Called to Serve!: I will be forever grateful for my mission 3/27/15 Week #38

this man is someone I have been working with since the day i got here. He just got the Melchizedek priesthood.

well this week started out rough, but ended good:)

So our awesome investigator was so close to being completely perfect, but 4 days before his baptism a bunch of his brothers came and when guys in cambodia get together they just drink and sing karaoke. They loooooove karaoke here. Anyways he said no for a little and then he drank. Awww this alcohol thing is really killing my groove here. He was so close, but he told us and was honest which was cool. He came to chruch and went to all three hours. We told him he needs to wait a coulple more weeks, he was bummed but he agreed. I know he can do it, but the flesh is weakkkkk. He just needs to realize he doesnt have to do it alone. Im really starting to love this guy. He's just a good dude with a super cute fam.

We started teaching this old man this week. He doesnt know how to read that well, but he loves having us over. He showed up to church too, which was awesome.

This Sunday i was translating in church, and half way through the branch pres looks at me and was like hey can you give a talk right now, they didnt show up. Ha so boom, 2 minutes later i was up their just trying to give a talk. Ha it went pretty well.

Being out on my mission I feel like my life is like one of those claritan clear commecials for allergies. My life at home (spiritually) wasn't like it is now. It was blurry. I cared but not like I do now. i dont know why, i was just looking at everything from a wierd perspective. but now i see so clearly. I just understand everything now. Like its real. its so cool. I will be forever grateful for my mission.

This week I have been studying a lot about God-- His characteristics and just how loving He is. Its super simple. In Alma there's a way cool story about this question... Is there a God? Lots of Cambodians believe, but they just dont know who God is. Does he have a body? Is he just a floating spirit in the universe?? 'Korihor tries to teach the people that there isnt a God, and Boom Alma comes in in Alma 30: 37-44 and shuts him down. Alma asks Korihor if he believes there is a God, and he says no. Then Alma goes off and aks "What evidence have ye that there is no God...I say unto you, that ye have none, save it be your word only...I have all these things (prophets, scriptures) as a testimony that these things are true..and will ye deny them?" Then korihor asks for a sign and Alma explains we have signs enough. In verse 44 he says "..and all things denote that there is a God; yea, even the earth, and all the things that are upon the face of it, yea, and its motion, yea and also all the planents which move in their regular form DO witness that there is a Supreme Creator."
If your athiest I'm sorry, but you literally have nothing. You have to have more faith that there is no God than you do if you were going to believe that there is one. I know there is a God. Everything shows that there is God (if your just going to go by facts alone). He loves us. And we only have to have a desire to believe first if we want to try it out. I love you guys. peace out homies,

elder smith