Personal revelation is very real.

This week we had the opportunity to hear from and shake hands with Elder Dallin H. Oaks. He also was being broadcast to the mission in Posadas. He came to visit first with the missionaries Friday then with only the youth only and then with the leaders here in Resistencia and then he went to Formosa for their stake conference. He had a busy schedule and still had a ton of energy and excitement. Somehow we failed to convince the less active youth in our ward to go. We told them it was a once in a lifetime experience and even how excited we were,  but they opted to play soccer and hang out with friends.

We also got to work double in our area I got to spend 2 days with Elder Smithson and Elder Condori with Elder Miles from my mtc group. it was a very good experience to see how Elder Smithson worked and look at some things that I could improve.

I also got to catch up with the district I was with in the MTC, it was fun to see us all together again and hear how Elder Whiting is doing in Clorinda. He said Feliciana, Elian, Luciana, and Gordo's mom, might be getting baptized soon.

With Elder Oaks he shared about how personal revelation comes. It was very cool that he was able to answer my questions. The preisthood is a very real thing and the ability to recieve personal revelation is also very real. He had some very good insights on how personal revelation works he shared with us some very useful insights. He said, If it's something I really want to do, I kinda examine it carefully if not and it's good it is more likely revelation. He also said, that  it can come in different ways, for us that grow up with reading as normal it may come in words but for those who use symbols it may come as other things. It was very interestin. An example he gave of a native american patriarch who recieved a blessing he gave through a symbol of a tree with a fence that then had it's seed blown to the other side representing spreading the gospel on the other side of the iron curtain some years back.

He also was able to assure us that he loves us the profet loves us and the Lord loves us.

Personal revelation is real and very personal it can help us know what to do in each of our own very different situations. God knows his children and he knows our situations. He can help us out.

Elder Dallin Skouson

The power of study

So this week we are going to get to hear from Elder Oaks. he is coming to visit our mission Friday. President Franco has put enfasis on prepareing to hear from an Apostle of the Lord. I studied preparation a little bit in the scriptures and then asked President how I could learn more about being prepared. He recomended 3rd Nefi and studying it has helped me not only prepare but also love the Book of Mormon more. Studying with the spirit is something very powerful and you can really learn a lot.

I also got to give the training in our district meeting this week and that was a very good experience. I learned a lot about how our calling can lead us to getting the help of the Lord to do it and really how much we have to rely on him to actually be able to be missionaries or really fill any calling in the church.

I was assigned as backup speaker in church as well. I didn't actually get to speak it was interesting thinking about the visit of Christ to the Nefites and then his invitation to come to him, feel the marks of the nails and know that He is the God of Israel and God of the whole earth. He then told them to invite others. The Book of Mormon is a powerful witness of Christ that we can use to help build our testimonies and also help others come to Christ and gain a knowledge of him. I think that is one of the reasons why the invitation of Moroni is written the way it is.

Moroni 10: 3 Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.

Remember how merciful God has been to speak his word to all of the world. To send his Son to minister and perform miracles on both sides of the world and to give us 2 witnesses of Christ today so that we can dispel all confusion and doubt. He even gives us the opportunity to have a family forever.

We can think of all the blessings it brings to know the Book of Mormon is true build our own testimony and invite others to come, read, feel and know these things as well.

Love,

Elder Dallin Skouson

We will always receive blessings from God for our obedience.

This week we worked hard and found 2 families that said they were going to come to church. We then were walking down the street and a woman found us, and said she was an angle with wings (she is taking drugs to help with a mental problem) but that she was interested in going to church. 1 out of 3 showed up and it was the woman who had found us in the street. We don't decide who is prepared and they need to take their choice to do the actions. She had to step out to take a smoke 2 times in the short 3 hours but she made it until the end and said she enjoyed it. It was a good reminder of how obedience is freeing.

I also have been thinking a lot about obedience as the rules here are changing and how we are not able to eat the food that people make for us. I have been offered water various times and one less active member offered us hot pocket like things that are fried. My companion is not too interested in being obedient to these rules and it has made me realize how hard it must be for those with adictions... I want to eat the food or drink something but I can't imagine how it would be if my body was screaming out at me to take it as well.

I was also thinking a lot about obedience as my companion tried to tell me that being obedient isn't too important that if you just do what matters to love the people it's good. I had a good study thinking about how we are commanded to love our neighbor and how we have promised to keep the commandments at baptism. I hope that I can be a more obedient and a more loving missionary both at the same time.

20 There is a ^alaw, irrevocably decreed in ^bheaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all ^cblessings are predicated—

 21 And when we obtain any ^ablessing from God, it is by ^bobedience to that law upon which it is predicated.

We will always recieve blessings from God for our obedience.

Elder Skouson

Conferencia y la pascua

So, my pday is Monday or at least it defaults to Monday when there isn't an excuse to make it Tuesday. Every 6 weeks for transfers it moves to Tuesday. Then any time there is a national holiday (and there are many) no one works Monday so we move our pday and we had interviews with president last week so it moved pday as well. I'm starting to wonder why we don't just make it Tuesday every week.

So, this week was Easter and General Conference and today is April 6th the date of the organization of the church what a great week. We talked to a lot of people and here in Resistencia I have seen many houses that look a lot dirtier than in Clorinda although I think the people have a little more money. President also made a call and said that we cannot eat in people's houses anymore starting today.

I was thinking about that rule as I turned down a piece of cake yesterday. We have been talking to a less active member that lives in a relatively dirty house. We did service in their yard and the piles of old clothes glass beer bottles (I hope they were drunk by the non member) and random other things behind the house were bigger than those inside. We even had to move a pile of slightly rusty scrap metal and dodge low hanging and also rusty barbed wire clotheslines to cut down the bamboo trees in the back corner. Yesterday when we passed by they offered us some cake, I politely declined and was glad I did so as I saw one of their 9 dogs (why 9? "just because my son wants them") peed a little on the floor and a rather large cockroach snuck out of the other room. Anyway the moral of the story is that cleanliness might be as important as my parents tried to teach me it was. :)

I also really enjoyed watching conference. We are going to have a memeber of the 12 coming here in a few weeks. President told us to prepare ourselves for that in a conference and I decided to study up on preparation. As I had applied the things I learned and then listened carefully it was much more meaningful. Now we only have 6 months to prepare us for the next conference. As the apostles said, daily scripture study and prayer will strengthen us. I also want to share some scriptures that I found meaningful today in my study of preparation.

Luke 6:40

Click on the foot note in the lds.org because it makes it make more sense. it says something along the lines of perfectly prepared instead of perfect.

40. The disciple is not above his master: but every one ^athat is perfect shall be as his master.

And Moroni 7:48 talking about charity

48. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, ^apray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true ^bfollowers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall ^cbe like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be ^dpurified even as he is pure. Amen.

If we are preparing and trying, we can become like Christ is through his grace.

Elder Skouson

Our Clorinda Zone beginning of March 2015