I am so proud of the faith and courage Monqiue showed this week. her family was very hesitant of accepting her after being baptized, but she continued on faithfully and her mom and sister came to her baptismal service Saturday night and It seemed like her little sister really felt the spirit. Her sister came to church with her Sunday.
Brother Gilmore has been less active for a few years. He's 26, manages a local Walmart and spends all of his spare time playing online video games. His fantasy land has extended a bit too far, because he really hasn't come to terms with the fact that he's not really active at church. He's met with the missionaries quite a bit, and his non-member girlfriend with him, they finally made it to church this past Sunday, and honestly I think felt really uncomfortable the whole time. They're not used to such public settings, I guess we can just hope they'll get acclimated with time!
Brother Richard made church again, he seems to actually be changing his work schedule around the church times. He is heading to Laredo this week so we're praying he stays on track to be baptized the 20th. He still has huge Word of Wisdom struggles to overcome. His wife has high anxiety of meeting new people, so I have still never seen her. I guess she has no plans of quitting cigarettes, so only miracles will allow him to do it alone.
I'm feeling hesitant to let my teenage years move by.. and the frustrating part is I can't pause and savor them a little more. I'll turn 20 soon enough and that's that, I'll be living with one foot in the grave, basically dead. Haha.
My favorite experience from this last week was with the Acosta Family. They invited us to dinner, we talked a lot about prayer. They had been taught by missionaries twice in the past 4 years, and let us in because they preferred Spanish. A crucial first conversion point is for the head of the family to say a prayer asking God to know if Joseph Smith is a prophet. Brother Acosta had never prayed out loud and no missionary could make him, haha. We invited after much testimony and explanation that we could not receive his answer for him, but that he can receive an answer for his family, we invited every member of the family to kneel, and had each 6 people in the family say a prayer, thanking for one thing and asking for one thing. It was a special experience to hear each child thank for their father and for the hard work that he did for them. The father then prayed and asked to know if what we shared was true. There was a sweet spirit in the room.
My understanding of priesthood power increased a little more this week. God makes covenants with his children. He always has. He hopes that we will live our lives righteously and die in the faith so we'll be prepared to live in his presence. Living righteously is living by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. He has taught us me must be baptized to be saved after this life. In baptism we accept the conditions of his first covenant or sacred promise. We promise to remember Jesus Christ, take his name upon us, and obey all of the commandments. God predetermines the conditions of this agreement and regulates its acceptance through his priesthood power. The Keys of his priesthood ensure that all those that enter into his binding agreement do so with a full knowledge and desire to do so. Those who accept it without the correct authority are then not held under higher condemnation as would a covenant breaker. Those under covenant receive the additional and necessary assistance of the comforter throughout their life to guide them through the life long process of repentance as they live the principles of the Gospel. In addition God then can distinguish who is in his flock (Have taken Christs name upon them by authority and serve Christ) from those who aren't yet. Ultimately those baptized by authority and receive the gift of the holy ghost by that same authority can be "Sealed His" by the Holy Ghost or the spirit of promise, and not sealed by the spirit of the devil.
There are holes in my explanation, but God regulates his ordinances and covenants through his priesthood, which power and authority can only be exercised upon terms which he too has determined.
I love you!
Stay Salty!
All in!
Elder Tyler Meidell
Elder Tyler Meidell
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