What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same.

Dear Family Friends,

It's Transfer week! It has been exciting working here in this area with Elder Markman and I'm truly blessed to have had such a great companion. I have learned many great teaching skills and all around how to be a more fully consecrated servant of the Lord. We got transfer calls this morning and I will be staying here in this area fro another 6 Weeks. Elder Markman will be heading up to Austin so it will be exciting for him to see the mission from up at the capital. I will be getting my new companion, Elder Giddens tomorrow morning. I can't wait for this transfer and for the miracles that are ahead of us. It will be fun working with Elder Giddens as I have been able to work around him in the past. I can't wait for the people we will teach and for the opportunities ahead to hasten the work and to beautify our area. I am truly thankful for the opportunity to serve here in the Texas San Antonio mission.

Very recently I have been thinking a lot about the Prophet Joseph Smith and the role that he played in the restoration of the gospel. I have also thought about the importance of latter-day prophets who lead and guide us today. We read in Doctrine and Covenants 1:37-38:  "Search these commandments, for they are true and faithful, and the prophecies and promises which are in them shall all be fulfilled.  What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same."

We can have full confidence in the words of ancient and latter-day prophets. We can trust in what they are counseling us to do. We can know that they are God's mouthpiece here on the earth and as we follow Him as well as the prophet, we will not be lead astray but remain on the strait and narrow path that leads back to our Heavenly Father. We are so blessed to have his constant guidance and direction in our lives.

Earlier this week we had a lesson with Bro. Dalrymple and talked about his experience being baptized and the importance in renewing our covenants through the ordinance of the sacrament. It is a blessing that we can feel just as clean as when we were baptized as we partake of the sacrament and as we repent with a humble heart and a contrite spirit. We also discussed many of the basic principles that we live that help us on the path such as having continual faith in Jesus Christ and in repenting on a daily basis. The gospel truly is simple and is essential for our happiness and peace in this life and our eternal progression.

Later in the week we also had the opportunity to teach his daughters boyfriend, Jared, which when very well. It was neat being able to show him how both the Bible and the Book of Mormon go hand in hand and help us draw closer to our Savior and learn of Him and His gospel. As we read from the Book of Mormon and develop our testimony of it, we begin to crystallize our testimony and love for the bible as well. The Book of Mormon provides so many amazing insights that help broaden our view and understanding of our purpose in life and how we can achieve eternal happiness.

We were able to meet with Tiffany who has recently been investigating the church and we had a wonderful lesson with her at the beginning of last week. We discussed how the restoration has blessed our lives and will give her the unity that she desires with her family. She expressed that her brother is a member and it has brought her a lot of joy to see how happy he is to be a Latter-day Saint. Family has always meant a lot to her and we talked about the blessings that we receive as we live the gospel and continue learning more about our Savior. We hope to continue visiting with her and helping her see the blessings that she can receive through baptism. I hope that she will feel of her Savior's love for her and she will feel of the peace that comes through the restored gospel.

We had a wonderful lesson with a less-active member Bro. Watson. We talked about the peace that we receive as we repent and forgive ourselves from our past mistakes. I know that the Atonement is infinite and eternal and is our escape from pain and sin. How truly blessed we are to feel of the enabling powers of the Atonement and the love of our Savior. He loves us so much and desires us to use His Atonement so that we don't have to suffer. On a day to day basis we can feel of His power and influence in our lives as we go to Him in prayer and as we study His word through the scriptures. As we learn of our Savior and feel of His love for us, we will grow in our desire to help others feel of His love and mercy in their lives.

The gospel means so much to me. I do not know where I would be with out it in my life. It has given me a strong foundation and a secure anchor so that when the winds and the hail of trials come before me, I am not moved. How grateful I am for my Savior, Jesus Christ, and for His tender mercies in my life. I continue to see so many improvements that I can make but I know that through His help I can grow into who my Heavenly Father needs me to become. I know as you all embrace the gospel and hold fast to the faith, you will not be lead astray but be lead safely home to our Heavenly Father.

Thank you so much for the prayers of support and protection. They are truly appreciated! I love you all so much!

With love,

Elder Munro

Sanctify yourselves: for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.

Dear Family and Friends,

It's such a blessing being a missionary! I am so very thankful for the opportunity to share the gospel with others and to help others feel of the peace and joy that comes through our Savior. I have really been reflecting upon our callings as missionaries and for the responsibility that we have to represent the church as well as our Savior, Jesus Christ. I strive constantly to change and to realign my desires with the will and desires of the Lord for me. I love the scripture in the Old Testament found in Joshua 3:5 "And Joshua said unto the people, Sanctify yourselves: for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you." And among the teachings that Christ gave in his personal ministry among the Nephites in 3 Nephi 20:41 "And then shall a cry go forth: Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence, touch not that which is unclean; go ye out of the midst of her; be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord." I know as we continuously realign our will with our Savior's will, we will find immeasurable blessings. We will find added strength in our every day lives as we continuously change and grow to become better disciples of Jesus Christ. I know as we repent daily and use the enabling powers of the Atonement, we will be clean vessels so that we can help others come unto Christ and continue on the path that leads us back to our Heavenly Father. How truly amazing it is that we are able to be clean and sanctified through the Atonement of Christ so that we can return to our Father's presence.

We have had some great visits this week and we are very thankful for our Heavenly Father's help in guiding us to those who are ready to receive the restored gospel. On Tuesday, on our way to a member visit we visited with Laura who was outside playing with her daughters. We had a great conversation about her beliefs and the strength that she has received from reading in the bible and in learning more about our Savior. She was very interested in our new church building that was just built and was interested in having a lesson and a church tour next week! She seems pretty receptive and we hope that as we show her the chapel and share our beliefs that she will feel of the truthfulness of the gospel. It is very neat to see many people with interest in the gospel and in our beliefs as Latter-Day Saints. It will be great to see how she will progress.

On Thursday, we had a great visit with a returning less-active Bro. Dalrymple. He has been coming consistently to church and we have been visiting with him pretty frequently. He was baptized only four years ago so we have been helping him learn more about the gospel and in strengthening his testimony. We shared a message about our purpose in this life and how we should prepare to live with our Heavenly Father along with our families. We discussed how scripture reading, prayer, and attending church are essential in our progress in this life. As we do these things, I know we will draw closer to our Father in Heaven and have His guidance and direction in our lives as well. I am so very thankful for the chance to see others progress in the gospel and to learn and grow in the church. It is truly a blessing to see others change and come unto Christ.

We were able to visit the Nassari family on Friday and we shared a message about the importance and relevance that the Restoration has for us personally. We also discussed how they can gain a greater understanding of our beliefs through going to church. As we go to church, we are able to feel of the guidance of the Holy Ghost and we are able to receive added light and revelation in our lives. We also are unified and strengthened as we join together in worship and help each other in our growth in the gospel. Salvador is gaining more light in reading from the Book of Mormon and we have been striving to help him see the evidences of the Spirit that he has felt to the truthfulness of the Restoration. Unfortunately, Salvador will be gone for work until October so we will have to postpone visiting for right now, but we got in contact with our Ward mission leader and invited him to reach out to Silvi so that she has support as Salvador is gone. I hope as we are able to meet together again in the future that we will continue to help build up their faith in the gospel and in our Savior.

We had a great visit with the Hernandez family this week as well. We have lunch in their home every Saturday and we always have a great time visiting with them. For our message we shared a few scriptures from 1 Nephi 2 and we discussed how as we keep the commandments, we will prosper in the land and will be blessed for living the gospel. As we are diligent in living the gospel and keeping the commandments, we will stand firm, steadfast, and unwavering as we face the trials and challenges of this life. Bro. Hernandez made a great comment to their family about the necessity in reading from the scriptures and in being involved in good gospel habits that will fortify and strengthen our families. I hope to see them coming to church more often and in seeing how they will change as they read and pray as a family.

I am so very thankful for the scriptures and for the light and revelation that we receive as we feast upon the word of Christ and apply and abide by the principles and precepts that we learn. How amazing it is to read of those who had strong faith in Jesus Christ and in reading their testimonies and the things they knew to be true. I know as we remember the words of ancient prophets as found in the scriptures, we will grow in our knowledge of the gospel and we will have an increased desire to share it with others. The scriptures were truly meant for our day and are such a blessing for us to be built on a strong foundation upon our Savior and his teachings.

Thank you all for the support and prayers. Hope you have an amazing summer!

With Love,

Elder Munro

Elder Munro with new Mission Pres & Sister Polley

For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God

Dear Family and Friends,

What a great week! It has been such a blessing working here in this area especially with my companion Elder Markman. The more that I strengthen my knowledge of the gospel, the more my desires have been to share it with others. It is such a blessing in helping others feel of the light of the Gospel and in the peace that comes through our Savior's mercy. One scripture that I enjoyed in my studies is in Alma 34:32  "For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors." 

How do we prepare in this life to meet our Heavenly Father and to return to His presence? For me I have found that the simple things that we do everyday such as praying personally and with our families and scripture study builds upon our gospel foundation and strengthens our ability to endure to the end, and in many cases we should 'Enjoy' the gospel to the end. Attending church, going to the temple, family history work and fulfilling and magnifying our callings also brings us added power into our lives. As we do these things, we will truly be prepared to live in God's presence with a fulness of happiness and joy.

Monday, we had a great lesson with Salvador Nassari where we discussed the gospel of Jesus Christ. It has been such a blessing for me to see his interest in the Book of Mormon grow and for the light and understanding that he has been receiving. We extended  a baptismal invitation to him but he said that he wants to pray about his decision and continue meeting with us in learning more about the restoration. I know as he prays sincerely with real intent, he will know of the truthfulness of the gospel. I am truly amazed for the love that he has for his faith and for his desire to grow in his love for the Lord and in his teachings.

On Tuesday, Elder White, one of our zone leaders and I were able to go on exchanges and we had a great time biking in our area and in contacting a few potential investigators. I was surprised at how much we biked that day. The weather has been cool but it has been starting to get hotter again. It was pretty hilarious the next morning we both had a tough time getting out of bed because of our bike ride. I am starting to love the bikes more and more and it is a very neat experience being able to converse more with others here in our area. It has been a great blessing for us to have such great leaders who are mindful of our areas and in helping us reach our potential and in achieving our goals.

Wednesday was amazing! We had our Zone conference and we were able to hear more council from President and Sister Polley as well as the assistants and lead sister training leaders. The Spirit was very strong and I continue to reflect on the great blessing of being a missionary and in the importance in sharing the gospel to those who will receive it. President Polley gave a wonderful training on our areas being similar to a garden. We should look for areas where we could beautify and nourish the activity and progress of our individual areas of missionary work. He further invited us to 'Walk the Garden' and find ways in which we can help those in our areas come to a better understanding of the gospel and of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Elder McDonald, one of the assistants, talked about how we can strengthen our vision of the gospel as we study from the resources of the church, emphasizing the inspiring manual, Preach My Gospel. I know as we utilize Preach My Gospel in our studies as well as in our callings, we will grow in our knowledge of the gospel and will strengthen our testimonies immensely. Sister Waite gave a great training as well about 'Seeing with new eyes' in the scriptures and in Preach My Gospel. We can always gain new insights and knowledge as we prayerfully study with the spirit. Throughout the whole conference, I truly thought about our purpose in missionary work and the great importance that it is to remain worthy of the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost and to always heed his council. As we do so in our own lives, we will have the ability to endure trials at greater ease and with the help of our Heavenly Father.

Lately I have been thinking a lot about the importance of the Book of Mormon and its purpose in our lives. How amazing it is that we have more of God's word in our lives and that we have it so accessible in our world today. Book of Mormon prophets truly wrote to persuade us to believe in Christ and to live and apply his gospel. I love the spirit that comes through reading the title page and the introduction of the Book of Mormon. In the introduction, Joseph Smith said, "I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book." I know not only as we read from the Book of Mormon, but as we incorporate its teachings into our lives, we will see great changes in our lives and we will grow in our testimonies of our Savior and in His Atoning sacrifice. I would like to invite you all to ponder in your hearts the purpose of the Book of Mormon for you personally and for its impact that it has had on your life. I know that it is true. It was translated by a prophet of God and was given as a road map for us here on earth, to learn of our Heavenly Father and His ways and how we can return to His presence after this life. I know as you read, ponder, and pray about its message, you too will know that it is true.

Thank you for all of the prayers. I can't express how thankful I am for the great family and friends that I have. Hope you have an amazing summer!

With Love,

Elder Munro

But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever

Dear Family and Friends,

This past week has been great for Elder Markman and I here in our area. Its been pretty hot! The weather has cooled down much but we have been enjoying the summer and we are very thankful for the progress we have been making. I cannot express how much joy I feel in sharing the gospel with others and in helping others feel of the importance in eternal families and in being guided and directed by our Heavenly Father and our Savior. Very recently, I have thought much about the importance of the sacrament and in always remembering our Savior and His infinite and eternal sacrifice. It is such an amazing opportunity to go every Sunday to partake of the sacrament and to renew the covenants that we have made. One of the greatest blessings that we can have in this life is being able to always have His spirit to be with us. It is through Him that we are cleansed from sin and by His spirit, we are able to be guided and directed back to the presence of our Heavenly Father and receive eternal life. How important it is to remain true to our covenants so we can receive this amazing blessing in our lives.

On Tuesday, we had the amazing opportunity to meet our new President and his wife, President and Sister Polley. It was such an amazing experience being able to meet them and in seeing their excitement to serve here in the Texas San Antonio mission. It was neat seeing the humility that they have and there great desires to serve the Lord and to help us fulfill our duties and callings as missionaries. Each of us had the opportunity to meet them personally and to talk a little about ourselves. They invited us to discuss how Preach My Gospel has helped us become better missionaries and for how it has shaped us in being disciples of Jesus Christ. Preach My Gospel has truly helped me in developing Christ-like attributes and in strengthening the necessary skills of missionary work. I think it is amazing as well how much we depend on the written word and trust in the promises of the Lord and the promises that he has given in His work. Afterwards, Sister Polley gave a great training about what makes a successful missionary. I truly believe that this applies to all missionaries, both in the field and member-missionaries in our own wards. Our success as missionaries comes from our desires to find those who are prepared to receive the restored gospel. Success does not come from a ton of baptisms, it comes from our own hearts and our own desires to serve God and to give our 100% what ever it may be. She also talked about the importance in not comparing ourselves to others and base our success in working our hardest and giving our hearts to the Lord and to His work.

President Polley gave some wonderful insights as well. He shared a few scriptures from Moroni 7:47-48 that he invited us to read a few weeks previously. They are:  "But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.  Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen." 

President Polley went on to talk about how we are all followers of Jesus Christ and as we accept and live His gospel, we become His Sons and his Daughters. As we continue to live the gospel and develop and strengthen the attribute of charity in our own lives, we will become better prepared to live with our Heavenly Father after this life. He went on to say that we all should recognize that we are his followers and that we should continue on the gospel path and in helping others come unto the Savior. He concluded with a great thought on the Atonement. As we repent and turn to our Savior, we show our thankfulness for what He has done for us. The enabling power of the Atonement helps to reach above our mortal capacities here on earth. Not only can we be free from sin but we can enjoy peace of conscience and His enabling power to overcome the daily trials and challenges that we have. I can't wait to be able to see how the mission will grow and for how much I will grow because of their influence and direction. It truly has been a blessing already to have them as our leaders.

It has been such a great time being able to work with the ward members here in this area and for seeing the fire that they have to do missionary work. On Sunday, our ward mission leader, Bro. Garner was able to bring a great family that he met a few days previously who wanted to come to church and to see what it was like. We gave them a church tour and Marcus, the father really loved priesthood meeting. It was neat seeing the interest that they had and for the desire they have to learn more. We hope to visit them soon with Bro. Garner to share more about the message of the Restoration and to help them grow in the gospel.

Unfortunately, we weren't able to visit with the Nassari family this week but we hope to meet with them tonight to share more about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and extend a baptismal invitation to them both. I hope that we may teach with the spirit and they may feel of the importance in baptism and in being united together in the gospel. It will be exciting to see how they will progress and grow and to see them develop their faith in Christ.

 It has been such a tender mercy for me in being able to partake of the sacrament and in feeling of the peace and joy that comes through the Atonement of Christ. Sacrament meeting this week was very powerful and it is such a blessing to be able to come together weekly to worship our Heavenly Father and to be filled and fed spiritually and become rejuvenated for the coming week. I have gained a great love for the Sabbath and for going to church. It continues to provide me aided support, relief and rest from the cares of the week previously. I know as we develop a love for the Sabbath day, we will grow closer to our families and our love for our Savior and our Heavenly Father will deepen as well.

Thank you all for the support and the prayers. I cannot express how much you all mean to me. Hope you have an awesome summer!

Love,

Elder Munro