I the Lord am Bound - Elder Berg's Email (Doug Johnson)

Prelude: The following email is from a missionary that served with us in Alabama along with my response to his email. As a mission president I often had the responsibility of delivering “bad news”, but this is one of those experiences where the “bad news” turned out to be truly faith promoting experience. From: andy berg [mailto:bergandr@hotmail.com] Sent: Sunday, September 16, 2012 7:11 PM To: djohnson@projectcontrol-inc.com Subject: RE: Alabama Birmingham Mission Reunion President Johnson, How have you been? It's been a long time since I've seen you and Sister Johnson, and I'm sorry to say we won't be able to attend the reunion this year. However, I felt impressed to tell you about a huge impact you made in my life and mission. I don't know if you remember, but I sure remember the sound of your voice on my answering machine half way through my mission. You had called to tell me that my older brother was diagnosed with brain cancer. I later found out that he wasn't expected to live more than a year. You shared some things with me about priesthood power that you had highlighted for me. You gave me a blessing. Before that I felt like I had to go home to be with my brother for his last year alive. I had already convinced myself that that was what I needed to do. If I had done that, I think I would have had one last time period to spend with him before he died. But you inspired in me a better choice. After I talked to you, even though it was possible I would never see him again, I felt like I should finish my mission. I felt impressed that if I poured my whole soul into it, I would see him again and he would be healed. After that my whole mission changed. My concept of faith changed. My life changed. One week before I returned home, I heard news from home. The doctors thought they had the wrong patient because my brother showed no signs of ever having cancer, and his last visit they still thought may be the last. I returned home to my brother, never seeing him while he had cancer, in perfect health. He now has a wife and two year old son, and is still completely free of cancer. I am grateful for what you did for me. You changed my mission and, along with the faith of many others helped my brother to be healed. I just wanted to say thank you. I wasn't sure you knew how things ended up. I am doing great. I will get my Bachelor of Arts degree in May; I have a beautiful wife, a baby girl, and another on the way. Thanks for being such an awesome person. You are one of the people I think of when I think of people I'd like to be like. I am grateful for your service as my mission president. It sure has meant a lot to me. Your friend, Andy Berg From: Doug Johnson [djohnson@projectcontrol-inc.com] Sent: Monday, September 17, 2012 11:55 AM To: 'andy berg' Cc: 'Mom Johnson' Subject: RE: Alabama Birmingham Mission Reunion Andy - Thank you for sharing the "rest of the story" with me, we were not aware of the final outcome. Yes, that is certainly one of those "faith promoting" experiences that is a reminder that God is in the details and he does not go back on his promises (D&C 82:10). Yes, I remember the experience well. I do not remember the specific advise that was given, but I do remember having the distinct impression that we needed to leave it in the hands of the Lord. He was in a far better position to take care of your brother than you would have been able to do by going home. Yes, I know that you were concerned with the very distinct possibility that you might never see your brother alive again. However, I also remember that you told me that you were at peace with your decision to stay. It is times like those that will help us to remember the importance of placing our "faith & trust" in the Lord. Neither one of us knew what the outcome would be, but having a knowledge of God's eternal plan gave both of us peace that God would not forget your brother nor would he forget you. Obviously there are several scriptures that come to mind as I think about the "lessons learned" from this experience. When God made this world it was with the intent that we would learn from our experiences on earth and those experiences would help us to develop greater "faith" and a greater love for our Father in Heaven. You remember when the Lord said, "And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them" (Abraham 3:25). You had accepted a call to serve the Lord and your willingness to do all that the "Lord your God did command" qualified you for the blessings, "... for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith" (Ether 12:6). This story is a reminder that we are all "instruments" in the hands of the Lord and God will work His miracles through those that have been called to serve. God is the one that does the healing and we are the ones that will be the recipient of God's great love, if we are able to "hold onto the rod" and trust in the Lord. "Blessed is the man that endureth temptation (and trials): for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him" (James 1:12). Sorry you will not be able to attend the reunion. We are looking forward to seeing as many of the missionaries as possible. If you happen to be in the area, please drop by and visit. We would love to meet your wife and children and to visit with you again. Again, thank you for sharing that experience. If it is OK with you, I would like to let the other missionaries know the "rest of the story", since I am sure that they will all (those that were serving with you) remember the experience. All of the missionaries at that time were fasting and praying "mightily" in behalf of your brother and you, so I am sure that it will help to strengthen their faith and testimony and will cause them to remember the great experiences that they had while serving their missions. It is interesting to note that most missionaries will never know just what impact they had on others while they were serving their missions, so stories like yours will help them to recognize that God knows what they did and it is not always important that we are aware of the "rest of the story" all of the time; however, it is nice to have a few of those stories to give us strength. Your story is one of those!! Thank you, Doug Johnson