Hastening the Work in the Argentina Mendoza Mission : Swallowed up in the joy of Christ

Dear Family:

Wow. What a week. I suppose I've just got to start by saying that all this news about Grandpa was really unexpected! I was really sad when I heard the news. It was just so random! When I saw that President Goates was calling me on Thursday it was definitely the last thing I expected to hear him say. I hope all of you are doing well.... Send my condolences to Grandma especially.

I'm doing okay though. I got the phone call from President on Thursday it was about the hour of the ciesta, when we're in our pension doing the other half of our studies. He had actually called me on Tuesday to do the Ecclesiastical Endorsement interview for BYU, so I was kind of expecting a follow up or something of that. But, it definitely wasn't. I sat there after the phone call just wondering in disbelief at how this all could have happened. What President had told me didn't make any sense, because Grandpa didn't have any health problems really and I was just kind of confused, sad, and to the point of tears. I even asked myself why I had to lose two grandpas on the mission, none of it really made any sense. Elder Levander was off in a different room so he could read out loud to himself in Spanish, so I just knelt down and offered a quick prayer.

Right before President called though I was just studying for next week's district meeting, which is about the role of the Spirit in conversion, and I had just opened up the Book of Mormon in Alma 31:38. And then I got up from my prayer and sat back down to start reading again, cause I really had nothing else to do. And I just felt this overwhelming sense of comfort that I had never really experienced before. If you read the scripture it says this:

38 And the Lord provided for them that they should hunger not, neither should they thirst; yea, and he also gave them strength, that they should suffer no manner of afflictions, save it were swallowed up in the joy of Christ. Now this was according to the prayer of Alma; and this because he prayed in faith.

What an answer to a prayer, right? The Lord just basically told me "Go and work, and everything will be alright." That's what Alma and all his bretheren did when they went and preached to the Zoramites. So, in short, that's what we did this week. I'm doing alright here. Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. I'm just going to go work.

So what did I learn this week? God is awesome. And he does in fact hear and answer our prayers, and comforts us and strengthens us in times of need. That's my short sermon for this week.

I love you all. I wish you all the best.

Elder Bingham.

P.S. Yesterday I made Philly Cheese Steaks in honor of Grandpa. They were delicious. I just wish there was Dr. Pepper here.