Monday, October 3, 2011

Conference was awesome :) I love General Conference. Being a missionary, Conference is like Christmas when I was a kid. You have it marked on your calender and you wait for it anxiously knowing that it is just going to be amazing and when it actually comes you are so excited you wake up early so that you can make sure that you are there for all the good stuff. You listen to the speakers and that's like opening the presents, you are so excited because you don't know what you're going to get, you just know that it's going to be good, something that will make you happy. Then when it's all over your a bit sad because the presents are opened and there's no more anticipation and you gotta go back to the normal things. That's how it is for me at least.

I loved Conference and cherished every moment as the Lord took time to teach me thru the words of his servants here on the earth. Elder Callister is a great speaker and provides great insight. I read a talk he gave as a mission president entitled "A Consecrated Missionary" that really helped me change my mission a few months ago. It really gave me a better perspective as to how to be more obedient and a more effective tool in the Lord's hands. The talk he gave about the Book of Mormon and the Bible was great and the example he used was very simple and clear. The example made me smile a bit for two reasons, one being that my trainer taught me that example and two because about 3 months ago we had a Zone conference and the Assistants to the President talked to us about the use of examples and how we ought to not teach with so many examples but rather just teach doctrine. The key is that we ought to use the Spirit in discerning what our investigators need so that they will be able to progress.

I really liked the talk by Elder Quentin Cook because it talked a bit about pride and I think that it is good that we all take time every so often to re-evaluate ourselves to be a bit more humble. It helps to read Alma 5. I liked the reference he made to the Titanic and how the claims for the ship were so high. Unsinkable, The Biggest, The Best, The Most Luxurious. Often times we think that of ourselves and then when we are sailing in troubled waters, we fall. We must always be prepared to defend ourselves when Satan strikes. I especially like how he made mention of a group of missionaries who were to travel on the Titanic but were not able to make it because one of them wasn't prepared to leave the day of the embarkation. One of those missionaries was Alma Sonne. Alma Sonne is in my Line of Authority right above the person who gave the priesthood to Grandpa Turner. I felt a cool connection there :)

My companion is doing great and we are working hard. I'm trying to teach him English and he wants to learn, but it's a struggle. English is a lot harder than Spanish and the rules are way different. He is adjusting great, but I have learned that I have to be perfect with him. I can not let even the slightest thing go. I have to be a bit hard on him sometimes, because I have to do all that the Lord expects of me so that my companion can achieve the same. I love my companion. He is a great person that has made a great impact on my life.

Life is great and I am loving every second of it. I'm working as hard as I can. I know the Lord is pleased with me and He is blessing me so much. The gospel is such a blessing. Thomas S. Monson is the Prophet of God. Joseph Smith was the first prophet after Christ and by the direction of God restored the truth to the earth. The Book of Mormon is the word of God and I know that it is true. I know that I will be with my family forever as we all strive to live the gospel and become perfected through the Atonement of Christ. Temples are such a blessing and I know that they are sacred buildings of God.

Have an AMAZING week.

Love,
Elder Turner

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