The Life & Times....

Hello,

This week has been a rather interesting one, we had a fairly slow week, but it had it's ups and downs. For District Meeting this week we talked a lot about how much God must have loved his children to call another Prophet. It really made me think about how much God really does love us. I think the scripture John 3:16 is often taken lightly, because it is so commonly used. But if we take time to think about the blessings we have in our life because God loved us enough to restore the truth about the gospel, it gives this scripture a whole new light. This week I've tried some interesting food, that has really been difficult to manage, but somehow I've survived. I taught my first Jehovah's Witness that actually listened to what we have to say, and was engaged in the conversation. A lot of people here view the Jehovah's Witnesses as bad people that have really far out beliefs, but they really don't. A lot of their beliefs mirror ours, they just lack the understading of Jesus' life and the scriptues that we have. It is really interesting to talk with them though, becuase they really truly believe they have the truth, the only problem is they don't ever ask God if it is. He wouldn't accept a Book of Mormon, but at least he was open to learning about our religion. We seen to also be running into a lot of people that have been taught never to associate with Mormons, so that has been really interesting. I'm still learning how to deal with situations like that. The highlight of the week to me, was definitely yesterday. Church was super good, it was all about enduring to the end, and how we can't just endure, we have to do it well. That really hit me considering my present situation, and I felt chastized for not doing a better job, but it has strengthened my resolve to work things out and try to do my best. Later in the evening time, we were talking to a Pastoral candidate that claims we dont' truly know what the Bible said. It was a very difficult conversation for me, because he made several remarks that grieve my heart. He told us that God was a respecter of persons, and that Jesus Christ suffered because of Gods' wrath, and that he didn't suffer for all people, only some. That hurt, but the part that hurt worst of all was when he looked me straight in the face and told me that Joseph Smith was a false Prophet. While we were conversind with him, you may imagine that a hard time not interjecting and rebuking this man, but I remained calm the entire time. The Lord guided me about what to say and when to say it, and I confounded the man several times, and he couldn't answer any of the questions I asked. Then right after he had talked about Joseph Smith, I was prompted to stop the man so I did, and I leveled my eyes into his and seemed to peer straight into his soul, and I bore my testimony that the Book of Mormon is true. The man had nothing to say to that, but he would not accept anything we said, so we left him but before we left my companion said "in the after life, just remember to say yes." We talked a lot about that one later, and what we could have said, but I think we said exactly what we were suppposed to. This last week I've been studying a lot in the Bible, and I've been looking specifically for scriptures that support the lessons we teach. It's been really amazing to me to see that everything we believe really is in there, people just don't see it the way we do. Another funny story that I forgot to tell you guys occurred last week, and the week before. On the 14th, we were coming home for the night, and as we rounded the corner we noticed that my bike had been stolen. I was devastated. But, I prayed and asked Heavenly Father if I was going to be able to get it back. He told me that I would, so I tried to wait patiently, but it was hard having lost something so important to me. As the days past my faith that I had heard him right was beginning to shake. But then on Monday, we got home from basketball and got ready to head out, and lo and behold my bike had been returned, on the bad side my companions had been stolen. This really helped me strengthen my faith, and has prepared me for the days ahead. I want to leave you all with my testimony again, that I know beyond doubt that the Book of Mormon is true. Love you all, and hope to hear from you soon.
Elder Hughes