I have chosen for the title of my email a small section of 1
Corinthians 2:3. In this chapter the
apostle Paul is teaching the people of Corinth that the gospel must be preached
by the Spirit, that no there is no mortal power that can bring about conversion.
That is exactly how Elder Ostler and I felt last night. In our last teaching visit of the week we
went to visit a few friends of ours, Tong Kou Thao, Maihoua Her, Kou Her, Vang
Lor, Choua Lor, and Mai Vang, and share with them the Plan of Salvation. All six of them are farmers living in relative
poverty with no personal form of transportation and the faith of men and women
who have endured many things. The six of
them are refugees from Thailand and Laos, and all of them fled as a result of
their beliefs, Christian and Shaman. We
had been unable to find them a ride to church this week, and promised that we
would visit them that day so that they still would have an opportunity to
worship God with us on the Sabbath.
The teaching situation was one of the most humbling I have
ever been in. We were welcomed very
warmly and once the announcement that their "sons" were here was
made, the six of them excitedly came out to join us in our discussion. They told us to sit on the only cushioned
seat and they sat on the floor in an arch in front of us. We began with a prayer and began to teach.
And we taught,
"declaring unto [them] the testimony of God" (1 Corinthians
2:1). It was beautiful.
It has become more apparent to me recently how much Hmong I
actually know--not a lot. I can
communicate fairly effectively, but there is still a lot of improvement. In almost every teaching situation there is
some kind of communication breakdown that keeps the lesson from flowing as
smoothly as it could. Last night was
different. Completely different. In flowery Hmong, with couplets and all, I
taught them, using words I knew in ways I had never thought to use them. I have never spoken so clearly nor so
dignified. I came in my weakness, and
the Spirit was magnifying me.
We taught these six farmers "the truths of eternity
reality of our premortal existence, the purpose of our life on earth, and the
potential for sons and daughters of God in the life to come," and most
importantly, the essential role of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ (The
Living Christ). At several points in the
lesson those we were teaching shared beautiful testimonies about how they had
seen the hand of God in their lives.
They all individually professed that they felt we were sent to them from
God, and Elder Ostler and I professed to them that we felt we were led to them
by God. As we continued teaching both
the Restoration and the Gospel of Jesus Christ to them according to their
concerns, all six of them agreed to be baptized a member of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints. What more,
all six of them agreed to ride to bus to church with us so that they could
become self-sufficient in transportation.
We will be seeing them later this week.
They said they would invite all of their believing friends to listen to
us teach. God magnified Elder Ostler and
I. Through us He was able to bless His
children even more.
I love sharing the gospel with these people, the Hmong. I would say with confidence that they have
specially been prepared for the message of the restoration. In 1 Nephi 1:6 we
read the prophecy of the prophet Lehi that "there shall none come into
this land save they be brought by the hand of the Lord." The Hmong one example of a direct fulfillment
of that prophecy. I love them. I love serving them.
I hope you all can find joy in righteous living! No matter where you are, who you are, or what
you are doing, the Lord desires to bless you if you are obedient. I know that Jesus Christ is the Only Begotten
of the Father. I know that he is my
Savior and Redeemer. He lives!
With love,
Elder Jared Cummings
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