"Behold, I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But behold, Jesus Christ hath shown you unto me, and I know your doing." (Mormon 8:35)
**GOOD NEWS! This chapter has an audio version. Listen along with the SoundCloud below!
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What you just read was an inscription made over 1600 long years ago. This man’s words were among the last added to a literary collection that was a thousand years in the making. A thousand years! There have been few group projects so ambitious. Ten centuries of near constant cultural history etched by generations onto physical objects. No easy thing. The result? A timeless artefact of immeasurable intrinsic worth. It is undoubtedly an astounding chunk of time for any project to remain active. The time lapsed from the start of the record to this scribe's day that we just heard from would be the equivalent of Medieval times down to our present 21st Century. A truly ancient relic. I cannot understate what a feat that was. Although it had many contributors, this abridged record was eventually named after this particular penultimate scribe named "Mormon". The translation of the record is subsequently today called "The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ".
Now, I don’t expect my writings nor legacy will ever be so far reaching, but that doesn't dampen my emotion. I write because I find personal stories to be meaningful first and foremost to myself, now and at a future time if preserved. I don't find my stories and insights to be any more significant than anyone else's, but I am encouraged that they might have some value nonetheless to someone else, no matter how small. And so, I write openly. I write to entertain, yes, but I hope to educate and give you food for thought and offer you my personal invitation to then go and act and react as you feel so inspired to do. I too write unto you "as if ye were present, and yet ye are not". May this be a timeless communication to you wherever and whenever you may be.
Here, you will learn about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and some of my personal experiences as a lifelong member of the Church and having served as a missionary in the Reynosa, Mexico Mission from 2014 to 2016. These are true stories. But beyond story telling, here you will hear a little bit of everything from culture such as food, language, and geography, to science, religion, and philosophy and anything in between or without. I believe a full fletched narrative has many flavors because that's just how life is! Life is diverse carrying with it many realms of information and interactions. I endeavor to have something that piques your interest, if not religion, then something else.
You are invited to discover truth for yourself in any form it comes. That is one of the great joys of life, if you ask me! In other words, you don't have to take my word for something. I learn many things through personal experience. I get better at things by practicing. I suggest you do the same. Life is about striving to be a little better every day. And inspiration comes in many forms. My goal can be summed up in the hope that I may help you in your pursuit of all that is good.
WORKS AND WONDERS
“Works and Wonders” as a title was purposeful because they are ever present. They're two companions within each story: a degree of work and some wonders and wondering. Both work and wonder function as nouns and verbs. To work and to wonder. To think and to do. We are told in the New Testament by the Apostle James that “faith without works is dead” (James 2:17-18). In the chapter preceding this teaching James further reaffirms, "But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only" (James 1:22). We, as members of the Church of Jesus Christ, like other Christians, acknowledge our dependency on the sacrifice and grace of Jesus Christ and we back up those convictions by striving to live in harmony with His teachings and commandments, what some might appropriately call "works". You might think of them in this way: Works are simply an alignment of our convictions and behaviors be those good works or bad works. Just as faith without works is dead, or in more modern language -- that words without actions are hollow, or to "talk the talk without walking the walk", so too is the inverse as necessary: that our works without faith are dead too. Faith in Jesus Christ is the first principle of the gospel and is only amplified, not diminished by works. Our actions too could be considered hollow, or even hypocritical if they are done grudgingly or with misplaced intentions. Undoubtedly, Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ desire willing hearts in addition to our righteous living. (2 Nephi 31:13)
This is an example of the kind of conversation that I enjoy delving into. While I try to mix themes together, and juxtapose them into my personal experiences as a missionary, I may choose to dedicate chapters to specific and important topics. For example, if you want to focus on the topic of "Grace and Works" you may find my chapter titled, "More Than Good" to your liking.
I hope this is an intellectual journey for you too because there are few things that delight me as much as "epiphany" moments when something finally clicks or I see things with a new perspective or fuller understanding. I want you engaged. I want you to consider the applications of what's discussed. To do this, I'll occasionally pose what I'll call a "Ponder Question". There are no right or wrong answers to these. They are "mindfulness" exercises if you will, a time for introspection, and internalizing. By posing a "Ponder Question" I hope this enables us to transcend my story and my history, by having you apply it to yourselves and your unique story.
Ponder Question #1: What do you do that requires faith? One of my favorite autobiographies entitled "In the Eye of the Storm" by John H. Groberg was an inspiration for this project. As a missionary and then a Mission President in Tonga years ago he was asked, "How do we build faith?". In sweet simplicity he said something that resonates strongly with me that, "We build faith by doing things that require faith". Truthfully, faith that endures, perhaps even is magnified, when things are hard is real faith. Anybody can claim to have faith when things are easy. But somethings aren't always resolved in the time or way we desire. Sometimes our prayers may feel unheard. Still, faith is to know that all will be made right in the eternities, and to accept Heavenly Father's will no matter what it is. That's the kind of faith that the prophet Job had in the Old Testament.
There is another source of inspiration for my choice of title "Works and Wonders" drawn from scripture. I refer to the prophet Isaiah [1] of the Old Testament who spoke messianically [2], as if it was Christ himself who was speaking, “...Behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder…” (Isa. 29:14). This particular work and wonder is the same that the young prophet Daniel interpreted in the dream of Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar [3] when he said, “Thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands… [and] the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed…” (Dan. 2:44-45). But unlike any kingdom governed by man or King Nebuchadnezzar himself, this kingdom spoken of was spiritual through and through, even "the Kingdom of God".
Think of how many times "the kingdom of God" is mentioned, particularly in the New Testament. What is a kingdom? A kingdom denotes a people in a place with a ruler, and rules. If you may, the kingdom of God is God's government and followers. It may sound weird to some people, but we consider His church -- the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints -- His "kingdom on the Earth"; the one and only eternal government complete with spiritual "judges" and leaders, divine priesthood authority, and divine laws (See "One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism"). It is a bold claim which I again invite you to learn about, experience, and ultimately pray about. I testify that this kingdom of God on the Earth began and continues to be ruled by the king of kings today (Rev. 19:16). I further assert that His kingdom, this unstoppable rolling stone is not in the hands of man. We are participants but God is the founder of it all, as the scriptural expression “without hands” means to signify. Church is not a manmade organization or invention. It is how God operates and governs His people and has always existed in this way and will always exist as such, the Kingdom of God. Church is more than just a time of gathering like much of the world only sees it as. I repeat: it is God's Kingdom on Earth. The connotations of such a concept has significant weight to it. To understand that this is really the Church of Jesus Christ is to affirm that Jesus Christ lived, was resurrected and still lives today, and continues to speak and direct us today through a living prophet like He did 2000 years ago!
If you get nothing else out of this narration of mine, remember this: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is unique from all other Christians first and foremost because we assert it to be the only organization led by the living Christ himself. This elevates the authority of everything the Church does, enhancing the doctrine in the scriptures by allowing for continuing modern-day revelation through a living prophet, and having the only direct priesthood authority to perform ordinances that enable us to return to the presence of God. Again, I don't know if claims can be any bolder than these, but I invite you to learn, experience, and pray. While the only way to learn is to hear and see things that are new to the student, I hope I never overshadow the marvelous common humanity that we all share. In the end, we are one human family, all children of a loving Heavenly Father.
Please enjoy what I have to say next! There's much more to come.
Next: "2. A Still, Small Voice" -->>
Footnotes:
[1] Isaiah is the most quoted of prophets. Jesus Christ often quoted Him, as did many prophets in the Book of Mormon (2 Nephi is full of passages compatible to Isaiah). The bulk of Isaiah’s prophecies deal with the coming of the Redeemer, both in His first appearance (“For unto us a child is born,” 9:6) and as the Great King at the last day, as the God of Israel.
[2] “Speaking Messianically” means someone says what the Messiah says so it sounds like the Messiah is the one speaking. Often times, when this happens prophecies (which can have duel meanings) can be spoken in a past tense while maintaining future implications. Isaiah often speaks Messianically and the book of Isaiah contains many prophecies. The words of Isaiah were also of great importance to the people in the Book of Mormon, most notably cited in 2 Nephi. (2 Nephi 6)
[3] King Nebuchadnezzar was the king of Babylon (604-561 B.C.). He besieges Jerusalem and carries away many of the Jews including Daniel. The king has a dream (vision) that none of his men can interpret except for the faithful Daniel. Another example of dream interpretation would be Joseph, son of Jacob in the book of Genesis in the Old Testament. (Gen. 40)
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