Mosiah Chapter Four is SO BOMB!

Uruguay Montevideo LDS Temple

Hey guys!

I was reading in Mosiah 4 this morning and the last two verses of the chapter seem to go along with what you were saying. Mosiah chapter four is SO BOMB! It is actually probably my favorite chapter in the Book of Mormon, and there is sooooo much good stuff in there. 

But anyways, you taught me before my mission, ¨When we act according to the light and truth we are given, we will be given even more guidance¨. I think that when we are obedient to the commandments and revelation that has been given to us, we slowly turn from the natural man and our character becomes more Christlike in each decision we make. I love the scripture (I think D&C 50:24) that talks about us receiving more and more light even until the perfect day. I keep a little notebook on things that I can improve on as a missionary,so that it can help me quickly realize the things I need to do better,and put into action the things I learn from the scriptures. My testimony of the scriptures, especially the Book of Mormon has been increasing so much. I love reading each day and learning from the many teachings!! 

(In response to our email this week referencing the talk by Elder Dallin H. Oaks found here)

Anyways to go with your good, better best thingy- that is really funny because we are trying to plan an English class haha. Everyone here loves trying to learn English, and always tries speaking it to us. It is great! Also, we have been trying to use the members a lot by asking for references and get them into lessons with us. Maybe we will give spiritual thoughts about missionary work! 

This past week has been split into two very different parts. Last Saturday through Tuesday,it was really cold and rained nonstop. But Wednesday through today, it has been hot and sunny. The first have off the week was also pretty tough because we had almost everything cancelled, but the last few days, Elder Nielsen and I have seen some really great promise in the work! 

But to start, Tuesday was loooong. Our whole plans for the day got cancelled so we instead went through the area book, and tried visiting some references. There was only one person that opened up the door that day- someone we found Area Book. But the guy that opened up said the lady we were looking for died a year ago, and he wasn't interested in anything since he didnt believe in God... So wow. But I read something from Preach My Gospel recently that says ´No effort goes wasted´. So I know even in hard days like that, it is important to stay positive, and work hard. If we lower our expectations, out effectiveness will decrease. Also, I try to remember that when we work hard and push through the hard times, we will be blessed from the Lord. 

On Wednesday, we went on splits, and I went off with Elder Maxfield, in Barrio 12. It was a super awesome experience. Elder Maxfield taught me a ton about missionary work, and about the language. We talked about contacting too, because he is an incredible street contactor and right when I asked for suggestions, he went to the first person we saw, a man sitting down at a bus station. It was sweet! He ended up accepting a Book of Mormon, and seemed to have some real interest in our message. Elder Maxfield promised him that if he could read at least 5 minutes a day, it could change his life, and I was able to share my testimony to him about the book. We also had some success in setting up lessons for later, although I won't get to be in those, since it was in his area. The day was fun and I actually really learned a lot. 

Thursday was really awesome too. We found a small shop that sold 30 eggs for a hundred pesos (like 3 bucks) so I got some. Those will last a while :) That afternoon, we met up with a man who has been inactive for many years now. He let us in, and was super friendly. We got to know him for a while, and then talked about the Book of Mormon. He said he believed it was true and said he would read the introduction like we asked. We set up a lesson with him for this coming week and he seems like he has a lot of potential. He works a ton throughout the week, and I think that might be why he went inactive, but I have high hopes, because he is super cool. 

After that we got a call from [....] from the ward and asked if we could plan for the Noche de Hogar that night, because his wife fainted and he couldn't make it. We just had something get cancelled too, so luckily we had a little time to plan for it. But it was a fun Noche de Hogar. [....] was there, as well as her friend [....], who was involved. We talked about receiving light in our lives. We also got dinner from [....], Roveolis and ice cream. 

On Friday, we taught the Restoration to a couple named [....] and [....]. They are awesome as well, and happily invited us to come back.But I don't think they are married, so that is something we will need to work on. On Saturday, when we were coming home from lunch, a man named [....] contacted us and said that he wanted to hear from the missionaries. I have to go now, but the work is going super awesome, and I am so excited for this coming week!!

Elder Layton