This week absolutely flew by. It feels like I was just barely writing a letter! The past 7 days weren’t too exciting, so I don’t have a lot to report on. We seemed to have a lot of time open this week, so the majority of our time we spent knockin’ and talkin’. It’s what they call “old fashioned missionary work”. But hey, it works. We probably knocked a few hundred houses this week. Sometimes it’s pretty tough going door to door in the heat of the day, but I love the feeling of being diligent in the Lord’s work. I love having that “I will go and do” attitude (1 Nephi 3:7). We were blessed for our diligence and were able to snag 12 new investigators. One thing that we have been trying to do lately is acting super excited about our message with every person we talk to. A few times this week somebody would open their door and I would quickly ask them, “Hey have you heard the news about the Prophet Joseph Smith??” Most would look confused and say no, and then I would smile and say, “Well do we have a message for you!!” As missionaries (and members), we need to get excited about this message. It really is great news to the world. The fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored to the earth!. This isn’t something we should take lightly. We have a message that can truly bless all of mankind. Considering it hasn’t even been 200 years since the church was established, this is still news! There are still people out there who have never heard about these things. What a great responsibility we have to take this message to every person. If we don’t, who will? My challenge to all of us is that we all take missionary work seriously! It really is what will save the world. Let’s all make the effort to be better missionaries and examples to all, so that we can fill the earth with our great message.
However, if there is one thing that I’ve learned about being a missionary, it’s that God will force no man to heaven. He lets every person freely choose for themselves to either accept or reject our message. Every time that we are rejected (and we saw it a lot this week), it honestly makes me so sad. Not for me, but for them. I have seen my entire life the kind of happiness that this gospel brings. I have experienced it when I have been living it righteously, and I have also felt the absence of it when I haven’t been fully engaged. It truly is a message that brings pure happiness, something that no other things can bring. In this last general conference when the choir sang “We Thank Thee O God for a Prophet”, there was a line that they sang that really struck me. They sang:
“Thus on to Eternal Perfection
The honest and faithful will go
While they who reject this glad message
Shall never such happiness know!”
I can 100% testify that those words are true. Each person that rejects these things will never know the kind of peace and happiness that the gospel brings. It is the only way to have lasting peace and joy.
Well, that was my week! I hope everything is going well back home. I love and miss you all! I’ll talk to y’all next week. The work continues.
Avanza Su Verdad! (P.S. Yesterday Elder Randall found another 20 soles in the dirt — Unbelievable)
Elder Bailey
Mosiah 2:41 "And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it.”
2 Nephi 5:27 “And it came to pass that we lived after the manner of happiness.”
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