August 9, 2021

 From Ben - The Gift of Prophecy, Yo!

Family and friends, t'was a hectic week. 

We had a pretty radical schedule that included delivering an epic amount of cookies to a bunch of people, preparing to give a talk on Sunday and procrastinating it till the day before, heave-hoeing some food around for the Salvation Army in Napanee, and last but not least, sharing the Restored Gospel to people who were willing to learn. 

A couple of notable moments of the week include...  

     Before going into a lesson with an older lady, she sent us a message saying "I have some questions, maybe you have some answers"

Me and Elder Hamilton had not the slightest idea what to expect (this particular older lady has a tendency of throwing really difficult curveball questions, off the fly, in the middle of our lessons, so we were actually grateful she warned us beforehand) So, after trying to anticipate what things she was going to ask and failing somewhat, we decided to seek some heavenly perspective on the subject. After our prayer, I looked at Elder Hamilton and was like "you know Elder, I betcha she's going to talk about this" We mulled over it, hoped she wasn't actually going to talk about it. And boom, that was exactly what she wanted to talk about. The lesson actually went really well. 

God answered our prayer, I got to predict the future a little bit, and we made an older lady's day a little bit better. It was a swell evening. 

    Like mentioned before, I totally procrastinated the talk I was supposed to give on Sunday. So, after blitzing a couple of rapid thoughts the Saturday before, having a less than good sleep because I was stressed, throwing down a few last minute corrections the Sunday morning, and praying frantically for that extra spiritual lift. I got up to the stand... and did all right. 

Walking up to the podium had me stressed, but when I got there, the stress took a quick vacation and I felt totally fine (something about having the spirit with you makes life easier I guess, who knew?) 

We got to see good O'l Boomie again. (He literally made us Banana Cream and Chocolate Cream Cheese Pies. Bless his entire existence as a human) He's unfortunately not doing too great, his blood pressure is at something like 225. But, like the legend he is, he said, with a twinkle in his old man eyes "When the Lord sees fit to take me, I'm game to go! I'm pretty excited to see my Sisters and Brothers and parents again" He may still have a couple of years left under his belt, but we'll have to see how things fare. 

These are just a couple of the high points, I wish I had more time to share them all, but this will do! Have a great week all! 

1) Me in front of a cool Bridge

2) Some casual and STUNNING views in Trenton

3) Boomie

4) The cool Bridge, but from a different angle.

From Dad - Summer busy

Dear Benjamin,

We have had a busy week. Monday was our last day at Koocanusa and with many of the younger families leaving we ended up with mostly older cousins. We enjoyed water sports without a million kids in the boat clamoring for their turn and grandpa was again the hero taking everyone on the tube over and over again determined every time to flip them. By the time we were done the tube had to be blown up again after every run!  

Tuesday we packed up. Mom and the girls went to Glenwood to pick up Coco and Josh and I went to Grassy Lake  to drop off Sam. It was super fun to have him show us all the places, fields and new tents he worked on. I loved having the chance to connect with my cousin Dave and his Son's family. Looks like we will be going down again this week for a reunion in Grassy Lake. 

The next day, Wednesday, Jen and the girls went into Edmonton to help Lindy pick out a wedding dress. I assume you've heard the news that she and Same are engaged to be married in November?

On Thursday we headed to Calaway Park with uncle Dave and Jen and Corbon. Clara, Calvin, and Benson came along with Emma and our family. We enjoyed a great time and we took Benson home with us to spend the week.

Friday, Mom and I went on our traditional shipping date and spent too much at Costco, including a spare Dryer as we had warranty money and it was on sale. Problem is our current dryer even though it shrieks like a banshee doesn't seem to want to die!

Saturday, I went and picked up a laser level from Norm Depeel and then went to get Josh in the city. I was so grateful for his help leveling and framing up the basketball pad. It's really shaping up nicely and I'm inordinately excited to get it in!

I loved this message sent from my cousin Mel this week:

This life gives us a wonderful opportunity to balance trust in the Lord and learning how to make our own choices and become more and more like Heavenly Father through both our faith and our works. As you've heard me say before, this life isn't just about going back to heaven, it is becoming someone who will be comfortable there. This week in Come Follow Me, we had some deep discussions about how we each "Hear Him". Amelia asked a couple of challenging questions.

1. How do I know if it is the spirit talking to me or just my own mind? How can I tell if God is answering my prayers? 

2. Will there be trials in Heaven? How can we truly be happy without trials, challenges and opposition? Seems like Heaven will have to be more than just perfect bliss all the time with no sorrows or struggles.

I'm interested in your (and anyone in the families) thoughts about these very insightful and pertinent questions.

Love you lots.

Dad.

PS. We measured Mia this week and she is now just as tall as Mom! 5'1"

Reply from Ben:

Oh man,  it always brings a new energy into life whenever I get to hear the updates from you guys. 

The basketball court looks so great and super official! It's really cool seeing that coming to fruition. 

Calaway Park is the classic adventure. So many flashbacks come from seeing that old sign. 

And yes, when I saw that Lindy was officially engaged, I was so hyped (you guys are already getting her wedding dress? Oh man, that's awesome). It's so wild  being on the mission, I have only a couple of things to worry about, and there is so much to do that time just FLIES. It's kind of wild to see life carry on all around me because it almost feels like a completely different world. 

For the two questions. 

1) Well, that is an epic question. It's unfortunate to some degree that the spirit doesn't say, "Heyo, it's the Spirit here, these next directions I'm giving you are straight from the up-tops, so you better listen" While I'm confident that the spirit can bring never before thought thoughts into our minds, in my own experience (I'm finding this more on the mission) the spirit will direct and empower the good thoughts that I already have. Then, after I've "yielded to the enticings of the Holy Spirit" I can recognize it as the spirit. It's a subtle business, and it does take time to get better at recognizing the spirit. (It'd be lame if we figured it out all at once, eh?) In terms of recognizing answers to prayers, I find that when I pray for something, I'll often project what I think the answer SHOULD be, instead of trusting what the answer will be. I accidentally assume that God himself will miraculously answer the prayer, when, often, it will be answered in a phrase found in the scriptures or by somebody else. Ether 3:5 might offer some insight. It says. 5 Behold, O Lord, thou canst do this. We know that thou art able to show forth great power, which ^alooks small unto the understanding of men. If God doesn't need to part the Red Sea, he probably won't. Some of his greatest power is shown in things which look small to us. However, it would still be nice to recognize an answer from God, or know that it is in fact his hand that is in our life, and not the random winds of fate. In regards to that front, somewhat anticlimactically, I think the answer lies in asking in faith to be able to see it. I often have to remind myself that "the witness comes AFTER the trial of faith" not before, not during, but after. (I hope there was something in there that added some insight to the question.)

2) In regards to trials in heaven. I say yes. However, I think the nature of the trials are different. In heaven, we won't be tempted by the adversary, but we will still have to learn. Considering that God still weeps, and that there must be an opposition in all things, In order to be happy in heaven, I think we will still be able to be sad. However, once again, I think the nature of what we will be sad about, will be different than things we are sad about on earth. 

Hopefully this contributes to the conversation. 

Love you guys!! 

- Elder Smith