May 23, 2016
This past week several Zones were invited to a Specialized
Mission Conference. During the training we got instruction from President and
Sister Baker about missionary health. They talked to us about how to stay
healthy spiritually, physically, and financially. In our mission, it is a
tradition to play a game called Oompa Lumpa. The game mixes basketball and
ultimate frisbee but it is played with a football (or in my case since I have a
rugby ball, a rugby ball). We normally get a bunch of Elders together every Monday morning. We all wake up early to drive to the church
building and play the game together. This week, after our mission’s specialized
training we played Oompa. Even the sisters played the game which was actually
super awkward. But playing Oompa was a ton of fun. President Baker would have
played except for the fact that he had sprained his ankle the week before in
one of the other conferences, however his wife Sister Baker played too.
Earlier
today, my old companion Elder Garcia and his current companion came down
from the Eastern shore to say goodbye to me. Elder Garcia is finishing his
mission here next week. We all went to the Virginia War Museum together.
While I have been on a mission, I have gained a
huge testimony of how important it is to go to church every week to partake of
the Sacrament, no matter what. It is so important because we are able to renew
our convents that we have made with our Heavenly Father, and in turn, we
receive the renewed promise that we can always have the Holy Ghost with
us. At church we can learn about the gospel, put it into practice, and
learn from others. I've taught a lot of less active members, who haven't
come to church in awhile. Unfortunately,
they have forgotten some of the simplest of truths. For example, we are
teaching a less active brother right now, who a few weeks ago tried to prove to
us using the Bible that we aren't children of God. And then this past week,
when we invited him to church, he told us that he couldn't because “Sunday was the day that he kept
the Sabbath day holy by reading the scriptures only, and because of that he didn't
need to come to church.”
I know that we are children of a loving Father in
Heaven. I know that it is vital that we
attend church each week so that we will not forget important truths and so that
we can renew our baptismal covenants. I know that this is the only true church
on the entire Earth. We possess the same priesthood authority that prophets of
old, and even Christ himself possessed. I know that Thomas S. Monson is God's
prophet on the Earth today.
God talks through his prophet to guide us today.
Have a good week.
Love, Elder Cannon
Elders Pugsley, Free, Hess, Cannon and Garcia at the Virginia War Museum
