Monday, 28 January 2019 ~ Week #79

Weekly Letter 79

Hello, hello, helloooo!! How are my friends on the other side?? Wow, what a crazy and long week this was, but almost constantly I have been a happy creature.

Due to transfers, I have worked with three different companions this week. First, Elder Bonett, with whom we took advantage of the last few moments together and made our last good memories, then a day with Elder Polad who is a younger missionary who I chose to help me practice going through my area without Elder Bonett (who also worked very hard with money), and then the rest of the time with Elder Marino, who is my new companion, and who is from my group. Elder Marino in fact was my district leader in the CCM, and now we are working together as companions with the same time in the mission. It is actually the coolest thing. We have been literally the "dream team".

We received a great deal of counsel from our beloved mission president as well as our extremely dedicated area authority Elder Uceda. We now have a better vision of how we should be dedicating our efforts... that is, applying the counsel in Matthew 28:19, and emphasizing the first step, which is "making disciples" ("hacer discipulos"). And the impression hit us all hard... that the missionary work really has complicated itself, and that it is essentially quite simple. It is everything that happens between the two missionaries, the investigator, and the Book of Mormon. And if the investigator reads the Book of Mormon, prays, and attends Church, they take the steps necessary to build their faith in Christ, repent, make covenants, and then follow the Spirit so that they can endure to the end. The pamphlets help, the missionary lessons are necessary for doctrinal understanding, and there are many things we ought to do to help others come unto Christ, but in this mission, we have to work with the people we have, and focus on them, and not give up on them, and not find too many new investigators. We have to establish the Church first so that we have enough support to keep the investigators in. We just need to help people become converted to Christ and His gospel.

I am so grateful for the sweet experience that I have had to serve a mission and learn these things in a way more profound than ever. I am so happy to have the Gospel in my life. The Gospel is my path in my life, and the love of Christ is my drive. And the things of which I am most sure are the precious truths of the Gospel which have been shown unto me by His Holy Spirit. I know that this Gospel is true, that this is His Church, guided by His prophets. I know that we have everything necessary to attain forgiveness, if we just use the priesthood. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Have a wonderful week, my dear friends and family. Remember to pray and to carefully read the Scriptures to seek the direction and comfort the Lord desires to give you, and remembering that the truths which are in the Scriptures are eternal, therefore we never learn enough from just reading them one time.

Your friend and your guide,

Elder Dredge