Email November 24, 2014

Email November 24, 2014 – Elder Kenneth Wm. Burton

New area!

Well... Serving in Randers certainly has a lot of ups and downs. Literally. I have never seen so many hills! Let alone biked up so many! I have come to love the concept of everything having an equal and opposite, biking down hill is amazing! A fjord goes down the middle of the city with the city built on the two steep hills going up either side of the fjord. A lot of fun, I don't think my legs have been this strong in over a year. I've had to get back into shape fast, I guess that's the disadvantage of a car area. 

We have a lot of potential here in Randers for growth. We have great members in the Branch who are willing and wanting to help with the hastening, and there are so many out in the city who have been prepared for the gospel long before I got here. Every single lesson that had been planned this week was canceled for one reason or another yet we were invited in quite a few times and had some great unplanned lessons while out finding.

Christ is hastening His work. People are being prepared for the gospel. "He that will have a cake out of the wheat must tarry the grinding." -Troilus. Are we a part of it? If we do all we can we will be led to those who are prepared. Every one of us is currently in contact with someone who is ready for the gospel. There are only 15 million of us in the world, God will put those who are ready in our path so that we can have an opportunity to us our agency to help them find the joys of the gospel. This does not necessarily mean go out trying to convert all of our friends. It doesn't mean every conversation we have needs to be about the restoration. But it does mean we need to live up to our beliefs. We need to make a habit of speaking our beliefs when they come up, even if its a simple response of "I went to church" when asked what we did over the weekend. Then we need to be well educated in the gospel so that we can clearly teach what we believe when asked. Should we not be the same type of people whether or not we are full time missionaries or Apostles? As Lawrence Corbridge said, "When all is removed and there you stand alone, who will you be?" Whether we are in school, on a mission, a Prophet, a plumber, a lawyer or a librarian, should we not all be striving to be as the carpenter Jesus Christ? We are all different and unique, yet we all have one incredible example to strive to be like. "Mind is the master power that molds and makes, and man is mind, and taking what he wills, brings fourth a thousand joys a thousand ills. He thinks in secret and it comes to pass, environment is but his looking glass." Our environment shouldn't matter, yes it can make life more difficult or more easy, but we should still be the same type of people. -That was an interesting tangent, from the hastening to our own potential. I guess they go hand in hand, Christ is not only hastening the preaching of the gospel but he is also hastening us, helping us to stay strong in a changing world.

I hope everyone is doing well back home! Things are great here! A lot of rain, we actually have seen the sun a few times this week! Oh and Happy Thanksgiving! And Happy Birthday Ike!

Meget Kærlighed!

Elder Ken Burton