Tuesday, February 16, 2016

Spring is Here!

Not really, it's just teasing us. But it's been so warm the last couple of days!! Yay!!!

I'm so happy to hear Grandma's on the up and up. So tenacious. <3

So many incidents have occurred this week, and my brain doesn't want to remember them all to tell you about them, sorry. 

But, I do remember that we had Zone Conference last week, and it was a spiritual feast, so, naturally, as I always do after any kind of feasting, I wanted to take a nap. But alas, that was not a thing that could happen. But a cool thing. President Risenmay shared this story from his youthful mission (I'm not really sure what to call it... his first mission?) and there were a lot of funny little details and I can't do the story justice, not even a little bit. BUT he ended up finding this gentleman who was one of five men who survived Auschwitz... I think. And after they'd shared the story of the Restoration, this guy got up and basically threw down on these young boys about coming in there and telling him about God, and how he'd slept with the dead, and there is no God, etc. As you can imagine, that would be a highly uncomfortable situation to be in. How do you explain the horrors that man had experienced? So anyways, a young P. Risenmay was just praying in his heart, and ended up bearing simple pure testimony about how he did not know why God had allowed such a horrific thing to occur, but he DID know that God lives, and that He loves us, and that the fullness of the gospel of Christ had been restored. The man ended up sending them away, but kept and read the Book of Mormon, and was eventually baptized and became this incredible leader in the church. And the point P Risenmay was teaching us all day was that it is our obligation, responsibility, duty, whatever, to share the restoration with everyone who will listen, and bear our own testimony of it, so that the Spirit can testify, and if people will open their hearts, they can be changed. 

We've met some really cool people this week, some who are working really hard to put off the natural man and let God change them. It's not an easy thing to do, once we've been bound by the chains of hell. But it is possible, through Jesus Christ. How blessed are we? So blessed. That's how blessed. 

I love you all. I know God lives. He loves all His children. He know each of us, perfectly- every strength, every weakness, every flaw- and loves us anyways. That's how I hope to love people. Straight up unconditionally. Which I suppose is a lot easier to do when we are acutely aware of our own imperfections, and understand that God can still love us, so of course we can love our brothers and sisters.

This church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints IS God's kingdom on earth. This is it. And these principles and ordinances are necessary for us to become who God wants us to be. He wants so much more for us than just to be saved. He knows our potential, and He is preparing us for that. 

Make good, and choose happiness, ya hooligans. Reach out to those around you- I think Sammy boy mentioned how today's greatest epidemic is loneliness. He's right, and that's messed up. Let's cure it, okay? Grinning face with smiling eyes

All my love from Temple Square,
<3 Sister Chamberlin

P.S. one of my favorite chapters from personal study this week was Jacob 4... so powerful. Read it. 

No comments:

Post a Comment