Conference was the best!

April 8, 2013

Dear Family,

Conference was the best!  I have really grown to enjoy conference out here on my mission.  Before my mission I know that we watched it every year but I didn't get anything out of it because I wasn't trying.  All I heard were words but never took them to heart.  I always paid attention to the priesthood session and mostly the 1st presidency because their talks were always exciting to me.  While on my mission I have learned that every talk in conference can be just like the ones in the priesthood session.  I just needed to work on focusing and internalizing the principles that were talked about.  I have totally changed my attitude towards conference and now I see it as a week of being uplifted and edified.

I really enjoyed all the talks. There were some that touched me more than others but I thought they were all good.  I really enjoyed the talk by Elder Robert D. Hales and the example that he used with his hands.  He said that he used to be able to put his hands a few feet apart from each other with one hand representing the world and the other representing the Gospel but, these days, the world is so far gone that he would need to put one hand all the way on the other side of the world.  I feel strongly that this is so true.  The world is a devilish place full of hatred, anger, violence, sex, back stabbing and lies, but the Gospel is never changing.  God is the same yesterday today and forever.  A sin is still a sin and no matter what the world does or says to make it seem alright it will still be a sin in God's eyes.  I wish everyone would be able to see the problems of the world as clearly as I have been able to.  I wish people understood that you cannot build a strong foundation in the things of the world.  No matter how good you think those things are they will always fail.  With the gospel, we have something in our lives that is steadfast and immovable that will keep us in the right. 

I feel that this conference hit on all the main topics of the gospel and if we want to be able to stand steadfast an immovable in these principles we need to:

1. Say personal and family prayer every day.

2. Read the scriptures daily.

3. Attend church to renew our baptismal covenants. 

These are three simple and basic things that will bring blessings and everlasting happiness to our lives.  I love how simple the gospel is!  Obedience and diligence to these principles with bring blessings beyond our imagination and I know that to be true. 

This time we didn't go to any members homes to watch conference.  I have gone to members houses before and it becomes too hard to focus, so I stick with going to the church.   

We had some investigators watch 1 or 2 of the sessions.  We didn't end up watching the sessions with any of them because they were either busy or didn't have the BYU channel.  Paul was going to come with us to watch conference but his son had to go to the hospital but he recorded the sessions and watched some of the talks.  We are going to see him this week and talk about it.  The Gaylords also watched some of the Sunday session because they have the BYU channel.  Rob had to work though so we couldn't watch it there because there wasn't a man at home.   

Jesi is doing really well.  She came to two sessions of conference at the church and she taught us some of what she knew about the restoration between the sessions.  She realized that she has some studying to do in order to teach about the restoration.  Before teaching us she thought she knew everything but now she has been humbled a bit.  It was a good experience for her and it is fun to see the joy the gospel and the church has brought her.   

Our other investigators are good, they are just really busy and we are having a hard time working with their schedule but it is going well, we just need to be patient.  Paul is getting closer each time we teach him and the Gaylords still seem promising.  We should be meeting with both of them this week and we are going to try to get the Gaylords to come to church.   

Being with Elder Adams is good and we are having a good time.  He is a good missionary.  He likes to play with knives and Silly Putty though, which is different.  He is patient, nice, clean, can teach, can speak Spanish, and likes to cook.   It is a good day here today.  It is 70 degrees outside and it's P-day. I can't complain.  We have a lesson with one of our investigators today in the middle of the day.  She couldn't do it any other time so that will cut into our days activities a bit.  I think we are going to go to one of the thrift stores around here though because Elder Adams wants to go and we'll probably work out later. 

I love you family!!!!

Elder Mouritsen