"the fastest way to show love is through service"

Well hello from Peru,

Funny how fast time really is flying here. All of my days are based off of preparation days. In reality I feel like I just was barely here in from of the computer telling you about stuff… when I return to the computer again and there goes another week. Well this week was pretty nice, there is a lot a rain here. Well, that is an understatement because it rains here every single day of the week. Or it will rain three or four times a day or a combination of the two. I really love the rain because it is a welcome relief from the heat. Holy poop I saw that picture of you guys (we sent pictures of us in Mexico) and wow you are all looking a little different. I think by the time that I get back I won’t know who you all are!!!! I just have to say holy smokes dad is looking super thin.

I was thinking about the purpose of the missionary work this week and I had a few revelations. The first point being, we, missionaries of God, are destroyers of false faith. We as missionaries enter in the houses of people that have believed what they have believed all of their lives and basically shake their faith. Now their faith is tall and large but is founded upon weak foundation. All we as missionaries do is ask inspired questions and their entire foundation of beliefs comes crashing down like the great and spacious building. We are harbingers of the Truth and nothing has the power to stop this “snow balling” work.

Another thing that I was thinking about is our relationship with the people that we meet. Missionaries are Salesmen of the Gospel. We offer peace, love, and blessings in exchange for service, dedication and sacrifice. President Thomas S. Monson said that ¨missionary work is the life blood of the church.” We as members of the church are responsible for the success or failure of this righteous cause. Missionaries are not responsible for finding people to teach, we are just responsible for teaching that which we have been called to teach. In reality for a missionary to have success in the mission it depends on the members of the wards that the missionaries are in. I think that many times the people in the ward become too preoccupied with the social part of the church… the drama of the church.  They forget one of the most fundamental elements, which is to fellowship others or fellowshipping. We as members of the church are blessed… and once we arrive at this point of blessedness we fall into the pride cycle. Blinded by what we have, our temporal wealth, we forget to bring people to gospel. Our own pride stops us from reaching out to the humble and the poor of heart. If we as members of the church were true disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ then we would spread the joy that we have as saints with every single person that is possible. True love for Christ is as he has told us, “If ye love me keep my commandments,” in other words how do we increase our love for others. I have found that one of the most powerful and often times the fastest way to show love is through service. Service is no always a planned activity, don’t get me wrong activities work, but we can have more success on smaller levels. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is a style of life, it is not something that we can just do for one moment and then throw to the way side. We cannot arrive to become luke warm in the mouth of the Lord, lest he spit us out. I want o challenge you family to give a reference to the missionaries. Ponder and pray as a family and help the missionaries to have a baptism.  I testify in the name of Jesus Christ, your individual joy will be beyond the capacity for your soul to feel. I know firsthand that the joy of a baptism is more than any television show or music song or any movie can ever give. I love you and I hope that you will do this as a family.

Elder Harris

The same street before and during the Rainy Season!