Thursday, September 5, 2013


Mission Letter 8-26-13

 

The Time is NOW!   The 8873 is now in our hands!

 

Dear Elders and Sister,

 

We have been blessed by the Lord with an incredible opportunity to rise up and be an example to the rest of the Lord’s servants.  There has been a great deal of trust and confidence given to us by the Lord, the First Presidency, the Quorum of the Twelve apostles and the missionary department.  We must do all we can to make this, the 8873 Digital Area Book a success.  It is up to us how they will decide to go forward to the rest of the world and we must succeed. 

 

Success means:

 

1.      Have confidence that the Lord will guide our actions in forging forth with modern technology to teach the Gospel of the Kingdom to all the world.

2.      Act in faith in all things.  Acting in faith requires two things:

a.       Complete obedience

b.      Relying on the Holy Ghost

3.      Using all the tools available to us to increase the number of contacts we make not only in our mission but all over the world.

4.      We must keep accurate records so that the correct analysis can be done and the correct actions can be implemented.

a.       Keep the Digital Area Book up to date at all times

b.      Complete all Key Indicators as required

c.       Keep track of all online activity

5.      As a teaching tool, we must remember that there are still many around us, here in Santa Rosa who await the Gospel.  We must not forget that we do all things according to the Lord’s will and time.

6.      We must always work together as two witnesses to the work of salvation.

 

I am so pleased with all of you for rising up and taking on this new frontier and way of doing this the work of Salvation.

 

I would like to share with you an excerpt of Elder Perry’s announcement on 23 June, 2013:

 

When I was a young missionary, we were able to speak with contacts on the street and knock on doors to share the gospel. The world has changed since that time. Now, many people are involved in the busyness of their lives. They hurry here and there, and they are often less willing to allow complete strangers to enter their homes, uninvited, to share a message of the restored gospel. Their main point of contact with others, even with close friends, is often via the Internet. The very nature of missionary work, therefore, must change if the Lord is to accomplish His work of gathering scattered Israel “from the four corners of the earth.”1 The missionaries are now authorized to use the Internet in their proselyting efforts.

During less-productive times of the day— chiefly in the mornings—missionaries will use computers in meetinghouses and other Church facilities to contact investigators and members, work with local priesthood leaders and missionary leaders, receive and contact referrals, follow up on commitments, confirm appointments, and teach principles from Preach My Gospel using mormon.org, Facebook, blogs, email, and text messages.

Access to the Internet by missionaries and the use of digital devices will be phased over the next several months and into next year. We will be in touch with you when it is time for your mission and area to use these tools. Of course, safety is paramount in this new frontier of missionary work. Mission presidents will monitor missionaries’ online work to help them remain safe in all they do.

One complaint we often receive from those who are interested in our church is that they build up the courage to stop by one of our buildings only to find it locked and empty. So, we have also decided to open our meetinghouses for guided tours. The missionaries will be at meetinghouses to greet interested individuals and guide them through our houses of worship, where they can be taught and invited in a place that rests under the strong influence of the Spirit.

As missionaries enter this new age where they will use computers in the work of the Lord, we invite the young and the old, the adults, the young adults, the youth, and the children everywhere to join with us in this exciting new work by becoming Facebook friends with the missionaries in your area on your own computers and sharing their gospel messages online, and by becoming involved in missionary work yourselves.”

We now have the devices – the very first mission in the entire world to use this incredible technological gift.  We must protect the work that we do for it is not ours.  We must move forward with faith as we face this new frontier of missionary work, in short, WE MUST SUCCEED.

This technological gift as all things was first created spiritually before it was inspired upon the minds of men and women.  It was given to us by the Lord and if we are unwise and use our free agency in an irresponsible manner, it will be taken from us.  We must prevent Satan from using us as his pawns to kill this work and the use of the 8873 so I ask that we do all things according to the wisdom of God and win the battle Satan rages against us.

Can we be the modern stripling warriors who tirelessly forge ahead always believing because “our mothers knew it”?  Yes, we can.

All my love,

President Alba

 

 

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