Sunday Notes

Notes from the young men's program on Sunday, celebrating the anniversary of the restoration of the Aaronic priesthood.

Notes 16/5/15
• How much more joyful will our lives be if we make events a matter of "How did I succeed?" rather than "Did I succeed?"
• Temples are an anchor between heaven and earth. They link mortals in time on earth with gods through eternity in the spirit world. The temple is the bridge from mortal to eternal lives, passing over death.
• Gospel experiences motivate us to move forward and do more (such as sincere repentance, receiving revelation, giving service, etc). The Holy Ghost testifies that the things we do have meaning, and we are blesses with a foretaste of eternal joy. This is no Pavlo conditioning -- we feel this divine joy because we are beginning to reach our potential as children of "the Father of Lights." Eternal growth brings eternal joy, much as eternal families bring eternal happiness, and eternal knowledge brings eternal confidence.
• These young men possess a unique clarity and insight, despite their age, and in spite of the many world my distractions they may fall victim to. They, with untainted minds, recognize in simple terms the significance of things that "make us feel good inside." They trust their feelings, they trust their experiences, and they are not yet hardened enough to insist on doing things their own way. They are still willing to "experiment on the word."
• Too often now, we focus on understanding and dissecting and mastering negative feelings. This has sapped our confidence in our positive feelings, and robbed us of much of our focus and attention. We can live the abundant life if we will but follow the things that bring wholesome, uplifting feelings to our hearts. We have feelings for a reason: to guide us where logic and reason is insufficient.
• Nothing can inspire us more than the cries of those we love. This is why we have a family, why we seek friends, and above all else, why we foster a relationship with a loving Father in Heaven.
• Made from a rib, haha. At each other's side, close to the heart, but not above or below, dominant or submissive. Partners.
• Men and women are intentionally created with often similar and different traits, built to be complementary, to aid one another and grow in unity. You cannot make 3 with 1 and 1, or 2 2's. You need a 1 and a 2.

District Meeting (for the District) 2/12/15

Member Mission

When visiting less-actives, call first. Cater to them like an investigator; try to set appointments to meet. Phone calls are the most effective method to get ahold of them. Out of the blue visits are generally ineffective.

Discuss less actives with members to spark their interest in them.

Come up with specific game plans for reactivation.

Find out why less-actives initially stopped coming out to church.

Share with them: people become closer when sharing secrets.

A tip for effective prayer: PRAYER

Ponder
Rely
Account
Yearn
Earnest
Remember

Personal Study 2/11/15

2 Corinthians 5:5

 5 Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing isGod, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit.

We (the Saints) are given "the earnest" of the Spirit while we seek for our tabernacles of immortal glory. In other words, we're given a foretaste of celestial life and light. 

2 Corinthians 5:18-19 

 18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;

 19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

This is the ministry of reconciliation. Christ came to reconcile God and man. This was accomplished in two major ways: His Atonement, which enabled man to become clean and return to God; and His ministry: Christ showed mankind exactly who God is, giving us the motivation and knowledge to be reconciled to Him. 

First Reaction to "Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ"

Note Baikanon:
This is the inaugural digitizing of my study journals from my mission. This recaps a zone conference from my time in Anyang, discussing faith in Christ. The main discussion piece was the following talk:
https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2009/04/faith-in-the-lord-jesus-christ?lang=eng

2/5/15

     Fear is opposed to faith. No man can serve two masters. When I approach people on the street, am I trying to exercise charity because "I love them and desire their salvation" or am I thinking about fear?
     To better exercise faith, I need to avoid doubt and fear when approaching people on the street, including in the thoughts such as "I'm not afraid; if I do this I won't be afraid."

• Faith is the monocle we see the world through. 
• Acknowledge your need and desire. 
• Trust leads to assurance. 
• Hear, then act. 
• ^According to the received word. Faith grows.
• Recognizing specific blessings builds faith. 
• Missionary homes should be a refuge from the storm.

Things that cause doubt, discouragement, and distraction: 

• Basic language errors
• Being hungry
• Alex (Distracted by hoping for emails from friends at home
• Aurora (Worrying about her spirituality and my inability to help her at all)
• Feeling alone
• Worrying that I offended somebody 
• Low stats
• Being unable to recognize revelation
• Trust problems with the bishopric (or members)
• Self-confidence

We spend too much time telling people what they already know, without telling them what it is. 

• Emotional armor!
• Don't become so focused on your wounds that you forget you're even alive.
• Don't become preoccupied with one detail, and miss the big picture.
• There's no exchange rate for faith. 
• Making mistakes increases the number of opportunities by helping you learn not only where to do "..." but also where not to do "...'