tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-82375943198857460392024-03-05T17:51:50.078-08:00Elder Chandler LeavittMaryland Baltimore Mission - Spanish SpeakingAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.comBlogger112125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-42960265981802973952017-04-19T16:56:00.001-07:002017-04-19T16:56:26.512-07:00Weakness and Strength<br />
As I close up my emails to all of you, I'm very grateful for the opportunity I've had to share these things with you throughout my Book of Mormon class this semester. I hope that they have helped to inspire or motivate you wherever you are.<br />
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This week, we talked about one of my favorite scriptures in the Book of Mormon, found in the 12th chapter of Ether. Moroni, in verse 24, confesses one of his weaknesses to the Lord, comparing his writing to the writing of the Brother of Jared:<br />
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<span class="verse-number verse" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">24 </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">And thou hast made us that we could write but little, because of the </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">awkwardness</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> of our hands. Behold, thou hast not made us mighty in </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">writing</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> like unto the brother of Jared, for thou madest him that the things which he </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">wrote</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> were mighty even as thou art, unto the overpowering of man to read them.</span><br />
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The response of the Lord to Moroni teaches us many important principles:<br />
<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"><br /></span>
<span class="verse-number verse" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">27 </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">And if men come unto me I will show unto them their </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">weakness</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">. I </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">give</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">grace</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> is sufficient for all men that </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">humble</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">weak</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> things become strong unto them.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"><br /></span>
As I said before, I have always liked Ether 12:27, but so much meaning is added when we read it with Ether 12:24, where Moroni talks about weaknesses. From this chapter, we learn the pattern of making weaknesses to become strong: The Lord tells us to humble ourselves and have faith in Him! It's really that simple.<br />
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I love how the Lord doesn't tell Moroni he is wrong, that he shouldn't look at things as weaknesses. He teaches us that it is okay to believe you have a weakness, but it is your job to turn that weakness into a strength through his grace. This process is what brings humility, which is required to be in the Lord's presence!<br />
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I hope that we all can continue to identify our weaknesses and turn them into strengths instead of becoming discouraged!<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-84636100086962832722017-04-06T10:58:00.001-07:002017-04-06T10:58:22.283-07:00Fast unto thy FatherThis week, in my Book of Mormon class, we continued in 3rd Nephi with the teachings of Jesus Christ among the Nephites. As I said last week, I have always enjoyed 3rd Nephi and have especially enjoyed as we've discussed in depth the teachings of Christ. This week there were a few verses in the 13th chapter that really stood out to me concerning fasting. Jesus Christ teaches the following about fasting:<br />
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<span class="verse-number verse" style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">16 </span>Moreover, when ye fast be not as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance, for they disfigure their faces that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward.</div>
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<span class="verse-number verse" style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">17 </span>But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head, and wash thy face;</div>
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<span class="verse-number verse" style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">18 </span>That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father, who is in secret; and thy Father, who seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.</div>
<div class="verse" data-aid="128348108" id="p18" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin-bottom: 26px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small; line-height: normal;">This verse is interesting because it comes in the middle of other commandments that Christ is giving unto the people. In verse 16, he talks about what our motivations should be for fasting: are we fasting because we love the Lord or are we fasting so other people think we are keeping the commandments? In verse 17 and 18, he talks about the process of fasting and what we SHOULD do instead of appearing to fast, which is to fast in secret. Ironically, if we fast in secret, the Lord will reward us openly.</span></div>
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From growing up in the church, I have fasted many times throughout my life. The majority of these times, especially before my mission, I acted very weak or always talked about how hungry I was. Fasting to me seemed like a large sacrifice that didn't make a lot of sense. Over the last few years, though, and especially from reading this verse, we learn that fasting is an amazing opportunity. It is an opportunity for spiritual renewal. It is a chance for the Spirit to overcome the desires of the natural man, the desires of our bodies trying to tell us that we are hungry. It helps us to renew ourselves for the upcoming month, which is why I love that it is at the first of every month.</div>
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We can all continue to fast with more purpose as we realize the doctrinal reasons for fasting instead of thinking about what we are going to eat later or how hungry we are. I know that by doing this, the Lord will truly "reward (us) openly."</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-690862745386303072017-04-03T21:28:00.003-07:002017-04-03T21:28:55.275-07:00How OftThis week, in my Book of Mormon class, I learned something very interesting as we studied from 3rd Nephi that I would like to share with you. 3rd Nephi has always been one of my favorite sections of the Book of Mormon, especially the coming of Jesus Christ starting in Chapter 11. The scriptures that I found very interesting, however, happen in the chapter previous to that: 3 Nephi 10. In this chapter, there is silence for many hours throughout all of the land. After this silence, the people here the voice of Christ. In the verses that I'm going to share, the voice of Christ is speaking. As you read these, notice which tenses (past, present, future, etc) he uses to talk about when he gathers them.<br />
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<span class="verse-number verse" style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">4 </span>O ye people of these great cities which have fallen, who are descendants of Jacob, yea, who are of the house of Israel, how oft have I gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and have nourished you.</div>
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<span class="verse-number verse" style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">5 </span>And again, how oft would I have gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, yea, O ye people of the house of Israel, who have fallen; yea, O ye people of the house of Israel, ye that dwell at Jerusalem, as ye that have fallen; yea, how oft would I have gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens, and ye would not.</div>
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<span class="verse-number verse" style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">6 </span>O ye house of Israel whom I have spared, how oft will I gather you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, if ye will repent and return unto me with full purpose of heart.</div>
If you look for the tenses, you come to find that Christ uses the past tense in verse 4 (how oft have I), the present tense or a tense close to that in verse 5 (how oft would I have), and the future tense in verse 6 (how oft will I). To me, this is a way for Christ to say that him and the Father are the same "yesterday, today, and forever." We find this pattern throughout the Book of Mormon and Bible, but it is interesting to see it in this way. These verses show me that Christ will always and always has watched over us.<br />
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Now what does that mean for us? It means that we need to make sure we are aware of all of the things Christ has done for us, that he is now doing for us, and that he is yet to do for us. Perhaps these people had forgotten the blessings they had or the opportunities they had been given in life. Perhaps Christ felt as if they would forget if they were not reminded. Regardless, it is our duty to know that Christ is the same now and always will be and that he will always gather us "as a hen gathereth her chickens."<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-32802509715880983402017-03-23T15:24:00.002-07:002017-03-23T15:24:28.412-07:00Building Upon The RockThis week, in my Book of Mormon class, we dissected one of my favorite scriptures in the Book of Mormon, found in Helaman 5:12. It is a verse that we hear and repeat often while growing up in the church, a scripture mastery verse that has a lot of power. In many of the verses in Chapter 5, Nephi is remembering the words which his father, Helaman, told to him and his brethren. That is what is happening in verse 12, a very powerful bit of counsel and advice:<br />
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<span class="verse-number verse" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">12 </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px;">And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px;">rock</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px;"> of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px;">foundation</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px;">; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px;">storm </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px;">shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.</span><br />
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As I mentioned, this is a verse that we hear repeated often, at least in parts. There are a few things that stood out to me this time, though, that I hadn't noticed before. The phrase "that when the devil shall send forth..." is interesting because there is another way that it could've been stated but wasn't which is "if the devil shall send forth..." Why wasn't it stated like that? Well, it shows us that the devil WILL send forth storms and misery, there is no question about it. But, in response, if we are built upon Christ as our rock, "(we) cannot fall." It doesn't say that "(we) might not fall." These two observations go hand in hand, showing us the laws that work in our mortal lives: Satan will always try to deceive us, Christ will always protect us if we build upon him.<br />
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Reading this verse again helped me to reflect on where I am building my foundation and what I am doing to make sure I build upon Christ, our rock and Redeemer. I hope that it does the same for you and that we can all avoid the "hail and...mighty storm(s)" from the adversary.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-61904896041077099102017-03-20T20:04:00.002-07:002017-03-20T20:05:27.709-07:00Title of LibertyGrowing up, one of my favorite stories in the Book of Mormon was always the Title of Liberty. In Alma 46, Moroni is preparing the people for war and speaking out in the name of freedom. Amalickiah has created a lot of wickedness and desires to be king. In verse 12, Moroni does the following in response:<br />
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<span class="verse-number verse" style="background-position: 0px 0px; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: "palatino" , "palatino linotype" , "pahoran" , "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">12 </span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: "palatino" , "palatino linotype" , "pahoran" , "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 18px;">And it came to pass that he rent his coat; and he took a piece thereof, and wrote upon it—</span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: "palatino" , "palatino linotype" , "pahoran" , "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 18px;">In</span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: "palatino" , "palatino linotype" , "pahoran" , "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 18px;"> memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children—and he fastened it upon the end of a pole.</span><br />
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Obviously, the reasons that Moroni and the Nephites were fighting were just: God, religion, freedom, peace, wives, children. However, something that was pointed out to me that I hadn't noticed before is the order that these motives are placed in. As you go from item to item, you realize that the previous item you read is necessary for the item proceeding it. For example, in order for there to be religion, there must be God. In order for there to be true freedom, religion must be allowed. For peace, freedom is required. It is so interesting that this order is chosen because we realize that all of these things are things that we enjoy and sometimes seem to take for granted living in the United States in 2017. Sure, things don't always seem to be ideal in politics because people are never completely in agreement, but we can definitely say that we enjoy these things that Moroni stood for so many years ago.<br />
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Without God, none of these things would be possible. The Nephites knew that they were fighting "in memory of (their) God" because they knew that was the only way they could survive. For us, this means that we must look at the order of priorities that we place: if we were to fight for our rights and freedoms, which would be the most important for us? Which do we hold closest? As we do so, we will realize what we need to do to become more like Moroni and be able to hoist our own Title of Liberty.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-77393896023258002002017-03-10T13:03:00.004-08:002017-03-10T13:03:51.295-08:00Offering Up All of our Sins<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> This week I learned a very important principle about sacrifice and what we are willing to give up in order to know our Heavenly Father. Lately in my Book of Mormon Class, we have been studying the Book of Alma. We were reading the 20th and 22nd chapters of Alma, the teachings of Aaron to the father of Lamoni. Lamoni's father is known to be a hard man that didn't seem interested in learning about the Gospel at all in Chapter 20 but softens up by Chapter 22. We can see this contrast between the chapters by reading these verses:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<i><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Alma 20:</span><span class="verse" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">23 - </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 25.2px;">Now the king, fearing he should lose his life, said: If thou wilt spare me I will grant unto thee whatsoever thou wilt ask, even to half of the kingdom.</span></i><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); line-height: 25.2px;">Here in Chapter 20, the king offers up half of his kingdom (a temporal sacrifice) to have his life spared. However, here is what he asks in Chapter 22:</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 25.2px;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><span class="verse" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Alma 22:15 - </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;">And it came to pass that after Aaron had expounded these things unto him, the king said: </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;">What</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;"> shall I do that I may have this eternal life of which thou hast spoken? Yea, what shall I do that I may be </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;">born of God</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;">, having this wicked spirit </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;">rooted</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;"> out of my breast, and receive his Spirit, that I may be filled with joy, that I may not be cast off at the last day? Behold, said he, I will give up </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;">all</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;"> that I possess, yea, I will forsake my kingdom, that I may receive this great joy.</span></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="verse" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="verse" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Now, after hearing about the amazing message of the Gospel, he is willing to offer up ALL of his kingdom in exchange for being "born of God." Aaron then asks him to pray, and here is his prayer:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="verse" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><span class="verse" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Alma 22:18 - </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;">O God, Aaron hath told me that there is a God; and if there is a God, and if thou art God, wilt thou make thyself known unto me, and I will give away all my sins to know thee, and that I may be raised from the dead, and be saved at the last day. And now when the king had said these words, he was struck </span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;">as</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;"> if he were dead.</span></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;"><br /></span></i></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); color: #333333; line-height: 25.2px;">Here, the king offers up a spiritual sacrifice: ALL of his sins. He knows that the Lord doesn't need to have his kingdom, he just needs a spiritual sacrifice and that is what he is willing to make! I feel like we can all use these verses to look at our own sacrifices and what we are offering up to God: are we offering up only half of our kingdom? All of our kingdom? Or even better, are we offering up ALL of our sins unto him? I hope that we can all get to the point of being able to say that we "will give away all (our) sins to know thee."</span></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-20009130169893888742017-03-07T14:19:00.003-08:002017-03-07T14:19:57.634-08:00Feeling WrongedThis week we talked about a very interesting pattern that happens with the Lamanites throughout the Book of Mormon. The verses that will help me explain this pattern is found in the 10th Chapter of Mosiah. This chapter is describing the current state of the Lamanites, shortly after King Laman passes away. Verses 12 and 17 teach us something very interesting when read together:<br />
<br />
<br />
<a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="12" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #0091bc; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </a><span class="verse" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="chunk hl-id-109763" id="chunk110000" node="110000" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="0">12 </span></span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110001" node="110001" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="1">They </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110002" node="110002" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="2">were </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110003" node="110003" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="3">a </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110004" node="110004" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="4">wild</span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110005" node="110005" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="5">, </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110006" node="110006" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="6">and </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110007" node="110007" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="7">ferocious, </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110008" node="110008" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="8">and </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110009" node="110009" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="9">a </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110010" node="110010" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="10">blood-thirsty </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110011" node="110011" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="11">people, </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110012" node="110012" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="12">believing </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110013" node="110013" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="13">in </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110014" node="110014" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="14">the </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110015" node="110015" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="15">tradition</span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110016" node="110016" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="16"> of </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110017" node="110017" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="17">their </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110018" node="110018" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="18">fathers, </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110019" node="110019" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="19">which </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110020" node="110020" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="20">is </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110021" node="110021" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="21">this—Believing </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110022" node="110022" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="22">that </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110023" node="110023" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="23">they </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110024" node="110024" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="24">were </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110025" node="110025" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="25">driven </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110026" node="110026" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="26">out </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110027" node="110027" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="27">of </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110028" node="110028" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="28">the </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110029" node="110029" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="29">land </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110030" node="110030" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="30">of </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110031" node="110031" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="31">Jerusalem </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110032" node="110032" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="32">because </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110033" node="110033" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="33">of </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110034" node="110034" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="34">the </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110035" node="110035" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="35">iniquities </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110036" node="110036" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="36">of </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110037" node="110037" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="37">their </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110038" node="110038" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="38">fathers, </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110039" node="110039" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="39">and </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110040" node="110040" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="40">that </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110041" node="110041" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="41">they </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110042" node="110042" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="42">were </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110043" node="110043" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="43">wronged</span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110044" node="110044" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="44"> in </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110045" node="110045" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="45">the </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110046" node="110046" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="46">wilderness </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110047" node="110047" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="47">by </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110048" node="110048" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="48">their </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110049" node="110049" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="49">brethren,</span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110050" node="110050" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="50">and </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110051" node="110051" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="51">they </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110052" node="110052" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="52">were </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110053" node="110053" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="53">also </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110054" node="110054" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="54">wronged </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110055" node="110055" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="55">while </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110056" node="110056" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="56">crossing </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk110057" node="110057" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="57">the </span><span class="chunk hl-id-109763" id="chunk110058" node="110058" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="58">sea....</span><br />
<span class="chunk hl-id-109763" node="110058" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="58"><br /></span>
<span class="chunk hl-id-109763" node="110058" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="58"><span class="verse" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="chunk hl-id-87816316" id="chunk160000" node="160000" paranum="16" style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="0">17 </span></span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160001" node="160001" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="1">And </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160002" node="160002" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="2">thus </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160003" node="160003" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="3">they </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160004" node="160004" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="4">have </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160005" node="160005" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="5">taught </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160006" node="160006" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="6">their </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160007" node="160007" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="7">children </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160008" node="160008" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="8">that </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160009" node="160009" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="9">they </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160010" node="160010" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="10">should </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160011" node="160011" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="11">hate </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160012" node="160012" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="12">them, </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160013" node="160013" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="13">and </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160014" node="160014" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="14">that </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160015" node="160015" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="15">they </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160016" node="160016" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="16">should </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160017" node="160017" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="17">murder </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160018" node="160018" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="18">them, </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160019" node="160019" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="19">and </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160020" node="160020" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="20">that </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160021" node="160021" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="21">they </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160022" node="160022" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="22">should </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160023" node="160023" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="23">rob </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160024" node="160024" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="24">and </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160025" node="160025" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="25">plunder </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160026" node="160026" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="26">them, </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160027" node="160027" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="27">and </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160028" node="160028" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="28">do </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160029" node="160029" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="29">all </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160030" node="160030" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="30">they </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160031" node="160031" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="31">could </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160032" node="160032" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="32">to </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160033" node="160033" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="33">destroy </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160034" node="160034" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="34">them; </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160035" node="160035" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="35">therefore </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160036" node="160036" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="36">they </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160037" node="160037" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="37">have </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160038" node="160038" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="38">an </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160039" node="160039" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="39">eternal </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160040" node="160040" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="40">hatred </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160041" node="160041" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="41">towards </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160042" node="160042" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="42">the </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160043" node="160043" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="43">children </span><span class="chunk" id="chunk160044" node="160044" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="44">of </span><span class="chunk hl-id-87816316" id="chunk160045" node="160045" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="45">Nephi.</span></span><br />
<span class="chunk hl-id-109763" node="110058" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="58"><span class="chunk hl-id-87816316" node="160045" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="45"><br /></span></span>
<span class="chunk hl-id-109763" node="110058" paranum="11" style="background: 0px 0px rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00784314); border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, 'Palatino Linotype', Pahoran, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="58"><span class="chunk hl-id-87816316" node="160045" paranum="16" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 25.2px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" wrapper="45"></span></span><br />
The Lamanites felt completely wronged and betrayed! The verses that are missing here, verses 13-16, talk about more reasons that they felt wronged, but I feel like verse 12 states it well enough: they felt that Nephi and Lehi had wronged Laman and Lemuel. Now, what is the consequence of this? Verse 17 shows us that because of this belief, they were taught to hate and murder the Nephites.<br />
<br />
What we learn from this is the danger of perceived wrongs. Because of the wicked tradition of the fathers of the Lamanites, they perceived that they had been wronged. Even if this would've been real, they have held onto that hatred for so many generations that it has continue to grow inside of them. This principle is similar to the way we interact with other people. Are we actually be wronged or just perceiving it that way? If we are actually wronged, why haven't we forgiven them? Are we letting that grow into a hatred?<br />
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The Book of Mormon teaches us things TO do and things NOT to do, and this is one of the things that we learn not to do. Let us all forgive others and never perceive wrongs that aren't actually there.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-74152983732057590742017-02-27T18:34:00.003-08:002017-02-27T18:34:30.015-08:00Christ: Our FatherThroughout growing up as a member of the Latter-Day Saints, I have always known Christ to be my elder brother and have usually only referred to him as such. However, this week in my Book of Mormon class, we talked about how Christ is sometimes referred to as our father and it takes on even more meaning to the love that Christ has for us.<br />
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In Mosiah 5:7, King Benjamin states the following:<br />
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As I said before, these are some of the last words from King Benjamin after gathering all of his people together. We often hear that we are "children of God" or "children of our Heavenly Father." King Benjamin, however, refers to the believers as "children of Christ...for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you." Someone who is a father is somebody involved in the birth of a child or the raising of a child. To me, this means that through the life of Jesus Christ, he gave us a "spiritual rebirth" and thus become our Father in a sense. How beautiful that is! Christ is not only our elder brother, he is also our Father in the sense that he has helped us to progress and grow, he has given us a rebirth.<br />
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As we strive to see Christ in numerous different perspectives, our love for him continues to grow! There are hundreds of different words that describe him throughout the scriptures and the more we learn about these names the more we will come to know our Lord and Savior, our Redeemer, our elder brother, and in a way, our Father.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-72487510649247810012017-02-17T14:13:00.001-08:002017-02-17T14:13:14.487-08:00"That Our Children May Know"This week, I spent a lot of time reflecting on the words of 2nd Nephi, Chapter 25, verse 26. In this scripture, Nephi is giving us a theme of his teachings along with all of the teachings of the Prophets of the Lord. He says:<br />
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Earlier in the chapter, Nephi talks about he glories in plainness. Isn't verse 26 about as plain as it gets? Everything that we do centers around the message of Jesus Christ. I specifically like how he says that the reason all of this is done is so that "our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins." To me, this shows that not only do we learn about Christ for ourselves, we talk about Christ so that our children and others around us can know of him as well. It is interesting that this takes the focus off of ourselves and gives us a reason to do missionary work: Why not share the Gospel so that others can also rejoice in Christ? I love that principle that Nephi teaches. It is so important for us to realize that everything in the Gospel is an appendage of Jesus Christ himself.<br />
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It is for us to decide whether we feel that all we do is "talk, rejoice, and preach of Christ" in our daily lives. Do we let Christ into our lives as much as Nephi says that we do? I'm grateful for scriptures like this that cause us to reflect and become better. Let us all continue to "write according to our prophecies" so that "(others) may know to what source they may look" for eternal happiness.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-80456503515294619262017-02-13T18:58:00.003-08:002017-02-13T18:58:46.559-08:00The Isaiah Chapters<div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Lucida Grande, Lucida Sans, Tahoma, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">Throughout my life, I have read the Book of Mormon multiple times. With each of these experiences, there is a common thing that seems to happen to most members of the church: when we get to the Isaiah chapters in 2nd Nephi, our interest level goes down. For the most part, Isaiah can be difficult to understand and not as "entertaining" as other chapters in the Book of Mormon. During my Book of Mormon class this week, however, I learned some valuable lessons about studying from Isaiah.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Lucida Grande, Lucida Sans, Tahoma, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">The Book of Mormon verse that I've chosen to highlight this week is in 1 Nephi 19:23. This is Nephi talking about his instruction that he is giving to his brothers. He says:</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Lucida Grande, Lucida Sans, Tahoma, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">Notice how he starts off by saying that they read from the Books of Moses (the beginning of the Old Testament) but then says that the way he was going to be able to help his brothers "believe in the Lord their Redeemer" was through "that which was written by the prophet Isaiah." We are told by Christ himself in his visit to the Americas that we should study Isaiah. But why do we seem to usually skip over the Isaiah chapters?</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Lucida Grande, Lucida Sans, Tahoma, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">An interesting principle here is that as we study the scriptures diligently and with a prayer of understanding in our heart, the words of Isaiah can be opened to us! We are promised that the scriptures can be expounded to us and that their meaning can touch our very hearts. As we studied Isaiah this week, I understood the words so much more than I ever have! I know that is because of the promise we've been given that as we study, we will learn from the Holy Ghost.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Lucida Grande, Lucida Sans, Tahoma, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">I'm so grateful for the Isaiah selections in the Book of Mormon, and I can promise that as we pray for understanding and search his words with all of our heart, we will learn things that will bless every aspect of our lives.</span></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-73797949959629547542017-02-05T20:44:00.003-08:002017-02-05T20:44:55.080-08:00"The Atonement of Jesus Christ"One of the most essential things in the entire Gospel of Jesus Christ is the Atonement that was offered by our Lord and Savior. This week in my Book of Mormon class, we talked about how too often we forget that it is not simply the Atonement that saves us from the fall, it is Jesus Christ, our older brother. The Atonement was the means for him to save, but he is the Savior.<br />
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A scripture that stood out to me during our discussion of the Atonement came from Alma in Chapter 34. Amulek is teaching about how Christ will be our salvation, describing the Atonement and how it will save. I love the way he puts it:<br />
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<a class="bookmark-anchor dontHighlight" href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="10" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; color: #0091bc; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </a><span class="verse" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">10 </span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">For it is expedient that there should be a great and last </span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">sacrifice</span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">; yea, not a </span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">sacrifice</span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> of man, neither of beast, neither of any manner of fowl; for it shall not be a human sacrifice; but it must be an </span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">infinite</span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> and </span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">eternal</span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> </span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">sacrifice</span><span style="background-color: #fefbbf; color: #333333; font-family: Palatino, "Palatino Linotype", Pahoran, Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">.</span><br />
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For it to be an infinite and eternal sacrifice, it would take a perfect being, not just a normal human. This scripture, in my interpretation, means that there was only one being that could perform this Atonement: Jesus Christ. There was no backup plan! He was the plan and we relied on him to accomplish it.<br />
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Because it is infinite and eternal, it provides us with a way to progress and grow in the Gospel. Because of Jesus Christ, we understand the balance of justice and mercy and know that it has been met. This scripture teaches us that the Atonement was "a great and last sacrifice."<br />
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We so often hear about how we should apply the Atonement into our lives every day, but how often do we take full advantage of that gift? Jesus Christ lived a sinless life so that he could save us from the Fall. He went through the effects of the Fall all at once, there in the Garden of Gethsemane. I'm so grateful for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I testify that he made an infinite and eternal sacrifice for all of mankind! In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-22348970273473576862017-01-29T23:55:00.000-08:002017-01-29T23:55:18.199-08:00"The Tree of Life"This week, I was reflecting often on 1 Nephi 8, the Vision of the Tree of Life. In my Book of Mormon class, we talked about this vision in so much depth that it made me think about the amazing lessons that it teaches.<br />
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In the beginning of 1 Nephi 8, Lehi is explaining to his sons that he has had a vision. It appears that Nephi had a good role in the vision, but that Laman and Lemuel seemed to have struggled in some way. The rest of the chapter describes the vision, talking about the "rod of iron" that leads to the "tree of life."<br />
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I have heard or read about this vision many times during the course of my life. In fact, I often wonder if this is the vision in the scriptures that I have heard the most about! But we talked about something I had never thought of as we compared verses 24 and 30. There are two different types of people that arrive at the Tree of Life. In the first group, they grasp onto the rod and push forward towards the fruit of the tree. In the second group, they fall on their knees as they reach the tree and partake of the fruit. We talked about the difference in how the second group seemed to see it for more as a tree: they realized that it was the Savior or at least a representation of Him. The first group ended up leaving the tree because of the mocking and scorning of the people in the building across the river.<br />
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How often do we do this? We seem to avoid seeing things as they really are, taking the Lord out of things that he has played such a big role in. We often are so caught up in the tree that we forget it is really our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ himself. Are we grasping for dear life onto the rod of iron? Or are we holding steadfast and trusting that we will make it as we obey the commandments we've been given?<br />
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Although the Vision of the Tree of Life was given thousands of years ago, it still has such an application to us. I think it wise to imagine where we would be on that path at this given time. How will we make it to the tree? How will we see the tree as the Savior? What can we do to get back on the path if we aren't currently on it? These questions will help us see how we can improve. There is nobody that can't come back to the path! It takes a lot of work, but let us all make those improvements necessary and continue onto the Tree of Life.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-17598009609184308122017-01-22T16:22:00.001-08:002017-01-22T16:22:48.285-08:00"Highly Favored of the Lord"I recently returned from serving a full-time mission in the Maryland Baltimore Mission. I now attend Brigham Young University, where I am currently taking a religion class on the Book of Mormon. This blog served as a way to record my thoughts about my mission and it will now serve as a way to record my thoughts as I am home from my mission and involved in studying the Book of Mormon.<br />
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This week, I realized once more why the Book of Mormon is so powerful. Every single verse, without fail, seems to teach us something of eternal purpose. This rang true to me as we dissected the very first verse of the very first chapter of the Book of Mormon. 1 Nephi 1:1, an introduction in the words of Nephi himself, states:<br />
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"I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days, nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days; yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God, therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days."<br />
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In class, we talked about the difference between the word "therefore" and "nevertheless." The word therefore is a word that is used to show a direct relationship between two different things, sometimes almost a cause-and-effect relationship. Nephi says that <i>because</i> he was born of goodly parents, he was taught in the learning of his father. The word nevertheless seems to do the opposite, combining two things that don't usually seem to go together. In this verse, he talks about seeing afflictions for his entire life, <i>however</i> he feels that him and the entire family of Lehi have been "highly favored of the Lord."<br />
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To me, this verse teaches us a lot about perspective and attitude. We are taught the principle of faith that is centered in Jesus Christ: when we trust in the Savior and Redeemer, we begin to have an eternal perspective on things. We realize that because of the Fall, we will experience afflictions throughout our lives. At the same time, however, we realize that because of the Atonement, we will be able to know and understand that we are all highly favored of the Lord. The ultimate decision of whether or not to have an eternal perspective is up to us. I challenge all this week to look inward to be able to find where to improve to be able to have the kind of perspective and faith that Nephi had! I know that as we all strive to show that faith, we will be able to say that we have been "highly favored of the Lord in all (our) days."<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02079321999862884740noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-78591635050019846032016-11-23T21:27:00.001-08:002016-11-23T21:28:57.615-08:00Week 103 Returning With Honor<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Wow. I can't believe this will be my final group email while serving as a full-time missionary in the Maryland Baltimore Mission. I'm so grateful for this wonderful experience that I've been granted with.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>"Final Interview with President Christiansen just starting...<br />while sharing a few Neccos before Prayer"</b></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">It's been a great day so far already! Usually on preparation day we don't have appointments until 6, but today we had one during the day since it was the only time they could meet! It was with Jasmine and she is now preparing for baptism! She's been reading the Book of Mormon daily and feeling the power that it brings into those that read it and ponder on its message.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Scott Meushaw, a great friend that Chandler will Miss!</span></b></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">We met an amazing new investigator this week! His name is Mike and he is from the Philippines. We taught him over at UMBC, the University that is close to us. He came from the Philippines only a few months ago! He grew up Catholic but is interested in learning about other faiths. We had such a great lesson with him, and he understood everything about the Restoration and the Book of Mormon and offered an amazing prayer at the end! One of my favorite parts of the lessons is when the investigator offers the closing prayer.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">I got to go on exchanges over in East Baltimore this past weekend and it was so great! We taught this family named the Silver Family. When we committed them to be baptized, the 10 year old daughter said "I'm not sure if I want to be baptized or not." The mother looked over at her and said "Do you want to go to heaven or not?" This quickly put a smile on the daughter's face as she said "Of course I do!" It was so cool to see, the mom isn't even a member but the whole family is wanting to be baptized!</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Megan text this picture to us tonight and said, <br />"We just said Goodbye to our<br /> favorite Missionary and gave him a farewell haircut, <br />He is so excited to see all his family tomorrow.</span></b></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Carlos and Viri finally got MARRIED this past week!!! After 4 years of living together, they are finally married and then on Sunday, we were able to help her to accept the date of December 24th for her Baptism! She has progressed so well. A year and a half ago, Elder Cornejo and I got to teach her, not knowing where it would lead. The chances were so low of us being back together, the Spanish branch being closed, her moving to our area, everything! But it all worked out and she will be getting baptized soon!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">I'd like to bear my testimony of the power of a mission. I'm so grateful for this experience. What a life changing 2 years! I will never forget the experiences that I've had and the people that I've met. Words can not explain how I feel right now. Thank you so much for everyone that has supported me during this time. I love all of you! </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">I testify of the power of Jesus Christ, our Savior. I'm grateful for the Atonement and the amazing power that it has. I love our Heavenly Father, who watches and cares for us in all things. I'm so grateful for everything that I've learned and experienced. I'll share more of my experiences in person!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Thank you!!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">- Elder Leavitt</span></span></div>
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</style>Kelly Leavitthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01076089237538082868noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-23647822537466892092016-11-14T11:48:00.000-08:002016-11-23T07:40:19.023-08:00Week 102 Continued Miracles<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Hey everyone! I hope that everyone is enjoying the month of November so far. It's still been really nice as far as weather here, the fall has been beautiful!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">This was a great week with more amazing miracles. It was an extremely busy week because we were doing Zone Conferences (the last 2 weeks) but we had time after each conference to come back to Ellicott City to continue in the proselyting. We had an amazing miracle last week with a lady named Tess, a story similar to last week's story of Roxy. We were walking around a few nights ago after visiting our investigator, and had a few minutes left in the night. We tried knocking on a few doors and got absolutely rejected at 5 straight doors. Nobody was very nice about it either! We walked up the street, offering a Book of Mormon to a few different people that we passed but the same trend continued. We went into another apartment complex, knocked on a door.....and there was still no success. As we were walking out of the complex, we saw a lady walking up the sidewalk with headphones in. We called out to her and she barely heard and stopped, taking out her earbuds. As we talked to her, she mentioned to us how she needed comfort as she was going through a hard time, so we said a prayer with her. It was amazing to see that even with all of the rejections, the timing worked out perfectly because we were put in her path!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;"><b>Picture and email I received last week:</b></span></span></div>
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<span class="s1">We had the wonderful opportunity to have dinner with your son tonight. We so love having him serve here in our ward. I am sure you are so excited to have him home soon. </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;">I am the primary president in the ward and have asked your son and his companions to sing in the Primary Program next Sunday. They are being obedient and doing what they are asked. I think it will be great. They will be singing the verses to "Army of Helamen" with the kids joining in on the chorus. I don't think they are too excited to do it, but I am so grateful for their willingness.</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;"> ~Kirsten Eads</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Larry Miles is on date for November 25th! We met with him last night and he officially chose a date. He has been so busy with work that it's been hard for him to select a date, but he seems very committed to this date. His aunt is a member in Georgia and has been encouraging him throughout this process.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Chandler was able to go on splits with AJ Jones again, <br />a friend from Highschool.</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Scott Meushaw took them to dinner!</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfyq2Vi072KBOooyVraPdh_lD5CHOvBoEu6QeF41zsj9GEOcpFYmnKHqMJnyTzmx1cW454MFSVluY3EpafmbGIivakhJ2qhNrbkVKjJjMkmgaGv4I0GFoJ-Em0M1mfynKjCxRlI2Dc5IY/s1600/50008155697__3BD5A31A-BCDC-4E5E-9521-F06C572B3788.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfyq2Vi072KBOooyVraPdh_lD5CHOvBoEu6QeF41zsj9GEOcpFYmnKHqMJnyTzmx1cW454MFSVluY3EpafmbGIivakhJ2qhNrbkVKjJjMkmgaGv4I0GFoJ-Em0M1mfynKjCxRlI2Dc5IY/s400/50008155697__3BD5A31A-BCDC-4E5E-9521-F06C572B3788.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Scott had text me the above 2 picts while they were at dinner.<br /> I jokingly replied & asked him, "if it wouldn't be too AWKWARD, <br />would you give Chandler a big hug and kiss from me and tell him <br />how excited I am for him to come home."haha <br />Looks like there is NOTHING Scott wont do for these missionaries or their Mamas.:)<br />I love the terrified look on Chandler's face!</span></b></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">We had a great miracle with Agnes, she is from Cameroon. We stopped by to see her and her son Armel wasn't home so we couldn't enter the house. We talked on the porch and then decided to share the Restoration with her and talk about the Book of Mormon. We invited her to pray at the end, but she said she didn't feel comfortable. We taught her the points of a prayer and then she gave one of the most heartfelt prayers I've ever heard! She thanked Heavenly Father for "her sons that had come to visit her" and for the "ability to talk to my Father about what I've learned." One of my favorite parts of my mission so far is watching people give one of their first prayers, knowing that they are actually praying in the form of a two-way communication, talking with their Father in Heaven.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">We've been teaching this girl named Jasmine, she is the niece of Hermana Casas in our ward! The son of Hermana Casas, named Jesus, was one of the people that we got to baptize last year when we were in the Spanish branch (Elder Cornejo and I). She came to church again yesterday and should be getting baptized within the next few weeks!</span></span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-size: large;">Viridana is doing well also! She's finally reading the Book of Mormon and understanding it! Her and Carlos (he's a member) are getting married on Friday!! They invited us to the wedding and it will be great for them to finally get married!</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Axel Lara, a recent convert who was baptized at the beginning of my mission, is getting his wisdom teeth out today....which means he is finishing his mission papers!! I'm so excited for him. He wanted to leave during the summer but $2500 was stolen from him and he has been raising money ever since. The adversary has done all he can to keep Axel from serving but now he is getting SO close and I can't wait to hear where he gets to serve.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix2U6VwMx0Wz07-zOpELfa6vcdFkf4Mr_aYyYQ7s-PLRdf0thighkG6r8Mom_6TZ4275c3Q7Hg2nS8zxwalCnQqGZC3Qr3HVA2Ny_VQyPjHsYgqFZYk4AmfRupp8oDwTo-1MzZtsmuxcc/s1600/50059890794__97103B28-BD20-4FEB-BA52-9BB35727F96E.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix2U6VwMx0Wz07-zOpELfa6vcdFkf4Mr_aYyYQ7s-PLRdf0thighkG6r8Mom_6TZ4275c3Q7Hg2nS8zxwalCnQqGZC3Qr3HVA2Ny_VQyPjHsYgqFZYk4AmfRupp8oDwTo-1MzZtsmuxcc/s400/50059890794__97103B28-BD20-4FEB-BA52-9BB35727F96E.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;">Scott made dinner for Chandler and his<br />2 companions on Friday night.</b></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">We had the privilege of listening to the testimony of a lady named Zhenya, she is from Russia and is getting baptized in a few days! She has had a crazy life, but is such an amazing woman. She grew up in Russia and never believed there was a God because of what her parents told her. 10 years ago she met missionaries and told them she wasn't interested. Year after year, her life was going down hill. She went through a few marriages and one of her husbands committed suicide. 10 years after she had met missionaries, she saw them again, this time in the United States. She was prepared and is now getting baptized! It's so amazing to see the timing that God has for us.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">During the Zone Conferences, a set of Sisters shared an amazing miracle about a woman named Sonia. They had gotten a headquarter referral, meaning that Sonia had asked for a Bible or Book of Mormon to be delivered to her home. They went to deliver it but could NOT find the address anywhere! They searched all over. All of a sudden they met this lady near one of the doors, but she couldn't speak. She wrote out a note to them, telling them that she was Sonia and that they could come inside. As they went in, they learned that Sonia had severe Cancer because of smoking and she couldn't talk anymore. She seemed so excited to talk to the Sister missionaries and wrote out all of her thoughts as they shared the message of the Restoration with her. They said it was a remarkable experience seeing her smile and light up and then write out her thoughts. They continued to teach her, and then they were at a members house one day telling them about Sonia. They explained that Sonia didn't have hair because of the leukemia and the member all of a sudden ran out of the room to get something. She had a beautiful hairpiece and she wanted the Sisters to deliver it to Sonia! The Sisters went to Sonia's house and the caretaker answered, explaining to them that it wasn't a good time. But, as soon as the caretaker saw the hairpiece he yelled "Sonia, you're going to want to come see this!" She ran to the door, grabbed the hairpiece, put it on and danced around the room with a smile across her face. Although I've never met Sonia, I can see the joy on her face as the truths of the Restored Gospel have now entered her life and the Spirit is radiating within her. What an amazing experience it is to see changes like this with people who are truly searching for the truth.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj9sJPv60Q64Yb23u-dzU-YE1f_Zog12xkBmV_8qDZeyXt8AXWvxSi6l-tgCTF61lxwXRN9aL5AOJXto9USQPcxtW_Xs8IHzHX7CGdDHwIe6pGq68p6D5Dky7JUEvD9rEE3aAt2VaIj7M/s1600/50077240059__39B08947-70DC-40EB-9641-305848E3F168.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj9sJPv60Q64Yb23u-dzU-YE1f_Zog12xkBmV_8qDZeyXt8AXWvxSi6l-tgCTF61lxwXRN9aL5AOJXto9USQPcxtW_Xs8IHzHX7CGdDHwIe6pGq68p6D5Dky7JUEvD9rEE3aAt2VaIj7M/s400/50077240059__39B08947-70DC-40EB-9641-305848E3F168.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Scott sent me this picture as well as some video of Chandler<br />Playing the piano at the Christiansen's home last night.<br />Oh, how I miss hearing him play!</b></span></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Another miracle I heard from Zone Conference was here in the Columbia area! So, over a year and a half ago, there was a man named Enrique Lopez that was investigating the church. It all started on a rainy night when two elders decided to knock on doors. They knocked on his and....he wasn't interested at all! But....a few weeks later they saw him again, this time on the street and he invited them over, telling them that he just got back in town and was now going through a divorce and would like some help. He was taught for 2 months and I got to meet him once on exchanges, but then he moved to Minnesota. Then, just two months ago he moved back but nobody knew where he lived until Elder Singleton, who used to teach him, saw him at a store and got his address!! And then...he lost the address! But luckily he remembered the name of the street so he told the Elders there what the street name was and they went and knocked EVERY door on that street for 2 straight days. Finally, in the last few doors, they found him and are now teaching him! He just can't get away from the missionaries ha!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Also during Zone Conferences, I got the privilege to talk about the Restoration. I'm so grateful for Joseph Smith, who studied out his question until he got the answer. He didn't quit, although he may have thought about it. He wanted to know what church was true and he went to every extent that he could to find his answer! And because of that, the Gospel has been restored through him. What an amazing message it is, and I hope that we never forget that!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Thank you all for the support!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">- Elder Leavitt</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRfw_BxICaS01B6fPO8GSJ8pJ5QEpch24Hor2cpD5_TYPTYun_6U7zeJKVla1OMK0ZLOvC6EeOKpcXXWuJAqDhS26GjyNvL6W_ikNnQ2RBvtQbFqTiJmDcDg-iKe4ti1WPiSdF1D2FCCw/s1600/IMG_2673-1.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRfw_BxICaS01B6fPO8GSJ8pJ5QEpch24Hor2cpD5_TYPTYun_6U7zeJKVla1OMK0ZLOvC6EeOKpcXXWuJAqDhS26GjyNvL6W_ikNnQ2RBvtQbFqTiJmDcDg-iKe4ti1WPiSdF1D2FCCw/s200/IMG_2673-1.PNG" width="111" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJQJuLrP6GSMEtn_KnJr215WCRPhYqAJtFGs4PpREFDLLhxvVFxLc4z-sY0VcCBMVIhG9SkZaW0AxiF-x2eNqxJ8r0ar_W51p-5Guzbbuw8RTO2O25Km6Dn0cS7cXV-uZdhEu0LUhHs6w/s1600/IMG_2674.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJQJuLrP6GSMEtn_KnJr215WCRPhYqAJtFGs4PpREFDLLhxvVFxLc4z-sY0VcCBMVIhG9SkZaW0AxiF-x2eNqxJ8r0ar_W51p-5Guzbbuw8RTO2O25Km6Dn0cS7cXV-uZdhEu0LUhHs6w/s200/IMG_2674.PNG" width="112" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_cWBcr9ie9k89in3znHL5Zg1UFzTHnhZif4Xfaa4SpaJljKJ_9MNod6UkpoeS5KqBdny5INmoXITWxEzITIUEy-CZqVkfzzBJCRbWqiBMCF8BxK7ebn1SmWx56HsUchP_FjC-qnWqLqg/s1600/IMG_2672.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_cWBcr9ie9k89in3znHL5Zg1UFzTHnhZif4Xfaa4SpaJljKJ_9MNod6UkpoeS5KqBdny5INmoXITWxEzITIUEy-CZqVkfzzBJCRbWqiBMCF8BxK7ebn1SmWx56HsUchP_FjC-qnWqLqg/s200/IMG_2672.PNG" width="111" /></a></div>
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</style>Kelly Leavitthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01076089237538082868noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-7867476174848898512016-10-31T21:41:00.000-07:002016-11-01T11:08:40.438-07:00Week 100 Happy Halloween<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Happy Halloween! I hope that everyone has a great day celebrating this holiday. Today we'll be headed to downtown Baltimore and then back to our apartments by 6! We had a great time playing a little P-Day Dodgeball.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">This was an amazing week! For starters, yesterday we were able to attend an African church! To be able to put my experience into words of an email will be tough, but it was interesting to say the least. When we first walked in, there were about 4 people in attendance: one was playing the piano and singing, one was just singing, one was playing the drums, and one was in the audience. We joined the "audience" as they put the lyrics up on a projector. The pastor, Gregory Etunnu from Nigeria, leaned over to me and asked me if I play the drums. Well...it's been close to 2 years since I've played the drums, but I said that I had a drum set back home and then all of a sudden I'm on the front stage playing the drums! Elder Cornejo and Ashby were in the audience with tambourines (handed to them by Gregory) and singing and dancing along. The congregation eventually grew and we all sang and listened to worship songs. I can definitely admit it will be one of the most memorable experiences of my mission! They were so grateful for us to come by and offered a prayer to us. We gave them a Book of Mormon and talked to them about the opportunity of being baptized. I hope that we get to go again next week!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">We had an amazing miracle on Saturday night. It was close to 7:30 and honestly every single thing that could've fallen through that day HAD fallen through. We had gone through every backup plan that we had, so we decided to say a prayer on the sidewalk. We knelt in prayer and then went up to the house of someone that missionaries had met months ago...and we got yelled at. So, slightly discouraged, we walked back to the car. We then drove to a street over in Catonsville. We were going to head back to Ellicott City but felt that we should stay. We knocked on a total of four doors, all of which produced no success. The time was approaching 9 and we realized it was time for us to head home. We talked to a few more people on the street and headed back towards the car. The three of us weren't saying much, but I'm sure that we were all thinking basically the same thing: Why didn't we have any success? What were we doing wrong? I was looking down at the sidewalk as I walked towards our car for the last few hundred feet. All of a sudden, a quiet voice asked "Are you the people that work with the Sisters?" At first, I honestly thought that I was imagining it. I looked to my left at the driveway that was by us. There was a car parked in it, facing us. There was a lady in the driver seat with her window down and she had called out the window. We walked over and stopped by her car. We talked to her and she had met the Sisters multiple times and they had always talked about how the Elders could give her a blessing of comfort. She asked if she could pull a chair out on the porch and receive a priesthood blessing. We taught her about the priesthood and then gave the blessing. Afterwards, she told us that she had never felt the Spirit like that. "I've felt the Holy Ghost before...but this felt different. Even better." She told us she'd be coming to church next week, and we walked back to the car amazed at what had just happened, literally the last minute of the night. The next morning though, we talked to the Sisters about it. They had gotten a call late the night before from Roxy, who we had met and given a blessing to. She told the Sisters about the experience in these words: "As I was sitting in my car, I looked down the street. I saw 6 young men walking towards my house and I was nervous because there were so many. As they got closer though, 3 of them suddenly left and it was just 3 people in white shirts and ties. I knew that they were people of God because I saw 3 angels accompanying them." Hearing that experience the next day was one of the most humbling and amazing miracles of my mission.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Yesterday at church we met two new investigators that came to Sacrament! One of them is the cousin of Jesus Casas, who I taught about a year and a half ago and was baptized. She is wanting to be baptized! The other is the son of a lady that just got baptized into the Spanish branch! </span></span><br />
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">This week we'll be very busy with Zone Conferences! We'll be headed to Martinsburg (West Virginia) tomorrow. Then on Wednesday we'll be in Frederick (Maryland). Thursday we'll be in Baltimore (Maryland) and then up to Lancaster (Pennsylvania) on Friday! And then trying to keep up with our investigators at every available minute in between...it's quite the week! Then the next week we'll be down in Winchester (Virginia), Chambersburg (Pennsylvania) and here in Columbia (Maryland) again!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Thank you so much for the support. I'm so grateful for the emails, letters, encouragement, and all of the prayers in my behalf.</span></span></div>
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Kelly Leavitthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01076089237538082868noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-16074014811078904222016-10-24T22:13:00.000-07:002016-10-24T22:13:06.242-07:00Week 99 Teaching the Restoration is so Amazing!<div class="p1">
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Hey everyone!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">This week was so busy, yet so amazing! First off, we are now teaching Carlos and Viridiana Diaz. Elder Cornejo and I, serving together over 15 months ago, originally taught them but haven't seen them since really. But now they are in the Ellicott City Ward because there is no spanish branch, so we get the chance to teach them again. Carlos is a member but Viri isn't. She expressed to us this week though that she is finally feeling open about the idea of the Book of Mormon and that maybe there is a possibility that it is true. It's so cool getting to teach someone that I haven't seen in so long.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Carlos and Viridiana Diaz<br />(This picture was in July of 2015)</span></b></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Lately, we as a companionship have been putting a large focus on teaching the Restoration in a shorter amount of time and saving sufficient time to teach our investigators how to pray and to receive revelation. It has taught me SO much about the importance of prayer, especially as we are striving to answer the questions we may have. The whole message of the Restoration is that God speaks again today, that we can have the same opportunity that Joseph Smith had to answer the questions that we have about God and His nature. I've loved learning more and more about Joseph Smith and the wonderful prophet he was. More than anything, I've loved learning more about Jesus Christ and the wonderful church that he has established for our benefit. </span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">We ran into Scott Meushaw at Church yesterday.</span></b></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">We got to have dinner at the Stake President's house this week. President Mitchell has been an amazing example to me of a wonderful leader in the Church. I've gotten the chance to spend most of my mission in his stake, about a year and a half total. I've loved serving with him. We practiced teaching the Restoration with them and had an amazing experience. Even with the members, teaching the Restoration is such an amazing testimony to me of why we are out here on missions spreading the wonderful Gospel.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">We met two people from Haiti this week that are so great! Steven and Joseph. They both served in the Army and grew closer to God through that. We talked with them a lot about Jesus Christ and his church being on the earth, and they invited us back for this week. It's been amazing during my mission to meet people from so many different areas of the world.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">We met Scott for dinner again tonight.</span></b></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">I'm so grateful for the experiences that I've had! I know this email was super short this week, but I will have more experiences to share next week!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Thanks!</span></span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-size: large;">- Elder Leavitt</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Mom is LOVING the look of her Apps for tracking my return.</span></b></td></tr>
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</style>Kelly Leavitthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01076089237538082868noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-78607596626374381362016-10-18T16:49:00.002-07:002016-10-18T16:50:14.968-07:00Week 98 Transfer week<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">This was probably the busiest week of my mission up to this point! Last week was transfer week and so we were able to pick up the new missionaries and drop off the missionaries that have finished their 2 years or 18 months. It was so weird seeing Elder Fisher leave Ellicott City to go train a new missionary! That was a fun part about it though because as we picked up the new missionaries, Elder Tucker (his new companion) had no idea that he was going to be with Elder Fisher! He was excited when he heard that though. </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">I'm now with Elder Cornejo and Elder Ashby! It has been so great! It's been awhile since I've been in a trio but it's been so much fun and we've had so much work to do! I love both of them! Elder Cornejo is from California and joined the church just 3 years ago. Elder Ashby is from Lehi and has been out a bit more than a year. They have both taught me so much so far, I'm grateful for their examples! We've had some great experiences already.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Over the first few days of the transfer, I took them to meet Bishop Moffat, our bishop in the Ellicott City Ward. He gave each of us a blessing to prepare for the transfer. I was so grateful for the blessing that he gave me! He talked about how he was grateful that as I've been here over the last year I have helped the ward to grow and become better. That I have had an impact on the ward members. It was such a humbling thing to hear and I have loved serving here with these amazing people. I feel like I've served my entire mission right here in Ellicott City! He promised that as I help the ward council and open my mouth and share the Gospel with everyone that our companionship would be blessed. I'm so grateful for the priesthood and for the opportunity we have to receive blessings. He gave blessings to Elder Cornejo and Ashby as well and it was so cool to see how each blessing was different about how we could help out the ward this transfer.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>A quick photo of me, Elder Ashby & Elder Cornejo after<br />grabbing some Wings with Scott Meushaw last night.</b></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">I can't remember how much I've shared about a man named Don Elliott in our ward, but he has an amazing story! He was baptized 4 years ago but about a year ago went inactive because he was offended by someone in the ward. When I first came into the ward, I didn't know who he was and he didn't attend. Elder Lawrence and I got to know him more and more and then Elder Fisher and I helped him out a lot. He's made such an amazing change in his life. He is active in the church, has a calling, just went to the temple to do all of his family's work, and just taught the lesson in Elders Quorum last week! He has had quite the past and is an interesting man, but has grown to be one of my closest friends. </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">5 or so months ago, Elder Fisher and I taught a man named Kunle from Nigeria, but he went to Nigeria for the entire summer! He's been back for a few weeks and we FINALLY got ahold of him and he wants to be baptized in the first week of November!! </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">We saw Dave Ort again this week! Dave is the one that doesn't believe in God but watched General Conference with us and really enjoyed it. As we taught a lesson about prayer and about the Prophet, he continued to show how much he has learned over the last few weeks. At the very end of the lesson, he gave an incredible prayer and referred to God as his "spiritual dad." It's been so cool to see his progression as he has learned more about God and the relationship that he has with him.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Larry came to church yesterday! As did Carlos and Viridiana, a family that we used to teach in the Columbia Spanish branch! We also had Matthew Johnson at church, he has not gone to church for 2 or 3 years but has come the last 2 weeks and came out teaching with us! He's 21 and we're hoping to help him to want to serve a mission!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">A man in our ward named Brother Flores gave an amazing talk in church yesterday. He was talking about how when he was growing up in Peru, he would always go fishing with his dad. They would go out on a boat and try to catch fish, but never ended up getting anything. After years of this, they went out with professional fishermen in Peru. Instead of just holding the rods, the natives would take a bit of the line and slide it in between their lips, explaining that their lips were able to sense the fish biting on the line and they would be able to reel them in. They were much more successful as they did this, and Brother Flores watched as they caught fish after fish. He compared this to how we must be more sensitive to the things that we feel and then act on them quickly. If they felt that there was a fish but didn't reel it in quickly enough, they wouldn't be able to catch the fish. I loved the principle as he taught about ALL of the things that we learn but we need to be much more sensitive to those thoughts and realize what we can change through those feelings.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Things are going great! I hope all is well with everyone!</span></span></div>
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Kelly Leavitthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01076089237538082868noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-3971521036380272802016-10-10T15:23:00.000-07:002016-10-10T15:45:40.818-07:00Week 97 Last Transfer Of My Misssion<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Hey everyone! I hope that everyone is doing well and enjoying this time of year! It's been beautiful here and perfect weather.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">So, it's transfer week once again! I'm sure most of you thought I'd be leaving Ellicott City because I've been here a year, I did too! But...I'm staying again and I'm so excited! I'll be serving with two new assistants, Elders Ashby and Cornejo, and am excited to serve with them! This will be my 9th transfer here in Ellicott City, I'm still not tired of it though! I love it here! I'm very sad to not be with Elder Fisher anymore, I've loved serving with him. He'll be going to Jones Falls, a ward north of Baltimore, to train a new missionary. He's taught me so much and I know that we've made a friendship that will last a very long time, I'm grateful for his example to me.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Elder Fisher and I have shared some amazing <br />experiences together!</b></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Elder Cornejo is on the left, we were companions <br />back in June of 2015 in Columbia.<br />He is one of the missionaries that was just called as AP.</b></span></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">We had a great week! It's been hard to get ahold of Larry recently, but we finally got to talk to him on the phone and he assured us that he's still interested but his best friend is currently in Shock Trauma so he has been visiting the hospital daily. We had been worried that he was avoiding us, but he told us once again that this is now "his church" and that he is inviting his friends to come and join as well! His baptism will be in just a couple of weeks! He's doing well and loves everything he's learned so far.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">There was an amazing family that got baptized in the ward north of us this week! The Redding family is a family of 7! It has been very rare to have entire families like that join the church, but it was so cool to see! they love everything about the Church, they attend every mutual activity, sacrament, and anything they are allowed to attend!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">I've recently been thinking a lot about the importance of prayer. Prayer was one of the themes I noticed during the very first session of General Conference, with talks like Sister McConkie and Elder Uceda. I'm so grateful for prayer! How amazing it is that a loving Heavenly Father really is as close as a prayer. I'm still working on being more sincere in my prayers and letting it guide me in my everyday life, but I've felt like I've learned so much recently about the importance of prayer and how it is absolutely essential to us gaining a relationship with our Father. </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Sorry there isn't much this week! There will be plenty next week with all of these changes!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Thank you so much once again, I'm so grateful for the support I receive every single week. Have a good one!</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>My family was able to attend a Fireside with Jason Wright <br />last night. He is such a great guy and I love working with him.</b></span></td></tr>
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Kelly Leavitthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01076089237538082868noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-50520798492099564392016-10-05T11:36:00.001-07:002016-10-05T11:36:42.093-07:00Week 96 "To Whom Shall We Go?"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Hey everyone! I hope that all enjoyed General Conference this weekend and were able to listen to the Prophet and His Apostles and other leaders of the Church. What an amazing weekend it was!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">I have always liked listening to General Conference, but until I came on my mission I didn't have a very great understanding of how important and essential it is for us to listen and follow the counsel of our leaders. I'm so grateful for the opportunity that we have to be here at this time, to have the restored truths that we have, and to be able to have the guidance of President Monson, the First Presidency, and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. I love how everyone can get something different out of conference. I have always been told that if you write down questions in preparation, you will be able to find your answers. I had multiple questions that I pondered about beforehand, and every single one of them was addressed in one way or another. The one that stands out the most to me was my question of "How can I make prayer more sincere and meaningful?" Well, within even the first session there were two entire talks dedicated to talking about prayer. Overall, every single talk provided me with something that I can improve on and I'm so grateful for that. I particularly enjoyed Elder Ballard's talk, "To whom shall we go?", and President Uchtdorf's opening remarks. I'm grateful that President Monson was well enough to speak to the us and that we could listen to his guidance and wisdom.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">I'm excited for the next six months now, where I get the opportunity to put all of these things into action! I hope that we all can continue to remember the impressions that we had and follow through on the commitments that we have now made to ourselves, to our families, and to our Heavenly Father.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">It was a very busy week! We had two different exchanges. For one of them, I got to stay in Ellicott City with Elder Ashby, and for the other I went to Frederick with Elder Wilson. Being back in Frederick made me feel like I was back towards the beginning of my mission, it brought me so many amazing memories. While in Frederick, Elder Wilson and I found such an amazing family! Christina Goodwin is the mother's name. She is separated from her husband and has five children. We knocked on her door and she allowed us in. She had previously lived in Colorado and knew many different members of the Church. She instantly had so many questions! We taught her about the Restoration of the Gospel and about the Book of Mormon, which she loved and believed immediately. Towards the end of her lesson, her 15 year old daughter came home and Christina said "Kiya, come sit with us and listen!" She then went on to explain and teach the entire lesson to her daughter! Not only was it great evidence that she had paid attention during the lesson, it showed the impact that it had on her. She told her daughter: "We've had such an amazing discussion tonight, this will change our lives!" It's so amazing to see people that can immediately realize the difference that Faith in a Living and Loving God can bring into their lives. Christina and her children accepted the invitation to be baptized and I'm so excited to hear about their progress over the next few weeks! It was such an amazing miracle.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">A few months ago, we had another Elder named Elder Fisher (not my companion though) and he had to go home after a few months because his dad was in very poor condition. He went home and his father passed away a few weeks later of cancer. This week, he came back to the mission and we picked him up at the airport. He's been such an amazing example to me of perseverance. I'm sure that coming back out on the mission after going home would be one of the hardest things to do, but I'm so grateful for him and his example!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">I hope all is well! Thanks for everything!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">- Elder Leavitt</span></span></div>
Kelly Leavitthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01076089237538082868noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-58013180451546811732016-09-26T21:56:00.002-07:002016-10-10T15:40:17.516-07:00Week 95 "It's not her time, take her back"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Hey everyone! This was another great week here in Ellicott City.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">For starters, I'd like to share a really amazing story, the story of Mary Jones. President Christiansen shared this story with us this week. Mary Jones grew up in Baltimore searching for a true religion, seeking for truth for over 66 years without finding it. About 18 years ago, she got in a terrible car accident where she was in a sleep-induced coma for over 6 1/2 months. She had an amazing experience while she was in a coma. Whether it be a dream, a vision, or an experience, this is what happened to her during the coma. She remembers everything being white and more beautiful than she had ever seen before. She saw a man dressed in a white robe, but she could only see from his shoulders down and was not able to lift her head to look at his face. She knew that it was Jesus Christ given the wounds in his hands and feet. She wanted to look at Him but couldn't. He asked her to follow him and she obeyed. As she was walking, she couldn't help but notice the indescribable beauty around her. She came to a path, and on both sides of this path she saw all of her family members for generations. They were all working on something, writing and drawing on boards and she couldn't see what they were doing. She continued to walk with Christ until she came to what she thought was a throne of some sort. She heard a voice say "It is not her time, take her back." She instantly wanted to shout out that she didn't want to go back, she wanted to stay in this beautiful place, but immediately she turned around and followed Christ back. 18 years later, now fully recovered but still remembering that experience, she sat in on a Bible Study with her niece in Washington DC. Her niece had explained to her that she had recently been meeting with missionaries from the LDS Church who would come and read with her. Mary wanted to see what that was like, so she came. Not only did she love the experience, she wanted to have missionaries come over to her house as well! She went online and requested missionaries to come over, but for some reason it didn't go through. 2 weeks later, she found the number for the Mission Office and talked to one of the Senior Couples, requesting that missionaries come over immediately. As they taught her, she loved every moment of it. When they talked about the Spirit World, she realized just how special her experience 18 years ago had been. And now, 18 years later, she was just baptized and confirmed two days ago as the newest member of the only true Church in existence. Want an amazing series of events that were planned well before she came to this world. President had the opportunity to interview her for her baptism where she shared this wonderful story with him.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><b><span style="font-size: small;">This fox loves coming up to eat the </span></b></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Larry Miles is doing great! He's preparing for his baptism on the 15th of October. He came to church again and loved it and is so excited about General Conference this weekend. This week in Sacrament, Elder Fisher and I spoke! We were assigned to speak on Prophets and the blessings that come from obeying their counsel. I've grown to become much more comfortable speaking in public and it was a good experience. While we talked, there was Larry right in the middle of the front row, intently listening! He's an amazing man.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">This week we saw Dave Ort again, he is the one that is Agnostic and is trying to gain a belief in God again. It was a great visit, he introduced us to his roommate Evan who sat in and listened as well. We went through the story of the Tree of Life in 1 Nephi 8. Afterwards, Dave asked "What do you do if someone believes that all of their beliefs and customs are true but they actually aren't?" We talked about how there is partial truth throughout the entire world, but we have to find the fullness of the truth. Evan then asked: "So how much truth do we need to be able to get into Heaven?" We felt prompted to talk about the Plan of Salvation and ended up teaching the entire lesson and they loved it. They just kept looking at each other and saying "Wow, I've never heard this before!" At the very end, Dave was a bit hesitant to pray, but Evan, obviously having listened very well during the lesson said: "Come on Dave, you can do this! Just pretend like I'm in Spirit Prison and you have to teach me how to pray!" It was a great end to the visit and Dave gave an amazing prayer.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Playing Volleyball on P-Day with a group of the <br />missionaries in Baltimore Inner Harbor.<br />(Chandler is in the very back)</b></span></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Last week, we took a young man from our ward teaching with us. His name is Ben Bartles and he is leaving in January to go to Brazil! While he was with us, he introduced us to a family that lives across from him. They are an older couple named Ron and Mary. They are so nice! They have quite a few medical challenges but accepted our invitation to come help them with some service and to teach them about the Book of Mormon. We've been there twice since and they watched Meet the Mormons and are reading the Book of Mormon!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Deborah, the one that is very similar to Mary Cole who was baptized in July, is now being taught by the Sisters! She said that she wasn't interested in "investigating the Church" just in "joining" so I don't think she completely understood what that phrase meant, and I don't blame her! But it was great to hear that!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Rodger Bryant, who was baptized last October, is doing well! He has lost over 55 pounds in the last 3 months! He seems to be doing better than he was a few months ago and it was good to see him again. While we were about to go into his home, there was a lady down the street that was struggling to parallel park her car, so the member that was with us went down to help. We joined him and as he was parking the car for her, we talked to the lady and one of her friends. Well, it turns out that her friend that was there is already a member of the Church! She said her parents live in Utah but she hasn't been to church in years but said that she'd be willing to come back so she invited us over for dinner to help her return to activity in the Church!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">I hope that we are all excited for General Conference this weekend! What an amazing opportunity it is to listen to our modern-day Prophet, President Monson, the First Presidency, the Twelve Apostles, and the other leaders of this amazing Church. I hope that we all prepare and listen intently to the promptings that come to us so that we can improve. Thanks for everything!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">- Elder Leavitt</span></span></div>
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<br />Kelly Leavitthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01076089237538082868noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-8593485087021381832016-09-20T12:47:00.001-07:002016-10-31T21:40:03.520-07:00Week 94 Meeting an APOSTLE<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Hey everyone! I hope that everything is going well and that you have had a great week so far. It was an amazing week here in the Maryland Baltimore Mission!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">This last weekend, we had the amazing privilege to hear from Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Elder Lynn G. Robbins of the Presidency of the Seventy, and Elder Kevin E. Calderwood, our Area Seventy in the North America Northeast Area. It was so great! Elder Oaks is also the chairman of the Missionary Executive Committee. It was such a wonderful experience to get the opportunity to learn from these amazing Servants of the Lord!</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Elder Dallin H. Oaks</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">I had the privilege of introducing Elder Oaks. </span></b></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">On Saturday, the entire mission gathered for a special conference in Frederick, Maryland. As we were waiting in the chapel, there was such a strong Spirit knowing that we were going to be able to listen to Elder Oaks, Elder Robbins, and Elder Calderwood. When they made their entrance, we all stood as they walked towards the front of the chapel. We each got the chance to walk through and shake each of their hands. There is such a power just from shaking the hand of an Apostle! After we all had that opportunity, we began the meeting and had such a wonderful experience! Elder Oaks is not only one of the most amazing teachers, he's extremely funny! He had us laughing the entire time! President & Sister Christiansen began the meeting with their testimonies, and then Elder Calderwood spoke. He talked about how we learn from Grace to Grace, line upon line, precept upon precept. He served as the Mission President for the New York New York South Mission just a few years ago. Following his remarks, Elder Robbins spoke! He is an amazing speaker as well. He talked about Christlike Attributes, focusing his remarks on the concept of love. Elder Oaks was the concluding speaker, and he started off by saying "Elders and Sisters, the things I say to missionaries are different depending on the mission. Sometimes, I need to teach them about why they're here. But, as I shook hands with each one of you, I can tell that you know who you are and why you are here." That was so amazing to hear from him and I'm so grateful to get to serve in this mission, President & Sister Christiansen are incredible leaders and the culture of the mission is great to be around. Elder Oaks spoke a lot about revelation, how we can seek and receive it. He opened it up for about 30 minutes just for a Question and Answer session. Like I said before, Elder Oaks is extremely funny! Someone asked a question about discouragement and he said something like "it is so easy to be discouraged sometimes because of the rudeness of the world, especially during the time of an election such as this." Now, he was trying to make a point of how divided people can become during these times, but everyone kind of laughed because most people in Maryland at least seem to not like either of the choices (I feel blessed to know close to little about this upcoming election) and Elder Oaks started laughing as well, and he looks around and says "Ok, do not put that comment on the internet! I was not making a political comment!" He said funny things like that throughout the meeting, yet brought the Spirit more than I've ever felt before. It was a perfect balance and such an amazing thing to be able to learn from him. There are many more stories, but they are hard to explain through email in the fullness that he was able to explain them!</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Sister Christiansen, Elder Fisher, Elder Dallin H. Oaks,<br /> Me and President Chistiansen</span></b></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">On Sunday, we got to hear from Elder Oaks again! He came to the Columbia Stake for Stake Conference, and since we're serving in that stake currently, we got to come! He arrived about 45 minutes early and started walking from row to row, talking and shaking hands with every person in attendance! It was so amazing to see. As he saw Elder Fisher and I again, he said "You know Elders, I've been wondering...how did two red heads become companions?" I think a lot of people have wondered that! He made incredible remarks on Sunday as well, but I will just share one of the things he talked about. He invited an 8 year old boy to come up named Adam Mitchell. Adam is the son of the Stake President. He explained to the congregation that he was going to demonstrate a principle of what it feels like in a new leadership calling or when something changes in your life. He talked about what it means to have a "mantle" on you. When you come into a new calling, there is often a mantle that you feel like you must fit immediately. He then proceeded to take off his suit jacket, and he placed it on Adam. Obviously, it was much too big. He told Adam to face the congregation for a few minutes to demonstrate this principle. He talked about how no matter what, when we started a new calling or responsibility we will not fit, it will be much too big. He talked about how we will always be able to grow into it, but we need to realize that it will take time. It was a great object lesson! He went on to teach more about Sabbath Day Observance, Tithing, Missions, and other great doctrines and principles. Towards the end he once again showed his great sense of humor! He was trying to find a scripture on his iPad but seemed to be struggling and a bit frustrated with how it was working. He referred to his iPad as an "infernal device" and said "I wouldn't even be using this thing if President Packer hadn't told us that we had to!" President Christiansen ended up loaning him his paper scriptures, but the entire congregation was laughing as Elder Oaks demonstrated an amazing balance of humor and Spiritual teaching. I am so grateful for the chance that we had to learn from him this weekend! Later that day, we got a picture with him before President & Sister Christiansen took him to the airport. As he shook the hands of Elder Fisher and I one last time, he said something that I will never forget and always strive to live up to: "Elders, thank you for being the kind of missionaries that we need." I'll never forget that moment, and hope that I can become better every single day to some day be as Spiritually in tune and humble as Elder Oaks.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>A Day I will NEVER forget!</b></span></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Mary Cole got to be in attendance for the conference with Elder Oaks and she loved it! She shared a really cool experience with us this week. We were reading 2 Nephi 31 from the Book of Mormon, and asked her how the Gift of the Holy Ghost has blessed her since her baptism. She told us that just a few weeks ago, she was eating lunch with her brother. Her brother got her coffee and asked her to drink it before it got cold. She had quit drinking coffee ever since she had learned about the commandment to live the Word of Wisdom. She didn't want to offend her brother and started to lift the cup up to her mouth. While doing so, she felt this feeling in her stomach that she described as something that was trying to tell her she shouldn't drink it. She set it down and explained that she no longer drinks coffee! It was so amazing to see her recognize an experience with the Holy Ghost. Obviously, something like drinking coffee is not going to be as serious as other sins, but she recognized it as a commandment of God and knew that as long as we follow his commandments, we are blessed! Regardless of whether or not we know all of the reasons behind it, we trust in a living and loving God and we obey!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">It was an amazing week! Thank you again for the wonderful love and support!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">- Elder Leavitt</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Joseph & Megan Giuseppe family.</span></b></td></tr>
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Kelly Leavitthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01076089237538082868noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-6759616820713787082016-09-13T20:12:00.003-07:002016-09-20T11:50:38.691-07:00Week 93 What an AMAZING Week!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="s1">Hey everyone, this email is coming a day late because we were in Zone Conferences yesterday for the west half of the mission! This last week was packed FULL of stories and experiences. I'll have to save a lot of them for a different time to prevent this email from taking over an hour to read, plus some are hard to explain through an email, but I'll share a few of the experiences that we had this week!</span></div>
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<span class="s1">First, we had a great miracle with a lady named Deborah. We received a text from Church Headquarters with the name of somebody that had ordered a Bible. Those are always great because most of the time, they actually want you over and they are expecting your visit. We stopped by, she let us in, and we taught her, her mother, and her grandson about the Restoration. Deborah is exactly like Mary Cole in every way! So tonight we are taking Mary over there and having her meet Deborah and will be passing it off to the Sisters for them to teach her. If Deborah gets baptized, that will be 2 people that Mary has helped learn about the Gospel, and she only joined the church herself less than 2 months ago!</span></div>
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<span class="s1">This was an absolutely incredible weekend! On Saturday, we had a Mission Conference for the East half of our mission with Elder Robert C Gay of the Seventy. He is an amazing man! He helped Mitt Romney get Bain Capital up and running, now one of the biggest investing companies in the world. He served as a mission president in Ghana, and now helps out with the Self-Reliance Program of the Church. He gave great instructions and helped us out so much! We held the Mission Conference for the West half on Monday and it was great as well. It was so amazing to be able to work with him and learn from him.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; font-weight: bold;">Chandler is on the front row, far right.</span></td></tr>
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<span class="s1">As part of the Mission Tour that he performed, he went out teaching with us on Sunday! We went to visit a doctor from Cameroon, his name is Armel. We had one of the most Spiritual lessons of my entire mission as we talked to Armel about the struggles he is going through, particularly with his marriage. He talked about how he felt that most of the things that he has experienced in his life have been random events, not planned by a God. Elder Fisher and I both shared experiences of trials in our lives that could have been random, but taught us a very important lesson and were part of an eternal plan. Elder Gay shared a story about a doctor that talked about how she saw God everyday in her work in medicine. The Spirit was so incredibly strong as Elder Gay promised that us being there with him was in fact part of a plan and not a random event that just happened. Armel felt that Spirit and there was the most amazing feeling in the room. Elder Gay told him to email him and that he would send him a book about a doctor's conversion story. We gave him Alma 36 to read from the Book of Mormon about Alma's conversion story and how he came to realize God's plan for him. The next day, Elder Gay had already gotten an email from Armel! We'll be seeing Armel on Friday. He has 3 children, his whole family is amazing!</span></div>
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<span class="s1">While Elder Gay was here, he also held a fireside for all of the investigators and recent converts. He shared amazing stories and doctrines of the Gospel, and as part of the program, Mary bore her testimony! She is absolutely incredible. She talked about how after living for almost 70 years, she realized that she needed something more than just a belief in God. With all of these wonderful people in the audience, going through the same thing that she was just a few months ago, she testified of the Book of Mormon, of the reality of one true church, and of a living Christ. She shared an experience she had never shared with us before. As she was being taught, she was hesitant at first to set a date to be baptized. She continued to learn with us, had wonderful experiences, and one night, she woke up in the middle of the night. As if there was someone in the room with her, she heard "Mary, what are you waiting for? You know it's true." I will never forget those words and the feeling that I had while listening to her testimony. I wish that you all could meet her! She told us that instead of reading mystery books now, she reads through each of the manuals that have been made for the Presidents of the Church! </span></div>
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<span class="s1">Larry is preparing to be baptized on October 8th! He came to church on Sunday and loved it! He loved how diverse it was, in the Ellicott Ward we have people from America, Mexico, Canada, Jamaica, Germany, Peru, Honduras, Nigeria, Guatemala, Colombia, China, South Korea, the Philippines, Australia, the Czech Republic, and many other countries! He participated well and enjoyed the testimonies. His aunt is a member of the church as well, so he has great family support. It was interesting because on Sunday, we had saved a spot for him and he hadn't showed up yet and the sacrament meeting had started. As I was sitting there thinking during the Sacrament, I turned around and Larry was already there! He had come in without me seeing, and was sitting by Elder Fisher and a few of the members. I was so grateful and felt a little rebuked because I was beginning to doubt that he would come! I had a similar experience a while back with Victor Soriano and his family, who got baptized about a year ago now! </span></div>
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<span class="s1">We also had a miracle with a man named Dave Ort. Dave is 26 and had been taught about 2 or 3 years ago by missionaries. We had found his information on a weekly report from over a year and a half ago and decided to give him a call. He was very nice, and invited us to come over last night. We got the opportunity to meet him and had a great visit. We talked about how he is Agnostic, how he has slowly lost his belief in God. We asked questions, directed by the Spirit, about what he would want the Nature of God to be if he could have an "ideal God" and he talked about that God being "all knowing, all loving, all powerful." We shared our knowledge that there IS this kind of God that he is looking for. We taught him about the Book of Mormon and how other people have had his questions. After looking down for most of the visit, he looked us in the eyes and said "You're telling me that people in this Book had the same questions that I have?" It was just as D&C 123:12 states:</span></div>
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<span class="s1">He absolutely wanted the truth! He just didn't know where to find it. We had that same experience with a woman named Julie this week. We helped her move into a new apartment. She has 3 children. As we helped her, we taught her about God and how truth has been restored. Full truth, not just partial. She invited us back, and we brought the Sisters with us to meet her and her family, and they are now teaching her! She accepted the invitation to be baptized and is progressing well.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">In closing, I'd like to issue a challenge and share one last story! In October of 2002, Elder M. Russell Ballard gave a talk entitled "The Greatest Generation of Missionaries." In essence, he talked about raising the bar for missionaries in the church and it's a wonderful talk. The following General Conference, he gave a talk entitled "The Essential Role of Member Missionary Work." I've included this talk below if you're interested in reading it! 6 months after the raising of the bar for missionaries, he raises the bar for members of the Church. Here is one of the parts of his talk:</span></div>
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<span class="s1">"We should exercise our faith and pray individually and as families, asking for help in finding ways to share the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. Ask the Lord to open the way. Prayerfully set a date with your <a href="http://www.mormon.org/values/family"><span class="s3">family</span></a> to have someone in your home for the missionaries to teach. Remember, brothers and sisters, this is the Lord’s Church. Let Him guide you through constant prayer. With a prayer in your heart, talk to everyone you can. Don’t prejudge. Don’t withhold the good news from anyone. Talk to everyone, and trust in the promised power of the Spirit to give you the words you should say. Let them make the decision to accept or reject your invitation. Over time, the Lord will put into your path those who are seeking the truth. He is the Good Shepherd. He knows His sheep, and they will know His voice, spoken through you, and they will follow Him."</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Throughout this talk, he talks about setting a date to have someone that you can invite to hear the Gospel. He promises that even if you don't have a name yet, that name will come to you through fasting and prayer. I'd like to issue this same challenge! Whether it be with someone who is currently struggling with the Gospel or for one that has never heard of it, prayerfully follow the council of our Prophet, who stated that "now is the time for members and missionaries to come together, to work together, to labor in the Lord's vineyard to bring souls unto him." </span></div>
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<span class="s1">Now, I'll close with the experience that goes along with this. We shared this talk and issued this challenge to a family in our ward, the Bartholomew family. They accepted the opportunity, and right as we were walking out the door after a wonderful visit with them, one of the little kids told Sister Bartholomew that she would like to run to the neighbor and give him an Article of Faith card. As we were headed to our car, they went over as a family to deliver this card. They told us that at a later day, they'd try to introduce us, so we headed off towards our next visit. The next day in church, Sister Bartholomew told us this: "Elders! I need to tell you what happened yesterday. As you saw, I went over with the 4 kids to help them deliver that card to Tom and his wife. Well, they weren't home when we stopped by, so we took a picture of the kids in front of their door and sent it to them. Later that night, we received a text that said 'Thank you so much for stopping by! We are actually out of town right now. Ironically, we are visiting Wyoming and actually just had the opportunity to go down to Utah and visit Temple Square, it was an amazing experience!' My kids were so excited to hear that!"</span></div>
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<span class="s1">What an amazing experience, and I know that we can all have experiences just like that! So, that's my challenge and I promise that as you set a date and prayerfully ask for the Lord's help, you can have a wonderful experience in sharing the Gospel with those around you. I love this work!</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Well...that was a long email! I wish I could share some of the stories that Elder Gay shared, but he did it in such a way that I feel like an email just doesn't do it justice! One day I will share them. Thank you so much for all of the support! I'd love to hear any experiences you have with sharing the Gospel!</span></div>
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<span class="s1">- Elder Leavitt</span></div>
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Kelly Leavitthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01076089237538082868noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-46016042707902265992016-09-06T18:05:00.000-07:002016-09-06T18:05:16.869-07:00Week 92 Labor Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Hey everyone! We couldn't email yesterday with all of the libraries being closed because of Labor Day, but I hope that everyone had a good holiday! We had a Ward Picnic and played basketball and ultimate frisbee and got to meet tons of new people that came to the activity!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">This week was great! It started off with picking up 16 new missionaries at the airport! I always look forward to that, it's so exciting to see how prepared they are and how ready they are to be out there working. We were supposed to have 17, but one of the Spanish Hermanas had to stay a few days later in the MTC because a bat flew into their room! Sort of a crazy experience I'm sure. The new missionaries are awesome and I'm so grateful to get to serve around them! Wednesday was transfers, which is always one of the busiest days imaginable! Then early in the morning on Thursday we took the departing group of missionaries going home, 10 of them this time! After that, the transfer feels like it has officially begun and we can again focus on our area here in Ellicott City! </span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrJlK9e-Ny1W2yRFgTW4LDt6UhepCnRk-m9jZoJ3bmIEablE-sY-aDrAjeMOoNDCzpzkOA96pW6hccnJXIH4A7PhqTjlvOrlmY_euVyjR9pxCyBbQShzBZdmQJivqTmXcV-DASNtIfZfo/s1600/Image-35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrJlK9e-Ny1W2yRFgTW4LDt6UhepCnRk-m9jZoJ3bmIEablE-sY-aDrAjeMOoNDCzpzkOA96pW6hccnJXIH4A7PhqTjlvOrlmY_euVyjR9pxCyBbQShzBZdmQJivqTmXcV-DASNtIfZfo/s400/Image-35.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Chandler is 2nd in on left side.</b></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Chandler is 5th down on the right.</span></b></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">One of the Sister missionaries that just came into the mission is from Alabama, and before she left was given two names of people in Maryland that she should visit! She was just shopping at Walmart before her mission, getting ready to leave and someone stopped her and asked her about what a mission was and where she was headed. It turned out that they knew a family that lived in Maryland and wanted the Gospel taken to them! It just so happens that those people live here in Ellicott City! So when she came into the mission last week she gave us the names and we're going to go by and meet them, it's amazing how the timing worked out perfectly for that!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Elder Cornejo (previous companion), me, </span></b></span><b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-size: small;">Elder Southwick </span></b></div>
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<b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-size: small;">(another spanish elder), </span></b><span class="s1" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Elder Fisher, S</span></b></span><b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-size: small;">ister Emery who</span></b></div>
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<b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-size: small;"> used to serve here but came </span></b><b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-size: small;">back to visit after her mission,</span></b></div>
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<b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-size: small;"> and Sister Emery's friend.</span></b></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">We had a great miracle this week with Larry. Larry was being taught by other elders until the recent ward boundary change when he was passed off to us. Over the last 3 or 4 weeks, we haven't been able to get ahold of him and he has been busy working out of town. He does maintenance for about 10 different apartment complexes around Maryland and Virginia, so he is generally pretty busy. On Friday night, we had Larry on our plans to go visit and we stopped by. He was home and invited us in. He told us about how over the last few weeks, he had felt such a difference without the influence of reading from the Book of Mormon, learning with the missionaries, feeling the Holy Ghost, and all of the things he had grown to love over just a few times with the missionaries in his home. He told us about how his aunt keeps telling him that he really needs to be meeting with the missionaries and be baptized. While we were there, Larry told us that one of his friends named Joe was going to be staying with him for a few months. Joe was out on the back porch, so Larry invited him in and said "Joe, these people can help you with your challenges right now." We explained to Joe that it wasn't us that were going to help him, but through listening and learning more about Jesus Christ, his burdens could be made light. He talked to us about how his wife cheated on him recently and he is going through a lot of pain because of family circumstances. We talked to Larry & Joe about the Plan of Salvation, especially about our life here on earth, and had a great experience with them. It has always been so interesting to me about how people that haven't heard about the Plan say that it has a familiar ring when they hear it. I truly know that we all learned about God's plan before we came here. Now, both Larry & Joe are preparing for baptismal dates.</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Pramod, the man from Nepal that was referred to us by a member, gets back from New York City this week! He texted us this week asking if we could meet up, him and his wife would like to learn more about the Church. We showed them the clip from Meet the Mormons about Bishnu from Nepal and they loved it! That movie has been a great resource to teach about the Restored Church. We're excited to meet more with Pramod and Leila, his wife! We also found somebody named Dave Ort who used to meet with missionaries and he invited us back on Monday to learn again. Another man, named Geoff Haver, went to the Philadelphia Temple Open House this last week and invited us over to meet with him and his wife! It's so exciting to see all that is happening. </span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">This picture was taken the day Elder Lawrence went home.</span></b></td></tr>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">This week, our mission gets the opportunity to meet with Elder Robert Gay of the Seventy. The week after that, we get the opportunity to meet with an Apostle, one of the seven Presidents of the Seventy, and a member of the area presidency all at one time! We're so excited for the chance to meet and learn from these amazing servants of God! </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Because Elder Robert C Gay will be meeting with us, I'd like to close this email with a story he shared in General Conference in the October 2012 Session:</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">"The Savior once asked His disciples the following question: "What shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" This is a question that my father taught me to carefully consider years ago. As I was growing up, my parents assigned me chores around the house and paid me an allowance for that work. I often used that money, a little over 50 cents a week, to go to the movies. Back then a movie ticket cost 25 cents for an 11-year-old. This left me with 25 cents to spend on candy bars, which cost 5 cents apiece. A movie with five candy bars! It couldn't get much better than that. All was well until I turned 12. Standing in line one afternoon, I realized that the ticket price for a 12-year-old was 35 cents, and that meant two less candy bars. Not quite prepared to make that sacrifice, I reasoned to myself, "You look the same as you did a week ago." I then stepped up and asked for the 25-cent ticket. The cashier did not blink, and I bought my regular five candy bars instead of three. Elated by my accomplishment, I later rushed home to tell my dad about my big coup. As I poured out the details, he said nothing. When I finished, he simply looked at me and said, "Son, would you see your soul for a nickel?" His words pierced my 12-year-old heart. It is a lesson I have never forgotten."</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">I love this story and what it symbolizes! Elder Gay goes onto to talk about how sometimes we let small obstacles get in the way of the promise that as we keep our covenants, we will receive all that the Father hath. I hope that we can all look at our lives and see where our priorities are and to make sure that we are always willing to submit to His Will. I love you all, thanks for the support!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">- Elder Leavitt</span></span></div>
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Kelly Leavitthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01076089237538082868noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8237594319885746039.post-61465516696813860202016-08-31T00:55:00.001-07:002016-08-31T00:55:38.809-07:00Week 91 Transfer Week<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Hey everyone! It's transfer week again! And.....I'll be staying in Ellicott City for another transfer! It's been pretty crazy to stay in one area for this long, it's been 8 transfers (6 weeks each) so almost a full year now!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">This week, we got to go on exchanges in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. I stayed here in Ellicott and got to be with Elder Abraham for the day! I've gotten the chance to serve around him for a lot of my mission in one way or the other, and he was my Zone Leader while I served here in the Columbia Spanish Branch. I've always looked up to him and it was great to be on an exchange and get to work together for the day! He's approaching his last transfer and has been a great example to me. While on exchanges, we taught a man that told us that all he believes is the Bible and that any question he has, he goes to the Bible. We taught him about how not only can we read on the Word of God, we can go straight to Heavenly Father for our answers. It was a rough lesson and just felt like he wanted to Bible Bash, and it taught both of us the importance of not only believing in the Bible, but believing in a living and modern Prophet and that we can still receive guidance in our day.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br />Mark Martin had the chance to attend the Philadelphia Temple Open House with some of the members of our congregation! Dennis is still doing so well, we taught him about the Word of Wisdom and he is one of the most spiritual 16 year old kids I've ever met. He amazes me every time we go and teach him!</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Tomorrow we get to go pick up the new missionaries, 17 are coming in! And then on Wednesday will be transfer day, and Thursday we take the missionaries that have finished their 24 or 18 months to the airport, so it's a busy week! I always like this week though because it feels like a new start with renewed focus!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Sorry this week's email is so short! Next week will have more stories and experiences!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">Love you all!</span></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">- Elder Leavitt</span></span></div>
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Kelly Leavitthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01076089237538082868noreply@blogger.com0