FW: Week of proving!

17 Jan 2010

Hi family,

Things have been going well. On Monday we will be moving into a small three room house, our lease is up and we have found a better place to live. We will be living in a four missioanry apartment, and I'm way excited for it! You can still keep mailng me at the address you are now.

This past week has really proven me in many ways. We started a long chain of exchanges with missionaries, which always takes a spiritual toll on me. Going from place to place and never getting a good two hours to study and fill up our reserves really kills a missionary's determination to be faithful. It is pretty much a rule of thumb that if you want to be better at everything, the first place to start with improvement is studying the scriprures because after that everything will increase.

If before my mission I was told that I would face all the trials that I faced before my mission that I had run away from, I might have changed my mind. I figured my life is a living testimony of Alma 41 and the Law of restoration. The very trials and challenges that I had faced and ran from early in my life have been what God has "refined" me with out here. The differacne now is that I want to change and learn how to overcome these trials the correct way.

I'll give you an example, I can remember having several "power struggles" throughout my life and the way I handled myself during those "power struggles" was less than tolerable. I would have never imagined that I would have to face the challenge of a "power struggle" on my mission. They are not conducive to the Sprit and when trying to make decisions that are important while in one is a disaster and very unfruitful. I have had several chioces when it has come to deal with these power struggles, I can either handle it the same way that I handled it in the past and fail at whatever it is that I'm doing, or humble myself and seek out a more excellent way of handling things. I havent really been able to find that more excellent way, but I'm walking by faith and being patient and hoping for the Lord to help guide me through to a new place.

Today we had a recent convert named Scott, speak to us in sacrament and he explained to us what the Church really offers us. He explained his view of God before the Elders started teaching him and it really opened my eyes to how others understand Heavenly Father. Sometimes I think everyone sees things my way, and I don't stop to think about other points of view.

That's all for this week, sorry for not writing more hand written letters.

Love,
Elder Conrad

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