Exchanges and Ordination
Hello all!
This week was fun. While it started off slow going, it picked up in the end.
Exchanges with Elder Nathan (zone leader): It was a great exchange! Elder Nathan is one of those that is always packed with energy and hyped for the work. It was a breath of fresh air to serve with him.
We had a lesson with a Portuguese woman. It was definitely a different lesson because she doesn't speak but a few English words. So, we called in another missionary who taught her. So, most of the lesson we had no clue what was being said, save a few words like "Elder Burns" and "Estados Unidos" 
It was fun though, because we did pray/teach using that elder (and Google translate) to translate.
On Sunday was another Spiritual highlight. We have two recent converts who have been preparing themselves to receive the Aaronic Priesthood. Well, yesterday was their day! I was able to participate in both ordinations, and Scott even asked me to voice his. It was an amazing experience, especially as it correlated with fast Sunday. The feeling as soon as I started was incredible. The Spirit just overwhelmed me. It was incredible.
Also, Osvaldo spoke at the "Why I Believe" fireside on Sunday night. It was amazing and he did a great job! It's always incredible to see people's journeys to finding the gospel. Some it took only a month or two, whereas some took decades of searching in different places, trying different things, almost as if on a blind hunt. But all agreed that their search, however long, ended when they found the restored church of Jesus Christ.
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Extra little rant (you can skip this if you wish):
I spent my afternoon today in Manchester. Our journey took us on many back roads and side streets, but also through the main city and shopping centres. It astonishes me to see how wickedness has crept so freely into the common culture of today. As President McReynolds said yesterday, "Things that the world used to call good, they now call bad. And things that the world used to call bad, they now call good." It's difficult to go anywhere without experiencing this. One of the themes from yesterday's fireside was "Where Can I Turn for Peace". We heard the stories of people whose idea of where peace and happiness was found was completely skewed and led to dissatisfaction and stressed relationships. One man said that nearly 40 years of his life was wasted, because he thought happiness was found in being a work-a-holic. His priorities were flipped, and it affected his life and relationships. However, he said that what saved his life and relationships was a card that he received from a sister missionary after watching the Book of Mormon Musical. He went to the website on the card and got a hold of missionaries and a copy of The Book of Mormon.
In short, he found the gospel of Jesus Christ, and it changed his life. He found the source of peace from the Prince of Peace.
In a world where the perspective of what is right and wrong is in constant flux, and the paths to happiness and peace seem to shift beneath our feet, where can we turn for answers? How can we know what is right and wrong? What path leads to happiness and peace?
While the world may sit in uncertainty, we do not have to. As we turn to Jesus Christ and follow Him, we will find the answers to these great questions.
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I know that God listens to us when we pray, and He will speak with us if we listen. If we act on what He says, that is the path to happiness and peace. We can learn of Him and His plan for us through the scriptures, personal revelation, and through his living prophet and apostles.
I invite everyone that may read this to listen to the living prophet and apostles this next weekend (October 5-6). You can find answers to the questions of your heart, and guidance for your life from a loving Heavenly Father.
I love you all!
See miracles. Be miracles.
Elder Burns
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