And whoso receiveth you, there I will be also, for I will go before your face.

Dear Family and Friends,

This has again been another great week and it has been such a blessing to work here among the members of the Indian Springs and Evans Ranch wards. I am truly grateful for the many things that I have been learning and for the memorable experiences that we have had. One scripture that has been on my mind recently and that I enjoy to study is in Doctrine and Covenants 84:88: "And whoso receiveth you, there I will be also, for I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up."

Not only do I love this scripture as I ponder about the importance of the Spirit in finding and teaching those who are prepared to receive the restored gospel, I also think of the divine help that we receive when we face the trials and challenges of life. It is such a blessing to have His promise that angels will be with us and we can receive his divine help and comfort in our lives. I know that His blessings and tender mercies will be more evident in our lives as we live the gospel and strengthen our foundation of testimony upon our Savior, Jesus Christ.

This week has been a very spiritual week for us since we had our zone meeting this past Tuesday. Our Zone leaders gave great training on the importance of the Spirit in missionary work and how the Book of Mormon answers the great questions of the soul. As we listen to the Spirit and stay worthy of his council, we can trust in his ability to show us where to go, what to do, and what to say. It is truly amazing that we have such a precious gift that we can have everyday of our lives to guide us on our journey in mortality. The Holy Ghost will ultimately lead us back to our Heavenly Fathers presence with our families for eternity. The Spirit is also helpful in our learning of the gospel and in studying the scriptures. It is neat to think that some of the greatest questions of life and even the simplest can be answered by reading and pondering the scriptures. I know as we turn to the scriptures for our greatest and personal questions, we will receive answers and added light and knowledge through the power of the Holy Ghost. How blessed we are to have this precious gift.

On Wednesday, we had another great lesson with the Doegey family where we read form 3 Nephi 11 when Christ personally visits the people of the Americas and establishes His gospel and church. It was really neat where it talks about all the people being able to feel the nail prints in His hands and His feet, one by one. It is remarkable to know that He personally knows us, one by one. We too can know our Heavenly Father and Savior as we study the scriptures and strengthen our relationship with them. They truly love us so much and desire us to learn of them and to grow in the knowledge of the gospel.

We visited the Poole family again and they seemed to be progressing in reading from the scriptures as a family. We read from 1 Nephi 8 where it talked about the Tree of life. It was pretty interesting where it talked about 'pressing forward' and 'clinging to the rod of iron' which was on the strait and narrow path leading to the tree of life. The rod of iron being the word of God is one of our greatest sources and strengths to overcoming the temptations and the 'mists of darkness' that we face in our lives. As we 'hold fast' to the scriptures and to the words of latter-day prophets, we can travel safely on our journey leading to eternal life in our Heavenly Fathers presence. I know that the greatest source of peace and comfort in this life is found in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. As we live and embrace Him and His gospel, we will make it back to our heavenly home.

We had a great lesson with Bro. Dalrymple as well where he brought up a few concerns on the importance of tithing and as well as following a living prophet. We discussed how God gives us commandments not as restrictions but as spiritual guidelines where we not only can be protected but that our Heavenly Father can give us the blessings that he desires to give us. We talked about how our prophet today, President Thomas S. Monson, is the one who is guided by our Heavenly Father to lead and guide the church today. With a knowledge of a living prophet today, we realize that our Heavenly Father continues to speak to us and is continuing to reveal His will to us. It is truly comforting to know that we will never be lead astray from the gospel path as we heed the prophets and apostles of the Lord's church. They will help us remain strong and faithful as we obey their council.

This week we weren't able to get in contact with the Hill family because Bro. Hill works crazy hours at his job but we hope to meet with him and his family in the near future, hopefully this coming week. It will be exciting to continue seeing the ward wrap their arms around them in welcoming them into the ward family.

It has been such a blessing to labor here in the mission field. I can't express how much my love for the gospel has grown. It is such a blessing for me to see others blessed by living the gospel and embracing the truths that they know to be true. I am so very thankful for this specific mission that I am in and I know that I am supposed to be here serving among the people of San Antonio. It has been amazing working with such faithful and great members of the church who boost and strengthen my testimony and faith as we join together in teaching the gospel. How grateful I am for this wonderful work.

Hope you all have a wonderful Week!

With Love,

Elder Munro