Albany NY Week 67 – Squash Those Fruit Flies

“If a person gains more knowledge and intelligence in this life through his diligence and obedience than another, he will have so much the advantage in the world to come. There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated— And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated.” -D&c 130

Everyday I experience and learn so much. This week has been FULL of it! One of the greatest truths I have learned is that every choice we make has a consequence, good or bad! I will share a few examples!

A) The temple! The temple was amazing! We left at 3:30 am and spent 6 am-1 pm there! We went with the Zowtiaks! I had the blessing of finding family names and completing 55 ordinances for them with the help of other! Seyde Simons was one special person I felt connected with and I got to do all her work! We did baptisms, confirmation, initiatory, endowment and sealing!!! It was a great JOY! As a result I have so much spiritual fire and peace! I felt that many on the other side of the veil accepted those ordinances and were blessed. They ranged from 1615-1780! Also, President Rogers called us last night because he saw we were driving at 3 am. He was very concerned and confused but had a good laugh when we reassured him that we got permission from the mission office haha.

B) THE INFESTATION OF THE FRUIT FLIES. Ok. So it all started on Tuesday. We had 2 little fruit flies on our cluster of bananas. No big deal. The next day there were several, the next day there were like 50 and I was freaking out and clapping them to their deaths, unsuccessfully, THE NEXT TWO DAYS THEY MULTIPLIED RAPIDLY AND WE HAD LITERALLY HUNDREDS OF FRUIT FLIES SWARMING OUR APARTMENT hahaha. We acted immediately. We took out all our trash and recycling, hid away all fruit in the refrigerator, opened the windows, and went to work. We took bugspray and would spray them and make them fall and then we would squish them! It was so sad 😦 but had to be done. Eventually we decided to call a ward member. He told us to put out bowls of soap and apple cider vinegar. We did and it helped a lot! Now we are down to 30 or so and still fighting the battle. They take seriously the commandment to multiply and replenish the earth. I learned that an once of prevention is truly worth a pound of cure. I also learned that like these tiny flies, we have tiny sins in our life that go unchecked. We think it is no big deal, then it quickly accelerates until it becomes unmanageable. That is when we need to turn to those in priesthood authority to help us. They cannot do it for us, but like brother Przedpelski they can give us great counsel and we can act on it for ourselves! But like the bug spray and vinegar, the atonement is always there to fight off evil and help us! And we must fight off evil one battle at a time!

C) Tracting in a thunderstorm. We tracted for 3 hours in the pouring rain. We were immediately drenched. There was a nice river in the road and it was awesome to go do the Lords work! We got to teach a few lessons and had lots of laughs! As a result of going out, we got soaked, but we were also lead to those struggling, confused souls who needed the Spirit in their lives! One in particular was Al! Sweet, sweet man who needed to know God was still there!

D) Liliana! So after church sister Redd and I hit this weird wall of exhaustion. Probably because we got no sleep the night before. So we decided what better to do than get to work when you’re tired! We said a prayer and went out the door. We went back to teach this man-Juan, and his 18 year old daughter answered! She allowed us to teach her and she is SO GOLDEN! She was amazed that we still had a living prophet and had the best insight and questions! As a result of getting to work, we were bessed with a family to teach! We were also blessed with energy to acomplish what the Lord planned for us! Laster that night we found several others including the next woman I will share about.

E) Guilda-lea! She has been troubled all evening about her 27 year old son who is loosing his vision. She prayed to God for comfort and not too long after, two 20 year old girls knocked on her door! As she stepped out on the porch and listened to our message, I could see her feeling the spirit. Right after we shared the first vision she asked, “Can you keep coming back and teaching me more?” It was amazing! We gave her 2 Nephi chapter 2 to read and she was so grateful! Because she prayed, God answered her!

There are many other wonderful examples of this truth, but I have to end it here folks! The Lord blesses us for our righteous desires and actions. With that being said, we are never the ones to accomplish something great. It is CHRIST THROUGH US! We get to be His hands! We will never deserve all these blessings. We are eternally indebted to Him! He has paid the greatest price and has completed the atonement. I know that repentance and forgiveness is REAL! It is available to us all!

I invite you all to squash those fruit flies! Stop the problem before it grows! Repent of your sins and get rid of the things! If you feel angry at someone, forgive them before it becomes a grudge. If you have doubts, doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith before it leads you down roads of sorrow. If you are into dope, throw that stuff out and plant flowers instead of weed! It is a gateway that can lead to much more serious addictions. If you have viewed pornography, squash it, stop it. Get rid of it before it takes over your life! Just talk to your parents or bishop or father in heaven and resolve these little problems before they grow serious. Kill those tiny fruit flies before they infest your life and take control of your thoughts and actions! I know that repentance is real and that it is never to late to change.

“However many chances you think you have missed, however many mistakes you feel you have made or talents you think you don’t have, or however far from home and family and God you feel you have traveled, I testify that you have not traveled beyond the reach of divine love. It is not possible for you to sink lower than the infinite light of Christ’s Atonement shines.”