Elder Kyle Houssian: Week #50

Howdy everyone! I hope y'all have had a wonderful week this week! This has been a busy week for us! The days and weeks are blending, its scary how fast this is going! Things are going faster and faster, and I'm not ready for it!

So first things first, TRANSFERS........... and I'm getting transferred again! I'm just kidding, I'm staying in my area haha but Elder Fowkes will be leaving and going to the Paradise Stake. I'm sad to see him go, he was a great comp, but the Lord has a reason for everything and I'm super stoked for my new comp, Elder Alfred! I've served around him twice already and he's a stud. It will be a ton of fun! He's also my 9th companion in 11 1/2 months haha. I'm still the District Leader, and my district went from being really old (lots of people going home in the next few months) to really young (been out for a year or less), and I'm super excited for that as well! I feel like there will be more of that fire lit under everyone. Don't get me wrong, the older missionaries definitely work too, it'll just be a nice change in the environment of the district!

So we have some super solid investigators we are teaching! We have Jarrell who is such an awesome older guy. He has the kindest heart and has great desires to learn more about the gospel and follow the example of the Savior. He's going to get baptized, it's just at his pace! It's something he wants, and he's doing so well.

We also have Amber! Amber has been through a ton. She's divorced and has two girls that are 10 and 6 I believe, and one of her daughters is a stage 4 cancer survivor! So she has a firm belief in God because she knows that God was the reason why her daughter survived cancer! Super cool! She's super sweet and she loves the things we teach her, especially the Plan of Salvation. She's doing very well!

My thought comes from a verse I came across in my studies this week, and it's found in the Book of Mormon in Alma chapter 2 verse 28. It reads

28 Nevertheless, the Nephites being strengthened by the hand of the Lord, having prayed mightily to him that he would deliver them out of the hands of their enemies, therefore the Lord did hear their cries, and did strengthen them, and the Lamanites and the Amlicites did fall before them.

So in this chapter, Amlici (am-li-ky) is evil and he is trying to be appointed king. As a people, they vote, and the majority didn't want him as their king. So he and his followers left the Nephites and became their own people, and made Amlici king. With that, Amlici wanted to take over the Nephites, so he joined forces with the Lamanites (the Nephites and Lamanites hate each other) to try and take over the Nephites. All throughout this, before battle and during battle, the Nephites pray to God to protect them and deliver them, while the Lamanites and Amlicites relied only on their own power, the power of man. As a result, the Nephites prevail. Brothers and Sisters, the power of prayer is so tremendously strong. The Lord has the ability to strengthen us at any time. It's human nature to say that we might not need His help, or that the trial we are facing is something so small, that it's not worth His time. I sometimes have that same thought, it's something too small. But I'm wrong. Nothing is too small for the Lord. He cares about everything! As we turn to the Lord in humble prayer, He can change us, He can give us strength to go through our pains and afflictions, and help us prevail. He can help us come out on top, and be more prepared for our future battles. Elder Cook, one of my best friends I've ever had (and still have of course) said this to me in the MTC "God gives His strongest warriors His toughest battles". That has stuck with me ever since. We are ALL God's strongest warriors, and our strongest battles are personal to us. When we turn to the Lord, He will help us. He will get us through our battles in one piece, then He will take us, mend us, rehab us, put us through PT, and get us back on our feet. Then, we beef up, we get bigger, faster, stronger, and then come in guns ablaze and take our battles head on with more ease (they will still be difficult to some degree), then rinse and repeat. The Lord is aware of our concerns and our struggles, and the more we turn to Him, the more we will be able to overcome those trials and struggles. Prayer is a two way conversation between God and us. As we pray, we continually strengthen that connection with God, and we will be able to recognize the promptings of the Spirit more and more in our lives. It is my humble prayer that you and I become a little more humble, and submit ourselves to the Lord and to His will, recognizing we cannot do things alone. In doing so, the promised blessings are tremendous from our Lord and Savior, and we will prevail. We WILL be changed. I promise. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

I hope y'all have another great week! Looking forward to hearing from so many of you! Also, keep going on that 30 minutes for 30 days prayer challenge! It's worth it! Keep me updated on how it's going for those of you who took it on! Until next week, God speed!

Elder Houssian

When you're giving a training on being a Finisher, and on Beast Mode, so you're trying wall sits to see if you should use that in your training, all while doing follow-up calls. #beastmode