"Here is an Apostle of the Lamb"

Overlooking the SL valley with Elder Pau'u

Dear family,

The emails were awesome this week! I love all the pictures. I am really wondering why my entire life we didn't have any quorum of the 12 general authorities come all 18YEARS of my life and as soon as I leave they come what seems like once a month. They probably saw the righteousness of the stake go up after I left and wanted to see what was going on. 

Not that I can complain at all because we did have Elder Ballard come and speak to us on Saturday. It was super sweet!  He is so funny and we all got to shake his hand! He spoke with two other general authorities of the seventy, Elder Pingley (?sp) and Elder Christensen.  Elder Ballard told a story of a missionary in his mission he was over in Ontario Canada that came to him and told him he was going to be his best missionary. He explained to him that he made a covenant with God that if he worked as hard as he could and was the best missionary then he would keep his dad alive. He told of his first day in the area were they went straight to a members home for dinner.  After eating this missionary looked at his watch and told his senior companion that they had been there for forty-five minutes and needed to leave.

Olympus District B Meeting

The senior companion told him of the -30's temperatures outside and how he didn't think it was a good idea. The missionary told him "I need your help to save my dad." He told of his diligence as he worked to be the best servant of the Lord he could be. He was released as a mission president at the same time this missionary went home and was able to witness this valiant missionary run to the arms of his father. Some of his really funny quotes were:

"You have a great mission president. One of the reasons why is because he married over his head... It think we all have." Looking back on the stand

This was when he was telling us that there didn't used to be any missions or missionaries in Utah:

Elder Ballard: from the stand.  "Now how many missions do we have in Utah?" Looking back at sister Eberhardt  "4? 5?" 

Sister Eberhardt: 9

Elder Ballard: "Wowwwww!"

He said that if we could go to our knees every night and say to the Lord, "I did my best," then we are great missionaries. The spirit testified to me that here is an apostle of the Lamb. I have gotten way ahead in the 100 day BOM reading challenge and am in 3 Nephi 20 and just like the apostles called then, I know that the same is still true of them today:

7 And the disciples did pray unto the Father also in the name of Jesus. And it came to pass that they arose and ministered unto the people.

8And when they had ministered those same words which Jesus had spoken--nothing varying from the words which Jesus had spoken--behold, they knelt again and prayed to the Father in the name of Jesus.

I know that my redeemer lives.

I love you all,

Elder Moe