(Anziano Wilkinson)
This week went by unusually fast, which is ironic because
the days that count down to Christmas usually tick by very slowly in anticipation
of that glorious day haha. Unfortunately I won't be having a white Christmas
this year since it nearly never snows in Tuscany, in fact, we we'd be lucky if
we even need out coats that day; we rarely use them as it is!
This last week was the first of our new transfer and we are
beginning it with a newly Awakened Force... Okay, lame Star Wars pun. But really,
we are working harder than ever and making successes everyday! One of our
investigators, named Jonathan, is a fantastic man from Nigeria and has been
making great progress lately. He is only just beginning to come to a full view
of the beauty of the gospel and each week he draws closer to our Heavenly
Father! He had us over for lunch last Sunday and we had some traditional
Nigerian food, eat in the traditional Nigerian way: no plates. Apparently, they
place the serving dish in the center just eat from the same dish, which sounds gross,
but in reality it's not as bad as it sounds. I'll put some pictures of us
eating with him and his friend Alfred.
This week, I was struck by the thirtieth chapter of 3 Nephi
in the Book of Mormon, which is only two verses long. It's very short but it packs
a lot of power into the few words that are said. Basically, in writing this
chapter, Mormon digresses form his abridging of the history of the Nephites and
takes a moment to pour his heart out to us, the future readers of his work. He
feels earnestly to warn us of what we are going to face in our time and to warn
us not to do as his own people did. He urges us, in pleading words, to
repentance and to cast from ourselves any ungodliness and beckons us to follow
the example of our loving Heavenly Father.
These words were truly meant for us, written hundreds of
years in advance. These are the words of a prophet who witnessed the complete distraction
of his own people and wished with all of his heart that it might not happen
again in a future generation. He pleads with us to lay aside sin and take up
righteousness, knowing that it is too late for his own people and hoping with
all his heart that his words will reach our ears in time for us to act upon
them. I stand by his words and likewise invite everyone to repent and taste of
the goodness that is gospel of Jesus Christ! Especially now this Christmas
season, I invite everyone to listen to and act upon the words of Mormon, the ancient
prophet, "that ye may be numbered with [God's] people". What a great
joy that would be!
Have a great week everyone, hear from you next week!
-Anziano Jake Wilkinson
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