Elder Preston Armstrong : Week Ninety-Three

Hey guys!

This week was legit. I went on exchange again to the Mumbai Zone and had a great time working there. It's a wonderful place to be and it is super hot there, humid and muggy and sunny. I was never dry and it was the best. I love the members there as well. It was a great experience going there for a few days and then it was back to Delhi for the regular work in my area, which is also amazing, I can't get over how lucky I am to be here in India. We had MLC this week and that's always a great opportunity to train and to help our mission leaders grow.

We also had a great P-Day change to Wednesday so we could go to some sights around Delhi...we chose to go to 2 temples. One is the Lotus Temple of the Bahai faith, very nice people and an interesting religion. Then we went to Akshardham temple, which is a Hindu temple I have been to before, but the Elders in my district hadn't been and so I took them. It was a really great time to see the other religions of the world and learn of their beliefs, which is one of the best things I could have experienced as a missionary. Back home I thought the whole world was Idaho Mormons...there is so much more to the world when you start talking about religious beliefs. Ever since coming here the whole subject of religion has really captivated me and I love to learn about other's beliefs through meeting them and hearing their stories. From all of these experiences piled up over the last 20 plus months I have learned a few things. Number one, it is very clear to me to see that at one point, at the very beginning of the world, there was one Faith and Truth. But through the agency and mistakes of man so much of that truth has been lost over time. Even Hinduism, a religion that looks very different from Mormonism has small similarities that to me, point out that at one time it was all one truth. The other thing I have learned is that Religion is very very important. I don't care what religion it is, I don't care who or what you worship, I don't care where or why you worship, but Faith in a higher power is a very important thing to society. Religion teaches us to be kind and loving and to hope for something better. I meet people who believe in everything as God, and I meet people who believe very strongly in one God or religion, and yes they are tougher to teach about Jesus Christ but they are always better people in the end, because of their belief that they are accountable to God. I meet many people who are atheist or agnostic and I respect their beliefs but I also know how much it can help to have a belief in God and a trust that he is there watching over you. I want all of you to know that I believe that we have a Heavenly Father, who created us in his Image, and that he knows us and loves us perfectly. I know that he has a plan for us and that he truly cares about us and the decisions we make. I hope everyday that I can find someone who I can help learn more about God and help them to develop a relationship with him because I know how important it is to have faith. Faith is a wonderful thing that changes lives. I hope all of us will follow the teachings of our modern day prophets who teach about religious freedom more frequently than ever. Being religious is a wonderful thing, but it's going out of style quick and faithful latter-day saints are to "hope for a better world". I believe we have the ability to change the world, and I hope you'll try to do that this week.

Love,

Elder Armstrong