The Language Of Faith

Other than zone conference this week, we spent a lot of time with Hou.  I memorized the baptismal prayer in Mandarin and passed it off to him, and Elder Uhlig almost has it, too. With Brother Clayton, we have been firing on all cylinders. I am pretty sure he'll be baptized, he is excited about everything. We are just trying to help him kick smoking (as of yesterday) and then he'll be good. Pray for him.

The others are all maybes. Stefan is up in the air cause he hasn't been coming to church cause of his work Saturday nights late, but his testimony is pretty solid. He'll be baptized this summer for sure.  Milos is getting there, he's just been hard to meet up with because of exams and the like, but he came to church this week. He is a little nervous about what his family will think, and he wants them to know before he is baptized.  And Safet is still sitting on the fence. So, we may finalize this whole thing with a man from China. Fitting, huh? From Africa to China, with some Serbian in between.

We also had Branch conference this week, and with Pres and Sister Grant and their daughter, the AP's, us 6, and 4 of our investigators and 2 members (Srdjan and Semir from Sarajevo) we had 17 in church. That was a good record to see set.

The only insight I have for sharing this week is just for chew. If we continue to consider Mosiah 16:6 as the definition of the Language of Faith, and keep in mind all of our definitions of immortality and time and past, present and future, and then add the following definition:

"Truth is a knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come" from D&C 93:24, then we could safely say that to speak truth is to speak of a knowledge of things as they were, are, and will be. And, according to Mosiah 16, Moses 7(?) and countless other references, to speak like that is to speak by faith, or the language of faith, and since faith is knowledge based, that equals out.  And since it is Christ, Mosiah says, that speaks this language, speaking of things to come as though they were present, and by virtue of His immortality and God-status, He truly can say "I am the truth." 

And (we) shall know the Truth, and the Truth shall make (us) free.

So truth is a knowledge of the things Christ spoke of and the way He spoke them, and in always speaking this truth/faith, when asked "What is truth?" by Pilate, the real question was "Who are you?"

He is Truth.  Indeed, He was the all-creating Word of truth.  And to have faith on Him is to speak and act as though the promises He has already promised us are in effect--even abiding by a celestial law while still living in our fallen world, to accept a remission of our sins whose full effect is still a further day off.  To live by this "language of faith" is to learn of and live by the Truth.

A bit circular, but I am tired and need more time to make it clear. But you get the picture? Those were my thoughts this week. 

Next week we are going to go see Sveti, Stefan, and Dubrovnik, so if I have a second I will shoot off an email to you that evening.  

Coupling the lows that have come hand in hand with the peaks, I am eternally grateful for my mission.  There is nothing I would trade this experience for.  To truly know the highest joys side by side with some of the lowest lows is the only way we learn and grow in this life, Lehi tells us.  This opposition has been the training ground that I needed--personally tailored to me in a way I doubt I'll ever be able to explain fully.  I'll never forget it.  I am excited to close this chapter strong and open a new one.  Thank you for riding this experience with me, and for helping me see it through to the end--on more than one occasion.  Here I have come to know my Savior.

Love you all,

Elder Hixon