This week has been a pretty good one! It was sad to hear that our dear beloved prophet, President Thomas S. Monson died Tuesday night. That made me really sad. We found out Wednesday morning, and I had a lot of time to think about it. He was an incredible man, had such a powerful spirit, and he was truly a disciple of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! I’m grateful for his example to me, especially his example of being “on the Lord’s Errand.” Throughout my mission, I have learned a little about heeding upon spiritual promptings. President Monson has to be one of the greatest examples of this that I know of! It was always amazing to hear those incredible stories of him following promptings and helping people every day! As I’ve thought of him this past week, my mind continues to go back to his final General Conference talk that he gave in the April 2017 General Conference, titled “The Power Of The Book Of Mormon.” This talk has to be one of the most powerful talks ever given, but it is also the shortest. One of my most favorite quotes from this talk was about gaining a testimony, it states:
“It is essential for you to have your own testimony in these difficult times, for the testimonies of others will carry you only so far. However, once obtained, a testimony needs to be kept vital and alive through continued obedience to the commandments of God and through daily prayer and scripture study.”
I would invite each of you to go and study this wonderful powerful talk, and think of how big of a role The Book Of Mormon plays in your everyday life. It is true, and I can testify that it is! Each of us can receive a testimony of its truthfulness, as we put forth the effort! Whenever I think of President Monson, these words come to my mind. “We thank thee O God for a Prophet, to guide us in these latter days...” what a huge blessing it is to have modern day prophets. The world will miss President Monson, but he is now reunited with his beloved wife and family, but it is comforting to know that the priesthood is still restored onto the earth, and will be manifested by our next prophet! What a huge blessing!
We found out about transfers this past Saturday, which are tomorrow, and I am being transferred to Wellington Colorado. It is just north of Fort Collins. I don’t know who my companion is, because I’m training a brand new missionary! We are meeting him tonight, so that should be fun! I was a little sad that I was leaving Greeley, here in the Glenmere Ward, because of how much work and success we have seen, but I know that the Lord needs me to be in Wellington at this time! I’m excited to be able to come back to the Baptisms that we will have later in the month for Tom and Isaiah, so that will still be fun to see those happen! It will be sad leaving Elder Hatch, we’ve gotten along so well, but I do trust in the Lord that Wellington is where I’m meant to be! I’m grateful for the friendships that I’ve made here on my mission, they will be lasting ones for sure! It’s crazy to think that I’ve been here in Greeley for the past three months, time just absolutely flies by!
We had three amazing lessons with Tom this past week. He is the investigator who was invited to church by a friend, and we talked with him after church last week and set up a time to meet with him! We met with him on Wednesday, Saturday, and Monday. We taught him the Restoration on Wednesday, and it was so powerful! As we recited the first vision to him, he was amazed at how incredible that was, for God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ to visit a young boy to answer his prayer! We invited him to read from The Book Of Mormon and pray to know if it is true, and he excitedly accepted the hard cover copy we gave him! It was amazing to promise him that he would receive an answer to his prayers. I love bearing my testimony to everyone that they can receive answers to prayer, because Heavenly Father loves us so much! At our next meeting, we followed up on how his reading has been going, and Tom had read through 1 Nephi 14! He is so committed to learn, it’s so amazing! That lesson we discussed what he had read so far, and we read 1 Nephi 15 with him, and broke it down so he could understand it better. He was able to understand and learn so much! He loved it! He told us he wanted to try and break it down and learn from each chapter more. We invited him to continue to read, and to come to church the next day. He was definitely at church! He loves the people, loves the classes, and loves Sacrament Meeting! Our Ward Mission Leader, Jack Sattler, is such an amazing fellowshipper! Tom loves being around him and other members of the ward! Our lesson in Gospel Principles was on “Exaltation,” but Tom wasn’t fazed by it. He soaked up all the information, and asks really good questions. Jack Sattler did a great job teaching the lesson, and tied a lot of it into the Plan of Salvation. Our next lesson on Monday was amazing as well. He had read a few more chapters, and had written a little summary of each chapter he read to help him understand it better. We taught him The Plan of Salvation, and explained a little more in detail what we had talked about the past two weeks in Gospel Principles. The lesson went very well, and he understands it amazingly! He saw that people had these big quad scriptures at church, and told us he wanted one. We showed him where he could find it on Deseret Book, and bought it on the spot! Those things aren’t cheap, and he bought it right then and there! That is how golden and amazing Tom is! What a blessing it is to teach him! He expressed to us how grateful he is for the two of us, Elder Hatch and I. He keeps telling us that we have been a huge blessing in his life, and he is grateful that we have taught him about the Restored Gospel. We expressed to him how grateful we were for him, and told him that he is the kind of investigator missionaries dream of teaching! He loved that. I told him that I was getting transferred, but that I will still be there at his baptism. He was pretty sad, but was happy to hear that I was able to come back for his baptism! Can’t wait for him to be a member of this true church! What a blessing it is to have met Tom!
We have been working with Isaiah Lopez and their family, and this past Sunday was the third time in a row they have come to church! What a huge miracle! Isaiah still wants to get baptized, and his parents are still coming each week. It is such a blessing that they are staying committed!
One of my past companions, Elder Gentry, went home this past weekend. It’s crazy to think I was with him six months ago, and him going home was so far away! Now it’s past, but he stayed with us his last night, so that was fun to talk with him and be with him his last night! He was a great example to me of how I can be a better missionary! We’ll miss him!
While I was on exchanges with Elder Garcia this past week, we were walking from the church to go visit potential investigators before dinner. These two young kids were running and we were able to speak with them at the stop light before crossing a main road. We taught them about The Book Of Mormon, and invited them to read and pray to know if it is true! They both accepted a copy and they continued to run off until they went out of sight. I love speaking with everyone, and spreading the gospel as a missionary. What a wonderful opportunity it is to have this time to experience sharing the gospel 24/7 for two years! I love it!
I was studying in Moroni this past week, and in Chapter 9 something stood out to me. In Moroni 9:6 it states:
“6 And now, my beloved son, notwithstanding their hardness, let us labor diligently; for if we should cease to labor, we should be brought under condemnation; for we have a labor to perform whilst in this tabernacle of clay, that we may conquer the enemy of all righteousness, and rest our souls in the kingdom of God.”
I pray that we are laboring diligently day by day to continue to grow our faith in Jesus Christ, The Book Of Mormon, and His Restored Gospel here onto the earth. I’m grateful everyday for the opportunity I have to share that wonderful message, and to help others find that happiness that I’ve had my entire life! I hope that we all will study The Book Of Mormon daily, and learn more about Jesus Christ. I know that if you do, your testimony will strengthen! Mine has! I hope you all have a wonderful week this week! I love you!
Love
Elder Bailey
Pics:
1-2: MLC this past week!
3: Tom our investigator.
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