Happy Mother's Day!

We got to Skype Elder Carter yesterday! What a handsome fellow! This young man is so thoughtful and kind and super spiritual. It was wonderful to spend an hour talking to him and listening to his voice. I sure miss this kid! When the Skype call began, his voice was like a chipmunk which lasted for a good 15 minutes. We all got a good laugh! We were able to take a family picture before we had to say goodbye. Gotta love this kid! He wants us to tell you that he loves you all and hopes that you are enjoying his mission as much as he is!

Bring it on!!

So, for the mission splitting, it is already under way. The mission home is now in Bismark, I know a few Elders that got transferred to the Omaha mission, so I think it's happening as we speak! Don't know if it is finalized now or if they will continue to move missionaries till the mission office is moved to Bismark (that'll be in july I think?) But we'll see! Hopefully I get transferred to the Billings, Montana mission so that Garian and I can jam out! Well, it's a bit far fetched, but not impossible!!

This has been a super good week! Had a great experience teaching J the Restoration! We taught it to him, and he seemed to agree with it all, than at the end we asked him how important it would be to come to know that what we taught is true, and he said "you know guys, I'm not gonna lie to you, but I don't take mans word for anything. If God wants me to know something, God will let me know. Now, if I thought you guys were gonna teach me anything but the truth, you wouldn't be here right now, but God already told me to listen to you cause you have the truth." So, J is doing swell! We didn't get to meet with the L's this week. G got called into work. Our lesson with Je went super well! The Spirit was super strong as the 3 of us (Sis. L came with us to the lesson) bore testimony of the truth of the BoM and how important it is to know that it is true, and we'll see where that goes this next week!  well, on a less good note, we haven't heard anything from D, and we've heard very little from L, because they both have crazy work schedules....

Friday we were in our street clothes all day! We started the day off by helping a new member move in, and once we finished that we helped another member move 3 tons of concrete (by hand, by the way. I'm hurting still....) to the dump, than we helped an investigator named M sand his wood floors! It was a good day, super good!

So, there is a lady that the Sisters are teaching who was excommunicated from the church a long time ago, and she stopped coming for a while. Her 16 year old son has been active for a while now, and she started coming to church again. She has realized how badly she needs this gospel back in her life, and she has been working super hard to get back into the church, and, as usual, Satan has been trying super hard to keep her from doing so. Her husband is a former preacher of another church, and he has been loading her full of anti-literature, but every time he does, she throws it back at him (in a metaphorical sense) and shows to him that it is Biblical, that his church should be practicing that too, but they don't. For the past while this has been going on, and when she made the decision to be baptized, she said that she knew the devil was going to throw a lot at her, and she said out loud "Bring it on!! The harder you try, the harder I push back and the more I realize that this is the truth! Hit me with your best shot, and I'll dish it back! Try me, I dare you!" this Sunday (mothers day) she is going to be baptized by her son. She has been such a great example of faith in the face of trials. Trusting God no matter what comes her way. Casting aside worldly fear and letting her love for her Father in Heaven and His son, Jesus Christ, be her guide and her support. Showing how when we rely on the Savior, he will make our stumbling blocks become stepping stones, so that we can grow and become more like Him.

Many people have asked (I have probably already brought this up in the past) why God lets bad things happen to good people. Why he heals some and not others, why some die while others live, yet we have the audacity to call him a loving Father. What kind of Father lets bad things happen to his children? Pres. Spencer W. Kimball answered that very question by saying "If all the sick were healed, if all the righteous were protected and the wicked destroyed, the whole program of the Father would be annulled, and the basic principle of the Gospel, free agency, would be ended." As I said a few weeks ago, our purpose is to grow. The Plan of Salvation makes that very clear. Brad Wilcox in a BYU address called "His Grace is Sufficient", said this. "Heaven will not be heaven for those who have not chosen to be heavenly... As I come to a better understanding of the Plan of Redemption, then the more I realize, in the Final Judgement it will not be the unrepentant sinner begging Jesus "let me stay, let me stay." No. He will probably be saying "Get. Me. Out of here." Knowing Christs Character, if anyone is oging to be begging on that occasion, it will be Jesus, begging the unrepentant sinner "Please. Choose to stay. Please, use my Atonement. Not just to be cleansed, but to be changed so that you want to stay."

"The miracle of the Atonement is not just that we can go home, but that, miraculously, we can feel at home there." Earlier, in the same address, he said that the purpose of Grace is change. "Jesus doesn't make up the difference. Jesus makes all the difference. Grace is not about filling gaps, it is about filling us....  No unclean thing can dwell in the presence of God. But no unchanged thing will even want to."

Well, since I've already started using a bunch of quotes, might as well keep going! here are some of the ones I've found!

"Wisdom comes through effort. All good things require effort.  That which is worth having will cost part of your physical being, your intellectual power, and your soul power. 'Ask and ye shall recieve, knock and it shall be opened unto you.' But you have to seek. You have to knock... Evil seeks you and it requires effort and fortitude to combat it.  But truth and wisdom are gained only by seeking, by prayer, and by effort." - Pres. Spencer W. Kimball

"In urging us to be perfect as our Father in Heaven is perfect, Jesus was not taunting or teasing us.  He was telling us a powerful truth about our possibilities and about our potential... Jesus, who could not lie, sought to beckon us to move further along the pathway to perfection." - See above

"Temper tantrums are not cute, even in children. They are despicable in adults, especially adults that are supposed to love each other." - Elder Jeffrey R. Holland

"Think the best of each other, especially of those you say you love.  Assume the good, and doubt the bad." - see above

"Our faith must not be difficult to detect.  yes, in that Great and final hour, if we say we are believers, than we surely better be demonstrating it." - J. Ruben Clark

When a man accused the Prophet Joseph Smith of seeking power, he responded "In relation to the power over the minds of mankind which I hold, I would say, it is in consequence of the power of truth in the doctrines which I have been an instrument in the hands of God of presenting unto them, and not because of any compulsion on my part... I ask, did I ever exercise any compulsion over any man? Did I not give him the liberty of disbelieving any doctrine I have preached, if he saw fit? Why do not my enemies strike a blow at the doctrine? They cannot do it: it is truth, and I defy all men to upset it." - Teachings of the Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith, 284

A man in the legislature asked the Prophet Joseph how he governed so many people and maintained such perfect order, "remarking at the same time that it was impossible for them to do it anywhere else, Mr. Smith remarked that it was very easy to do that. 'How?' responded the gentlemen: 'to us it is very difficult.' Mr. Smith replied, 'I teach them correct principles, and they govern themselves.'" - see above

"Profanity... is an evidence of poverty of intellect, and... of vocabulary." - Elder Hugh B. Brown

Well, now that you are overloaded with quotes, I best be going. Love you all!

Elder Carter

My posterior hurts like crazy....

So, JS still couldn't make it to church. He had to go to Fargo for a doctor's appointment... But, we're going to go to his house before he leaves for his surgery (gallbladder removal) and say a prayer with him. He's kinda worried. Didn't have any contact with L&S since his job is doing all of it's big changes this week. He got promoted!! D is working like crazy, so we only get to see him once outside of church.

This week we did a lot of tracting, and a lot of contacting. We rode our bikes this week! I'm just gonna buy E. Edwards from him when he leaves, cause the one I have is just a cheap Wal-mart bike. My posterior hurts like crazy.... the seat it came with is the devil... but it was nice to be on a bike again!

There were a lot of people that wanted to Bible Bash with us this week, asking us to "Prove it in the Bible" and i've noticed a common trend. First, proof does not convert, only an open mind and a contrite spirit that is willing to listen to the Holy Spirit bearing witness to you of the truth can cause you to truly believe. We can show them Bible verses that "prove" that what we say is true, but they won't believe it because they don't want to. Second, it's all the same. No one is that creative. they all ask the same questions, give us the same bible verses, and say "see, that proves that you are wrong" to which we respond "we believe the Bible to be the word of God, not just part, not just what we want, but all of it. Lets flip to [fill in the black] where Christ sheds some light on what is being said here." to which, they will respond with "oh, well when he said that, he didn't really mean it that way." So often we are accused of not believing the whole bible, yet when we give them the answer in the bible, they throw it away as if it doesn't matter. We had someone give us a verse, and before we could say anything, the person next to them says "ope, looks like you guys will have to cross that verse out of your bible since you don't believe it". And then, as we try to enlighten them, they refuse to listen and change the subject to another verse in the bible that seems to "contradict" what we believe. Interestingly enough, during one of those sessions of bashing, there was an innocent bystander, K, who knows very little about the church, who would try to get them to calm down and actually listen to us, and they wouldn't give her the time of day to say anything. After it was all over, they left, and we stuck around a little longer talking to K. After a little, she turns to us as we're about to leave, and says "I don't know how you guys do it! It is just so amazing! You just spent 2 hours being yelled at, not being given the time of day to defend yourselves and plead your case, and you stayed completely calm the whole time! Don't get me wrong, I love those 2 to death, but there were times that I wanted to just dive across the table and shake some sense into them, and I had no idea what they were talking about half the time! You guys are just so amazing, and they don't realize it!" we were beat red when she finished. I've never felt so bashful in my life! But, it's amazing to see what other people notice, that even if you didn't pay that much attention, they did.

Well, that's about the only adventure I've had this week! Here are some quotes! I don't remember If I shared any of these in the past....

"We cannot do the Lords work in the worlds way. 

"A vague creed can only come from a vague God.  the Ten Commandments didn't say 'thou shalt be a good person,' it was specific."--Elder Neil A. Maxwell

"Is it any wonder that whenever we face the bitter endings of life, they seem unacceptable to us? There seems to be something inside of us that resists endings.

Why is this? Because we are made of the stuff of eternity. We are eternal beings, children of the Almighty God, whose name is Endless‍ and who promises eternal blessings without number. Endings are not our destiny.

The more we learn about the gospel of Jesus Christ, the more we realize that endings here in mortality are not endings at all. They are merely interruptions—temporary pauses that one day will seem small compared to the eternal joy awaiting the faithful.

How grateful I am to my Heavenly Father that in His plan there are no true endings, only everlasting beginnings." President Dieter F. Uchtdorf.

There are way more coming for the weeks ahead, I just need to better organize them so that I can put them on in an orderly manner!

Love you all and miss you loads!

Elder Carter V

"Well, nothing changed, but the Lord called, so I must answer."

Alright, so I failed to clarify things again.... Sorry! 

So, our investigator that watched Conference, who moved from Iowa and was taught by the missionaries there. We are teaching him, and he will be baptized in the beginning of May!!! We got a call from JS Saturday night, and he asked us if he could come to church with us, and of course we said yes, but when we went to pick him up, he wasn't home and his phone was off. We stopped by after church and he told us he was in Fargo and his phone had died, but we had a good chat and we are gonna meet with him on Tuesday. He is super solid and has an amazing foundation on Jesus Christ and his Atonement and who God is. I don't know why he attends the church he does, cause he doesn't agree with a lot of things they do... L and S are amazing! S knows so much! She could teach most of the lesson and we could just sit back and watch! L is doing so good. I don't remember if I said this, but L came to church last week after telling us he wouldn't be able to make it. When we asked what changed and how he was able to come, he said "well, nothing changed, but the Lord called, so I must answer." So, that essentially sums up L! He came to church again this week and he is soaking the Gospel in like crazy! 

So, the Langemo's lesson went pretty good, but not exactly how we thought it would. We had given them the Restoration pamphlet to read in preparation for our lesson, and when we got there, BJ (the mother) said she had some questions. She essentially told us she was raised to be a skeptic, so she is being just that. She asked if anyone was there to witness the vision Joseph had of God and Jesus Christ, and of course we said no, and she gave us that look, than later asked what happened to the Gold Plates that the Book of Mormon came from, and we answered they were taken up to heaven, which she gave us that look again, so I asked her "BJ, if I were to put the plates on the table right now, would you believe then?" to which she responded with "Yeah, I would" and I gave her that look that all parents give over their glasses when their kids lie to them, and than she said "well, no I wouldn't". We testified of the truth of our message, and told them not to take our word for it, but to read the BoM and pray about it, just as James in the New Testament says. Gene, the father, said he would, and M, their 13 year old daughter asked if she could have a copy of the BoM too. Than, when it was BJ's turn to respond, she simply said that she doesn't want to be rude, but she won't read it because she is comfortable in her ways. Than M, with a bit of a grin on her face, turns to her and says "well that's your problem. You can't change if you are comfortable." So, the lesson may not have gone the way we had expected, but it went pretty good. the spirit was there, and that is the most important part.

Well, something else I have run into a lot out here is the people who when you mention a prophet leading a world wide church, they always talk about how "no matter how pure he may seem, he is still a man, and unless the church is led by God himself, it will have the impure hands of man on it and things will be done wrong." That is what is so amazing about the Restoration. Throughout the Great Apostasy (the time ranging from the death of the Apostles up till 1820) man had his hands aaaaaallllll over the doctrines taught by Christ. The book of Romans in the New Testimant was a letter from the Apostle Paul to the leader of the church in Rome. For those of you who have read Romans, you will know that Paul is rebuking the leader who that letter is to, talking about changing doctrines and Ordinances (such as baptism and it's essential part in our salvation. see john 3:5). Over centuries, doctrine was changed, and there was no one like the Prophets of old to lead the church with direct revelation from God, someone who had the authority (or Priesthood) to make the changes that they did. That Priesthood was restored through a Prophet, just as God has always done throughout all of time. He called prophets like Adam, Noah, Moses, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and even (or should I say especially) Christ himself, to straighten out the false traditions of their fathers. When man gets a hold of something, they change it to fit what they want. When God calls a man to guide us, it is "for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;" (Ephesians 4:12-14) There was never a time that needed a prophet more than today. Who God calls, he qualifies. God has always called men to guide his church, and he has never been wrong. Not to say that the prophets he called didn't make mistakes, but they never led the church astray. That is how it still works. "God is the same yesterday, today, and forever." Hugh B. Brown once asked a man why God doesn't speak to man anymore like he used to. He continued by giving a few answers to his own question. He said, in essence, "Maybe it's because we don't need him. Or maybe it's because he doesn't love us anymore. He has abandoned us. Maybe it's because we have to fend for ourselves and just figure it out by wandering around in darkness." All of these are not the case, because he does speak to men again today. Pres. Uchtdorf said "Compared to God, man is nothing; yet we are everything to God." He would never abandon us, nor would he allow us to be led astray by the "sleight of men, and cunning craftiness whereby they lie in wait to deceive". Than, some might ask "no God that is loving would make only 1 church true. he would never do that." Christ said "Straight is the gate, and narrow the way that leads to eternal life." (I believe that is also in John 3? Can't remember off the top of my head) And that also is a great question. God wants all of His children to return to him, but he knows that that can't happen, because he has given us all our agency. that is why this church is a world wide church. That is why there are 86,000 missionaries in the world today, preaching the good word of God to all nations, in all tongues, to all people. Never was it easier to find truth than it is today, as long as you search with all you've got. God is not the author of confusion.

And, there I go again. Maybe next week i will have time to share some of the quotes I found! I've got a ton now, since it's been a few weeks since I shared any....

Hope all is well, I miss you all, and love you loads!

Elder Carter V

That chick is gonna turn into an amazing dog one day isn't it?!

So, to answer some questions about the beautiful spring we are having up here, Valley City (is well named first off) is probably the only place in ND that has a ton of trees and a ton of hills. But once you leave the 3 sq. Miles that it takes up, you have grass land and farm land as far as the eye can see. But up until this week, the grass has been dead, and the trees still haven't bloomed.

This week has been an eye opener. The last little while, we have been struggling to find people to teach, but we know that if we put forth the effort, the Lord will bless us, and He did!! In the last 2 weeks we have found many people being prepared to receive the Gospel, and some people that we have taught in the past have received an answer to their prayers and are making those changes (I'll go into more detail about that in a bit)! We found this guy JH as we were walking past, we decided to go up and talk to him while he was having a smoke on his porch, and as we walked up, he said "I knew it! I knew you were gonna come talk to me! I saw your car pull up down the street, and thought 'These are messengers from God, come to tell me the good word!!' What have you got to say to me? Cause God told me to listen!!!" He is super funny, and we could hardly get a word in edgewise cause he told us his whole life story, that apologized for doing so, and said "God has just been so good to me and I can't help but tell everyone I see about it!!" We're meeting with him tomorrow! He's a swell guy! We met a few other people that said they were interested, but didn't have the time right then, so we're looking forward to teaching them!

So, found out that J might be moving to California (quite possibly San Diego), but he has been so busy we haven't been able to meet with him or hardly even talk to him, so we'll see what happens. L is doing amazing! I don't remember what I've said about him before, but essentially, when we first met with him, and we asked about his religious beliefs, he basically said he doesn't believe in a God, but he has seen some good changes in his wife as she has been coming back into activity in the church, and he wanted to see why. S, his wife, was in Idaho at the time and had no idea he had been investigating the church. He went to pick her up, and while they were there, their 5 month old daughter was blessed in Sacrament meeting. Apparently L felt the spirit testify to him, and when we had our 2nd lesson this last Thursday, we asked how reading and praying to know if the Book of Mormon is true has been going for him, and he said "Well, you know, I haven't really been praying specifically about it, but I have noticed some.... 'coincidences'. Since I've been investigating, everything is going my way, and nothing ever goes my way." then he gave us a huge smile, told us many more "coincidences", and with each one, his smile got bigger. As we taught the lesson, he bore small testimonies here and there about God, and how kind and loving he really is. It was amazing to witness!

A few weeks back we tracted into the super nice family, and we've been back 3 times now. the first time (obviously) we were unexpected, so we shared a quick message than set up another appointment. The next week, when we got to their house, they fed us dinner (which hardly ever happens with nonmembers! It's usually the members that feed us!) and we ran out of time, so we shared another brief message about Easter, since that was the week of Easter, and then this last week, we went over and G wasn't home from work yet, so we sat and talked with the rest of the family, and waited for him to get home. We had a great time getting to know them, then we saw that it had been an hour since we arrive, and thought we should head out and not overstay our welcome. BUT!! this next week, we are going to share the message of the Restoration no matter what, cause it'll all work out this time haha!

We also taught A again this week, and I realized something while talking to him. First off, Christ said "My peace I give unto you, not as the world giveth give I unto you". That peace doesn't mean there will be no war, no contention, as the world would have us believe. That peace comes as we understand the role of the Savior in our lives, but His role loses power if we don't understand vital points of doctrine that had been lost through centuries of apostasy, such as where we came from, why we are here, and where we are going, and most importantly, a true understanding of who God is. Starting with the where from, we are all sons and daughters of the Most High. We were born, in spirit,of a perfect being. Like things beget like things. A man was gathering the newborn chicks in his coop with his young daughter, when he looked at her and said "that chick is gonna turn into an amazing dog one day isn't it?" The girl looked at him with a look like of impatience, then said "no. It's gonna grow up to be a chicken." Then the father smiles, and says "yes. You're right. Chickens beget chickens. Dogs beget dogs." That is an eternal principle. We were commanded by the Savior to be "perfect, even as my Father in Heaven is perfect." Thus, we know it is possible, because God gives "no commandment unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." (1 Nephi 3:7) Aaaaaand in enters The Christ. "The Way" for us to "become perfect, even as [His] Father in Heaven is perfect". Now, jumping to who God is, if the Savior and Heavenly Father were the same person, the submission that Christ showed as he atoned for our sins completely looses its strength. He cried out, asking God to "remove this cup from me. Never the less, not my will, by thine be done." If he were the same person or being as God, he no longer is being submissive, but doing his own will. Now, to why we are here, we wanted to come here, to gain a physical body, so that we could become like our Father. We had progressed as far as we could, and now, it was time for step 2. We knew we would experience pain, sorrow, affliction, temptation, but that is how we grow. Now, no unclean thing can enter God's presence (where we are going), so we needed a Savior, a Mediator, someone to pay the price of our sins so that we can be made perfect. We are here on earth to experience trials, but most importantly to overcome them. As we rely "wholly upon the merits of Him who is mighty to save", this is all made possible. Now, that is a quick and poorly summed up tangent, but that's the way my brain works (as you probably know). When we come to know these things, we can experience true peace, lasting peace. While teaching A, he would tell us to "Dispense with those things", which are the things that bring that peace that the Savior promised. He is so scared of so many things, but in the same breath tells us that none of it matters, because death is just a beginning. He has tried to find peace "as the world givith", but it cannot be found there. As we come to know our Savior, and our Father in Heaven, we can have that peace, that despite what happens, we can always rely on Him, because we know who they are, and who WE are, and that They will never abandon us. 

Well, food for thought. Wish I had more time to organize my thoughts better, but that is about all the time I have dang it..... Sorry I didn't put the references for most of those quotes from the scriptures... again, didn't have the time.....

I love you all very much and miss you greatly!! Sorry if I'm all scatter brained!

elder Carter V

Every day, Every day, Every day

Alright, General Conference was fantastic. Can I get an Amen? My favorite talk was either Elder Ucthdorfs about "Grace" on Sunday, or the guy that said "Every day, Every day, Every day" (I can't remember his name....).

So, the mission office address is 2525 West Main Street, Suite 311 Rapid City, SD 57702. So, from now on, mail everything there, just in case I'm transferred (which won't happen for probably 3 more months at the earliest)

This week has been pretty darn good, but it's kind of jumbled due to conference.... I'm still kind of hung over from it..... Nice weather for part of the week though! Than back to the 20's and 30's. J is doing the same.... He is still J. Got a new job and loves coming to church. We helped a guy sheet rock his basement, and while we were doing so, he told us that we are "worse than any other religion, including Muslims and Jews, because we are so close to the truth, but we contradict important parts in the Bible", and, instead of getting defensive, which is my natural tendency, I actually felt like he meant it in the nicest way possible. Maybe the reason it didn't sting, or make me want to correct him, was because he was wrong about his responses, and we had the answers to his questions, and hopefully we can come and answer some of his concerns. He knows the Bible like no one else I know, but, the coolest part about having a religion that is led by Christ himself through a prophet, is that there can be no contradictions since God cannot contradict Himself. that was a pretty common theme in Conference too! There will always be unanswered questions, but don't doubt what you already know to be true just because you don't know the answer to something you can't yet understand. Perspective is vital. If we can keep an eternal perspective, all things will be "meted unto us".

Well, I don't really have much to say this week... hopefully next week my brain "un-fogs" and I'll be able to think strait again haha!

 General Conference quotes (just some quick ones haha)

“Be rooted in the Gospel and regular in its practices.” [Elder Oaks]

“Be bold in speaking FOR Marriage.” [Elder Perry] 

“The Plan of Happiness is an enabling plan” [Elder Christofferson] 

“God cares about who we are becoming, not who we once were” [Elder Renlund]

“The Family strengthens our ability to follow the Savior” [Elder Cook]. 

“Temples are a place of beauty, order, respite and peace; the blessings of the temple are priceless” [President Monson] 

“There will always be questions with no answers, so focus on what you know” [Sister Wixom] 

“On Easter the destiny of all of God’s children changed. Grace is an endowment of strength” [President Uchtdorf] 

“The faithful use of agency depends on Religious Freedom” [Elder Hales] 

“The Lord is doing His own work” [Elder Andersen] 

“The Sabbath is a perpetual Covenant” [Elder Nelson]

Love and miss you all!!

Elder Carter V

False alarm hehe

So, I am still in VC, which means, unless something crazy happens, I will be here for another 3 months, maybe 4 1/2! Crazy! We do have to watch our miles, we keep track of them monthly. We are given a certain amount of miles for the month, and we thought it would be a good time to go to the towns around VC! 

So, I've done some thinking, and anyone that sends me something should send it to the mission home, just in case I get transfered, they will know and will send it to me. I'll send the address next week haha! I don't have it with me right now...

Alright everyone, I'm sure you don't need a reminder, but General Conference is coming up soon, and it's going to be AWESOME!!! I was listening to a talk by Elder Holland (I think) and he talked about what people used to do to hear a prophets voice. They would travel for miles, just at the chance of seeing the prophet. So many people came to hear Kind Benjamin that they couldn't all fit in the Temple, so they built a tower so that more could hear, and then they realized that there were still people so far away they couldn't hear him, despite being packed in super tight. The King had scribes write down his words and read them to those people. They brought tents so that they could just stay the night and hear his words the next day. After Christ's death, despite the persicution from the Roman's AND the Jews (which was practicaly everybody), when an Apostle was in town and called a "conference", hundreds came. And we, in this "dispensation of dispensations" get to sit at home on a couch in our PJ's wrapped in a blanket with our whole family, no matter where we are in the world, and we get to hear every word and get to rewind and review. Isn't this the coolest time to be alive?!?!

Well, J came to church this week, but S couldn't cause she went to New Orleans to visit his family. He still struggles with prophetic council, and not only today, but the stuff of ancient times. Long story short, he takes what he wants, and disposes with the rest. He sees the blessings of keeping the commandments that he does so he keeps doing those, but doesn't want to do keep those that he... well, doesn't want to keep.

The new Easter video is out! Check out Helives.mormon.org !! It's awesome! super good!

Other than that....... there really isn't anything else going on here. Lots of finding, tracting, etc. Most people just aren't interested in watching a short 3 minute video about Jesus Christ that can only help build your faith in him, which I still find crazy. We did go to a Lutheran church on Thursday and watched a Passion play, called "He's Alive". It was something I have never experienced before, but it was kinda fun to meet the people there.

Well, here is a quote for the week. Just something to think about as we get closer to conference:
"35  And now, my beloved brethren, if this be the case that these things are true which I have spoken unto you, and God will show unto you, with power and great glory at the last day, that they are true, and if they are true has the day of miracles ceased?

36  Or have angels ceased to appear unto the children of men? Or has he withheld the power of the Holy Ghost from them? Or will he, so long as time shall last, or the earth shall stand, or there shall be one man upon the face thereof to be saved?

37  Behold I say unto you, Nay; for it is by faith that miracles are wrought; and it is by faith that angels appear and minister unto men; wherefore, if these things have ceased wo be unto the children of men, for it is because of unbelief, and all is vain." - Moroni 7:35-37

Love and miss you guys loads!!

Elder Carter V