STIMULATOR message for the week of October 10, 1972
Message from President Merlin W. Sant, October 10, 1972
“Heights by great men reached and kept, were not attained by sudden flight, but they, while their companions slept, were toiling upward in the night.”
Dear Fellow missionaries —
It would be proper to give credit to the author of the above inspired verse but even with diligent research, it was not to be found. Lest any of us should get the idea that we can succeed only by toiling all day and all night, we hasten to explain that the author of the verse, no doubt, was emphasizing the virtues of being persistent. According to a good authority, Norman Vincent Peale, a long term study of highly successful men in various fields of endeavor, proved they had one thing in common: persistence!
Any one of us can make a special effort if so motivated, to achieve a one-time goal, but we’re concerned with “heights reached and kept.” This is achieved only by consistent, persistent toil. There is a rumor that some missionaries are baptizing with little or no effort. We can only reply that the record proves otherwise. To consistently baptize, we must persistently follow the mission rules and perform to mission standards.
One thing we must understand is that we all are subject to periods of disappointment and discouragement. But what we do about it is the important thing. Through persistently planning, working, and praying we can bridge these gullies of depression. In a recent interview, on of our young elders expressed, with tears in his eyes, a great disappointment in his accomplishments as a missionary. In endeavoring to find an answer to his problem we asked, “How are you doing with the discussions”? Reluctantly he replied, “Not very well.” Then we posed another question, “Are you obedient to all the mission rules”? He hesitantly answered, :”Not all the time”. Thus he found the answer to his own problems.
Missionaries, we are blessed with the greatest, most efficient method for proselyting the Church has ever known. It has been approved by the General Authorities of the Church for use in all our hundred and one missions. But it will make us successful in our callings only as we consistently and persistently apply its rules and principles in our daily lives. We make the difference.
Faithfully yours,
President and Sister Sant
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