Crump Crew in Nauvoo: Always learning, always growing.

The last two weeks have been super busy, but lots of fun. We have had so many youth groups here. They have come by the bus loads. We’ve had groups from Texas, Utah, Georgia, Illinois and Iowa. And that is just the beginning. We’ve also had our own visitors. We had Scott’s Uncle Ted, Aunt Linda, brother Russ, and sister-in-law Janice come stay. It was so great to have them here and just feel Nauvoo. The day they all left Cristy Dillman, her daughter Brittany, and grandkids came. We had a lot of fun together. We love sharing Nauvoo!

Each week we have mission training on Wednesday mornings. President Lusvardi is a master teacher and I learn so much from him every time. And when I learn new concepts it inspires me to study more on my own and step up my game. On top of mission training we had the amazing opportunity to have Elder S. Gifford Nielsen and his wife come for a mission tour. They were here for three days and we had some awesome meetings. For me, the most important thing I felt from Elder Nielsen was his burning testimony of who Russell M. Nelson is. Here are just a few of the concepts I learned this week:

· From President Lusvardi: Prophets walked the streets of Nauvoo in the 1840’s and they still do today. History was made here, and it continues to be made here. And we are a part of that history.

· We are here in Nauvoo to help people feel the Savior’s love for them.

· This entire place feels like a temple.

· From Sister Wendy Nielsen – we need to have a solid understanding of the answers to the four Primary questions; Does God live? Is Jesus Christ our Savior? Was Joseph Smith a prophet of God? Is the Book of Mormon really the word of God? And we shouldn’t get lost in any of the secondary questions.

· From Elder Gifford Nielsen: Testified that Russell M. Nelson really is the Savior’s prophet. Recently President Nelson taught the General Authorities in the temple that in order to have the personal revelation that he has asked us to seek we need to be clean. That cleanliness through repentance makes the veil more thin and makes revelation more available. President Nelson said that the original word in Hebrew for repentance is SHUB, which means “to turn”. In Greek the word is METANOEO, which means “metamorphosis”, to change, to think differently. Then the Latin became POENITERRE, or punishment. Thankfully, the real meaning of repentance is the original Greek and Hebrew meanings, to become a new person by turning to Christ and should be a joyful journey. I love that concept.

· The more profound the obstacle the more profound the miracle. This is a gospel of miracles.

We love serving here and are grateful for new opportunities each day.