Howdy Y'all!!!
So, this has been a good week. I need to give a special shout out to Grandma Spencer and my Sister Rachel for sending me some awesome packages! Grandma sent me the recipe and ingredients of her to-die-for Vegetable dip. O man, That made me so happy inside! She also gave me some great cookies and fruit leather and granola. O man, I was just so happy when I got that. So if any of you see Grandma Spencer, give her a big hug for me and tell her thank you so much! Rachel, I really liked your package too and I LOVED the letter. I thought it was so funny that you sent Elder Snow a notebook to write down "everything I say" and for us to use it as a "grocery list." He is definitely writing down things I say. It is fun. I am grateful for all of your prayers and everything that all of you have done for me. I realize that the growth of the church is not just because of the missionaries. It is because of the unity of faith and the unity of prayer of all the members of the church.
Elder Snow is great. We have had a fun time together. This week we helped a family in the branch load up a U-haul trailer. They are moving to Idaho, and driving there.
We had Specialized Training this week. It was great. President Pitt and Sister Pitt are so great. They are so loving and you can tell. We learned about how God creates everything spiritually before he creates them physically. He related it to our planning, and how when we make plans in the evening, we are spiritually creating what we are going to do the next day, and then we go out and physically create it by actually doing it the next day. He also related to us Moses 1:39 and pointed out something that I haven't noticed before. In that scripture it says "For behold, this is my work and my glory to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." Notice it says "man" not "men." This tells us that God focuses on the individual. Yes, he wants all of man kind to return to him and have eternal life. And he brings this about by focusing on the individual. He knows each of us, and each of our unique situations. He knows what each of us is going through as an individual. When Jesus Christ suffered for our sins, trials, afflictions, pains, troubles, etc.. in the Garden of Gethsemane I don't believe He just felt a general pain. For example he didn't just feel how it felt to lose a child. No, He felt exactly what 'Sally' felt like when she lost a child. He felt her pain, her sorrow, her anguish. I know He felt our pains for us individually. He did this so he knows how to help each of us as individuals overcome our trials and afflictions and know that we are NEVER the only ones that "feel this way."
Over and over again I keep on learning how much our Heavenly Father loves me, and how much he loves each of His precious children. Everything He does is for our good. The commands are there for our good. Why would we not want to obey when it is all for our good? Read, Pray, Go to Church, Keep the Commandment, and Thank God every day for Everything that he has given you, and then show your gratitude by serving someone. A friend, a parent, a family member, a co-worker, and companion, an investigator, anyone. Lift someone's burden.
I have also been thinking about the Temple a lot lately. I miss going to the Temple. I love the Temple. I encourage anyone who can who reads this to make a special effort to attend the Temple. Going to the Temple before I came on the mission was one of the most (for lack of a better word) amazing things ever.
Love you all, Keep your heads up, and when you feel you can’t, keep your knees on the ground.
Love,
Elder Joshua R. Spencer
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