February 23, 2015- Matthew's Testimony

Hey everyone!
We had a great week this week. Our friend KC Foltz made the decision to be baptized! He is 13 years old and is a sharp kid. His family has a really cool story too. His Grandma, Sister Odonahue, was raised in the gospel but fell away and made some wrong choices. Her actions not only took her away from the peace of the gospel, but also put her children on paths that brought them a lot of struggle. She said that when she finally realized what had happened, she felt an overwhelming amount of agony for the consequences of her actions that hurt her children. She worked hard to come back, got a temple recommend again, and has been going there weekly since. As part of her reactivation, she promised the Lord that she would do all she could to bring her children back. Recently, her son Casey and his son KC (funny, I know) left California and moved in with her for a time. She immediately got to work. Casey is a member of the Church but isn't very involved anymore and his faith has dimmed. But his son KC accepted the invitation to listen to the missionaries and work towards baptism. He's a great kid. I remember one of the first lessons we had, he asked us "What is a testimony?" What a great question! What is a testimony? Why do so many Latter-Day Saints focus on bearing their testimonies? How does one gain a testimony?

A testimony is something that you know to be absolutely true and is centered on the gospel. It's obtained by a witness from the Holy Ghost about certain principles of the gospel. We experiment upon the word of God by reading the scriptures and applying what we read in our lives. We see the difference and blessings that come from living those teachings. Knowing that a principle of the gospel is true means you have a testimony of that principle. Testimonies are never complete in this life, I think. There is always something more to learn and a deeper understanding to attain. I love my mission because it has taught me a deeper level of understanding on the most basic principles of the gospel: faith in Jesus Christ, repentance, covenant keeping and making, and being led by the Holy Ghost. I truly know that these principles bring blessings and happiness to our lives. 

So after explaining what a testimony was, I asked KC what he knew was true. He said "Well, I have a testimony! I know that the power of God is real!" Since this was his second lesson and hadn't grown up learning about the gospel, I was a little surprised. I asked him how he knew that. He said

"Because of my Grandma. She's gone through a lot of pain and sadness. She has had 2 husbands pass away and has been through a lot. But she's happy! Only the power of God could make her happy after all that." What a simple testimony.

I agree.

I know God lives and loves us. I know the fullness of the gospel has been restored to the earth through Joseph Smith. I know with all my heart that the Book of Mormon is true. I love that Book. I know these things through a number of real-life experiences. I hope you all can identify what is the root of your testimony and take the time to think about why you know it to be true. Then search the scriptures, live what you learn, and watch your testimony grow. It's a guarantee formula for everyone! 

Love you all!
Elder Norton

February 16, 2015

Dear Family,

So I'm still in 7 Hills, and I'm loving it. It's definitely harder than a lot of areas still, but it's getting much better. Our mission has two focuses: Become a Preach My Gospel Missionary for Life and to build a new stake. So our charge as Zone leadership (us and the Sister Training Leaders) is to create a zone culture where we can do this! Our Zone vision is to create "Self-Sustaining Wards" and push from behind so that we can help change our member's hearts so that they're the ones doing the work. So far so good! We're focusing on improving ward coordination meeting, teaching with the members, and participating in ward council. Those are kind of our three pillars to achieve this. It's been amazing to see the blessings that are coming because of it. We've had two families this week invite coworkers to take the lessons in their homes. Both have been amazing spiritual experiences for us, the investigator, and the members. Truly, it's the best way to do missionary work. One of them, Rick, has committed to baptism at the end of March. I can see in him a longing for the Savior. He's so burdened by guilt and shame. He made some heavy mistakes in the past that have hurt his family. He's seeking relief. I can't wait to help him discover the Savior through the Book of Mormon. What an amazing book. I wish sometimes that I could forget all about it so that I could have the opportunity to open it up for the first time again and feel what these people feel. That Book has power! 

I've been learning so much about leadership. We're encouraged to have a personal vision, to become something. I want to become someone who enables others to fulfill their potential. And it's amazing to me how Heavenly Father has helped me with that request. He's taught me about balance in the work, sharing responsibility, helping others see their strengths, succoring the weary, and so much more. I sometimes can't really believe just how spiritual life can be. Spiritual experiences can happen every day. They should! It means our progress is on track and when that's in place, what more do we need to worry about? I think part of why the gospel brings peace into our lives is because it gives us the assurance that when trials come, we'll have the ability to make a right decision. It gives us confidence that we know no matter what happens, we know how to choose the right. I love that. I'm starting the final quarter of my mission and I feel like I'm just beginning to understand faith, repentance, covenants, the Holy Ghost, and enduring. I trust that the end of my mission won't be the end of this progression. In fact, I've decided that it won't be. It'll just be the foundation for it. I have such a desire to be good. I just want to be good. And I'm very grateful to be a part of a Work that is simply good. 

I love you so much!
Matt 

February 9, 2015

Hey here's just a small miracle that happened this week!
Last week we contacted a woman who was carrying in her groceries. We helped her carry in the rest and got talking to her and her husband. They're Alicia and Jim Adison. Cute little family, very nice. We talked about Christ and about prayer. They are very active and happy at their church and I was really afraid that it was going to turn into a bit of a bash session between churches. We said a prayer with them and asked if we could come back. They agreed! So this last week we went over to teach them. I was still really doubtful that it was going to be anything but a bash. Just had that feeling. But I was so wrong! We asked if we could present our missionary lesson to them and they said yes. We taught them the Restoration (it took a while, since they both talk a lot) and it went really really well. In fact, Alicia started crying from the Spirit when we taught her that Christ appeared in the Americas. We asked her what she was feeling and she said "an overwhelming amount of love." they accepted a baptismal date and said they wanted to come to church! Just goes to show you, sow wherever you go! You never know who's ready. We're excited to work with the Adisons. They're a great family. Anyway, that's something special that happened this week! Sure love you!
Matt