Magnificently articulating......moral of the story- Brother Bishop is great and Joseph Smith is greater!!!

I'm trying to magnificently articulate a well typed email all the while emailing pictures to myself from my ipad to send to y'all AND do key indicators and baptismal dates for our zone. :)

Thank you for sharing that about Bishop Bishop! The new institute directors name here in Bozeman is Patrick Bishop. 

Cool story: I was in a lesson with Brother Bishop the new institute director and we were teaching an investigator. The investigator was picking at every little thing that we taught him. He eventually got to this point where he said, "It's just hard for me to swallow. The Bible is all about faith, faith and faith. After a time Joseph Smith comes along and starts preachin' works, works, and works. Looks at what it's done. It's just not right and I just don't agree with it." Brother Bishop looks at us and says, "May I?". Brother Bishop pipes up and says, "I'm not sure if I know where you are coming from. There are very few people in this world that have studied the life of Joseph Smith more extensively and for a longer period of time than I. I spent just the last 30 years studying his life. I helped write and publish the Joseph Smith Papers, I read manuscripts that he himself wrote as a prophet, and what you just said is furthest from the truth. Joseph Smith never preached works, in fact there is not one person who has testified of our Savior more than Joseph did at that time in history." He didn't say a word and just moved on to another thing that he had a problem with. So moral of the story, Brother Bishop is great, and Joseph Smith is even greater!

Jacob is right.... Joseph Smith was a great man. I admire him for so many reasons. He was courageous and he was obedient and he believed in God.  In James 1:5 Joseph read, "if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God." At a time when there were so many religious revivals and it was hard to know which church was true- he simply asked. I will always be grateful for that. My life has 
been incredibly blessed by the gospel of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I know that my Savior 
loves me and I know that He gave his life for me. I firmly believe that God still loves us and cares 
about us and He leads and guides us through a prophet on the earth. I knows the Holy Ghost leads me and guides me as well- I am truly blessed. 

http://www.mormon.org/beliefs/joseph-smith?CID=33401010&s_kwcid=TC%7C1028504%7Cjoseph%20smith%20%20mormon%7C%7Bplacement%7D%7CS%7Cb%7C%7Bcreative%7D&

https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/js?lang=eng