Week 59..... Where is my Treasure?

This week Elder Anderson and I have really been super focused on a few of our investigators. We are getting really close to having a few baptisms. This week we are going to have a baptism of a little girl named Emilia. Emilia is an 11 year old girl that has been prepared since day one. Elder Anderson and I really had a cool story with this girl. I want to share this experience with everyone because I was able to learn more about how God works and how we should never give up. This is an experience that I will never forget.

About a month ago Elder Anderson and I were out walking in the street. The night before we had planned for a super awesome day. We had plans every hour on the hour until the end of the night. As we left our house we were super happy and ready to work. Both of us had so much energy and we felt like we were going to have such a great day. As we began to go the lessons we had, we discovered that no one was home. House after house, appointment after appointment... No one was home. We knocked and knocked and no one answered. We looked for people in the streets and no one seemed to be around. I looked at Elder Anderson and asked him, where did everyone go? It was as if the city had been abandoned. As we continued to walk more and more, our bodies began to become tired, our minds began to become a little dis-animated. Satan began to put thought into our head like... WHY ARE WE HERE?? WHY ARE WE DOING THIS? WHY AREN'T PEOPLE ANSWERING?? We began to be attacked by our inner thoughts. At first we went out with Faith that God was going to bless us and then we instantly turned to beat down, defeated, missionaries waiting until the clock strike 9:30 p.m. so we could enter into our house. We ended up just struggling for the next few hours. Door after door, street after street. NOTHING WAS HAPPENING!!! Finally after 4 hours of struggling not finding anything. I turned to Elder Anderson and said we need to say a prayer. We both went down this little street and said a short heartfelt prayer, asking for help and asking to be lead to someone who is prepared to hear this message. As we got up from saying the prayer I felt my body become energized and animated. We looked up and said here we go, we know we are going to find someone. We started walking down a street where we felt like we should go. The first people we see, are this younger looking mom with a  little 11 year old girl. We go up and begin talking to them. We had a great conversation. We sat there and talked for like 5 minutes. Come to find out, the mom had been baptized 20 years ago and her daughter had never been baptized, but lately the little girl has been reading a lot and wants to be baptized. My comp and I looked at each other and just smiled. We knew God had led us to someone who has been preparing for the message. We ended up getting to their house about a week later and we began teaching this family. There has been a lot of ups and downs, but through all the ups and downs the family has grown closer to Christ. The mom and aunt have come back to church and the grandpa is going to come this week. So not only did God prepare us with one of His children, but also to be able to bring back many of His lost sheep, to bring them back to the fold. Emilia will be baptized this Saturday and we could not be happier. This all happened because we followed the promptings of the Spirit.

Also this week as I was reading in the Book of Mormon, I came across a scripture that really called my attention: 3 Nephi 13:20-21:

20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. 

 21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also

I began to think to myself...... WHERE IS MY TREASURE??? What are my main goals? Am I working and growing for me, for God, to show others I am great? Am I here to grow because I love God? Why do I do the things I do? What are my biggest plans? What do I want to accomplish. WHERE IS MY HEART??? 

I then continued to read and the following versus of scripture say:

24 No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, 

or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon. 

I realized that we cannot serve 2 Gods. If our goals, and our hearts are given to God, we will receive the promise of everlasting life, but if we do not give our hearts to God we will be giving them to the Father of all lies. The very tempter of all men. As I read these words, my mind was turned to my life. I began to realize that often times I gave into the slight temptations of this one they call Satan. I realized that I was not perfect. But then I was reminded of my favorite scripture: 

"Remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall" (Helaman 5:12).

I was given the comfort, that if we continue to focus our goals and give our hearts to Christ, or if we build our foundation upon Him... WE WILL NOT FALL. Satan will send his shafts in the whirlwind, his mighty storms... we will be tempted above all imagine. The world around us will become more wicked, but if we are firmly built on OUR ROCK... which is Christ, we will not fall. We will at times slip… but HE WILL ALWAYS BE THERE TO PICK US UP:) I know these things to be true because I have seen them throughout my mission. I have become closer to Christ through mistakes and suffering. I have seen the power the atonement. I have seen how it shapes us into being the sons and daughters that HE wants us to be.