July 12, 2011 "I am the Gardner and I know what I want you to Become."

What’s up family?

So I will just get right to it! Yesterday at church we got 7 people there.  Man, things were crazy getting every one to meet the bishop and to all the right classes. One of the guys that came to church was Kwamie Madison. This is a great story.  A missionaries dream. On Saturday we were late for a meeting at the church, so we were in a big hurry.  I was riding my bike down this street when out of the blue this guy says “Hello” then as I passed I heard him say “When are you going to invite me to your church?”  So I slammed on my brakes and turned around and said “What did you say?” Then he just looks at me like I was crazy.  So I asked him again and he said “No”.  So then I just introduced myself to him as a missionary from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and gave him a pamphlet with our name and number and the address of the church with the time it started.  Then I was on my way to our meeting.

So on Sunday in walks Kwamie to church.  So after church we went over to his house to teach him and he had his whole family come and join us.  He has 6 kids from 10 years old.  The tightest thing ever was when he introduced us to his family he introduced us as "the elders from his new church, and he hopes that all of them will follow him there".  So Sunday was way sweet. 

So for the last couple of months I have been praying a ton for certain people such as the ward leaders, missionaries, investigators, converts, family and tons of other people. But last week when I was at the cafe I got a small answer to one of my prayers that had to do with family. So family (Brody, Braxton, Bronson, and Britton) this one is for you.

I have been reading in 3 Nephi and I read the scripture in chapter 12 vrs 48. It says therefore I would that ye should be PERFECT even as I, or your Father who is in Heaven is PERFECT." So what does it mean to be perfect, if that is what is expected of us?  In the topical guide is says under perfection, perfect, perfectly: see also god perfection, god standard of righteousness, godliness integrity, JESUS CHRIST, new man, spiritually re-born, MAN POTENTIAL TO BECOME LIKE HEAVENLY FATHER. So I looked up this last one in the topical guide, and it referred me back to PERFECTION.

So how can we become like our Heavenly Father or to become perfect? Last conference Elder Christofferson gave a very good talk on how one can BECOME perfect. So I would like you to read that talk but I will paraphrase some of it for you. He said "that we ALL need to adapt the attribute and be willing to accept and even seek CORRECTION." yes we all hate to be corrected because we think we are always right. Right?  "but we should rejoice that god considers us worth the time and trouble to correct. So why do we need to receive correction? 1) because it persuades us to repent 2) it will refine us, 3) to REDIRECT our course in life to what god knows is a better path.

So we are corrected to persuade us to repent. Yes, as a missionary we get chastened by leaders all the time, to help us to see what we need to work on and what we need to do better. And Yes I hate it, but it does help me to repent so I can be a better missionary.
Correction will refine us, god wants us to be the beautiful diamond, but right now we are rocks, so some one needs to refine that rock to make it that shinny diamond that is can become.
 
Some times we need to be redirected to stay on that path that our heavenly father wants for us. I remember long time ago in the deacons quorum Todd Berry gave a lesson on this very thing (I think if I remember right) Dad started his lesson by putting a little dot on the chalk board, and latter explained that if a space ship is off on its target (like the moon) by this much (pointing to the dot that we could barely see) the space ship will miss the moon by thousands of miles. So as the ship is going to the moon they are constantly redirecting the ship to keep it on course.

Elder Christofferson gave a good story about President Hugh B Brown. Now the Gardner said " I am the Gardner and I Know what I want you to become.'” ( I want you all to read Elder Christofferson’s talk)
So our course correction comes from parents, the prophets, bishops, church leaders. (yes that means priest quorum leaders) When I thought about what Brody might say to that I thought about what I would have said. It probably would have been something like “they are always given me crap every time I go to Priesthood, so I just wont go because I don’t like the crap. Well both of my grandpas in their gardening, and farming taught me that CRAP is a good federalizer. So sometimes people might just be giving us the crap we need to GROW BIG. In D&C 136 31 it says " My people must be tried in all things, that they may be prepared to receive the glory that I have for them, even the glory of Zion; and he that will not bear chastisement is not worthy of my kingdom.”

So for my prayers I have been praying for my brothers to grow up to be better then me, to go to there classes at church, and to seminary, I pray that they will just Go and DO what is best for them and not to worry about the crap they might get. Because it is only there to help you to repent, to be refined into that DIAMOND, and to be redirected to what is better.

Brody, Braxton, Bronson, and Britton I love you guys and want you guys to be that diamond! You guys are champs keep doing what’s right! Mom, Dad, Hollie and Miriah I love you too!

Peace for now,

Love Bbear