Living by the scriptures
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Therefore, take ye no thought for the morrow, for what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, or wherewithal ye shall be clothed. For, consider the lilies of the field, how they grow, they toil not, neither do they spin; and the kingdoms of the world, in all their glory, are not arrayed like one of these. For your Father, who is in heaven, knoweth that you have need of all these things. — Doctrine and Covenants 84:81 - 83
As a missionary in Brazil, on April 18, 2006, I was assigned to open a brand new area in a place where the missionaries had never worked, but maybe visited once or twice. I had only been in the mission field for seven months, and my hard-working companion, who was from the United States, had been serving for five months and was still learning the Portuguese language.
One can imagine the amount of work that we had ahead of us. We found a good place to live, but we had very little in it, just two mattresses and a refrigerator without food. We didn't have a stove, kitchen utensils, or a washing machine. Even our shower didn't work.
Our first few days were hard. We were hungry and our clothes were dirty. There wasn't anyone to help us, because we didn't know anyone yet. I was a bit overwhelmed.
Before I tucked myself in bed in our second night there, I read from Doctrine and Covenants 84, especially verses 81 to 83. I felt a great spirit of peace and comfort as I read and shared those verses with my companion. As we pondered about its meaning, we knew we could trust in the Lord, despite our not knowing how it all would work out.
Two weeks later, everything was going smoothly. We were able to find or buy everything we needed and our work started. Sadly after four months I was transferred and continued serving my mission elsewhere. But I still remember the people we baptized, the members we helped and others who were touched by the gospel. I am very grateful that the Lord helped and guided us through that difficult time. — Elder Daniel Abrantes Anastacio, Brazil Goiania Mission
