At least this time I left my salutation open for both genders!
As time continues to pass, I find myself continuing to grow line upon line and precept upon precept. Since the time that I have become a leader, I have become so keenly aware of my weaknesses. I take it as a sign that I am slowly coming closer to Christ. I have, recently, come to fall in love with hymn 131 "More Holiness Give Me". The first time I remember hearing this song was actually when I was in Agona Nkwanta. We sang it in a sacrament meeting and I was so touched by the words. The song is a prayer to The Lord that He will help us to become better and better until the perfect day. I have found that this song has become my own daily prayer to The Lord. Yes, we face so many disappointments and we fail everyday, but the beautiful truth is that Christ has provided a way. Because of Him we can all BECOME more than we are.
My testimony is becoming more and more sure that God does hear and answer my prayers. One night, this week, I found myself on my knees pleading for forgiveness, and I was overwhelmed by The Spirit. The thing that made this experience so special was my unusual awareness of the fact that God was listening to me. It was as if I was having a conversation with my dad back home. My father is really one of the greatest listeners I know. He listens with love and it always made me to feel at peace when I could talk to him about my problems. Well, this experience praying was exactly the same. I could feel the love that Heavenly Father had for me as I prayed unto Him. He listens. It inspires me to become a better listener. I wrote this experience down in my journal because it was so sacred to me. There are few times that I have felt His love so intimately in my life.
I am learning to recognize God's love and return it to Him. I recently read a quote that says: "Understanding God's love for you + feeling love for the Savior= Loving everyone around you". I have a great desire to increase that love that I have for both God and my fellow man. Charity is truly the greatest of all, and I have come to understand that personally on my mission.
I pray that each of us will find ways to manifest the love of God to others through ministering. It is a divinely appointed way for us to learn how to love in The Savior's way.