Marks of a Man

 Shortly after becoming a missionary, a friend of mine game this story to me.  

Marks Of A Man As I jumped on board my flight from Miami to Salt Lake City, I paused for a moment to catch my breath. Seated near the front of the plane was an excited young man, probably 19, sitting with his parents. His hair was short and his clothes new and sharp. His suit was fitted perfectly and his black shoes still retained that store bought shine. His body was in good shape, his face clear, and his hands clean. In his eyes I could see a nervous look, and his movements were that of an actor on opening night.
He was obviously flying to Utah to become a missionary for the Mormon Church. I smiled as I walked by and took pride in belonging to this same Church where these young men and women voluntarily serve the Savior for two years. With this special feeling, I continued to the back where my seat was located.
As I sat in my seat, I looked to the right and to my surprise, saw another missionary sleeping in the window seat. His hair was also short, but that was the only similarity between the two. This one was obviously returning home, and I could tell at a glance what type of missionary he had been.
The fact that he was already asleep told me a lot. His entire body seemed to let out a big sigh. It looked as if this was the first time in two years he had even slept, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was. As I looked at his face, I could see the heavy bags under his eyes, the chapped lips, and the scarred and sunburned face caused by the fierce Florida sun.
His suit was tattered and worn. A few of the seams were coming apart, and I noticed that there were a couple of tears that had been hand-sewn with a very sloppy stitch.
I saw the nametag, crooked, scratched and bearing the name of the Church he represented, the engraving of which was almost all worn away. I saw the knee of his pants, worn and white, the result of many hours of humble prayer.
A tear came to my eye as I saw the things that really told me what kind of missionary he had been. I saw the marks that made this boy, a man. His feet - the two that had carried him from house to house, now lay there swollen and tired. They were covered by a pair of worn-out shoes. Many of the large scrapes and gouges had been filled in by the countless number of polishings.
His books - laying across his lap were his scriptures, the word of God. Once new, these books which testify of Jesus Christ and His mission, were now torn, bent, and ragged from use.
His hands - those big, strong hands, which had been used to bless and teach, were now scarred and cut from knocking at doors.
Those were indeed the marks of that man. And as I looked at him, I saw the marks of another man, the Savior, as he was hanging on the cross for the sins of the world.
His feet - those that had once carried him throughout the land during his ministry, were now nailed to the cross.
His side - now pierced with a spear. Sealing his gospel, his testimony with his life.
His hands - the hands that had been used to ordain his servants and bless the sick were also scarred with the nails that were pounded to hang him on the cross.
Those were the marks of that great man.
As my mind returned to the missionary, my whole body seemed to swell with pride and joy, because I knew, by looking at him, that he had served his Master well.
My joy was so great, I felt like running to the front of the plane, grabbing that new, young missionary, and bringing him back to see what he can become, what he can do.
But would he see the things that I saw, could anyone see the things I saw? Or would he just see the outward appearance of that mighty elder, tired and worn out, almost dead.
As we landed, I reached over and tapped him to wake him up. As he awoke, it seemed like new life was entering his body. His whole frame just seemed to fill as he stood up, tall and proud. As he turned his face towards mine, I saw a light about his face that I had never seen before. I looked into his eyes. Those eyes, I will never forget those eyes. They were the eyes of a prophet, a leader, a follower, and a servant. They were the eyes of the Savior. No words were spoken. No words were needed.
As we unloaded, I stepped aside to let him go first. I watched as he walked, slow but steady, tired but strong. I followed him and found myself walking the way that he did. When I came through the doors, I saw this young man in the arms of his parents, and I couldn't hold it any longer.
With tears streaming down my face, I watched these loving parents greet their son who had been away for a short time. And I wondered if our parents in Heaven would greet us the same way. Will they wrap their arms around us and welcome us home from our journey on earth? I believe they will. I just hope that I can be worthy enough to receive such praise, as I'm sure this missionary will.
I said a silent prayer, thanking the Lord for missionaries like this young man. I don't think I will ever forget the joy and happiness he brought me that day.
David Bryan Wiser?

The Book of Mormon: An Introduction

Many people have heard about the Book of Mormon, but have never read it.  Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints believe it to be another Testament of Jesus Christ, just as the Old and New Testaments found in the Bible. 

If you haven't read it, I say read it.  I love its simple message of Christ and our Heavenly Father's dealings with the ancient Americas.  I love the feeling I get when reading:  peace, and joy. 

At the end of the Book of Mormon, a prophet named Moroni gives a promise found in Moroni Chapter 10, verses 3-5, "Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how ^amerciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ^bponder it in your ^chearts

 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ^aask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not ^btrue; and if ye shall ask with a ^csincere heart, with ^dreal intent, having ^efaith in Christ, he will ^fmanifest the ^gtruth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.

And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may ^aknow the ^btruth of all things.

I have done this.  I know the Book of Mormon is true.  I know God has once again revealed new scripture to help us in mortality.  Please read the Book of Mormon, and pray about it.  I know if you ask with a sincere heart, asking in the name of Christ,  having an intent on acting on your answer, you will be given an answer it is true.   I can't say the answer will come immediately, but I do know it will come in a time and in a way that will be the most growth for you personally. 

Order your free copy of the Book of Mormon

When you have questions about the Book of Mormon, you can request a visit from the missionaries, who can answer questions you have:


Request a missionary visit

Elizabeth's Important Choice

When Terri, and her mother Elizabeth  moved to Pryor, Montana they had no idea of some of the wonderful things they would get to experience.  They quickly met Mary and Pete   They met the Johnsons, and the Jorden family, and many others who quickly became friends. 

Not long after their friendships began the native Pryor residents shared their strong beliefs in Jesus Christ. 

Terri was especially impressed and decided to accept an invitation to go to  church.  They are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

After about 3 months Terri chose to be baptized and confirmed into the church.  Terri's life began to change as she experienced new feelings.  Despite being different than she had felt before, her feelings were comforting, pleasent, and peaceful. 

She began to see herself changing in many positive ways.  Her feelings had influenced her so much that Elizabeth began to notice a happiness that she had not seen in her daughter before.  When she questioned Terri about it, Terri responded she felt that way since she joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. 

Despite being not very religious, Elizabeth began to go to church with Terri.  After church one Sunday Elizabeth was waiting in the hall while Terri participated in choir practice.

Missionaries teach messages about Christ 

Soon two young "boys" by name of "Elder Dearborn" and "Elder Lewis" came and spoke with Elizabeth.  She knew who these "boys" were.  Of course, they were the missionaries.

Later, Elizabeth shared her experience meeting the missionaries.  She felt like they were kind and respectful.  She then asked if they could share some messages of Christ with her. 
To her expectation the messages of the missionaries made sense to her and gave a feeling of peace. 

                                                                          Elizabeth agreed to baptism.  On Saturday, March 12, 2011 Elizabeth was baptized by Brother Jorden.

She now enjoyes the same peace that her daughter Terri enjoys, being a little more unified.

 If you were to ask Elizabeth about her baptism, she would say, "It was the best choice I ever made." 

Questions? Visit me on facebook or  mark.lewis@myldsmail.net

What is taking so long?

I love the feeling of a job well done after a hard days work.  I recently felt this when I helped dig out a tree stump about a week ago.

The stump must have been two and a half feet in diameter.  The roots were deep, and the more we dug, the more could see more root.  I seemed like that stump was never going to come out.

After a while we noticed that one reason the once strong foundation was so immovable was because the ground was frozen.  I thought that after ten or fifteen hits with a 8 pound hammer, the frozen earth might break loose.  This gave us some relief, but the job was still incomplete.

Soon talk of leaving the project came into play while one of us took turns whacking away any soil that we could.  Every attempt yielded only little dirt removal.  After all, we had worked on the task for more than 3 hours, and we were loosing daylight.  What could been done?

In the last minutes available the stump broke away from the ground's grip and our goal was fulfilled!!

I remember the sense of accomplishment as we drove home that night, knowing we had done all we could to get that stubborn stump out of the ground.

From that lesson, I learned to never give up on your goals.  It took patience, hard work, and diligence.  The blessing of having the stump out of the ground didn't come immediately.  It took effort.  It took time we didn't want to give. 

When I think of that experience, I see how the Gospel of Jesus Christ is much like this stump removal.  Many times in my life, I wanted to give in, feeling somewhat embarressed for my unseen accomplishment.   In the agony, there were moments that it seemed my situation would never get better.  After a while I discovered something; that is our Heavenly Father ALWAYS reaches out to us when we reach out to Him.  Our desired blessings don't come immediately or not at all when it isn't His will.  He will however, help us in a time when we will learn the most from our experience, and at a time it will bless us the most.  I have waited for years for some things, and seconds for others.  Reguardless of time, Heavenly Father's help always comes. 

This movie is similar to my own experience  I feel it is appropriate.

Can you see God's hand in your life?

Jesus the Christ

Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer.  Our older Brother, and friend.  He is the Creator of the Earth and the one who has permitted us to return to the Father.  He works under the instruction of God, our Heavenly Father for our salvation and exaltation.  He willingly chose to suffer in our behalf for the many sins we each have made and still make. 

I love this scripture I feel that it helps others understand why I love Jesus Christ. "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 children may look for a remission of their sins." 2 Nephi 25:26

I like this statue of Christ in the Temple Square North Visitors Center in Salt Lake City, Utah

I feel His open arms helps us understand His undeviating love for each of us to become more like Him.  His way is a way of peace and happiness. 

The more I live as Christ would the more I feel complete.  I find my life gets easier, despite my work load being the same.  I find myself as being kinder, more understanding of others, smiling more, and being able to focus on what is really important in life. 

Commandments and Blessings

What are commandments?  Why are commandments important? 

In St. John 14:15 Christ spoke of commandments. He simply said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments."

As far as I understand, commandments are specific actions Jesus Christ asks us to do.  Many commandments are spoken directly from Him.  The New Testament in the Bible is the text to His words.  Other commandments come through the voices of prophets; holy men of God with a purpose to act, and speak in His name.  The Bible, and Book of Mormon are two such books that contain the words of prophets who have spoken for Christ to tell us of His will and Gospel. 

Commandments are much more than words, they are guides, that if followed, have promises connected with them.  When we keep commandments we are blessed, when we fail to keep a commandment we do not qualify for the special blessing.

John 7: 17 says, "If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself."  I take this to mean that if we shall do His (Christ's) will, we shall know He gave it to us.  We will know the doctrine of Christ.

The Doctrines and Covenants of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints supports John with this passage in section 82:10, "I the Lord am bound when ye do what I say, but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise."

I love this!  I know that keeping/following commandments brings blessings of happiness.  I am a witness to that.  Throughout my entire life I have found that when I do keep commandments, I am happier than when I don't.  My life gets easier.  I found that the tasks that normally bother me are reduced.  I feel more peaceful. 

In 3 Nephi 14:21 Christ said, " Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven."

I believe that commandments brings blessings... even to the point of entering into the kingdom of heaven as Christ taught.   I know that keeping commandments leads us to be happy.  I feel this is because when keep commandments we are showing our love for Christ and our Heavenly Father. 

I invite everyone to be aware of commandments and to watch for their blessings.  The blessings, may not be  immediate, or in our timing, but I promise they will come as we keep Christ's commandments.