December 8, 2014

Bom dia Familia! 

Well I think this week I can truly say that I feel like Ammon in chapter 26 of Alma. This week we were so incredibly blessed that I just want to truly rejoice and praise the Lord for His goodness. He really has opened ways for His work to keep on going. Something extremely interesting that I learned last week, comes from a talk by David A. Bednar that he gave in the most recent mission president training meeting. In it, he makes it very clear that this is the Lord's work and that He will hasten it. Now we play a very important role in helping, but we do not decide when or how. If we want the work to be hastened we must do it when and how the Lord wants. It makes perfect sense. He knows His children much better than we do. So we must trust in Him and do it His way. He also makes it very clear in the Book of Mormon that He can do this work on His own. The reason that He allows us to participate is because He knows how much we will grow from it and that it is for our benefit. With this being said, can we deny this great blessing that He is giving to us? No! We need to magnify our callings as members of the church and spread the gospel. Another thing that we have talked about a lot recently just at home with the other missionaries is qualifying for the highest degree of the Celestial Kingdom. And then this morning after reading the talk by Quentin L. Cook, Elder Ence and I were talking a bit about it also. And I was reminded of the tak by Dallin H. Oaks, Good, Better, Best. We can look at it this way, good choices, will lead us to a good place. The terrestrial kingdom is a good place. Better choices will get us to a better place, the lower two degrees of the celestial kingdom are better places. But to get the best place (the highest degree of the celestial kingdom) we must make the best choices. This includes magnifying our callings. Often times we as members become to lackadaisical in our callings in the church. But President Kretly taught us a very important principle this last week, he said, "Responsibility is not a burden, it is a privilege." What a powerful statement! I really thought that was awesome. I just pray that I can magnify my callings in the church so that I can one day enter into the highest degree of glory, exaltation. 

Well on with the blessings of this week. We were so incredibly blessed this week to find new investigators. But not because of our own work, because of the members. This week they stepped it up a lot, and gave us so many awesome references. We didn't have to spend time looking, we were able to teach! It was really awesome. On top of that, our two families Bernardo and Mercia, and Joao and Julia, were able to finish all of their papers and tomorrow and wednesday, we will be going to the register to open up the marriage processes so that they can be married and baptized on the 24th. Unfortunately, the husband of that one family is still having quite a few problems, and we aren't quite sure why. We just keep praying that the Lord will work with him. 

So here's a funny story that Grandpa Don would love. The other day, one of the elders decided that we should describe all of the elders in our house using one verb.... Guess what verb I received? Telling stories. hahhaha. I was dubbed as the one who always has stories. I think I must have subconsciously received that from Grandpa Don. Speaking of these stories, this week there were plenty of them! I am running out of time so I will only tell one. So last night this drunk guy stopped us and started babbling about who knows what and in the end he was trying to convince us that alcohol doesn't hurt anything and that he is perfectly fine when he drinks. So at the very end I said, "Look, I believe you are a smart man, but right now because you are drunk, you are talking a million miles an hour and it just is coming out alkjfdlkfjaskldfjsdfjdkasfklasdjfkldsjfl." At this point he just busts up laughing... like hysterically laughing and then just manages to say.... You...you...you...gotta point haha and then just walked away laughing. In the beginning I wasn't even trying to be funny but he just couldn't stop laughing haha. Good times in Malhazine! 

Well I love you all and hope you have a great week!

Love,
Elder Lynn