June 30, 2013

Family!

Thank you so much for all the birthday wishes. It was so great, we spent the whole day out serving people and teaching the Gospel, I could not ask for a better way to spend a birthday rather than being in the service of the Lord. Sounds like you're all doing so well! I'm so happy for Dave being able to go to Idaho, and Drake going on a date, and Demi sounds like she's doing so well with her Book of Mormon reading, I know that's going to bless her life so much. Mom and dad, thank you for sharing that with me about you two making a goal to go to the temple once a month, I can not tell you how happy that made me when i saw that. I know that through doing that, and being reminded of your covenants, you will draw nearer to the Holy Ghost and the Spirit will be more abundant in our home! I can not believe Colton is home, it sounds like he's already an apostle, which does not surprise me at all. Will you tell him i love him for me? I haven't gotten an email from him yet, I'm sure he's just way busy saying hi to everyone that loves him. He's really served an honorable and full time mission, He really set the example for our group of friends.

The mission is just too great. Last week we had zone conference, President Lopez just shared some wonderful things that really changed my mission. We also got to watch the worldwide training that the church had, what an amazing and uplifting video no? Have you gotten to watch it yet? If not please do, it really counsels us on how to keep our baptismal covenants through being a witness of God at all times and all things and all places. Seriously, please watch it if you haven't gotten the chance. I really learned a lot from it, especially about the importance of going about doing good. I never really gave that very much credit in the first year of my mission. Of course I looked for opportunities to help people with unplanned acts of service, but i never really searched, and prayed for opportunities to serve others and really represent Christ's name. But last week I learned the power of going about doing good, especially as a representative of the Lord, and how powerful it is! The Lord will place those in our path who are being prepared to receive the Gospel if we really pray, and search for opportunities to go about doing good. That can be through service, our words, what we wear, everything about us! We are a peculiar people you know. The Lord will go before us, as long as we are being obedient, and prepare those people to notice our actions, even our words, and be influenced to recieve the restored Gospel. I know this is true! Don't believe me? Try it. I promise you, you will feel SO happy after you notice those people that the Lord is preparing for us. That happened numerous times last week, as the Lord put people in my path to help in small and simple ways. And it's made my mission 50x better, as i've repented and become more like the Savior.

We're really focusing on the power of the Book of Mormon here in punta salong. We only have like 5 or 6 real active members in our area, and we're trying to establish a group out here. So we're actually focusing on strengthening the leaders in the main ward through the Book of Mormon, then through that they will be more inspired and have a great desire to help in Punta Salong. It says in Preach My Gospel that as we gain a greater understanding of the Atonement we will gain a greater desire to share the Gospel, and I believe that is true, so we are trying to strengthen others understanding by encouraging them to study and feast upon the words of Christ, which are in the Book of Mormon. We actually shared that to one of the high council men in the stake in our meeting with him on sunday, he was so impressed and uplifted through that as well, and said that's what they will implement into the stake in order to strengthen the leaders as well. I just have such a strong testimony of this work. The Restoration of the Gospel is so real. The Book of Mormon is evidence of it, that we can read, ponder, and pray to find out the truth. Joseph Smith is a prophet of God. Our loving Heavenly Father is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and is a God of Miracles. How blessed are we to know all this? If we could study in the Book of Mormon every day, we would be reminded of all these great doctrines and restored truths in our church, and would be more inspired and motivated to go about doing good. Preaching the Gospel, and when necessary, using words. I love you all family! And Colton, I respect that.

Love,

Elder Doane