Comment

A Difficult Challenge for Us

You can’t imagine how pleased my husband and I were to read “Lead Me, Guide Me” (Mar. 1994). We have a child with a mental disorder who is also diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder.

I empathized with the parents mentioned in the article. I have often felt guilty, wondering if somehow I caused my child’s problem. I wrestle with the way others react to our problem, understanding their discomfort but wishing they knew how much their awareness of these circumstances would mean to me. It is especially hard at church, a place where I seek peace but sometimes find judgment and confrontation. It is so easy to judge, so difficult to love.

This has been a difficult challenge for us, but I take great comfort in knowing that our son is a child of God and that the Lord cares about him and us.

Name Withheld

Church Magazines Are Missionary Tools

I wanted to write and let you know of the importance of your work. The Ensign had a big influence in my decision to become a member of the Church. And the magazine continues to help me now as a full-time missionary.

My first contact with the Church was in 1988 when a friend gave me a copy of the book Gospel Principles. He knew I liked to read English and he said I could borrow it. I read it in two days! I wanted to know more and went to a chapel near my home, where two full-time missionaries taught me the first discussion.

At the time, I had a hard time with the idea of baptism. However, something in my heart told me I had to find something to save me from the temptations of Satan. I returned to the same chapel; this time a sister missionary gave me a copy of the Ensign. It was a conference report, and I read the whole issue in one night. It changed my life.

I have been baptized and am now serving a mission. I always read the Ensign and the Aliahona (Portuguese international magazine). As soon as I read them, I pass them on to investigators—I know the importance of the magazines as missionary tools.

Elder Mauricio Franco
Brazil Riberiao Preto Mission

Illuminating Article on Atonement

“The Restored Doctrine of the Atonement” (Dec. 1993) is so illuminating. In two days I have already read it twice and am completing my third reading. More than that, it supplies what looks like an irrefutable answer to a question I was asked this past summer by a theological student: What is the Mormon view of salvation and grace?

I have sent the article to this student, along with some comments of my own, pointing out our teaching of the basic goodness of man as opposed to the strangling idea of man’s nature being evil from the beginning.

Jane B. Hildebrand
San Jacinto, California

Despite Blisters and Cuts, They Finished the Job

Last month, when our township issued a deadline for our neighborhood’s sewer installation, we panicked. We knew nothing about sewers and couldn’t have done anything if we did. We were out digging on November 27 when two missionaries, Elders Welling and Halterman, came to our home.

Immediately, they offered to help. We refused and they left. But fifteen minutes later they returned with borrowed tools and work clothes. Over the next four hours, despite blisters, cuts, and sewer sludge, they finished the job beautifully. They left us with their telephone number, your magazine, and the location of their next Church meeting.

Elder Halterman has been transferred, but Elder Welling and his new companion visit us often and we have attended church. Each visit brings us closer to the Church and the glory of Christ. Never before has this been demonstrated to us more clearly than by these three missionaries. Their simple actions have left us inspired beyond words.

Anne, Lisa, and Amy Fusick
Manahawkin, New Jersey