1st Christmas Letter sent to our home, from Levi:
So, I’m hoping this reaches home by
Christmas. Anyway, I have no idea what
to write… I guess to start off I want all of you to know I am eternally
grateful for your examples. Right now it’s
the middle of November so I haven’t really thought much about
Christmas. I guess this year, I don’t
think I’ll be sending a package home.
Not because I don’t want to..Just because I haven’t
found anything that cool to send… atleast nothing too culturally cool.
Anyway, please know that I love you all, and I’ll
be honest, I miss being able to have conversations with you. It may be that I understood every word and I
could actually say what I wanted. Haha jk!
One thing I am grateful for is that we have email and I don’t
have to write letters and wait a month or two to get them. Right now is pretty difficult in my mission
mainly with language and being able to say what is on my mind.
So, enough of that!
How are all of you doing? Tell
Will, I want to hear from him. Have you
guys talked to any of my friends after I left?
Anything cool going on in their lives?
I really only hear mostly from my friends that are on missions. It is amazing how different my life is here
than before my mission. One thing that I
have learned is that member help in the work, really works. So please, help out the missionaries in your
wards, give them references, invite them over with investigators or something
like that. Just help out. I have
realized that in our neighborhoods there is no reason that everyone has not
atleast heard the true gospel of Christ.
The work is not only for missionaries.
On the topic of Christ, I want to take a quick moment to
remind you all to focus on him this
Christmas. Realize that it is arguable
that he is the most important person to come to this earth. But to Him, all of us are so much more
important. He gave his life for us. He did it for us. So let us not waste that sacrifice by not
repenting and coming unto Christ. I know
I would not be here in Colombia without the Atonement of Jesus Christ. One thing I noticed this week is that in
Matthew 11:28-30, it is talking about
the yolk of Christ and I have seen that as he rules and before we take on this
yolk, we have a huge load , but with this yolk our burden is lightened and we
are guided.
Know that I love and miss every one of you. Know that I know that this work is good and
this church is true. Even when I seem
down, I know that the next feeling I have is happiness!
Love, Elder Hilton
Part 2 of 1st Christmas Letter
So, today I am in much better spirits and I
wanted to send another letter to kind of show how there are both good and bad
times in the mission (well I wouldn’t
say bad, but difficult times). This week
I have definitely had both. For example,
one night was super difficult because of
a few things. 1. My Spanish stopped working that day, and I felt like I couldn’t do anything to help out. 2.
Because of #1 I was idle in my mind, so satan was working very hard on
me. I was thinking a ton about home and
what I could be doing if I wasn’t
here. I know that these thoughts are not true or sent from God. I had a lot of doubts that day. The following morning, I spent all of my
study time searching as hard as I could for the answers to my questions. The next part of the day didn’t
really work out, but somehow by the end of the day, I was much more ready for
the work. The next day, we had
interviews with the Mission President Andelin.
While we were waiting we had a paper to fill out that had a lot of
questions and scriptures abut fear and doubt.
This helped soften my hard heart and realize how quick I was to forget
the things the Lord had done for me. In
the interview, I told him of my difficulty.
It was actually a fairly emotional deal.
He helped me bastante, which is to say, a ton! He told me to study the scripture. Ether 12 :27.
Which talks about how the Lord
will show us our weaknesses. This
humbles us. It then says that if we are
humble and have faith, then the weak things become strong. I testify that this scripture is true. I also testify that his sharing this
scripture with me was inspred by God through the Holy Ghost.
Since then I have done many things that I have found to help
me manage the stress. The main large one
is to love the people and especially my companero. I know that you all told me to do this before
and I thought I was doing it, but in all reality I was just biding time. I have been trying since this experience to
get to know better my companion and all of the people we visit. I have been talking more and that has helped
me to learn Spanish even faster! It is
amazing to see my progress. I can at
least understand the meaning if not the specific words that they say to
me! This work will go forth through
those that are weak because in the Lord weak things become strong. Thank goodness, I am weak and get to see the
truth of the scriptures.
So, that brings me today.
The short version of the day is that it was absolutely AMAZING! WE had church and me and Elder Cancino had to
speak in sacrament meeting and may I say.. Church was very spiritual for
me. We spoke about the mission
work. And I spoke about how we shouldn’t
fear or doubt and that we need to have
faith. Then I shared David A. Bednar's
story of the two boys and the band aids.
Then I said that we need to be more like these boys and share that which
has blessed us! The Holy Ghost helped me
a ton. With that help I was able to talk
to a congregation in Spanish for about 12 minutes! That in itself is a miracle to me! Then later today we had an appointment where
we set a second baptism for this Saturday!
That was awesome! I can see how
the Lord blesses us! This kid also wants
to be a missionary! Anyway that is my
story of how there are awesome times and difficult times in the mission field.
Be sure to remember I love you all. I know this work to be good, and I know I am
being blessed as I bless the people I teach and invite the Holy ghost to.
I hope you will all have a very Merry Christmas, and don’t
forget Christ.
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