Elder Vickers-Jacklin

Six months ago I left on a mission, to the Illinois Chicago West Mission, were I learned and grew in the spirit of Christ and his teachings... my testimony of my mission grew as I walked out the door each day. It grew with everyone I came in contact with. It grew with every moment I got down on my knees and asked inspired questions and then went searching for the answers in a book, a book that answers questions of the soul a book filled with truth... a book called The Book of Mormon. I invite all to read, The Book of Mormon and find answers to your questions that you have, as I tell you about my new mission in life...

On Monday the 21 of January I received a phone call from my doctor who removed the growth on the side of my head. He informed me that what he removed was not what they thought it was .... I have sarcoma. Sarcoma is a cancer of the soft tissue and muscle.... Yes, I have cancer. When President Griffin found out about what it was, he had a plane ride home, for me the next day. On January 22, 2017 I boarded a plane to Salt Lake airport on my return home...

Yes I'm home, and yes my mission was short. But my mission blessed me and my family and all I came in contact with in just that short of time... 6th months to be exact. My new mission shall be a blessing. A blessing of learning and growth a blessing of sacrifice and a blessing of patience. God has prepared me for this time.... like he prepared me for the people of Chicago...

I am not fearful but I am anxious. I do ask one thing ... DO NOT BE SORRY FOR ME... EVER!!! At this time I need encouragement and strength... I need and army behind my back. The same army I had when I left for my mission... the Lord loves us and blesses us and he is blessing me at this time.

I want to bear you my testimony that I know that the church is TRUE and that it can bless all those who SEEK to know its truth. I know that Joseph Smith, a 14 year old boy had the faith enough to ask one simple question to bring us a wonderful knowledge of the gospel. I know that we have a living prophet today who holds that authority to lead and guide the church of Christ. I know that The Book of Mormon can answer inspired questions. I know that the Lord gives us no challenge to hard that we can not finish... I know the gospel is true and how great it is. Doubt not, Fear not, for the Lord is with us always...

Love,
Levi

Mathew 15

14 Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.

Wow what truth is this, I came across this verse of scripture when I was doing my personal study and this one hit me hard.

There was times when I was walking blind and I tried to lead and all I did was fall in the ditch... But there always a way to receive your sight and that is by using he atonement...

That verse of scripture reminded me of a story that one of my teachers told me:

Two friends were walking down the street and they noticed signs all over the place saying warning , turn back, go no further, danger. We'll one friend thought it would be fine to continue on but the other said that he would do as the signs says and he turned back...

Well the one friend was angry so he hurried on past the signs and may I add he was going in "blind" to what ever lie a head well it soon got to be dark and he couldn't see and the next thing he knew he had fallen into a hole. Now this man tried and tried again to climb out and he couldn't and he soon started to give up. But a little light gave him the chance to look up and see what was above him. He saw a doctor walk by and asked if he could help him and the doctor wrote a prescription and threw it down to him and continued to walk on... Mad at the doctor he didn't even bother looking at the piece of paper... He decide to continue asking people for help and as a Reverend of a church walked by he called to him saying father help me and the Reverend looked down wrote a blessing and through it down to him and walked on ... Now this man was mad real mad and didn't know what else to do and may I add he remembered what his mother always taught him was to pray and so this man prayed for help and then he decided to look up and call out for help one more time we'll the is time he saw his friend and said Joe please help me and Joe said he would and jumped down in the hole with him now the man was confused and a little upset he looked at his friend and said thanks for the help and Joe said no problem and the man said well now I guess both of us are stuck and Joe looked at him and said no... I have been here before and I know the way out then Joe picked up the blessing and prescription and showed him that both showed him the way out but he was to focused on getting out that he was to blind to see that they were trying to help him....

Now this story has A lot of meaning to me a lot more now because of a lesson that Elder FIA and I gave to a bunch of kids at the Malley family's home.(Brother Malley is our ward mission leader). We had 10 people at this lesson and we had m and Ms and we went around and offered a piece of candy to all of them and if they excepted then I would have to do ten push-ups but if they rejected the candy I still would have to do 10 push-ups... Now as we aloud them to eat there candy and enjoy watching me doing 105 push-ups (Elder FIA made me do extra on one of them) they were all wondering why I was doing them then when I was done we mentioned to them that what I did represented the atonement. Christ did the atonement so that we can use it and he gave us the way to get back to our father in heaven but sometimes we do not partake of it but he still suffered for our sins and that it will always be there when we are ready to use it. The same with the story the man was given warning signs to turn back but he then fell and when he asked for help he didn't use it until he was ready and now he know that there will always be help to get back on top and join our love ones and our heavenly father. What a cool experience I was given!!!

God Is Our Loving Heavenly Father

"God is our Heavenly Father. We are His children. He has a body of flesh and bone that is glorified and perfected. He loves us. He weeps with us when we suffer and rejoices when we do what is right. He wants to communicate with us, and we can communicate with Him through sincere prayer." (preach my gospel lesson 1)

God is our loving Heavenly Father and he does want to communicate with us every day. He does want to see the best in us and wants to know how we are doing. I have probably taken that one for granted when i was at home but I am now learning that my heavenly father enjoys communicating with me and he loves to help me when I need it. I have learned to always ask inspired questions during my prayer and as I go searching the scriptures I have found I always find an answer and it is amazing to see the love he has for me. I invite all of you to ask inspired questions when you say your prayers and do it with real intent meaning you will act on the message you will receive and if you do so I promise that the Lord will show his love for you and you will grow to him a whole lot more and I can testify of that...

Well this week has been very interesting we had a visit by our neighbors dog Bella she is a funny little puppy and we have grown to love each other... Her owner Josephine is a widower and she is 60+ and she is a wonderful lady. We take Bella for walks for her because she has a very bad case of bronchitis and will probably soon have to go to the hospital we keep her in our prayers and we always find ways to help her in any way.... She has been through a lot but she always knows when it is time to help others out, even me and Elder Fia and now it is our turn to help her... I've come to love her and Bella.

Well we also have been doing some teaching preaching and testifying of Jesus Christ as well and I'm loving it... We do get fed a lot of food and if I haven't mention it a lot of it is foreign like we had some noodles that was like eating hair and it was so weird to put it in your mouth talk about #hairballoverload. But it taste so good and Elder Fias cooking is so wonderful. Let's just say we work we teach we eat and we workout and it is wonderful...

I am so grateful for this week it has been a blast.

Pictures.

1. And 2. Bella the pup needs a bath and a walk every day

3 my district they are all wonderful

4 sword of truth rather better let us touch his precious

5 and 6 tracking

6 Bella decided to join us for lunch

7went to a members home and he hand makes these train track city things haha

Elder Vickers -Jacklin