Hello,
I am definitely doing what I can in that area to make all feel welcome in the Alpine Ward, I sang with the ward choir this past week, I was one of 5 men so it was a great experience.
To answer your questions, things are going alright; a little slow to be honest. Paige lost her baptismal date because she was unable to attend church due to transportation issues, she lives pretty far from the ward and has no vehicle to get her anywhere, but we are meeting with her this week and going to recommit her to baptism and set a new date for her. She has a strong desire to receive the gospel into her life and enter into the covenant of baptism.
An awesome experience that we had this week was we were way out east contacting some people and we were basically knocking on empty doors, but as we were about to leave both of us had the thought to stop by a potential investigators home that we had not seen in a while, she had not been home previous times. So we went over there and she was home, we got to talking and she said that we were very lucky to have caught her, she's usually not home. I knew that this was not luck, we were sent there for a reason. The spirit had whispered and we had hearkened and we were able to talk about her religious background and teach her about our Savior and we set a return appointment for this week, her name is Kassandra and we hope that all goes well because our first meeting with her went well. We are having opportunities to serve others by and strengthen them, there are some good projects out here to be done, much yard work and it is a great experience. We are helping a less active member clear his property and he has been at church the past two weeks and has been feeling really good about being back. Elder Perry and I are doing a lot of rescuing it seems lately, it is so amazing to see the spirit work within the people we see and help them to return again to the fold and partake of the ordinance of the sacrament and allow the Atonement into their lives.
Many things have been on my mind lately about the work and the slowness of it at the moment and the recurring word that I keep hearing from others every day, even multiple times each day and in lessons and church is the message of hope. That as I continue to work hard and give this work everything I can give every day, I can have hope that the Lord is with us every step of the way. A scripture that I came across is really great and speaks of hope, it is found in Romans 15:13 and it says "Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost" and that word abound means that we can always have it with us, we can retain that hope through the power of the Holy Ghost. My testimony has also been strengthened in the meaning of the scripture, "by small and simple things are great things brought to pass" in 1 Nephi 16:20- it speaks of Lehi obtaining the Liahona and how Nephi noticed that it worked according to the faith and diligence which they gave unto it and that by small means the Lord can bring about great things. This led me to read in 2 Kings about Naaman, who had leprosy and went to Elisha to be healed and he was told to go to river Jordan 7 times and he would be clean, Naaman was angered but his servant reminded him and said "My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?" If the Lord asks us to do some great thing would we not do it? He does ask us to do small and simple things which do lead to great things, to us becoming clean. Back to Lehi and his family-by the simple Liahona pointing the way that they should go, Nephi was able to obtain food to sustain his family in their journey across the wilderness and to the Promised land to the fulfilling of the Lord's promises which also exemplifies 1 Nephi 3:7.
That's exciting to hear about Lindsay, I hope and pray for her and her newborns continued health and safety, and Shai is doing well, she is taking care of her little sister, who recently broke her arm and had to have surgery on it. She is keeping busy with school and work as well. I hope that school is going well for you too and I know that you do your reading endorsement, you can accomplish great things. I love you and thank you for your support and love, and I hope that you and the family have a wonderful week.
TOTW Mosiah 23:21-22 "Nevertheless the Lord seeth fit to chasten his people; yea he trieth their patience and their faith. Nevertheless--whosoever putteth his trust in him the same shall be lifted up at the last day."
Love always,
Elder Aaron Jordan Lloyd
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