Kyle Reports

Well, it is official.  Kyle was set apart last night and left early this morning for the Missionary Training Center in Provo, UT.  He will be there for about 12 weeks learning Cantonese before traveling to Sydney, Australia.  We are all so proud of him.  He is such a great example and I know he will be a great missionary.  He loves the gospel and has a wonderful desire to share it.  Please keep him in your prayers and send him as much mail as you can!

The Mission Call

On May 3rd, 2012, Kyle received his mission call.  We gathered together as a family, via Skype, as we were all living in four different cities between Washington, Idaho, and California.  Kyle opened his letter and read his call.  He is called as a missionary to labor in the Sydney Australia mission.  He will prepare to preach the gospel in the Cantonese language.  It was an amazing experience.  I know Kyle has been called to serve in a very special place.  He has prepared himself from a very young age to be a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  I took a video of the event, so please enjoy, especially Dad's joke about getting a cat so he can start practicing his Cantonese!  As a little background, Kyle's Mom served a mission as well in Sydney, Australia.

Stay tuned for more posts as we follow Kyle on his mission.  His mailing address is posted on the blog so send him some mail.  He reports to the Missionary Training Center, in Provo, Utah this Wednesday, September 26th, 2012.

Kyle's Testimony

A testimony is a personal spiritual witness given by the power of the Holy Ghost.  Each member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has the sacred opportunity and responsibility to develop a personal testimony centered on Christ and His teachings.  With this foundation, a testimony grows to include all principles of the gospel.

Elder Dallin H. Oaks, a member of the Twelve Apostles, said “A testimony of the gospel is a personal witness borne to our souls by the Holy Ghost that certain facts of eternal significance are true and that we know them to be true. Such facts include the nature of the Godhead and our relationship to its three members, the effectiveness of the Atonement, and the reality of the Restoration.”

For most of us, a testimony grows gradually over time through our experiences.  It grows as we individually study, pray, learn, and serve one another.  It grows and is strengthened as we live and obey God's commandments.  An important part of nurturing a testimony involves sharing it with others.  Kyle has written  his testimony and would like to share it with each of you.

I believe in Jesus Christ. Not only that He lived and we have a record of Him and his teachings, but that He died for our sins, He arose again in 3 days time, and that through Him, all who believe on him and follow His Gospel can live with Him again for eternity. I know that God answers prayers. That is one thing I absolutely know. There have been so many experiences and wonderful times in my life where prayers have been answered to ever question that principle. I believe God to be a God of mercy and miracles. Those miracles have not ceased, and if we look for it, we can see God’s hand in our lives on a daily basis. 

I believe with all my heart that the Book of Mormon is a true work of scripture and should be read along with the Bible. Both books are of great benefit and help us to understand Jesus Christ. If you have not read the Book of Mormon, I encourage and challenge all to read it. Read it and you will see for yourself the wonderful message it delivers about our Savior. I do believe that going on a mission at this time in my life is what my Father in Heaven wants for me. I am going to try my hardest to be an example of His son and fulfill his commission to go forth unto all nations, baptizing them unto repentance. Just in particular, I will start in Sydney Australia. 

Joseph Smith is as true of a Prophet as was Moses, and Thomas S. Monson is our living prophet today. God loves all of His children equally and is doing everything He can to bring us back home to live with Him. He will not force us back into His presence however, we must choose to live his Gospel and we must want to live with Him again. I am so thankful to have a living prophet that is able to help me with current revelation and guidance about how to live Christ’s gospel in today’s time. There is much we learn from the scriptures and I encourage all to read them daily, but I am also very thankful to have a modern and living prophet who I can look to not only for an example, but listening to Him speak, I know the specific things that I need to work on in order to bring my life into better accordance with the gospel. I believe He will never lead us astray and that if we follow and do what he says, the blessings he promises will come to pass. I have experienced it and I love listening to him. 

I am so grateful that I can live with my family forever. Death will not separate us from being together forever, and that is such a comfort to me. 

My testimony did not come quickly or without struggle to me. I don’t want anyone to think that I am just going off of my parent’s and family’s testimonies. They have been a big help in bringing me up in righteousness, no doubt. But my testimony is my own, and was gained by much prayer, fasting, and reading of the scriptures. It also is not finished and will be a continual learning and growing process for my entire life. There is much I do not know and I am okay with that. I do not need to know it all. I do know, however, a few things which allow me to believe in many others without doubting them. I know my Father in Heaven answers prayers and loves me. When I pray to Him, He answers. I have felt the Holy Ghost and using this, can determine the true from the false. I have felt the spirit when I read the scriptures. That is how I know they are true and how I have gained my testimony.  

I encourage all to come unto our Savior, Jesus Christ. He loves each of us individually and I am very humbled and excited for the opportunity to take 2 years to go and serve Him. His gospel has blessed my life so much that I want to share it with anyone who is willing to listen. I do believe that this Gospel is true, and encourage anyone who wants to learn a little more about Christ to look into meeting with the missionaries. Their purpose is to bring others to Christ and help everyone to develop a closer relationship with Him. I am so excited about my opportunity to serve the Lord as one of His missionaries!

Kyle 

Missionary Service

Kyle Shafer will soon be reporting to the Missionary Training Center in Provo, Utah and begin his service as a full-time missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  During the next two years, he will need all of your love and support.  This blog will help document his experiences while serving our loving Savior, Jesus Christ.  This was an excellent talk given illustrating how missionaries are called to serve.  Additionally, missionaries must prepare to serve by gaining a testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Kyle has a testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel, which he will share in a future post.  Thank you all for assisting Kyle and helping him prepare for this most important calling.