CONVERSION IS NOT AN EVENT

 Mason is doing great. This is his second to last week with his current companion. Letters are appreciated. Enjoy!

Hello Everyone,

       I have decided that I am now going to put a phrase of doctrine in as a subject to each e-mail that I have learned the past week, rather then repetitive, pointless and non-interesting phrases. We will see how it goes. This week has been full of learning, teaching and growing. Every Sunday night in personal prayer, I make an account of the week that has past and give thanks for the miracles, express what I have learned I can do better and ask for my weaknesses to become strengths after exact obedience. Some weeks are full of progression, others seem that there is no progression, but my efforts and attitude has and always will be the same. Whether intestigators are fast or slow with there conversion, I am progressing every day on my mission. At the end of each week, I find things I can improve on for the next week, but I have never looked back with regrets. This past week, I had my first zone conference of the mission and learned a lot. The conference covered a lot of doctrine, but was centered around planning. Planning as a missionary, but also having plans for your eternal salvation. As I have said before, actions are investments really for our eternal salvation. We have plans, goals, visions and a purpose as missionaries, but even as members of the church, we need to always have plans, goals and visions because I know we have a purpose in life as well. Throughout the conference, the concepts I learned will help me become a better servant of the Lord, but they also related directly to  life on earth. Planning builds faith and good works, faith and good works if parallel to the will of God brings eternal life. If only I had more time to share all the priciples that the Holy Ghost manifested unto me during the zone conference and these weeks in general. I am able to share the simple truths that I have learned though and know to be true. I have learned that the more you learn, the more simple your testimony becomes. In order to have that simple, doctrinal-centered testimony though, many things must occur before. We literally need to become as childrem; sumissive, meek, humble, humble, full of love and so forth. Our testimonies need to circle back to the childrens testimonies of the Primary. Conversion is not an event, it is a process. When investigators are baptized into the church, such as our investigator Diana next week, they are not converted. They are without question on the road of conversion, but not converted. The question I asked myself while studying the word conversion was, What are my views on the will of God? One is converted when commandments are kept because of love towards the Lord, not because they are written scripture. One who is converted has a will that is parallel to the Lords. My thoughts are scattered throughout this e-mail I know, but these are some of the things that the Holy Ghost has brought to my remembrance of this week as I sit here in the Anaheim Public Library surrounded by others using computers that I know thirst for this knowledge. This week has been wonderful, and it also consisted of a Temple tour in which we were able to attend with our investigator Diana. The spirit taught all of us as we walked the grounds and I know that Diana has a growing testimony of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and is only six days from making a covenant with our loving Heavenly Father by entering into the waters of Baptism. This work is amazing! Hope all is well back, keep me in your prayers and I will catch up with you all next week! Love from California.