He Loves Us!

I love to hear your success as a family in the scriptures. I HAVE FOUND AND CONTINUE TO FIND so much comport from the scriptures. Being a missionary is hard, and if you want to be a successful one it's even harder. Like the garden, we are naturally prown to a weed ridden world. By our very human nature we are subject to the worst this world has to offer and sometimes feel like we ourselves are the worst the world has to offer. We have a conference with Elder Viñas this upcoming Friday and the topic of the conference is "how has the atonement of Jesus Christ influenced your success as a missionary". It brings me back to an interview I had with President Johnson, from Huntington Beach. It was in that interview that i realized I was already a missionary - if I chose to be - and that is was thanks to the Atonement that made it possible. 

I can't wrap my head around how loving God really is to have given us his only son in the flesh as a "way out." The Atonement is the key to a successful life, family, and for me, MISSION. I am district leader right now, 4 elders and 4 hermanas. I asked one of the Hermanas from Paraguay during a "verification" (that's whats its called in Spanish but the translation is different... I don't know what its called- I call them every day in the night To see how their day went and the check up on progress of investigators), if she had ever had a powerful experience with the atonement. She got really quite and said yes. I didn't ask her to explain but I asked her to remember and to never forget. We so quickly turn into robots and loose sight of where we are going, but (at certain times) even forget were we've been. I told her that the experiences in our lives open our eyes, and that we need to stay Humans... not robots... and help others experience the same things we once experienced when we were in their shoes. I am humbled as i look back in my own life and reflect upon the steps Christ helped me take. I remember the 2 hardest conversations I had to have with You and Dad were 1) I have to wait to be a missionary, and 2) - In Big Bear (Trevor was playing Velociraptor in the window) were I had to tell you guys again that I had to wait... I feel like an Evangelist, sometimes and just want to shout HALLELUJAH! MY LORD JESUS THE SON OF BLESSED MARY HAS SAVED MY DAMNED SOUL! I HAVE BEEN BORN AGAIN! PRAISE THE LORD JESUS!.. but in all seriousness the Atonement has THIS effect in our lives. As Alma tells his Son, in his 36th chapter, "And oh, what joy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!  Yea, I say unto you, my son, that there could be nothing so exquisite and so bitter as were my pains. Yea, and again I say unto you, my son, that on the other hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was my joy."

I love you, and just though I'd express a small portion of my testimony. 

I look forward to talking on Sunday. 20:00hrs My time, CALIFORNIA 16:00hrs.

I love you very very very much,

Élder Hampton | Misión Argentina Salta