Greetings Elder Williams,
We've been praying for your families. I hope that you can teach them the gospel and they will respond. Are you liking your new area? It sounds like you have a fantastic ward. I'm glad you have so much support.
I applied for a job as a liaison between the Waterford Institute and the school district. I am now an employee! It's a computer based program to help prepare preschool children with the fundamentals of literacy and numeracy. I'll be running the program and helping to get it into homes. I'm really excited about it and go to SLC for training on Thursday and Friday. I still want to teach some of my online classes with LEA, but will have to cut back to one day a week.
Have you read Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics? I just finished the portion titled "On Happiness". I agree with him on so many points, like how many people mistake means for ends and pursue pleasure, honor, or wealth only to find it is a mirage. What we really need to pursue for happiness-sake is virtue. Living a life of purpose is the highest good. I love this quote: "We should try to become immortal...and do our utmost to live in accordance with what is highest in us."
We are mortal, but in dealing with truth, we touch the heavens and earn a larger portion of that divinity that lights our mind.
I also read Plato's "Apology". Socrates had such courage and heart in spite of his detractors. If in the eternities I get a chance, I'd sure like to meet him and have a Socratic discussion. How fun would that be?
We hiked in Kolob Canyon and it was gloriously beautiful. Leo Tolstoy captures my thought when he says in Anna Karenina: "What doubt can you have of the Creator when you behold His creation?... Who has decked the heavenly firmament with its stars? Who has clothed the earth in its beauty?" I love to create whether it's a quilt, a garden, a dinner, or most importantly a home. I want to create for my Creator. I love Him.
I love you Elder Williams. I'm proud of you.
God be with you 'til we meet again.
Mom
Dear Mom,
Thank you for keeping my people in your prayers. I have a couple of more people for you to pray for. Bella is our new baptismal date. She wants to be baptized at the end of April, but she needs to quit smoking. That'll be a challenge because her husband smokes. If you could pray that they could work something out that'd be wonderful.
We are also teaching a girl named Sophia and her brother Jacob. Their mom was investigating the church, but she stopped because she moved in with her boyfriend and he doesn't like religion, but she is letting her kids take the lessons and wants them to be baptized. The only thing holding them back is that we need written permission from their father, who lives in Chilli. I'd appreciate if you could pray for them too.
I love the new area so much. I'm grateful that I get to be here in Vacaville.
One thing that really touched me this week was something President Alba said. We had interviews with him last Wednesday, and he told me that he ran into the bishop in Cloverdale. He said that the bishop really misses me and got teary eyed. President Alba said that I have made a great impact on my areas. That made me feel good. I guess people still talk about me.
I'm so happy that you got your new job. That sounds like it is a perfect job for you. You'll have to tell me more about how it goes.
I've read bits and peices of Aristotle's Ethics, but I'll have to dig into them more thoroughly with you. I love that quote. It puts words to my drive to continually improve. We are immortal, eternal beings. It is now that we determine what state we want to exist in for the rest of eternity.
I talked to some atheists the other night, and that is ultimately the piece that they are missing. They don't understand that the don't just exist now. For me it makes total sense that if I exist now, that I will exist in the future, and I existed before this life. The Gospel truly gives us a perspective that is not bound solely to this world.
I had a question. Is the family still planning on coming to tour the mission with me this summer? I'd like more details.
Thank you for your example and support.
Love,
Elder Williams
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
St.Patrick's Day
Dear Elder Williams,
How was your week? Are you meeting any new folks? I hope your new area is good and you find it a nice place to be.
I just finished reading Upton Sinclair's The Jungle. Talk about outraged! It helped me understand the rise of the Socialist party back at the turn of the century and the reason that unions became so influential. I can really see how important it is to have a balanced perspective and not to be myopic in your views. There is such an imbalance in government and politics. People view each other as enemies which is counterproductive. If we could see each other as people and listen and understand, then we could have a civil dialogue and solve the problems that are raging around us. Unfortunately the discourse breaks down and people fight for opinion and bias rather than for solutions and truth. It's like battling a hydra--- one head is lopped off only to grow three more which prove to be more violent and have sharper teeth.
I also listened to a book called You Are Now Less Dumb. I loved it and it was hilarious because it pointed out how skewed our thinking frequently is. We believe that we're rational and governed by reason, but humans are truly emotional beings. Not that feelings are bad, but sometimes they override logic and get us into tangles and knots. It was a funny, entertaining, eye-opening book. I think you would like it.
I have a question and was wondering if you know the answer. Why did Jesus come through the lineage of the Jews? Judah was a sinful man. Why didn't Christ come through Joesph's line? He was the chosen one and a type and shadow of the savior. I was thinking about this and couldn't find anything to clarify it.
Dad and I are reading the Doctrine and Covenants together. I truly love that book of scripture. I think it's so thought provoking and inspiring. I think if you are looking then many mysteries are unfolded to you in this book.
You are in our prayers. We think about you and the people you are teaching. God be with you 'till we meet again.
With love,
Mom
Dear Mom,
I have had a great week. I love the way the members magnify their callings here in Vacaville. We had a ward blitz, and all of the missionaries in the zone split with one of the members from my ward. We went and visited a lot of people, so now we have a lot of work to do these coming weeks.
We have seen a lot of miracles contacting. We have been guided to people who are really elect. We found a part member family, and it turns out that they were already planning on coming to church. Alyssa is the member, and Brandon is her husband. They are going to have a baby here in the next few months, so they wanted to go to church and start working on a foundation for their family. I am excited to see the progress.
There is also a lady named Ashley who has been taught for a number of months, but she hasn't been baptized because her husband Adam hasn't been 100% on board. We were able to have a great lesson with them and I think this was the first time Adam had actually been taught. I'd really appreciate if you could keep them in your prayers.
I remember The Jungle. I guess you could say that was part of a "turning point' in many ways. It is interesting to see the increasing polarization in nearly all aspects of life. It will be interesting to see how these closing scenes play out. We have to be those examples of love and understanding.
I do have an answer for you. Christ was born through the line of Judah on the merits of King David. You are right, Judah wasn't exactly a stand up guy. God covenanted with David that Christ would be born through his line.
"There will I make the horn of David to bud: I have ordained a lamp for mine anointed." Psalms 132:17
"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper,and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth." Jeremiah 23:5
"And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:" Isaiah 11:1/ 2 Nephi 21:1
That's what I know about it. I don't really know of any prophesies about Christ necessitating him being born of Judah.
I'm happy to hear that you and dad are reading the scriptures together. That's something I want to do with my spouse.
Love,
Elder Williams
How was your week? Are you meeting any new folks? I hope your new area is good and you find it a nice place to be.
I just finished reading Upton Sinclair's The Jungle. Talk about outraged! It helped me understand the rise of the Socialist party back at the turn of the century and the reason that unions became so influential. I can really see how important it is to have a balanced perspective and not to be myopic in your views. There is such an imbalance in government and politics. People view each other as enemies which is counterproductive. If we could see each other as people and listen and understand, then we could have a civil dialogue and solve the problems that are raging around us. Unfortunately the discourse breaks down and people fight for opinion and bias rather than for solutions and truth. It's like battling a hydra--- one head is lopped off only to grow three more which prove to be more violent and have sharper teeth.
I also listened to a book called You Are Now Less Dumb. I loved it and it was hilarious because it pointed out how skewed our thinking frequently is. We believe that we're rational and governed by reason, but humans are truly emotional beings. Not that feelings are bad, but sometimes they override logic and get us into tangles and knots. It was a funny, entertaining, eye-opening book. I think you would like it.
I have a question and was wondering if you know the answer. Why did Jesus come through the lineage of the Jews? Judah was a sinful man. Why didn't Christ come through Joesph's line? He was the chosen one and a type and shadow of the savior. I was thinking about this and couldn't find anything to clarify it.
Dad and I are reading the Doctrine and Covenants together. I truly love that book of scripture. I think it's so thought provoking and inspiring. I think if you are looking then many mysteries are unfolded to you in this book.
You are in our prayers. We think about you and the people you are teaching. God be with you 'till we meet again.
With love,
Mom
Dear Mom,
I have had a great week. I love the way the members magnify their callings here in Vacaville. We had a ward blitz, and all of the missionaries in the zone split with one of the members from my ward. We went and visited a lot of people, so now we have a lot of work to do these coming weeks.
We have seen a lot of miracles contacting. We have been guided to people who are really elect. We found a part member family, and it turns out that they were already planning on coming to church. Alyssa is the member, and Brandon is her husband. They are going to have a baby here in the next few months, so they wanted to go to church and start working on a foundation for their family. I am excited to see the progress.
There is also a lady named Ashley who has been taught for a number of months, but she hasn't been baptized because her husband Adam hasn't been 100% on board. We were able to have a great lesson with them and I think this was the first time Adam had actually been taught. I'd really appreciate if you could keep them in your prayers.
I remember The Jungle. I guess you could say that was part of a "turning point' in many ways. It is interesting to see the increasing polarization in nearly all aspects of life. It will be interesting to see how these closing scenes play out. We have to be those examples of love and understanding.
I do have an answer for you. Christ was born through the line of Judah on the merits of King David. You are right, Judah wasn't exactly a stand up guy. God covenanted with David that Christ would be born through his line.
"There will I make the horn of David to bud: I have ordained a lamp for mine anointed." Psalms 132:17
"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper,and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth." Jeremiah 23:5
"And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:" Isaiah 11:1/ 2 Nephi 21:1
That's what I know about it. I don't really know of any prophesies about Christ necessitating him being born of Judah.
I'm happy to hear that you and dad are reading the scriptures together. That's something I want to do with my spouse.
Love,
Elder Williams
Monday, March 10, 2014
Hi Talon,
So how are things in your new area. If I'm not mistaken you aren't too far from Benicia. How's the new companion? Will he be your last you think?
I'm taking today off work to get a few things done around the house that have been neglected.
We are all well here. Grandpa Val has had some heart concerns the past couple of weeks but the docs can't find any problems. Getting old stinks.
Played 2 games over the weekend and won both of them. Brandt continues to play well. Friday and Saturday we play in a tournament. I think we stand a good chance of being challenged by a couple of teams that will be there.
In 2 weeks I speak at stake priesthood leadership meeting on hastening the work through home teaching. Do you have any words of wisdom from the mission field to share?
It's great your are getting into BYU without losing too much credit. I was surprised. Still planning to join the air guard this summer?
How's your mood been lately? Let me know.
Be well and have a great week
Love Dad
Hey Dad,
I am really loving the new area. The members are some of the most solid I have ever met in my life. This will be a great place for me to end my mission strong. I'm still on bike, so I am glad I bought a new wheel for my bike. It will be well used. Benicia is really close. Vacaville is pretty much half way between Sacramento and San Fran. One nice thing about it is that Vacaville has its own Stake, so it is a really close knit community of members. The ward I am in, 3rd, is as big as our ward home. Most of the time I have been in really small congregations.
Elder Blackhurst is my new companion. He is from Grantsville, UT. I don't think he will be my last companion. I think they will bring in someone new next transfer. I might be surprised, though. He is a good guy, and our personalities click alright. We have differing priorities, though. I am a little more hardcore.
It's good that you are taking some time to do some projects. What have you been working on recently?
I hope Grandpa's health holds up. I hope he can retire sometime soon.
I'm proud of Brandt. He seems to be the foundation of the team. MVP.
That is really awesome that you have the chance to speak in Stake Conference. Here is my all time favorite quote on home teaching. This is in Preach my Gospel chapter 1.You can find it in the quote part in the back of chapter one.
“Missionary work is but home teaching to those who are not now members of the Church, and home teaching is nothing more or less than missionary work to Church members” .-President Harold B. Lee
Ultimately, we are all still in the process of conversion, and home teaching gives us the opportunity to become more converted ourselves as we seek to strengthen our brothers and sisters. In a very real way, we are helping God "bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
Home teaching is ministering. Ministering is meeting needs. Ministering is taking care of someone. Ministering means we show and express love. People can feel it. Ministering is loving like Christ.
So, the way we hasten our work is by getting better at the basic things. It is learning our duty, and doing it better every day. Our job as priesthood holders is to preach the gospel. That means we teach our friend who aren't members of the church, as well as our less active friends. When we work with less actives we baptize more. Less actives know more nonmembers than active members do, typically. You reactivate someone, and you bring many more people in closer contact with the gospel.
So much of my work as a missionary would be done already if members were dutiful in there home teaching. We would be light years ahead of where we are now if people did their duty. Of course, it isn't a robotic visit every month. Home teachers need to seek revelation for the people they are assigned. They need to meet their needs.
That's just a few things off the top of my head. Hope that helps.
I am pretty happy that BYU accepted my credits too. I think it will still take me 3 years to graduate, but that is fine. It would be the same story at SUU, unless I stuck with philosophy.
The Air Guard recruiter said that the Air Guard would pay for my schooling. I am planning on joining this summer. One super awesome thing is that Vacaville is super close to Travis AFB, so tons of the members I have met are in the AF. I will be able to pick their brains. Tender mercy for me, you could say.
My mood has been pretty good. I feel a lot of peace about everything. I was excited to get transferred. I am glad to be here. One thing I am grateful for is I am not anxious to get home. Trunkieness isn't a problem. I've learned a lot about living in the moment on my mission, and I am going to soak in as much as I can while I am here. I'm going to work as hard as I can and serve the best I can. At the same time, I feel confident that everything is going to be okay when I board the plane. God is going to still take care of me, even when I take off my tag.
Love you Dad. Thanks for everything.
Love,
Elder Williams
So how are things in your new area. If I'm not mistaken you aren't too far from Benicia. How's the new companion? Will he be your last you think?
I'm taking today off work to get a few things done around the house that have been neglected.
We are all well here. Grandpa Val has had some heart concerns the past couple of weeks but the docs can't find any problems. Getting old stinks.
Played 2 games over the weekend and won both of them. Brandt continues to play well. Friday and Saturday we play in a tournament. I think we stand a good chance of being challenged by a couple of teams that will be there.
In 2 weeks I speak at stake priesthood leadership meeting on hastening the work through home teaching. Do you have any words of wisdom from the mission field to share?
It's great your are getting into BYU without losing too much credit. I was surprised. Still planning to join the air guard this summer?
How's your mood been lately? Let me know.
Be well and have a great week
Love Dad
Hey Dad,
I am really loving the new area. The members are some of the most solid I have ever met in my life. This will be a great place for me to end my mission strong. I'm still on bike, so I am glad I bought a new wheel for my bike. It will be well used. Benicia is really close. Vacaville is pretty much half way between Sacramento and San Fran. One nice thing about it is that Vacaville has its own Stake, so it is a really close knit community of members. The ward I am in, 3rd, is as big as our ward home. Most of the time I have been in really small congregations.
Elder Blackhurst is my new companion. He is from Grantsville, UT. I don't think he will be my last companion. I think they will bring in someone new next transfer. I might be surprised, though. He is a good guy, and our personalities click alright. We have differing priorities, though. I am a little more hardcore.
It's good that you are taking some time to do some projects. What have you been working on recently?
I hope Grandpa's health holds up. I hope he can retire sometime soon.
I'm proud of Brandt. He seems to be the foundation of the team. MVP.
That is really awesome that you have the chance to speak in Stake Conference. Here is my all time favorite quote on home teaching. This is in Preach my Gospel chapter 1.You can find it in the quote part in the back of chapter one.
“Missionary work is but home teaching to those who are not now members of the Church, and home teaching is nothing more or less than missionary work to Church members” .-President Harold B. Lee
Ultimately, we are all still in the process of conversion, and home teaching gives us the opportunity to become more converted ourselves as we seek to strengthen our brothers and sisters. In a very real way, we are helping God "bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."
Home teaching is ministering. Ministering is meeting needs. Ministering is taking care of someone. Ministering means we show and express love. People can feel it. Ministering is loving like Christ.
So, the way we hasten our work is by getting better at the basic things. It is learning our duty, and doing it better every day. Our job as priesthood holders is to preach the gospel. That means we teach our friend who aren't members of the church, as well as our less active friends. When we work with less actives we baptize more. Less actives know more nonmembers than active members do, typically. You reactivate someone, and you bring many more people in closer contact with the gospel.
So much of my work as a missionary would be done already if members were dutiful in there home teaching. We would be light years ahead of where we are now if people did their duty. Of course, it isn't a robotic visit every month. Home teachers need to seek revelation for the people they are assigned. They need to meet their needs.
That's just a few things off the top of my head. Hope that helps.
I am pretty happy that BYU accepted my credits too. I think it will still take me 3 years to graduate, but that is fine. It would be the same story at SUU, unless I stuck with philosophy.
The Air Guard recruiter said that the Air Guard would pay for my schooling. I am planning on joining this summer. One super awesome thing is that Vacaville is super close to Travis AFB, so tons of the members I have met are in the AF. I will be able to pick their brains. Tender mercy for me, you could say.
My mood has been pretty good. I feel a lot of peace about everything. I was excited to get transferred. I am glad to be here. One thing I am grateful for is I am not anxious to get home. Trunkieness isn't a problem. I've learned a lot about living in the moment on my mission, and I am going to soak in as much as I can while I am here. I'm going to work as hard as I can and serve the best I can. At the same time, I feel confident that everything is going to be okay when I board the plane. God is going to still take care of me, even when I take off my tag.
Love you Dad. Thanks for everything.
Love,
Elder Williams
March 10
Dear Elder T-T,
I listened to a conference talk by Elder Bednar yesterday and what he said really struck me: " A grateful person is rich in contentment. An ungrateful person suffers in the poverty of endless discontentment." It made me think about myself and where the desires of my heart are. It is difficult in our commercial society to constrain those feelings of wanting more and thinking, "I have to have it! I need it if I'm going to look good. Besides, I deserve it." I think that's why Thoreau really resonates with me is because he was a minimalist. I need to heed the words of "Simplify, simplify, simplify." I'll contrast it to Saturday and going up north with Raina and her friend Bekah and the Wagner's and prom dress shopping. It was fun to watch the them try on dresses and they looked so pretty. I think it's important to enjoy an evening to feel like a beautiful girl once in awhile; however, we spend so much energy and focus on one night of fun at the expense of what really matters. Entertainment, fashion, money, success---these become our gods. We worship at the alter of consumerism. Listening to Elder Oaks' conference talk confirms this to me.
I really like "stuff" and I know I'll never live like an ascetic, but it makes me realize that I need to be careful and watch the intentions of my heart.
Did you make your transfer? Will you please confirm your mailing address? Do you have a firm date on your arrival home? How is Vacaville? David said it was the hood. Is that true? If so, please remember your karate skills. Use them in a nice way though, if you have to. Don't go all Chuck Norris on the bad guys because they might not want a Book of Mormon after you kick their booty. :)
All is well on the home front. We pray for you.
With love,
Mom - who has Ninja skills and can whip out a quilt in less time than it takes to thread a sewing needle. :)
Dear Mom,
Thank you for sharing that quote. One thing I am continually learning about is gratitude. A little bit goes a long way.
I like Thoreau's philosophy. I have seen so many people trapped by their stuff. Hoarders, rich people, they become entangled in Satan's web. There is definitely a difference between things that improve the quality of your life (thank goodness for washers and cars), and useless junk or overboard opulence. God wants us to enjoy the good things in life, but not get trapped in them.
I was right about my address. 999 Marshall Rd # 22, Vacaville, CA 95687
Yup, 27th of May is when I am scheduled to fly home. I put Cedar City as the place I wanted to fly to. I should be getting my fight plans sometime soon. I think they might send you a copy too.
The only gangsters I have met in Vacaville so far are wanna be teenagers. It is really a nice place. Kind of reminds me of St. George. I'm more worried about me doing something dumb than getting jumped, ha ha. I promise I will be safe and smart.
We had a miracle a couple of days ago. We were working on Saturday evening after dinner, and we went to find some people to teach. I saw a girl waiting on her porch for a ride, and we went and talked to her. Her name is Jessica and she is Raina's age. Turns out that she has been receiving some wonderful fellowshipping from some members in another ward. She went to church with them, and she started reading the Book of Mormon. Within a week, she had almost finished 1 Nephi. She already knows it is true. I challenged her to be baptized in April, and she said she would.
One of the people I have been taking to online got baptized yesterday. Vinicius is his name, and he is from Brazil. This picture is of him.
I didn't really do too much, but I am glad that I was able to be with him on part of his journey.
I love you Mom. Thanks for all you do.
Love,
Elder Williams
I listened to a conference talk by Elder Bednar yesterday and what he said really struck me: " A grateful person is rich in contentment. An ungrateful person suffers in the poverty of endless discontentment." It made me think about myself and where the desires of my heart are. It is difficult in our commercial society to constrain those feelings of wanting more and thinking, "I have to have it! I need it if I'm going to look good. Besides, I deserve it." I think that's why Thoreau really resonates with me is because he was a minimalist. I need to heed the words of "Simplify, simplify, simplify." I'll contrast it to Saturday and going up north with Raina and her friend Bekah and the Wagner's and prom dress shopping. It was fun to watch the them try on dresses and they looked so pretty. I think it's important to enjoy an evening to feel like a beautiful girl once in awhile; however, we spend so much energy and focus on one night of fun at the expense of what really matters. Entertainment, fashion, money, success---these become our gods. We worship at the alter of consumerism. Listening to Elder Oaks' conference talk confirms this to me.
I really like "stuff" and I know I'll never live like an ascetic, but it makes me realize that I need to be careful and watch the intentions of my heart.
Did you make your transfer? Will you please confirm your mailing address? Do you have a firm date on your arrival home? How is Vacaville? David said it was the hood. Is that true? If so, please remember your karate skills. Use them in a nice way though, if you have to. Don't go all Chuck Norris on the bad guys because they might not want a Book of Mormon after you kick their booty. :)
All is well on the home front. We pray for you.
With love,
Mom - who has Ninja skills and can whip out a quilt in less time than it takes to thread a sewing needle. :)
Dear Mom,
Thank you for sharing that quote. One thing I am continually learning about is gratitude. A little bit goes a long way.
I like Thoreau's philosophy. I have seen so many people trapped by their stuff. Hoarders, rich people, they become entangled in Satan's web. There is definitely a difference between things that improve the quality of your life (thank goodness for washers and cars), and useless junk or overboard opulence. God wants us to enjoy the good things in life, but not get trapped in them.
I was right about my address. 999 Marshall Rd # 22, Vacaville, CA 95687
Yup, 27th of May is when I am scheduled to fly home. I put Cedar City as the place I wanted to fly to. I should be getting my fight plans sometime soon. I think they might send you a copy too.
The only gangsters I have met in Vacaville so far are wanna be teenagers. It is really a nice place. Kind of reminds me of St. George. I'm more worried about me doing something dumb than getting jumped, ha ha. I promise I will be safe and smart.
We had a miracle a couple of days ago. We were working on Saturday evening after dinner, and we went to find some people to teach. I saw a girl waiting on her porch for a ride, and we went and talked to her. Her name is Jessica and she is Raina's age. Turns out that she has been receiving some wonderful fellowshipping from some members in another ward. She went to church with them, and she started reading the Book of Mormon. Within a week, she had almost finished 1 Nephi. She already knows it is true. I challenged her to be baptized in April, and she said she would.
I didn't really do too much, but I am glad that I was able to be with him on part of his journey.
I love you Mom. Thanks for all you do.
Love,
Elder Williams
Monday, March 3, 2014
Marching Forward
Dear Elder Williams,
I watched a CES broadcast by Elder T. Callister yesterday which was really, really good. He talked about how the church is patterned after the New Testament church of Christ. It helped reinforce the reason we needed the restoration by Joesph Smith. I'm so grateful for the restoration because it makes so much sense and so many questions are answered. It makes sense to the rational mind yet it also touches the emotional life. The restored gospel speaks to the dual nature of man---heart and mind---the seat of the soul. Philosophy, religion, science---they have cut the head from the heart or vice-versa. When that happens we get the dark ages, or martial societies, or tyranny, or anarchy, etc, etc.....The church of Jesus Christ is the answer to the questions of humanity. I'm glad to know that I'm not just a housing-unit for a few trillion atoms for a mere 75 years or so. I'm glad there's more to this mortal life. But I'm glad to know that I am composed of atoms, and sub-atomic particles, and leptons, gluons, quarks, and all that other cool quantum physics stuff. Truth is everywhere if we are willing to seek it out. Like Alma said, everything in the universe points to God.
Anyhooo......
Remember the questions I had about monotheism, randomness, and what constitutes reality/truth?
Well, I found some answers that I'd like to share with you.
"Monotheism does not limit its claim to there being only on God. Biblical monotheism teaches that everything is an expression of this Unity." D&C 50:43 And the Father and I are one. I am in the Father and the Father in me; and inasmuch as ye have received me, ye are in me and I in you.
"The solid world is really 99.9999999999999 percent empty space made solid by force-carrying massless particles." (photons which are light) D&C 50:24 That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.
"It's our choice as to where we, as individuals, fall within that spectrum of behavior that stretches from intimate Divine direction to total random chance." Proverbs 16:9 A man's heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directeth his steps.
The quotes come from Gerald L. Schroeder author of the book The Hidden Face of God
Thanks for listening to my "deep thoughts". No one else likes to. :( I hope you don't mind my personal pondering when I write my weekly emails.
I don't know if Dad or I told you but Abby Chesley got married to Scott Hutchinson. She came home early from her mission. We went to the reception (Randy Chesley works with dad) and they looked super happy.
Sister Verdell Dowell, Robert and Jerrelle's mom died. She was very old and feeble, so I think it was a blessing.
The couple missionaries in our ward are dropping like flies. The Neilson's, Chaston's, and now the Johnson's are home. Health and family problems. That would be a bummer.
Andria and Travis' son, Devan, was baptized on Saturday. It was fun to see lots of family. Everyone is doing well.
Your dog is still alive.
Can't think of any other news.
Love you little, love you big, love you like a little pig.
My grandma used to say that. :)
Love,
Mom
Dear Mom,
Elder Tad Callister is one of my all time favorite General Authorities. He knows so much about the primitive Church. I have been studying more Hugh Nibley articles, and it is confirming my testimony that everything in the Church stems back to God, and that He has revealed the same truths from the beginning.
Thank you for sharing your deep thoughts with me. I learn a lot from you every time you share.
What you shared about the dual nature of the soul reminds me about several of the people we are in contact with. Steve, one of our investigators, and a few JWs that we have talked to don't believe in an immortal soul. Instead, they believe that all we are is a body and "the breath of life". In other words, we have no life of our own. So, they don't believe in a premortal life, and they don't believe that there is a spirit that goes on after we pass on. Instead, they believe that you lie in the grave, and if you aren't resurrected, there is nothing after. It is a hollow and shallow doctrine.
I'm grateful for the knowledge I have of the Plan of Salvation, because it gives so much more meaning and purpose. Knowing that I am a son of God and that I can inherit all He has after this life is so much more meaningful than the idea that we are merely made out of clay, puppets that can never truly progress.
I have learned so much while I have been here in Cloverdale. It is like God tailors my experiences to help me grow.
I'm getting transferred to a town called Vacaville. That is probably where I am going to end my mission. My new address is : 999 Marshall Road #22, Vacaville, CA 95687. I am pretty sure about the Apartment #. I will double confirm with you next week.
Abby sent me an invitation. I'm happy for them.
I got accepted to BYU. They transferred almost all of my credits. All but 3, so just one class, I think.
Was that Grandma Wilson's saying? I like that. )
Love you,
Elder Williams
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