By Elder Justin Charles Baluyot
Philippines Bacolod Mission
Took a quick glance at my watch; it said 10 o’clock in the morning.
“What are other people doing at this time on a Saturday?” I thought to myself. Sleeping in? Eating Breakfast? Watching TV, probably?
Those actually seem like nice things to do on a weekend morning. But nothing compared to what I’ll be doing at this hour. I’m a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints! It’s time to get out and work!
And so, we did. We had our day perfectly planned: every minute, every second of this day. It’s a Saturday! The day of the week when most people are home. This is the Superbowl of all proselyting days. The Black Friday Sale. The Main Event. We had to make the most of it. If we deviated from our plan even by a few minutes, it could mean that we wouldn’t have enough time for another planned appointment in the afternoon. We HAD to stick to the plan. Everything had to be precise, like clockwork. Today has to be… perfect. And so it was… or so I thought.
As we started our voyage of a perfectly planned day, of no deviation, and of total and pure precision, an unremarkable impression came to me. One that, at the time, made no logical sense at all. It came to me in such subtlety, but with such distinction, that I could not mistake it for anything except and only as, the Spirit. The impression came to me in one word: “Joshua.”
With the most confused look on my face, I then, in a surprised and even unsure voice, exclaimed: “Joshua?!” This, of course, startled my companion. Questions were exchanged between us, and we’ve concluded that the only Joshua we knew, was the one who hadn’t been to church in the last couple of years. We’ve visited him at least twice every week to get him to come to church, but nothing has worked. Each time we came to visit, he gave yet an even more improbable excuse as to why he didn’t go to church the Sunday before. Missionaries, for years, have tried to get this lost sheep back to the fold, but to no avail. A lost cause, as many would think.
So why him? Why should we abandon our perfectly set plan, and risk our whole day, the golden day of the week, for this one man? I even justified to myself, that “it should be the members who should minister to him and not us.” And even if we did go, what good would it even do? It would only be another hour wasted with someone not even willing to change. It’d be the same if we just used our time talking to a brick wall. No. It opposed all logical arguments as to why. Why? This made no sense to me at all. Maybe the Spirit got it wrong this time. Yeah, maybe the Spirit was wrong.
Then, from the pile of my debates, and from the rubble of my pride, arose a calm, yet bold answer. “He is your brother. That is why.”
I then, at that exact moment, understood what it meant to have a “broken heart, and a contrite spirit.” With wet eyes, and a humbled heart, I knelt down, said a quick prayer, then made our way to the house of my brother, Joshua.
Many things happened to us that day. Too much, that I cannot put it all in writing. It is sufficing to say, that it was the best day of my missionary life as of yet. He not only agreed to come to church, but even worked with us throughout the day. It was eternally better than whatever “perfect plan” I supposedly had for our day.
Upon pondering this the following day, I then understood a principle that took me 23 years before I truly got it. It is this: “God’s plan for you is, and forever will be, eternally better, than whatever “perfect plan” you’ve made for yourself. GOD DOES NOT MAKE MISTAKES.”
I invite you to ponder that, for I know it to be true. I truly do now. To that I testify, with all the energy of my heart, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Riches of Eternity 