November 7, 2011

Hey Everyone!

This week was such a great week. Elder McLain and I were very blessed for our hard work. I think the greatest part of the week was going to see Lois, Joe and Elaina. Just as a little bit of background information; Joe we have been having a little bit of a hard time getting to read and pray. When we went by on Wednesday night, their copies of the book of Mormon were sitting on the table, and they had just been talking about it. Elaina (she is 11) goes to her dad's house every 1st, 3rd and 5th weekends, and when she goes there, she goes to church with her aunt to a Pentecostal church. Her aunt found out that she was meeting with the Mormon missionaries and fed her some false information about the church, which put the church in a bad light. So when we went over, Elaina was in tears because she didn't know who to believe or what she should do. We shared with her Moroni 10:4-5 and John 14:26-27. Elder McLain and I bore testimony and helped her understand that where she feels the Spirit more and where she feels the Lord wants her more is where she should be. Then Joe told her about what he had read in the book of Mormon (Alma 32 about faith) and told her that this is where she should be, and that this is what God wants her to do. The Spirit was so strong in that home, and everyone that was there was uplifted and edified. Then at the end, we invited Joe to say the closing prayer, of which he denied. Then Elaina told him that if she would pray then he had to. And she gave a great, powerful prayer, and everyone looked at Joe, and waited for him, then he said he wasn't going to do it. Then Lois said that she would say a prayer then he had to. So she gave a great prayer as well, then Joe offered a very sincere and heartfelt prayer. It was an incredible experience to be a part of and we really enjoyed it.

As members of the church we enjoy a blessing that nobody else can, and that is the peace of mind knowing that there is a living prophet and having the constant companionship of the Spirit. This is the Lord's church, and the blessings that come with that, are available to everyone. This is the Lord's kingdom, this is his work, and we are his disciples.

Love,
Elder Layton