Time in Guayaquil
How are
things in the USA? I know things in the 'Ville are pretty dope! Congrats
to the Devils for balling out and beating the Mapleducks! Haha! I heard
it was a pretty intense game. Keep at it boys! Super weird that we are
in the heat of football again! I feel like just yesterday I was
strapping on the helmet! Man does time fly.
Last Monday night
was super fun! We had a family night with the Stake Patriarch and his
family. We ate sweet potatoes! They were not quite like Mamita Noll's
but it was cool to bring back the sensation of sweet potatoes in my
mouth again. We used the can that my parents sent me and we also made
another batch out of "camote". Which SUPPOSEDLY are sweet potatoes as
well...but they are purple...and don't look the same...nor taste the
same...nor feel the same...Haha!
I love talking with the
Patriarch...he is such a loving man. You can visually see his
humility...his love for everyone. It is something that I desire to
develop. I was so humbled as he talked of our Savior. He explained to
us how un-explainable our Savior is...His glory...His love...His
attributes. It is so true! We cannot ever possibly grasp the divinity of
the Lord, Jesus Christ. He is so much more than we can imagine and His
glory is so much brighter than what we could possibly behold.
On
Wednesday I got to take it back to the Saturday mornings with Dad days!
The Hermanas in our Zone had to change houses so we got together as a
Zone in the morning to help them load all of their stuff into a members
truck and take it to their new house to unload it. So that was fun!
We
passed by an awesome family the other day. They are struggling with
family prayer and scripture study. We have been focusing so much on the
scriptures and the importance that they have in our lives. The excuse
was that the scriptures give them desires to sleep. So we told them to
simply try it...and to see what the Lord is willing to do for them. The
Hermana said that she woke up even MORE tired that usual...and her and
her sister started to read the scriptures...despite the dreariness...In
her own words..."The words of the Lord IMMEDIETLEY took away my
sleepiness." Wow. So incredible what the Lord is willing to do if we
will obey and act. The scriptures are such powerful tools in our lives.
With them we WILL NOT sleep through the restoration.
Oh dear...never have I suffered with a soup as I did with "Caldo de Mangera". Hose
soup. Not recommended for viewers at home. It is a soup of pig. But
has 0 meat. It is filled with pig heart, intestine, foot, ear, liver,
skin, and blood. It was a miracle that I made it through that one! I
squeezed AT LEAST 14 lemons into that sucker and a bottle and a half of hot
sauce...but I can still taste that liver in between my teeth! Haha!
Overall good experience...Elder C and I are still laughing about
that one...I had nightmares about that black, mystical, bubbling,
caldo! The left cardiovascular ventrical artery that I swallowed whole
because it was un-chewable is haunting me! ;)
``That
all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is
mighty; that ye may fear the Lord your God forever.``
In the Spanish ``Guide to the Scriptures`` it explains that to ``fear God`` is to feel ``reverence`` and ``admiration for Him``.
Our
loving Heavenly Father and our Perfect older Brother have no intention
to induce a threatening fear nor a scarce fear. The fear they induce is a
fear explained in Philippians 2:12.
``Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed,...work out your salvation with fear and trembling.``
We are told to simply obey...that is what working our or salvation with fear and trembling means.
The following verse helps us understand this fear a little more deeply.
``For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.``
As
we allow God to work in us and as we strive to do His will with
reverence and admiration we show the Lord God our fear, or in other
words, we show Him our respect, loyalty, and love.
I love the battle of the Nephites and the Gadianton Robbers with Giddianhi as their leader.
In 3 Nephi 4:12 it says ``...behold the Nephites did beat them...``
But how exactly did they do this??
Verse
10: ``...for the Nephites did not fear them; but they did fear their
God and did supplicate Him for protection...and they were prepared to
meet them; yea, in the strength of the Lord they did receive them.``
And how did the Nephites show their fear of the Lord??
It
was not through a scarce fear. They were not afraid of the Lord. They
were not intimidated. Through SUPPLICATING unto their Lord...through
TRUSTING...and as verse 8 teaches us...through ``...falling to the
earth, and lifting their cries to their Lord their God...``
If
fearing the Lord can deliver a Nephite army from destruction I testify
that fearing the Lord can deliver us from our daily battles.
I testify that this fear will save us. I testify that this fear takes away fear. The Lord with His perfect humility and unfailing love does not wish to win our heart with fear of His power or to intimidate us with trembling of a future destruction...
The Lord with His perfect humility and unfailing love wishes to gain our heart through trusting in His power and overcoming destruction as we lift up our cries to Him and humbly fall.
Let us all fear the Lord God. Let us all raise our cries and fall. Let us all obey the will of the Father and trust in the Jesus Christ. We too will be delivered from our daily Gadianton!
Elder Noll
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| making sweet potatoes...Jessi's favorite! |
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| Purple sweet potatoes! |
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