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| Hermana Bond and Hermana Bott |
Hello! This week was
good! Like always!! So this week Elder Waddell came to Ica and we had a training
by him. It was great! He talked about what our purpose is as missionaries and
how we can apply the Atonement more in our work. One thing that stuck out to me
is that he told us to abrir la boca, which means open your mouth! Share the
gospel!!! There are opportunities all around us!!!!!!
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| with Elder Waddell and Pres and Sis Douglas |
Have you ever thought
why we eat, why we sleep, why we breath, why we live??? We are here to create
eternal families. My role as a missionary is to help families return to live with
God through baptism, which is only the gate. 2 Nephi 31 (Book of Mormon).
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| love trying new foods |
I love Moses 1:39 For behold, this is my work and my glory —to bring to pass
the immortality and eternal life of man; at the end add eternal families and it adds a lot of perspective!
Then also I love
Mormon 8:22For the eternal purposes of the Lord shall roll on, until all
his promises shall be fulfilled.
found this little gem! Em wrote the poem years ago. Isn't this what eternal families are all about
Ahhh I loved the
training. It was amazing!!! Also I’m so excited for Women’s Conference this Saturday!!!!!!
This Saturday Jafet and
Ismena will be baptized! They are so excited. Last night we had a family night
with the Galindos and Ismena, Jafet, Lourdes, Nikole, Hna Lula, Raul, Cristian,
William and Cyntia, it was amazing. All about gratitude.
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| this is looking over Ayacucho. I asked Em why she wasn't sending pics, her reply was that it just wasn't safe to have a camera out in this area...eeek don't tell the mama that! |
Mosiah 2:16-23Behold, I say unto you that because I said unto you that I had
spent my days in your service, I do not desire to boast, for I have only been
in the service of God.
17And behold, I tell you these
things that ye may learn wisdom ; that ye may learn that when ye are in the
service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.
18Behold, ye have called me your
king; and if I, whom ye call your king, do labor to serve you, then ought not
ye to labor to serve one another?
19And behold also, if I, whom ye
call your king, who has spent his days in your service, and yet has been in the
service of God, do merit any thanks from you, O how you ought to thank your heavenly
King !
20I say unto you, my brethren,
that if you should render all the thanks and praise which your whole soul has
power to possess, to that God who has created you, and has kept and preserved
you, and has caused that ye should rejoice , and has granted that ye should
live in peace one with another—
21I say unto you that if ye
should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you
from day to day, by lending you breath , that ye may live and move and do
according to your own will , and even supporting you from one moment to
another—I say, if ye should serve him with...
22And behold, all that he
requires of you is to keep his commandments; and he has promised you that if ye
would keep his commandments ye should prosper in the land; and he never doth
vary from that which he hath said; therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he
doth bless you and prosper you.
23And now, in the first place, he
hath created you, and granted unto you your lives, for which ye are indebted
unto him.
Gratitude is the
catalyst to all other Christ-like attributes!! Christ is the light. He is the
way. Through Him we find happiness and true repentance. To have more confidence
we take care of ourselves spiritually, physically, we are obedient, repent and
forgive. I love this gospel!
Love
Hermana Bott
Ps mom will you attatch
the talk about approaching the throne of God with confidence by Elder Klebingat and then the Easter movie (nex post because I am a week late!)that is new like he is the gift but for Easter!?
By applying the Atonement of Jesus Christ, you can begin
increasing your spiritual confidence today if you are willing to listen and
act.
On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate your spiritual
confidence before God? Do you have a personal witness that your current
offering as a Latter-day Saint is sufficient to inherit eternal life? Can you
say within yourself that Heavenly Father is pleased with you? What thoughts
come to mind if you had a personal interview with your Savior one minute from
now? Would sins, regrets, and shortcomings dominate your self-image, or would
you simply experience joyful anticipation? Would you meet or avoid His gaze?
Would you linger by the door or confidently walk up to Him?
Whenever the adversary cannot persuade imperfect yet
striving Saints such as you to abandon your belief in a personal and loving God,
he employs a vicious campaign to put as much distance as possible between you
and God. The adversary knows that faith in Christ—the kind of faith that
produces a steady stream of tender mercies and even mighty miracles—goes hand
in hand with a personal confidence that you are striving to choose the right.
For that reason he will seek access to your heart to tell you lies—lies that
Heavenly Father is disappointed in you, that the Atonement is beyond your
reach, that there is no point in even trying, that everyone else is better than
you, that you are unworthy, and a thousand variations of that same evil theme.
As long as you allow these voices to chisel away at your
soul, you can’t approach the throne of God with real confidence. Whatever you
do, whatever you pray for, whatever hopes for a miracle you may have, there
will always be just enough self-doubt chipping away at your faith—not only your
faith in God but also your confidence in yourself. Living the gospel in this
manner is no fun, nor is it very healthy. Above all, it is completely
unnecessary! The decision to change is yours—and yours alone.
I would like to share six practical suggestions that, if
heeded, will dissipate these evil voices and restore to you the kind of
peaceful assurance and spiritual confidence that is yours to have if you only
want it. Regardless of the rating you gave yourself on that 1-to-10 scale, by
applying the Atonement of Jesus Christ, you can
begin increasing your spiritual confidence today if you are willing to listen
and act. I will speak boldly, hoping to edify and not to offend.
1. Take responsibility for your own spiritual well-being. Stop
blaming others or your circumstances, stop justifying, and stop making excuses
for why you may not be fully striving to be obedient. Accept that you are “free
according to the flesh” and “free to choose liberty and eternal life” (2 Nephi
2:27). The Lord knows your circumstances perfectly, but He also knows
perfectly well whether you simply choose not to fully live the gospel. If that
is the case, be honest enough to admit it, and strive to be perfect within your
own sphere of circumstances. Spiritual confidence increases when you
take responsibility for your own spiritual well-being by applying the Atonement
of Jesus Christ daily.
2. Take responsibility for your own physical well-being. Your
soul consists of your body and spirit (see D&C
88:15). Feeding the spirit while neglecting the body, which is a temple,
usually leads to spiritual dissonance and lowered self-esteem. If you are out
of shape, if you are uncomfortable in your own body and can do something about
it, then do it! Elder Russell M. Nelson has taught that we should “regard
our body as a temple of our very own” and that we should “control our diet and
exercise for physical fitness” (“We Are Children of God,” Ensign, Nov.
1998, 87; Liahona, Jan. 1999, 103).
President Boyd K. Packer has taught “that our spirit
and our body are combined in such a way that our body becomes an instrument of
our mind and the foundation of our character” (“The Instrument of Your Mind and
the Foundation of Your Character” [Church Educational System fireside,
Feb. 2, 2003], 2; speeches.byu.edu).
Therefore, please use good judgment in what and especially how much you eat,
and regularly give your body the exercise it needs and deserves. If you are
physically able, decide today to be the master of your own house and begin a
regular, long-term exercise program, suited to your abilities, combined with a
healthier diet. Spiritual confidence increases when your spirit, with
the help of the Savior, is truly in charge of your natural man or woman.
3. Embrace voluntary, wholehearted obedience as part of
your life. Acknowledge that you cannot love God without also loving
His commandments. The Savior’s standard is clear and simple: “If ye love me,
keep my commandments” (John 14:15).
Selective obedience brings selective blessings, and choosing something bad over
something worse is still choosing wrong. You can’t watch a bad movie and expect
to feel virtuous because you did not watch a very bad one.
Faithful observance of some commandments doesn’t justify neglecting others.
Abraham Lincoln rightly said, “When I do good I feel good, when I do bad I feel
bad” (in William H. Herndon and Jesse William Weik, Herndon’s
Lincoln: The True Story of a Great Life, 3 vols. [1889], 3:439).
Also, do the right things for the right reasons. The Lord,
who “requireth the heart and a willing mind” (D&C
64:34) and who “is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (D&C
33:1), knows why you go to church—whether you are present in body only or
truly worshipping. You can’t sing on Sunday, “O Babylon, O Babylon, [I] bid
thee farewell” and then seek or tolerate its company again moments later (“Ye
Elders of Israel,” Hymns,no. 319). Remember that casualness in
spiritual matters never was happiness. Make the Church and the restored gospel
your whole life, not just a part of your outward or social life. Choosing this
day whom you will serve is lip service only—until you actually live accordingly
(see Joshua
24:15). Spiritual confidence increases when you are truly striving,
for the right reasons, to live a consecrated life in spite of your
imperfections!
4. Become really, really good at repenting thoroughly and
quickly. Because the Atonement of Jesus Christ is very practical, you
should apply it generously 24/7, for it never runs out. Embrace the Atonement
of Jesus Christ and repentance as things that are to be welcomed and applied
daily according to the Great Physician’s orders. Establish an attitude of
ongoing, happy, joyful repentance by making it your lifestyle of choice. In
doing so, beware of the temptation to procrastinate, and don’t expect the world
to cheer you on. Keeping your eyes on the Savior, care more about what He
thinks of you, and let the consequences follow. Spiritual confidence
increases when you voluntarily and joyfully repent of sins, both small and
great, in real time by applying the Atonement of Jesus Christ.
5. Become really, really good at forgiving. “I,
the Lord, will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to
forgive all men” (D&C
64:10). Forgive everyone, everything, all the time, or at least strive to
do so, thus allowing forgiveness into
your own life. Don’t hold grudges, don’t be easily offended, forgive and forget
quickly, and don’t ever think that you are exempt from this commandment. Spiritual
confidence increases when you know that the Lord knows that you bear no ill
feelings toward another soul.
6. Accept trials, setbacks, and “surprises” as part of
your mortal experience. Remember that you are here to be proved and
tested, “to see if [you] will do all things whatsoever the Lord [your] God
shall command [you]” (Abraham 3:25)—and
may I just add, “under all circumstances.” Millions of your brothers and
sisters have been or are being thus tested, so why would you be exempt? Some
trials come through your own disobedience or negligence. Other trials come
because of the negligence of others or simply because this is a fallen world.
When these trials come, the adversary’s minions begin broadcasting that you did
something wrong, that this is a punishment, a sign that Heavenly Father does
not love you. Ignore that! Instead, try to force a smile, gaze heavenward, and
say, “I understand, Lord. I know what this is. A time to prove myself, isn’t
it?” Then partner with Him to endure well to the end. Spiritual confidence
increases when you accept that “often trials and tribulations are allowed to
come into [your life] because of what [you] are doing right” (Glenn L.
Pace, “Crying with the Saints” [Brigham Young University devotional,
Dec. 13, 1987], 2; speeches.byu.edu).
While presiding over the Ukraine Kyiv Mission, I once asked
one of my most faithful sisters why she was always so hard on herself, why she
was always beating herself up over the smallest things. Her answer was a
classic example of someone listening to the wrong voice as she replied, “So no
one can beat me to it.”
Brothers and sisters, my counsel to this sister missionary
is my counsel to you: acknowledge and face your weaknesses, but don’t be
immobilized by them, because some of them will be your companions until you
depart this earth life. No matter what your current status, the very moment you
voluntarily choose honest, joyful, daily repentance by striving to simply do
and be your very best, the Savior’s Atonement envelops and follows you, as it
were, wherever you go. Living in this manner, you can truly “always retain a
remission of your sins” (Mosiah 4:12)
every hour of every day, every second of every minute, and thus be fully clean
and acceptable before God all the time.
Yours is the privilege, if you want it, to come to know for
yourself, today or soon, that you are pleasing God in spite of your
shortcomings. I testify of a loving Savior who expects us to live the
commandments. I testify of a loving Savior who is so very anxious to bestow His
grace and mercy. I testify of a loving Savior who rejoices when we apply His
Atonement daily with the calm and happy assurance that we are facing in the
right direction. I testify of a loving Savior who is anxious for your
“confidence [to] wax strong in the presence of God” (D&C
121:45). In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
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