The beauty of Agency

March 31, 2014

Hello everyone! 

This week I have come to learn a lesson really important, and that is the beauty of Free Agency.  Everyday I teach about how we have all been given free agency and are free to choose what we will do in this life, but only recently I have come to understand WHY this is so beautiful in the eyes of God.

Yes, part of the mission is inviting and inviting and having people NOT keep commitments.  But honestly yesterday when I was sitting in sacrament meeting surrounded by 12 investigators in whom I dearly love every one of them, I opened my eyes to the beauty of the occasion.  12 people who all have different problems and doubts all CHOSE for themselves to get up early, and to come to church.  Many chose NOT to work and to come to church instead. Not a single one was forced to do this, everyone of them was prompted by the spirit to do so.  I felt such a great joy sitting amongst them all and finally began to understand the type of joy our Father in Heaven feels when we choose to do what is right.  The power to choose really does bring such great joy into our lives.  I now understand why agency was part of the plan since the beginning, it brings the Father great joy too!

Yesterday a man named Bismark came to church all on his own.  We didn't recognize him so we went to go get to know him.  Turns out that last Sunday he attended in a different building with the Plan 3000 Ward.  The Elders there directed him to come and attended in our casa capilla because he lives in our area.  We talked with him at church and set an appointment to visit him last night.  In the visit he told us and David (The member we brought with us to the lesson who is the same age as him) that after he went to church in Plan 3000 he felt something special, he told us in the first few instances in the lesson that he has prayed and asked God if our church is true, he then told us that he KNOWS that our church is true!  We had given him a pamphlet of the Restoration at church, and he had read it all that afternoon. We then taught the first lesson and literally I have never in my life felt the spirit so strong!  As we talked with him about what he read and learned, really we were just taking turns with him testifying of the reality of the restored gospel.  He truly is a GOLDEN investigator!  He committed to be baptized before I could even finish the invitation!  ¨Will you follow the example of Jesus Christ...¨ ¨YES!  YES! YES I WILL!¨  It was the most epic and powerful experience I've had yet in the mission.  I know with out a doubt that God has restored His church once more upon this earth.  That this church will NEVER again be taken away, and this great and marvelous work in which I am so blessed to be a part of will continue to RUN forward because God is preparing his children.

I love you all so much!  I only hope that you all can feel the joy and excitement that I feel=)

Love,

Élder Bender