Dear Mom and Dad,
There isn't anyone that we're teaching regularly to prepare them for baptism, but there are several men coming to a Book of Mormon Study Class we have on Wednesday. Neither of them consider themselves Christian, but they do want to learn more about who Jesus Christ is and why we believe so strongly in Him and in a Heavenly Father. One of them actually commented that all of the members of the Latter Day Saint Church that he knew were all good people that he trusted. Up to this point, he's avoided praying personally for various reasons, which does hinder the ability of the Spirit to testify of truth, but he has at least gained a testimony that members are good people. As we talked further, we concluded after reading scriptures in Moroni 7 that simply speaking a good person is one who will make a good choice when given the choice between good and bad, no matter the situation.
I pray every day that we can all start simple and be "truly good and without guile" as Elder Ringwood of the Seventy taught.
There are plenty of other people who we come into contact with and with whom we are working to create some sort of foundation of trust in the missionaries and interest in the church to go off of. Starting from ground zero is one of the more difficult places to start since there are so many different things that I want to improve so I end of worrying over where to start. It reminds me of one of those really difficult Sudoku puzzles with very few numbers filled in. You start "hypothetically" filling in numbers to see where things go, hit a dead end, back up, and start over without any visible progress to show for it.
Keeping it simple and focusing on a few people has helped us to make a little bit of progress.
To David and Amanda, I love both of you so much, and I know that Adalyn has received a princess's welcome back in her heavenly home! After all, the King of both Heaven and Earth knows each and every one of his precious sons and daughters and certainly would never let even the smallest one go unnoticed. I can think of no better place for such a perfect little girl than sitting in our Heavenly Father's lap!
I too am grateful for the promises that we are given in the temple of the Lord. When we hold out faithful to the covenants we have made, we have been promised eternal life, bound together forever in love with our families. Without those special covenants, we lose the only means by which we can live with our families forever, and a life without family isn't much of a life at all. I love what President Monson has spoken about the temple, "Come! Come to the house of the Lord. Here is found rest for the weary and peace for the soul. The temple prepares all who enter to return homeward-homeward to heaven, homeward to family, homeward to God."
I would invite everyone who hasn't yet entered the temple and received those blessings to not put it off until a later date. Prepare now! Do whatever is necessary to receive those blessings! There is no substitute for the peace of mind and hope that they bring!
With tests coming up, I'm sure that everyone is excited!
Head's up, Bennett! I'll be sending you an email soon!
Love forever and ever,
Elder Christensen
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