4.3.12

Well to start off, I just got my birthday package yesterday. It was a great package and I am so so so grateful for the thought and love that you and Deb put into it and and for the cards from the ward. Salt and vinegar chips are so amazing! Red hots are just great! And the
family calender well no need to say, but it made me a little baggy. No worries some good scriptures from D&C helped get me focused again. I can't express how grateful I am for the love that you all show me by sending me things. I don't know if you read any of the comments that
were written in the cards from the ward but some of my favorites were, "Feliz Navidad", "Happy Birthday Kort", and "Happy birthday, you're another year older. Happy birthday you didn't achieve much this year. At least you didnt die so that's good enough". The ward is great!! Hahaha those really made me laugh.

Conference was so amazing. I'm not sure if I understood correctly, but what I got from conference is that I need to get home, get married and be a great husband. I think that's what I got out of conference with a few other important counsels such as keeping up my spirituality and
magnifying my callings here in the mission and when I'm at home. There were a lot of great things taught and I know that as we study the things we learned from conference the Lord will bless us with a desire to be more obedient and to share the gospel with others. I know that Thomas S. Monson is a prophet of God and that he wants us to be happy. I know that He is the only true and living prophet on the face of the earth. He holds all of the priesthood keys and is God's mouth piece here on the earth. Conference was great. I don't know if you caught it, but this passed through my mind and I find it to be true that Kort needs to develop more hope and faith.

Santiago, although hardened to the truth, is treating me well. I am becoming refined in the Lord's fire and He is making me what He wants me to be. I love this area and as I try harder and harder to share the gospel with these people I am loving them more and more whether they accept me or not. I know that I will be lifted up at the last day for doing what the Lord expects of me and I know that my joy will be full when I am in the presence of the Father again. I love the people of Santiago and I love the language. Part of the refining fire of this area is the language because I'm learning to rely on the Lord and on the Spirit to be able to communicate. The language is not latin based and seems to have very little structure, but in reality it is very complex and even after 5 months of being here there are many things I struggle to understand, but the Lord is by my side bearing me up and helping me to understand these Lamanites. Miracles are happening here in Santiago. I have come to understand a lot better what it means when the scripture says that we are saved by grace after all we can do. I think last week I told you about the family that we have been working with to prepare for baptism, well because the problems that the father of the family was facing, the whole family wasn't able to get baptized, but the mother and the 2 kids were. My companion and I had done all things possible but Satan got into the problem and it was lost. I didn't know what else to do to help this family accept baptism. I kept praying and last Tuesday when we passed by the mother of the family told us that she was ready to get baptized. I'm not sure what the difference was, but the Lord had answered our prayers. I have never worked so hard for anything in my life and I was able to realize how real faith is. The district is doing well also with the miracle of the Lord they too were able to bring people to repentance this weekend. The Lord loves us so much :)

I love the work of the Lord and I will die proclaiming the truth.

Love,
Elder Turner