April 2, 2012

Hey guys!

Well this week was bad until conference hit! It was because my companion
still isn’t better and he can’t work. He can’t walk for more than 30 minutes
without almost killing himself. So we’re constantly at a members house or
our converts houses. It’s kind of annoying because I want to work! At the
same time, I know that he’s my companion and I have to help him get better. It
really honestly wasn’t like I was frustrated, but when I reported our numbers
I about threw up. It was the worst set of numbers I’ve ever had in my mission.
Worse than my school grades! But i know there’s something that the Lord
wants me to learn in this, so I need to just keep moving forward and stay
positive. So, like you guys, i absolutely loved conference. It was so freaking
good. Elder Scott and I watched it in English in the secretary’s office at
the church. But it was soo good, every message that I heard was something
that needs to change that I’ve been starting to notice. I think my favorite
talks, that I got to hear because i didn’t get to hear all of them, (yet) were
Elder Uchtdorfs talks. All of them were way good. As well as Elder Andersons,
that was way powerful. Anyways, I’ve got to apply all the things i heard
and make sure I do what Elder, umm, I don’t remember his name right now, but he’s
a member of the 70. He wrote a talk in the Liahona. He was talking about
how he had to sell his new wife’s wedding ring because he wanted to be able
to follow the counsel of the prophet and have a 24 hour kit in the house.
Because he was poor, his wife and he decided to sell the
ring. The thing I liked is that they both sacrificed something very
special that had a lot of meaning in their lives because they had that
drive to follow the counsel they received. It was just a reminder to me of how we
need to live our lives here on earth. We need to sacrifice always in order
to receive what we want or need. When we sacrifice, we will always be
prepared for the best or the worst that will come. For me, that’s a
comforting feeling that I will always do my very best to keep. I know as I
follow the counsel I receive and the knowledge I have, I will always be
blessed. I know that I will receive the one thing that is the most
important for me and that is returning to the presence of my Father in Heaven
with you all and with my own wife and children; Just a quick thought that
I’ve been having. So, I’ve had a lot of time to be able to ponder and to study
since my companions been doing bad. This week I had an opportunity to
really ponder on the many blessing I have received in my life and how
much I have taken them for granted. When all the Lord asks of us is to pray
and give thanks, as well as keep his commandments, follow the prophet and to
study every single day, etc. A lot of times in my life I’ve been blessed so
so much and not gotten down on my knees to thank the Lord for his charity
and his amazingly perfect and enormous love he has for me. I pray and give
thanks a lot but I always feel like it’s literally impossible to give thanks
enough because every single little, big, bad, sad, hard, and pain we
receive is a blessing for us personally that a lot of times we don’t see.
Things in my life, for example, when i wrecked the car 3 times. That car was a
blessing. The ability to "drive" ( the quotations are for you, dad) is
because of my health and for the body that I have been blessed with and for
the parents that I have been blessed with in my life to teach me. After
each wreck, instead of thanking him for the lesson I learned or for the
safety I still have, I would complain or just be angry with myself and not
want to forgive myself. I was always so hard on myself
every time I made a mistake in my life or did not do things to the best of
my ability. When really, I should always pray and ask, for example, “Father I
feel weak, please strengthen me to the amount that I need to be able to
finish this day, Father I’m so angry with what just happened but thank you
so much for the trial and for the lesson I’m learning from this”. “Father I
have this problem right now and I’m so confused, what should I do that will
please thee”? As I’ve started to apply this in my life this week I’ve noticed
the changes and I’ve noticed the difference in my everyday life and in the many
things I’m learning. I know I’m not perfect, I know I have still so so so
much to learn. I know that I’m going to come across so many hard things in
my life that maybe I’ll just want to give up or it will be so hard I just
won’t know what to do. But one thing that helps me every day is I know
without even the tiniest doubt that I have a Father in Heaven who loves me.
I know he sent his only Son to suffer and die for us so that we
could be that much stronger and so that we can always pick ourselves up when we fall. I love my Father and his son Jesus Christ with all my soul. I know they live and they are always looking for a
way to help us or to teach us in our lives. I know that there is nothing that will make me fall because I have all confidence in the Lord. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

So, i think that Joe is going to be called to a foreign country but to
be honest, I’m not too sure which one. I could see him going to Peru. I’m pretty
excited to find out where he’s gonna’ go. He’s gonna’ love it as long as
he puts his heart into the work and doesn’t focus on anything else. But
he knows that, so I’m pretty excited that we’re gonna’ be able to share
experiences. So i still haven’t had the time to put the pictures on the
computer. I tried today, but they didn’t save. I don’t know why. I have to
check it out, but next week I’m sure that they will be up. I love you
guys and miss you all much. Keep going strong!

Love,
Elder Lowder