11.18.19: History can be cool I guess

We live in a rough world people: here's some good quotes of the week,

"I prefer to use a cellphone more than play" (Artur, 5 yrs old)

"I can be mad, YOU CAN'T" (a Mom to her daughter as they passed us on their bike) 

"I just wanted to teach a few people about repentance and help them get baptized" (my companion on the bus when we were in traffic for 5 hours) 

*the translations might make them less funny, it's debatable 

This week we went to a conference with our whole mission and the church historian (LeGrand Curtis) spoke to us. It was actually super awesome. He spoke about all the details of how Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon and one quote I loved is: 

"It would be a wonderful gift if we had just one chapter of the Book of Mormon, but we have the WHOLE THING" -LeGrand Curtis 

He also told us a super cool story that one day he ate lunch with the first presidency by accident in the lunch room (idk I guess they have a lunch room for all the important people) and that after they all left he just sat there in shock. He had made a few comments during the lunch that he probably should sit somewhere else bc he is not an apostle or in the first presidency. He said that President Nelson came back a few minutes later and looked at him and said "Never ever feel like you are unworthy to sit with us, you are not less than any other person." It is so incredible that we have a living prophet and that he is so humble and inspired. I loved that story bc often times we really put ourselves down but the prophet of God on earth wants everyone to know that they are worthy. 

Another cool thing I learned was that some of the temple ordinances have changed a little bit (they had open ?'s at the end and this was someone's ?)

But Elder Curtis explained with an analogy that Pres Nelson used with a pill capsule. That the capsule of the pill is the ordinance and the covenant is the medicine inside. In other words the important part is the covenant and the ordinance is just how we make the covenant. 

"An ordinance is an action that helps us understand the covenant" -Pres. Nelson 

I learned so so so much! We also got a debriefing about the church history of Brasil which was really awesome. There are 11 temples here now and just like 40 or 50 years ago (I already forgot oops) there was just ONE! The church has grown so much here! Also the first members of the church here were actually from Germany which is super interesting. 

tchau, 

sister Barton