Families

Hey everybody!

It has been a great week and probably the fastest one of my life thus far haha Time is flying out here!  Mom- It was just a cold and I am feeling much better. Don't worry about the agrespt b/c I will honestly never use that nasty stuff :) Make sure Dad is still using it though!  And I have never heard of dedicating a zone before but hey, we don't have any mountains to climb out here either haha Transfers is coming up next week but I think I will stay in Des Moines with Elder Andreasen. He is great and time is flying by b/c we get along so well.

The 5ta Rama (5th Branch) is growing so much! It has been such a blessing to see sacrament attendance go from the 80's in April to now in the 100's! Rosario and her family are still progressing and we are reading the Book of Mormon with her as we go over to teach her. Also, we pulled an Ammon with her and spent 3 hours vacuuming/deep cleaning her carpet on Saturday. She loved it and made us some great food for lunch! Service generated by Christ-like love opens even the hardest hearts :) President Jensen came out teaching with us last week and he is a boss!! He is so loving and humble. He is absolutely pure and carries the Spirit with him everywhere he goes. We taught Rosario with him and also Soraida and Kerlin. Soraida is still super flakey and didn't come to Church on Sunday :/ Kerlin wants to be baptized really bad but we need his mom to act on the testimony that she told us she has! It is a hard situation b/c her husband doesn't support her at all!

That brings me to share what I really internalized this week: the power of families! A husband and wife who are committed, dedicated, and respectful to each other is so important! It is so clear how vital those things are in order for them to raise a family and live together in peace and love. Unfortunately, families like this are becoming extinct!!! It is so hard to find this now-a-days and I honor my parents for being great examples! God's Plan for Happiness is centered on families like these and they are being attacked today. I have learned that the strength of a society or nation is in its families. So I hope that we can remember that success in family life is most likely to be achieved when the family is founded upon the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Living the gospel and the commandments of Heavenly Father is the key to living a happy, quality life :) I know this is true because I see it everyday. So evaluate your happiness and your life and envision your future. We are children of God, offspring of a perfectly loving Father in Heaven. Smile!

Love Elder McGinn