Dear Family and Friends,

We had a good week, working hard. Starting yesterday I started feeling ill and am feeling pretty sick today. Hopefully I can get over it by this evening or at least by tomorrow. We have a lot of work to do. 

I want to make a quick note. I have received your letters my good friends, and am now looking to make the time to reply. It means so much to me to know that you are thinking of me and writing me. Though I get so caught up in the people here, their challenges, questions, struggles, and learning that I often forget all else, know that I too wish you all the very best and will write you back as soon as possible.

As one may well be able to detect from the pattern of my blogs, I am really putting everything into what I am doing here. The moment comes to write and I feel helpless to describe my thoughts, experiences, and feelings in such a short amount of time, in such a concrete way as words. 

So let me say this, I know that God lives. To me that means that He is the most important thing there is, because He, even now, is aware of me, of you, of us, and if we will just believe in Him, everything can change in an instant. All that we see and experience around us is only for a time. One has to come to know for themselves that what they are doing with their life, what they do with their time and efforts, is something that matters. It can matter when we realize that we are preparing ourselves even now to live once more with our Father. 

Though my tired mind is struggling to be coherent in this message, I would invite you to consider what it is you believe in. If you believe in a God, how does that change what you do, what you think, how you treat others? I would argue that one who does not change as a result of a belief (in any idea or concept) does not truly believe. 

I will finish today once more declaring that there is a God, and that He is our Father. This means that He loves us, He loves you. Are we willing to accept His love?

Much love,

Elder Brighton