Forgive and Forget

Hey sorry again that I wasn’t able to email on Monday. My companion Elder Wiscombe (pronounced Wisk 'em, like scrambling eggs) got transferred and I got a new companion Elder Lougee (it is pronounced Lou as in loud, and then the letter G). And no he is not from Mount Wannahockaloogie from Finding Nemo. He is from Oregon. He’s been out about 8 months. I don’t know much more about him than that.

This week, a lot of different things happened. I can’t seem to shake this cold away from me. The weather here is being tricky. It goes from really nice and warm to “oh my goodness gets me out of this weather before I hurt someone." Anyway here is the highlight of this week:

My camera got stolen. I accidentally left my bag in the gym overnight. I didn’t realize it until I went to get my scriptures to do my studies in the morning. My heart dropped when I remembered where it was. I went to the gym and I couldn’t find it. Then I went to the office and asked if anyone had turned it in. At first they said that they didn’t have it. And then a lady in the back spoke up brought out my bag. My scriptures were still in it but my camera was gone. Along with my memory cards and the pics I had. But I still have them all because I backed them up on my flash drive so no worries there. But surprisingly I didn’t care about that. I was more worried about my scriptures. They were untouched. I was relieved. The camera is a worldly possession that can be replaced. My scriptures however are priceless. I don’t know what I would do without them.


After that incident occurred I thought "What would I do if I found the person who stole my camera?" It has to be someone in the complex because no one else could get in our gym. Then I read in the scriptures in D&C sec 64. And I learned about forgiveness. We are required to forgive everyone. I said to myself "let the Lord judge that person. I won’t let it fester within me. I don’t want to hold a grudge. A camera is not worth it." Then I thought of other instances in my life where someone did something to deliberately hurt me or offend me. Those things are long past and I have forgiven those persons a long time ago. But I realized the damage it could cause to a person’s soul if one were to hold bitterness and anger for that long. Even if the offender does not repent and come to you to fix it, you are still required to forgive them. Or in you lies the greater sin.

So if I caught the person who took my camera I would kindly ask for it back, shake their hand and then give them a Book of Mormon.

Love,

Elder Richards