Dear Elder Snell,

Had a young woman in our ward called to serve in Anaheim, CA, ALS (sign language).  She studied it in both HS & BYU and was praying she would be assigned to use her skills so it looks like an answer to prayer!

Heard an interesting quote:  Reputation is what others think you are.  Personality is what you think you are.  And Character is what you really are.

Met a new friend at a professional conference.  He said he was looking for a church so I had a  wonderfully natural opportunity to bear my testimony about God actually being our Father.  It’s important to have a correct understanding of God or we will not be able to have the faith we need to claim all that He offers us.  A creation (which is what most churches believe) can never become the creator, but an offspring has the potential.  He said he wished he had a better relationship with God.  I told him it takes work but that it’s simple work (like looking at the serpent Moses held up) and to not give up because of the simpleness of the way (like praying & reading scriptures).

From YSA Sacrament Mtg:  Faith as a principle of power is related to personal righteousness.  It requires pure motive (intending to do only the Lord’s will & expecting nothing in return).  I fear sometimes I want to “perform” for my own gratification.  Don’t always know how to root pride out of my heart.  Guess it requires the miracle of the Atonement to change my heart completely.

Another RM talked on patience.  She wanted us to compare what we expect of ourselves with what God expects of us (sometimes it more & sometimes it’s less).  Instead of lowering our expectations so we have no disappointment, she advised keeping the high expectations of our Savior and developing patience through the disappointments.  We’ll see more miracles as we expect and strive.  Down time is prep time.  The best part of a mission is the difficult part.

The last RM talked about obedience.  President Ezra Taft Benson put it most poignantly when he said, “When obedience ceases to be an irritant and becomes our quest, in that moment God will endow us with power.”   Repentance is changing our minds.  We often fall, but the Lord has prepared a way for us to escape.

We also went to our sacrament mtg because it was Ward Conference.  Bishop told us to remember Lots wife.   Don’t look back.  1) Don’t fail to forgive/forget yourself for mistakes, 2) treat triumph & disaster the same, 3) don’t dwell on past trials.  Look forward.  Elder Eyring said to make “small changes in things we do often.”  Learn from the past, don’t live in it.

The theme was Elder Ballard’s Oct 2005 conf talk What Matters Most is What Lasts Longest.  Our Stk President challenged us to add 5 min a day to something good we’re doing and see what happens in a year (that adds up to about 30 hrs).  I chose to pray 5 min longer.

Love you and Happy Birthday next week!