Jesus Christ is Joy!

There are a lot of good things happening in the mission field and in the Arkansas Little Rock mission. Last week we had a zone conference in which the AP's announced some exciting news. Our mission is moving into a new phase of missionary work where we will be able to use Skype and FaceTime to further the work of salvation. Pretty cool! Also, this upcoming Wednesday there will be a worldwide broadcast to announce and discuss changes to the missionary daily schedule. I've heard some rumors about the changes, but I'll keep y'all in suspense until next week. Most exciting of all, this Saturday Elder Neil L. Andersen of the quorum of the twelve apostles is coming to speak to the ALRM! 

Side note, the atonement is REAL (study Alma 34, Alma 36 & Psalms 38).

Yesterday in relief society our lesson was focused on the talk from the last general conference titled, "Joy and Spiritual Survival" by President Russell M. Nelson. This talk really impressed me, and I wanted to share a few quotes from it. President Nelson talks about how even when life is difficult and the world around us is in chaos, we can find joy and peace because of Jesus Christ. 

In the talk President Nelson tells the story of some of the early saints of the church who endured much persecution, but found joy in the journey. He says, "Life is filled with detours and dead ends, trials and challenges of every kind. Each of us has likely had times when distress, anguish, and despair almost consumed us. Yet we are here to have joy? Yes! The answer is a resounding yes! But how is that possible? And what must we do to claim the joy that Heavenly Father has in store for us? Eliza R. Snow, second General President of the Relief Society, offered a riveting answer. Because of Missouri’s infamous extermination order, issued at the onset of the grueling winter of 1838, she and other Saints were forced to flee the state that very winter. One evening, Eliza’s family spent the night in a small log cabin used by refugee Saints. Much of the chinking between the logs had been extracted and burned for firewood by those who preceded them, so there were holes between the logs large enough for a cat to crawl through. It was bitter cold, and their food was frozen solid. That night some 80 people huddled inside that small cabin, only 20 feet square. Most sat or stood all night trying to keep warm. Outside, a group of men spent the night gathered around a roaring fire, with some singing hymns and others roasting frozen potatoes. Eliza recorded: “Not a complaint was heard--all were cheerful, and judging from appearances, strangers would have taken us to be pleasure excursionists rather than a band of gubernatorial exiles.” Eliza’s report of that exhausting, bone-chilling evening was strikingly optimistic. She declared: “That was a very merry night. None but saints can be happy under every circumstance.” That’s it! Saints can be happy under every circumstance. We can feel joy even while having a bad day, a bad week, or even a bad year! My dear brothers and sisters, the joy we feel has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives".

I love that last sentence. No matter what our circumstances are, we can have hope and find joy by focusing on the savior. I invite each of you, right now, to grab a piece of paper and a pen. Make a list of a few of the things that bring you joy. True joy. Once you're done, review your list and ask the question "are any of these things effected by the circumstance of the world?" I can testify to you that the things in this life that will bring us true joy are not of the world and therefore cannot be corrupted by it. President Nelson goes on to say that, "For Latter-day Saints, Jesus Christ is joy! His joy is constant, assuring us that our “afflictions shall be but a small moment” and be consecrated to our gain". 

Find joy everyday, everyday, everyday.

Much love,

Sister Bailey Guthrie 

P.s. The work is good. Miracles every day. Charlie (see last weeks email) will be receiving the priesthood and a patriarchal blessing next Sunday. Paragould is on fire.