Have Your Heart in the Journey

Hello!

This week was great! Not everything worked out perfectly, but we were able to see a lot of tender mercies. We met with Wes this past week, and the lesson went really well. Wes's less-active wife, Eva, was there as well, so we were able to teach most of their family. We discussed the Restoration with them, and the Spirit was very strong. We talked to Wes about being sealed in the Temple, and he said it is what he wants for his family. We talked to him about the path to get to the temple, and how baptism is the first step. He said he would like to be baptized, and he is going to do so on November 15th! He truly wants the best for his family, and it is going to be amazing to see how they are going to grow closer together as they are all trying to be more like the Savior.

We were trying to contact some of the people that our Bishop does not personally know last Thursday. We visited somebody that said the person we were looking for does not live there anymore. We asked her how long they had lived there, and she said they had just moved from Brazil about a month before. They had talked to a couple of missionaries there and knew a little about the church, but had never invited the missionaries over to teach them. She invited us to come back on Saturday and meet with her husband. We came back and met with him, and we were able to talk to him for a bit. It was very nice because he was very friendly and open to us! We taught him about the Restoration of the Gospel, and he was very attentive during the entire lesson. He told us that he doesn't accept everything at this point, but he does want to know if it is true. We are planning on meeting with him again tonight, so we hope he has been reading the Book of Mormon and praying in order to receive his answer!

As I was studying this morning I ran across the doctrine of conversion. A principle was really impressed upon me; in order to become converted our desire to follow the Savior must increase continually. Action alone is not enough. We MUST have our heart in the journey as well. M. Russell Ballard wrote "...you find yourself wanting to do what He would do and respond as He would respond in an effort to bring your life into harmony with His." I know that Christ lived a perfect, sinless life. It is for that reason that I feel so much joy and peace when I follow and direct my heart towards Him. As I follow the example of Christ, the Spirit confirms to me that the way of life I am living is good. Alma once said "...it is discernible, therefore you must know that it is good." (Alma 32:35). I have never seen Jesus Christ, but I don't need to in order to prove all of His teaching to be true! I can discern that I feel good when I follow the Savior, so what else do I need? I know the way to pure happiness is by following Christ's example. I encourage you all to direct your thoughts and desires towards the Savior a little more today, and then recognize how you feel. There is no better way to live!

From the desk of...

Elder Nielsen