TETHERED TO CHRIST
- Elder Denny Blodgett
- 1 day ago
- 6 min read
As these missionaries serve, they realize very quickly how important it is to rely upon the spirit and stay as close as possible to their Savior, Jesus Christ. They cannot do this work alone. I have also found that to be true…..even in the financial matters and flow of money I am involved in daily. One would not think that financial matters would involve promptings from the Spirit, but I have seen it in my life…..and certainly in the work I am doing here in Ghana. Promptings will come to me in the night as I lay in bed….. and they will come, even in the hour, that I need help. Those promptings come to help me figure out how to do things the best way….. and how to get the work done so that the missionaries do not have to worry about their money. I could share many, many experiences I have had where I have had divine intervention in helping me do what I have been called to do.
I love the scripture in the Book of Mormon, 2 Nephi 25:26…..”And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our [friends] may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins”. Jesus Christ should be the most important person in our lives…..if we so choose to let Him walk with us daily through our communication with Him and our desire to live the kind of life He would want us to live.
I was listening to a BYU-Idaho devotional that one of my kids shared with me this last week…..the speaker was Neihlee Muir…..and she shared some inspiring thoughts on staying “tethered to Jesus Christ”. She said, "One of the most dangerous jobs in construction is that of a structural steel ironworker. In the early 1930's, thousands of iron workers came to build the Empire State Building. It has an impressive height and it considered iconic because of the era in which it was built and the speed in which it was constructed...just a little over one year. Many walked very narrow steel beams, hundreds of feet in the air, with no modern safety harnesses, no guard rails, and minimal protective equipment. Unfortunately, lives were lost during the construction. It was work that required courage, balance, and absolute trust in the steel structure beneath them. Today ironworkers continue to walk narrow steel beams high above the ground, with great exposure to the elements and the constant movement from wind.....even an experienced ironworker faces the danger of a fall. For that reason, modern day ironworkers choose to walk those beams fully harnessed and securely tethered to the structure. However, a harness does not prevent a fall. It insures that a fall is not the end. When an ironworker falls, while tied off, the fall is arrested. All forward progress stops temporarily. The worker may climb back on to the iron or they may hang suspended in the air until a rescue plan is activated. Because of their decision to wear a harness and tether themselves to the iron, they will eventually make it back on to the narrow steel path and be able to continue forward with their work. In the iron-working world, falling while tied off, is not considered failure. It is considered a recoverable event. That principle teaches us something profound about discipleship. Staying tethered to Christ does not mean we won't fall.....it means a fall will not be the end".
Hopefully, we all have a desire to return to live with our Father in Heaven. Getting back to Him means we do our best to try and stay on the covenant path. But in life there are difficulties and trials and temptations that may lead us astray and off the covenant path. We just need to keep reminding ourselves that Christ wants us back…..we need to stay “tethered” to Him. Again.....staying tethered to Christ does not mean we won’t fall. It means a fall will not be the end.
Jeffrey R. Holland said, “I testify of the renewing power of God’s love and the miracle of His grace. His concern is for the faith on which you finally arrive….. not the hour of the day in which you got there. So, if you have made covenants keep them. If you haven’t made them, make them. If you have made them and broken them, repent and repair them. It is never too late as long as the Master of the vineyard says there is time. Please listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit telling you right now….. this very moment…..that you should accept the atoning gift of the Lord Jesus Christ and enjoy the fellowship of His labor. Don’t delay”. Our covenants can become our spiritual safety harness. We can tether ourselves to Jesus Christ and His power. Walking the covenant path does not mean we will never slip. It means that when we do, repentance makes rescue possible.
President Nelson said, “entering into a covenant relationship with God binds us to [Christ] in a way that makes everything about life easier. Please do not misunderstand me; I did not say that making covenants makes life easy. In fact, expect opposition, because the adversary does not want you to discover the power of Jesus Christ. But yoking yourself with the Savior, means you have access to His strength and redeeming power”.
This was a “transfer week”. They happen every six weeks. We had 12 missionaries go home and we saw 21 new missionaries arrive. These “transfer” weeks involve a lot of planning because of decisions as to who goes where, who will be the new trainers, which companionships will be changed, and how to get all of these missionaries to areas around the mission.....it is a huge undertaking that the mission president and his assistants undergo. Huge !!! There are more than 75 missionaries involved each transfer day.….just thinking about what needs to happen can give one a headache. But the Lord is involved in this work and everything seems to work itself out. The pictures below show some of the activities of the week. I also got to go golfing again for the third time in the last 8 months. I share a video below of six senior couple missionaries going home and we had a dinner and devotional for them. One of the great blessings we have had here so close to the Area Office is be around about 40 other senior couples from the US that work in other missions and the Area Office. We have made some very good friendships with these people and it has been especially fun to be able to play Pickleball several times each week. Life goes on and Jill and I remain very thankful that we were sent to Ghana.
In summary, we can choose the kind of person we want to be. “Choose ye this day whom thou wilt serve”. Elder Renlund said, “Heavenly Father’s goal in parenting is not to have His children do what is right; it is to have His children choose to do what is right and ultimately become like Him. If He simply wanted us to be obedient, He would use immediate rewards and punishments to influence our behaviors. But God is not interested in His children just becoming trained and obedient “pets” who will not chew on His slippers in the celestial living room. No, God wants His children to grow up spiritually and join Him in the family business”. The best way we can learn to be Christ-like is to keep ourselves “tethered” to Christ. If we make the correct choices, repent when we fall, get back on the covenant path…..then we can become true disciples of Jesus Christ. That is how we find out that true happiness comes from involving the Savior in our lives daily.....by just becoming a true disciple.
Elder Manakofua -- biggest guy in our mission and went back home this week. He will be missed.
Transfer Day
Transfer Day.....the Tros's are arriving.
Some of these missionaries have been on the Tro for three hours..... And then back out.
Lots of work....lots of fun conversations and the meeting of old companions.
I love their smiles.....it is impossible to not like being around the. Maybe I am prejudice.
Sister Ntumba, Elder Bey, Sister Langi, and Sister Puleiala.
Lots of activity going on this week in the Mission Home and Mission Office.
This is the group of 12 that went home this last week.
Sister Ntumba and Sister Bimbomba.....both went home.
Elders Fainga'anuku, Mpangala, and Manafokua.....all going home.
Elder Manakofua loves to sing.....He has a nice future ahead of him in the church in Tonga.
Sister Archibald, Sister Johnson, Sister Ngubi, Sister Malama, Eldler Crawley, Elder Tingey, and Elder Martin. Some will be trainers.....some are going home.
The Big Tongans.....and the little one in the middle.....not a Tongan. I even think she was standing on her tip-toes.
Achimota Golf Club.....maybe several levels below Boundary Oaks. But, Hey.....it's golf.
I met with Elder Hess again.....He is from the Montgomeries ward back home in Utah.
Senior Couples going Home.....they will be missed.
"Elder.....take my picture."
Very cute and their mother's dress them up so nice.
We visited this Ward and it was so crowded you can see the chairs out in the hallway.
This is just to show you that we do have some nice grocery stores over here in Accra. They are not this nice once you get out of the city.
The baskets are nice.....the difficulty is in how many to buy and which ones.
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