Dear Sisters and Elders –
As you know, our purpose as missionaries is to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through:
- Faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement;
- Repentance;
- Baptism;
- Receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost; and
- Enduring to the end.
The process of coming to Christ always begins with FAITH IN CHRIST. Without this faith, a person cannot develop the desire sufficient to repent. And, of course, full repentance is prerequisite to valid baptism and confirmation.
Given the critical nature of faith, what can we do as missionaries to help people build their faith in Jesus Christ? Three essential activities include:
- Prayer;
- Reading the Book of Mormon and praying to know it is true; and
- Attending church.
Let me share several thoughts with you about these fundamental practices:
First, a significant majority of our teaching should be spent helping people build faith in Jesus Christ through prayer, reading the Book of Mormon, and attending church. Please make sure that during every teaching appointment you reinforce the importance of these activities.
Second, if you have investigators that are not progressing, they are likely struggling with any one (or all) of the three faith-building activities above. Prayerfully determine how best to help these individuals understand and to apply the practices of prayer, reading the Book of Mormon, and attending church. Investigators that do not apply these activities will not progress.
Third, if you arrive at a teaching appointment and the investigator has not completed his / her reading assignment from the Book of Mormon, you may feel to read with them instead of moving on to the next lesson. Reinforce the importance of reading the Book of Mormon and praying to know it is true.
Fourth, given the critical nature of these activities, please re-review with your companion this week the following Fundamentals from Preach My Gospel lessons found in The First 12 Weeks study guide: “Revelation through Prayer,” “Revelation through the Book of Mormon,” and “Revelation through Church Attendance.”
And fifth, please counsel together and pray sincerely to know how you can be more effective in helping others to build faith in Christ through these three essential practices.
It is an honor to serve with you to help others build faith in Jesus Christ through prayer, reading the Book of Mormon, and attending church. I sure love you and acknowledge your deep desires to bring souls closer to Christ.
With much love,
President Pingree