Church is awesome!

Cara Famiglia,

How is everything? Busto is awesome! We are having a great week and just tearing it up here. This Sunday we had seven non-members in church! Including Isaac, our awesome golden Nigerian friend, and two other Nigerian brothers who we found this week. It was awesome to see them there and be able to feel the spirit of church!

So Isaac is still going great! We taught him about baptism with a member during the first hour of church and it went great! He really wants to be baptized. And then last night we taught him again with a member and we taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and it went really good! So he is progressing well, reading the Book of Mormon and praying and still hoping to be baptized on the 10th of December. Although it will be a miracle if he can get married by then. But pray for him to be able to obey the Law of Chastity! The other two Nigerian brothers we brought to church are Thomas and Augustin. They are refugees from Libya! They literally ran away from war to get on a boat and make it here with just the clothes on their backs and are living in a guest house here under the custody of the UN. It is a little bit tough to teach them because they mainly speak Pidgin English, but they came to church and are reading the Book of Mormon! We are seeing them again tomorrow. They are great.

Other than that we are doing a bunch of finding work. We talked about it in District Meeting this week about how finding work isn't just finding people, it's finding your family members who need the gospel! They aren't from someone else's family either! So we are really working hard as we contact people to love them and just bear pure testimony about how the restored gospel will bless their lives!

I read through Enos the other day, and I really liked an idea that Enos put into practice:

10 And while I was thus struggling in the spirit, behold, the voice of the Lord came into my mind again, saying: I will visit thy brethren according to their diligence in keeping my commandments. I have given unto them this land, and it is a holy land; and I curse it not save it be for the cause of iniquity; wherefore, I will visit thy brethren according as I have said; and their transgressions will I bring down with sorrow upon their own heads.

11 And after I, Enos, had heard these words, my faith began to be unshaken in the Lord; and I prayed unto him with many long strugglings for my brethren, the Lamanites.

I liked the idea of 'struggling in the spirit'. It is really true sometimes that we may have to struggle to recognize, understand, and follow the spirit's promptings, but when we do that our faith begins to be unshaken! I wish all my prayers were like that, but prayer, as the Bible Dictionary says, is a form of work! I know that as we diligently work on improving our prayers, to make them more sincere, specific, and spirit-guided we will truly see miracles happen in our lives. I know Jesus Christ is our Savior, and that this is his "one true and living church". I love this work, and I love you all a lot!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Hello from Laveno!

Cara Famiglia,

I'm currently using the biblioteca in Laveno, Italy at Lago Maggiore and don't have lot's of time. We came here for P-day, it's a pretty little town! It kind of reminds me of New England a bit. I'll try and send pictures maybe next week. 

The work here is going well! We are teaching Isaac still and he is rockin' a baptismal date for the 10th of December. We are teaching him the Plan of Salvation tonight with a member who speaks English (served his mission in the England Manchester Mission). He is doing well, and came to church on Sunday! He asked "Do you think the members will mind that I don't speak Italian when I get baptized?" Haha it was kind of funny, but he is doing real well. Pray for him to get a job though. We are also working with our other investigators, basically trying to find time to see them (Blandine, Saul, Roberta, Ravith). But as far as we can tell they are still doing okay. 

We are starting an English class! They haven't had one the entire time I've been here so that's going to be exciting. We are doing it Saturday mornings and we spent a bit of time yesterday putting up flyers in Busto centro. We even had some people call us about it! 

This week the letter may be a little short, so I hope this spiritual thought would go along with that. In the book of Jacob (which is actually a gold mine of awesome scriptures), chapter 6 verse 12 reads: "O be wise; what can I say more?" It's so simple, but so true! If everyone just did things wisely and really thought about the eternal consequences of their actions, the world would probably go much better. I know that it is wise to follow Jesus Christ, and that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I know this work is the greatest thing I could ever do. I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Milan soccer stadium pictures!

Busto Transfer #4!

Cara Famiglia,

Well I have a new companion! I would say that was the biggest difference this week here in Busto Arsizio. It was kind of strange not having Anziano Webb by my side, but Anziano Mitchell is just great! He is in his third transfer and is a stud already. He asks really good questions to people. 

Anyway, the work is going good. We have had trouble seeing Saul and Blandine the past couple days, but we will see them soon and help them get back on track. The big miracle this week started on Sunday. As church was starting we got a call from some random number. So we called them back and it was this guy named Isaac who says "Hey! You are those missionaries right? You guys gave me your card a couple months ago and I want to know where your church is so I can come today!" We were speechless! Pass-along cards work! But anyway, he couldn't actually come that day because it was raining and he didn't have a car, but we saw him yesterday, and he is the man! He is from Nigeria, and has been in Italy for about three years. He met some sister missionaries in Bergamo about a year ago but was too busy to take any lessons with them. But now he's just chillin' in Gallarate with his fianceè, so he is ready and willing to learn and to be baptized the 10th of December! And his fianceè Rita is also pretty interested! Basically it was one of the coolest miracles ever heard of. We are super excited to teach him. 

We went to Milano today for P-day, so that was fun. Saw a bit of the Duomo and the Galleria Vittorio Emmanuele again, which is always fun. The Duomo in Milano really is an amazing building. 

This week I read one of my favorite chapters in the Book of Mormon: 2 Nephi 29! It is just laying down the law about more scripture. I really like how strong the language is and how it reminds us that we don't tell God when his work is finished. I'm really grateful that we have the Book of Mormon to be proof of that, that God loves all his children. I know that it's true, and that this work is directed by our Heavenly Father! I know Jesus is the Christ, the redeemer and savior of the world, and I know that through him comes true happiness. I love you all tons and tons!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Miracles!

Cara Famiglia,

Well like always, miracles are happening in Busto Arsizio. There are also good investigators here. I swear, every day we find people that are super elect and so clearly need the Gospel, it's ridiculous. We are working still with Saul. He is having trouble reading, but he is still praying and is super awesome. Not too many 16 year olds I know would be spending their time meeting with missionaries and trying to fight the right path in their life to follow God. So he is still the man. Also Blandine is progressing very well. She reads and understands everything great! We taught her part two of the Plan of Salvation last night with a member and it went very well. We also had a good lesson with Ravith and Elisabeth yesterday, even though it's tough for them to understand it was great for them to realize for themselves that if they want to resolve their confusion they have to read the Book of Mormon and pray about it. 

Other than that we had some good miracles. We went to Somma Lombardo(this little town where Rafael, one of our new converts lives), where I don't think missionaries have ever done finding work before. But we had a cool experience. Right as we walked out of the train station we were happy because there are some tall palazzi there that we were excited to knock. But first we stopped and talked to this lady walking her dog on the street. Her name was Chiara, and we talked with her about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon. And it turns out she has been searching through religions for the truth for a long time! After we explained the Book of Mormon she was like "Oh I really want a copy of this book, where can I get it?" And she said a prayer for us right there on the street (after asking us how she can pray correctly to communicate with God), and said "I don't think it's by chance that I met you guys here today!" So she is awesome. We also had an awesome Sunday where we taught five lessons! It was great, and we got a couple good new investigators out of it. More to come on them. 

Oh and the big transfer news is that Anziano Webb is going to Verona! Yeah, the beautiful city of Romeo e Giulietta! My new companion will be a certain Anziano Mitchell, who has been in Italy about three months and is coming from Collegno (a suburb of Torino). It should be fun! 

Another funny random side note: I don't know if I've ever mentioned this before, but Anziano Webb falls down a lot. I hope as I describe this I don't sound like I'm making fun of him because we both laugh at it and he truly is coordinated, but he trips over things alllllll the time! The other day he tripped over a thing on the ground that was maybe a 1/2 cm incline. I will miss him as a companion!

This week's spiritual thought is from the doctrinal powerhouse chapter of 2 Nephi 9. I really like verses 50-52:

50 Come, my brethren, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters; and he that hath no money, come buy and eat; yea, come buy wine and milk without money and without price.

51 Wherefore, do not spend money for that which is of no worth, nor your labor for that which cannot satisfy. Hearken diligently unto me, and remember the words which I have spoken; and come unto the Holy One of Israel, and feast upon that which perisheth not, neither can be corrupted, and let your soul delight in fatness.

52 Behold, my beloved brethren, remember the words of your God; pray unto him continually by day, and give thanks unto his holy name by night. Let your hearts rejoice.

It's like a spiritual buffet! When we come unto Christ our spirits are filled and there is no price except the "heart and a willing mind." I love the Gospel! I'm grateful for the opportunities every day to share this message with people who need it and see the impact it has in their lives. I know the Book of Mormon is the word of God, and that Joseph Smith was a true prophet of God! 

I love you all lots!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

It's Cold!

Cara Famiglia,

So today is actually pretty nice, but the cold weather is arriving here in the Busto Arsizio/Legnano Metropolitan area. I got to wear my big coat for the first time since February! Other than that, the work is going good! We are working on finding new investigators, but the ones we have are progressing nicely. Last week I may have mentioned that we were seeing Blandine last Wednesday, the first time we had seen her since two months ago when we saw her for the first time and taught her the Restoration. Turns out she is golden! She had been praying ever since then in the way we taught her and is just awesome! She has a baptismal date for November 19th now and we have seen her three times in the past week with solid members! She loves reading the Book of Mormon and learning about the Plan of Salvation, so she is awesome. Saul is also still the man. We saw him on Monday and he finally opened up to us! We talked a bunch about prayer and the Holy Ghost and how it works and the spirit was really strong! He is doing great, and will be baptized for sure! He even came to Stake Conference in Milano this past Sunday! Those are the main two investigators for now, and we are also still working with Ravith/Elisabeth, our Sri Lankan/Ecuadorian couple, Roberta, and Arthur. So things are going very well.

We had our bikes stolen this week! That was a fun experience. It was kind of our bad, because we left them locked up overnight at the Busto station, but we had done it before and we were already getting a ride home late from the member who took us to see Blandine. So now we're rocking out on a nice new mountain bike. Look out Legnano! Also, I now totally understand in the Godfather the line 'Leave the gun, take the cannolle.' Cannolli siciliani are soooooooo good! I recommend finding if there are real Siciliani anywhere in DC that make cannolli. They are really delicious. 

Today we went to the San Siro Stadium in Milano! It was really cool! We got to see the musem they have that tells the history of both Milano teams, the field (but not go on it), and walk around the stands and see the Inter locker room (Milan's was closed today because they play tonight). It was awesome, and I will send pictures too.

Today I wanted to share a cool scripture I found reading the Book of Mormon today. In 2 Nephi 5 it talks about how Nephi and fam keep all the commandments, observe the law, and heed the Lord's advice to flee from his brothers who are trying to kill him. Then they get to build the temple! I liked how it describes their life in verse 27:

27 And it came to pass that we lived after the manner of happiness.

Living after the manner of happiness seems like a really cool idea to me. We can see from Nephi and his family's example what the manner of happiness truly consists of. I know that as we are obedient and seek to follow Jesus Christ, we can live 'after the manner of happiness.' I know the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I love you all!

-Anziano Benjamin Smith

Miracles and Birthday!

Cara Famiglia,

 

Well this week was just awesome! Anziano Webb and I are having an awesome time here in Busto Arsizio. The work is picking up too! We have unfortunately not been able to see Arthur though this past week. He stood us up when we had a member come to the lesson on Saturday and everything, so we passed by the next day and he was super sick, wrapped up in a blanket and just about to go to the hospital. So we gave him a blessing! It was cool, and when he gets back from the hospital we hope to be able to keep teaching him. He doesn't know how long he'll be there though. Saul is also good, we just keep teaching him and he's super open to everything. He kind of shares the opinion of his parents in that he doesn't want to be baptized if it's a mistake, so we just have to make sure he gets a super solid testimony. Pray for him to get answers to his prayers! Another miracle we had this week was with an Italian family of five! Anziano Dean and I found them on a scambio two weeks ago, and they gave us a bidone the Sunday after when we were supposed to see them. So we called them and they had read the pamphlet we left and said 'Look, we don't really think we're going to change our religion', but they agreed to let us come over again anyway. So we went over on Sunday and had an awesome Restoration lesson with them! They understood everything perfectly, and agreed to be baptized when they know it's true! We are super excited for them and will go back to see them on Saturday. Miracles just pile up here. I dunno if I mentioned but it's actually a mission standard of excellence to recognize a miracle every single day. So for the past couple weeks we have been writing a miracle on a sticky note every night during planning and putting it up on the wall. And the wall is getting full! It helps us remember how much the Lord has blessed us.

 

We are also working with some other people who I may have mentioned in the past: Ravith and Elisabeth. He is from Sri Lanka, she's from Ecuador. They live together and have a seven year old daughter named Mariam. They are super nice but they are really busy and hard to teach because neither of them speak Italian perfectly, and we don't have any material except selections of the Book of Mormon in Sindhala for Ravith. But they are awesome, we had a good lesson with them with a member last night. Roberta is also cool, we weren't able to see her this week because all of a sudden Monday morning we went to give a blessing to the Second Counselor in our ward who is suffering badly from cancer. He went to Germany for a special two month treatment today, so pray for him!

 

Other than that everything is great. We have interviews tomorrow, and then Saturday we get to go to a special meeting with missionaries with Walter F. Gonzalez of the Presidency of the Seventy! And then Sunday is Stake Conference. So we will be spending a good amount of time in Milano this week. Today was great, Anziano Webb even woke up early to make me breakfast in bed! Haha it was really funny, I did not see it coming at all, but Anziano Webb is the man. Then we went and did shopping and slept and threw the (american) football around. A relatively normal P-day. Next Tuesday is Anziano Webb's birthday though, so we are going to go see the Milano Stadium for P-day next week.

 

So today I read 2 Nephi 2 during personal study and it just about blew my mind. It's amazing! It covers so many aspects of the Gospel and really brings in the full effect of the Fall of Adam and Eve as a personal thing. Anziano Webb and I were talking about it and thinking how every single emotion we feel is thanks to the Fall. So thanks Adam and Eve, you guys rock! I know that Jesus Christ is the Savior and Redeemer of the world, and that this is His work. I know that the Gospel of Jesus Christ changes lives. I know the Book of Mormon is true, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is led by living apostles and prophets! I love you all a lot! Thanks for your prayers!

 

-Anziano Benjamin Smith