Week 23: The gospel really is pretty simple

Some weeks on the mission are just harder, this week was one of them for me. Things have been pretty slow with finding more people to teach and it's been hard to find people in their homes. I thought that after all the holidays it would get easier to have more lessons during the day, but that wasn't really the case. Days feel so long when all you do is walk house to house knocking but never getting to go inside to teach. 

The whole mission has been having trouble finding new people to teach, so they have set the standard for every companionship to make 5 contacts in the street every day. Let's just say that I'm not really comfortable enough with my ability to speak in Spanish yet.. because this has been a really hard thing for me to do. I know that I probably have the words in my head of what I need to say, but as soon as I start talking to a stranger in the street all of my thoughts seem to switch to English. Which makes it kind of hard to talk to someone who only understands Spanish. It's happened more than once where I start talking in Spanish and then start talking in English without really noticing until they give me strange looks... I can't wait until I do that with English.

One thing that I have really gained a testimony of while out on my mission is the power in every little promise that the Lord gives us. like it ways in D&C 130:20-21 
There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated—
 21 And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated.

The gospel really is pretty simple, we are given commandments and if we keep those commandment we recieve the blessings. simple.

...

Why don't people understand that?

People say that they have faith in God, but they don't trust him. If they did, they would do the things that he asks. Take tithing for example, it's an act of faith to pay tithing because we directly give up some of our worldy possesion to recieve the blessings of heaven. Some people don't see it that way and would rather keep the money for themselves so that they can have just a little bit more to spend. When really all they are doing is keeping the blessings from heaven from being poured out on them. When we keep the money for ourselves, we're basically saying that we don't trust the Lord as much as we trust in the things of the world. 

Every single commandment has a purpose, we may not fuly understand that purpose in this life, but if we follow the promise is sure. Like in the song keep the commandments by Great aunt Barbra

"Keep the commandments, in this there is safety, in this there is peace."

No matter what is happening in the world, we can have safety and peace if we follow this plan of happiness that God has prepared. He has invited us, we just need to except the invitation.

They are simple formulas. Rightousness=Happiness Obedience=Blessings 

Love Elder Twede