This is why I'm here

When I was just a boy, I always sang in primary, ''I hope they call me on a mission''. I would always sing that song with a grin on my 8 year old face and think about serving a mission. I couldn't wait to grow a foot or two and help make people's lives better! I would learn how to memorize scriptures, say my prayers, be nice to others, forgive, repent, and many other things. I heard so many great stories from my Dad and other family members about how great a mission is, and although not everyone would want to listen to them, they were still loved by God.

As the years went by, I started to taste more of the outside world and how bitter people can be, but that didn't stop me from wanting to make friends and help others feel loved. My testimony became rebuffed with new obstacles facing me. Sometimes I would succeed on the spot and sometimes I would have to battle with that obstacle. I made new friendships as a youth and I had to let some friends go. I was becoming.

As I looked inside a dark mailbox for the thousandth time to see if it had actually come, my mission call laid inside. I shouted for joy and punched the air. God had finally called me on a mission! I opened my mission call and was so happy to see that I would serve in a place where people needed the gospel. I knew that it ''probably'' wasn't going to be easy, but it was so exciting in the moment of my mission call opening that I didn't really want to think about the negatives.

I hugged my mother and family for the last time as I entered the MTC. This would be the last time I would see them for a long time, but I had grown a foot or two, and I was ready! I received my shiny new nametag and met my first companion. He was going to be my partner in learning at the MTC. Learning the language wasn't as easy as I thought it would be, and I missed my mom's cooking. Where were the video games? Where did the awesome music go? I learned that sacrificing things for the lord would bring me great blessings.

As I started off the plane both in my reassignment mission and in my assigned mission, I felt the love of my Mission president and his wife and the full heat of Texas and Africa wash over me like a tsunami. I met my new companion a couple of days later. As we taught people, I started to ask myself, ''Have I really grown a foot or two? Am I really ready?'' I didn't understand sometimes what people wanted to say to me, and some people wanted to hurt me. Some people didn't want to learn and some people weren't that serious. I sweated all the time and mosquitoes and bedbugs and fleas and worms and cockroaches and mice and rats became my acquaintances.

After a while, I didn't feel like I had really grown that much, and that I wasn't really ready. All of a sudden, I didn't feel like preaching anymore or serving a whole lot. I didn't want to do it anymore! Why was this so hard? Why couldn't it go easier? I didn't like living in a 3rd world circumstance. The culture was too weird. No one seems to care about me. Why am I here?

It wouldn't work anymore to say that I was serving to impress my family or close friends or cute girls. It wouldn't work to say that I did it because my Dad did and it seemed cool. None of that was going to work anymore. Why was I here?

I loved people. I wanted them to be happy, but how could they be happy if I wasn't? Then I remembered to start being more like Jesus. I needed to forget myself and get to work. So, I did. I realized how similar the people around me and I were. I realized that the Savior died for them, too, and that they needed me here right now right here just like this. Jesus and Heavenly Father loved me and wanted me to be happy. They knew that if they put me here, they could show their love through me to those that need love. 

As soon as I realized that I was here for that reason, I didn't care about luxury anymore. I stopped worrying about the world a lot more and more about the salvation of others. I started focusing on my calling. Why am I here? Because I need to be here. There is nothing that I could be doing right now that is more important than what I'm doing.

I love this gospel and I know that this mission has been light years away from easy, but it's worth it in the end! God knows what he's doing. I trust him, in life or death. Nothing will strip that from me. I have a testimony that God lives and he knows all of us so perfectly and intricately than our feeble minds can discern. I know that's true!

I love you all,

Elder Johnson

Did you think to pray?

Hello everyone!

It's been a great week; We have another cyclone coming in sometime this week, so that means I'll have lots of storm braving and tie wringing out to do, but nothing's impossible in the work of the Lord! There aren't a whole lot of rice patties here in my area, but there are some occasions when we go to service and we have to walk through a couple to get to our destination. I remember sometime ago back in my first area, I was running in a fairly aggressive rainstorm with my trainer and a member to get to a referral He had given to us. Of all places to be during a rainstorm, I was running on the middle path of a rice patty. It didn't provide a whole lot of shelter for me, as you could guess. Coming down a particular part on the path, my right shoe slipped under me on a wet rock and I tumbled down to the ground. About 50 yards away was a group of friends that watched me haul it down the path and eat rice, so amidst the rain and thunder, I could hear 12-17 year old young men laughing. I shrugged the laughter off and wiped the mud off my pants and kept running, and eventually got to our appointment. I remember that as I gave the opening prayer to that lesson, I gave thanks that we were able to make it safely and to teach these people. Later on, I baptised one of the women we taught there.

Reflecting on that experience has given me a good lesson to learn on prayer and faith. Had we not prayed before we left our house, or had I not prayed for safety that morning, I could have slipped another way and snapped my neck on the cobblestone as I fell, or I could have been seriously injured in another fashion. What would've happened? Who knows.

 

I just know that prayer is the ultimate guide for anything, the best comfort caller, and the best way to communicate with our maker. Jesus said, ''Pray, lest ye enter into temptation; for the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.'' this week, we walked into another lesson. As we knocked on the door, the women we were going to teach came to her window. We could tell something was wrong. Her hair was in a messy bun, her eye sockets could be seen more easily, and she had bags under her eyes. She told us that next time would be better, but almost out of instinct I asked her if we could help in any way, she paused and looked at us for a second or two and started to cry. Almost as if she had been waiting for someone to come and save her, she told us she needed help and told us to come in. As we came in, I covered my mouth in shock as I surveyed the scene before me. The house was in perfect order, but her coffee table had drops of blood on it. After she showed us her hands and arms, I could tell that the blood was hers. She had been crying because her now ex-husband had abused her. After a long time of crying in the night, she decided to pray. she prayed with the bible in her hands and pleaded for some words of comfort to come to her. She opened the bible and read about how God loves his children. As a spiritual thought, I shared Jacob 3 and 4. She seemed to take comfort from that. 

It broke my heart to see that she now had an entire family to care for, but I could also tell that because she relied on the Lord's help, she was confident about her future. Her faith is strong, especially in her prayers. Personally, I try to pray more than 5 times a day to help myself receive personal revelation. I am so grateful for the power of prayer and for how many times unseen angels had prepared a way for me to accomplish the work of the Lord.

I hope that everyone has a great week. Love you all,

Elder Johnson

Wondering about what's in that water? Good question! I didn't really know, either, so I just drank it XD

 David still loves the night sky!

 This is the entrance to the church.  

 A very rich man, with multiple wives, lives in this beautiful home.  A while back, a few missionaries knocked on his door and asked him what he did for a living, but he wouldn't tell them.  

 This is something David created.

 Malagasy children love their picture taken

 On Pdays David and his companion serve at local rock quarry.  They are helping make gravel for cement. David says this is very hard work.

 David didn't even know this woman, but she asked to have her picture taken.

Adversity

This week has been amazing! We had 7 investigators (instead of the normal 1) come to church yesterday! It was so amazing to see all of those bright faces and to see the enlightening effect of the Light of Christ chase the darkness from their countenances. 

As the famous scripture goes, ''There must needs be an opposition in all things''. I am aware that you all know the reason to that. No opposition equals no growth. No struggle for rebuffed muscles equals no good looking muscles. No tears equals no laughter. No homework equals no passing grade. The top of the mountain would be nothing without the frigid depths of the ocean. The law would pass away without opposition, and all things would vanish away. I recently have been listening to a talk by James B. Faust about irony being the crust on the bread of adversity, and He very eloquently explains how adversity works. For me personally, one of the hardest things to do is to ignore the mocking voices of the great and spacious building. Madagascar has been relentless with derogatory slurs, name calling, pride brandishing, and so forth. You would think even though people here don't have a lot of money they would still be nice! Nevertheless, people can still be vicious.  But, what have I learned after these things? I have learned to love them! And when they show no mercy, I stand tall and press forward. A Malagasy favorite word to use is Vazaha which can be irritating to hear every day. They like to use other words with that, too, that I won't mention. But, Jesus would never fight back. Being the real champion, He keeps his hope and love laser focused on positivity and love for his fellow men...yes, even those roman soldiers who nailed him to a wooden cross. 

We all must have asked this one question: Why does God allow bad things to happen? Why did our eternal protector allow men to ruthlessly gun innocent people? Why does He allow any of those things to happen? Why doesn't He just strike the wicked with lightning and blow their ashes to and fro? We can receive our answer  though the knowledge that we, one day, agreed to follow Jesus Christ and, because of that, receive the hardships that accompany it.

God knows what He is doing. He knows each of you personally, in and out, up and down, better than you could ever know yourself now. He knows your wants and your needs. He wants the very best for you, but you have to do all of your parts. Jesus Christ is not far. He is in all things, through all things, around all things. He is the God that created all things from beginning to end, from the first to the last!  You best know that if He can be in more than 1 place at a time, He would never choose a greater side to be on than on yours. Draw near unto him, and He will draw near unto you, and when you get close to him, stay close. When you knock, keep knocking. When you ask, ask more.

Zanahary anie hitahy anareo mandrakizay (may God bless you forever),

Elder Johnson

All of those little peices of paper were vocab words in malagasy I was memorizing

Your personal Urim and Thummim

David Johnson	5:52 AM (6 hours ago)
to anniefederer17, Austin, amber.johnson8, Keyarra, Tifani, Kandy, Britton, Brianna, cheron, daysaregreat, enoch, Elizabeth, Eric, eljefe2001, Ethan, Lyndsey, fam_walker, me, Joseph, Marc, kaylee, kkj608, Kenny, Luke, lubenjo, linnaea, mrs.walker, peaceartnscuba, Phillip, patrick.kestner, John, wjohnso4

Imagine standing in the middle of the desert, located somewhat near Egypt. It is pitch dark, with no cities to be found within hundreds of miles. God has commanded you to go there. He has also commanded you to take the spectacles in your hands and look into the night sky. You do so. Through the spectacles, you see things unspeakable, with the most remarkable thing being a marvellous group of massive stars. God calls the biggest one ''Kolob'', because it is the nearest unto him. Kolob, you learn, governs all things according to it's order, which means it governs all planetary bodies. You also learn about your divine destiny, about space and stars, and God's plan for mankind.

Now imagine standing in a large palace. You are wearing a crown and people are under your command. A large record-that is, 24 records-made of pure gold are presented to you and are asked to translate it. Upon further inspection of the records, you find that they are written in a strange language you have never seen in your life. Nevertheless, having been commanded of God as usual, you put on the spectacles in your hands, and find that the bizarre engravings now are in the language you speak every day. The strange language now revealed provides a story of a people who crossed the ocean and because of great wickedness they destroyed themselves. Because of this, you are grieved. However, you rejoice that the records were able to be translated.

Those spectacles that Abraham and King Mosiah used to behold Kolob and Translate the Jaredite plates are known as the Urim and Thummim.

 What exactly does Urim and Thummim mean, Elder Johnson? Does it look like I speak Hebrew?

Answer: Lights and Perfections. Think about this. When Abraham put on the Urim and Thummim, He saw things hidden from man, hence the ''Lights'' that revealed a great mystery of God. As He came to learn of His divine origin and destiny, however, He didn't just receive any ordinary type of knowledge afterwards, but His knowledge of some things had indeed been ''perfected''. For example, Abraham may have felt inadequate about being a father of many nations, but as God the Father said to him, ''Thou wast chosen before thou was born''. It seems to me that Abraham could not have felt any more like a Father ready to receive a nation as His children after that.

Of course, King Mosiah's knowledge about the land marred with bones and rusted swords couldn't have exceeded that of an estimated guess, but the mystery was revealed about this nation's history and even additional and consequential doctrine found in Mosiah and Ether resulted in the perfection of knowledge of the millions of people who have ever read those words fervently and prayerfully when that faithful king put those spectacles on and read those records.

That is God's pattern. He sheds light forth and then He helps us to know what we need to do in order to be perfected. He has given us our personal Urim and Thummim. The Holy Ghost.

A couple weeks ago, My companion and I were tracting, but feeling a little discouraged, we decided to pray for guidance. About this time, it was raining in the distance. But, after I looked around for some ideas, I saw a ray of sunshine from miles away beam through clouds and rest upon a larger house just in walking distance. It was indeed an answer to our prayers.

And to me, all of you are an answer to my prayers. Thank you so much for all that you do for me. I am grateful to be serving here in Madagascar for another 5 months until I say goodbye to Madagascar on July 1st, 2020 as I enter the plane to go home.

I look forward to seeing you all again and I am wishing lots of luck and love!  God bless you all,

Elder Johnson

The large white building is the church building where I shook Gary E. Stevenson's hand and where I played the piano streaming live all over Madagascar and 2 other islands.