The gathering of Israel train

Why are we not ALL JUMPING onto the Gathering Israel Train?!

The entire Day Family (parents, 6 kids, and a friend) came to church this week. It turns out they already were close friends with 3 families in the ward. Amanda Day coaches baseball twice a week with 2 of the families, they invite one another's kids to parties, and the other family has known Amanda Day (the mom) since she was 13. How incredible is that?! Fellow-shipping already built-in. I was so very excited about that and at the same time my heart broke a bit as Amanda told us that she said, "oh, I didn't know she was a member of the same church".

 Excuse me? What?!? Bare with me as I vent a bit. It suddenly hit me how many families in the church are like this! They are surrounded all the time by people who are seeking the gospel, but "know not where to find it". We NEED to be opening our mouths about our religion, our beliefs, our Savior MORE. Everyone we know should know that we are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I know that everything happens at a certain time and place for a reason. There was a reason that WE (the missionaries) knocked on the Day family's door and began teaching them the gospel. But just imagine how much sooner they could have had it if they simply would have been invited. As Elder Uchtdorf has said, "Pray not only for the missionaries to find the elect. Pray daily with all your heart that you will find those who will come and see, come and help, and come and stay. Keep the full-time missionaries in the loop. They are like angels, ready to help!"

 We are praying as a companionship that this will be a great experience for these families and more as they realize how many people there truly are in their world that simply need to be invited to "come and see".

I love you all! I could not have asked for a better family :)

If y'all feel so inclined please consider this as a family. The prophet's invitation to us: " "My dear young brothers and sisters, these surely are the latter days, and the Lord is hastening His work to gather Israel. That gathering is the most important thing taking place on earth today. Nothing else compares in magnitude, nothing else compares in importance, nothing else compares in majesty. And if you choose to, if you want to, you can be a big part of it. You can be a big part of something big, something grand, something majestic! When we speak of the gathering, we are simply saying this fundamental truth: every one of our Heavenly Father’s children, on both sides of the veil, deserves to hear the message of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. They decide for themselves if they want to know more."

Mwah! Mwah! and Mwah! I love you all so very much

Sister Wastlund