Hello my wonderful family :)
I love you all. It is exciting to hear about how you are doing. Mom and Dad, I hope your time in Thailand is amazing and I am sure it will be :)
This week has been really cool. We were able to teach more lessons this week than in the past five which was great. We are back to teaching Keeler, the young man whom I was privileged to meet and help accept a baptismal date before I left the YSA Ward. He has had quite a few struggles recently and I hope that you will pray for him to feel the love of Heavenly Father and the testimony of the spirit in his life.
We are now teaching an investigator named Schuyler and he is excited to be baptized in December. He is a great man and I ask for your prayers on his behalf too. Pray that he will feel the spirit testify of the truth to him and that he will know the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. We have also taught Pan who will be receiving the Priesthood soon. He is doing very well and I can't help but smile big whenever I hear of his successes and progression.
This week I caught another glimpse into the love which Heavenly Father has for His children. As I told you, Keeler is going through hard times. As he expressed his trials to me I could literally feel my heart breaking. I wished I had the power to keep him safe. I wished I had the ability to take away his trials and pain. I was crying inside and out. As we continued to teach him I testified with all of my heart of the truth found in the gospel. I prayed fervently that the spirit would touch Keeler's heart. I knew that he is a precious son and I could feel that his Father did not want to lose him. I can take this experience and strive to apply it even more to each of God's children around the world. God sees His children falling away, not understanding or knowing that there is a way out of grief and pain. This breaks His heart and yet because of the Plan of Salvation, He too can feel comforted that each of His children will be given the opportunity to understand and accept the Atonement of Jesus Christ. The Atonement and repentance process are the only way we can find true happiness that lasts for eternity. Also, they are the only way we can return to our Heavenly Father. I know that there is a true saving power found in the Atonement of Christ. I think of when Enoch saw God crying. And it came to pass that the God of heaven looked upon the residue of the people, and he wept; and Enoch bore record of it, saying: How is it that the heavens weep, and shed forth their tears as the rain upon the mountains?...The Lord said unto Enoch: Behold these thy brethren; they are the workmanship of mine own hands, and I gave unto them their knowledge, in the day I created them; and in the Garden of Eden, gave I unto man his agency; ... And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto Enoch, and told Enoch all the doings of the children of men; wherefore Enoch knew, and looked upon their wickedness, and their misery, and wept and stretched forth his arms, and his heart swelled wide as eternity; and his bowels yearned; and all eternity shook." (Moses 7:28, 32, 41) I know that we are all children of God. I know that Heavenly Father loves each of us deeply. I testify that His love is evidenced in the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ, who died that the sons and daughters of God could be redeemed. I love my Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ. I know that He is the only way back to the Father. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
This week has been really cool. We were able to teach more lessons this week than in the past five which was great. We are back to teaching Keeler, the young man whom I was privileged to meet and help accept a baptismal date before I left the YSA Ward. He has had quite a few struggles recently and I hope that you will pray for him to feel the love of Heavenly Father and the testimony of the spirit in his life.
We are now teaching an investigator named Schuyler and he is excited to be baptized in December. He is a great man and I ask for your prayers on his behalf too. Pray that he will feel the spirit testify of the truth to him and that he will know the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. We have also taught Pan who will be receiving the Priesthood soon. He is doing very well and I can't help but smile big whenever I hear of his successes and progression.
This week I caught another glimpse into the love which Heavenly Father has for His children. As I told you, Keeler is going through hard times. As he expressed his trials to me I could literally feel my heart breaking. I wished I had the power to keep him safe. I wished I had the ability to take away his trials and pain. I was crying inside and out. As we continued to teach him I testified with all of my heart of the truth found in the gospel. I prayed fervently that the spirit would touch Keeler's heart. I knew that he is a precious son and I could feel that his Father did not want to lose him. I can take this experience and strive to apply it even more to each of God's children around the world. God sees His children falling away, not understanding or knowing that there is a way out of grief and pain. This breaks His heart and yet because of the Plan of Salvation, He too can feel comforted that each of His children will be given the opportunity to understand and accept the Atonement of Jesus Christ. The Atonement and repentance process are the only way we can find true happiness that lasts for eternity. Also, they are the only way we can return to our Heavenly Father. I know that there is a true saving power found in the Atonement of Christ. I think of when Enoch saw God crying. And it came to pass that the God of heaven looked upon the residue of the people, and he wept; and Enoch bore record of it, saying: How is it that the heavens weep, and shed forth their tears as the rain upon the mountains?...The Lord said unto Enoch: Behold these thy brethren; they are the workmanship of mine own hands, and I gave unto them their knowledge, in the day I created them; and in the Garden of Eden, gave I unto man his agency; ... And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto Enoch, and told Enoch all the doings of the children of men; wherefore Enoch knew, and looked upon their wickedness, and their misery, and wept and stretched forth his arms, and his heart swelled wide as eternity; and his bowels yearned; and all eternity shook." (Moses 7:28, 32, 41) I know that we are all children of God. I know that Heavenly Father loves each of us deeply. I testify that His love is evidenced in the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ, who died that the sons and daughters of God could be redeemed. I love my Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ. I know that He is the only way back to the Father. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Sincerely,
Elder Christensen
