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| Springtime in Saratov |
March 23, 2015
All is well :)
Spring in Russia is quite interesting, very similar to Utah actually where it is 10 degrees one minute and then 63 the next. A lot of snow has dried up and I am just wishing it away... I am a little sick of snow :) I am ready for sprrrring! Everyone in Russia loves spring, how could you not? It's so humid and moist here that spring is just sooo green and overgrown, I've only seen pictures from other missionaries, but I can only imagine how fun it is.
Such amazing miracles this week :) We have been having baptismal dates pop out of no where. Investigators who have had no desire to come to church have been coming to church and we just have an investigators pool full of people who have seriously been led to the church, SO many of them through church members (and that's the best way to go!) We really aren't doing anything to deserve it but I feel like that's the point... God gives us miracles to show that we aren't the ones who did it. We aren't the ones in charge :)
Today I really just want to talk about the gospel and what role God and Christ play in our lives, and how much this earth life makes sense if we have the knowledge of the gospel. This next paragraph is how I know that God is real and that he is perfect, because from the very very beginning of time, God's plan has always been perfect.
Because God loves us, he created us. God wants each of us to receive eternal life, he wants us to know his teachings and guidelines, which have been designed specifically so that we can return to him and be even better than we were before. Because he understands that we are weak, and that it is difficult for us to believe that what we can't see, he has not abandoned us. The Holy Ghost, God's messenger, brings us guidance. He has revealed this knowledge and these guidelines to prophets by the power of the Holy Ghost. A prophet is someone whom God has chosen to be his mouthpiece. Through prophets God lets us know about his opinions on how we are currently living. Prophets deliver news from God (often warnings) so that we may avoid mistakes or trials. Prophets also write down the words of God so that we too can know the nature of God. In the scriptures we also find the gospel-- God's guidelines, or plans to help us receive eternal life. The source of power and validity in this plan is made possible thanks to Jesus Christ. Christ lived this gospel plan perfectly, he lived a life without sin, and we can follow his perfect example by following in his steps as we read the scriptures (not only read, but APPLY them in our life).
What is the gospel? * First... faith, then repentance, baptism, receiving the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. Faith that Christ is our Savior, that he understands us perfectly and that he can provide us with peace in this life and eternal life in the next. Repenting because no unclean thing can entire God's presence. A part of repentance is baptism, which is evidence to God that we are willing to leave behind our old life by being washed clean and striving to live life as Christ would. Then we recieve the gift of the Holy Ghost who helps us to stay on the path and endure to the end.
I know that this plan is absolutely perfect. It is simple, it is merciful, and it is all that God has asked us to do that we might become better, by living and choosing as our Savior would. His plan is perfect in every way and although we all face different trials and difficulties, this plan applies to ALL! That is how perfect God is! He has devised a plan that works for every single person on the planet. All thanks to our Savior, our brother, and Redeemer, this gospel, the god given plan, has power to exalt us! What a loving God :)
Be happy, cause it's almost April, which means CONFERENCE. What does God want to tell you this spring....? Start prayin' to know :)
Love you all!
с любовью,
сестра вильсон
(Yes I have put a ь in my name even though I have no idea how to help my tongue make that letter)
