The Gospel is the Best

Happy Valentines Day!

As far as getting things done, this has been the best week of my mission. From a numbers standpoint we had amazing success! We worked hard, got the members involved in just about everything we did, and we were blessed in so many ways by the Lord. We have so many people that we are teaching, that it is very difficult to get to them all. We try to prioritize, but it always feels like we let someone down, or that someone slipped through the cracks. This ward is also pretty needy. I think I've given more blessings and rendered more service in the past four weeks here, than I have in my entire mission if not my entire life. It's pretty nice to always have something to do. Never do I feel that I'm not working to my full capacity. There is no issue of working hard, I just evaluate the day and decide if I worked as smart as I could have.

I don't think I've mentioned this, but we have been teaching a man named Tom and a woman named Laurie. Tom has been taught for quite a while, but we started teaching Laurie the second day I got here. They both live right next to each other and both know a member who also lives right next to them (Sis Hernandez) and so we teach them both at her house. They are all really close and are always together, so they are able to strengthen each other and help each other out with the homework assignments we give them. Anyway, they both have accepted invitations to be baptized, and should both be baptized on the 27th. Hurray! They have both changed so much. I love being over at that house. We teach a lot of people there, and there are always members who are there hanging out who will help us teach. The Gospel is the best!

This Sunday we found out that it is David A. Bednar who is coming to speak to us. I'm so excited! I know that it will be a huge blessing and benefit to both the people of New Jersey, as well as it's full time missionaries. I really can't tell you how much I love this mission. All the time we are reminded of how our mission is bucking the trend of the East Coast. The work in most of the missions out here is slow and has been getting slower. Our mission has made enormous improvement from year to year since President Bahr has been the mission president. I can't remember the exact statistics off the top of my head, but the baptisms here per year have increased from like150 to 300, to 400. Our goal for this year as a mission is 500 baptisms. In the first month of this year, we set a record for most baptisms in a month for this mission. The previous record was 45 and we had 58! It's an exciting time to be here and especially to be a zone leader and have a direct impact on the planning and carrying out of our goals. I really have learned so much on how to be successful as a missionary, which directly translates to success in life. I will forever be grateful and in even more debt to the Lord, for the opportunity I have to serve as a missionary. I can't even come close to describing the life-changing, no eternity changing effect it can have on you as a child of God, if you will but give yourself completely to the Lord's work and serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength. "He will create of you more than you will ever, ever in all eternity create of yourself. You will create of yourself a smudge, he will create of you a masterpiece..." (I forgot who said that). It's so amazing that when you not only forget yourself, but lose yourself in helping others, that you actually find yourself and end up gaining more than you ever could by focusing on what you need. We are a church of service. I think many of us forget that. It's sad to see members who "can't" magnify their calling because they're "too busy". I wish everyone truly believed that their church calling was just as important, and in my opinion much more important, than their profession, or hobbies. Oh well, one day they will learn. It may not be in this life, but when they stand before God and give an accounting of their life, they will learn. I love serving the Lord. I pray that we all will find a greater desire to do so, and they we will re-prioritize our lives. What's really important in life? What's really important in the Eternities? I love you all and hope you continue to find peace and happiness through the Great and Everlasting Gospel.

Love, Elder Tilley