To answer your questions, I'm doing a lot better. Just a few prayers and some Advil is all it takes.
President said because of how many missionaries are here (we are at our cap, by the way) we can expect to be in our current areas for a minimum of six months. (Which puts me in State College through Christmas.)
As for Wendy, the one in the assisted living, she was in fact baptized, but not by me. She was baptized by a reverend (a different church) a couple of weeks ago. We had an interesting and direct conversation with her about baptism, to say the least. It was, however, loving and powerful because of the presence of the Spirit. She has expressed a desire to be baptized again, and this time by the proper authority.
We have picked up a few investigators in the last few weeks and dropped a couple. The weeks seem to pass by faster than the leaves hit the ground here. I can't believe I'm emailing you again already. Not saying I don't want to - I look forward to P-Days!
I will keep you updated on work as it progresses. Check out my wards blog: statecollegemormons.blogspot.com
I love you, I pray for you. Remember who you are and where you came from. Always strive to lift those around you.
Love,
Elder Trotman
Monday, September 30, 2013
Monday, September 23, 2013
The Savior
Well I'm currently experiencing my first cold/sickness on my mission. My head hurts, I can't breathe and I just want to sleep all day but other than that, all is well.
We've been getting feed a lot because our bishop talked about us during Sacrament Meeting and said that the ward is big enough that we should be in a member's home for dinner with a non-member friend every night. The ward has positively responded and our fridge has been given an over-whelming amount of leftovers. It's starting to get colder here, which is nice.
My favorite hymn right now is "A Child's Prayer" because I know this is not just a song, but it is a true prayer:
1. Heavenly Father, are you really there?
And do you hear and answer ev'ry child's prayer?
Some say that heaven is far away,
But I feel it close around me as I pray.
Heavenly Father, I remember now
Something that Jesus told disciples long ago:
"Suffer the children to come to me."
Father, in prayer I'm coming now to thee.
2. Pray, he is there;
Speak, he is list'ning.
You are his child;
His love now surrounds you.
He hears your prayer;
He loves the children.
Of such is the kingdom, the kingdom of heav'n.
Heavenly Father does answer every child's prayer and as the scriptures tell us to be as a child, we are to pray. We are His children and He answers our prayers. He loves us. He watches over us.
I would like to add one more thing. We had Zone Conference on Thursday this week and it was so inspiring and touching. An elder stood up and said, "Whenever I think about the pre-mortal life, I imagine our Father saying: "I have a plan of happiness for you my children. For this plan to work, it is necessary that one of you go down before your brothers and sisters and teach them about my plan. However, and no matter how much you love them, they will crucify you. You will be filled with immense pain and sorrow, but know, I am here. Who is willing to go done and sacrifice yourself for my children?" Then we see this little figure at the front of the congregation stand up and say, "I will Father. I, Jehovah, your first son, will sacrifice myself for my brothers and sisters.""
I can't even fathom the love Jesus Christ has for us. He has felt your greatest pain. He has felt every tear drop that falls from our eye on His own face. He knows you. He is the only one that can truly comfort you. As He tells John, he tells you personally and individually, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John 14:27 I bear my testimony and give unto you my witness of The Savior's peace and love. He loves us more than we will ever comprehend. He will never leave us, even if we try to leave Him. He will, and constantly does, comfort us. He has paid the price and gives us life. He is the son of our God and Father. Our Father hears our prayers and answers them more often than we think. They love us. I love you with all my heart. In the name of Jesus Christ, our dear brother, Amen.
Love,
Elder Trotman
We've been getting feed a lot because our bishop talked about us during Sacrament Meeting and said that the ward is big enough that we should be in a member's home for dinner with a non-member friend every night. The ward has positively responded and our fridge has been given an over-whelming amount of leftovers. It's starting to get colder here, which is nice.
My favorite hymn right now is "A Child's Prayer" because I know this is not just a song, but it is a true prayer:
1. Heavenly Father, are you really there?
And do you hear and answer ev'ry child's prayer?
Some say that heaven is far away,
But I feel it close around me as I pray.
Heavenly Father, I remember now
Something that Jesus told disciples long ago:
"Suffer the children to come to me."
Father, in prayer I'm coming now to thee.
2. Pray, he is there;
Speak, he is list'ning.
You are his child;
His love now surrounds you.
He hears your prayer;
He loves the children.
Of such is the kingdom, the kingdom of heav'n.
Heavenly Father does answer every child's prayer and as the scriptures tell us to be as a child, we are to pray. We are His children and He answers our prayers. He loves us. He watches over us.
I would like to add one more thing. We had Zone Conference on Thursday this week and it was so inspiring and touching. An elder stood up and said, "Whenever I think about the pre-mortal life, I imagine our Father saying: "I have a plan of happiness for you my children. For this plan to work, it is necessary that one of you go down before your brothers and sisters and teach them about my plan. However, and no matter how much you love them, they will crucify you. You will be filled with immense pain and sorrow, but know, I am here. Who is willing to go done and sacrifice yourself for my children?" Then we see this little figure at the front of the congregation stand up and say, "I will Father. I, Jehovah, your first son, will sacrifice myself for my brothers and sisters.""
I can't even fathom the love Jesus Christ has for us. He has felt your greatest pain. He has felt every tear drop that falls from our eye on His own face. He knows you. He is the only one that can truly comfort you. As He tells John, he tells you personally and individually, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John 14:27 I bear my testimony and give unto you my witness of The Savior's peace and love. He loves us more than we will ever comprehend. He will never leave us, even if we try to leave Him. He will, and constantly does, comfort us. He has paid the price and gives us life. He is the son of our God and Father. Our Father hears our prayers and answers them more often than we think. They love us. I love you with all my heart. In the name of Jesus Christ, our dear brother, Amen.
Love,
Elder Trotman
Monday, September 16, 2013
Plain and Simple Truths
We have a new sister in State College. Her name is Sister Chang, she is serving in Temple Square (on a three transfer outbound) and is from Taipei, Taiwan. She is teaching all of our Mandarin investigators with Sister Yates and doing an excellent job. Elder Vassallo and I are so happy that God answered our prayers to break the language barrier here. Fall is on its final approach in the State College area as well, so my excitement is exceedingly great. Time for some sweaters and students. Lots of students - feels like more and more every day. Well, on to my spiritual thought for the week:
Today I want to talk about the plain and simple truths of the Book of Mormon. The Book of Mormon is... well, plain and simply true. There is no eloquent vernacular or messianic metaphors. It's simply the word of God given to us in plain truths. We have an investigator, who is about to get baptized, named Ken. Ken is a simple man. A man of odd trades. A working man. A humble man. Ken read the Book of Mormon. He prayed to know if it was true. Ken received an answer. Sounds simple right? That's because it is. However, he had to pray with "a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ" (Moroni 10:4) in order to receive his answer. Now what is a sincere heart? I would describe a sincere heart as a humble heart. Real intent residing within that heart as well, and real intent being a true, deep desire to know. Now the big one… faith in Christ. What is faith in Christ? Is that the same as faith? No. One may have faith that he will be saved but if that faith is not in the Atonement of Christ then there will be no salvation unto his soul. Faith in Christ is the belief that you can be saved by His name and only under His name, but then also having the willingness to act on His word. If you pray to know if the Book of Mormon is true and God tells you to read it three times and then you'll know. Read it three times. It's that simple. I know that if you read the Book of Mormon with those three things in your heart (a sincere heart, real intent and faith in Christ), He will give you an answer. That answer, I can assure you, will be that the book is true. If the Book of Mormon is true, then Joseph Smith must be a prophet, seer and revelator called by God to restore His church. If this is God's church restored on Earth, then this is His kingdom. Having a testimony of The Book of Mormon is not just important to our salvation, but it is necessary to our salvation. So ask yourself, how important is salvation to you? I think we all know the answer to that question and I have just given you a way to find that salvation. It is plain and simple. Read the Book of Mormon, pray to know if it's true, and then follow the example of Christ set forth in the Bible. I love you all so much and know that this is an invitation, not from me, but from our Maker. An invitation extended to us in love. I know our Savior lives. I know that Jesus is the Christ and it is under his name that we may find eternal happiness and glory. I leave you with my testimony to the words of God and His Beloved Son, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Love,
Trotman Janglao
(Elder Trotman)
Today I want to talk about the plain and simple truths of the Book of Mormon. The Book of Mormon is... well, plain and simply true. There is no eloquent vernacular or messianic metaphors. It's simply the word of God given to us in plain truths. We have an investigator, who is about to get baptized, named Ken. Ken is a simple man. A man of odd trades. A working man. A humble man. Ken read the Book of Mormon. He prayed to know if it was true. Ken received an answer. Sounds simple right? That's because it is. However, he had to pray with "a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ" (Moroni 10:4) in order to receive his answer. Now what is a sincere heart? I would describe a sincere heart as a humble heart. Real intent residing within that heart as well, and real intent being a true, deep desire to know. Now the big one… faith in Christ. What is faith in Christ? Is that the same as faith? No. One may have faith that he will be saved but if that faith is not in the Atonement of Christ then there will be no salvation unto his soul. Faith in Christ is the belief that you can be saved by His name and only under His name, but then also having the willingness to act on His word. If you pray to know if the Book of Mormon is true and God tells you to read it three times and then you'll know. Read it three times. It's that simple. I know that if you read the Book of Mormon with those three things in your heart (a sincere heart, real intent and faith in Christ), He will give you an answer. That answer, I can assure you, will be that the book is true. If the Book of Mormon is true, then Joseph Smith must be a prophet, seer and revelator called by God to restore His church. If this is God's church restored on Earth, then this is His kingdom. Having a testimony of The Book of Mormon is not just important to our salvation, but it is necessary to our salvation. So ask yourself, how important is salvation to you? I think we all know the answer to that question and I have just given you a way to find that salvation. It is plain and simple. Read the Book of Mormon, pray to know if it's true, and then follow the example of Christ set forth in the Bible. I love you all so much and know that this is an invitation, not from me, but from our Maker. An invitation extended to us in love. I know our Savior lives. I know that Jesus is the Christ and it is under his name that we may find eternal happiness and glory. I leave you with my testimony to the words of God and His Beloved Son, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Love,
Trotman Janglao
(Elder Trotman)
Thursday, September 12, 2013
The Book of Mormon
All is well in State College. Game days are one of the most unproductive days for a missionary around Penn State. Just more study time for us. I have learned that prayer is the most precious gift from God and that the Book of Mormon is not merely a book from men, but rather words from our Savior. For any of those that would argue against the validity of the Book of Mormon, ponder the words of The Lord to His people,
"...many of the Gentiles shall say: A Bible! A Bible! We have got a Bible, and there cannot be any more Bible. But thus saith the Lord God: O fools, they shall have a Bible; and it shall proceed forth from the Jews, mine ancient covenant people... And I do this that I may prove unto man that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever... for my work is not yet finished... neither need ye suppose that I have not caused more to be written..."
2 Nephi 29:4-10
Our God has given us a beautiful gift from the mouths of His prophets and yet the people of this world, His own divine children, deny the existence thereof. Through the power of the Holy Ghost you may come to a knowledge of the truth, as the prophet Alma states,
"Do ye not suppose that I know of these things myself? Behold, I testify unto you that I do know that these things whereof I have spoken are true. And how do ye suppose that I know of their surety? Behold, I say unto you they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God. Behold, I have fasted and prayed many days that I might know these things of myself. And now I do know of myself that they are true; for the Lord God hath made them manifest unto me by his Holy Spirit; and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me."
Alma 5:45-46
I would challenge you to follow the invitation of Alma:
"if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words."
Alma 32:27
I promise you that if you simply offer a prayer from your heart to our Heavenly Father, that He will answer you if you do so in faith and have a sincere desire to know of the truth. Experiment. Not upon the words of man, but upon the words of our Lord God. Then exercise even just a particle of faith and offer up your heart. I stand witness unto you, as a servant of The Lord, that if you truly desire to follow Christ and learn of His teachings, read, ponder and pray about the Book of Mormon, you will come to know it is the word of God. As the Introduction says, stated by Joseph Smith, "...[it is] the most correct of any book on earth..." Why then not learn of its truths, my friends? Please, do so. I leave you with my testimony that I know the Book of Mormon is the true word of God and contains the fullness of His gospel. That if you will sincerely ask of God if it be true, then He will manifest unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost, the truth of His words. In the name of the Beloved Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.
"...many of the Gentiles shall say: A Bible! A Bible! We have got a Bible, and there cannot be any more Bible. But thus saith the Lord God: O fools, they shall have a Bible; and it shall proceed forth from the Jews, mine ancient covenant people... And I do this that I may prove unto man that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever... for my work is not yet finished... neither need ye suppose that I have not caused more to be written..."
2 Nephi 29:4-10
Our God has given us a beautiful gift from the mouths of His prophets and yet the people of this world, His own divine children, deny the existence thereof. Through the power of the Holy Ghost you may come to a knowledge of the truth, as the prophet Alma states,
"Do ye not suppose that I know of these things myself? Behold, I testify unto you that I do know that these things whereof I have spoken are true. And how do ye suppose that I know of their surety? Behold, I say unto you they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God. Behold, I have fasted and prayed many days that I might know these things of myself. And now I do know of myself that they are true; for the Lord God hath made them manifest unto me by his Holy Spirit; and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me."
Alma 5:45-46
I would challenge you to follow the invitation of Alma:
"if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words."
Alma 32:27
I promise you that if you simply offer a prayer from your heart to our Heavenly Father, that He will answer you if you do so in faith and have a sincere desire to know of the truth. Experiment. Not upon the words of man, but upon the words of our Lord God. Then exercise even just a particle of faith and offer up your heart. I stand witness unto you, as a servant of The Lord, that if you truly desire to follow Christ and learn of His teachings, read, ponder and pray about the Book of Mormon, you will come to know it is the word of God. As the Introduction says, stated by Joseph Smith, "...[it is] the most correct of any book on earth..." Why then not learn of its truths, my friends? Please, do so. I leave you with my testimony that I know the Book of Mormon is the true word of God and contains the fullness of His gospel. That if you will sincerely ask of God if it be true, then He will manifest unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost, the truth of His words. In the name of the Beloved Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
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