To the Missionaries of the Great Texas Houston Mission:
We have loved spending time with each of you in zone conferences and other meetings this week. We hope you realized how important and essential the doctrine we teach in the Laws and Ordinances lesson are and the need for you to prepare to teach those lessons with as much diligence as you do every other lesson. Understanding how to better teach Family History, the blessings that come through eternal marriage and the power of the priesthood are critically important messages.
The Fall season brings with it great anticipation and sometimes great anxiety because it undoubtedly means many return to school. For us this means great opportunity to encourage members to do missionary work. Most everyone that is going to school is eager to have friends. We need to sensitive to these needs and encourage members (both children and parents) to invite friends over to their home, to church activities and to church. As we are diligent in committing every member to act in faith, we will see the hand of the Lord guiding them and blessing their lives as well as those they invite.
The Book of Mormon includes two interesting references to the younger generation when Mormon states:
Mosiah 26:1 Now it came to pass that there were many of the rising generation that could not understand…and they did not believe the tradition of their fathers.
3 Nephi 1:30 The people of God became “afflicted also, and began to decrease as to their faith and righteousness, because of the wickedness of the rising generation.”
The Adversary is very aware that young people have always been very impressionable and he is diligently at work to destroy them. In the Book of Mormon we read that the enemy "fights like lions" for their prey (Mosiah 20:10). We must do what the Nephites of old did, recognizing that they were out numbered, they fought "like dragons" in order to prevail. So we too must fight in order to prevail and fight with an intensity that overwhelms the enemy. Our efforts will bless generations.
Love,
President and Sister Mortensen
 |
| President and Luke Warner. Luke put together 72 hour kits for each companionship for his Eagle Scout Project. We are so grateful! |
 |
| Our summer birthdays |
 |
| Tuesday Zone Conference |
 |
| Our lunch providers and servers |
 |
| Summer birthdays |
 |
| Wednesday Zone Conference |
 |
| Our summer birthdays |
 |
| Thursday Zone Conference |
We held another Mission Presidents "Why I Believe" Fireside tonight and enjoyed a great spirit with beautiful missionary musical numbers and testimonies from recent converts. We are so grateful to all who participated. Elder Blackham played a lovely piano solo and Sister Peterson and Sister Evans sang a wonderful duet. It was a true fireside when the power went out right before we began! Here are some pictures from this event.
 |
| Here's our choir singing in the dark. |
 |
| Grace held up her cell phone flashlight so Sister Chappell could see the music. What a night! |