The Atonement

Hey Everyone!

So this week, I got super sick, and was under house arrest for most of the week by one of our lovely senior sisters, so it wasn't necessarily the most exciting week ever. But! We did come accross SIX different people from angola, and every one of them was interested in the gospel! If you know anyone serving in Angola, they are probably baptizing like everyone, because they are elect! Unfortunately, I think that every single one of them lives outside of our area, so we got really good references to give to other missionaries. Haha! Oh well. I hope they all receive those elders! It doesn't matter who they are taught by, because it's the PEOPLE who count, not the numbers they give us. 

Well, while I was sick, I got to do a lot of studying! I've been studying a lot about the Atonement lately, because of the promises it gives in Preach My Gospel for understanding the Atonement. One of those promises is that as your understanding of the Atonement grows, your desire to share the gospel will increase. I think that is just spectacular! I thought a lot about why that would happen. Why would just understanding the Atonement make us want to share the gospel? Well, what is the Atonement? Christ paid the price for each one of us to be eternally happy, and we can receive this gift if we follow Jesus Christ. That's it in a nutshell! Obviously, there is SO much more to it than that, but if we really understand just that statement, it would make our lives so incredibly happy and full of purpose! And then we would want to share that happiness with everyone! I just gave you a weeks worth of sick study in one paragraph, so there's lots more to it than that, but that is my conclusion. So why is that important? Well, for me as a missionary, if I always have my eyes set on serving and blessing people's lives because of what I have, then my missionary work will be way easier, because my goal isn't about numbers or fulfilling a quota. And for you, if you aren't on a mission, you can bless the lives of everyone you meet just because you understand the Atonement in this way. The Light of Christ will shine from your faces and people will wonder why you look so happy. And then you can go tell them! And you'll want to! It's so great! The prophet David O. McKay said "every member a missionary." And the Atonement is the key to helping us have the desire to be a missionary every day! Sorry, this letter is all over the place. I hope you understand my thoughts today. Basically, I am super grateful for the Atonement, and I am so happy to have the knowledge and blessing of it in my life. PMG Chapter 3 Lesson 2, first page, has a list of Book of Mormon chapters that testify of Christ and His mission, and I highly suggest that you read them! You can get to Preach My Gospel on the Gospel Library App really easily, so no excuses! I recently read 2 Nephi 2 and Mosiah 3-5, and they are all amazing. I love my Savior! I'll work extra hard this week to pay off for my sick week, so I'll talk to you next week with an amazing story that we had! Have a good week, everyone!

- Elder Valentine!