November 23rd Week Six "Glorious Gratitude" HMTC

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皆さん！

How has everyone been? It seems like winter's going to be upon us here very shortly! The leaves are already falling to the ground more than usual, and looking outside my window, it seems that the trees have become more barren than before. But colors still dot their branches, clinging onto the last vestiges of the season.

Speaking of seasons, happy Thanksgiving! I hope everyone has the opportunity to spend time with loved ones as much as you can - safely, of course! Remember that even if we may be more distant than before, it's easier now more than ever to connect from far away. Technology has made it possible to only be a screen away - and I pray that we're all able to take advantage to check in with loved ones near and far, and to make this season one of true Thanksgiving!

And speaking of gratitude... I hope everyone has had a chance to listen to President Nelson's message of hope! It's incredible that we have prophets on the earth today that are able to receive revelation on how best to help us through the difficulties and challenges of life. If you haven't seen it already, I highly recommend checking it out - studying it has brought me personally a lot of peace!

As for my week, it's been kind of long! We're steadily working on learning all of the doctrine of the lessons in Japanese, so it's a lot of vocabulary we have to memorize. My companions are getting much better at the language, but that also means that now we have to really work on balance. It's a constant cycle of perfection - as life almost always is! But as for the majority of this week... it's been pretty good. I've been really happy with how it's been shaping up - amidst struggles and trials, I've been able to learn a lot.

One thing that I've been able to learn as I've prepared to serve is that fact - we are all here to learn. We were sent here because we wanted to become like Heavenly Father - a loving, just, kind, Heavenly Father, who took time to know each of us individually and care for us. He wasn't just a God - He was a literal Heavenly Father.

And we wanted to be like Him - wanted to have physical forms, as He did. We wanted to learn more about His Gospel. We wanted to become kind, caring, more sympathetic towards others, charitable, and yet humble... all of these things that Heavenly Father were.

But if we were to stay in Heaven, we wouldn't have really grown, would we? We would have remained stagnant - and many of us would have only done what He has asked of us simply because He said we should. And would they truly change then?

I'm reminded of the verse from Moses 1:39:

"For behold, this is my work and my glory - to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."

Heavenly Father wants us to become like Him - He wants us to become the best people we can be. But He knows that because we're human, and we're able to choose for ourselves what we want to do, we will make mistakes. And often times, we'll feel lost or confused, not knowing where to turn for help.

He's provided us with so much comfort and guidance - the scriptures, the prophet, and more. He is even willing to listen to our prayers - and if we pray with sincere faith, He will answer us, and bring us peace and comfort, especially in times where we feel we need it.

But most importantly, He has sent us His only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Through His divine blood, He took upon himself the sins of the world, such that if we truly are repentant, He can forgive us for our sins, and we can become clean again. And not only that - He felt every emotion we have ever felt, and now understands exactly how we feel. In times of stress or sadness, I know that if we pray to Heavenly Father in faith, listening to the quiet voice of the Spirit through which He and Jesus Christ speak, we can come to know that He is there, and understands how we feel.

I know there is power in that - and I encourage anyone to do so. Whether we are content or frustrated, happy or sad, joyful or sorrowful, peaceful or angry... They know how we feel. And They know how best to help us to change and grow.

So in this Thanksgiving season, I encourage everyone to do as the prophet has said, and ask yourself - what are you thankful for? It may seem a little irreverent to those struggling right now, but I promise you, the best weapon we have in our arsenal for this war... is hope. And hope can be contagious - hope can be what truly makes a difference in our lives.

So I ask you - where do you find hope? What is your hope? What do you hope for?

And what can you be thankful for?

I hope you all have a fantastic Thanksgiving! Stay safe and healthy, and eat lots of good food in as good of company as you can safely muster. :) Love you all! You all are amazing!

Elder Decker