Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.

Dear Family and Friends,

This has been an exciting week for us here in our area and it has been an amazing blessing being able to work along side Elder Gardner. We have been learning many things from each other and have made quite a few memories here in the service of the Lord. It is such a blessing that we have to be able to share the gospel to all that are around us. Lately I have been developing a greater love for the scriptures as well as the words of latter-day prophets. It is truly amazing to find many hidden treasures of the gospel in the scriptures, especially in the Book of Mormon. The Savior extends to each of us an invitation: "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." (John 5:39) How wonderful it is that we have the Book of Mormon which gives us another witness to the divinity and reality of our Savior, Jesus Christ: "And now, my beloved brethren, and also Jew, and all ye ends of the earth, hearken unto these words and believe in Christ; and if ye believe not in these words believe in Christ. And if ye shall believe in Christ ye will believe in these words, for they are the words of Christ, and he hath given them unto me; and they teach all men that they should do good." (2 Nephi 33:10) Let us hearken unto the words of Christ and grow in the knowledge of his gospel. I know as we read from the Book of Mormon daily, we will have a greater light come into our lives and we will have the strength to endure our individual trials and challenges.

We have been making a lot of progress in finding less actives as well as people to teach through the active members here in this area. It has been a blessing being able to see the great faith of the members here and the fire that they have to share the message of the restoration of the gospel. It has been amazing being able to visit with the bishops from both wards in how we can further strengthen and uplift the wards here. One way in which we have been doing this is through teaching and giving service to the active members of the church. It has been pretty fun being able to help our Ward mission leader, Bro Chatland with building his patio in the back yard. It's pretty amazing the things you can learn on a mission. Not only do you learn many spiritual things but you can also learn many different skills in daily life. Being on a mission truly prepares you for life ahead.

On Friday, we had the opportunity to teach Ashley Nikolaus and read scriptures with her. It has been so amazing being able to see her read along with Bro. Nikolaus and to see the light of the gospel come into her life. Her testimony has grown immensely and we are praying that she will have the faith to make the decision to be baptized into the church. I know that the gospel is already blessing her life and the lives of those in her family. The truths of the gospel are here for all to be strengthened and to be guided on the path that leads us back to the presence of our Heavenly Father.

We were also able to visit James Nixon and talked about the importance of strengthening our seed of faith through reading the scriptures, praying, and attending church. I know as we do these things, we will strengthen and fortify our testimonies of the gospel. As we develop our testimonies upon the four cornerstones of faith: Jesus Christ, The Prophet Joseph Smith, The Book of Mormon and the Restored church, our faith will become unshaken. We are praying that James will be able to exercise his faith and be able to come to church and experience the eternal blessings found in this church.

We also had the chance to visit with Lemoey Wiebush and talked about how we can be spiritually uplifted and fortified as we pray and fast together. We shared with him Helaman 3:35: "Nevertheless they did fast and pray oft, and did wax stronger and stronger in their humility, and firmer and firmer in the faith of Christ, unto the filling their souls with joy and consolation, yea, even to the purifying and the sanctification of their hearts, which sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God." Our hearts are purified as we go to our Heavenly Father in humility and as we desire to align our will with his. We are able to feel of the influence of the spirit in greater abundance in our lives as we go to our Heavenly Father in prayer.

So far it has been an amazing birthday! It has been pretty special being able to share the gospel at this time in my life. I am so very thankful for the decision I made long ago to come on a mission. I am so very thankful for the testimony that I have and for the growth that I have made thus far. I know that this gospel is true. I know that my Redeemer lives. Joseph smith was called by our loving Heavenly Father to restore Christ's church again upon the earth. The Book of Mormon is the word of God and another testament of the divinity of our Savior. How blessed we are to be members of God's restored church here upon the earth.

Thank you all for the birthday wishes! I love you all so much. Hope you have a great week!

Love,

Elder Munro

For they became a righteous people; they did lay down the weapons of their rebellion...

Dear Family and Friends,

This has been a great week for us here in the Helotes and Sonoma Ranch area. We are continuing to find many blessings in the work and I am thankful for the help and guidance from our Heavenly Father to to aid Him in His work. What an amazing time it is to do missionary work! It has been such a blessing to be on a mission and to see lives change and improve. It has been very special to see the light of Christ come into people's lives and for the peace and comfort that they receive. One scripture I really enjoyed this week in my studies is found in Alma 23:7-8: "For they became a righteous people; they did lay down the weapons of their rebellion, that they did not fight against God any more, neither against any of their brethren. Now, these are they who were converted unto the Lord." Is there anything in our lives that is holding us back from experiencing the full blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ? Do we have weapons of rebellion that we can lay down so we can become better disciples of Jesus Christ? I know as we find things that we can improve upon and that we can change in our lives, we will find the peace and joy of the gospel flow into our lives. The comfort that comes through living the gospel and the eternal blessings found in His church are forever worth more than the weapons of rebellion that we all carry. How much joy we find as we give our whole hearts to our Heavenly Father and chose to be a righteous people and to be His disciples.

On Tuesday, our district had the opportunity to go on exchanges so that we could learn from each other and help each other in our own specific areas. I had the opportunity to stay in my area for the day with a new missionary, Elder Williams. It was a pretty great time being able to help and train him in a few aspects and skills in missionary work. It was very neat seeing the great skills that he has already in contacting others and referring quickly and simply to the restoration of the gospel. I'm excited to see Elder Williams grow and strengthen his skills in missionary work and to see him succeed. I love our district!

Through out this week, we have had the opportunity to visit with many members from the Ward council to discuss how we can best help and strengthen the Ward in their missionary efforts. We were able to receive many different assignments from the bishops and we are excited to help out with all that we can do. I truly strive to be a blessing and not a burden to the members here in this area. I strive to help them know of my sincerity in helping them strengthen the members and in finding missionary opportunities.

We have also had the opportunity to visit with active members and have been sharing a message about the importance of the Book of Mormon. I love the video called 'Testimony of the Book of Mormon' by Jeffrey R. Holland. It is incredible to know just how much Joseph Smith went through to bring forth the restoration of the gospel and the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. He would have never went through what he did if the work that he was engaged in wasn't true. He truly did help bring back the fulness of the truths that we need so that we can return to the presence of our Heavenly Father. How blessed we are to have the gospel once again upon the earth!

Thus far on my mission, I have developed a greater love for the scriptures as well as words from latter-day prophets in this dispensation. My love for the missionary manual, Preach My Gospel, has grown immensely as well. There are so many amazing things that all of us can take from it and incorporate into our lives. Preach My Gospel is not just for missionaries, it is for all members as well. I would like to invite everyone to read from Preach My Gospel and seek how you can become a better disciple of Jesus Christ. I know as you do so, a greater light will come into your life and you will have the strength to find missionary opportunities around you.

I am so very thankful for this gospel. It is truly a solid foundation upon which we can build our families and our lives upon. It is the source in which we can find peace though trials and difficulty and were we can have a fulness of joy. It is incomprehensible to know how much our Heavenly Father loves us and desires us to partake of his gospel and the blessings that are found in his church. I am so very thankful to my father in heaven for giving us a Savior that we, through him, can overcome sin and death and be made worthy to return to His presence someday.


I hope you all have a great week. Love you!



Elder Munro

Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ...

Dear Family and Friends,

Is has been such a great week for us here in the Helotes and Sanoma Ranch area. We have seen many miracles and tender mercies from the Lord this week and we are very thankful for the opportunity to see them and to strengthen our faith in seeing greater blessings in the future. I am so very thankful for this opportunity to serve a mission and to help others feel of the light that comes through living the gospel. Once we are on the gospel path we must continue keeping the lords commandments and endure to the end. I love the scripture in 2 Nephi 31:20: "Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life."  As we press forward through the trials of this life and persevere with our foundation built upon Christ and as we continue feasting upon the word of Christ and treasuring up its word in our lives, we will attain the promise given by our Heavenly Father: Ye shall have eternal life. This time on earth truly is the time for us to prepare to meet our Heavenly Father and to prepare to live in His presence to experience a fullness of joy along with our families.

This week has been amazing! Thursday we had the opportunity to visit with Ashley Nikolaus who has been investigating the church for a good while. We were able to have a lesson about the Atonement and how much more we learn about the Savior's infinite sacrifice by reading and studying from the Book of Mormon. Ashley has been progressing very well and finds peace and comfort in going to church and is very close to receiving her answer that the church and the gospel is true. Her husband Garrett has been a major support for her as he is a member of the church. We hope that she will be able to receive confirmation that this is the path that she should go and that she will find the blessings that are in store for her and her family as a whole.

We have been meeting with James Nixon as well in helping him find his answers that the church is true but more so that he will recognize the different ways that the spirit speaks to him. He has been asking questions about what he must to do be baptized and if he must know everything or have a perfect knowledge. We expressed that he must have a belief and have faith that the things we teach are true and will bless his life. We hope as we continue going by that we will see the spirit working through him as he reads and ponders about the Book of Mormon.

We have also been working with Carl Harris, a less active as well as Carrie Villareal who has been investigating the church. Yesterday, we had the opportunity to visit them with their home teachers and shared the first vision and the importance and truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. It is amazing how we can have tangible evidence that the restoration truly did happen and that we can read and ponder about the fullness of the gospel as found in the Book of Mormon. We can come to know that Joseph smith truly was a prophet and was called to bring back Christ's church in its fullness here upon the earth. Carrie found great interest in reading from the Book of Mormon and we hope that as we return for a future appointment that she will feel of its truthfulness.

Yesterday was a very special day as we had the chance to attend sacrament meeting and partake of the sacrament. How blessed we are to be able to remember the infinite sacrifice of the Savior and to renew our baptismal covenants and the promise of His spirit in our lives. It was a blessing as well to be able to see David and Amber at church! That night we were able to have a lesson teaching points from the Plan of Salvation as well as eternal families. It was very neat hearing Amber talk about once she gets baptized that she wants to be married to David in the temple as well as to be sealed as a family. We are extremely excited and it is truly a blessing being able to work with them in helping them on this path so that they can experience the eternal blessings found in our Savior's gospel. How amazing it is that we can have eternal families through the ordinances of the temple.

Thank you all for the emails and the prayers. I am so very thankful for your love and support. Hope you have an amazing week!


Love,

Elder Munro

Yea, I say unto you, there never were men that had so great reason to rejoice as we, since the world began...

Dear Family and Friends,

This week went great! It has been a great blessing already being able to serve here in the Helotes and Sanoma Ranch area of Texas. It has been a great blessings being able to work with my new companion Elder Gardner. He has been teaching me a lot about contacting others and in teaching simply the restoration of the gospel. In my studies this week, there was one scripture that I found that I really enjoyed in Alma 26:35: "Now have we not reason to rejoice? Yea, I say unto you, there never were men that had so great reason to rejoice as we, since the world began; yea, and my joy is carried away, even unto boasting in my God; for he has all power, all wisdom, and all understanding; he comprehendeth all things, and he is a merciful Being, even unto salvation, to those who will repent and believe on his name." We have so much reason to rejoice about the gospel and of our Savior and Heavenly Father. He truly is merciful to all who will come unto Him and repent. It is comforting to know that He has all power and comprehends all things. He knows the end from the beginning and is ready to help us on our path and journey home to His presence.

This past week has been great being able to be introduced to the members as well as the investigators in this area. It seemed like all of the members were excited to have an Idahoan in the Ward! It was great hearing their fellowship and I'm excited to be able to help as much as I can in moving the work forward here in this area. It was a pretty big change from my last area geographic wise. There are a lot of mansions as well as very rich neighborhoods in the area that I am in. The people here are very nice and at most seem interested in hearing about the message of the restoration.  I know as we exercise our faith, we will be able to see miracles and find those that are ready and looking for the gospel of Jesus Christ.

On Tuesday, we had the opportunity to do yard work and service for Janice who was just baptized this past November. It was neat being able to hear her story how she found the gospel and is now very strong in the church. I always love to do service and in helping those around me with what ever they need. I love the scripture as well in Mosiah 2:17: "And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God." When we truly serve others, it is as though we are serving God personally. I know as we look for service around us and do little acts of kindness, a greater light will come into our lives and we will be able to feel of our Savior's love in greater abundance.

This past week on an assignment from Bishop Tuft, we were able to visit with the Rodriguez family in helping them come back to church. David Rodriguez has enormous desires to come back to church as well as to have his girlfriend, Amber take the missionary lessons. We hope that they will be able to get married soon so that we can help Amber with being baptized in a short while. It will be exciting to see the potential in how they both will progress in the gospel and see the blessings come into there lives.

What an amazing opportunity it was yesterday to be able to celebrate Mother's Day! It is such a blessing to have the divine care and love of the mothers around us. I loved the talk given by Elder Holland a few general conferences ago about the blessings of motherhood. He said, "Today I declare from this pulpit what has been said here before: that no love in mortality comes closer to approximating the pure love of Jesus Christ than the selfless love a devoted mother has for her child." How blessed we are to have the divine love of mothers in our lives. I cannot express how much it means to me to have a loving mother as well as those who have had the motherly character in my life. How amazing it is that we can be in an eternal family through the gospel of our savior Jesus Christ. I know as we live the gospel and live righteous lives, we will qualify to live in the presence of our Heavenly Father along with our loved ones for eternity.

Thank you all for the support and the prayers. You all mean so much to me! Hope you have an amazing week. Love you!


Love,

Elder Munro

Repent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me and be baptized in my name

Dear Family and Friends,

Transfers are here! Turns out I will be leaving my area for the first time! I will be going to the Helotes and Sanoma Ranch area of West San Antonio. My new companion with be Elder Gardner who I will be able to meet tomorrow. I am so excited and I can't wait to continue learning and progressing to become the disciple the Lord needs me to be. I look forward to the future in my new area and for the work that is there. I can't express how much of a blessing it has been being able to work with the members of Las Palmas and 10th Ward. It has truly strengthened my testimony and faith in the gospel as we have gone out on less-active visits and in strengthening the efforts of the Ward altogether. I have developed many great memories in this area and most of all the recent converts here. It has been a tender blessing being able to see lives change and come unto Christ. It has been so special seeing them active and enjoying the peace and joy that the gospel brings. I know as they continue living and cherishing the gospel, they will find many treasures of peace and happiness here in this life and eternal joy in the world to come. I love the commandment that our Savior gives all of us in 3 Nephi 27:20: "Now this is the commandment: Repent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me and be baptized in my name, that ye may be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost, that ye may stand spotless before me at the last day."  Not only must we have faith and repent before we can be baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, but we must continue changing and realigning our lives with our heavenly fathers will, this in turn helps us be sanctified by the spirit and always retain a remission of our sins. How amazing it is that we can continuously be sanctified and cleansed by the Spirit as we follow our Savior and live His gospel.

Yesterday we were able to have Juan confirmed a member of the church and receive the Holy Ghost. It was so special to think that the Oliveira family are now all members of the church and are united together. We just need them to get to the temple! That will be amazing being able to have them sealed together as an eternal family. I can wait to be able to write them in the future and see how they are doing and how they are progressing. Fast and testimony meeting was very powerful as well. It was neat being able to feel of the Spirit and faith that the Ward has.

On Wednesday we were able to have a lesson with bro. Cantu, a less active member about the importance of the Book of Mormon in our lives. It is amazing to think about how much peace and joy that the Book of Mormon brings into our lives. Our Heavenly Father has given us another testimony of our Savior, Jesus Christ which helps us stay firm and strong on the path that leads us back to our Heavenly Father's presence. I know as we hold fast to the iron rod and never let go, we will be able to overcome the temptations and trials of this world. We will have the strength to press forward with a steadfastness in Christ and receive of the promise of our Heavenly Father in receiving eternal life.

I know that this gospel is true. I know that our Savior lives and that He died for all of us. As we come unto Him and live His gospel, He will show us the way to peace and happiness. He truly wants all of us to have that peace and joy and to return to His presence. Our Heavenly Father has given us a perfect plan so that we can grow and achieve our divine potential. He wants all of us to truly realize that we are his children and have an eternal destiny.

Off to packing! Know that your Heavenly Father Is always there for you and will always be by your side. Hope you all have a great week.


Love,

Elder Munro

Elder Lambert, Daniel, Juan, Elder Munro

Elder Lambert, Juan, Elder Munro