The closer one gets to God, the more clearly appear his own imperfections; the greater is his desire to overcome his weaknesses and sins.

To illustrate this point, consider the psychological reaction to height. If a person flies to 10,000 feet, the distance to the groud is so great that there is little fear of height. But that same person can get on top of a hundred foot ladder and become greatly terrified. So it is with sin. As we narrow the gap between our lives and the perfection of our Father, the stark reality of the distance becomes more and more vivid as the distance becomes less.

Max B. Skousen
How To Pray and Stay Awake

I think in High School there were two things that led me to a lack of humility. First, I had parents that did all they could to provide an atmosphere in our home where I could grow and always feel the spirit. They made it easy to do what was right. Second, I had great youth leaders and teachers that constantly praised me for the life that I lived. I had great confidence. While on a mission I didn’t really have that. I must admit I was shocked at the conduct of some of the missionaries I saw in the field. But as time went on, it seemed I became the type of missionary I first detested.

Vice is a monster of so frightful mien
As to be hated needs but to be seen;
Yet seen too oft, familiar with her face,
We first endure, then pity, then embrace.

Alexander Pope’s “Essay on Man”

It seemed to me that without the strict rules of my parents to govern me, I wasn’t as strong. Could it be though that I was growing? Certainly I needed to leave the nest to grow. Was it possible, that as I grew closer to God and my Savior as a missionary that I became more painfully aware of my sins and imperfections?

[tags]Meek, Meekness, Humble, Humility, LDS Missionary[/tags]

I went to South Africa (Cape Town) on my mission. It is an English speaking mission. I bought a tape from the mission office that had some basic Afrikaans terms. Among them was a simple prayer. It was really simple. It was your basic “Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for our many blessings. We ask Thee to bless us with thy Spirit. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.”

On the a couple of occassions when Afrikaans families would ask me to say a prayer, I would use that prayer. Sometimes they I would add a few words in English, but that prayer was normally sufficient and the family would be surprised and delighted that I took the effort to learn to pray in Afrikaans.

One of my fondest memories was about 2 – 3 months into my mission. I baptized a 17 year old young Afrikaans speaking girl. The day of the baptism after a dinner appointment at a member’s home, the father of that house suggested I say the prayer in Afrikaans. He wrote it all down for me and I had about an hour to learn it beforehand.

I shocked everybody (except my companion and the witnesses) when I said the baptismal prayer in Afrikaans. I was sure nervous but I was told I sounded fluent the way I spoke it.

In case you’ve read my other post, this was Emily’s daughter that got baptized. This was another big part of your progression toward the waters of baptism. She was crying after the baptism and said she had never felt that good inside before.

Its somewhat funny because as a teenager I prayed that I would go somewhere foreign yet English speaking. (I really struggled in Spanish class). I have no regrets about where I went. I definitely wouldn’t change that. But sometimes I kind of feel like I missed out because I’m not fluent in another language. Yet I did pick up a lot more Afrikaans & Xhosa than I ever thought I would.

Now, to a mission experience. I had learned in MTC and Missionairy Training Manual that hymns were a great method of inviting the spirit. Some time within my first few months of my mission, were were visiting and investigator – Emily. She was visibly upset when we arrived. She had decided to be baptized but was not able to quit smoking. She said she wanted to give up and asked us not to come back anymore. We had dealt with previous episodes and went throught the usual routine of comforting here and giving her encouragement. This time, nothing we could say seemed to be of any use.

Feeling frustrated and exhausted and sat back on the couch. I thought for a moment, then said a quick prayer in my heart.

“Heavenly Father, I’ve said all I can think of. I don’t know what else to do now. Please help me know what to say or do.”

I then looked over at my scripture case which was sitting on the floor. I saw my mini hymnal sliding out of the front pocket. I picked it up and said another quick prayer.

“Okay Father, please let me know what song you would like us to sing.”

I just opened the hymn book and took the first song I saw: #140 Did You Think To Pray.

I nudged my companion who was ready to go blue in the face trying to pursuade Emily to let us continue to visit and teach her and to not give up on us or her baptismal goal. He turned and looked at me and I asked Emily if we could sing a hymn for her. Never before and never since have I had such a singing voice. My companion was an excellent singer. I was right in harmony with him the whole time.

Emily was in tears. She said it was exactly what she needed. Now I know that not all such stories have a happy ending, but Emily did quit smoking and I was able to baptize her before leaving that area. She was loved by all the missionaries that served in that area.