JUST GOT ELDER HOUSTON'S RELEASE DATE:
HE WILL BE HOME ON FRIDAY MAY 24TH AT 10:30AM
Elder Houston's Email:
April 23, 2013
hey everybody!
hows it going ?? thanks mom for the awesome huge letter. hey so not alot of time today and i kinda feeling sick, so sorry for the short email. but know im doing great and had an wonderful week haha its been interesting. i love my companion so much hes so nice and way fun. i have been doing all i can to just try and help him see how awesome a mission is and how much better you feel when you follow the rules. hes taking a little bit to get the picture haha but i can defiantly see SOME progress, which makes me super happy. he can really do soo much good. by the way mom thank you soooo much for what you said in your letter it was EXACTLY what i need to hear. it totally opened my eyes and i hope i will be able to stay strong and prove myself and prepare for the adversary and the trials God has prepared for me to test me.
the adversary is so real and it scares me to see it in the world today. we know ! how he works his tricks, but yet many are still tricked by him and dont see him right there in front of us. its just like in the scriptures, i always thought it was so crazy when the people begin to become prideful and sink into sin again especially right after they just saw the Savior in the book of mormon! but many of the world today do the very thing and dont even recognize it. 2 nephi 28 lays it down in front ha especially 20-22 says it pretty well. it kills me to say, but i even see it out here in the OTM my mission!! oh na uh! haha.....
but its true like verse 20,"for behold, at that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good." there are missionaries that are so strong and courageous that stand up to missionaries that want to go do something or talk about some thing that is not appropriate and he is hated for it, is called a party pooper or said he is a jerk! i bout cryed when a i saw that happen. i wanted to punch them elders in the nose.... and in verse 21, " and others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: all is well in zion; yea, zion prospereth, all is well. and thus the devil cheateth ther souls, and leadeth them away CAREFULLY down to hell." i hear it all the time "oh its no big deal its just this little thing like tea, you think the Lord will condem me for drinking tea." no i dont think he will, but it NEVER stops at that once the door is opens. figureatively speaking the devil will open it ever so slightly until he can come in. so it might not be a big deal to do that BUT obediance is the reason for it ! to keep us safe and show our love.
i am the farthest from being perfect but it just totally weighs me down with "much sorrow " to see the wonderful people and even missionaries out in my mission! that just cant see the importance of the gospel and these things
:(. pres Shumway is on this new thing that is a cleansing of the mission. he wants to rid our mission of all evil and disobediance. there are some that might think that it is going to make us all into stiffs and make the mission so boring! but its not true. in my 23 months i have defiantly seen sooo many elders and learned that the gospel is universal. there are sooo many shapes and sizes you can still have so much fun and do sooo much more when you are obedient to the mission rules.
i was able to have to coolest expirence with 6 elders this weekend that i will never forget. so on sunday there was going to be a special mission conference with bishop dean m. davies of the prosiding bishopric and it was going to be in tulsa. my comp wanted to go to tulsa to see it and i think he just wanted to see all our missionary buddies. but so i said ya to it. so we asked the zone leaders to make sure, we didnt go behind there backs about it. because anyone out this far in the mission was just going to watch it on the broadcast. but they totally said it was fine because they trust me. anyway we left saturday to go bout half way and meet some elders and stay at there place. so in the morning we could still get sacrament, we just went to there church that was the only way we could do it and get the sacrament. and we picked up some elders on the way. anyway that night the elders we were staying at had a teaching apointment that night and dinner at the bishops house, where the lesson was going to happen. so he invited all 6 of us to come haha. at the presiding bishops!!!! we got to hang out and get to know all the people there, lots of non members where there for a party :) haha but they got to all get to know us. elder babb played some music for them. it was great!! but then time came for the lesson and it was going so great, the spirit was sooo strong. and the spirit hit me so hard.... as i saw 6 elders so very different in the personalities and all from different back grounds and lived in different places in the US... bore powerful testimony of the wonderful message of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the Book of Mormon.
the love i have for my mission and the missionaries in it, grew 100 fold. we are a big family. just like every family, we have our weaknesses, each of us with our own individual weaknesses, but i love everyone of them! and want more then any thing to help each missionary i meet with what ever i can do to help them enjoy there mission to the fullest.
i love the gospel !!!! it is so true with out a doubt. we are all on the same team. the team of Christ trying to defeat satan and his followers so we can save all our brothers and sisters :) and strengthen EVERYONE. God answers prayers through his Followers. we are answers to prayers :)
haha well i had more time then i thought haha. hope i made sense. kinda just said what came to mind thanks soooo much for all your love and support!
im soooo blessed. i have never in my life felt that i was not loved. best family anyone could ever ask for :) haha and best mission i could have ever been called too. talk to ya next week stay safe and talk to ya soon !!! woooooo !
love elder houston
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