Emily sent us the following email on Friday, July 19, 2013:

Hey Familia that I love so much!

This week for our devotional we had Richard Hinckley (Gordon's son) come and speak to us.  He mostly talked about keeping rules and being obedient and keeping an area book.  You know who they should come and have do a devotional...BOMPA!  He could come and do a flossing demo and they could have the camera's focused in on his hand positions.  He would probably have figured out some way for all the missionaries to reach under their seats and have a package with all the necessary tools assembled and ready for them.  

I placed another of Bompa's flossing technique papers to another sister in the Bathroom.  I reeled her in with the gospel analogy.  I'm astounded everyday at the intimate relationship I see between flossing and the gospel.  I think it is because both are eternal truths.  People know that flossing is good for them.  They have heard things that tell them that.  They are searching for truth and they desire progression.  They may not know that there is a one true way out there.  We have the fulness of the  truth and we desire to impart of it unto them.   We need them to understand that we have what they have been searching for whether or not they realize that they have.  It is natural that they would want it, and once they give it a chance, because it is good, they will only have their conviction strengthened.  Anyway, I told her I had something that would make her life better and told her how it was like the gospel, and she was very excited when I gave her the paper!

We watched another Mormon Message: None Were With Him, by Jeffrey R. Holland.  

It was so so good!  I want you to watch it and really think about the feelings that you get.  There are a couple of things that I realized pierced me as deeply as in times before.  

• He says that Christ knew what he was doing, but that he hadn't quite anticipated it emotionally and physically to the extent that it happened.  This brings more meaning to the cry He makes to the Father asking him if he can take the bitter cup from him.  (Skibs, think about Dumbledore here..this comment isn't meant to be blasphemous)  
• Did Heavenly Father know that Jesus was going to leave him?  He cries out to the Father and asks him why He has forsaken him.  That must have hurt Jesus so much when he felt that his father was leaving him. 
• We are able to make it through all our trials and hardships because we have Heavenly Father and Jesus, but Jesus didn't have his sacrifice to lean on and he had to have the Father withdraw from him. 
• Jesus felt the whole burden of the suffering and justice.  There was no one who could be on his side and no one who knew what he was feeling.  The great and infinite atonement couldn't save us....He is the great and infinite atonement.
• Jesus stood and suffered so that we would never be alone and he stands by us always.  When I watched this clip, I wished that I could've been there to try to help Jesus and comfort him.  He stood by us, and now we must always stand by him at all times and in all things and in all places.  He is the great redeemer and he is our brother and our Savior.  
• You really just need to watch the clip.  It is incredible.

One more thing that I wanted to share that I've thought about a lot:

There is a scripture in Ether 12:4 and it says 'Hope, which cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men.  Sometimes having faith is difficult.  Sometimes, because I am so logical, I find myself really relying on hope, and that is why this scripture is so special to me.  It almost makes it sound like hope is stronger than faith.  It is the anchor to the souls of men.  Maybe it isn't stronger than faith, but maybe it works in a different way and is just more reliable.  Or maybe it IS stronger.  I know that my hope at least can never fail me and my hope for truth is an anchor for my soul. Hope is a lot and hope is very strong.   

This is Emily with her cousin, Josh Christensen.
He entered the MTC July 3, 2013.