Hola Todos! Cómo están? Les amo mucho, y estoy muy
agradecido por sus oraciones, fe y amor. Ustedes son los mejores ejemplos para
mi, y verdaderamente son amados hijos de Dios. Espero que ustedes nunca olvidan
que Él tiene un plan para todas personas. Podemos recibir más fuerza y
esperanza cuando hacemos las cosas que nos ayuda llegar a ser más cerca con Dios
y Jesucristo y desarrollar nuestra fe en ellos. (Hello everyone! How are you? I love you much and I am very grateful for your prayers, faith and love. You are all the best examples for me, and truly are love children of God. I hope that you never forget the He has a plan for all people. We can receive more strength and hope when we do the things that help us become closer with God and Jesus Christ and we demonstrate our faith in them.)
Really, this is one of the most important things we can do
in our lives. To develop a stronger relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus
Christ as we grow our faith. As we nourish the seed, like Alma says in Chapter
32 of Alma, we will be able to find such incredible levels of happiness and
precious blessings. It is important that we can look for the opportunities we
have to nourish the fruit. Throughout this week, I have had several experiences
which have helped me to do just this, and I want to share some of them with
you:
First, we were able to have a multi-zone conference with
our Mission President, President Dunford and his wife on Wednesday. This was
absolutely an amazing experience for me. I felt so blessed to be surrounded by
so many missionaries and to hear the inspired words of my Mission President.
One of the things that really stuck out to me in the conference was when we
talked about true conversion. Becoming true disciples of Jesus Christ should be
at the center of all our efforts, and we should also do everything we can to
help others experience this change of heart as well. Truthfully this is the way
we can find peace, love, happiness, and hope for the future. I was so blessed
to be able to be strengthened by the words of my mission president and his
wife, and after the conference I truly felt uplifted and encouraged to do
better and give more of my efforts to the work of the Lord. The inspired
messages of those that Jesus Christ has called to direct his church are one
powerful resource that can help us nourish the faith we have. We can use the
words from the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the words of modern day prophets
to help build us up and find strength to continue on. I testify that the words
of God truly are for our personal lives, and we can find answers, motivation,
and love in them when we truly rely on them like they are daily
nourishment.
The next great experience I had this week was to give
service. This was my first big service opportunity I have had since being here
in Uruguay and I am so grateful for it. Three other elders and I were able to
go help a man put in posts (essentially big tree branches) around his yard to
construct a fence. He had dug holes around the perimeter of his home, and we
put the post in the hole, filled the hole with dirt, and used another pole to
stomp the dirt in to hold the pole in place. It was not easy work, but through
it all I felt so much happiness and gratitude. Something that just occurred to
me now as I am writing this :) -- us putting in the poles is an object
lesson. We have to do the things that fill the "hole" and hold the
"pole" in place so that when the winds come, and when pressure is
placed on the fence, it will stand. This is another blessing that will come
from nurturing our faith and relationship with God, and service is one amazing
way we can do this, because when we serve others we are able to feel the love
of God for His children, and feel the true happiness of the Gospel of Jesus
Christ.
The last experience I want to share is the impact that
seeing other's faith grow has had on me. On Sunday we were able to have our
first interested person come to Church! We have talked with Sharon a few times,
and I am so grateful because each time we talk with her, I am able to see her
understanding, faith, and desire to learn grow more and more. It truly was such
a blessing to be able to see her come to the church building with us on Sunday,
and it has strengthened my testimony as I have been able to see the faith in
her grow and view the joy it has truly brought into her life. So then the
application for us is that the "seed" of faith within us can grow when we see it growing
in others. Thus, it is so important that we can try to help everyone around us
develop their faith because the work truly is universal. It is something that
connects all of us, and blesses all of us as it works within us.
Alright, so then what's the wrap up? :) It is so vital that
we work to develop and grow our faith and conversion within our hearts. This is
why we are here: to become more like Jesus Christ and to develop the
attributes and knowledge that will help us return to live with God and our
families for eternity. How beautiful is that! There are so many simple things we
can do to "nourish the seed" and I promise that as you do them,
really trying with all you have, you will be able to see the fruits of your
efforts, and they will be more marvelous than you can imagine. Keep trying.
Keep working. Keep believing and doing everything you can each day, and one day
it will all be well. I love you all so much, and I know that Heavenly Father
and Jesus Christ love you with a perfect, unchanging love. Never forget that!
Now go and start nourishing that seed!
Scripture of the Week: 1 Nephi 8: 10-12
Quote of the week: "Nuestro objetivo debe ser aumentar
la fe en Dios y en Su divino plan de felicidad, aumentar la fe en Jesucristo y
en Su sacrificio expiatorio y alcanzar una conversión duradera. Esta mayor fe y
conversión nos ayudarán a hacer y guardar convenios con Dios, lo que
fortalecerá nuestro deseo de seguir a Jesus y producirá una transformación
espiritual y genuina en nosotros..." Elder Ulisses Soares: How can I
understand?
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