The Harvester
OHIO COLUMBUS MISSION
May 2012
WWJD
President and Sister Nilsen
Many years ago when Jack and Wills were about three and seven years old, we were in the car taking Wills to soccer. Jack was strapped into his car seat with Wills next to him and he was sporting his favorite cowboy boots, black and red with really pointy toes. He was having a good old time with them, kicking the driver’s seat, swinging his legs, making himself a general nuisance. Once I got him to stop kicking my chair he started trying to swing his legs over to get his brother. Finally, in frustration, Wills leaned down to stop Jack’s feet and Jack swung up and kicked Wills really hard – pointy boot to the forehead! Of course, crying ensued. Once I got Wills settled, I tried to help Jack understand that his actions were wrong. In a conversation with a three year old that didn’t go anywhere, I said all of the following and then some:
"That wasn’t very nice, how would you like it if Wills did that to you?"
"Jack, you should love your brother."
"Why would you do that? He didn’t do anything to hurt you?!"
"You aren’t supposed to kick people, that was wrong."
And finally, the coup de grace, "Jack, what would Jesus do?"
He just looked at me with a big smile and said, "Mama, I’m not Jesus."
Amen to that! He was not Jesus, still isn’t and won’t be. None of us are but what we can be is more like Him. In Alma 5: 14 – 19, we read, "Have ye been spiritually born of God? Have ye received His image in your countenances? Have ye experienced this mighty change in your hearts? Do ye exercise faith in the redemption of him who created you? Can you imagine to yourselves that ye hear the voice of the Lord saying unto you, in that day: Come unto me ye blessed, for behold, your works have been the works of righteousness. I say unto you, can ye look up at God at that day with a pure heart and clean hands?
As children, our understanding of gospel principles is limited but as we study and grow, we increase in our awareness and abilities to choose and to be accountable. The sixth of the Ten Commandments is "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor." In this commandment is included, "Thou shalt not gossip against thy neighbor." In the Doctrine and Covenants 42:27, the Lord further defines this commandment, "Thou shalt not speak evil of thy neighbor nor do him any harm." We focus on this today because it has come to our attention that, sadly, we have had some missionaries who have spoken evil of their neighbors including those in leadership positions. The best advice we can give echoes President Uchdorf’s conference message: Stop it!
Part of becoming an adult includes the responsibility of taking your issues directly to the offender, this spares everyone else the discomfort of hearing your gossip. The adage "One bad apple spoils the whole bunch" is true. Evil speaking of others is like a mold that makes its way around the whole group until all are infected. Especially wrong is evil speaking of those in positions of leadership and service. Additionally, you are equally guilty if you listen to the gossip and don’t stop it; your tolerance for evil speaking makes you an accomplice. It is best to simply say, "I think you should speak directly to him (or her) about that." In Doctrine and Covenants 88:124, & 136:24, the Lord says "Cease to be idle; cease to be unclean; cease to find fault one with another…and let your words tend to edifying one another." Build up your companions and leaders; you have much in common, the gospel of Jesus Christ, the mission experience, your investigators and more. Let us oft speak kind words to each other and always remember, What would Jesus do?
APRIL 2012 HARVEST Converts Taught By
Barnes, Gay Elders Ogden, Christensen, &
Taukalau
Bennington, Siara Elders Riggs, Breshears, Elder &
Sister Larsen
Bonsu, Emmanuel Elders Harris & Stewart Bryant, Mildred Elders Harris, Stewart, Bushman
Essiam, Augustus Elders Harris & Stewart
Essiam, Georgina Elders Harris & Stewart
Dodd, Haylee Elders Holgreen & Chisholm
Dressel, Brian Walker Elders Beck, Bowden, M. Brown, Rasmussen, Iverson & Redford
Eckstein, Amber Elders Hepworth & McClellan
Estabrook, Conner Elders Martin, Larsen & Patterson
Fordjour, Sam Elders Harris & Stewart
Ginsberg, Cory James Elders Richardson & Prettyman
Lainhart, Jessie Elders Riggs, Breshears,Elder &
Sister Larsen
McKnight, Chris Elders Hombs & Sanders
Mills, Vicki Elders Larsen, Allen &Vakalahi
Pazin, Matthew Elders Muir, Hawkins,
Robbins, & Christensen
Presley, Brooklyn Elders Riggs, Breshears, Elder &
Sister Larsen
Presley, Emily Elders, Rigga, Breshears, Elder
& Sister Larsen
Presley, Rebecca Elders, Riggs, Breshears, Elder
& Sister Larsen
Reeves, Cortez Kyo Elders Collett & Turner
Reyes, Tania Elders Hemmert, Peters, &
Brother Wimmer Roberts, Carolyn Sue Elders Platte & Williamson
Vaughn, Brooklyn Elders Daw, Peterson, & Reynolds
Wade, Dinah Sisters Gibson & Kay
Wood, Liz Elder & Sister Olson
Wood, Michael Elder & Sister Olson Note: Baptisms are not listed here until the paperwork is
received in the office. Thus some March baptisms
actually are listed here in April, and some April
baptisms will be published on the May list.
REMEMBER the OHIO COLUMBUS MISSION STANDARDS OF EXCELLENCE
Areas of Focus
1. We are 100% obedient all the time.
2. We are ALWAYS FINDING.
3. We SERVE the members and EARN their
referrals.
4. We INVITE all new investigators during the first lesson to be baptized, read the Book of
Mormon, and attend church. (We strongly
encourage informal chapel tours.)
5. We ACHIEVE our goals through faith, prayer, fasting and exceptionally hard and smart work.
Weekly Companionship Goals
1. We have 80% + "member present" for lessons after the first discussion.
2. We find 2 or more new investigators each week. We always have 15-20 part-member or less-active families/individuals we are serving.
3. We teach 20 lessons a week.
4. We complete one short service project per week, preferably serving our Bishops and Ward Mission Leaders. We build trust and earn their referrals.
5. We achieve all of our morning schedules — 100% per week — the foundation of our day.
Monthly Companionship Goal Baptize one person or family every month!
| Baptized & Confirmed— by Zone (as of 3/31/12) | |||
| Zone | Feb | Mar | Apr |
| Cincinnati | 6 | 3 | 0 |
| Cincinnati -East | 1 | 13 | 3 |
| Cincinnati North | 2 | 2 | 7 |
| Columbus | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| Columbus East | 5 | 4 | 3 |
| Columbus North | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Columbus South | 6 | 4 | 1 |
| Dayton | 5 | 1 | 2 |
| Dayton East | 5 | 10 | 1 |
| Totals | 35 | 41 | 26 |
Elder Luna y Elder J
MIND YOUR MANNERS
Just a reminder that you are a representative of Jesus Christ and as such should look your best at all times!!
This includes the following:
1. Shower daily and use deodorant!
2. Brush your teeth at least twice per day and don’t
forget to FLOSS!
3. Wash your hands often and keep your fingernails
clean and neatly trimmed!
4. Keep your shirts sparkling white—collars and cuffs may need to be scrubbed by hand—OxiClean or other liquid detergent and/or stain remover may help! (Shirts with frayed collars and/or cuffs should not be worn in public.)
5. Iron your shirts as necessary to always maintain a neat and sharp appearance! (To save ironing hours, shake out the shirts and put them in the dryer as soon as washing cycle is complete. Also hang them up im-mediately after the drying cycle ends. )
6 Remember that the tip of your tie should be at the top of your belt and the knot should be kept small.
7. Keep your shoes polished! Also note that the color of your socks should match your suit!
8. Make sure your suit pants are kept clean, neatly pressed, and in good repair. Check for worn out knees and mend any holes, especially around the pockets.
9. Dry clean your suit as needed. While dry clean-ing is expensive ($8-$12 per suit), suits need to be properly cleaned and cared for. Shop around for a reputable cleaners and special discounts. Also con-sider that the pants may need to be cleaned more often than the jacket.
Rule of Thumb: If you were tracting with the Lord, would you feel presentable?
Departing Testimonies:Brothers & Sisters,
My testimony of the Savior has come through my experi-ence of the transforming effects of His Atonement. The Savior has allowed me to strengthen my knowledge of His power through my trials (3 Nephi 24: 1-2) (Alma 5:19). I am convinced that He has carried my burdens. He is the light of my life who has freely gone through everything for me. I will go through anything for Him today. I have seen him snatch His children from the everlasting torment of sin and heal them. (Mosiah 27;28;3 Nephi 9:13). The redemp-tive power of Christ is the message of this work. The Savior called Joseph Smith and we have the Book of Mormon. This Priesthood is restored along with the fullness of His Gospel. It is true, this is the Savior’s Church. In the Name of Jesus Christ, Amen...Elder Cannon
Elders and Sisters of The Great Ohio, We want you to know how much we have loved serving with you in this most wonderful of missions! Many of you know this was our second mission, and in many ways it could not have been more different from our first (in Ecua-dor). Conversely, in the most important ways it was the same: equally inspiring leadership, equally wonderful young men and women who have given their lives to the Lord for 18 months or 2 years, equally terrific members who support the missionary work with all their hearts. (In fact, we have never seen such great member support for the mis-sionary work, either at home in California or in South America. The members in Ohio are amazing.)
We have loved serving you, knowing you, and being blessed by your spirit and your testimonies. There is noth-ing on earth we would rather do and nowhere else we would rather be than serving as missionaries in the Lord’s vine-yard. The gospel is true – and it IS the Lord’s plan of happi-ness. We testify with you that the
Love, Elder and Sister Harrison
New Arrivals, April 25, 2012!
Elder Jacob Beverley, Elder Leon Castro, Elder Jonathan Hein,, Elder Jay Herzog Elder Taylor Loosli, Elder Jeffrey McMichael, Sister Annie Webb
Senior Couples Arriving in April:Elder & Sister Hammarstrom
Jackson The Hammarstrom’s are from Kaysville, Utah and arrived in the Mission on April 17th. They were both widowed a few years ago and married each other in January, 2010. Be-tween them they have twelve children, 46 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. They are happy to be here, LOVE the Jackson branch, and look forward to serving!
Elder and Sister Bass
Oxford Elder and Sister Bass are from Lake Forest, California.
Elder Bass is a retired Chief Financial Office and Sister Bass, as a homemaker, is NOT retired. They are the par-ents of five children and have four grandsons. One of their sons is getting married in June and their youngest son is a student at BYU. Elder Bass has a Bachelor’s degree from USC and a Master’s from BYU-Provo. Sis-ter Bass likes to read, sew, and do calligraphy. Previ-ously, they served as Temple Ordinance workers.
Elder & Sister Dugger
Crittenden The Dugger’s have served three previous missions to the Palmyra Temple. They reside in Mesa, AZ and also served as missionaries there for two years at the Church Employment Center. They will be here for six months and LOVE Kentucky! The Duggers have 5 children and 20 grandchildren. One grandson is currently also serving a mission.
Elder & Sister Young
Zanesville Elder and Sister Young
are from Melba, Idaho. (2010 Census of 513.)
They have been in the cattle business all of their lives and Elder Young loves to ride horses and work the cattle. They are the parents of eleven children and have twenty-five grandchildren. Sister Young likes to sew, cook, and clean. (maybe we should make her the missionary apartment inspector ?) She also LOVES to play with her grandchildren! The Youngs have been involved in church service throughout their lives mostly with the Youth and Primary programs.
The Sister’s Specialized Training was held April 19th at the Mission Home and focused on "Move Forward With Faith and be Bold! " Discussions and activities were led by President and Sister Nilsen and Elders Cannon and Robbins. We enjoyed being together and were uplifted by each other and the presented messages! Lunch was also great treat...Thanks Sister Nilsen!!
Book of Mormon is the word of God for these latter days, that Joseph Smith was and is the Prophet of the Restoration, that this IS the Church of Jesus Christ and that He stands at its head. We love the Lord, we love the gospel, and we love you. Take care and God bless!n, y fuera de algún modo adestruido, y los lamanitas no lo fueran, que el Señor Dios bpreservara una historia de mi pueblo, los ne-fitas, aun cuando fuera por el poder de su santo brazo, para que algún día futuro fuera cllevada a los lamanitas, para que tal vez fueran dconducidos a la salvación (Enos 1:13)" No es ese una promesa para las personas estamos ensenando? Tengan animo de que si nuestros investigadores lean el Libro de Mormón, lo mediten en su corazon el mensaje que contiene y luego pregunten a Dios si es verdadero, que "[empezará] a ser deliciosa para [ellos] (Alma 32:28.) En el nombre de Jesucristo, Amen ensen
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