Monday, September 29, 2014

Week 63- Let Us Look On The Eternal Perspective

An amazing family that we have grown to love!

Augh!!!! My companion left me!!!

Hey!

I love this mission! I have grown and learned so much.  Although I have looong ways to go, I am grateful for the light and knowledge my loving Lord has blessed me with.  With the 2 hours to study every morning, I have come to have such greater and stronger faith in my Savior Jesus Christ.  The word of God (scriptures) is so amazing. There are soooo many things to be learned.  If we would only read and apply the principles we can learn from the Book of Mormon and the Bible, we would be so much better off! (Mosiah 2:41) I know the Book of Mormon is true and can strongly testify of its divine nature.  It's true.  I know it!

With all of the cares, confusion, and worries of the world, it is sometimes easy to get lost in the not-so-important things we encounter in our mortal lives.  We get so busy with work, school, and play, that we often forget the purpose that we are here.  It is by looking through the eyes of the Eternity that will help us focus on things that are most important--The things that the Lord would have us focus on!  We chose to come to earth for (mostly) these reasons… To experience having a body, trials that will help us grow and having joy through choosing the right and following the Lord.  We chose to leave our pre-mortal life to prove ourselves worthy of living once again in the presence of our Father in Heaven in His Celestial kingdom. That is the purpose of life! If only we constantly reminded ourselves of this divine purpose... We will still have trials and hardships that help us grow, but making day-to-day decisions would be a whole lot easier and we would be led to make the righteous decision more often than not, if not, ALWAYS.

Because we (mostly myself) all make mistakes every day of our lives, we have to choose to repent, or change. We must change our thoughts and actions from what we want, to what the Lord wants. Something that I'm sure we are all working on every day is Self-Mastery--mastery over the fallen flesh. We do this by doing things consistently. We repent daily by reading our scriptures, praying, faithfully attending our church meetings and the temple if possible. If we are not doing these things, I invite us to repent, and become better. Life is about doing things consistently.  If someone wants to become strong, they must exercise consistently.  If someone wishes to become a more skilled musician, they must practice consistently.  If our goal is to master our fallen-state mortal bodies, we must consistently strive to stay close to the Lord.

Revelations 3:20 - "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."

The Lord is always standing at the door, knocking.  It is up to us to open it. Now, how do we open this door?  Again, we do it by reading, praying, and inviting the Spirit into our lives.  We must be consistent. His grace is sufficient for all men.  For every one of us, no matter what we have done.  A sinner big or small, there is nothing (besides the unpardonable sins, which I'm almost positive we are safe from) we cannot receive forgiveness for.  I am eternally grateful for the love that our Savior has for me, and for you.  His Atonement is infinite.

Notice, there is no door knob.  We must open it from the inside.


It is "Because of Him"
Check out this AMAZING video!!


" And what is it that ye shall hope for? Behold I say unto you that ye shall have hope through the atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection, to be raised unto life eternal, and this because of your faith in him according to the promise." - Moroni 7:41

This past week we were able to attend a Family Home Evening with a young family. The lesson was short and to the point, but I couldn't help but notice the Spirit that was present in the room with us.  The important of FHE in our homes is so great.  We must teach our children the Gospel, in our homes.  This is where they will learn.  Sure they'll learn at church, but it won't be the same without the correct principles of the Gospel taught within the walls of our individual homes.

General Conference is coming up fast this next weekend!!  So stoked!  What an amazing opportunity we have to listen and receive counsel from our beloved prophets.  I invite everyone to attend as many sessions of Conference as they can!  Please do not miss out on this wonderful privilege we are blessed with.



Thanks to everyone that still reads my letters (some missionaries and friends call them "sermons" haha)! Thanks for your continual letters, emails, love, and support. Love you all, keep up the good work and I promise the Lord will bless you!!

Much Love,
~Elder Carroll

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