We had zone conference this week. The second one of the transfer in order to get them back on schedule. It was really fun to see everyone and learn from President and Sister Richardson. They are awesome and help me become better. I'm so grateful for their long suffering. Being a mission president is probably the hardest calling in the Church. We learned a lot about how discipleship is changing us to fit God's kingdom and not changing the Church to fit us. That takes a lot of humility and self-awareness. I've been trying to make sure my teaching is structured in that same way-- that I'm giving people the tools they need to become enlarged and not trying to lower the requirements that God has for them. I've been pretty reflective lately. I have a bunch of flashbacks to moments on my mission and they feel like they happened forever ago.
I've been studying the destination recently. What will the next life be like? What are we aiming to become in that life and in this? Beginning with the end in mind and all that. I've gained so much appreciation for those people that are striving-- that get up again and again even when they have every reason not to. I want to be more like that. I think heaven will be everything we hope for and a lot more. The scriptures say that those who inhabit heaven are those who "shall overcome all things." Interesting future tense-- not those who have overcome all things in mortality but those who, when their capacity is enlarged, will. It seems to me that all that you need to overcome something is the desire to do so and time and resources. As we extend into eternity, presumably our time and resources will be infinite. So all we personally need is the desire. Alma illustrates this:
But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words.
It seems that a desire to believe ultimately manifests in belief. What a gift then that God has given us the desire to grow and improve. All we have to do is not quench it. We have to desire to be perfect even as He is. To live as he lives and do as He does. Hence why we are told we will be judged by the desires of our hearts. My favorite scripture reads:
I ought not to harrow up in my desires the firm decree of a just God, for I know that he granteth unto men according to their desire, whether it be unto death or unto life; yea, I know that he allotteth unto men, yea, decreeth unto them decrees which are unalterable, according to their wills, whether they be unto salvation or unto destruction.
You're going to get what you want! Just make sure you know what you should want. ;)
Love you guys!
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