Charity Never Faileth!

       Good morning everyone!  It's been another great week here in the great city of Issaquah!  I just truly love it here!  Fall is here, and it's just beautiful.  I hope that all is well, and you are all safe.  

     We have been working with Sky to prepare her for her baptism on Saturday.  We are so excited for her!  The most amazing aspect of a mission is watching the lives of those we teach, change!  They become truly happy, filled with the Light of Christ and they begin to see that they can achieve their goals and their dreams!  That’s what I love about the gospel, it's all about hope!  Hope and a sure knowledge that God lives, He loves us, and will carry us all along our way! What greater knowledge can there be? 

     This past week we went to visit one of our recent converts Natalie.  She is just blooming in the gospel and loving it so much! We sat and talked with her about the Book of Mormon and how we can make it a part of our lives.  She said, “I just love that book, I have to read it every morning and night!  It's just something I can't put down!  I need more and more of it!”  When she said that I was so happy.  I think often we overlook the importance of the Book of Mormon!  A book, written for us, specifically in our day to lead and guide us as individuals, sons and daughters, and parents!  It’s the guide and compass to our lives!  What a blessing it is to be able to have that, it's amazing to think of the sacrifce that occurred for us to receive that devine book!  I stand with the Prophets of today and the Prophets of old and declare that I know that book to be true.  As we read it, ponder it, and apply it in our lives we cannot fail!  It’s a solid foundation upon which we can draw closer to our Savior.  Over the past month especially I have been so drawn to that Book.  Every morning we read it, our apartment is filled with the Spirit of the Lord.  It’s a true blessing.  
      One more experience that really touched my life, was with another recent convert!  She began to cry when we talked with her, and said, “As you know I lost my job, we are struggling financially. I just received a 100 dollar check from an anonymous person in the ward!  And it's what I need to support my family this month.”  To me that’s what this gospel is about!  That’s what Christ wants us to do!  Serve and support each other!  We all are so blessed with opportunities to give and support our Father in Heaven in uplifting those around us!  I am so grateful for this church!  I LOVE IT!  And hope you all have a great week!
Love,
Elder Aiken

Act Like Ammon!

All of my former/current companions!

     Good Monday everyone!  This has been another great and growing week for me!  Elder Keith Edwards of the Second Quorum of the Seventy came and spoke to our mission and it was just amazing.  He served as Mission President in Zimbabwe and lived in the Philippines for five years working for the church.  His spirit that he brought to our meetings was so powerful, a true disciple of Jesus Christ.  There were so many things that touched me - I learned things that will benefit me the rest of my life.  I was so blessed to be there.  I was struck by his teachings of beginning to look outward in our lives.  He directed us to the story of Ammon in the Book of Mormon.  Ammon gives all to go the land of Ishamael, a group of greatly feared enemies.  After sometime of talking with the King over the land of Ishamael, King Lamoni, he offers him many things! King Lamoni really admires Ammon: "And it came to pass that king Lamoni was much pleased with Ammon, and caused that his bands should be loosed: and he would that Ammon should take one of his daughters to wife.  But Ammon said unto him: Nay, but I will be thy servant. Therefore Ammon became a servant to king Lamoni.” In life Satan always gives us oppurtunites to become selfish and full of pride.  Ammon chose to rise above, look beyond himself, and look outward.  That to me is so powerful and is the greatest lesson we can all learn in life.  As we begin to stop thinking about ourselves, and look past our own desires and wants, we are blessed!  God guides us to mighty miracles and blessings that can uplift and guide us all of our lives!  My favorite quote, a quote that I try to live by “Assume the good, and doubt the bad.”  As we forget ourselves and serve others, we become filled with charity, which love Christ had so perfectly!  The whole meeting seemed to be on charity and how it has blessed him all his life.  I left that meeting with a changed heart, with a firm determination to live my life so that we can one day see the face of our Savior.  

     After the meeting he met with each of the Zone leaders personally, and his advice was so powerful.  We talked together mostly about faith!  He said “In life we must do more than the minimums.  In our faith we must do the same.”  We all at times have the tendency to just do the minimums, go to church and pray. In all reality will that ever get us anywhere?  He said “God wants us closer to Him, don’t stray!  And don’t do the minimums!”  In Alma we are told that the purpose of this life is to prepare to meet God. We have been given so many amazing tools to help us return into His presence.  How blessed we are.  As we do more than the bare minimums, we will have an increase of the spirit in our lives, the spirit that guides us to all truth!

     Saturday we had such a great baptism of Lisa!  It was so powerful and so touching.  She truly has come so far.  It was amazing to see her radiate after!  She just grabbed our hands after leaving church yesterday and said "thank you so much!"  You'll never know.  She is such a sweet and tender spirit.  Yesterday at Churh, Sky, a young women we have been teaching came up to us and said “I want to be baptized Oct 1^st in the afternoon.” OK!! Yeah we can make that happen.  It's an amazing miracle!  Her mom, an inactive member who she hasn’t seen in four years is coming to town that weekend! A complete answer to her prayers as she has been praying so hard to know what to do.  

     This work is amazing.  We are all trying to be true disciples of our devine Savior Jesus Christ.  He truly is the Light and the life of all.  I am eternally grateful for the blessings of this time out here!  I love you all.  Have a safe and happy week! Happy Fall!

Love,

Elder Aiken

How Firm a Foundation!

     Hello everyone!!  I hope you have all had a great week like we have here in Issaquah.  Another week full of mostly sun, what a blessing!  Fall is coming around the corner and the beauty of Washington is remarkable. 

     This week, God has led us to many souls in search of the Gospel, it's just fascinating to see the hand of God.  Months ago we received a referral from Mormon.org from a young woman named Megan.  She is a young lady that had asked to receive a Book of Mormon.  A few weeks ago we were finally able to get in and teach her!  Last week we came back after she received a Book of Mormon and she just began to cry.  She said “I have always felt this my whole in my life, I have always wanted to draw closer to God.  I knelt down and God told me that the Book of Mormon was true! I want this so badly.”  She was really scared because her parents had expressed that it might not be something she could do.  But this past week her parents gave her permission to be baptized!  She has already read over half of the Book of Mormon, and she can't put it down.  She seems to be teaching us more than we are teaching her!  It's just amazing, the promise given in the Book of Mormon, its real!  I know it with all my heart. God promises us that if we read that book and ask with a sincere heart, he will tell us if its true!  He never fails on that promise.  Megan's life is changing before our eyes, she is finally seeing the truth and the importance of drawing closer to God.  Her faith is building and life is ever changing.  

     This weekend we will be baptizing Lisa.  She is such a tender spirit.  Lisa is a single mom that has had a bit of a hard life!  I knocked on her door about 9 months ago now, and a few weeks ago she just showed up at church and has been coming with a friend ever since.  There is a hymn that we sung this week in church that touched my soul.  It’s the hymn “How Firm a Foundation” and the line that I love reads:  “In every condition in sickness, In health, In povertys vale or abounding in wealth, at home or abroad, on the land or the sea, As thy days may demand, as thy days may demand, as thy days may demand, so thy succor shall be.” I have seen the same pattern over and over again, that God will always be there despite our demands.  No matter where we are in life He loves us and wants us to enter His fold and return to live with Him again.  The calling to be a missionary is simply the greatest we can receive, to preach that God has restored a way to return and live with Him as families forever!  It’s a true blessing from heaven.

     The past week I think I have met half of the Atheists that have ever lived!  My mind has been caught up in wondering how I do know that God does live.  And it's simple.  We must act and not be acted upon.  We must search for God, if He simply revealed Himself to all of us without any effort, this life would have been pointless.  We wouldn’t grow!  But that’s this journey, we are here to prepare to meet God!  As we do so, God has shown me many experiences and I have seen His unchanging hand lift me from so many things.  I love the fact that I do know that God lives!  And He will reveal Himself to us and guide us all our lives!  I love you all. I hope you stay safe and know that you are loved.

Love, 

Elder Aiken

Power of a Message

     What an amazing week.  I love my life here, I've been so richly blessed!  I am so grateful to my Father in Heaven and the lessons that He has taught me here.  I wish that it could never end.  Finding people that are so saddened by life and helping them truly understand the Atonement is pure joy. There is nothing more fulfilling in this life.  I love it with all of my heart.  

     One particular instance of this past week was teaching a woman named Carol.  She might be the most charitable woman I have ever met.  Carol's husband is an alcoholic and has left for a time to try and turn his life around.  And so that sweet woman is left to be a single mom to her 4 year old autistic son.  I know with all of my heart that God sent us to her.  The gospel is the answer to all of her prayers. We gave her a mormon.org (http://mormon.org/me/141P)  and when we came back she said, “ I haven't been able to stop watching all of the videos on mormon.org!  They fill me with such peace and hope.  We had the most amazing lesson that day.  It's so great to see how God knows each and everyone of us.  It truly is!  I am so grateful for that knowledge. Carol came to church on Sunday and just loved it!  We are so grateful to be guides in her life to help her find the truth.

     This week was really busy!  So many neat things that are happening in our mission! MORMON.ORG IS COMING TO TOWN!!  The church is doing a huge advertising campaign beginning October 1^st until mid March. We are so excited!  It's going to be amazing. That website is just the best missionary tool for members.  The people from Proselyting and Marketing for the church came and trained us on the campaign!  We are counting down the days.  It's going to be on billboards, buses, tv, and radio! The church is trying to dispel myths and misconceptions, and share with people how their lives can be blessed through our message. What a great thing this will be. 

     On Saturday Elder Berry and I took a trip to drop off a car in Seattle to a missionary sent down there. We had quite a long drive and a lot of time to think.  My mind was caught up in the joys of missionary work and just how much I appreciate this.  I have never felt so much charity in all my life than through serving with missionaries.  It's such a blessing.  I thought about the time we are given here to serve and just how precious it is!  God gives us two years to work side by side with He and His son Jesus Christ!  To learn from them, to learn all that we need to learn to progress in this life and the life to come. We get to be with them for two full years! What a blessing it is that God gives us this time.  I am so grateful for it! 

     I love you all.  I hope you all have a great week and are staying faithful in the Gospel!  It is true happiness, it is peace, and it brings us to where we want to be!! I LOVE YOU.

Elder Aiken