In Him my soul delights

What an exciting week this has been! I have seen the Lord's hand in all we do, and have witnessed many miracles. This week for the first time Emily and Charles were able to come to church together as a family! I cannot describe the joy I felt as I saw them walk into the chapel. It was truly a special experience. I know how much the gospel can bless their family so I was so excited to see them come. In Sunday school we talked about baptism and they were both participating in the lesson a lot. Elder Toki and I are planning on inviting them to be baptized during our lesson with them Thursday.

Unfortunately we were unable to meet with Christine and James last Saturday because it was memorial day weekend and they had forgotten they were going out of town. But we are planning on having a lesson with them this Saturday. I am so excited. 

This week Zach was going through a lot with his family so we weren't able to meet with him as often as we usually do. On Tuesday we had invited a ward member to come with us to a lesson with a new investigator we had found, but unfortunately that person was not home, so we decided to go stop by and see if Zach was home. As we were there we invited him to start going to the Addiction Recovery Program that is put on by the church. It is an amazing program that has helped so many people overcome any kind of addiction. It is far superior to AA or NA because this program focuses on using the atonement of Jesus Christ to overcome addictions instead of our own will power. We knew how much it would be able to help Zach. While we were there the member explained that he goes every Sunday and would be happy to give him a ride every week. We had absolutely no idea this member was struggling with addictions as well. Only the Lord knew and he knew that he would be able to help fellowship and strengthen Zach as they go together. The Lord knew we were not supposed to visit that new investigator, and it was so amazing to witness the Lords hand in our work. 

Another miracle we were able to witness was on Wednesday as we were out tracting. It had been a pretty unsuccessful day so far. None of the people we were supposed to visit were home and no one was answering their doors. While walking to the next house, there were two girls who pulled over in their car and started asking us questions about the church. One of them soon opened up and started explaining what she was going through at that time in her life. She was dealing with many addictions and relationship/family problems. As she said these things with tears in her eyes she talked about how she didn't feel she could ever become clean again. That she had messed up too many times, and it was too late. As she shared these things with us and as we explained the power of the Saviors atonement for them I felt such a strong love for them. As if the Savior allowed us to feel a small portion of the infinite love He has for those two girls. My words cannot fully explain this situation, and the testimony builder it was for Elder Toki and I. I know how much the Atonement of Jesus Christ can change lives as I have experienced it in my life. The greatest blessing in the world is being able to share that joy that comes from using the atonement. There is not a greater joy one can feel in this world. I testify that to you. Do not hesitate to share this beautiful message. There are so many people who are going through so much in this world. 

I apologize if it seems like all I talk about is the people we are teaching each week. There are other events that happen, but none of them have the impact that these special experiences do in my life. The greatest joy I feel while on my mission is while I am sharing this gospel with others. I love the Lord, in Him my soul delights. 

Elder Hallmark