Thought of the Week

Here is a neat story for you guys, my inspirational thought of the week. An old native wiseman was approached by a young boy in his tribe. The boy asked, "Why am I always fighting inside myself. I want to do good, but sometimes I do bad. I have bad thoughts and I want to control them. Why is this and how do I fix it?"
The wiseman looked him in the eyes and said "Inside of each of us, there are two wolves. A wolf of light and goodness, and an evil wolf of darkness. They are always fighting to beat one another. That is why you have these two sides of you." The boy,thought intently and asked "Which wolf is going to win?" The old man, pleased with the earnest question of the boy, smiled and said "Which ever one you feed."

Let us feed the wolf of goodness and purity. Starve the evil wolf. The natural person in us. When we feed the Spirit, and we starve the carnal, which one will win?

Have a Great Week!

Elder Greenhalgh

23APR08

All is well in Kalispell country. I miss all of you and hope that you are able to experience this beautiful area sometime. I love mail...Elder Greenhalgh

16APR08

This P-day went way too fast... its almost 4 pm, I feel like its 11... man, these days fly by.
I've been in Kalispell for over a month now... time flies
We are doing great... everything is fantastic. We just had a baptism, we will have 3 more next week, and then soon after that, we should have 3 more(one 9 year old boy, and two 20 something brothers that have been reading on their own before they even met us) it is neat to see prepared people come into our lives as we pray for them.

We are having a young woman, named Crystal, come out to lessons with us a lot! She got home from her mission recently. She was serving in South Africa, and when they took the sisters out, she was sent to California. SHE IS THE BEST MISSIONARY EVER. I can't even begin to explain the spirit that she carries with her. This must be what you guys are seeing in the sisters back home, she is just outstanding.

Last night she joined me and a kid preparing for his mission to give a lesson to a less active girl. We had a great lesson snd the spirit was SUPER STRONG. We read part of Alma 32, and the Spirit told me what to say, she needed to hear what the gospel could do for her. I told her that just like it says in 32, she could grow a tree, but she has to try it... but when she does it, her life will have new meaning, she will be happier, more sure of herself, and filled with patience and love. I had her Dad share his testimony, the Young Man shared testimony, and then I sealed it with mine... the spirit touched her so much that when I asked, "would you like the lessons again?" She just blurted out "YES!"
Experiences like that make you want to work even harder.

Another quick story, right after that, Crystal said "Elder Greenhalgh, if we have time, I feel like we should go talk to someone." So we went to visit a family friend that she hadn't seen since her mission. He was awesome, such a nice guy, WAY SMART... doing work for the government, doing these ENORMOUS equations, no numbers involved, you know it has to be advanced math if you can't understand any of the characters in the equation. Crystal bore her solid testimony, filled the room with her love and spirit... the spirit entered in, and her friend started to say why he couldn't take the lessons right now... like once he is less busy he will be more likely to listen. She just kept strong saying "you need this in your life." After a while, when he had left the room, she said "All right Elder Greenhalgh, it’s your turn to talk" I said a quick prayer to help me say what I should say. And then I bore my testimony that I know its truth, and told him “you are busy, BUT the gospel comes to people when GOD wants it to happen. Crystal came over here tonight for a reason, she knows by the spirit what to do. You may be busy, but when God stretches out His hand to do something for you, don't refuse it. I'm going to pray about a chapter of the Book of Mormon for you to read, and to pray about. Promise me that when you do this, and when God gives you the feeling to say that this is truth and is important, that you will not brush it off, but that you will grasp it, and bind yourself to your prayers, and the answers that God gives you" He promised, the spirit was there, and then he said the best thing I think I have ever heard. He said "Elder, I will, I know you mean it. I can see it in your eyes".... I know it wasn't me that he saw in my eyes, it was the spirit. The scriptures talk about how the eyes are the light of the whole body. But, it was just so amazing to know that I was able and worthy to be the vehicle, along with Crystal, to bring the spirit into his home, and to make a convincing statement by the word of God. It was great.
Those are the things I live for...

Have a great week

Tell the Sisters that I love them, and thank them from me, for helping my family.

Love,
Elder Greenhalgh

9APR08

Hey guys,

I'm glad to hear that the message I shared last week was influencial. I prayed before I wrote it that I could share something that you needed to hear. Little did I know that Elder Bednar would say the exact same thing in Conference. When I heard him start talking, the Spirit immediately said "Listen, this is why you wrote what you wrote last week!" Then Elder Bednar went ahead and said pretty much the exact thing I had said. Experiences like that let me know that the Spirit really can work through us, He did through me. I was sooooo hoping you had seen that talk.

Well this week has been good. We have a baptism today!:) A 9 year old girl who's mom is a less-active member of the church. She has decided to be baptised now after she has prayed about it and received her answer. It was neat to hear how excited she was that she had received an answer to her prayers. We are also baptising 3 people on the 19th. There is an 18 yr old boy who is AWESOME! He is even talking about a mission! A 16 yr old girl who has such a pure desire, its amazing to see how the Spirit has talked to her already! And then their little sister who is 8. She is the glue for the family in the church. The first time the missionaries came over, She said " WE NEED TO GO TO CHURCH! I TELL THEM EVERY WEEK, I'M UP IN TIME, TRYING TO GET THEM READY TO GO!" She is so sweet.

We are moving in with some members here, the Pitts family. We are very grateful to them.

. The work is good. I'm trying everyday to stay focused... the Spirit is coming a lot easier now. I feel like I'm learning a little more each day on how to stay closer to God.

.
Remember, Pray with real intent to act on the answer. The answers will come!

I love you guys
Have a great week.
Elder Greenhalgh

3 APR 08

I'm learning so much right now.
I'm learning the real reason for being out here.
I'm NOT out here to boost myself.
I'm NOT out here to prove to the members or investigators that I'm the best missionary they've dealt with.
I'm NOT out here to fix things about me.
I'm out here to love my investigators and members with all of my heart. To put them first. To think about what they need at all times, to help them and then give all the credit to the Lord.

I'm teaching by the Spirit finally.
Once I realized that I need to love the people and really want to help them, and not impress them... the Spirit talks to me. He leads and lets me know what to say. Its amazing to be an instrument for God and know that He is entrusting me with His children.

I had been praying and praying for God to help me teach by the spirit, but it just didn't seem to come. Then He told me something. He said quietly in my mind. "You prayed for me to help you have a strong desire to work, and I did that... why would I help you with more if you can't show gratitude, or even acknowledge that I helped you gain that desire"

I felt about as big as an ant. So I apologized in prayer and thanked him fervently.... immediately, warmness and peace surrounded me. It was fantastic. Then He allowed me to ask for more, and He gave it to me:)

Had Joseph Smith prayed to ask "Which church is true," simply for information, he probably wouldn't have gotten his answer. But he prayed and asked "Which church should I join" with full intent to act on what God answered.

Its when we say "God, please let me know your will, and I will do my best to act on it" that we are given such knowledge, he loves us so much that he wants us to succeed at all times.

I've started to apply that principle, because the spirit said it was important, and I'm receiving more and more from Him, because He now knows that I will act on it.

I love you guys!
Take care!

Elder Greenhalgh