The Influence of an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ
Dear Elders and Sisters:
With all of you, Sister Clark and I join our voices in
"thanking God for a Prophet" and Prophets and Apostles. What a wonderful weekend it has been to
literally sit at the feet of Apostles and Prophets and "hear the pleasing
word of God". I trust all of you
are basking in the revelation you have received as you had "ears to
hear."
One of the impressive things about the great California
Fresno Mission is that we have a history of following the Brethren. The first evidence of this is to all Elders
who come to this Mission as they discover serving "set apart" also
includes parts obediently placed in hair in order to receive a promised
blessing from one of he Lord's servants.
I know that when Elder Ballard was here in 2012 he
promised those in attendance at the Special Stake Conference he presided over
(Modesto North I believe) that there were thousands prepared to receive the
gospel in their Stake boundaries. This
has now been confirmed (no surprise) by the study the Church commissioned that
concluded there are thousands and thousands in this mission prepared to receive
the Gospel of Jesus Christ, yea even 80,000 people.
When Elder Ballard was here with us recently he promised
that if we would "Open our Mouths" more, at least 10 times a day per
missionary, we would baptize more and lift this mission as a result of helping
each other. We have already started to
see the blessing of this in just a short few weeks as you have endeavored to
OYM so much more and consequently are teaching more and providing referrals for
your fellow missionaries.
When I was with Elder Ballard during his visit here he
told me the topic of his Priesthood Session talk and I was excited to
"receive" when he came to the pulpit Saturday evening. Wow!
What a talk! So apropos to you! This Apostle just continues to be such a
blessing to the California Fresno Mission.
At the pulpit on Saturday evening, he said something very powerful about
whom you are and your quality and caliber as missionaries now serving under the
"raise the bar" standards set by the Church about 15 years ago.
Reiterating what he said in 2002 about "raising the
bar" and its blessings and benefits I feel like he described the great
missionaries of the CFM: "We need the greatest generation of missionaries
in the history of the Church. We need
worthy, qualified, spiritually energized missionaries. We need your whole heart and soul. We need vibrant thinking, passionate
missionaries who know how to listen to and respond to the whisperings of the Holy
Spirit." To me, this describes Missionaries who Act, rather than those who
must be Acted Upon.
it appears to me that the Lord has assigned Elder Ballard
to be the Apostle who watches over His Vineyard - the California Fresno
Mission. I am prompted to propose that as a result of the Apostolic influence
of Elder Ballard we add to our Mission Culture two statements that reflect how
this great Apostle has blessed and inspired us.
Consider these:
"We desire to be the greatest generation of
missionaries in the history of the Church.
Therefore, we are worthy, qualified, vibrant thinking, passionate, and
spiritually energized missionaries who serve with our whole heart and soul and
who know how to listen to and recognize the whisperings of the Holy
Spirit." and,
"We Open Our Mouths to everyone so that all of our
Heavenly Father's children who He has prepared in the hastening might receive
the blessings of the Atonement of Jesus Christ in their lives."
This I know: That
as Missionaries in the CFM if we serve with the kind of focus and purpose
reflected in our Mission Culture, fulfilling our Missionary Purpose and being
Exactly Obedient, we will baptize 1,342.
That many baptisms becomes a barometer, a reflection if you will, of how
well we live our purpose, live our culture, and exactly obey. So, if you want to Find, Teach, Baptize, and
Rescue more, live your Purpose, live the Culture, and offer Exact Obedience to
the Lord. I promise you as you focus on
the Work of Salvation with a higher level of focus and commitment, your
personal conversion to the gospel of Jesus Christ will become stronger and go
deeper into your hearts.
I love you and pray in earnest for you and your success
fulfilling your Missionary Purpose, living the Mission Culture, and Exactly
Obeying.
President
Clark
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