October 28, 2019

Elder Trezise shared an experience with me today when we were on the phone.  He told me that Elder Littleton had taken him aside and told him he was impressed that Elder Trezise and his companion had 13 people at church the Sunday before.  Elder Littleton told him that most foreign missions don't get that.  I know that Elder Trezise has the unique ability to show others geniune love and I think that and his earnest desire to spread the gospel has helped him so much.  Here is his letter:

THIS WEEK WAS AWESOME! Seriously... it was the best. Monday night I got to travel to Rexburg with 4 other Zone Leaders to meet with Shane Littlefield. He is the representative of the church over all the missions in Central America and South America. He meets with the Quorum of the Twelve at least once a month to discuss the work in the missions he oversees, and works through and with over 100 mission Presidents and a ton of Area Presidencies. He sat us down, there were only about 10 missionaries who got to meet with him, and asked us questions about our mission. They got me thinking. It was a super great experience. 

Then, on Wednesday he trained us during Zone Conference. He talked a ton about faith, and shared a story from the New Testament about Christ healing someone the Apostles couldn't heal. They couldn't heal him because they didn't have the faith. They didn't fast and pray to do it. Then he shared a story of when he was called to be Mission President over the Mexico City mission. He was in his late 30's, a very young mission President, and went in with fire. He showed his missionaries a graph of where they were at with finding and baptizing new members. They were in the top 10 percentile in the world. Then he read an excerpt from a talk by President Hinckley called Find the Sheep, Feed the Lambs. He talked about how they could double where they were at with enough faith. They all laughed at him, thinking it was the unrealistic dreams of a new, young President. He fixed a lot of disobedience in the mission, and they did slightly better. But not double. He was a little discouraged. One of his Assistants told him he knew what they needed to do. They needed to consecrate themselves. To give up the LITTLE things that hold them back. One was too focused on basketball, another music, another girls, etc. Soon enough he had the whole mission setting aside their nets to serve. Within months the mission doubled its key indicators. They got together, took a mission picture, and got back to work. Within months they doubled that number. Then they set goals to double that number. Meaning multiply by 8 their original numbers. They got very close. Miracles fell from the sky. At his final Zone Conference as mission President he showed them the graph he showed when he first got there. He showed where they were at back then. Then he showed the line that was double. Then he showed where they currently were. And all the missionaries laughed. Thinking back to when they thought it was impossible to double the original numbers. They were now standing 7 times higher than those numbers. He said, "We have missionaries who are so afraid to give their ALL because they're afraid that God will ask more of them than they are capable of. God will never, and can never ask for more than we can give." That hit me hard. I have worked hard, yes. Harder than most. But I haven't given my all. So I let go of my nets and set out to work. I got back out there. I gave it my all.

 

 Wednesday night we found 2 people to teach. They went to church yesterday. Thursday afternoon we found another, then Thursday night another. Friday night around 9:30 we found another. The average is 1 a week. We showed God we cared, and miracles fell from Heaven. 5 miracles. On top of that, my companion fasted for 24 hours, and me for 38. We received divine assistance during that fast. We are determined to double our numbers. My faith, my testimony have never felt this solid and strong in my life. I testify to each of you that God lives. That Jesus Christ lives. That this IS Their true church, and it IS being led by a prophet of God. I know that with all my heart. 

 

I also wanted to leave y'all with a spiritual thought that I feel is needed for some of you. I want to speak of difficulty. Of hard times and trials. Of falling down. I wanted to share a story of Hugh B Brown. When he was young he was on a farm in Canada, as the acting gardener. He found a currant bush that was 6 feet tall, and had no fruit or anything. In a talk by a man named Hyrum Smith, he recounts President Brown's story as follows; 

 

"And so he had some shears with him and so he got off his horse and he walked over to the bush and he cut it off at the ground. Cleared all the bush away. Now there’s about 3 little roots poking through the dirt. And he said you know, and as he told this story he said as I was about to get back on my horse I looked at the roots and I imagined I saw a tear on each root. And he said in my simplicity I knelt down and I said, “little currant bush – why are you crying?” And he said “you know I imagined I heard the currant bush answer back.” And the currant bush said “I thought you were the gardener here. I was almost as high as the apple trees, I was becoming a beautiful bush, you cut me down, why have you done this to me? I thought you were the gardener here.” And he said “you know I answered back” and he said “I am the gardener here. And I know what’s best for you. And some day when you’re laden down with fruit, you’ll thank me for loving you enough to hurt you.” Well then he got back on his horse, rode away, forgot about the currant bush. Later in his life he became a military person, he was a career military officer. The first world war, he’s in Europe. He’s in London, he’d just come back from the continent, he is a full colonel. He wanted to be a general, more than he’d wanted to do anything in his life. He’d prepared for it, he had done everything to prove himself worthy of being a general. There was one general slot open in his regiment. There were 2 people vying for that slot. Brown and a friend of his. As fate would have it, his friend was seriously wounded on the continent, had to be returned to Canada. He wasn’t happy about his friend being hurt, but know he knew. I’m going to be a general. Boy he was excited. He went back and got his uniform ready because he knew he’d be summoned to get his promotion. Sure enough, a runner came, gave him his telegram, report to the commanding general of regiment in London immediately. He was excited. Got his uniform on, got on the train, rode up to London. Came up to the door of the general’s office. The man said come in, he walked in and he saluted smartly, he said “Colonel Brown, reporting his order”. The man looked up and said “sit down, Brown.” Colonel Brown sat down. He said “Colonel brown, there isn’t a man in this regiment more qualified to be a general officer than you are. You’ve gone through all the requisite commanding general staff colleges, you’ve distinguished yourself as a marvelous leader in the battle field. No one is more qualified than you. But I can’t promote you.” As he said that, a phone rang in the next office, he said “would you excuse me a minute.” He got up and went back into the outer office. A visibly shaken Colonel Brown sat there and looked at the desk. On top of the desk were all of his personal papers. And on each one of those papers, stamped in large, block, red letters was the word Mormon. And he realized why he was not being promoted. The general came back into his office, and said “do you have any questions Colonel Brown?” “No sir.” He said “then you’re excused.” He said he stood up and then he saluted not quite so smartly. Went back out of the office, got on his train, and came back to where he was. He said as he listened to the rails against the wheels on the way back, he started getting angrier and angrier. When he got back to his continent, he kicked the door open, walked in, took his hat, threw it to the wall, and he stood there and he shook his fists at God, and he said “why have you cut me down? Why have you done this to me? I’ve done everything you’ve asked me to do. I’ve served a mission, I’ve done everything, I pay my tithing, I’m a leader in the branch, I’ve done everything. Why have you done this to me?” As he stood there, shaking his fists at God, he heard a voice. And the voice was his own voice. And the voice said “Little currant bush, I am the gardener here. And I know what’s best for you. And someday when you’re laden down with fruit, you’ll thank me for loving you enough to hurt you.” At that point he sank to his knees and he began to pray. He had a bad principle on his belief window. While he was praying, the issue was meeting in the next room. And they started to sing, I’ll Go Where You Want Me To Go, Dear Lord. Well Colonel Brown got out of the army. Wasn’t obviously his thing. Became a very successful businessman, later in his life, called to serve as a special witness for Christ, an apostle. And then served for many years as a counselor to a prophet in the 1st presidency. Colonel Brown’s now back with his father in heaven. Do you think the result of his behavior when he finally got things straight on the window, met his needs? I’d trade places with him in a minute. Now brothers and sisters I bear my witness to you, He is the gardener here, and He knows what’s best for you and He is standing at the citadel of this religion, this universe, begging us as sons and daughters of God, to link our self-worth to Him, and put on that belief window correct principles. Then He as well as you, can predict our behavior with real accuracy and the behavior will meet the needs, and then we experience peace, a peace that no-one can take away. And as the fiery darts of the adversary are slung, we’ll be able to cope with anything the world throws at us. I bear that witness to you and plead that you be that righteous generation in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen."

 

I know life pushes us down at times. We feel helpless. But He knows what He is doing. Life may seem stacked against you. It may be stacked against you in a very real sense. Nothing may be going your way. You may feel cut down. But He cuts us down so we can grow into things we never imagined. So don't quit. Don't give up when it gets hard. Get back up, trust the Lord. Go where He wants you to go. Do what He wants you to do. I testify that as you seek God's will in the hard times of your life, you will find Him. You will feel him. And you will feel peace. I am so grateful for my trials. They have blessed my life. They have given me so much strength. I am so grateful for my failures and my shortcomings. I am grateful for my faults. Because every time I choose to work on the fault the Lord wants me to focus on, I grow. Everytime I quit whining and get to work, I feel satisfaction in my work. I feel joy in my divine nature. We are children of the Most High God. We have a potential that outranks cities, civilizations, and even worlds. We have the potential to create worlds without end in the end. So pick yourself up and try again. And again. And again. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. 

-Elder Trezise