Monday, July 13, 2009 -- The Book of Mormon

I've learned a lot in this first week as a zone leader. We have an excellent zone and my companion and I are doing everything we can to help and inspire them. In fact, today we have a zone conference in which I will give my first training as a zone leader (in front of President Mendoza).

Cumbres is great, although I greatly miss Puerta del Sol. Yesterday my companion and I had a baptism. He is a future missionary named Geraldo Guillen. He is one of those people who was prepared by the Lord and the missionaries came along at the right time. It was really a miracle.

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It's great that you are bringing more investigators to church. One thing you can learn is that new converts have the missionary zeal and invite all their friends. I love missionary work.

This past Friday was the best day of my mission. From seven in the morning to ten at night we read the Book of Mormon all day. I haven't read a book for so long since Harry Potter 7. And the Book of Mormon is way better.

I've read the Book of Mormon many times before, but never have I read so much in one sitting. I was able to see patterns and connections that I hadn't seen before.
One of the things that most impressed me in my reading was the valiance of the prophets and missionaries of the Book of Mormon, their faithfulness and diligence. I want to be more like Nephi, Jacob, Enos, Abinadi, Benjamin, Alma, and Amulek.
I had hoped to read the whole book, but I only got to Alma 10 -- maybe because I was reading in Spanish, maybe because I thought a lot about what I was reading. But it doesn’t matter. I have plans to finish it and then read it again. And again.

At about 9:30 I stopped reading and went to Moroni 10:3-5. I studied Moroni's Promise and put it in practice. For about 30 minutes I meditated on the mercy of the Lord, from the time of Adam to the present. I thought of His great mercy in preparing a redemption from the Fall. I thought of his mercy with Lehi and his family, with Enos, with the people of Limhi. I pondered on His many great and tender mercies in my own life.

After pondering, I prayed. I told the Lord that I already knew that the Book of Mormon was true, but I asked Him to confirm it. He did. By the power of the Holy Ghost, I know that the Book of Mormon is true.

Saturday we had several incredible experiences with the Book of Mormon. One was with a less active member going through hard times. We read with him the story of Alma and his people in bondage and applied it to his life. Another was with a good Christian man who loves the Bible. We taught him about the Book of Mormon and shared our testimonies with him.

The Book of Mormon is true. It testifies of Christ and will bring us closer to Him than any other Book. It is the keystone of my testimony and of our religion. I invite everyone to read it, or read it again. It will bring you closer to the Lord, it will help you have His Spirit in your life, and will give you answers to your questions and challenges.

Last night we had a zone testimony meeting about the Book of Mormon. Everyone of the 24 missionaries in the zone shared his or her experience from Friday, as well as his or her testimony. It was an incredible experience. One of the sister missionaries said something that really impacted me. She said that the best gift she had received was a copy of the Book of Mormon. The best gifts last forever and are priceless. I invite you to give such a gift to your friends and family that you love.