Hello Everybody,
Things have warmed up quite a bit this week. Today it's in the fifties. No complaints from me.
Things have been going well. We've been teaching an investigator the stop smoking workshop and meeting with her quite a bit. She's coming along well, and we've been helping her with all of her concerns.
Saturday Dena went to the temple to do baptisms for the dead. I wasn't able to make it to that nor was I able to make it to her confirmation, but that's alright. As much as I'd love to, it's probably good to stay in my area as much as possible and not keep feeling like I belong in Hannibal. I visited there this past week on exchanges, and it was great. We taught a lesson/gave a church tour to a lady that they've started teaching since I've left. It went really well, and she kept saying she had no questions, but I could just tell there was something off about her. I love the gift of discernment and the Spirit and all I've been taught and I have learned up to this point, because I was able to tell by the look in her eyes and face and the feeling that while the lesson was going well, there was something she had on her mind. Finally, I stopped the lesson and, despite all of the times she had said she had no questions, said "I can tell you have a question, what is it?" She seemed taken off guard, but she answered my question with her question, and, eventually, through even more searching questions, got her real concern out: polygamy. At that point we were able to give her our heartfelt testimony's and spirit-guided answers and, of course, reverted back to the fact that all of the deeper stuff of the gospel hangs, solely, on gaining a testimony of the Book of Mormon. With that comes so much, as is stated in the introduction to that marvelous book. After having her question answered as fully as is possible, she was very relieved. The next day we met with Dena and helped answer her questions, and also saw the investigator family I worked with there. The father has been doing a lot of reading and visiting everybody was really sweet. I accidentally referred to that family's house as home.... I miss Hannibal. I know I'm supposed to be in Quincy, but I love the people there so much and it's so nice to know that they love me, too. And while I missed Dena going to the temple for the first time, she says I should come down and go with her to do baptisms when she moves to Texas to be with her husband. She moves this next week. She loved the temple so much and said that, despite all of the stresses and things that tried to get in the way of her going and everything, as soon as she stepped through the doors, she was at peace.
Love is the beginning, middle, and end of this work. It's everything. Love is the reason we're here. Without it, there would be no atonement, no mercy, no creation in the first place. There would be no reason to try to serve others, to go on a mission, to even live. As corny as I always have seen love, it's really EVERYTHING. God, our Heavenly Father, loves us so much.
Anyway, I get to be on a soapbox daily, I'll spare you any further soapboxiness.
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"For business reasons I must preserve the outward signs of sanity." -Mark Twain
Love, Elder Charlie Gates
PS Make Mormon.org accounts. I'll have mine finished soon.
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