everybody pray and fast for Graça, she needs to stay strong.
If you’re currently on a mission, keep being awesome. If you’re not, send me a message during the week, they brighten my day.
