I will admit I forgot that this week is Thanksgiving. Hermana Williamson actually reminded me. However, it got me thinking about a couple things. This week we had stake conference and had a member of the seventy come and speak. I´d like to share a couple of the thoughts he shared, as well as some thoughts from a few of the others talks.
First off, I want to ask something. What are the desires of your hearts? When he first asked this, I will be honest that I was a bit perplexed. What does this have to do with this conference and the other themes we have listened to? After a bit of thinking and listening further into his talk, I figured it out! He mentioned that the desires of our hearts will guide us in this life and will also determine what we have in this life. We will take who we are into this life into the next. Not material possessions, but ourselves. Now you might ask what is my point.... Well to put this into the mission perspective and the eternal perspective…. What are the things we should be most grateful for? What are the things we should strive for in this life? I think each and every one of us can figure this out on our own, but I´m going to get in your faces a little.
We are here to become like our Father in Heaven. We are here to grow, personally, but as well as in family. We have been sent to grow in the gospel our Father in Heaven has given us. These three things if we let them will guide us to do and find good. Why? Because if we truly love our Father in Heaven, our family, and this gospel, we will follow the steps of our Redeemer. We will make good decisions. We will attend church. We will make sure that the temple is a goal within families and marriages.
I know families and individuals here and before the mission that have seemed to lose their way from this perfect path that has been placed before them. I think as members we sometimes, more than others, drift off into the dark and dreary for nothing more than curiosity and rebellion. Then, when we finally realize it, we are too ashamed to come back. But I want to extend an invitation, the same one that Jeffery R Holland gave, “COME BACK”. There are people waiting with arms open wide to love and accept you. Nobody can fall lower than the saving hand of the Lord’s atonement.
Now, for those think they are doing alright. Stop it! Never feel comfortable with where you are at. There is a benefit in seeing your faults, not to feel bad about yourself, but more to see where we all need to improve. I´m not saying that anybody needs to feel like they are a sinner, no. But that we need to always look to improve. How can I do this? Pray, read scriptures, attend church. These are the essentials, but another is to serve. Those who stop feeling progression do so because they have stopped helping others. God is constantly giving, and who are we if we are not giving? If we are to become like Him, we need to give like Him.
As a missionary I have been thinking a lot about what I am grateful for. I am grateful for all of you. Those that love me, those that I love, those that have always been there. But more than that, I am grateful for my Father in Heaven that has given me this all and for my Savior that gave everything so that I could have everything. I love this gospel and I love the mission and for my opportunity to serve.
I just want to end by sharing just a little bit of my experiences from this week. I went on splits twice this week and it was really good. I got to be a Dad (trainer) for a day. I took one of the new kids that arrived this last Monday. That was cool, and it was my first time being with someone new. It was both a moment of teaching and learning. The kid I was with is from Bolivia and he is a little shy. I spent most the day teaching him words used here in Mexico, teaching him how to contact and look for references. It was cool. I didn´t know if he had a good time with me or not, but yesterday we had stake conference and his companion said that he couldn´t stop talking about me the next day. So that made me feel good.
Oh, and one of my favorite moments of this week was my day in the tianguis with the other missionaries (like a mall outside). I was there almost the entire day and I contacted over 200 people, and like 600-800 with the other missionaries. It was a cool experience to have. We had a good setup for drawing people in. The Mission President came, and he gave me a good compliment of how impressed he was with me. It was good teamwork between Elder Fillmore and Elder Cardenas and Elder Moncada and the Hermanas!
The last thing I´d like to share is the lesson we had yesterday. The boy’s name is Cristo and he is fifteen. The appointment was at 8:30pm and we brought Gustavo and his wife to help us in the lesson. We arrived with information that he is very catholic. We didn´t exactly have a plan before we arrived, just that we were going to get to know him. After talking we realized he has a lot of questions of why we are here and who God is. He shared some interesting thoughts and we were able to answer them. Then Elder Macias and Gustavo and I shared a bit of where we can from and why we are here. It was awesome and went very well.
I am just thankful for these opportunities and hoping that we can keep improving. I love you all! Have a very happy Thanksgiving and remember to give thanks for what we have and who we have in this life and remember what in this life will have lasting effect.
Love,
Elder Harmon
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