"More News" 5/14/12

Dear Family,

 

Well, this week has been an interesting one.  Especially yesterday was an emotional day for me.  I loved having the chance to see all of you, and missed being able to see Brandon and Sarah, but we'll be able to do that again this Christmas.  CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!! to Sarah and Megan.  I'm looking forward to being an uncle to two new babies. {Yes, Sarah and I are both Pregnant we told him on Mothers Day and his reactions were priceless!!--Megan}

 

In the news here, I have been transferred from Lopez Camelo.  I am now serving in Tortuguitas, which is a city closer to my first area, and is actually in that zone.  I have been assigned to this area as a senior companion and trainer as well, so this will be an interesting new adventure to my missionary service.  Because of the move of areas, and an internet connection in this server that crashed for a while, I have less than desireable time to finish writing to all of you.  But I wanted to let you all know that yesterday we were able to baptize another two souls, both sisters of other recent converts (though the two are not related to each other).  Once I find a card reader, I'll be able to send you all pictures.

 

I'm sorry for the shortness of this email, but I now have to go to get moving with the area.  We still have a lot to do before the day is done.  I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!!

 

Love,

Elder Matthew Dewsnup

-- 

Elder Matthew H. Dewsnup

 

Misión Buenos Aires Norte

Gral. Lavalle 1828

1646 San Fernando

Buenos Aires, Argentina

{There is a lack of pictures as Matthew was borrowing a card reader from a former companion and now doesn't have access to one. As soon as he does I'm sure that he will overload as all with pictures. In the mean time, he reported that people in the are are saying that his face has slimmed down but that's about it. He is in a walking/bussing area. His Spanish is amazing. He spoke in Spanish a few times to the family where he was at while we were skyping and it was cool to hear him speak. We miss him dearly. Please continue to send letters and love and support. If you have any questions just let us know via comment and we'll do what we can to help.}

"We Meet Again" 5/7/12

My Dear Family,

Another week has come and gone. The time moves so fast. Winter is
coming on here. We've had several chillier days and the sun goes down
now around 6:30, which is kind of annoying as it limits where we can
be to areas that are lit for the purpose of safety. I don't like
having limits on where I can go, especially while doing missionary
work.

Good news!! We had two more baptisms on Saturday. For reference's
sake, I'll call them Belle and Silvia, though those are not their
names. They've been working really hard to prepare for baptism and
overcame an addiction to cigarettes together. They are wonderful
women who have a great faith in God and Jesus Christ and are building
that faith daily by continuing to read the scriptures and pray and by
coming to the church every Sunday. Belle is 17 and has a beautiful
daughter who will be turning one in about two months and Silvia is 18.
They're best friends and have really helped each other in preparing
to be baptized.

Belle had some problems at first with her boyfriend, Steven (also
changed) who didn't want her to participate, but they split up. He
was really against the Church because he thought it was distracting
her from taking care of their daughter, but they worked something out.
(I'm still not sure exactly what it is.) He still visits often to see
their daughter and last night we had a lesson with them. When we got
there Steven was there are was giving us the cold shoulder, holding
the baby in his arms. He wouldn't even shake my hand. We started the
lesson with the three of them, Silvia, Belle, and Steven. Steven was
more just there bcause he was helping take care of the daughter, but
we notived a palpable tension. We were teaching about temple work and
doing baptisms for the dead, when he burst out a question about how
baptism works (he didn't come for their baptism on Saturday). Once we
explained it, he then asked if ours was the church where the preacher
puts his hand on someone's head and starts shouting "Demon, leave!
Demon Leave!" He was obviously making fun of what he thought was our
religion, including an example of someone shaking and convulsing under
the exhorsists (spelling?) hands, but we explained that we don't do
that. Immediately his countenance changed and he participated more in
the discussion, albeit with a certain irreverance. We did however set
up another appointment with him for tonight, so next week I can tell
you more about what happens there.

On another front, our mission President has extended the challenge for
us to read the Book of Mormon in 60 days. He gave us each a new copy
in our own language and told us that he wanted us to mark three
things. 1) Every reference to God or Jesus Christ, 2) every reference
to the gospel (faith, repentance, baptism, the Holy Ghost, and
enduring to the end), and 3) anything that touched our hearts or
caught our attention. I took to the challenge quickly and in the last
six days (the challenge was extended last Wednesday) I've read from
the front cover to 2 Nephi 6. In that space I've decided to conduct a
few other separate studies. Thus far I have found mention of more
than 40 different names for Jesus Christ. In the First Book of Nephi
alone, there are about 515 references to Him. Nineteen times in First
Nephi, he also talks about keeping the commandments. It's really neat
to see this stuff.

We continue to work hard and have been seeing many miracles. I know
the work is true. I know the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day
Saints is the true church of God upon the earth. I know Jesus is my
Savior, and my Redeemer. I know God lives. He loves us. I know,
because I have asked, and I have received my answer. I have felt His
love and the truth of the Gospel.

I love you all. My prayers are with you. May we all continue to have
a "firm foundation" upon the rock of our Redeemer.

Love,
Elder Dewsnup

"A Month of Weeks" 4/30/12

My Dearest Family,

 

I've done a bit of figuring and counting out.  On Wednesday this week I will complete exactly 31 weeks since entering the MTC on the 28th of September last year.  On Saturday the 28th, I completed seven months in the mission.  Yesterday, the 29th, I completed five months in Argentina.  The time keeps seeming to fly by and yet at the same time, it doesn't.  I think time itself is a paradox, expecially when thinking of the eternal scheme of things.  I'm reminded of how the days of men were prolonged (2 Nephi something) and the comparison that one day to God is one thousand of our years (somewhere else in the scriptures, Old Testament I believe, but I'm not sure).  Once we pass on to the other side of the veil and are able to look back on our lives, I'm sure it will finally seem to be just one small insignificant, and yet entirely significant, moment in our existence.  We are told that when we appear before the judgement bar of God we will have a full recognition of all our guilt and sins.  Right now, I can't remember everything I've done, but sometimes I cringe to think of having that perfect (complte) knowledge and memory of every last tiny detail of my life all in the span of an instant before my eyes.  Thinking about that, I am so grateful for the wonderful gift and miracle of forgiveness.  It is something that I never understood before, and I'm not even sure I really understand it now, but the fact that we have the opportunity through the Atonement and perfection of Christ to repent and change ourselves is a miracle to me.  I never read the book by that title in it's entirety (written by Spencer W. Kimball) but I look forward to reading it when I return from my mission.

 

In the experiences that I have been able to witness and participate in in the last little while, I have truly been able to gain a testimony of this work, the Holy Ghost and his workings, and the receptiveness that so many have to the Spirit.  A few weeks ago I mentioned that it had been one of the worst weeks in my mission.  I think I can now explain to you all a little more about what happened.

 

Recently after Elder Tidei left and Elder Verges arrived in the area, we hadn't exactly been getting along.  Elder Verges was a little more... exhuberant in the service than Elder Tidei and was always talking about baptism.  I have shared with you in the last few weeks the things that I have learned since then, but when he first got here, I wasn't fully in agreement with everything he wanted to do.  But we moved on.  Within that first week, we had a district meeting in which we discussed the progress (or lack thereof) of many of the investigators in the district.  In order to be able to help as many of God's children as possible by bring them to a knowledge of the gospel and a firm hope of being able to return and live again in His presence, we need to be finding and teaching those who in this moment want to be able to make those steps.  Something that we have received much guidance on is that if someone is not progressing and keeping their commitments to read the scriptures, pray, and come to church, then there is nothing more that we can do to help them.  If they chose not to progress, we cannot force them, but that also means that we can't visit them as much anymore, if at all.  We explained this to a family of five (the parents and three girls, 21, 19, and 13)whom we had been visiting various times each week for several weeks, and the experience went a little foul in my mind.  There was a misunderstanding, feelings were hurt, and I felt awful.  I feared that the one member of that family who is a member of the church (the 19 year old) would then go inactive and completely refuse to have anything to do with us.

 

Time passed between then and now.  We saw her at church, and within a week, she at least had no ill feelings that she displayed towards us, and she even accepted the invitation to accompany us to a few appointments and shared her testimony of the gospel.  She invited us to lunch (Lunches are the thing here, not dinners) and that was the only time in the last three weeks that we went to their house.

 

Now the news--On Saturday afternoon, just after lunch, this member called us and said that both of her sisters wanted to be baptized.  ... ... ... My mind stopped, and I think for a few seconds my heart did too.  I wasn't sure if I believed it or not.  I wasn't sure if I had understood correctly, as if my in-brain translator had a malfunction.  But no, I had heard correctly.  So we went directly to their house to find out, "Why the sudden change?"  They, the sisters, related an experience that they had had which made them really think about their salvation.  In an effort to make sure that they didn't want to just be baptized then leave everything behind, we tailored one of the lessons to talk about the importance and meaning of baptism--what it entails and all that.  They understood fully well and said they were ready and wanted to be baptized.  ... ... ... !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I don't know if that explains how I feel.  Let me say it again !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Ok, I think that might do it.  I was indecisive about shouting, jumping, or crying.  So I did a bit of all three. I had been working so much with that family and it broke my heart when the whole misunderstanding happened.  With the requirement to come to church at least three times (to get to know the congregation and bishop, the meetings, and visa-versa) the older of the sisters has to wait until the 13th of May, but the younger sister had already come to church the required number of times.  She was baptized yesterday, and asked me to be the one to perform the ordinance.  I don't know when I'll be able to send pictures next because I haven't yet baught my own card reader, but the moment I get one, I have several pictures to send you all.

 

On the rest of the front, the three boys who were baptized last week were confirmed yesterday and are well on their way to becoming faithful members.  We originally had two other baptisms scheduled for yesterday, but we had to postpone them until Saturday, and now we don't even know if one of them will be able to participate in the ordinance because of her father and boyfriend/husband (not married, some-what separated, and have a daughter).  There are also several other people whom we are teaching with regularity and are progressing well towards baptism.  More news on them will follow as more things happen.

 

Tests and trials continue to happen, but things are moving along and the pace is becoming faster than I think I actually like at this point.  I am fast approaching the 1/3 mark of the mission, and not long after that comes the half, three-quarter, and end mark.  There was a saying in the MTC that has become more and more true.  The days feel like weeks, and the weeks feel like days. My modification would be that both feel like days.

 

Dad mentioned to me that the Temple here will officially be rededicated in September.  !!!  I hope that I'll be able to work things out and be able to go, but all that depends on President, seeing as the Temple is technically out of mission boundaries.

 

I love you all with all my heart.  Without ceasing, I mention all of you in my prayers.  The work is true.  Even if some don't recognize it at first, many once they have had a taste of the Spirit develop a craving for the peace that he provides.  I love the Lord and I thank Him daily for the grace He provides after all we can do.  When the storms that we face seem to be ready to drown us in our ship, may we cry unto God, that through His power, we can hear the words "Peace, be still."

 

I look forward to being able to speak with you soon!

 

Love,

Elder Dewsnup

"Week 30" 4/23/12

Hello All,

Due to circumstances out of our control (stupid waits for busses,
filled public servers, etc.) my time is less than preferable. As such
I apologize now for the short size of this email.

This past week has seen some pretty good things. We've been working a
lot with several new people here in Lopez Camelo. Among them are
three boys, Nicolás, Jonatan, and Kevin. In order they are 13, 8, and
9. We've visited them as a group mostly. When we first found them,
it was the first week of the Transfer. It was a Friday evening and we
were going to have an activity in the church at about 7:00. We passed
a large group of boys in that age range and Elder Verges invited them
to the activity. The majority of that group came to the activity,
then to church that Sunday. Since then we have been visiting with
them almost daily, teaching them a lot about the church. They all
loved the first Sunday and really actually payed attention in
Sacrament Meeting (which is more than I can say for myself at that
age). We taught them just about everything we have to teach, minus
the few things that are saved for after baptism. Of that group, those
three boys that I mentioned above accepted the invitation to be
baptized. I am pleased to report to all of you that through their
effort, understanding, and surprising love for the church at that age,
they were baptized yesterday. I had the privilege of baptizing
Nicolás, while Elder Verges baptized the other two boys. All three
will be confirmed the following Sunday and Nicolás will then be
interviewed to receive the Aaronic Priesthood.

Those three boys are such wonderful examples. When they were baptized
they invited their families to come and participate in the meetings
and then be present at their baptisms. Almost the whole family of
Nico and Jona were their, their mom, older sister, and her boyfriend.
From Kevin's family, only his older sister came to the baptism. But
all were impressed with the services and today and throughout this
week we will be working with them to invited them to partake of the
happiness that their sons/brothers have already tasted.

In this sense, I love the story of Lehi's dream in chapter 8 of 1
Nephi. Once Lehi tasted of the fruit, knowing of it's sweetness and
how much it was a thing to be desired, the first thing he did was look
for his family to share it with them. I hope that with time, work on
our part, and the witness of the Holy Ghost, their families will also
partake of the fruit of the Gospel.

We've also been working with another group of people. Two friends,
and their sisters, and another friend. As far as we can tell, their
parents want nothing to do with us, but have absolutely no problem
with them participating in the discussions. Their names are Belen and
Zulma (the two friends) who respectively have 17 and 18 years.
Belen's sisters Micaela and Macarena, and Zulma's sister Maria, along
with their other friend Cristian, have also accepted the lessons.
Belen and Zulma have also accepted the baptismal invitation and
assuming no problems arise will be batized this coming Sunday and all
the rest within a few weeks.

I continue learning more each day about the missionary purpose, which
I looked up in English the other day, and saw that it is to "Invite
others to come unto Christ byaccepting the Restored Gospel through
faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism,
receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end."
Through continually talking to everyone about our message, we have
been able to find many more people. Perhaps many of those will soon
stop listening to us, but I came to realize that if we don't talk and
speak out, they won't even be able to choose whether or not to listen.
I keep realizing that I can't fear to speak and invite, but rather I
should fear staying quiet. I also remembered something else that our
President said to me in my interview with him. He said that God would
not ask me at the judgement how many people I baptized. God doesn't
care about the number of people I personally baptize. Rather He would
ask me how many people I invited to be baptized. I have no control
over the number of people I baptize, because in the end they are the
ones who make the decision to do so or not. What I do have control
over is how many people I talk to and invite to partake of the
sweetness that is this Gospel.

I have a testimony of this work. It is true. I know it as surely as
I know that God lives. I know Jesus Christ is my Savior, my Brother,
and as long as I follow Him, my Friend (I believe that comes from John
15). I love you all. Stand firm in the faith. As Alma explains, our
faith begins as a seed but with care it will grow to be a mighty tree.
With all my heart, I know it's true.

Love,
Elder Dewsnup

"Howdee Hi-Oh!" 4/16/12

Dear Family of Mine,

In reference to my last letter, in which I commented that the previous week
had been the hardest in my mission, I still hold to that statement, but I
have come a ways since then. I've learned a lot. The day following my
last letter we had interviews with Presidet Gulbrandsen. In the letter
that we send weekly to him, I had expressed my frustrations, pains, and
troubles. When I entered his office, his words to me were "Well, you've
had quite a week!" We then proceeded to discuss the contents of that
letter. I had expressed pains and concerns in which I had had the feelings
of wanting to return home. I had already determined that I would not
return home until I had faithfully completed my mission, but I was still
troubled. As I expressed in my last letter, I had learned a bit in how to
cast my burdens upon the Lord, but I was still holding back some of the
pain. In short, after certain events, a few recent converts of mine were
seriously offended and hurt and deciding whether or not to remain with the
church.

In the interview with President Gulbrandsen, we spoke about the Missionary
Purpose and the story of Enoch. The missionary purpose is to "Invite
others to come unto Christ through faith in Jesus Christ and His atonement,
repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to
the end." That may not be the exact quote, because I was translating from
Spanish. So we talked about how it is our purpose to help other people to
receive the Gospel as taught by the scriptures and Christ himself, whose
words can be found in 3 Nephi 11. Another way to put it is to quote the
third, fourth, and fifth Articles of Faith.

"We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved,
by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel. We believe that the
first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord
Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the
remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy
Ghost. We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by
the laying on of hands by those who are in authority, to preach the Gospel
and administer in the ordinances thereof."

So, to receive all the blessings of God for us, even up to eternal life, we
must obey and follow the laws and ordinances set forth by God, which must
be performed by those who hold the proper authority to do so. I have
learned a lot about this Doctrine by studying it in the scriptures
this last week. Specific parts that I studied were in 2 Nephi 31 and
32, Mosiah 18, 3 Nephi 11, and other places and verses connected
through footnotes and Preach My Gospel.

The other thing that we discussed in my interview was the story of
Enoch. This morning I took the opportunity to really read the whole
story as found in the Book of Moses in the Pearl of Great Price. It
starts in Moses 6:26 and goes up through the end of chapter 7. Many
things in these two chapters are discussed, among them the Doctrine of
Christ as taught to Adam, but from which I want to focus on only a
part. Well, two parts. How Enoch start out, and how he ended. When
he was first called of God to be a prophet, he asked "Why is it that I
have found favor in thy sight, and am but a lad, and all the people
hate me; for I am slow of speech; [why] am I thy servant?" To this
God responded "Go forth and do as I have commanded thee... Open thy
mouth, and it shall be filled, and I will give thee utterance." So
after asking why he was called, God told Enoch "go and do" (think
Nephi) and he would be given the words to say (think Samuel the
Lamanite). So Enoch obeys and at the end of verse 37 in chapter 6 we
see that "all men were offended because of him." Now I'm sure that
Enoch was hurt that the people didn't want to hear him and certainly
many rejected flat out everything that he was. But now listen to the
end of the story. Many people began to believe in the words of Enoch,
and they gathered together and built a city "The Lord came and dwelt
with his people... And the Lord called his people Zion, because they
were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness" (Moses
7:16,18) "And Enoch and all his people walked with God, and he dwelt
in the midst of Zion." After 365 years of existence this way, Zion was
taken up by God unto himself (Moses 7:68-69). So what President
pointed out to me was that in the beginning, even though he was hated
by every one and he offended everyone, after plenty of time and lots
of patience, his people were exalted and taken to dwell with God.

So after having studied more in depth these things and learning more
about the life of Christ, who Himself was despised and offended many,
I have been comforted in the fact that if I do everything I can the
rest will be made up by the grace of Christ.

I know this Church is true, that it is the only church on the earth
today who has the authority of God to administer the ordinances
necessary for salvation in the Kingdom of God. It is something that I
have taken time and personal pain to learn, and I suppose that I will
continue to be tested the remainder of my life. It is in the trials
that our faith is tested. After all, we "receive no witness until
after the trial of [our] faith." Every time I teach about the
Restoration, which is the lesson we teach the most often, my testimony
is strengthened and I want you all to know that I do indeed have a
testimony of the divinity of this Church. The Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-Day Saints is the Lord's Church once again established as
that of old and holds the priesthood authority as given to the
Apostles of old. The Book of Mormon is the proof of all of it.
Through reading its pages, pondering its messages, and sincerely
praying to God in Jesus' name to know if it is true, we will receive
an answer, no matter how many times we may have done so already. That
answer will be that the Book of Mormon is indeed a true book of
scripture. Joseph Smith was called of God to restore His church to
the earth, and Thomas S. Monson leads it today as a modern prophet and
revelator. It's true.

I love you all. Please let me know if I can do anything for any of
you. I miss you.

Love,
Elder Dewsnup

"Another Week" 4/9/12

My Dearest Family,

 

This week has probably been the most trying of my mission up to now.  Many things occurred which left me discouraged and disheartened.  But something that happened on Friday lifted everything and made me think all the more of each one of you.

 

President Gulbrandsen called for a Mission Easter Conference, something that has never happened in our mission, but something that he felt impressed to do.  After a musical number, Hermana Gulbrandsen talked about how Easter has become her favorite holiday ever since her son died, because Easter has come to be the brightest hope in their lives.  The hope in the resurrection of Christ.  That coincidentally made me think of 2 Nephi 9:21-22, which explains perfectly the suffering of Christ in my mind:

 

          "And he cometh into the world that he may save all men if they will hearken unto his voice; for behold, he suffereth the pains of all men, yea, both men, women, and children, who belong to the family of Adam.  And he suffereth this that the resurrection might pass upon all men, that all might stand before him at the great and judgment day."

 

From this we see that Christ suffered all our pains, the pains of every soul who ever lived belonging to the human family, so that we could one day be resurrected and again be brought into His Almighty presence.

 

President Gulbrandsen then stood and for almost a full hour spoke of the love of Christ.  He mentioned three things I'd like to share.

 

First, he talked about giving out burdens to te Lord.  This is something that Dad has been trying to impress upon my mind for the last several weeks in most of his letters, wishing for me to learn now what he has struggled for most of his life to learn and apply.  Some of the things that happened this week weighed down heavily on my soul, and my heart was pained for many reasons.  But when President talked about that, I had a realization.  I thought that if I held on to that pain and hurt, that somehow it would prove that I was a more caring and loving person.  That is not so.  It takes more love to let Christ take our burdens than it does to carry them ourselves.  He already bore them for us, so that we would not have to if we would repent (something that the scriptures tell us often).  I thought of an interesting Montanan metaphor for this.  It is often said in the scriptures that we should "cast" our burdens upon the Lord.  When I thourhgt of this, I thought of fishing.  When we cast our burdens upon the Lord, to often we keep realing back in the pain, reliving it again and again, not willing to forget, and not willing to forgive ourselves.  Our burdens are like trying to catch a Blue Whale with a small river fishing pole.  Sometimes we stubbornly hang on to the pole and let the whale pull us wherever it wills.  What we need to do with that kind of burden is either cut the line, or let go of the rod entirely.  Literally we need to give up our will to hang on to our guilt, sorrow, and pain and let the Lord fill that ache with His love.  He'll do it.  I felt it so much as President was talking to us.

 

Second, He shared another analogy about the love of Christ.  He had us all close our eyes and imagine that we were in a room, and in that room there was a throne, and on that throne was a man, dressed in white, and shining brilliantly.  As we entered that room, we recognized the man as Jesus and when He saw us, he ran from His throne to envelope us in His embrace.  President held us in that moment for a few seconds, letting us imagine the love communicated in that embrace.  He then had us imagine that we followed Jesus into a corridor, in which we passed the moments of our lives pictured on the walls.  With Christ at my side, President had me imagine that I passed the moment of my birth, my baptism, ordination to the priesthood, the thrill of every shining moment.  Then together we reached the moment of my worst sin.  Upon seeing it, I imagined my own pain and guilt and pleaded with Jesus for forgiveness.  The next image brought into focus by President was that of turning to my Savior, knowing of His love and His sacrifice, and seeing Him writhing on the ground in pain.  With that image fading, we opened our eyes and I couldn't see through mine.  I know several others were in the same condition.  Once again, President told us, He suffered for our every sin, pain, and discomfort.  He suffered, so that we would not have to.  If we plead for forgiveness, truly desiring a change, it will be given to us, because He does not wish for us to suffer His pains.  Our pains are His, and He wishes for us to share in His joy.

 

The third is to imagine how much we want to embrace our Savior.  Imagine how much we want to be with Him.  And imagine how much we love Him.  We cannot imagine how much He wants to embrace us.  We can't even fathom how much He wants us to return home.  And we do not have the capacity to comprehend how much He loves us.  He is the "why" in every question.  Why am I here?  Because of Jesus Christ.  Why am I sharing with others His love?  Because I hve felt the smallest portion of His love for me, which has filled me from top to bottom, and from inside out.

 

I know this Church is true.  I know it because I have asked and have felt of His love.  I know I am doing a great work and that as I strive to more fully give myself to the Lord, He will be able to work mightly miracles through my frail frame, as He did with Moses, with the Apostles, and with Joseph Smith, and continues to do with all His faithful servants in this day and time.  I know He loves you.  And I love you too.  Always look to the Lord, for He is the Man to which we must look for salvation.

 

I love you. I pray for you.

 

Until next week,

Elder Dewsnup

 

p.s.  I apologize to all who asked me questions, this week I was unable to read any of the letters sent yet, but I have printed them and will be reading them shortly.  Mom, let me know if you got my reply last week.

 

-- 

Elder Matthew H. Dewsnup

 

Misión Buenos Aires Norte

Gral. Lavalle 1828

1646 San Fernando

Buenos Aires, Argentina

"The Next Week" 4/2/12

{This is Megan... sorry I'm so behind. Life got in the way again and hopefully I'll be better at it. Here are Matthews letters from the last month and a half. They will be posted one day at a time. So look back over the next few days to few his progress.}

Dear Family,

 

WOW!!  There have been many things that I want to comment on, but once again time is limitted, less so than before, but nonetheless limitted.

 

First, Conference was amazing!!  We were in the Stake Center for the whole thing, except the Priesthood Session.  We missed that because of the hour of the day (already 9:00 when it started) and will see it this week and next in two parts.  And I also missed the last half of Elder Pieper's address, along with Elder Anderson and President Monson from the last session due to a faulty internet connection.  But imagine my surprise when Uncle Ralph's name was called.  Everyone in the room turned to look at me.  I was pretty sure that it was him, the only thing I wasn't sure of was his middle initial, but the rest fit.  Now I have the confirmation from you all, so send him greetings and knowledge of my thoughts, prayers, and support for him.

 

So many addresses that were brilliant!  But one that stays with me most is President Uchtdorf's on forgiveness.  There were also at least 4 talks about raising families, one I thought fit well with Dad's theme of Love (I can't remember who right now), and a few others that spoke loudly to me about vision to see ahead.  The area presidency and mission president have all been focusing on having us receive the Lord's vision for us, meaning His will for the people in our area, at this time, and under these circumstances.  I have a feeling that President Gulbrandsen will be using those talks as a focus for a few of his future letters and conferences.

 

Next bit of news, transfers have called Elder Tidei away from Lopez Camelo to another part of the vineyard.  My new companion is Elder Verges (pronounced bear-hess') from Cordoba Argentina.  He will be leaving this mission soon to serve in Salt Lake, he has only been waiting for his Visa.

 

We are now out of time for today; but know that my prayers are with you. I love you all!  More real news next week!

 

Love,

Elder Dewsnup

-- 

Elder Matthew H. Dewsnup

 

Misión Buenos Aires Norte

Gral. Lavalle 1828

1646 San Fernando

Buenos Aires, Argentina