New Epic Companion!

Good day mates! I hope everyone has had a splendid week! This was a wild week for me! 

So much fun to see what each new day brings! 

Fun Australian things:

-For some reason the bathroom and the toilet are separated…like there is a room for the shower, sink, and everything and then there is a separate room just for the toilet. Kinda annoying sometimes haha. 

-Another thing about the bathroom is that the light switches are on the outside instead of the inside of the room. So if you close the door you can’t control the lights….I can only imagine how much fun the kids in Australia could have with turning off the lights while their family is in the shower haha.

-Adelaide is famous for serial killers…(that was a fun fact I wasn't too happy to learn haha.)

Well let's get into this week!

Weekly Highlights:

-On Tuesday I dropped off my companion and moved some other missionaries around in the morning. Then I was able to spend the day as a companion with a new missionary that just got off the plane. He was from Tonga. He was ready to rock and roll as a missionary so that was awesome! We worked hard and it was fun to see him go down an escalator and drink soda for the first time! So many new experiences for him! Always fun to spend time with new missionaries who are ready to work hard! 

-We had a great lesson with Dean and he brought us tacos!! Then we had a lesson with James W….it was all on the trinity. All the preparation beforehand paid off! He ended up making excuses and saying his brain wasn't working…this was his way of saying that he couldn't explain the trinity to me and answer my questions haha. 

-We then did some finding and we had two girls take pictures with us because they had never seen “mormons” in real life before. And they had a bunch of questions that they had from watching tic tok about “mormons”. It was pretty funny to see what information tic tok has been feeding everyone!

-Then on Wednesday I was bouncing around different companionships as I waited for my companion. It was really weird! After having a set companion for so long, I was having anxiety of not having a companion haha. I think in a matter of like 2 hours I bounced between 3 or 4 companionships….it was really funny. I ended up being with the APs and they took me inside the President's house and we all had lunch together with some other missionaries! It was pretty epic! And hey free food is always a plus! 

-Then I finally got my new companion. Elder Butler! He is from Queen Creek Arizona, and he is epic! He just came from out bush where he had been camping in a tent and doing all sorts of crazy things for the last 6 months! A big transition from bush life to city life. Everyone also thinks he is the next AP so it is fun to be with a really good Elder who I can learn from. So blessed! 

-The rest of the week Elder Butler and I went to work. We handed out heaps of Book of Mormons and we found heaps of new people to teach! And we were having so much fun together! It is the best companionship I have ever had! We truly just work hard and have fun chatting and laughing while we do it! It is incredible! 

-We had two lessons this week with Chinese friends that went really well! We had one with Alex and then another one with yunsong wang or Cloud! This was their first time learning about who God was so we started from the very beginning. It was hard sometimes because they don't believe in anything. They don't even believe that there is a higher power somewhere in the universe. But regardless of that challenge we were able to teach them and invite a sweet spirit into the room both times. We then taught them how to pray!! It is the most precious thing to teach someone how to pray to God for the first time. We then got to hear them stumble through their very first prayers. It was so precious! I have taught many people how to pray, but the experience never gets old! I love every minute of it and I always love the spirit that it brings! I love feeling the spirit!!

-We spent hours in Rundle mall and the weather has gotten better and so it has been so nice!! Rundle mall and the branch are my homes away from home. I have made some incredible friends and also some enemies in that mall haha. 

-My companion and I made some awesome lunches and dinners together….and the napkins were on sale at the store so I bought some!!! Simple pleasure! I didn't realize how much I missed napkins, because I haven't used them in months!! 

Spiritual thought:

Alma 29:4–5. God Grants unto Men According to Their Desires   

Elder Neal A. Maxwell taught that our desires affect our personal development and eventually determine our eternal blessings: “Desires … become real determinants, even when, with pitiful naïveté, we do not really want the consequences of our desires. … “Therefore, what we insistently desire, over time, is what we will eventually become and what we will receive in eternity. … “Righteous desires need to be relentless, therefore, because, said President Brigham Young, ‘the men and women, who desire to obtain seats in the celestial kingdom, will find that they must battle every day’. Therefore, true Christian soldiers are more than weekend warriors. … “… Remember, brothers and sisters, it is our own desires which determine the size and the attractiveness of various temptations. We set our thermostats as to temptations. “Thus, educating and training our desires clearly requires understanding the truths of the gospel, yet even more is involved. President Brigham Young confirmed, saying, ‘It is evident that many who understand the truth do not govern themselves by it; consequently, no matter how true and beautiful truth is, you have to take the passions of the people and mold them to the law of God’. 

“… Therefore, declared President Joseph F. Smith, ‘the education then of our desires is one of far-reaching importance to our happiness in life’. Such education can lead to sanctification until, said President Brigham Young, ‘holy desires produce corresponding outward works’. Only by educating and training our desires can they become our allies instead of our enemies!” 

I really loved this quote and how it explains desires! Our deep down desires are what truly matter and what shape us! Our desires come from the bottom of our hearts and the deep corners of our minds….

Everything starts from the heart! A heartfelt desire is powerful, a heartfelt prayer is incredible! However, desires that come from the heart that are not good can be damaging!

I would invite you as you read the scriptures this week to look at how many times the word heart is used in relation to desires….it will surprise you! I would invite you to analyze your deep heartfelt desires for things. Are they righteous? I promise that as you align the desires of your heart with God then you will have more internal peace and happiness!

Remember the scripture: 1st Samuel 16:7 But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.

You cannot deceive the Lord! The Lord cares about the condition of your heart and the desires that you have. 

Alma 31:9–11. Avoiding the Causes of Apostasy    

‘In Antionum, the missionary force of Alma and his companions came across a group of Nephite dissenters known as the Zoramites. Mormon not only recorded that the Zoramites had previously had the word of God preached unto them, but he further identified the cause of their apostasy: they would not keep the commandments, they no longer petitioned the Lord daily in prayer, they perverted the ways of the Lord, and what prayers they did offer to the Lord were vain and meaningless. They ignored the basics, such as having a daily habit of meaningful prayer and scripture study. 

Elder Donald L. Staheli emphasized the importance of daily consistency in the basics of the gospel: “Daily fervent prayers seeking forgiveness and special help and direction are essential to our lives and the nourishment of our testimonies. When we become hurried, repetitive, casual, or forgetful in our prayers, we tend to lose the closeness of the Spirit, which is so essential in the continual direction we need to successfully manage the challenges of our everyday lives. Family prayer every morning and night adds additional blessings and power to our individual prayers and to our testimonies. “Personal, sincere involvement in the scriptures produces faith, hope, and solutions to our daily challenges. Frequently reading, pondering, and applying the lessons of the scriptures, combined with prayer, become an irreplaceable part of gaining and sustaining a strong, vibrant testimony” (in Conference Report, Oct. 2004, 40; or Ensign, Nov. 2004, 39).

I can testify to the truthfulness of this!! When I become slothful or lazy in my personal prayers or scripture study, I lose the personal connection I have with my Father in Heaven and the spirit! It is so crucial to maintain a consistent effort. A consistent effort for anything brings exponential rewards. Please look at what you can do to keep your testimony “vibrant”! This is the most important thing you can do on the earth! These small and simple things of prayer and scripture study will one day bring great eternal rewards or consequences! 

I felt inspired to put these quotes in this email…hope it helps someone! 

Trusting God When We Pray

Having faith in God means trusting Him. This includes trusting His will and His timing in answering your prayers. President Dallin H. Oaks taught: “No matter how strong our faith is, it cannot produce a result contrary to the will of Him in whom we have faith. Remember that when your prayers do not seem to be answered in the way or at the time you desire. The exercise of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is always subject to the order of heaven, to the goodness and will and wisdom and timing of the Lord. When we have that kind of faith and trust in the Lord, we have true security and serenity in our lives”.

Concerning prayers that may seem to go unanswered, President Russell M. Nelson said: “I know that feeling! I know the fears and tears of such moments. But I also know that our prayers are never ignored. Our faith is never unappreciated. I know that an all-wise Heavenly Father’s perspective is much broader than is ours. While we know of our mortal problems and pain, He knows of our immortal progress and potential. If we pray to know His will and submit ourselves to it with patience and courage, heavenly healing can take place in His own way and time” (“Jesus Christ—the Master Healer,’)

1 Nephi 17:

13 And I will also be your light in the wilderness; and I will prepare the way before you, if it so be that ye shall keep my commandments; wherefore, inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall be led towards the promised land; and ye shall know that it is by me that ye are led.

I love this scripture! It is so beautiful! God is the light in each of our lives! He is the truth and the way! If we put our trust in Him, we will be guided by His light. He will prepare the way so that we may learn, grow, and become who He wants us to learn and become. And as we keep His commandments, we will be led to the promised land. And oh how wonderful the promised land is! The promised land in each of our lives is available, as we turn to the source of light and trust in Him!

Love you all! 

Thank you for everyone's prayers on my behalf! I appreciate them so much! I have been slacking off on the pictures so hopefully there will be some good ones next week!

Have a wonderful week and keep pushing forward in this wonderful journey of life!

Until next week,

Cheers :)

-Elder Jones (zhang zhanglao)