Updates from Elder Bowles: "Hope" For a Happy New Year

Dear friends and family,

This week has been a much better week for the work. So the last few weeks have been a bit of a struggle with the holidays. But this week we got 5 new investigators. So a few experiences I'll share.

So this week someone we met with before Christmas at a parade invited us to come teach him more about a week or 2 ago and we went and no one was there. We tried calling and no answer. We thought he really wasn't interested anymore, but we went by this week and he was home! We had a really good conversation he talked about his life and opened up and he is very prepared for the gospel. Often times when we say that we find people who have been through a lot and are really humbled and seeking answers and truth this is Stoney. So another experience this week we went to stop by a less active members house but I guess he moved like 4 months ago, but the person who lived there was interested and wanted us to come back. Last thing some one we've been trying to stop by and see often and is never home finally got a hold of him, and him and his wife want to take the lessons and is feeding us dinner this week.

This transfer I've been working on the Christ like attribute of hope. "Hope is an abiding trust that the Lord will fulfill His promises to you. It is manifest in confidence, optimism, enthusiasm, and patient perseverance. It is believing and expecting that something will occur. When you have hope, you work through trials and difficulties with the confidence and assurance that all things will work together for your good. Hope helps you conquer discouragement. The scriptures often describe hope in Jesus Christ as the assurance that you will inherit eternal life in the celestial kingdom."-pmg This has been such a wonderful transfer for hope I've been able to find joy in the work again and i am beginning to feel like myself. I've been able to over come the lack of work from the holidays and so much I have truly learned so much this transfer about faith, hope, and charity( the pure love of Christ) Moroni chapter 7 and 8 are great on these subjects I also had the chance before my bday to finish reading and studying the book of Mormon for the first time truly on my own and as sad as that statement was I now have a much stronger testimony that it is true. That Joseph Smith was the prophet called to restore the Lord's church on the earth today. That Jesus is the Christ. I better understand his will for us. As I have read and now have begun to re reread I have come to find the joy and answers that can come from the Book of Mormon especially as I apply the principles in it to my life. My mission president shared with us his testimony of following the challenge in general conference not just to read, but to study the Book of Mormon every single day and he challenged us to read it everyday for the next 50 years and if we did so our testimonies could never waver.

I challenge you all to do the same and I promise to you your testimony and faith in Jesus Christ will grow so much stronger. and you will be able to even find hope in times of trouble, question, or doubt and will gain a sure foundation of Jesus Christ and his restored gospel on this earth and always find peace, comfort, and joy. I love you all hope you have a wonderful new year know that I love and miss you all.