weekly letter

02 Nov 2015

Dear Elders and Sisters

Several years ago, President Uchtdorf stated: "Pride is a switch that turns off priesthood power. Humility is a switch that turns it on." (November 2010, Ensign) As we strive to be meek and submissive instruments in the hands of our Father in Heaven who are motivated only by love for our Savior and by Christ-like love for our brothers and sisters, we need to be reminded, from time-to-time, that pride undermines meekness and consecration; and, as President Ezra Taft Benson taught, pride is the gateway to every other sin. 

I want to review briefly how pride manifests itself in missionary life and why it is one of the most effective tools in the hands of the adversary to dishearten, demoralize, deflate, distract, and defeat missionaries. I want you to carefully and honestly consider whether any of the following manifestations of pride might be preventing you from feeling as happy, grateful or close to the Spirit as you desire to be.

• Pride is always present whenever you compare yourself to any other missionary, in any way, including language abilities, assignments or positions, skills, pre-mission accomplishments, appearance, etc. 
• Pride is the foundation of any feelings of jealousy or envy you may have. 
• Pride is the reason for every conflict, contention or disunity between you and your companion. 
• Pride is always the reason for being offended by something someone has said or done. 
• Pride is the cause of every argument about who has the best idea. 
• Pride is always the reason for insisting on doing your own thing and not fully submitting your will to God. 
• Pride is the source of any resistance or irritation with respect to a missionary rule or guideline. 
• Pride can prevent you from forgiving yourself for past mistakes. 
• Pride will give you the desire to be acknowledged or recognized for your successes and accomplishments. 
• Pride can turn your mission into a stage on which you perform for honors, praise, or good impressions. 

Each item on the above list is evidence of the natural man proudly asserting his selfish, independent determination to do it his way or have it his way. Remember that pride is the switch that will turn your power off, while meekness and humility is the switch that will turn your power on. The Apostle Peter warned that "God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble." (1 Peter 5:51) Mormon emphasized that "none is acceptable before God, save the meek and lowly in heart." (Moroni 7:44) The Lord has consistently said that He chooses "the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty." (1 Corinthians 1:27) And the Lord does this to show that His hand is in His work, lest His servants "trust in the arm of flesh." (D&C 1:19) 

Elders and Sisters, the adversary is a master at using these manifestations of pride to undermine your ability to be a meek, consecrated missionary who is motivated by the pure love of Christ. Each of these manifestations of pride is a barrier to the companionship of the Holy Ghost. Consequently, as the prophets have taught, it is not possible to feel charity if we are lifted up in pride. 

The cure for pride is very simple. You must sincerely desire to lose yourself completely in missionary work. You must pray earnestly to be an instrument in the hands of the Lord and allow Him to use you and work through you. You cannot worry about how others judge or assess your performance. You cannot compare yourself, in any way, with others. 

We must follow the example of Alma who wished that he could perform missionary work as powerfully as an angel, whose voice would shake the earth, but then joyfully acknowledged and accepted his role as an instrument in the hands of God. Alma stated: "I do not glory of myself, but I glory in that which the Lord hath commanded me; yea, and this is my glory, that perhaps I may be an instrument in the hands of God to bring some soul to repentance; and this is my joy." (Alma 29:9) Be more like Alma and try not to be concerned about being a great performer in your own eyes or in the eyes of others. Follow Alma's example and say, "why should I desire more than to perform the work to which I have been called?" 

President Boyd K. Packer, as Alma did, made the following humble pledge to his Father in Heaven when he about your age. "I WENT BEFORE HIM AND SAID, 'I'M NOT NEUTRAL, AND YOU CAN DO WITH ME WHAT YOU WANT. IF YOU NEED MY VOTE, IT'S THERE. I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU DO WITH ME AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO TAKE ANYTHING FROM ME BECAUSE I GIVE IT TO YOU—EVERYTHING, ALL I OWN, ALL I AM.'"

Elders and Sisters, remember that every act of submission to the will of our Father in Heaven destroys the pride that accompanies the natural man. Pride does not go away by simply praying, pondering, planning and pushing it out of your life. Pride is destroyed by deliberate, conscious, determined acts of selflessness and submissiveness to the will of God. Here are some suggestions that will help you destroy pride as you forget yourself in the service of God and His children as a missionary:

1. Do not allow the natural man to have any input when you are deciding whether or not to keep any commandments or missionary rules or guidelines. The natural man should never have a seat at the table when you are determining your willingness to be more obedient. Your only response to anything the Lord has asked you to do should simply be, "YES, I WILL," with no opportunity for the natural man to express his opinions or feelings on the subject. 

2. Sincerely pray constantly to feel the same love your Father in Heaven has for your companion. Sincerely ask for and listen to your companion's ideas, suggestions and opinions. Seek sincerely to implement his or her ideas as long as they are consistent with Preach My Gospel. 

3. Sincerely pray for charity as a spiritual gift. 

4. Never take offense from things others do or say. Remember that being offended is entirely your choice. 

5. Always look for, discover, and then express gratitude and admiration to your companion for his or her qualities and accomplishments. Acknowledge and thank members for their service, prayers, talks, lessons and other things they do that in any way contribute to the success of the Lord's work.

6. Do your best to not seek acknowledgements, credit, or the approval of others. Quietly be content with the warm feeling of love you will feel from your Father in Heaven when you give an accounting to Him at the end of each day. Give credit to your Father in Heaven and others who have been instrumental for the successes you experience. 

7. Remember that you are here for a very short period of time to be an instrument in the hands of God. You were not called to serve in a difficult mission for 18 or 24 months with the goal of walking off the stage at the end of your mission, fluent in Russian and prepared to give an acceptance speech, grateful for the acknowledgements, praise and admiration of friends, family and ward or branch members. 

My dear Elders and Sisters, remember that "no one can assist in this work except he shall be humble and full of love." I pray that you will follow the example of our Savior and do all you can to love and serve others rather than worrying so much about how you are doing, whether you measure up to your own or others' expectations or how others might be judging you or your performance. We have no time to be preoccupied with ourselves. Please never compare where you are, who you are, or how you are performing with any other missionary. You are here to roll up your sleeves and simply go to work as an instrument in the hands of the Lord in whatever capacity the Lord desires to use you.

I testify that through your humble and submissive efforts every day to allow your Heavenly Father to use you as an instrument in His hands, great and marvelous things will be accomplished, most of which you will not know about until sometime in the future. Please have faith that despite your weaknesses, God will use you to accomplish great things. As Moses learned, "man is nothing" by himself but "with God all things are possible." 

I testify that the only thing your Father in Heaven desires to hear you say is, "YOU CAN DO WITH ME WHAT YOU WANT. IF YOU NEED MY VOTE, IT'S THERE. I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU DO WITH ME AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO TAKE ANYTHING FROM ME BECAUSE I GIVE IT TO YOU—EVERYTHING, ALL I OWN, ALL I AM."

I love each of you. I pray daily for your well-being, your happiness, and your success.

May God bless each of you with the righteous desires of your hearts,

President Christensen