Chapter 68: Free to Act

"Therefore, cheer up your hearts, and remember that ye are free to act for yourselves—Wherefore, my beloved brethren, reconcile yourselves to the will of God, and not to the will of the devil and the flesh; and remember, after ye are reconciled unto God, that it is only in and through the grace of God that ye are saved." 2 Nephi 10:23-24 A week passes and now it is 2022. I can't believe how fast the time passes. I have completed what is known as my "black year," meaning my full calendar year which I spend as a missionary. I can say with confidence that I love being here and really enjoy serving as a missionary and representative of the Lord, Jesus Christ, here in Scotland and Ireland. In the position of Assistant, it seems that there hasn't really been a whole lot of time to do conventional proselyting, meaning that we just do missionary work in a different way than from what I'm used to. It's caused me to reflect a lot on my purpose and how I can remain effective while also fulfilling my assignment. How can I stand as a witness of Christ at all times and in all places when the time I spend is in front of whiteboards not teaching the gospel, when the places I am in are meetings and not street corners testifying of the Book of Mormon? I've had a lot of thoughts, and an experience I had the other day helped me to find what I feel is an answer. Before Elder Holbrook went home, we took him up Pratts Hill to fulfil the tradition and give him the opportunity to account to the Lord for his missionary service—it's a very special thing we do at the beginning and end of our missions. As we hiked, there were a lot of people around! As we made our descent in full proselyting clothes, looking somewhat out of place, I found myself walking with this man as my three companions recklessly raced ahead of me, being much more cautious and slow. I made a remark to the man apologizing for how I wasn't as fast as my friends. He laughed and we started talking. By the time we made it down the slope 5 minutes later, we were engaged in a discussion on religion and I invited Zain, who is a brand new university student here in Edinburgh, to meet with us to talk and learn more. We exchanged numbers and hopefully he will be wanting to learn more soon. From this experience, I learned that wherever we are, whatever we are doing, we simply have the freedom to act however we want to. Just because I haven't had time to go stand on a street corner doesn't mean I can't choose to try and talk to people about God in more normal ways. I especially love this principle heading into the new year. I've thought long and hard about my service as a missionary and how this year, my time will expire. There is simply so much to do, with so little time to do it, but I've set some goals to hopefully help me consecrate these remaining months to the Lord in helping me become the disciple I need to be. We are all free to choose, and because of this, as the prophet Jacob declares, we can "cheer up our hearts!" If we are one way, but desire to be another, then we can truly change as we more fully reconcile, or align ourselves with God's will, or his plan and purposes for us. He desires our growth, safety, and ultimate joy, and so by choosing to act in the ways he wants us to, we, through the grace of Jesus Christ, can offer our will in exchange for desired development. It is a miracle that I have seen on my mission and throughout my life. My testimony is that we can change and become more than we once were. If we deeply desire it, God can assist us in our progression. Choose today to change. Life is good. God is wise. Don't give up. Elder Childers

Elder Holbrooks goodbye to Brother Myles

Pictures from Pratts Hill

On the street waiting for kebabs with our car, Joe Smith