Hey All, hope everything is splendid. Here's a rundown for this week.
1. On Friday a member reached out to us and said that her neighbor's Mom just passed away. The Mom was a member, but her son (their neighbor) wasn't. He was giving a lot of her stuff away and wanted members to come by and take some stuff. The member just said that she thought it would be good for us to stop by and say hello. She did warn us that he is an alcoholic. So, we went over there and met Dan, who was this drunk Hawaiian man. It was an interesting interaction but he enjoyed seeing us I think. He showed us some of the stuff and invited us to take whatever (We didn't). We also started talking and he brought up similar things to that of what other drunk people say. He started talking about how messed up the world is with everything going on and we talked about some of the reasons bad things happen. One that we talked about was that people have their agency. To illustrate to us more clearly what a bad decision is he decided to give us an object lesson for a visual. He grabbed a kitchen knife and held it up to Elder Hodes, saying "This would be a bad choice, wouldn't it?". It kinda scared Elder Hodes, understandably, but I was pretty sure he wasn't going to stab him. We assured him that is an example of a bad decision. But, that was a unique moment for this week.
2. We had a lot of people come to church this week which was awesome! We had 5 - Sister Barry (Who comes every week), Sister Clauson (non-member in a somewhat inactive family), The Ames (Inactive Part-member family), and Marcus! We've been working a lot with Sister Barry, I think I've mentioned her before. Sister Clauson and the Ames we've been trying to meet with more and it was awesome that they came to church. And it was our first time meeting Marcus! We've been trying to get in contact with him for a while but he would not respond. He had a really good time at church but is not really familiar with the church. We are meeting with him this week and I am excited for it!
3. The big highlight of this week was Brenda and Evert's Baptism! They were the people I taught in my last area, Otay Lakes. It was really cool because I was there when they were found, up until right before they got put on date, so I've seen a lot of their progress. But it was so awesome and good to see them again. In the words of my old comp Elder Hatch:
"Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God... and how great is His joy in the soul that repenteth!" (D&C 18:10,13) My heart is so full of joy today. I find joy in my Savior Jesus Christ. He set the perfect example for Brenda and Evert to be baptized, and it is through His sacrifice that repentance is made possible for each of us. I couldn't be more pleased with Brenda and Evert's decision and the wonderful ward they've become a part of. Ammon said it best: "Behold, my joy is full, yea, my heart is brim with joy, and I will rejoice in my God". (Alma 25:11)
It was such a joyful evening. It was good to see members of the old ward, old friends and other missionaries, President and Sister Merritt came as well. All in all, an amazing night. I'm so excited for Brenda and Evert. They are such a pure couple and it was a joy to serve them for the 12 weeks I was with them. I look forward to seeing them continue to progress towards the other blessings of the gospel including the temple, reading the rest of the BofM, etc. I love them so much!
4. I also wanted to include my talk I gave at their baptism for my spiritual thought (I forgot to copy it, so I just wrote down some of the things I remember were in it):
- Today I will be speaking on the Gift of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is something that we are all familiar with. He is the third member of the Godhead, is a spirit, and is the main source by which God communicates His love and peace to us. It is a wonderful feeling common to all who follow Jesus Christ. The gift of the Holy Ghost is when we can have that feeling as a constant companionship. The Savior explained in John 3 "Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God". Baptism and the Gift of the Holy Ghost are inseparable. That's why, Brenda and Evert, tomorrow during Church, Priesthood holders will lay their hands on your head and confer the Holy Ghost, and confirm you members of the Church. The covenant of Baptism is explained very well in the Sacrament prayer. In Moroni 4:3 it says "O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this bread to the souls of all those who partake of it; that they may do it in remembrance of the body of thy Son, and witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they are willing to take upon them the name of thy Son, and always remember him, and keep his commandments which he hath given them, that they may always have his Spirit to be with them. Amen".
- The covenant of Baptism is simply that we begin a new life of commitment to Jesus Christ. Like this scripture says we remember Him, take His name upon us, and keep His commandments. And when we do that, we are promised by God to have His spirit with us. I am grateful that we can renew this promise weekly. We are all imperfect, but we have this opportunity to repent and recommit. But while the Holy Ghost will be given to us, we should continually strive to better attune ourselves to the spirit.
- I want to illustrate another point by sharing a quick story. One of the greatest joys of missionary work is seeing all the things your family is doing back home. Back in April, my family went to Universal Studios in Florida. My two brothers, Owen and Daniel who are 6 & 5, loved this one specific childrens ride. They loved it so much that they went on it again and again. My brother Wesley who is 17 thought that this was interesting because there were so many other and better rides that they were missing out on. He shared with me that he thinks God looks at us that way sometimes. We have these things on earth that we think are so great: Phones, TV, Money, Social Media, etc. We become so occupied with them, that we deny ourselves things that are much greater and more lasting: Prayer, the Scriptures, Attending the Temple, and the other joys of Christ and His Gospel. These things fill us with the Holy Spirit which is much more filling and joyful. I can't imagine the extent to which the power of the Spirit is felt in Heaven or that we would feel if we followed Christ perfectly. I am grateful we have the Holy Ghost so that we can experience what is merely a foretaste of that eternal and everlasting joy that is much greater than the things of this world. I hope we can continually strive to make the necessary adjustments in our lives to have the spirit with us.
- I love you Brenda and Evert, and I am grateful that I could be a part of your acceptance of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and your deepening conversion to Him. I look forward to the great things you two will see and experience as you continue on the Covenant path. I bear testimony that Jesus Christ lives and that this is His church. I leave these things with you in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
5. I wanted to share a quick little Miracle again as I am striving to see and recognize them. I like the definition of miracle that mentions that they are events that man could not create or recreate himself. This week, we did our weekly service for Sandra and afterwards I took a picture of us in service clothes for a service ad in the Lakeside facebook group. After posting, we haven't had a ton of people accept or need service, but we've had an amazing influx of support that I haven't seen from a service before. I think that was in part because Sandra also made a gratitude post for us earlier that day and other people liked it too. It was just really tender. A lot nicer than posts I've made where we get people who are anti.
I love you all! I realized I hit 10 months a week ago today which is weird. There was a very sudden shift from when I was around 7 months to now. People instead of saying you're still brand new, all of the sudden people are saying "You're almost halfway!". As I get closer to the end, I am simply going to say "a little over a year" when people ask how long I've been out. When it gets to those last few months people brutally remind you how much you have left. I know because I have been with missionaries going home for about half of my mission, and I am guilty of teasing dying missionaries myself. Anyway, I would love to hear from any of you guys! See you next week!
- Elder Wride
Picture: (I apologize for the lack thereof)
1. Brenda and Evert's Baptism with my former comp, Elder Hatch
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