Pamilia!
TRC: was not huge this week, but just as great as ever. The topic for us this week was revelation through the Book of Mormon. Elder Russell M. Nelson gave the devotional on Tuesday, and the highlight was the Oct. Ensign dedicated solely to the Book of Mormon. In fact, all of us missionaries at the MTC received one. AWESOME. Some great advice he gave was to start at the Title Page and read from there--for us and for our investigators. Pinakamahalaga! (Utmost Importance!) It has some great information in it, and was written by Mormon. With the two volunteers we taught at the TRC on Thursday we highlighted that it was written "..for Jew and Gentile....by the spirit of prophecy and of revelation." How important this is for us in our day--it was written specifically for us by prophecy and revelation! It has within it the answers to all of our problems if we prayerfully and sincerely read it. It teaches with plainness and clarity, unlike any other book of scripture. We also shared with them D&C 84:54-59, highlighting that the Book of Mormon is not to be treated lightly because of its importance and sacredness. We also highlighted v. 59, in that Zion is based on the law of the Celestial Kingdom--how can we expect to live there or build it up if we are not obeying that law? We also shared with them Mosiah 5:2, about how the word changes hearts. It was pretty great. In the end, even though we taught them about revelation through the Book of Mormon, we challenged them to read D&C 84 (wonderful section!), specifically looking for how God shows his love and the promises given to the faithful--promises we still have and can see even when we are not missionaries, for they are promised to the faithful. We also asked them to keep the Book of Mormon in their study--for even though study of other scripture is very important (I will be the first to admit it), we cannot ignore the Book of Mormon and its role in bringing us unto Christ--otherwise we bring upon ourselves the condemnation spoken of in D&C 84:54-57.
Spiritual Thought: this week in choir we sang "Consider the Lilies". Funnily enough, I was studying in D&C 84 that Sunday.....and towards the end of the practice realized it had that scripture in it (D&C 84:82). But that is not my thought, just a funny aside. My thought is about something we discussed in that Sunday practice was the 99 sheep vs. the 1 sheep. The director that day made an interesting point. He said that he was teaching in primary one day, and a little girl got up and told the story of "One day a shepherd counted his sheep: 1, 2, ..34, 35,..99, oh, one is missing!" He said that he didn't really hear anything after that because his mind took hold of the thought that the shepherd was counting his sheep. He knew each and every one of them individually, and he made sure they were fed and okay and in safe pasture before going out to look for the Lost Sheep. His point was that the Lord takes care of those who trust Him and put their faith in Him first--those who are going to Church, keeping the commandments, etc. He does not abandon them for the lost one. This really struck me and I really liked it. This is a very important point--the Lord doesn't forget us because we are "okay", because we are already members of His Church: He continues to look after us and take care of us. We just forget that because we always focus on the Lost Sheep. I testify of this. I know it is true, and if we will put our trust and faith in Him, and do what He asks of us, He will take care of us!
Funnies
1) Quote from Elder Waite "I can control myself, I just don't always want to!" (In reference to baked goods ;p)
2) Quote from Elder Herr just now: "Oh no! The trees are turning orange! We gotta get outta here!" (he is from Hawaii)
3) Interaction right before class when we were deciding which song to sing to start class. Sister Cope and I had just gotten back from lunch and Elders Barrow and Herr were talking about how they had Christian rock music stuck in their head from the mail room. Everyone started talking about Christmas music and singing a Christmas hymn. (I will give you the English translation of what went down, because most was in Tagalog)
Brother Cook "Why? Christmas is so far away."
Me: "True, but it comes quickly!"
Bro. Cook: "Like the Second Coming, no?"
Me: "Yes, time to repent and be good children so we don't get coal in our stockings!"
Bro. Cook: "Time to repent so we don't become coal!"
bwa ha ha ha ha ha! It took me a while to stop laughing!
Mom, that is awesome! It you can, tell the Hammond's that I have the 11:40 AM lunch time. I hope I see them! And thanks so much for the package, it was awesome! All the Elders were so happy to get their own loaves of banana bread! If you would like to send more goodies, none of us will deny you :D You are famous here: everyone knows about your absolutely delicious baked goods, even my teachers and Branch President, and sisters not in our zone! Anything you send is coveted, because it brings joy to the soul :D
I love you all! Thanks for all your prayers and everything!
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