November 3, 2013

Dear Family,

I'm so excited to see the family pictures! Thank you so much for doing that, i'm so excited. Could you all write letters to my companion Elder Peralta too? And maybe put a tie in there for him or something as well, please. It would really make his Christmas. Wow those emails were so great, drake is so funny. Sounds like Demi is enjoying jr high as well. Dave and Sam sound like they're close friends now? That's awesome, i love Sam. We saw each other every single day for a whole year with track, football, basketball, and track again, he's great. I'm very excited to see the family pictures at the temple, i just love and miss the mesa temple with all my heart.

You know this last week has just flown by, like always. We had some exchanges last week with zone leaders, i got to go with Elder Sablan from Washington, he's a great leader who has many talents and gifts that the entire mission can benefit from. He really helped me learn how to be more organized and how to structure the work, i'm so grateful for that. I also got to go with the Elder i trained, Elder Malit, who is now my zone leader here in Bacolod Zone. It was great to work with him again, i really saw an improvement in him, which lets me know he has been obedient throughout his mission. That's one of my favorite things with seeing other people or other missionaries again, you will know if they have been obedient to the commandments by the change for better that you see in them. 

On saturday we were pleasured with the presence of Elder Niel L Andersen, which was so unique. Before the program, i was so excited i thought i was going to jump out of my seat. I put so much preparation into this, and got my self personally ready. I just could not sit still before the program started, because it was as if i was going to see my Savior. When he walked in the room, and we all stood up, i recognized him. I recognized the way he talked, the way he moved, the smile on his face, everything. Not just because he had visited before in my home stake, but i felt i had been working with him a lot longer time than just that 2 hours we spent with him on saturday. He shared many things, and focuse don the Atonement of Jesus Christ. The merits, mercy, and grace. The merits of the Savior, when He spent His life here on earth in service of others, and gave His life, so that He could take it again and over come physical death through the Resurrection. The mercy that is only possible through His Atonement that we receive when we repent and the laws of justice are satisfied because He has suffered for all of our sins, and He extends that sacred mercy to us because of His eternal love. And grace, the enabling power of His everlasting Atonement that literally enables us to do things that we could not do on our own that will glorify His name in heaven. When i spent that time with him, the Spirit testified to me that Elder Neil L Andersen is an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, and that Christ lives. I want to feel the same way when i stand before my Savior, shaking because I'm so excited, ready to jump out of my seat. Then when He enters the room, I will stand, and I want to feel like I felt, recognizing Him. I know i can do that if I live His Gospel, and obey His commandments. That's the way we come to know Him, so that in the last day when He calls us, we will know by what name we will be called, even His name. I know He lives family. And I know Him. I hope to continually know Him more and more to the end of my life, because only through Him i can achieve true happiness and success in this life. And how great my responsibility is to share that with others! How great OUR responsibility is! Let's bare His name and stand of witnesses of God at all times and share this Gospel with everyone, especially our family, friends, and other loved ones. I love you family, keep praying for opportunities to share the Gospel, and be ready to swing when Heavenly Father throws you a pitch.

Elder Doane