Week 39: Holding the Line - Fort Smith, Arkansas

Hey all!

I've had so many different ideas of what I've wanted to write about this week but for the sake of your time and my sleep schedule I'll stay concise as best as I can. 

We've had lots of ups and downs lately. We've seen lots of miracles in our area specifically, but our zone as a whole is struggling pretty badly. As part of the missionary leadership here, I feel partially responsible. As a result, my confidence has been struggling and my spiritual lamp's flickered a bit at times, but "all things work together for good to them that love God" (Romans 8:28.) I know that God is teaching me patience, humility, and consecration through these experiences. 

 So here's an open question: how can I be more confident? In leadership, in trusting the Lord and other missionaries, in getting along with my companion... all that stuff. I'd love some help if you have any impressions.

On a brighter note, our friend Chase is choosing to be baptized this week! He's a super smart med student with a ton of friends in the Church already, so teaching him has been awesome. What's extra cool is that he'll be getting baptized on Good Friday and confirmed on Easter Sunday!

~

More fun stuff:

- a girl from my BYU ward got called to my mission! Shoutout to Sister Washburn. 

- MLC! My favorite parts included some powerful workshops, lunch with my trainer and a bunch of other mission buddies, and a mission-wide invitation from President Collins to eliminate all negative talk of any kind.

- consecrated my study space and put away my hotwheels, minifigures, and almost anything not directly relating to do with Christ. All in, baby. 

- befriended a turkey. Might be a one-sided relationship. 

- Brother McClellan: Fort Smith First Ward's Temple and Family History leader and a popular biology professor at the local university. He's a super nice guy and his love of nature makes me want to be a biology professor too. Man...I'm just gonna quintuple major at this point. 

- watched Elder Keller nearly get mauled by a terrifyingly vicious...corgi?

~

Thought: the most important holiday of the year. 

 Easter is a time to remember the suffering, death, and triumphal resurrection of Jesus Christ. As such, this holiday is a celebration of hope. 

 The adversary is fighting its hardest to drag us down into despair, and his power is real. The world offers many so-called strongholds to protect us from the harshness of reality, from substance abuse to immorality to digital devices, but the cold truth is that eventually they'll all make like the Alamo. None of them will survive the day. 

There is one (and only one!) avenue to ultimate hope: the Gospel of Jesus Christ. "Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?" (1 John 5:5) 

Jesus Christ makes everything better. Celebrating Easter means celebrating His universally positive influence. When we turn to Him, anger turns to peace, fear turns to faith, and despair turns to hope. 

Isaiah 61:1-3:

"...the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 

 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; 

 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified."

~

Cool talk: "That Thy Confidence Wax Strong" by Bishop Richard C. Edgley

That Thy Confidence Wax Strong

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/1994/10/that-thy-confidence-wax-strong?lang=eng

~

Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/2sk1refRidSszyYk7

Song of the week: "Scar Tissue" by Red Hot Chili Peppers

~

Love you all!

- Elder Rigby

Week 38: Pupusa tornado - Fort Smith, Arkansas

Hey all!

Nine months! This transfer's absolutely flown by, but I'll still be staying with Elder Keller in Fort Smith, AR for another six weeks. Transfer calls always feel like a mixed bag, but I'm happy to be sticking around because three of our friends are being baptized in April!

Speaking of baptism, our friend Melannie was baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints this week! She's amazing and her family is so fun. 

~

Fun stuff that happened: 

- found a frog, a snake, and a couple of crawdads 

- taught a lesson at an El Salvadorian restaurant in tornado weather 

- became a jump-roping fiend. Simply the ultimate cardio

- an ambulance beat us to our media referral 

- taught a lesson to this family while their friends were over, and, when we started teaching about the Book of Mormon, one of the little girls' friends was like "hey I have that on my phone already" and whipped out the Book of Mormon out of nowhere. Turns out her family had been visited by missionaries in the past so we popped over there with one of the youth a few days later and taught her family too 

- bought an eight-dollar "bag o' burgers" at Braum's and proceeded to eat a bag o' burgers. Well, half of it. 

~

Thought: "The pattern is simple but not easy to follow." 

*Note: I am not a dietician. There are arguments for and against keto as an actually healthy diet, but just bear with me for the analogy.

When going keto, the primary objective is changing your body's fuel source. When you eliminate carbs and replace them with fats, eventually your body starts running off of fat instead, and that conversion makes cutting weight exponentially easier. 

 In a spiritual context, consecration works the same. One of the biggest reasons we're asked to strive for 100% obedience despite the obvious fact that we're inherently imperfect is because God is trying to help us change our fuel source. 

 Even after cutting out social media and a few other distracting habits, I still find myself seeking out spiritual sugars at times, and, through seemingly inconsequential acts of escapism, miss out on spiritual ketosis. Big bummer. However, I know it's possible. The Lord promises that there will always be a way forward (1 Ne 3:7,) that He will always receive us as we repent (3 Nephi 9:22,) and that we will always have His help when we humble ourselves and rely on His strength (Ether 12.) 

 Some of my biggest role models are the missionaries whose spiritual engines are fueled by the powers of Heaven. As we strive to "'give away' even [our] favorite sins" and center ourselves upon our Savior, we too can become disciples who are powered by Jesus Christ. 

Says our latter-day prophet, Russell M. Nelson:

"As we strive to live the higher laws of Jesus Christ, our hearts and our very natures begin to change. The Savior lifts us above the pull of this fallen world by blessing us with greater charity, humility, generosity, kindness, self-discipline, peace, and rest. 

"Now, you may be thinking this sounds more like hard spiritual work than rest. But here is the grand truth: while the world insists that power, possessions, popularity, and pleasures of the flesh bring happiness, they do not! They cannot! What they do produce is nothing but a hollow substitute for 'the blessed and happy state of those [who] keep the commandments of God.'"

Invitation: What are your "spiritual sugars?" What things could you let go of today to become more fully converted to the infinite energy source of the Atonement of Jesus Christ?

~

Sources:

"Overcome the World and Find Rest" by President Russell M. Nelson

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2022/10/47nelson?lang=eng

"Act in All Diligence" by Elder Henry B. Eyring: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2010/04/act-in-all-diligence?lang=eng

The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ: https://go.churchofjesuschrist.org/bookofmormonapp

~

Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/2sk1refRidSszyYk7

Songs of the week:

1) "Always In My Head" by Coldplay

2) "Ninety and Nine" by Michael McLean. I've never heard this song before but I absolutely loved the lyrics when someone quoted them in church on Sunday.

3) "Panacea" by Disasterpeace. Just started practicing this one on the piano so maybe I'll send a recording sometime down the road. 

Cool devotional: “Lay Hold upon the Word”: The Power of Wholehearted Living by McKay Christensen

https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/mckay-christensen/lay-hold-upon-word/

~

Love you all!

- Elder Rigby

Melannie's baptism 3.16.24

The Fort Smith missionaries 

Week 37: Ash, the Crafter - Fort Smith, Arkansas

 Hey all!

Hope you're all doing well! Figured I'd run through my P-day just for kicks, so here's what happened today:

After waking up, getting ready for the day, studying for a bit, and calling my family during their ski trip with my cousins () Elder Keller and I headed to Walmart. This week we bartered for supplies and rations the old fashioned way as we're totally broke in terms of meal funds. Just kidding, I've got personal savings. Shoutout to Aunt Jen for paying for my groceries today. 

 

From there, we went on a lil' P-Day exchange with our roommates the Spanish Elders, so while the other Elders could get haircuts, my buddy Elder Ashcraft and I went on a festive rampage for his 20th birthday. 

 First up was a record shop in downtown Van Buren. Elder Ashcraft combed through the bargain bins and I followed until we hit the 45-minute mark, at which point I sat down on a couch at the front and vibed to some jazz fusion put on by the cashier until Elder Ashcraft finished his quest. 

 Next came my first-ever trip to Olive Garden, and, well, we ate Olive Garden. That sums up the experience pretty well. We spent most of the rest of the day recuperating on the couches in the church foyer afterwards. I still snuck in some piano practice, though. 

 Once P-Day ended at 6:00, it was back to business as usual. Our friend Melannie had her baptism interview for her baptism this Saturday () and after that we spent some time with the youth playing a scripture mastery game called Book of Mormon Baseball. Rounding out the night was some meetings and another call with la familia de Rigby, and now here we are. 

~

Other highlights of the week include AP exchanges with Elder Fife (one of my missionary role models,) another lesson with our friend Michelle who watched every single Book of Mormon video in under a week (gotta be at least 8 hours worth of footage,) and a church tour with our friends Davin and John, who are quite possibly the funniest guys I've met on my entire mission. John is a super caring single dad who loves video games and is extremely hyperactive and Davin is the spitting image/personality of Po the Panda. They're unreal. I love them so much. 

~

Elder Fife and I talked a lot about spiritual gifts on our exchange, and the one that's particularly been on my mind this week has been the gift of discernment. The ability to observe, discern, and filter is invaluable in finding those whom the Lord has prepared receive His trusted servants and their message of "the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth" (Romans 1:16.)

If you want to learn about discernment and spiritual gifts and why you should care a whole lot about them, check out some of these resources as the Spirit guides:

- Doctrine and Covenants Section 46 (esp. 28-33)

- Moroni 10:8-18

- 1 Corinthians 12

"Spiritual Gifts" by Dallin H. Oaks

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/1986/09/spiritual-gifts?lang=eng

"Quick to Observe" by David A. Bednar (super cool)

https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/david-a-bednar/quick-observe/

~

Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/2sk1refRidSszyYk7

Songs of the Week:

- "Shenandoah" by the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square (missionary-approved)

- "52nd Street" by Toshiki Kadomatsu. Unparalleled grooviness. 

Cool book: You Are Special by Max Lucado

~

Stay rad. 

Love, 

Elder Rigby

Week 36🌳- Fort Smith, Arkansas

Hey all! 

 Hope you're doing well. We've been busy down here this transfer and seen the Lord's hand in all kinds of ways. The weather's finally warmed up a little and I've been getting some serious Oceanside vibes from the breezy 70° days. Plus, the trees and flowers blooming everywhere brighten my day every time I see them. The big trees with the pretty white blossoms smell bad, but that's alright. 

 Seeing as how the concept of time just flies out the window on a mission, it takes some effort to stay anchored to reality here. Clocks and calendars are useless when you live in warp speed, so we Southern missionaries turn to Inception totems and primitive measurement systems like moon cycles, armadillo populations, and how many pages we have left in our journal before we can bust out the new one Mom sent for Christmas.

~~~~~~~~

  This transfer, God's been teaching me patience. I've been in a lot of contentious situations lately, and in those situations lies the choice to be externally reactive or internally steady in the storms.

With that, I'll get to my point: the Gospel of Jesus Christ guarantees ultimate freedom. From who? From what? All kinds of things, but namely yourself. 

Wow, Elder Rigby, how very Buddhist of you. Well...

Mosiah 3:19:

"For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father."

Surrendering the natural man means surrendering pride, vanity, and anger to the will of the Lord. As in most cases with God, the more you give up to Him, the lighter your burdens will begin to feel.

"If you are serious about helping to gather Israel and about building relationships that will last throughout the eternities, now is the time to lay aside bitterness. Now is the time to cease insisting that it is your way or no way. Now is the time to stop doing things that make others walk on eggshells for fear of upsetting you. Now is the time to bury your weapons of war. If your verbal arsenal is filled with insults and accusations, now is the time to put them away. You will arise as a spiritually strong man or woman of Christ." 

- Russell M. Nelson, "Peacemakers Needed"

Every time I've been in a contentious argument, there has been no winner. The game is rigged. 

Why? Here's Jesus's answer:

3 Nephi 11:29-30:

"For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another. Behold, this is not my doctrine, to stir up the hearts of men with anger, one against another; but this is my doctrine, that such things should be done away."

So yeah, that's what I'm working on. When I petulantly "kick against the pricks" like good old Saul, life stinks. When I drop my weapon, kick it away, sincerely repent, and cheerfully submit to Heavely Father's will... boy, is it liberating.

 Christ is the ultimate example of freedom because He is the one true example of unconditional surrender to our Father. His perfect submission gives Him a perfectly clear conscience and a perfect fulness of joy. What's more, His Atonement enables us to have that same freedom upon conditions of faith in Him and joyful daily repentance. 

~~~~~~~

 I read an article about Scandinavia's humane prison/rehabilitation system a few years ago—random tangent,  I know, but bear with me—and the way they treat the convicts there really interested me. If I remember right, their prisons are all geared towards recovery and reintegration with society as opposed to just incarceration. Rather than being punished and kicked to the curb, prisoners were treated humanely and shown love, care, and support as they prepared to give life in a dark world another try. There's a lot of parallels to the Gospel of Jesus Christ in that, but I'm out of room and time, so I'll end with a note a prisoner there left for another upon his release:

"To love is to give without asking for anything back," his note reads. "Loving makes you free. Free from yourself, my friend."

~~~~~

Song of the week: "Piano Black" by Seatbelts

Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/2sk1refRidSszyYk7

“Brightness of Hope” by Neal A. Maxwell: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/1994/10/brightness-of-hope?lang=eng

Peacemakers Needed by Russell M. Nelson: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2023/04/47nelson?lang=eng

Love,

Elder Rigby