Alii, Alii,

Good morning everyone, and happy Sabbath! I hope all of you are having a great day!

Well it was another rough week on Palau for us. There have been many setbacks recently but I do not really think that is a bad thing. I feel with every setback comes a new opportunity. I feel setbacks occur when you are not where the Lord wants you to be or he wants you to learn something. I try to face every setback with optimism, and humble myself, while I try to figure out what the Lord wants me to learn, or where he would rather I spend my time. I love our Father in Heavens plan which allows us to face setbacks, so we can grow and become more like him each day.

I have been pondering a lot about the spirit recently, and the Lords promise that when you are worthy, and you speak with the spirit, you shall not be confounded before men.

I had an experience a few days ago, that really grew my testimony on this matter. I was on exchanges with Elder Warr and we were getting hungry. We decided to stop in at our favorite shawarma shop for dinner. (We go in there a LOT.) The workers know us, and we have gotten to know them pretty well.

One of the employees who is a good friend is named “J”. Now “J” is an atheist, and is very curious about different religions and beliefs. Every time we stop to eat, the topic of religion almost always comes up.

This time we were talking about the usual stuff about what Mormons believe, and what the heck we are doing on this small island. But then he asked us a question, about what we think of other religions and beliefs. I could tell it was a question that he had been wanting to ask for a long time.

When I went to answer his question, I felt the spirit come over me. I began to speak with knowledge, that I never knew I possessed. As I finished answering his question, “J” just looked at me and said, “that is a perfect answer. I was listening to every word you spoke to see if I could catch you in something; but that was a perfect answer.”  Things got quiet for a minute, then “J” went back to work.

I truly cannot recall the words which I spoke to “J”, but I know it was not me speaking. It was the spirit of the Lord, speaking through me.

This is the true church of Jesus Christ; which means that if we live worthy, we have full and complete access to the powers of heaven.

We should never be afraid to open our mouths, we should never shy away when people ask us questions, because the Lord will never allow us to be confounded.

I know that as we open our mouths, we will have access to the powers of heaven, to defend what we believe, allowing us to touch the lives of many others in the process.

May we all continue to have trust in the Lord’s promises, and have the confidence to share what we know to be true, and defend it when needed. Romans 1:16

I hope you all have a great week!

I love you, and I know this is the true church.

Elder Rupp