Crumbl, Cleaning... And Shrimp

This week I studied the 10 commandments. And honestly for the first half of the week it was half-hearted. Sorry... but when I started to actually look- actually study, I learned something new. I guess that's the power of studying, searching the scriptures. 

I think it's really cool how there are two other names for the 10 commandments: the tables of covenant and the testimony. Honestly, that makes perfect sense. For example, in Alma, when he is explaining to the people about Faith and how they just have to exercise even a particle of faith on his words they can receive more, when we try to keep the commandments daily we are able to strengthen our testimony. If we want to know if something is true... you have to try it out. I also like the name the tables of covenant for the same reason... it just makes sense. When we are obeying God's commandments we are obeying our covenant, and he is "bound" when we do what he says!

One thing that also just clicked in my head was when I was just reading in Preach my Gospel about the 10 commandments. It said "they teach us to worship and show reverence for God. They also teach us hie to treat one another." And then I remembered Matthew 22:36-40- "Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." So I recognized that of the commandments of God, there really are 2 kinds. Those that teach us to love God and those that teach us to love others! You should go through the 10 commandments and divide them into 2 groups- into loving God and loving others! 

Also in preparation for zone conference this coming week we were asked to study true love... and the everlasting covenant by President Russell M Nelson. I'm not gonna tell you what I've learned yet... that will be a next week thing. But we were asked to look for scriptures that show high love and high expectations. This is what I realized: The scriptures are a book of High love and High expectations. God loves us so much, infinitely, and with that love he knows our potential and expects us to reach it... in the scriptures we find the story of how he helps nations, families, and people to reach his expectations for them!! 

As for the "Crumbl, Cleaning... and shrimp" I went on exchanges this week... and it was an experience. Let me just tell you!! First we were visiting a inactive member... and then crumbl cookies just fell out of the sky... just kidding, a nice office member of that apartment building offered us some. Super nice. Then we went to a member dinner... and you won't believe it. I tried Shrimp. If you don't know me... I'm terrified of Shrimp because it's well... Shrimp. But I ate it breaded! Wahoo! Bet ya didn't see that coming!! But that isn't the end of the story... a poor elderly woman called us to help her take some garbage out to a trash bin... and to put it nicely she had some health issues. On the way there I had to use the bathroom, but we thought "oh we can just ask to use hers." well that's what I thought. Once we got there Sister Stringham looked Into her bathroom and said "I don't think you want to, can you hold it?" Haha yes. We helped her clean out her bags of trash and it ended up being mostly empty bottles of soda or water or used poopy adult diapers... yay! That was an experience. But walking into her apartment made me very grateful that my mom taught me to keep things clean... thanks mom!!

Another fun thing this week is that we officially had rats in our apartment and we have fun traps now!! And one of our fans stopped working and the light too... our main apartment light.. so we smell weed all day every day:) oh... and as missionaries we got to walk in a parade for 5 de mayo! It was fun... and really hot. It's starting to stay high 80s or 90s right now!

My question of the week is: How can you personally abide in the Love of God? (John 15:10)