Completely Floored and Dusting Up in Pontiac

 A gathering place in the Seminole Hills Historic District   

 By inspiration Sister Goates and I have been called to serve and fellowship both members and friends of  the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Pontiac Michigan. Members in Pontiac drive several miles to attend church in surrounding communities. We are helping to restore an older home purchased by the Schoolhouse Foundation where we will live and help gather saints locally to socialize, and both celebrate and take inspiration from the remarkable church history here and promote and plan for the growth of the church.

The first order of business is refinishing all the wood floors on both levels - which really is a completely daunting and dirty task (we are vacuuming up bag after bag of sawdust) as purported in the title above. Our initial efforts have been magnified thanks to:

• A number of members who provided hand and belt sanders, sand paper, vacuums, fans, goggles, masks and other required equipment.
• Six dedicated, hard working young missionary elders of the church.
• My former ministering brother who took on sanding the stairway.
• A neighboring member with a passion for gardening, knowledge of the community, and a recommendation of a good hair dresser. 
• An inspired ward mission leader who volunteered and helped me realize that without doubling our hundreds-of-hours labor to completely remove the old stain, the finished product would look shoddy.
• A member of our mission presidency who without fanfare took on and independently resolved a number of plumbing problems, such as completely reseating, resealing, and caulking a bathroom toilet.
• An Elders Quorum president who just happened to bring by dinner to feed us, the missionaries, and others who were helping. It was like manna miraculously being provided.
• Ten members of the Rochester Ward along with their Bishop and a number of youth who worked hard to sand the floors and clean up the yard.
• About 20 trips to the basement to reset the circuit breakers when the 2 large floor sanders and 10 hand and belt sanders working simultaneously would repeatedly overload the electric power. 

I knew this was going to be a big project and I worried, but it turned out to be even bigger than I imagined. Faith doesn't make things easy, but it does make things possible, particularly with the aid of angels. So with faith and the miraculous dedication of numerous earthly angels this project is well under way and will be completed.

The Doctrine of Christ

The gospel message or doctrine of Christ is that we can access the saving, redeeming power of Jesus Christ by exercising faith in Him, repenting, being baptized, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end as the Savior taught in 3 Nephi 27: 

13 Behold I have given unto you my gospel, and this is the gospel which I have given unto you—that I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me.

14 And my Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; and after that I had been lifted up upon the cross, that I might draw all men unto me, that as I have been lifted up by men even so should men be lifted up by the Father, to stand before me, to be judged of their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil—

15 And for this cause have I been lifted up; therefore, according to the power of the Father I will draw all men unto me, that they may be judged according to their works.

16 And it shall come to pass, that whoso repenteth and is baptized in my name shall be filled; and if he endureth to the end, behold, him will I hold guiltless before my Father at that day when I shall stand to judge the world.

17 And he that endureth not unto the end, the same is he that is also hewn down and cast into the fire, from whence they can no more return, because of the justice of the Father.

18 And this is the word which he hath given unto the children of men. And for this cause he fulfilleth the words which he hath given, and he lieth not, but fulfilleth all his words.

19 And no unclean thing can enter into his kingdom; therefore nothing entereth into his rest save it be those who have washed their garments in my blood, because of their faith, and the repentance of all their sins, and their faithfulness unto the end.

20 Now this is the commandment: Repent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me and be baptized in my name, that ye may be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost, that ye may stand spotless before me at the last day.

21 Verily, verily, I say unto you, this is my gospel; and ye know the things that ye must do in my church; for the works which ye have seen me do that shall ye also do; for that which ye have seen me do even that shall ye do;

22 Therefore, if ye do these things blessed are ye, for ye shall be lifted up at the last day. 

This is powerfully taught in the Book of Mormon:

• 2 Nephi 31
• 2 Nephi 32:1-6
• 3 Nephi 11:31-40

I am particularly impressed with how the Savior taught and emphasized by stating twice in 3 Nephi 11:37&38 that we must "become as a little child ... or ye can in nowise inherit the Kingdom of God." 

The ordinance of baptism and receiving the Holy Ghost is absolutely essential for anyone who is accountable and wants to return to live with God. And so is being humble like a little child and remaining faithful.

Enduring or being faithful to the end is something I think we all comprehend, but being humble like a little child may be under appreciated or overlooked at the hazard of our eternal well-being.

 

 

Flirting with Flint

The Durant Hotel in Flint, MI

August 7th: We arrived in Michigan 4 weeks ago and have been staying in the historic Durant Hotel in downtown Flint while searching for a place in Pontiac where we can live and fellowship members of the church. Seventy years ago Flint and Pontiac were beautiful, prosperous cities, but they have fallen on hard times with many economic, social, and safety concerns. Currently, Pontiac members are divided among a number of wards and branches with meeting houses that are many miles away. We are assigned to gather and socialize with Pontiac members in an effort to strengthen and grow the church there. 

We travel to Pontiac (40 miles away) three or four times a week to attend church and missionary meetings, visit with members, and assist with the search for a residence. We have also gotten involved in service with the Oakland Historic Association and will begin researching their records for information about the growth of the church in Pontiac in the 1830s. Joseph Smith and all three of the original witnesses of the gold plates, came to Pontiac in 1834, which resulted in a number of converts.

The following photos will provide some idea of the beauty of downtown Flint which belies the poverty and dilapidated buildings in the surrounding neighborhoods:

That's the moon reflecting in the window and not a fire.

Women in the rehab center next door enjoying a smoke while on break.

This past week we spent time at the Flint Ward Young Women camp where we taught compass orienteering skills and provided encouragement while they attempted the challenging Frankenmuth Aerial Park sky walk as shown in the following photo:

Teaching orienteering skills with a compass reminded me of an experience 20 years ago when my daughter was serving a mission in Romania and we did not have immediate texting or email communication with her. I remember getting a letter that she had written 3 weeks earlier describing the perplexing problems and conditions which were confronting her. I realized that if I were to immediately reply with advice and encouragement it would be another 3 weeks before she got it; and I hoped that somehow we had prepared her to be able to orient herself through the complexity, confusion, and problems of life.

Isn’t that what the gospel is about – providing us with a knowledge of true north (eternal principles) and how to find the direction we need to safely navigate this life and to find eternal bliss as stated in Alma 37:44-45: “For behold, it is as easy to give heed to the word of Christ, which will point to you a straight course to eternal bliss, as it was for our fathers to give heed to this compass, which would point unto them a straight course to the promised land.

And now I say, is there not a type in this thing? For just as surely as this director did bring our fathers, by following its course, to the promised land, shall the words of Christ, if we follow their course, carry us beyond this vale of sorrow into a far better land of promise.”

What a blessing to have a compass (the gospel and words of Jesus Christ) so we can orient ourselves and know the direction we should go to for Eternal Bliss!