Called to Serve!

"Called to serve Him, heav'nly King of glory, Chosen e'er to witness for his name..."

As missionaries we are called to serve. Literally. Along side sharing the message of the restored Gospel, we serve our fellow men. We believe that as we are serving others we are in the service of our God. (Mosiah 2:17 from the Book of Mormon) Service is what the Savior would do. He was the perfect example of helping out other people. As representatives and disciples of Christ we try to follow him in all things, including service. Part of our regular routine as missionaries is to serve others and look for service opportunities. It's been amazing to be able to lift up those who stand in need.

 I think I speak for everyone when I say that service is just awesome! I feel like the Grinch off of "How The Grinch Stole Christmas" when his heart swells three sizes. It just makes you feel good helping out others. One time where we were able to serve as missionaries was after Hurricane Sandy hit New York. Thousands of members and missionaries threw on the Mormon Helping Hands yellow vests (you'll know them when you see them... they are quite bright) and went to serve!

These were some of my favorite memories on the mission. There were thousands of people who were left with nothing and being able to even help them out a little was priceless. I know that service draws us closer to our Heavenly Father. If you would like to learn more about why missionaries and the church are so service oriented you can check out the "Meet Missionaries" tab or ask us on the "Discussion" tab!

Kindness Kard Experience

Here is a really cool experience from the Sister missionaries here in Manhattan with the Kindness Kards we made a little while back!

Our train story:

"You are here, You are still alive, The sun shines when we don't. Keep hope alive." On the train ride home from one of our lessons, we found ourselves next to a very sad young woman. I heard her sniffing, and when I looked up she had tears streaming down her face. I instantly thought of the kindness cards and we both dove through our bags looking for one to give her. We found a particularly good one and handed it to her. She looked down for a second, looked up, smiled and then said thank you. It wasn't much at all. We didn't even write the card. But we helped a stranger in the park brighten a stranger on the train's day. And that was definitely a cool experience. Helping strangers help strangers. It's what we do. haha NYC is so full of sad and lonely people and what an incredible opportunity it is to have something even slightly more than just a sympathetic glance to give.

Mosiah 18:9 (Book of Mormon) "Yea, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death, that ye may be redeemed of God, and be numbered with those of the first resurrection that ye may have eternal life" 

To learn more about what we believe (as im sure you are) about service, the Book or Mormon, or anything else we teach as missionaries check out the "Meet Missionaries" or "LDS.org". Have a beautiful day! 

Around the World

As part of "missionary life", we believe in teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all people. ALL PEOPLE! Many people as they are asked about what they know about missionaries usually touch on the fact that we go out into the jungles in foreign lands to help and teach people. This is very accurate! Some are called to serve in the jungles of Brazil and other countries. Others to the jungle of Manhattan like us! :) All over the world we are sent to share the message of Jesus Christ and the Restored Gospel. Along with that we are to teach the Gospel to these people in their native languages.

"For it shall come to pass in that day, that every man shall hear the fulness of the gospel in his own tongue, and in his own language..." D&C 90:11

You don't necessarily need to be called to serve across the world to teach someone in their native language though. For example, I, Elder Potter, was called to teach in Portuguese here in New York City. A little bit strange, I know. But there are people here that need to receive the truth... in Portuguese! As missionaries, we study our languages everyday for about an hour. We also try to take every opportunity to speak in these languages. Some times it's pretty tough. I mean, we are learning completely new languages! The idea and reason of why we go to such lengths to learn these languages and to share the Gospel is because Heavenly Father loves ALL his children. For this reason we teach to all people and all languages. English, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, ASL, Italian, Tongan, Korean, Russian, Japanese, German, French, etc. We invite all to come unto Christ and to enjoy the blessings of the Atonement (Christ's sacrifice for our sins). We have noticed that many of the viewers of our blog are not from the United States or places where English is the most common language. We hope the translator feature helps you out in reading our posts. You are all amazing for taking the time to learn more about Christ through this blog!

We invite all who are interested in learning more to check out the "Meet Missionaries!" tab above and amazing missionaries, in your own country and/or language, will come to your home and teach you more! 

Missionary Life (:

We hope that everyone has had a very Merry Christmas! And... it has been a while since we have put up a post, and to let you have a little insight into why, we wanted to put up a little information about what missionary life is like... because whether you are Mormon or not, most people we have talked to have wondered just what exactly it is that missionaries do. We hope that anything we post about this will help you see that it's not just a walk in the park, even though it is the best two years (:

Everything we do as missionaries brings us closer to Christ, as we try to help others accomplish the same thing. We hope you will see a little more light each day, just like we do!

The best way that we can find light is through the scriptures, and just so you know, ever missionary spends two hours every day (from 8am to 10am) studying about the gospel of Jesus Christ!

Proverbs 119:105- Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

Try to find a way to let God's light into your life more today!

Do The Harlem "Shine"

With Christmas being just around the corner, many are feeling the spirit of

 service! That was the exact case for two awesome missionaries in the

 New York New York Mission (Elder Jeffrey Kerr and Elder James Pickard)

and their Zone in Harlem. In the spirit of Christlike service, they offered 

to shine the shoes of the people of New York City. 

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865591940/Mormon-missionaries-shine-shoes-teach-the-gospel-in-Harlem.html?pg=1

  "I feel like when you're doing service, Heavenly Father blesses you with opportunities to share the gospel and helps the hearts of those we are serving to be softened." -Elder Jeffrey Kerr

 "We noticed as we were shining people's shoes, we had a lot of time to talk with people, and as the conversation began we started talking about how people's days were, and it led in to a more gospel-centered conversation, which is exactly what they needed." Elder James Pickard

Mosiah 2:17 "And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God."

Jesus Christ is the perfect example of service.

We invite all to follow in his footsteps....

 ... and serve those around you this Christmas season.

Check out the inspiring article of this story written by Sarah Petersen on deseretnews.com

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865591940/Mormon-missionaries-shine-shoes-teach-the-gospel-in-Harlem.html?pg=1

Well, the Holidays are here!

The Holidays are here, and that means that everyone is even busier than usual! There is always so much to get ready for, so much to do, and so much to be involved in! But, it is up to us to never lose sight of what matters most. Here is an awesome video that talks about a quiet, humble event that happened in the midst of a bustling place, that went unnoticed by those that were going about their own business. What can we do to be sure that we don't miss the important things happening around us this year?

http://www.mormonchannel.org/bible-videos?v=2893093383001

Mo-Tab Thanksgiving Special

http://www.mormontabernaclechoir.org/videos/thanksgiving-special-november-18-2012-music-and-the-spoken-word?lang=eng
As most of you have recently noticed, either by some of our previous posts or just by looking at your calendar, it's almost Thanksgiving! It is a wonderful time of year where we can come together as friends and family and give thanks for the blessings we have received, and maybe do a little bit of over eating. There is so much to be grateful for in our lives. One small thing that I'm grateful for is the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, which just so happened to have made a Music and the Spoken Word Thanksgiving Special entitled, "Life is a Gift". How neat is that!? So while you're enjoying some great company, food, and football this Thanksgiving maybe take a moment to listen and quietly ponder this amazing choir sing of Thanksgiving and gratitude. We have so much to be grateful for. Happy Thanksgiving!