Amazing experience!

On Tuesday we had zone conference in which they stressed on working with members (Active, less active, part member). They helped us understand how to ask for referrals from active members as well as working with PM/LA. I also held district meeting on Friday were we talked about Zone Conference and did role plays. This week one of the zone leaders came down and worked in our area but with the Spanish people. We went to lunch with them to a place called Chuys which is a super good Tex-mex place. We also had the chance to help a family move. We had to load there big moving truck which took a couple hours but it was fun. We also got chick-Fi-la!

We had an amazing experience last night were we went to try and contact this LA/PM family the Godwins who I have been by so many times. We luckily caught sisters Godwin outside her apartment talking with her neighbor Sarah. Sarah is now a single mother who has been going through some very difficult challenges over the last month. We were able to give her a Book of Mormon as well as a plan of salvation pamphlet. She was very excited to read and learn more. We were also able to set a return appointment were Sarah will go over to the Godwins and we can have a lesson there. It will be a great less active and investigator lesson.

We also were able to contact another LA/PM couple named the Obersts. He is in the army and fell away from the church around the age of 17. He is so cool and he knows that the church is true. He was talking a lot about how he loves the church history and then talked about how Joseph Smith had no education and could not have written the Book of Mormon without revelation from God. He doesn't come to church because he doesn't want to go without his wife and he also doesn't want his wife to feel pressured or forced into going. She has spoken with missionaries before but she felt like they moved to fast and that she wasn't ready at that time. I think she is ready now so hopefully we can continue to help that family progress and one day enter into the temple.

It was a great week and we ran into a couple interesting people one who did not like me because I'm white and he thinks Mormons are racist. He also said Jesus is black with dreads. Interesting man. We had a couple other lessons this week with less actives and
new investigators. Hopefully people will start to progress soon.

"Decisions determine destiny"

Preparing people to teach!

This week we had exchanges with the zone leaders in which I went with Elder Hyde who is Spanish called and is from Heber City. He would snowmobile back at home as well. We worked with Spanish people in the areas that are in my district while my companion stayed in Parkwood. Although we were working with the Spanish people we had two lessons in English as well as two in Spanish. I learned so much and this is another exchange that will change my mission. He was very good at speaking WITH people and not TO people. He helped me learn how I can better talk with people and to catch their interest. He also mentioned when he was in a slow time of his mission how he learned the importance of prayer and that he was on his knees more than ever. I had a great and fun exchange.

We also had district meeting on Wednesday were I tried to help the sisters learn to have more effective companionship studies and how we must always role play and learn from each other. We also talked about the importance of faith in finding and in all that we do. The Lord promises all throughout the scriptures as well as in preach my gospel that He is preparing people for us to teach and we must have faith in those promises.

Richard dropped us last week on Monday night and said he doesn't want to meet with us anymore. Russell has cancelled the last two weeks on us and didn't come to church on Sunday. No other investigators or less actives came but that's okay. We haven't seen the Rodriguez family for two weeks which is to bad because they did come to church for three straight weeks but have missed the last couple weeks. Hopefully we will be able to get a hold of them sometime this week. Other than that we have met many people over the last couple days. We had 8 lessons this week which is about triple what we usually get. All of them came on Friday and Saturday except for one lesson. Most of them were just from talking with people that God put in our path.

Tomorrow we have zone conference which I am super excited for. It's always great to hear from President Slaughter as well as the assistance. It was another nice week. My companion was complaining because he thought it was really hot but I told him to just wait until the summer when it is more humid and about 30 degrees hotter.


"Go forward in life with a twinkle in your eye and a smile on your face, but with great purpose in heart."                                                                                   Gordon B. Hinckley

Meetings and pizza!

Week full of meetings and pizza. On Tuesday I had District Leader Council and then on Wednesday I had my first District Meeting and then on Thursday we had a trainer/Trainee Meeting. We also had pizza 5 days in a row. During District Leader Council they talked about the importance of a District Leader and it just made me even more stressed but I am also excited to try and lead this district. I hope and pray that I can be the leader that the one set of sisters in my district need me to be. They also talked about how to run a District meeting. This was very helpful and it helped me change the way I was going to do district meeting. For district meeting I over prepared a lot but I think it went alright. I trained on teaching short and simple and we did a lot of role plays. I feel like it helped our district and hopefully they were able to apply it in their missionary work. Then for the last meeting of the week which was Trainer/Trainee meeting was great as well. I learned so much from President Slaughter  and also the assistance. They usually have this meeting a week into training but since there were only three people that came in with my companion they just waited and until this transfer to have it. I wish I would have had it earlier because it helped me learn how to become a better trainer and what things I can do to help my companion with his struggles.

Also after the Trainer/Trainee meeting we went to the temple which was great. Last time I went there was 7 months ago my first day in Texas. I love to see the temple but my companion wasn't feeling good and he threw up on the temple grounds. After the meeting we just went back and he slept the rest of the day while I studied and also cleaned up his closet and the rest of the apartment. 

We had two lessons this week one with Russel Morgan who is living with a less active member and I don't think they are married. He use to meet with missionaries about a year ago and then he stopped talking to them. His wife wants to get back into church and wants him to join as well but they didn't come to church like they said they would these last two weeks. We are going to be meeting with him again tomorrow and hopefully we well be able to help them understand the importance of church.

Then our other lesson was last night with a man named Richard Martinez. He is an investigator from the new part of are area that we got a couple weeks ago added to our ward. The other Elder have been working with him and so we had a lesson with him and the other elders as well. He is a retired cop and is ripped. He said that he knows the Book of Mormon is true but that he will not leave the Catholic Church. Hopefully as he continues to read and pray that the Holy Ghost will work on him and that he will change. On Sunday we didn't have any investigators at church and the Rodriguez family didn't come to church. We weren't able to get a hold of them this last week. Also Jafaru I don't think wants us to come back as he doesn't answer the door or his phone. Valentines was great. We didn't have a dinner so we just ate a late lunch at our apartment and skipped dinner. We took our dinner calendar to church and I didn't think it was possible but we lost a meal because someone crossed out their name and no one signed up either. But that's okay.

Happiness!

This has been a great week. Yesterday we had no investigators at

church but we did have a less active family the Rodriguez come again

for the third time. They are so glad to be back active in the church.

They said that they have really noticed the happiness that living on

the right path has brought to them over the last couple weeks. We have

been working with some other less active families but they haven't

been making any progressions lately. We had the chance to do Service

two days this week. First we did it with brother Auble in which we

helped him put in some sliding doors for his closets. Then on

Wednesday we had the opportunity to do service with another member in

which they had us paint her bathroom. It was fun to do service for

both of them.

This week we met with a man named Jafaru who was a referral from

online. He ordered a Book of Mormon because many of his coworker are

Mormon and told him to order one for free. We stopped by and he is

from Nigeria and moved here about 5 years ago. We taught the

restoration and he understood it very well and he was also asking many

questions. He understood what we were saying more than I could

understand him because of his accent. He said that he is very into his

church and that he has a lot of leadership there as well. BUT he said

that if he finds out that the Book of Mormon is true than he will be

baptized. This all happened on Friday and so we called him on Saturday

and he didn't answer. Then on Sunday we were finally able to get a

hold of him and he said that he hasn't been able to read any of the

Book of Mormon yet which was to bad. Hopefully we can meet with him

this week but we will see.

We also had a lesson with another investigator named Alex. He is a

Mexican cowboy who does team roping. He has won a ton a huge belt

buckles from different competitions and has cowboy stuff all over his

house. This has been the first cowboy I have met since I've been here

in Parkwood. He didn't come to church on Sunday but maybe he will come

next week. We also taught his two kids who are 17 and 13 and they were

very interested and asked many questions. They want to learn more but

we had to refer them to some other elders because they are with their

mom most of the week in another area than ours.

Weather still has been super nice here and it gets a little cold but

not anything bad. Everyone says that this has been a super mild winter

which I am grateful for because we are on bikes. This was a great

first week of the transfer and I am excited to have my first district

meeting this Wednesday.

District leader!

I received a call from the area leaders last night and I will now be a district leader as well as finish training elder villeda for at least the next seven weeks. My district consists of two Sisters and
that's it. I am super excited but also nervous as I have no clue how to be a district leader and feel unprepared. I hope that I can be the leader that the lord needs me to be.

This week we also switched apartments and we took all day Friday to move and throw away items and then on Saturday we took all day to clean the apartment. We even had to clean and move during prime proselyting time 6-9pm on both days which was a dagger.  It is so nice being in our remodeled apartment and have everything clean and reorganized. Now the challenge will be to keep it as clean as it is now.

They are doing different things with transfers now and we won't be having transfer meetings. We also are now transferred on Tuesday instead of Thursday. We will find out by getting a call from the zone leaders on Monday morning to let us know transfer information. Along with transfers the zone leaders who live with us got doubled out and sisters will be taking over their area which means me and my companion will have the new apartment to ourself and we can have our own bathrooms which will be super nice. It was really fun living with the zone leaders and I got along very well with them. I'm going to miss having them live with us but now it won't be as easy to get distracted from doing the Lords work.

This Sunday we had no investigators come to church but the Rodriguez came who is a less active family. It was great to see them there again for the second time in a row. They seemed to really enjoy church and we had a little meet and greet for the third hour and they were able to get to know many of the members. The son and daughter also came. The whole family was baptized but the 19 year old sons record is no where to be found so we might have to baptized him again. We had three lessons this week with investigators and we haven't been able to contact them since those lessons. We haven't been able to contact Jay since he came to church with us last week. We did have him with a date but it doesn't look like it's going to happen.

I am excited to continue to work here in Parkwood for another transfer and also to continue to help Elder Villeda learn how to be a successful missionary. Another transfer done and I am excited to have change and work even harder this transfer than I have.