Far Reaching Effects

When I was preparing to leave on my mission I had many people who told me that there were going to be a lot of changes in my life. Obviously I could see a couple of them such as I would have to wait a few extra years before I could start my career and I would have friends who would be moving on with their lives while I was out. Plus I heard things about gaining a better testimony of the Gospel and that I would probably gain some weight while I was out. So far each one of those things have come true. Some of them have been happy things to hear about such as the fact that I've gained a few pounds. But some of things have been sad too. It's a little sad not to be home to watch my friends grow up. But all of the things that I'm sad about have been outweighed by the positives from my mission. Because while I have been out many more positive things have happened because of my mission.

One of the things that has happened while I've been out is to see how much the Gospel can bless people in their lives. Growing up I had heard plenty of stories from my Dad telling me about his mission. He had some good experiences and I knew that his mission had changed him for the better. But on his mission he didn't ever have the chance to really share the Gospel with people. Most of the people he ever talked with weren't interested in the Gospel. So the entire time he was out he didn't get much of a chance to teach people.

I can remember coming out on my mission and thinking that I wasn't probably ever going to be able to share the Gospel with someone. I figured I would probably spend two years trying to declare what I knew and that I would just hear people say, "Not interested." Now this isn't the typical thinking of new missionaries. Most new missionaries are ready to conquer the world and aren't jaded by the cynicism that I had already. But when I got out I found that people actually were willing to listen the Gospel and that as they listened they began to change. Many of the people I worked with I could see them grow happier as they started to live the ordinances and principles of the Gospel. In many of them I saw a physical change in their countenances as they found the peace and happiness that they had been looking for.

I was pretty happy to see the changes that were happening in people's lives and was glad that I was able to be present to see these changes take place. As I saw these experiences I wanted to share them with my family back at home. Every week I was able to write my family and let them know how I was doing and about the amazing people I was meeting. My Dad loved hearing the stories especially since he was finally starting to see the fruits of his own missionary labors in his son's mission. Fruits that he probably wondered if they would ever be harvested.

But the greatest effect that my mission has had on my life is how it has helped my brother. My brother had heard all my Dad's stories and didn't think that a mission sounded as exciting as some people made it out to be. Now my brother has always wanted t go, but there has always been doubts about serving a mission just like there have always been with me. As I've served though my brother has heard my stories and the things that are happening with me. Because of that he wants to serve a mission. Unlike me he now has little concern about putting his life on two years to serve the Lord.

Now I know that there are many more blessings that will come from my mission that will affect me my friends and my family. I know that my missionary service will affect my future marriage, the kids that I will have, and will be the base of my testimony for many years to come. So I'm excited to continue serving and hope that I can continue to be a good example.

Now the reason that I share all of this isn't to brag about the things I've done, but to illustrate how our small decisions can affect the lives of others. I never knew what serving a mission would do for my life and none of us can imagine what our choices will do to affect our children and our neighbors. For it is "...by small and simple things are great things brought to pass..." (Alma 37:6). Our small decisions have consequences that can help bring about the purposes of the Lord or hinder them. Making good decisions will bless our lives and the lives of everyone else for the better.

Me and my younger brother as kids.

My Eternal Family

Since being on my mission I have had several family members pass away. The ends of my family members' mortal existences were all tough on me and my family and for a time left us feeling sad. As I have learned from personal experience losing a loved one is a hard experience. I can still remember the day I received a phone call from my mother informing me of the passing of my Grandma. I can remember how upset I was that I hadn't been able to see her one last time and about much I was going to miss her. I had really hoped that I would see her again when I returned home from my mission.

I remember how I had wanted to go home and be a part of my Grandma's funeral. But at the same time I decided that I needed to be in Oregon serving the Lord. I also knew that on a mission was right where my Grandma would want me to be. As I've mentioned in another blog post my Grandma was a convert to the Church in Finland. The Church helped to change her life and helped to bring her peace and comfort. Because of my Grandma's faith in the Gospel she encouraged her sons and her grandsons to all serve missions. My Grandma wanted people to know about the Gospel and to receive the hope that she had found in her life.

Part of the comfort that my Grandma had found because of the Restored Gospel was that of eternal families. My Grandma had lived most of her life never really knowing her father. Her father had been a sailor in the Finnish navy and had lost his life during the Winter War. Because of the truths of the Gospel my Grandma learned that her family could live together forever, that she would be able to see her father again. I can only imagine how much joy this must have brought to my Grandma. To know that families don't end in this life, but continue on into the next and that she would never be separated from her parents, her brother, her husband or her children. My Grandma truly cared for her family and never wanted to let them go.

One of the simple truths that the missionaries, who introduced my Grandma to the Gospel, taught her was about the power of the priesthood. The power from God given to His representatives here on the earth today. The priesthood gives man the power to do the things that God would do if He were here on the earth. This priesthood power allows for a husband and a wife to be sealed together for eternity. Meaning that their marriage will always exist. My Grandma wanted this blessing for herself and so when she was married to my Grandpa she was married to him in the Temple for time and all eternity. Because she knew only in the Temple could she be sealed to her loved ones.

My Grandma knew that it wasn't just the Temple sealing that allowed her to live with her family forever, but also making sure that she lived worthily so she could have the promise of an eternal family. For my Grandma's entire life she tried her best to make sure that she and her family lived according to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She taught of Christ in her home, she participated in her church callings, she kept the commandments, and she always tried her best to love others. Now she wasn't always perfect, but she always tried her best and always tried to help her kids be the best so that they could receive the blessings of an eternal family.

My Grandma was one of the people who inspired me to serve a mission. To go and to teach the simple truths of the Gospel to people. To help people find the light in the darkness. To know that their families can be eternal. And to know that the authority from God to seal our families together forever is once again found on the earth. I know that this is true and I cannot wait for when I get to see my Grandma and all my other loved ones again. The time we spend apart is brief when compared to eternity.

My Eternal Family.

To learn more about the family see The Family: A Proclamation To the World

A Pioneer Woman

I have a lot of pioneer heritage in my family. Many of my ancestors came across the plains and helped to settle the state of Utah. They made great efforts in helping to pave the way for future generations to receive the Gospel. Today though I would like to talk about a modern-day pioneer my Grandma McConkie.

My Grandma was born eighty years ago in Turku, Finland. Her father was killed in the Winter War when she was very young. So my Grandma grew up with only a mother. Times were sometimes tough for my Grandma's family. There were many times when my Grandma had to go out in the forest and search for mushrooms just so her family could eat.

Yet despite living through a World War, the loss of a father, and economic hardships my Grandma always remained positive no matter what her circumstances. She was quick to share silly stories, to crack a joke, or to use her throat as a bagpipe. She was always so happy. Most of that attitude came from her love of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

As a fun loving teenager my Grandma met two young Mormon missionaries. After hearing the message of the Restored Gospel my Grandma wanted to be baptized.When my Grandma turned of age she was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. She was the only person in her family who was a member at that time. She was blazing a path that no one in her family had ever been on and at that point she was doing it alone.

Luckily for my Grandma she soon had company on her journey. Not too long after joining the church my Grandma met my Grandpa who was serving as a missionary in Finland and when my Grandpa returned to Utah at the completion of his mission my Grandma followed. It wasn't too much longer that my grandparents were married. Since then they have had three children, nine grandchildren, and three great grandchildren all of whom have been raised with the Gospel.

My Grandma and Grandpa

My Grandma was truly a pioneer. Her example, her courage, and her choice to do what she knew was right has helped to change many lives and has helped her posterity to receive the Gospel. At this time there are at least twenty people who have the Gospel in their lives because of my Grandma's choice. That choice will continue to affect people for many years down the road and help to change the face of the earth.

I am very thankful for my Grandma and the choices she made in her life. Because if it wasn't for her  I wouldn't be out on a mission. Because if it wasn't for her I wouldn't have the fullness of the Gospel in my life. Because if it wasn't for her I wouldn't have even been born. Her small choice made sixty years ago in Finland has affected me in so many ways and I will always be grateful for her. I will always love my Grandma.

I am so thankful for all the pioneers that have affected me in my life. For their choice to live the Gospel even when it was hard, even when it meant losing family members, and even when it meant moving thousands of miles. If it wasn't for them no one would have the Gospel. Remember our pioneer heritage and if you don't have one try to start your one. Our choice to follow the Gospel will bless many lives.

My Grandma

Cat in a Trap

Shortly before my baptism my family got a new cat named Kissa. She was a calico cat who was super independent. She was pretty different from the cat we had before. The prior cat named Sammie loved the family, always came home at night and was just super friendly. Kissa was nothing like that cat.

But despite the differences between the two cats I still tried to love Kissa. I can remember trying to hold here like I had done with Sammie and how Kissa would struggle to escape from my grasp. At night I would try to get that cat to sleep in my bed and she wouldn't have any of that as she thought it was much better to go and explore the house. Kissa also had a problem with coming back to the house at nighttime. Sammie had always know to come back in when the sun went down. If we weren't at home to let Kissa in then she would disappear.

The night that I was baptized I cam home from my baptism excited that I had just received the gift of the Holy Ghost and was excited to take on anything that the world would throw at me. I remember coming home and not seeing Kissa anywhere. My Dad and I went and searched for her out in our dark backyard, but she was nowhere to be found.

But I didn't lose hope. Having just been baptized I knew of my Heavenly Father's love for me. I got down on my knew that night and prayed that we would find Kissa. It was a little bit strange for me to do this considering that I had never really asked for anything in my prayers before. But I knew that Kissa would be found soon.

The very next day Kissa still hadn't shown up at our house. When school ended that day the cat was still missing. But still I knew that she would come back. That night as we were getting ready for bed we got a call from our neighbor down the street. He said that he had caught our cat in his cat trap. I was so excited.

My Dad and I ran over to the neighbor's and found Kissa wandering back and forth in this little trap. Boy was she happy to see us! We took her back home and from that time on she made sure never to run away again.

That time I took extra time to thank my Heavenly Father that my prayer had been answered and that Kissa had come back.

This experience as simple as it may be became an anchor in my life. As I grew older I've had time where I really doubted if God existed and if He really cared about me. But I can always look back on a time where God answered the prayer of an eight year old boy and brought his cat back.

God loves all of us and will never forsake us. If we are looking for something whether it be a cat or an answer our Heavenly Father will hear our prayers and will help us out. Put this challenge to the test and don't doubt and God will answer. I can promise this from my own experiences in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.