Sorry I didn't have something to post last week! As I have mentioned before, p day is often the busiest day of the week and last week got extremely busy. The last few weeks have been really busy for us as well with lots of meetings and travel. Over the past two weeks we have had MLC in London, Zone Meeting, and Zone Conference combined with Norwich zone in Ipswich.
One of our tasks around the time of a zone training meeting is to think of and give a training for the zone that addresses some need of the zone. We wanted to give a training with a desired outcome that is to help our missionaries understand the importance of having the right motive for missionary work. We had been trying to think of a scriptural example of how we always get the reward of our effort put in. Instead of that, I thought of another analogy to explain the concept involving tractors.
A tractor is a very useful piece of farm equipment. It can perform many tasks and there are loads of attachments that can be attached to the back to make it even more useful. One can attach plows, harvesters, lawn mowers, etc... Another use could be for fun in an event called a tractor pull. In this case, a mechanical sled is attached that proportionally increases resistance with the distance the tractor has gone. A tractor pull is a show of how much traction and torque a tractor might have and is done competitively. (By now all the missionaries in the room from Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, etc... are all completely hooked) whatever attachment you attach to the tractor, you always reap that reward. If you enter a tractor pull, you've burnt a lot of diesel and towed a sled through the dirt, and all you got in the end was a trophy and some bragging rites. If you attach a plow or harvester, you might still use up a lot of diesel plowing or harvesting a field, but the reward is much different. In this case, there is no glamour or trophy at the end, but you can provide food for thousands and do a lot of good. The reward is dependant on what the tractors purpose is at that time and what tool is attached.
In this analogy, we are the tractor. The attachment on the tractor is our intent and purpose. If our purpose is to go out and work to get attention, that is what we will get. If our intent is to go out and do good and fulfil our true purpose, then that is what we will get. Both require lots of effort and work just like both scenarios with the tractors burned a lot of diesel. This principle of reaping the reward of our real intent was taught by Christ in three different ways in the Sermon on the Mount including giving alms (quoted here), praying, and fasting:
"1 Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.
2 Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
3 But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:
4 That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly."
Matthew 6:1-4
This analogy applies to life in general. We will always get the result of what we put in.
Now for a funny story. All week we noticed that the church was abnormally cold. The central heating for the church is off of a giant boiler that heats up radiators through out the church, like most buildings and homes in the U.K. Since we have a key to the boiler room I went to take a look. I noticed the water pumps were not turning on but I don't have any tools to look further into the problem, so we just left it. Come Sunday, there still was no heating and the temperature outside was 2 C, and just barely as warm inside. So the leaders of the congregation decided to shorten the services that day, and we ended up only having church for about 20 minutes to just have the Sacrament. That was the shortest church service I've ever been to and everyone was huddled up in coats and blankets for those 20 minutes.
This is already the last week of the transfer! We have a few exchanges and one of them will be an old exchange so I can go to Braintree for a day to go see old friends and people I used to teach. Also, two years ago today I got my mission call, and tomorrow will be two years since I knew I was coming to the England London Mission.
Cheers!
Elder Spencer Ammermon
England London Mission
64-68 Princes Gate, Exhibition Road
South Kensington
London
England SW7 2PA
Our zone and Norwich zone together for zone conference
We got an authentic German Krakauer sausage today