Our Peace of Heaven: Opa!!!!!

OI! FAMILIA E AMIGOS! Como vai? Tudo bem?

I am loving the life of a missionary so much. I am learning and learning and LEARNING so much! It's a great feeling.

We finished our lessons with our first practice investigator, Antônio! We had 5 lessons with him. The first was so hard, and then they got better and better! And our last lesson we taught him the Doctrine of Christ from 2 Nephi 31 and he accepted our invitation to be baptized! ...(Of course he is a pretend investigator and is actually a returned missionary from Brazil!) He got back 3 weeks ago! And presto chango- tah-dah! Antonio became Brother Miller! Another of our teachers! Now we have Brother Porter and Brother Miller and I'm positive we have the two best teachers in the whole MTC. But 2 Nephi 31- What an awesome chapter. It puts things so clearly! I'd recommend it to anyone! The Book of Mormon truly is the perfect compliment for the Bible! How amazing it is to have the stick of Judah and the stick of Jospeh together in my hands, just like it talks about in the Bible!

Ezekiel 37:19 “Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand.”

Just as Christ loved and taught and visited those in the Old World, he visited and taught and performed miracles in the New World too - the Americas! How incredible to have both of those records! The Bible and the Book of Mormon!

John 10:16 “And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.”

3 Nephi 15:21 “And verily I say unto you, that ye are they of whom I said: Other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.”

Wow. Òtimo!! (och-ee-moo= awesome!!!) And it's super incredible to think that soon I will be in Brazil, sharing this incredible message with people, and sharing the Book of Mormon - which is pretty much their ancestors! In 2 Nephi 31 we learn that the Doctrine of Christ has 5 fundamentals: Faith in Jesus Christ, Repentance, Baptism, Receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End. ....This was Jesus' Christ's message! He shares the Father's purpose, in bringing to pass the immortality and eternal life of man! (Moses 1:39). And now as missionaries, we share Christ's purpose. Our purpose is to bring others to Christ! Through faith in him and his Atonement, Repentance, Baptism, Receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End. It is so humbling to realize over and over again that I now completely share Christ's purpose. He points us to the Father. And as missionaries, we point others to Christ! Christ is the way! It is ONLY through him that we can return to our Father in Heaven and receive those blessings that He so much wants to give us!

Heavenly Father and Christ want us to be united and one with Them. I think often God and Jesus Christ being one is interpreted as them being actually one person or being, but Jesus Christ has invited us to be one with him!!! And he is one with his Father! Wow. That doesn't mean we will be molded into another person. It means he wants us to be completely united with them in love and purpose. I can't imagine the love and peace and how incredible it would feel to be united as one with Christ and God the Father. In my scripture study recently I came across these verses...

D&C 50:43 “And the Father and I are one. I am in the Father and the Father in me; and inasmuch as ye have received me, ye are in me and I in you.”

John 10:16 “And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.”

John 10:30 “I and my Father are one.”

D&C 93:3-5 “(3) And that I am in the Father, and the Father in me, and the Father and I are one— (4) The Father because he gave me of his fulness, and the Son because I was in the world and made flesh my tabernacle, and dwelt among the sons of men. (5) I was in the world and received of my Father, and the works of him were plainly manifest.”

John 17:11 “And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.”

1 Corinthians 6:17 “But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.”

Hebrews 2:11 “For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren.”

I imagine that feeling I get when I am surrounded by my family and friends and people who love me, who love each other, and who I love.... Now times that love by 3 trillion times a billion, and then add the fact that you are with God the Father, Creator of the Universe, and His Son, the Savior, Jesus Christ, and ...wow. I cannot imagine how incredible it would be to be one with Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father. In Their presence, after this life, filled with that sweet, indescribable love, and the desire to serve and lift others. That's how I imagine it would feel to be "one" with Jesus Christ, as he is with the Father, and to be "one" with those around me, God's precious children.

For a while before my mission, I was nervous about inviting people to be baptized, worrying that they would think I was only around to try to baptize them... You know what I mean? But I have learned so much here that has changed my perspective. The gospel changes lives. Not just a little bit...but in a way that is so profound it affects our eternity. Baptism is the gateway to entering God's Kingdom. Just as Jesus Christ was baptized, and received the Holy Ghost in the Bible, we must follow that example. He told us "What manner of men ought ye to be? Even as I am" and He has told us that HE is the way and the light! In everything he did he was the perfect example for us. We have watched videos, and our teachers (both returned missionaries from Brazil) have shared their experiences and I have experienced this myself in my own life! Seeing someone be baptized, taking upon themself the name of Jesus Christ and promising to follow him. In return, being given the Gift of the Holy Ghost to guide them. It is a miracle. A true miracle. How selfish it would be for me to not extend this invitation to follow Christ just because I'm nervous or afraid.

The gospel changes lives!!!! I wish I could write everything in all caps...but I realized that's just creepy and it seems like I'm yelling all the time. But in my heart, I am!! I want to share this message and these truths that have done more for my life than I could ever express! Isn't it interesting that Jesus Christ sought out John specifically to baptize him? Not only was John his cousin, but John had the authority from God to baptize! Wow! And to know that that same authority (directly from Christ himself!) is still on the earth is truly incredible. In 3 Nephi 11: 18-26 (below) we read of Jesus Christ giving Nephi (a prophet who wrote in the Book of Mormon) the authority to baptize and teaching him how. The exact same way he himself was baptized! And the exact same way that we baptize today.

3 Nephi 11:18-26 “(18) And it came to pass that he spake unto Nephi (for Nephi was among the multitude) and he commanded him that he should come forth. (19) And Nephi arose and went forth, and bowed himself before the Lord and did kiss his feet. (20) And the Lord commanded him that he should arise. And he arose and stood before him. (21) And the Lord said unto him: I give unto you power that ye shall baptize this people when I am again ascended into heaven. (22) And again the Lord called others, and said unto them likewise; and he gave unto them power to baptize. And he said unto them: On this wise shall ye baptize; and there shall be no disputations among you. (23) Verily I say unto you, that whoso repenteth of his sins through your words, and desireth to be baptized in my name, on this wise shall ye baptize them—Behold, ye shall go down and stand in the water, and in my name shall ye baptize them. (24) And now behold, these are the words which ye shall say, calling them by name, saying: (25) Having authority given me of Jesus Christ, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. (26) And then shall ye immerse them in the water, and come forth again out of the water.

For anyone reading this who hasn't read the Book of Mormon, I would recommend times 1,000 :) that you read 3 Nephi 11, if nothing else. Because I can testify to you, that I know Jesus Christ visited the people of the Americas. He healed them, he prayed with and for them, he taught them his true gospel. This chapter is the record of when Christ actually appears to the people. I have prayed about the Book of Mormon, many times, and every single time, I am filled with that undeniable peace that this truly is the word of God.

I know that Christ lives. I know that he is MY Savior. I know that he is aware of me! He knows every pain and sorrow and concern and joy that I have ever felt! He understands me perfectly. He gave everything for me, even his life. And I know that he did the exact same for YOU. It doesn't matter who is reading this, that statement is true: Christ knows you. He loves you. He understands you perfectly. He died for you. And as any of us turns to him, and prays to God asking for that closeness to our Savior and for strength, understanding, or help, we will FEEL that love that Christ has for us. It is more real than anything I have ever felt or learned. I know Christ lives more than I know that 2 and 2 makes 4! Did I already share Isaiah 53:5-7? It is so powerful.

Isaiah 53:5-7 (5) But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. (6) All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. (7) He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

Something I learned here in the MTC is that the gospel of Jesus Christ is simple. It is so incredible and all-encompassing and every little detail is worked out and it is greater than we could ever imagine, and yet it is so simple that a child could understand it because God wants desperately for us to understand His plan for us.

God is our Father. Not a mysterious being who doesn't know us and who we cannot know. He is our loving Father. I have felt that love wrapped around me and filling my soul. We are His children. And He loves us and will speak to us just the way any loving father would to their precious child.

Jesus Christ is God's Son. He is our Savior. Through his Atonement, we can become clean from our sins, enabling us to return to the presence of our Father and our brother Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ can and will heal us if we come to him. He loves us so much. He knows our Father and His Plan for us, and Jesus Christ made that whole plan possible!

Through baptism we make promises to God that we will keep his commandments, and through baptism, we take Christ's name upon ourselves, accepting the Atonement, and becoming clean from sin.

The gospel is about families. God LOVES families. We ARE a family. Just as He is our Father and we are His children, we grow up on this earth with parents and brothers and sisters. God's plan for us is that our families can be together forever and we can be with Him forever!

Through repentance, we can become clean over and over again through Jesus Christ, because we are not perfect, and God loves us and knows that. He loves us the way we are and asks us to do our very best. Jesus Christ makes up for the rest.

The Godhead (or Trinity) is made up of three members: God, the Father; Jesus Christ, His Son; and the Holy Ghost, who does not have a body of flesh and bones, like the Father and Son, so that he can be here on earth with us, to help us know what is right. The Holy Ghost testifies of truth. He will ALWAYS testify of truth. Every time someone bears testimony of Jesus Christ, or the Atonement, or God's love for us, or of the scriptures, the Holy Ghost will be there to testify to our hearts that it is true. Everyone feels it differently, but when you feel it, you will know! It fills my whole body with warmth. It fills me with love and desires to serve others! It enlightens my mind and understanding and brings things I need to my remembrance. It is truly an incredible gift.

Something I learn over and over again, and that has hit me so strongly lately, is how indebted I am to my Savior, Jesus Christ. And I will be forever!! Every time I do the simplest things right, trying to give back, He blesses me more! And more and more and more! Until my heart is so full it feels like it will burst open with happiness! I feel like that so much!! So often! And the times that are harder, I can turn to Christ, and he fills me with comfort. He lifts my burdens. He helps me to have strength to endure. He helps me to learn.

God is a God of love and a God of miracles. Life is so beautiful! And yet this is nothing compared to what is to come after this life! This life is just a tiny speck of the whole incredible picture!

D&C 50:24 “That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.”

I know that as we seek light and guidance, we can receive more and more! Heavenly Father has so much to teach us so that we can find greater and greater lasting joy and someday reach our full potential as His children. As His children, we have unlimited potential.

Imagine us evolving from a little piece of pond scum into fish and monkeys and finally humans. What kind of potential does that give us? I'm not really sure... But it doesn't look too promising to me.

But as children of God, the greatest, most powerful Being in the Universe, our potential is ENORMOUS! What a blessing it is in my life to know that I am a daughter of God! And to know that He loves me! It is a simple truth that changes lives, just as it has changed mine. I can promise that anyone who prays to God to know if they are His child, will receive that answer, and the feeling you get when He answers you through His Spirit, the Holy Ghost, is indescribable.

Well, I'm about out of time. I always plan on telling more about MTC life and fun stories, but whenever I sit down at the computer to type, all I can care to write about is how incredible this gospel is! How incredible our Savior is! Here is an amazing promise:

D&C 93:1 “Verily, thus saith the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am;”

Everyone who comes to Christ, follows Him, and keeps the commandments (including faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end) shall see His face. I know this to be true.

Eu sei que a Igreja de Jesus Cristo dos Santos dos Últimos Dias é verdadeira. Esta Igreja é a igreja de Jesus Cristo, nosso Salvador! Eu amo Ele! Ele é meu Redentor, meu Amigo Melhor, meu Irmaõ, meu Salvador. Deus é nosso Pai Celestial. Ele ama nós MUITO!

I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true. This church is the church of Jesus Christ, our Savior! He IS the head of this church! He leads us through a prophet just as he always has done! I love Jesus Christ. He is my Redeemer, my Best Friend, My Brother, My Savior. God is our Heavenly Father. He loves us SO MUCH!

I love you all and hope you are well! You are LOVED!

Tchau tchau! Até na próxima semana!

Com Amor,

Sister Greenall