Tacos & Tornados

Hey hey hey familia!

So last night, we were at the familia Santana's house eating some sabroso carne asada tacos when the tornado alarm went off in Des Moines! They turned on the news and lo& behold, there was a crazy storm heading right for us and there were tornadoes spotted outside of town. So we went down to the basement, pretty sure that the tornadoes and all the bad stuff was going to be north of us. As we got down to the basement, the 4 young Santana kids were pretty scared so we all knelt together and said a prayer. By the end of the simple prayer for safety and comfort, the kids were calmed down and we all decided to read from the scriptures while we waited for the tornado alert to pass. We turned to the Book of Mormon to read about when Jesus Christ came to visit the people living in the Americasafter His resurrection in Jerusalem. As we read together about Christ coming down, comforting and healing the people, and blessing their children, the Holy Ghost or peace/love of God was very strong that we all felt so happy and peaceful, even though it was super windy and rainy upstairs! It was a wonderful experience that I won't ever forget and I know the scriptures like the Bible and especially the Book of Mormon, have the power to give us peace and comfort during troubling times Just like when Christ calmed the winds and the seas when He was on a boat with His apostles, His words in the scriptures can calm the storms in our hearts and minds as we read & ponder them :)

(ps 5 tornadoes touched down in Ames, IA!!!)

Also, we had the opportunity teach this 10 year old African boy named Godgive! We played a little basketball with him and his friend in the dirt then sat down on some rocks to teach them about the Plan of Salvation, which is God's plan of happiness for each of us. It was sweet because we drew out the plan (pre-earth life, earth life, spirit world after death, and kingdoms of glory) in the dirt with a rock haha the Spirit was strong and the boys loved the lesson! I felt like I was serving in Africafor an hour haha well, I gotta go but I love each of you! The Plan of Salvation is centered on Jesus Christ and His Atonements. This is taught by all the prophets in the scriptures and we can read and learn for ourselves. This knowledge gives us each inner peace, a happiness for life, and hope for a bright future. I love you all!

Elder Seth McGinn

ps Remember to SMILE :)