Explaining Isaiah ...Loves him!

MAAYON AGA SA TANAN!!! Good morning everyone! First I'd like to share a spiritual experience that happened to me, and it goes like this.................. Well after loosing my brand new consecrated oil container and looking for it for days.  I checked everywhere i possibly could've left it.  I looked in my pants and went through all the pockets in my pants but it wasn't there.  The next two days my companion and I were sick (ALL BETTER NOW) cough cough mom* haha.  I decided to continue in my daily studies even though I was sick. In my studies, I learned in 1 Nephi "The tender mercies of The Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith." In all my studying that day, that is what stuck out to me.   

Later on in the day we decided to go to our main investigators house and as I was getting ready ...I put my hands in my pocket and what do you know.. my concecrated oil container was in there.. and the VERY FIRST thing that popped into my mind.. not even thinking it was "The tender mercies of The Lord are over all those who are[faithful]" and I finally ... finally received a positive 100 percent answer that the Book of Mormon is TRUE... just for deciding to be faithful in my studies.. The Lord works in mysterious ways.  

SECOND my Isaiah studies... so in Isaiah 50:11 he says "all ye that kindle a fire, that compass yourselves about with sparks: walk in the light of your fire, and in the sparks that ye HAVE kindled."

 

I thought.. we always have apostles and prophets quote Isaiah but then I thought.. maybe Isaiah was quoting a future apostle of The Lord.. who is Elder Jeffery R. Holland.. this sounds SO familiar to me.. what Elder Holland said was, "in moments of fear or doubt or troubling times, hold to the ground you HAVE ALREADY won, even if that ground is limited, have faith and hold fast to what you already know and stand strong till additional knowledge comes." Similar no??

If we have kindled a fire (have a testimony small or big) but all we have now are sparks from that (less active.. unsure.. weak) walk in the light of your fire (STAND ON THE GROUND YOU HAVE ALREADY WON) and in the sparks you HAVE kindled.( even if that ground is limited.. if it is only "I know that God loves me") USE WHAT WE KNOW! AND STAND STRONG ALWAYS!!! sorry for the length! I LOVE ISAIAH.. ponder pray and study. I love you all!!!

Love,

Elder Cody Johnson

Isaiah's Teachings

Dear Family, 

After finishing the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and covenants, and the Old Testamant, (still working on New Testament) I've decided to change it up and go into the book of Isaiah. Something I have ALWAYS hated to read.. I'm reading one chapter at a time and really going through it all.. and it's crazy what I've found in there.. I'm starting in Chapter 48, because that's where it talks more about our generation. But what I've always pondered is ... that he speaks about our generation, but not in OUR words! So, that's the tricky part.. he speaks as the past but for the future trying to describe it as best as he can with the past words to fit this generation.. First, he doesn't speak like scriptures normaly.. they are split up into little sections within the chapter... where? I don't know but I'm try to find it.. a part in Chapter 48, that I want to share is verse 6-8. 

" 6 Thou hast heard, see all this; and will not ye declare it? I have shewed thee new things from this time, even hidden things, and thou didst not know them.

 7 They are created now, and not from the beginning; even before the day when thou heardest them not; lest thou shouldest say, Behold, I knew them.

 8 Yea, thou heardest not; yea, thou knewest not; yea, from that time that thine ear was not opened: for I knew that thou wouldest deal very treacherously, and wast called a transgressor from the womb."

He talks about hearing and understanding.. In 6 he says "thou has heard" but "thou didst not know them" and I thought.. why did he hear? BUT not know? In verse 7 he says, that we would say well uh yeah "I knew them" and I listened so I understood. In verse 8 he says, "thou heardest not yea, thou knewest not." "thine ear was not opened".   So there are two things here that I came up with as I was pondering this little part in Chapter 48.  There are physical and spiritual ears. We all know this. There are people that hear us.. but it goes in one ear and out the other one.  They "knowest not" then there are people with spiritual ears.  Where it goes in and stays in and they "knowest" and understand, so which one are we? Do we really listen intently? Or do we just let it go in then go out ...not ponder and understand what we been taught. And as missionaries do we listen spiritually.. well to all? Do we listen spiritually to the promptings of the holy ghost? Are we willing to act on them... so we can KNOW? I've pondered and pondered.. but I've gotten so much out of these three verses in this chapter in Isaiah and I've realized how much we can truly learn from isaiah IF we listen with SPIRITUAL EARS! Thats my studies and what I've been learning this week! Love ya!!

Love Elder Johnson

Baptism

A little boy with Elder Johnson, his companion and his grandpa.

This family lives in the furtherest area of Cody's mission ...it's a good 20 minute walk for them to get there. He's says their "golden". 

Faith WITH Works!

As I was studying and pondering...  I was thinking on these Alma chapters (Chapters 43-46). Why do they talk about war? What is the purpose of them? As I remembered the verse in Jacob where he says, "Nothing shall be written in this book that is not of great worth to the children of men"... so that means.. every single verse in the Book of Mormon is of great worth!! Sometimes we read ... Just to read! Especially in the Isaiah chapters, in 2 Nephi, and the war chapters! But the one thing I got from my reading was in Alma 43:23 ... Moroni has a little dilemma and he decides to do two things.  One he "sent spies into the wilderness to watch their camp" AND  two "go to Alma (the prophet) to see that the LORD wants him to do".  How great of an example is that?  He uses faith WITH works! Without both, he wouldn't have been as successful as he was! He was...  because he had faith AND works!

Another thought is that after that in Alma 43:24 the Lord tells Alma that the armies of the Lamanites are going around the wilderness, so what does alma do? He acts, he goes to cut them off!  We all know the story, Moroni and Lehi trap the army of the Lamanites and the wicked are slayed and the righteous are saved.  It goes on to talk about him with Zarahemna and i'll talk about that later.  What I learned in this war chapter is:  That we have a LIVING prohpet to lead and guide us! We also have been blessed with mission leaders, bishops, and stake presidents!! So many to lead and guide us!!

Love Elder Johnson