We had a missionary transfer from another mission into our mission. One of the elders who came to pick him up asked if he happened to know his best friend who is now serving in the new elder's previous mission.
Our elder pulled out his planner (the missionaries love to decorate their transfer planner covers) to show the new elder a picture of his friend. Sure enough, the new elder not only knew who his friend is, but had recently served with him and knows him well.
When she saw it was from the new missionary's previous mission and it was his paperwork, I told her I hoped he had his passport with him because it wasn't in the envelope. Since he is from another country, that thought had me concerned.
Just a few minutes later in walked the same delivery man with some folded up papers in his hand. He said he had found them in his vehicle and wondered if they had possibly fallen out of the envelope he had just delivered. As he handed the papers to Sister Radford, he turned his hand and then we saw a passport.
WOW!! What a blessing he had noticed in enough time to trace it back exactly to where it needed to be delivered. That could have turned out to be a disaster, because since we hold onto passports until the missionaries leave, I don't think we would have figured out the missing passport until it was time for him to fly home to his country.
We definitely have divine intervention watching out for us and our missionaries. And I am grateful for that delivery man to have heeded the prompting he surely was given to come back to ask us about the papers.
Glen has early morning stake missionary coordination meetings every Sunday of the month except on 5th Sundays.
Since his schedule was open this past 5th Sunday, he wanted us to go to Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton and attend the meetings there. We had only been there one other time shortly after we had arrived in the mission.
The young missionaries get an early start there on Sunday mornings at 7:15 a.m. and they go right into teaching any recruits who are ready and willing to listen. The group of recruits sit around a big table and write letters to their families. At 8:05, if there is a recruit scheduled for baptism, they all line up to move as a group from the building where they meet for church to walk to another building where there is a baptismal font.
This is the first time we have witnessed a baptism. We walked back to the original building where we had sacrament meeting at 8:30 and the recruit was confirmed.
I was happy to see a picture of Christ had been hung by our leaders at the front of the room. It was a sweet and spiritual experience to sing the sacrament hymn and receive the sacrament alongside the room full of marine recruits.
When we walked in the building earlier in the morning, the man conducting the meeting jokingly said he might just have us speak. At that point, I told him if he needed a speaker, Glen could do it. (Yes, I volunteered him because he is so good at on-the-spot speaking, he is always prepared and the recruits would enjoy him a lot.)
Since the man didn't say anything after that offer, I didn't think anything else about it. As soon as the sacrament was over, he called on me to give my testimony and Glen to say a few words. WHAT?!?!?? We had one second to prepare!
Glen asked him how long he should take and the man said 5 minutes. Then the man stood up and we got the scoop on how the speaker had backed out the night before. Then the man told us the war stories the speaker would have said had he been able to come and then he just rambled on a bit for the rest of the 30 minutes.
We were so frustrated! If the man had shared with us when we first got there the predicament he was in that they had no speaker, we would have right then told him we would take care of it. I always carry talks with me in my bag. We could have used the talks we have given in other sacrament meetings where we are the only speakers. We were prepared. We could have done it. If only he had told us...
After the meeting, he thanked us for saying a few words. I asked him why he hadn't asked Glen to speak as I had suggested and he said he didn't want to impose. I felt like imposing was putting us on the spot instead of talking with us ahead of time.
Oh well. The priesthood class and the investigator/new member class (which I attended) sent everyone out of there on a spiritual high. The Sattleys, a senior missionary couple, teach those classes. Sister Sattley taught about the Book of Mormon and provided each one of the 21 recruits attending her class with a military size copy for them to keep.
She had some questions of the soul (from Preach My Gospel, pg. 107) along with the Book of Mormon scripture references which answer these questions. She asked them to look at the questions and see if they have ever wondered any of those things. Several responded. "How can my family be happier and more united?" "How can I avoid sin?"
One recruit said he had been thinking that very morning, "Is there life after death?" I thought it was interesting that I had testified of this very thing in my testimony earlier. Then Sister Sattley had him open to the scripture reference so he could read the scripture answer to that question. She had provided colored pencils for them to mark the answers to the individual questions they had.
She left them with three invitations. They had already been working on two which were to always say their prayers when they got in their bed at night. The second invitation was to not use swear words. When asked how they were doing on that one, they unabashedly confessed that one is hard for them. In her quiet, sweet voice, she pointed out to them that they will feel the Spirit more if they do not swear.
Then she left them with a third invitation. To read a little out of the Book of Mormon each night before they go to sleep. She suggested they look up the answers to the other questions on the paper and read those answers as well. It was a powerful lesson.
It lists various gospel subjects and a little bit about them so they can know more themselves, but also so they can explain to others if asked. There are priesthood ordinances and blessings so they can know the proper way to do them. There are also a few hymns contained at the end of the book.
My favorite part is the beginning few pages. Such great words and a great message. This is an excerpt:
In facing the demands of military life, you can find comfort, strength, and assurance through daily prayer and scripture study and by following the words of latter-day prophets. This book, Principles of the Gospel, is intended as a companion to your study and will be an inspiration and helpful resource as you strive to live the gospel.
In your military responsibilities, you have committed to serve your country honorably. As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you have made sacred covenants to serve the Lord and your fellowmen. Remember that you can be valiant in your obligations to both your country and your Heavenly Father.
The scriptures contain many accounts of people of military might who were faithful to their covenants. Captain Moroni, a great military leader, serves as a worthy example.
He “was a strong and a mighty man; he was a man of a perfect understanding; yea, a man that did not delight in bloodshed; a man whose soul did joy in the liberty and the freedom of his country, and his brethren from bondage and slavery;
“Yea, a man whose heart did swell with thanksgiving to his God, for the many privileges and blessings which he bestowed upon his people; a man who did labor exceedingly for the welfare and safety of his people.
“Yea, and he was a man who was firm in the faith of Christ, and he had sworn with an oath to defend his people, his rights, and his country, and his religion, even to the loss of his blood. . . .
“. . . If all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto Moroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the devil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men” (Alma 48:11–13, 17).
Like Moroni, you can be “firm in the faith of Christ,” even as you experience the demands of military service. In fact, you will find that as you serve the Lord, your service to your country will be enhanced.
