Yes, it is all right for you to send my package straight to
our house, because it will probably arrive this week.[1]
Transfers are next week, but I don't expect to be transferred, since Elder B.'s
already been here four months and I'm his third companion here. There's a good
possibility he's leaving, but we would be very surprised if I left. The last
package you sent arrived just in time. It arrived on Saturday. If it hadn't, it
wouldn't have come on Sunday, of course, and Sunday night was when I left
Ritzville, since we had to go be with a missionary whose companion went home.
Yesterday I spoke in sacrament meeting as well. It's only the second time I've spoken on my mission. I thought it was one of the most boring talks I've given--the information was good but it didn't have much personality.
I was assigned to speak on the Book of Mormon. Perhaps it was the broad topic that caused it to be boring.
I started off talking about the first four books of the New Testament. The closing verses of Matthew[2] and Mark[3] talk about missionary work, and Luke ends talking about the temple.[4] I read the last verse of John, which talks about how if everything Jesus did were written there wouldn't be room for all the books that should be written.[5]
I transitioned to how the Book of Mormon accomplishes many tasks, but the one it specifically sets out to do is given in the title page, to convince Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ. I gave examples from all fifteen books of the BoM on how they fulfill this purpose.
Then I talked about what Preach My Gospel says about the Book of Mormon--it supports the Bible (and read about Jesus' baptism and in 2 Nephi 31 where it explains about "to fulfill all righteousness," and explained that the BoM identifies the brazen serpent as a type of Christ), it answers great questions of the soul, it draws people nearer to God, and we are to use it in handling objections to the Church.
I mentioned converts of about nine years from my first area. The wife knew Gordon B. Hinckley was a prophet because she knew the Book of Mormon was true. The husband knew the BoM was true because he knew Gordon B. Hinckley was a prophet. Then I bore my testimony I know it's true because I know Joseph Smith was a prophet.
I got a lot of compliments, but as I said, I felt it was pretty boring.
This week was really cold. It got into the single digits. It did warm up for the end of the week, though, but then it rained. Last night was really windy.
On Wednesday Elder B. felt a little under the weather, so he just slept during dinner time. I ate minimally for some reason. But it worked out just fine. We went to go see a less-active who let us in, and she was just making dinner, so she invited us to stay. She's not interested in the Gospel (the first thing she said to us was, "We're fornicators"), but she's fine with us as missionaries. She was raised FLDS but left it at 15, then joined the LDS. That's the second time on my mission that's happened--that we didn't eat dinner and then the people we see invite us for it. In fact, I think the only times I've had people other than active members invite us for dinner when we just show up were those two times when we hadn't eaten.
I liked your inspiration story.[6]
Um...I can't think of anything else right now.
Love,
Elder Melville
Yesterday I spoke in sacrament meeting as well. It's only the second time I've spoken on my mission. I thought it was one of the most boring talks I've given--the information was good but it didn't have much personality.
I was assigned to speak on the Book of Mormon. Perhaps it was the broad topic that caused it to be boring.
I started off talking about the first four books of the New Testament. The closing verses of Matthew[2] and Mark[3] talk about missionary work, and Luke ends talking about the temple.[4] I read the last verse of John, which talks about how if everything Jesus did were written there wouldn't be room for all the books that should be written.[5]
I transitioned to how the Book of Mormon accomplishes many tasks, but the one it specifically sets out to do is given in the title page, to convince Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ. I gave examples from all fifteen books of the BoM on how they fulfill this purpose.
Then I talked about what Preach My Gospel says about the Book of Mormon--it supports the Bible (and read about Jesus' baptism and in 2 Nephi 31 where it explains about "to fulfill all righteousness," and explained that the BoM identifies the brazen serpent as a type of Christ), it answers great questions of the soul, it draws people nearer to God, and we are to use it in handling objections to the Church.
I mentioned converts of about nine years from my first area. The wife knew Gordon B. Hinckley was a prophet because she knew the Book of Mormon was true. The husband knew the BoM was true because he knew Gordon B. Hinckley was a prophet. Then I bore my testimony I know it's true because I know Joseph Smith was a prophet.
I got a lot of compliments, but as I said, I felt it was pretty boring.
This week was really cold. It got into the single digits. It did warm up for the end of the week, though, but then it rained. Last night was really windy.
On Wednesday Elder B. felt a little under the weather, so he just slept during dinner time. I ate minimally for some reason. But it worked out just fine. We went to go see a less-active who let us in, and she was just making dinner, so she invited us to stay. She's not interested in the Gospel (the first thing she said to us was, "We're fornicators"), but she's fine with us as missionaries. She was raised FLDS but left it at 15, then joined the LDS. That's the second time on my mission that's happened--that we didn't eat dinner and then the people we see invite us for it. In fact, I think the only times I've had people other than active members invite us for dinner when we just show up were those two times when we hadn't eaten.
I liked your inspiration story.[6]
Um...I can't think of anything else right now.
Love,
Elder Melville
[1] My
mom’s email had asked if she could send a package direct to where we lived.
[2] “Go
ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things
whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the
end of the world. Amen.”
[3] “And
they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and
confirming the word with signs following. Amen.”
[4] “And
were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.”
[5] “And
there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be
written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the
books that should be written. Amen.”
[6] My
mom’s email had an inspiringa story where she acted on a prompting.
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