Roger’s testimony to MTC missionary

Roger’s testimony to MTC missionary

 

 Dear elders and sisters:

 

 I am not here for teaching today; I am here to share to you guys a story. This is a testimony story written about 5 years ago by a former missionary, Elder Gregory Butters, who served his full time mission in
Taiwan
. Elder Gregory Butters means a lot to my parents, to my family and to many many people he may not know.

 

 

Now, I’m going to read his testimony, which is also my parents’ story:

 

Just a little over 20 years ago while serving as a missionary in
Taiwan
, I met a perfect “golden family”.

 

Our friendship began one day in
Neihu , Taiwan
while my companion and I were riding our bikes back to our apartment after a hard day of tracting. A very enthusiastic and excited woman about 10 years our senior waved us over to the side of the road.  Christina Chu was a childhood education specialist who owned and managed the most successful and well known pre-school in the area. She asked if we would be interested in working for her school teaching English to her students. My companion and I politely declined the job and tried to talk with her about the gospel. She did not have a lot of time so we took down her contact information so that we could speak with her at another time. Later that evening, my companion and I decided that teaching at the preschool might be a great way to meet families with whom we could share the gospel.

 

 

The next day we met Christina’s husband Tony, a resident doctor in the hospital. We explained to Christina that because we were missionaries we could not accept the jobs she had offered but that we would be very happy to volunteer one or two hours each week to work with her kids.  For the next couple of months we spent two hours a week teaching I Am a Child of God and any other primary songs that we could remember to the children.  We were able to meet many families but none of the families progressed past the first few discussions. 

 

 

From that first day that I saw Tony and Christina together I knew that they were a wonderful family.  They didn’t have children yet but I could tell they were going to be great parents.  They had all the right values and were wonderful examples of moral and upright living.  However, the time was not right and although they were very polite, it was obvious that they were not yet interested in the gospel. 

 

 

My patriarchal blessing tells me that I should not judge the success of my mission by the number of baptisms I participated in.  As I was finishing up my mission I had to read this over and over again because I participated in very few baptisms while in
Taiwan
.  My blessing also tells me that the work I did on my mission and my example would later bear fruit and result in souls coming unto Christ. 

 

 

One of the most precious things I gained from my mission was my friendship with Tony and Christina.  Over the years we have both worked to cultivate that friendship.  In the last 20 years Tony and Christina have had three children, the oldest carries my name and the youngest is named after my youngest brother Roger. I am that the youngest one Roger.

 

 

I have always wondered if Tony and Christina were the souls referred to in my blessing who would accept the gospel in part because of my work and example.  Late last year, I received a call from Christina who told me their daughter Grace was very interested in the gospel.  Christina asked me to arrange for the missionaries to start visiting them again.  Faithful missionaries arrived at their doorstep and began to teach the gospel to these good people.  This time they were ready and in just a few short months I received another phone call from Christina telling me that she, her daughter, Grace, and her husband, Tony were preparing to be baptized.  She asked me to come to
Taiwan
to perform the baptism.

 

I cannot properly convey how wonderful it was to step into the baptismal fond with my friends of more than 20 years and know that I played a small part in their conversion.

 

 

 

I am so grateful that Elder Butters spread a seed to my family 26 years ago. I am grateful that he didn’t get discourage because of my parents, but followed his patriarchal blessing and keep being a good example for us. I am also grateful for the special plan God has given to our family, and to me.

 

       Today Greg butter’s parents is here with us too. I want to tell them and you that their son and their family’s example of course not just play a small part in my family conversion. They play a very important part of us. My parents went to Tornoto to pick my brother after his missionary service this summer. And I’m going to hand out my mission application after Christmas

 

 

Lord our savior made everyone on earth a special plan. Everyone’s own plan is different.

 

You guys are God’s greatest servants. Your job is to spread seeds to those who not yet know the gospel. Your job is to help God fulfilling his plans, which eventually join to become Great Plan of Salvation.

Feel happy for those who rejoice your message. You have helped God to change their lives. You have, even maybe, helped God to change their decedent’s lives.

Feel happy also for those who reject your messages. God has different plans for them, with his own purposes. These purposes we do not know yet. But God does, for God know all things. The seeds you spread to these people will help God to fulfill these purposes.

 

Elders and sisters, I really can’t wait for you guys missions, and of course my own. It is going to be the best two years in our lives. I have seen many missionaries when I was still an investigator. I didn’t know and care too much about them. But one thing I do know is that they were all very happy. After all, there is no such thing for a missionary to feel unhappy about.  Never gets discourage for difficulties you might have, God’s plans for your investigators are so great that you have no need and no time to be discouraged. Have no time to be discouraged, but put all your time to serve the Lord, to spread the seeds, to help fulfilling God’s plans of every investigators and Plan of Salvation.

 

Remember, the work you do on your mission will later bear fruit and result in souls coming unto Christ.