Alma 17:23

And Ammon said unto him: Yea, I desire to dwell among this people for a time; yea, and perhaps until the day I die.

This was another one of my themes that motivated me throughout my mission in Japan. This scripture was shared by another companionship in my district at the Missionary Training Center during a District Meeting and it has stuck with me ever since. Indeed, Ammon is among my favorite missionary role-models and his determined desire to dwell among the Lamanites for a time, and perhaps until the day he dies stirred up an attitude within me. Back then, I was dwelling among a certain group of people (namely the Japanese people) and I did have a desire to serve them. And my heart would always be with them long after I would transfer out of an area or leave the mission field at the end of my service.

Though times are different now and missionaries only serve for two years or eighteen months, not to mention that I've been off my mission for well over two years now, I still hold on to that sense of Ammon's spirit and determination-filled attitude. I like to think that no matter where we go, even as we leave those we come to love and hold dear, our hearts will always be with them, even until the day we die and perhaps afterwards... This has become even more my case since the events of last year when two of my relatives and a former mission companion died. And though I've been off my mission for over two years now, my heart is still with the people I served and worked with. Same goes to the people I've met and associated with recently, and those who I am currently among.

Alma 13:24

For behold, angels are declaring it unto many at this time in our land; and this is for the purpose of preparing the hearts of the children of men to receive his word at the time of his coming in his glory.

While I was at the Missionary Training Center in Provo, Utah, one of my teachers there shared this scripture with me. She said she thought of me and my family circumstances when she read this scripture, so that's why she shared it with me. I come from a part-member family and my my mother is not a member of the Church. I was also going to Japan for my mission and my mother is actually a native Japanese; I don't think it was coincidence. My MTC teacher testified to me that I too am an angel, being a missionary I was going to declare the word of God to the Japanese people. She also in a way, comforted me in a sense that my family would be alright during my two year absence because angels were going to administer to them as well.

Long story short, this scripture was something I needed to hear and it pretty much became my backbone and long-term theme throughout my mission. Being an angel to my family, being an angel to the people I was going to serve and be amongst to administer... I like to think that we all have angels around us watching our backs. Angels are not just some divine being sent from heaven or something out of fictional movies or fantasy. Angels can be regular people like you and me; we all have that ability to touch the lives of those around us and we all do it differently, in our own unique way. And for most of the time, we have no idea how much of an impact we are making. I also like to think that when we're away from those who are dear to us, we shouldn't have a need to worry because they'll be taken care of and watched over. And who's watching over all of us more than Heavenly Father?

Frustrations of a Sunday School Teacher

Be warned: Read this post at your discretion.

The semester is nearly over and I'm glad because for the past two months or so as a Sunday School teacher, I've been really frustrated. Out of all my callings that I've served in at various places, never have I been more frustrated than here at the ward I'm at now. Everything about the Sunday School organization in particular has been really disorganized; I just found out that our Sunday School President wasn't even set apart by a member of the Bishopric or have any counselors. Why that hasn't happened all semester long is beyond me and frankly, none of my business.

But to be even more frank, this inability in some people to take initiative to get things done and solidified is having an effect on me and how our Sunday School class has turned out. I am frustrated with how disorganized the Sunday School is. I am frustrated about how pathetic attendance in my Sunday School class has been in particular. We have three separate Gospel Doctrines classes to help balance things out but my class apparently has the least number of people attending while the other two seems to be the classes everyone else is going to. We also had classrooms assigned by apartment but that hasn't been well enforced; from what I've heard, the classroom assignments were listed on the program we hand out for Sacrament Meeting just once and then it just blew away into the wind, figuratively speaking. It is simply mind-blowing about how incompetent some people can be at accomplishing the simplest of tasks to allow for smoother function of Sunday School.

I'm frustrated that I am not able to fulfill my calling because these simple things are not taken care of first. I am sick of wasting time out of my day preparing for a lesson that I end up not teaching. I'm frustrated about how this is having an effect on my team-teaching partner, who has become rather discouraged about our pathetic classroom numbers. I am trying to help someone build confidence in her teaching skills so that she'll have no problem doing so in the future when she teaches a Church class on her own. But I can't do that if we don't have a Sunday School to teach. We ended up not teaching this past Sunday so I don't even know how the rest of the semester will turn out. I seriously question whether or not we're actually needed as Gospel Doctrine teachers when two other classes are doing better than we are. And I feel terrible that my team-teaching partner is discouraged; I fear that this experience will give her a bad first impression of what it's like to teach Sunday School. Never have I been more frustrated and underappreciated serving in the Church.

The gospel and this Church is true. And I understand that this gospel and Church is run and utilized by imperfect people. And I know I'm imperfect and that has shown in past lessons I've taught, even though I did my best. And I understand that we're a brand-new Ward that was established at the beginning of the semester but for crying out loud, that "we're a new ward" excuse has gotten old. Do we lack THAT much common sense? Haven't we been entrusted by the Lord to fulfill the callings we're extended? And are we seriously going to allow the fact that we're a new ward handicap us and hold us back for the rest of the semester? If there's ANYTHING I've learned about these past few frustrating weeks, it's that not everybody is perfect and not everyone is reliable to some extent. I've also learned that when you want something done, you gotta do it yourself to make it happen.

I hope we all see ourselves trustworthy not only with our leaders but also in the eyes of the Lord to fulfill our callings during our lifetime service in the Church. If not, then make sure to take the steps necessary to become trustworthy.

"Stay Humble and Teachable"

"Stay humble and teachable." -Dad

That's the simplest advice my dad gave to me while I was out serving my mission in Japan. To him, a successful missionary is humble in a way that he or she is willing to submit to the will of the Lord and able to obediently follow the instructions of his or her leaders. While a missionary does teach most of the time, they still have to be teachable, meaning that can be molded by the Lord, learning new things, sometimes by repetition, and sometimes from mistakes made because one learns best that way.

I'm in a new ward for the Spring Semester and I mean quite literally about the "new" part. It's a newly organized ward, approved by the First Presidency because the ward boundaries were altered due to the influxes between changing student population and number of new missionaries departing since the lowering age requirements. I was called by my new Bishop for this semester to be a Sunday School teacher. Now, I've had experience serving as part of the Sunday School Presidency back home and I've taught quite a few class lessons so I had no trouble in accepting this calling. The only curve ball coming out of left field about this is that I'm team-teaching with a sister from Relief Society as my team-teaching partner every week. And according to my Bishop, my team-teaching partner is new at teaching Sunday School, so buckle up! But seriously, I look forward to this new ward experience and hope to learn a few things from this calling as well as from my team-teaching partner. We are called to these capacities because the Lord willed it and He wants us to learn something from the experiences we gain from serving. Once again, I take that attitude as I am now called to serve as a Sunday School teacher for a brand-new YSA ward here at BYU-Idaho. Gospel's true!

"They were still my brethren in the Lord"

"Now these sons of Mosiah were with Alma at the time the angel first appeared unto him; therefore Alma did rejoice exceedingly to see his brethren; and what added more to his joy, they were still his brethren in the Lord; yea, and they had waxed strong in the knowledge of the truth; for they were men of a sound understanding and they had searched the scriptures diligently, that they might know the word of God." (Alma 17:2)

Yesterday afternoon, while staying with my aunt in the Salt Lake-area, I drove down to Provo to visit my sister, who's going to school there, as well as to attend a mission reunion with my first mission president (the Travellers) later that evening. After spending quality time catching up with my sister, she graciously accompanied me to the mission reunion (and photo creds go to her!). I only had about a transfer and half with President and Sister Traveller before the changing of the guard happened so I haven't seen them in four years and I've been home from my mission for two of those years; having a car this year while attending school of course, afforded me the opportunity to go; so needless to say, I'm grateful I got to be there this time.

Me with the Travellers

I got see two of my former companions from the mission field, a few other fellow return-missionaries I got to see and work with numerous times, and even one of my MTC teachers:

Me with some of my "mission homies"

And like the scripture reference I included above, this reunion to me was a joyful occasion because the people I knew there, the people I had the privilege of working with during the course of my mission "were still my brethren (and sisters) in the Lord." As we took the time to catch up with each others' lives, reflect, and enjoy each others' company, I had affirmation in my heart that serving a mission was the right thing to do. Had I not, I would not have met such wonderful people over the course of two years of missionary service. Without a doubt, the people I shared this night with (along with everyone else I worked and interacted with throughout my mission) has touched my life not just for good, but for the better.

All brethren and sisters of the Lord

I'd say we are one happy Nagoya family!

Conference-style Talk/Research Paper: Families, Why I am Who I am Today

This winter semester, I'm studying parts of the New Testament in the Bible as part of my religious studies at BYU-Idaho. As is customary, I was required to write up a sort of research paper in the form of a talk on any gospel topic of my choosing for the midterm. This time, I chose to write about families, entitled "Families, Why I am Who I am Today", supported with some experiences, scriptures, and quotes from past General Conference talks to meet assignment criteria. Needless to say, I aced this assignment and now I'm publishing it here: 

I love my family! It is probably one of the most cliché things one can ever say amongst Latter-day Saints (and probably among much of society), but out of everything I will ever say in my lifetime, that is probably one of the truest, short statements I can ever make. However, unlike most Latter-day Saints families, I, along with a considerable chunk of the Church membership come from a part-member family; my mother, as well as her side of the family are not members. Growing up in a part-member family has made the topic of “families” that much more precious and important to me as a result. But just because I come from a part-member family doesn’t mean I’m any different from many of you. Like many of you, I found enjoyment and spiritual nourishment from the various activities and callings associated with the Church. I am who I am today because of my family, and because of the way my parents raised me. I am privileged to hold a current Temple recommend and be able to attend the Temple. I was also able to serve an honorable full-time mission. And thankfully, my non-member mother has been very supportive of me in the various activities of the Church, including my missionary service to Japan (which also happens to be the country she is from!). And I love my mother regardless!

Speaking of mothers, one of the best accounts in the New Testament that hits me the most is at the end of the Savior’s mortal life. As He is hanging upon the cross on Calvary, He sees his mother, Mary and tasked one of His disciples to care for her: “When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.” (John 19: 26-27) President Thomas S. Monson said of this account, “From that awful night when time stood still, when the earth did quake and great mountains were brought down-yes, through the annals of history, over the centuries of years and beyond the span of times, there echoes his simple yet divine words, “Behold thy mother!”” (‘Behold Thy Mother’, October 1973)

As all of you know, the gospel is centered on the family. We know from studying the missionary lessons in ‘Preach My Gospel’ that families are considered the most important social unit because they are ordained of God. President Boyd K. Packer said, “We focus on the family in the Church, and we counsel parents everywhere to raise their children in righteousness.” (‘The Key to Spiritual Protection’, October 2013) It is through the gospel that parents, through heavenly guidance, inspiration, and revelation are able to successfully raise their children, even in troubling times the world faces today. Elder Dallin H. Oaks said, “There is no area of parental action that is more needful of heavenly guidance or more likely to receive it than the decisions of parents in raising their children and governing their families.” (‘Love and Law’, October 2009)

Looking at myself and where I’m at in life, I think it’s safe to say I’ve turned out okay for the most part so that tells me my parents raised me right! I hope someday, I can at least be half as good as they were when I start raising my own children as a parent. I remember it wasn’t always easy as a family, considering some of the things we went through. But at the same time, we got through those hardships together as a family. I remember my dad being unemployed for a few years and I was old enough to recognize that it was a scary thing; I cannot even begin to imagine what was going through my dad’s mind during those times. I was also old enough to know that I should be supportive of my parents, especially during those tough times we endured. I especially heeded the scriptural advice found in the sixth chapter of Ephesians: “Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;) That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” (Ephesians 6:1-3)

With my non-member mother, I have come to find that it’s important that our relationship be built on the grounds of mutual respect because we don’t see eye-to-eye on a lot of things. I certainly have a great deal of respect for her and her family’s Japanese culture and beliefs. I remember at the end of my mission, my family picked me up and went to my mother’s hometown to visit relatives. They took notice of my missionary name badge almost immediately and asked about it. I was completely caught off guard when my mother described to her siblings, her mother, and here nieces and nephews what an LDS missionary does and what I have been doing in Japan for two years. The best part, she described it perfectly! Elder Quentin L. Cook said, “Our leaders have consistently counseled us “to live with respect and appreciation for those not of our faith. There is so great a need for civility and mutual respect among those of differing beliefs and philosophies.”” (‘Our Father’s Plan-Big Enough for All His Children’, April 2009) So even though I come from a part-member family, I feel confident that we as a family share a strong bond in our relationship regardless. I am who I am today because of that bond we share as a result of that mutual respect for our differences.

It should be well-noted that families are important, even in ancient times. A reliable account that supports this can be found in The Book of Mormon when the righteous Nephites was at war with the wicked Lamanites: “And again, the Lord has said that: Ye shall defend your families even unto bloodshed. Therefore for this cause were the Nephites contending with the Lamanites, to defend themselves, and their families, and their lands, their country, and their rights, and their religion.” (Alma 43:47) The Nephites probably wanted to avoid going to war but were forced to do so in defense of themselves and their families. Though modern day circumstances are different compared to Book of Mormon times, that shouldn’t diminish the fact that our families are important to us.

For many, it’s important that there is quality time to be spent with family members. Families are to “live together in love.” (Doctrine and Covenants 42:45) Now, my family (both immediate and extended) is a little unorthodox when it comes to a few things and we’re okay with that. And I’ll tell you why by sharing an experience we had recently: My grandmother passed away late last year just before Thanksgiving and my parents and I drove out Eastern Idaho to be present for the funeral arrangements. This is where we Wynn’s are bit unorthodox. Some longtime family friends coming to pay their respects said to my dad, “We just walked in the door and heard laughter down the hallway and we figured, ‘Yep, it must be Wynn funeral!’” Another one of those “unorthodox Wynn-moments” occurred after the funeral services concluded: My dad and his brothers (who were the pallbearers) were carrying my grandmother’s casket out to the waiting hearse when the metal lid of the casket made a loud popping sound. Everyone in the family heard it and we were all thinking the same thing. We all tried to bite our lips, although unsuccessfully. My dad, in an effort to prevent the inevitable, quietly said, “Don’t say it!” Then one of my uncles went ahead and said, “I think she [my grandmother] wants out!” That’s when we all lost it and busted out into laughter! But we were okay with that because we were gathered together as one big, united family. And as somber as that funeral may have been, it is thanks to our belief in the gospel that this occasion was also a celebration, a time to be happy for a life well-lived and life now progressed into the eternities.

But not all families are the same and some are worse off than others, especially those who don’t know the joy we know and have. I feel sorry for those who don’t have the gospel in their lives. I feel sorry for those who don’t know what it’s like to have the bond I share with my family. President Dieter F. Uchtodorf said, “Many had lost out on choice memories that come from spending time with family and friends. They missed developing a deep connection with those who meant the most to them.” (‘Of Regrets and Resolutions’, October 2012) There are many reasons why we as Latter-day Saints should share the gospel; bringing families together should be one of those reasons. Compared to my part-member family circumstances, I feel fortunate that all is relatively well with us. Without going into too much detail, I have seen other families torn apart, dysfunctional, unable to work out differences and things ended badly for the family members, especially the children. If we’re doing things right with our families we desire nothing but the best for our family, like Lehi demonstrated in the vision of the tree of life: “And as I partook of the fruit thereof it filled my soul with exceedingly great joy; wherefore, I began to be desirous that my family should partake of it also; for I knew that it was desirable above all other fruit.” (1 Nephi 8:12)

I know this is the true Church of Jesus Christ. The gospel of Jesus Christ also is true; it focuses greatly on the family and I know that when we raise our families around gospel standards, those relationships will become stronger and each family member will also be better individuals as well. Because of the unique experiences I have coming from my family circumstances, I have a testimony on the importance of families. I also know that no matter what the differences in culture or belief, things can work out. Furthermore, I know that families can be eternally together forever. I also testify of the importance of mutual respect; you can appreciate one’s culture and beliefs different from yours better that way, especially when it’s from a family member who is close to you. I am who I am today, because of my family. I know God loves each and every one of His children regardless of culture or belief. My thoughts and testimony I leave with you in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Callings: Déjà vu

Quite literally. I've been back at school for a little over a month for another round of Winter/Spring semesters. And as the title states, I've experienced déjà vu. I'm in a different (and newer) apartment complex from last year so that means a new Ward for a BYU-Idaho student such as myself. This semester's load of classes are typical but it seems a little bit on the heavier side also. Plus, it's still winter time and it's been sort of hard to get out and broaden my horizon a little when I'm usually socked in by mother nature... that is, until I got my calling a couple weeks ago.

And that's the déjà vu part; I've been called to be the male group leader for my Family Home Evening group (AGAIN!). If you recall, I had this same exact calling in my college Ward from last year's spring semester (along with a couple of other callings, and you know how I felt about that!). Once again, I've been given a little more responsibility and I have reason to be here (which I am grateful for!).

I'm also a little bit intrigued because I'm actually looking forward this time around to get to know the people around me in my new Ward. I'm hoping to fulfill my calling to the best of my abilities so once again, I take it on with the mindset that I have been called for a reason and I have something to learn and something to gain from this. I said it before and I'll say it again: We get called to these capacities for a reason by way of revelation. At the same time, in regards to my calling in the Church, the people I'll come into contact and get a chance to work with (especially my FHE family) will no doubt touch my life in a way and vice versa.

It's going to be an interesting semester nonetheless. But that gospel's still true!