The Little Blue Book

Hello, friends and fiends! I have to apologize ahead of time because I don't have my camera with me today. Elder Paxton and I are doing a camera swap, so I only have the random photos we've taken on his camera! Whoops! Stay tuned for a plethora of photos next week!

Sister Abril and I have officially moved into a new apartment! Moving is rather odd as a missionary; we move very quickly, and we have very little items. Missionaries only need a certain amount of furniture, and most often, our furniture is from thrift stores and Goodwill and the like. With the elders' help, we piled everything into a small trailer (thank you, Elder and Sister Reynders!) and unloaded all of it at the new apartment.

That was a long, sweaty day! But we're finally settled, and we are now officially located in our proselyting area. We now don't have to bike down a mile-long bridge to get into our area! :D

This week has been a rather odd mix of events. I've learned how to change a bike tire and repair flats; I have tried pears with mayonnaise and cheese; I've discovered that God places you just where you're supposed to be; elders are sneaky, and payback is eminent; all kinds of people live in all kinds of places; and people have that darned thing called agency.

To choose the right thing is hard. To know that it's the right thing is even harder. When preaching the gospel, I have a hard time not grabbing a person by the shoulders and shouting, "I KNOW YOU'RE FEELING THE SPIRIT AND SO DO YOU! JUST SAY YES! IT'S TRUE!" But, alas, that is not how missionary work works, nor is it how Christ would want us to proclaim His gospel. In a gospel of love and patience, the Lord asks His servants to exude those attributes.

It becomes increasingly difficult to be those things when you are struggling to answer the questions of people who just aren't getting it. When you've explained the same concept at least twelve times in six different ways and they still aren't getting it, you try and grasp for what little patience you might have left and have to resist the urge to pack up your things and walk away. But, people learn differently. What comes out of my mouth makes sense to me, but that doesn't mean the person I'm teaching gets it! A mission is certainly teaching me to be understanding and gentle, but I know I have the Spirit's help when my words aren't quite enough.

Sometimes during a lesson, an investigator will ask a certain question, and all of a sudden a story, a person, or a scripture will come to the front of my mind. I remember sitting across from a man at this kitchen counter. I had my scriptures in front of me, although they hadn't been cracked yet during our discussion. He had many questions, all of which centered around children, why God "lets" bad things happen to them, and so on. He wondered why bad things happen to good people, and why God doesn't protect good people all the time.

I immediately threw my scriptures open to Alma chapter 14, when Alma and Amulek witness believers in Christ being burned alive for their belief. In this story, we learn of exactly why bad things happen to believers and why people who are proclaiming the gospel get injured or even die.

As I read that story to him, he went silent and pondered for a moment. He nodded his head, and said, "You've just got an answer for everything, don't you?"

We laughed, but I knew it wasn't me who had the answers. It was our Heavenly Father, our Savior, and the Spirit -- and the Book of Mormon.

The Book of Mormon is what answers the questions of the heart and soul. The Bible definitely answers the questions of many -- who was Christ? What did He do? What should I do to be saved? And many more. But, we cannot say that the Bible answers everything. There are gaps. Holes. Missing pieces that were lost during the Great Apostasy. But, these pieces are found in the Book of Mormon.

What did Christ mean in the book of Matthew, when He told John the Baptist that he was being baptized to "fulfill all righteousness"? We can find the answer to that question in 2 Nephi 31. What happens to the soul between death and the resurrection? We can find the answer to that in Alma 40.

The true doctrines taught by Christ are found in both the Bible and the Book of Mormon; both work together to complete His gospel, and we have both so we can better know what we need to do to be able to live with our Father in Heaven again.

I have not yet found a single question of the soul that the Book of Mormon can't answer. As people throw questions and scriptures at us, there is always something hidden within the sweet verses of ancient prophets that tells me just what that person needs to better understand the gospel.

This gospel is true, brothers and sisters. If you have a question about the gospel, crack open the Book of Mormon, and I know the Spirit will need you to exactly what you need. There is not a question that cannot be answered through sincere study, scripture, and prayer.

Seek, and ye shall find. You can find your answers in the little blue book -- of that, I promise you.

I hope y'all have a good week!

Godspeed!

Sincerely,

Sister Rose