September 8, 2014

WE had a lot of cool experiences this weeka as we were able to listen to Elder Gonzalez of the area 70 as he talked to us a little bit about the importance of the Book of Mormon in what we do and letting the people have their own agency! We have to invite to committ, but we can`t do everything for them. Also he talked about how we will be able to baptize without using the book of mormon to teach, but if we want our converts to stay...then we need them to be reading and fulfing their commitments. 

This week we saw a lot of miracles as we found 17 new people to teach. We were able to bring 9 of those 17 to church which is more than half. I have been praying and focusing on the Elegidos and how I can better find them and have more faith that I will be able to find those that are wating and not just find those that are there. I think that has been the hardest thing for me during my mission is focusing on those that are ready to hear the gospel. I tend to get distracted in thinking that they are all just awesome and they are all ready to change...but that isn`t exactly true. As we started applying the book of mormon more in our teaching and contacts and just in every aspect of what we are doing, that is when we started to see a huge difference. I felt a little bit like Dan Jones on page 1 of PMG where he is standing on a crate preaching about the book of mormon. 

We had a leadership meeting and talked a lot about the importance of inviting everyone in order to find the elect. That has been the struggle in our Zone and we are doing everything we can to help them realize the importance of talking to everyone. Some of them feel down because they don`t have a lot of investigators to teach, so they don`t teach a lot, so they feel like bad teachers. Now, the only way that they can improve...is do! You have to find to teach, and teach to improve, so we are hoping that with the special trainings and the new attitude to find, we will be able to help them. 

I know that the Book of Mormon is the key to everything we have and do. I know that we have to read it and want to beleive it in order to gain a testimony of it. And I know that the Application of what we learn in and of the church is the only way that we can gain a testimony.

I hope everything is great back home and just know that I am praying for you! :) 

Love,

~Elder Hazlett