Remi has been such an amazing example of not being afraid to talk to people about his beliefs and religion. Back in December, he started a deep conversation with a friend (in the hottub of course!) and this conversation ended up changing his friend's life. Over the next few months, the three of us met with missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Every lesson we participated in helped my faith and conviction grow. I think what makes me nervous about talking about our beliefs as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is that we have a lot of responsibility on our shoulders. God has asked a lot of his followers, and that is intimidating sometimes. As I sit here thinking about typing out my feelings, I keep getting the impression that this is an area that I can do better on. Watching somebody accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ so easily and see how positively it has affected his life has been the perfect little kick in the booty that I needed! Sharing is Caring yall. When you have something that makes you better, why not talk about it?? You never know who is listening or who is ready to hear. God helps us hear what we need to hear through the words of his children (that's us!). We are all God's children and he loves each and every one of us. He KNOWS us. He knows what your struggles are and what your strengths are. He wants to help you become like him, and even though that path is uphill and will be hard, He will be there every step of the way, guiding you and directing you. Because He loves you. More than you can know.
Back to Zach, Remi's friend. He made the decision to be baptized pretty early on in his lessons. The Holy Ghost (Holy Spirit) testified to all of us of the truthfullness of the words, messages, and commandments that were being shared. He asked Remi to baptize him and I know that this event will forever bond these two men.
 |
| Love these Goofballs |
 |
| Elder Webb, Elder Sherwood, Zach, Bethany, Remi, and Elder Tryon |
 |
| Zach and his Family |
Nothing compares to the absolute JOY that comes from watching and being a part of someone giving themselves to Christ: To Promise to follow all of his commandments, to help those in need, to do everything they can to be like Him. We are all Children of a Heavenly Father who Loves each and every one of us.
We were in church a few weeks ago and we were talking about blessings and obedience. Sister Lewis said that she had looked up what the websters definition of Blessed was and it is "to be made holy". My understanding of Holy is to become more like God. This completely changed the way I look at blessings. Elder Uchdorf or the Quorum of the twelve apostles, gave a talk in the April General Conference 2014 about being grateful in every circumstance (found at https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2014/04/grateful-in-any-circumstances?lang=eng&query= ). In this talk he tells us to just be grateful, not because of what we have been given, but because being grateful will make us happy. When we acknowledge that God is the reason that we are alive every single day, no matter how hard each day may be, we are alive and have a God who loves us, and we really do have so much to be grateful for. I looked up blessing and the definition read "God's favor and protection". I truly believe that Obedience brings Blessings. Obeying God will bring us closer to Him, it will bring us in favor with Him, and he will Protect us. He wants us to be safe and He wants us to be close to Him.
I am so grateful for the reminders to be better and do better and I hope that I can do a better job of opening my mouth and sharing my beliefs with others. The things we hold most dear to us are the very things that can bless (bring closer to God) the lives of others. We can all be God's hands if we will prepare and listen.
