Mormon 9:31

Sorry short today! not much time.. actually, I have been at the library for two hours now.. but I have been dinking around on fmaily search and lds.org for far too long that I didn't realize what time had passed. But I was looking for all kinds of inspirational things ye know and i loved this qoutoe by President Uchtdorf so I thought I would share it with you. But e=xciting things of the week- the cruz family is getting baptized! I will be sure to send you pictures next week. Look forward to it! and I will also be sure to write this email before I dink around elsewhere. but give thanks to God that my imperfections of communication have been made manifest unto you that you can learn from my mistakes and be more wise than I have been. oh yikes.

Love you all the same!

And she threw up purple

Hello my dear family! So y'all can breathe a sigh of relief! I have no set topic I would like to speak to you on this day so you get my ramblings again! yay! okay- you may now suck back in your sigh of relief...

But what a week we have had since the last time we spoke! actually- it is more like what a year it has been since the last time we spoke! but - it has been a wee since you have last heard my lovely voice speaking to you as if from the dust as you have read my words. Have you ever tried to imagine Moroni's voice as he says that? What do you think he sounds like?  Speaking of Mormoni - I have been reading his words a lot in the last week- mostly becasue I started reading the Book of Mormon again! Am I confused? reading Moroni? shouldn't I be reading NEphi? Not if you are reading it BACKWARDS! yep.  That is right. Backwards. And I tell you what – it is totally awesome! (lego movie reference.. don’t know if anyone caught that. No I have not seen it.. everyone quotes that here though so I feel like I have seen it.) It is also confusing at some points because you read about these people dying and then the next chapter you read they are alive. What?? It is not like the chapter in wayside school that makes oodles more sense when you read it backwards – but I am learning a lot. It is interesting because a lot of differnet things are sticking out to me that were before – like how Coriantumr was the last Jaredite alive. Did you know that Ether prophesied to him that he would be the lsat one alive of his people? And it would be a punishment? I was ultra confused because I forgot one key detail – Coriantumr was wicked. And Ether told him that if he would not repent he would not die. He would live to see all of his people killed and the land be taken by another group of people for their inheritance – Enter Limhi! Cool right? You probably already knew all of that.. but it was cool for me to read again. So other than being confused most of the time in the story- I am learning a lot. Also, did you know that there is a full length film depicting the envents of the book of Mormon? I din’t either- until we were over at our investigators house last night for family home evening and they were watching it. It is on the Mormon channel on youtube. I don’t know if it has been put out by the church – I feel like I would have heard of it if it was.. but they liked it. I hope it brings the stories to life for Bryan.

And guess what- they are all set to be baptized next Thursday! Wahoo! We are so incredibly excited for them! And Sara gave us cards last night and it she bore her testimony and it is so sweet! I want to share it all with you – to share the joy of missionary work with you. I really know what the Lord means when He tells us how great our joy will be when we bring even one soul unto Him. "Thank you so much for never giving up on us and showing us just what was missing. I now know this is true, and I will be able to teach my kids that Heavenly Father will always be there and we will be together for all eternity as a family.” I am so excited for them! And then next year – I will be making a trip back to ABQ to see them be seald to gether for time and all eternity. How blessed we are to have this in our lives. To KNOW this life is not it. Death is not the end. I was reading in 1 corinthians 15:29 today about baptisms for the dead- it is one of the few (if not only) places in the bible where baptisms for the dead are mentioned in the bible – but it really is testifying not of the vicarious ordinance but of the reality of the resurrection! What is the point of performing those vicarious ordinances, heck even ordinances for ourselves, if there is no resurrection? But we will live again so it is totally worth it!! And the neatest part about the Gospel of Jesus Christ – none of it has to be a mystery. We can know of all the truth for ourselves! We just have to pray and ask God. Time and time again it tells us this in the scripture. You have a question? Okay- pray about it! (thank you brother Porras!) The Lord promises us that whoever believes in Him- doubting nothing – To him will the Lord confirm all his words. Even until you die. So keep asking! Just don’t doubt. Despise not – and wonder not. Listen to the words of the Lord and ask the Father in the name of Christ for whatever it is you stand in need of. Doubt no! but be believing! Come unto the Lord and work out your own salvation. Be wise and ask with a firmness that cannot be shaken and if you do this – and endure to the end – you will not be cast out of His presence! Yay! Isn’t that all what we want?  But we all make mistakes right? I know I sure do .. but don’t condemn me – or anyone else for their errors.. just learn from them! I am messing up so you can learn to be more wise than I am. Isn’t that kind of me? Okay pride. You may leave now. That is part of being wise. Stripping yourselves of all pride and uncleanliness. I’m working on it.. especially as we help people clean their homes. Sometimes the only thing that can get you clean after that is a loooong shower with a lot of soap. Yay for modern conveniences!

Sorry this is random times 10! But I do love this work and I love being a missionary. The church is true dear family. This I know. I know you will see me again. Even if I die tomorrow. But let us not talk about that okay... but the church is true! and so is the Book of Mormon – even backwards.

I love you all!

Sister Stuart

And now you may breathe a real sigh of relief becasue I am done. Whoa - long windded! you are just getting a piece of what sister Brown ges every day! 

Sunday School

Great news- one of the families we are teaching finally made it to church yesterday- and guess what, THEY LOVED IT! how awesome is that? It was pretty fantastic. The 13 year old daughter felt very welcomed in Young Womens and the 8 year old son loved primary. He even knew the answers to the questions in sharing time (that'll make you feel good as a teacher eh?) The question was asked- what do we need to do to go to Heaven? and he raises his hand -knowing the answer - and exlaims -GET BAPTIZED. yahoo! He was right! We do- that is the first saving ordinace we partake of. But I would ask - aftrer you have entered in by the way of baptism and received the HOly Ghost - is all done? No. YOu have only made it this far becasue of the word of Christ - and your unshaken faith in Him. So you need to continue doing that. and the church makes it weasy for us to do so - Go to church! Read your scriptures - and pray! Yay. i have received many promises that if I continually feat upon the scriptures - specifically the Book of Mormon - I will never lose my testimony. isn't that neat? all becasue of a book. but it is not just any book - it is the word of God. 

ALso- all the Laws and ordinances of the gospel help us to endure as well. Those can be found in lesson 5 of chapter 3 in PMG. by the way, in following up from Elder Ballard's talk in this Last General Conference, how is your study Of Preach My Gospel coming along? I have not received any  letters or emails of what you have been learning in your personal study of that inspired manual - I hope it is going well! 

anyway- on to waht I wanted to write about in enduring to the end - and how the church has it set up so perfectly that we can!

 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has a 4 fold mission:

Proclaim the Gospel

Perfect the Saints

Redeem the Dead and

Care for the Needy.

Neat right? I didn't know about this until this year - maybe it is supposed to be kept quiet? nah- it is way too wonderful to be kept hushed. and everything in the church falls into one of those four categories - that is what I have been studying in PMG lesson 5

I am sorry this week is BOOOORING. and now I am done with my 5 week mini series. and I will return to my usual ramblings.. I don't know if you should be excited or not....

I am safe, warm, and happy and loving this work! oh and by the way - the family we are teaching is going to get baptized in two weeks! yahoo for entering by the way and taking the steps to the celestial kingdom to be forever as a family!

Sister STuart

Freedom. but for what?

Here we are again- can you believe it has already been a whole week? One in which we were able to celebrate our freedoms as a nation; how grateful I am to live here in the United States of America with the freedom to practice religion how I choose.

Freedom is an interesting topic - what really makes us free? Is freedom determined by where we live? By the laws that have been set in place by the governments whose jurisdiction we fall under? By the people who fight for us to remain free? or does it go deeper and further than that? 

Freedom, in my opinion, extends far beyond the scope of government and our life here on earth. Freedom is an eternal principle which we accepted long before we ever set foot on the soil of the earth. We were given a choice, long ago, to decide if we wanted freedom or if we would be satisfied in captivity. Thankfully, we all chose freedom at that time. and here, we can continue choosing that same freedom each and every day. We are free according to the flesh; and all things are given to us which are expedient for man. and we are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death. and now, my family, I would that ye should look to the great Mediator, and hearken unto His great commandment; and be faithful unto His words, and CHOOSE ETERNAL LIFE, according to the will of His Holy Spirit; and not choose eternal death. That is the choice laid before each and everyone of us - and I tell you what, that is the ultimate freedom we have. There are two paths laid out before us - the one being straight with a gate that is narrow, few being there to find it, the other being wide, with a broad gate that many follow. The funny thing is - those gates are not far from each other at the beginning but the destinations are in complete opposition- one being sweet and the other bitter. More bitter than you can ever imagine. So the choice is yours - you are FREE to act for yourself. That is the freedom I am most thankful for - don't get me wrong, i am especially thankful for the temporal freedoms we enjoy too, becasue without them I could not be here in New Mexico sharing eternal truths about freedom with people and that would just  be sad. I think the greatest part ( I don't know if you have caught on - but there are heaps of "greatest parts" I think I add a new one evry single day!!) is that we are not alone in making that decision - we have help!

When you entered in by the way (which was baptism by water) you received the gift of the holy ghost - and what an incredible gift that is! another one of the greatest parts. even jacob tells us that our freedom to chooose eternal life is according to the will of the Holy Spirit. isn't that neat? I never caught that before - he is with us at all times and helps us to make the decisions that will keep us moving down the narrow path in a straight course to life eternal! yahoo! It is the Holy Ghost that withness of the Father and the Son - who we need to press forward in, having a perfect brightness of hope and a love of God and of all men . If you will press forward, feasting upon the words of Christ, and endure to the end, Father says, you WILL have eternal life - which gift truly is, the greatest gift of God. That is the freedom we can enjoy. 

and that begs the question.. how do we endure? Think about it. let me know what you come up with - I will probably share my thoughts with you next week. This is already far too long. sorry.. rambles. I am good at that. The past few companionship inventories we have had my area of improvement has been to not talk so much - and when I do, make sure I stay focused on topic. eep... 

But life is good. God is greater and He loves you!

and so do I!

Love SIster STuart

32 Word Summary - give or take a few

In continuation of my mini series - I will be discussing, can you guess it? That is right - BAPTISM! 

and I don't really have much time- so I will just give you the exciting news.. The cruz family is getting baptized!! on 2 August 2014! we are so excited for them! 

It really was a miracle how it happened - there is a less active in the ward who was baptized only 3 years ago- but went LA shortly thereafter in order to preserve her marriage. He is not very warm toward the church currently. sad. Anyway, we recently made contact with her and she is just so awesome! she still has a very solid testimony. She came with us to see the cruz family and they realy connected. They invited eachother to come to church and then we invited the family to baptism and they said yes! what a miracle. It was pretty incredible. 

and how neat that they will be baptized and have all their sins washed away and be made totally clean and be able to renew those covenants each and every sunday as they take the sacrament to be continuously free of sin - just the same as you and I. How neat.

I love this work and I love you all!

love Sister Stuart

oh- I also held a snake this week. eek!

and also- in honor of dad's birthday this week- I pulled a piece of glass out of my heel. Don't ask how it got there - i was wearing shoes. Anyway - I was thinking it would have been so much easier if I just could have grabbed the exacto knife and sat on the kitchen table and let him get it. I love you dad!