Week of June 30, 2014- It's Hot!

Man it was a hot week this week! This was the first week I truly hated being in a bike area. Haha it was super humid too with all the rain, but man it was a fun one! It didn't help that most of our investigators were out of town, so we were outside most of the time. But it's all good! It was a good week!

 

We found a guy named Rock on Tuesday. He was just standing outside and it was probably the most prompted I've ever been to talk with someone. So we went and started talking with him and he said, "Normally when you guys ask to talk I say no thanks but for some reason this time I feel like I should take your card." So we talked about his church for a while and then things naturally flowed into sharing some restored truths. So it was pretty cool! We ended up giving him a Book of Mormon, and then we went back and saw him two days later and he had read a couple chapters and has really liked it! He seems like he's just a great guy as well, so we'll see how things go with him!

 

We also had a member bring their friends for a church tour on Saturday. It was super awesome! It was so powerful to be able to show them around the building, and to testify of Christ and the prophets as we walk by all the pictures! Talking about baptism by the baptismal font is cool, but the best part always is taking them into the chapel and talking to them there. As the member bore testimony of the prophet Joseph Smith in the chapel the Spirit was so thick it was crazy! They all recognized it and appreciated it! It was an awesome experience!

 

Well I'm out of time for this week, but those were the quick highlights. Have a good one back home!

Week of June 23, 2014

How's the life? Hope you had a good week like me! I'm just happy to be alive lately! My studies have been great, the work is moving, and the beat goes on! And I hit my year mark on Thursday...... Insane.... haha

So not much has been new with me here. Just workin ;) Haha it's been good though! We set a baptismal date with a newer investigator named Joyce. She's 80 years old and is the coolest lady ever! She just loves everything and everyone! W e're so excited about her!

I was on an exchange and we were trying someone and a guy answered the door. We started talking to him and he's going to play wide receiver for OSU this next year. We got talking and stuff and I told him I played college basketball so we talked about college sports for a bit, then I told him why I was out here and we started talking about Christ. He was a cool guy with a strong faith in Christ. So we started talking and the conversation naturally went to Joseph Smith and he was like, "Wait a second, this is exactly what I've been going through! I've been praying a ton lately because I'm getting so sick of going to all these different churches and being confused. Like I just want to know truth!" So he invited us in and we talked some more and he seems real solid! It was cool because I don't think I've ever connected with someone so quickly before on my mission, and like it all flowed so naturally. The gospel has gotten way natural to talk about, it's been cool, but that was just a cool connection. He's in the other elder's area so the only time I'll see him is at church but it was just a cool experience! His name is Landon Harper. He wants everyone to remember the name when he's playing WR for OSU! Haha

We've been having a lot more success with members lately. I just realized that I hadn't been building a relationship with any of the members I was just superficially getting to know them. But as I've talked to them more and started to get to know them they've been great at helping us out with the work! And I'm building relationships, so it's all good!

Our ward mission leader is about to have a baby, and he'll be taking us to the zoo in 2 weeks or so, so we're excited about that as well. Other than that not much else has been going on. I'm serving around a bunch of old men and they're all injured, so sports on p-days has been pretty low key. Haha But life is still good!

Well that's about it for me here. We keep teaching, finding new people, and playing basketball on the streets! It's been pretty warm here the last few days, but it's been good! Hope everyone back home has a great week!

A member drew this actual size Goliath for Sunday School on Sunday

Week of June 9, 2014

Another 6 weeks in Del City comin up! I'm super pumped about it! The district here is on fire and it's going to just be a sweet transfer!

 

The area is picking up! We found 10 new investigators this week, and we feel that for the most part they're solid! They'll meet with us more than once a month at least.... haha so it will be great! We didn't have any crazy experiences, but just a ton of awesome little ones!

 

We went over to talk to a couple of people on their porch. The lady was like "I'm Baptist and I'll always be Baptist so you're wasting your time and I'm wasting mine." So we just started talking about Christ and she was bearing her testimony about Christ and I said, "You know we aren't wasting our time because you just built my faith!" Then we kept talking and she said, "I know it shouldn't be like this, but I always find I'm on my knees more when I'm in a hard spot," and I said that Christ did the same thing in Gethsemane when he was suffering for us. She loved that and we started talking more, then we talked about prophets, and then we left her with a pamphlet and she wants us back and wants to know if there's a prophet on the earth today! It was sweet!

 

We also have a family that lives in our apartment complex set up a dinner with a member family (they also live in our apartment complex) and they wanted us to come eat with them and teach them.... Haha and they've been wanting to come to church for a while now but no one has invited them so they haven't. It was so cool! The family has tons of potential and we're super excited about it!

 

I'm feelin old now.... I never thought I'd turn 20. Haha and I'm starting to think about how crazy it is that my mission is just about half way over........ So yeah. Life does really keep going. Haha and it's been going fast! I'm enjoying it though and I've been finding a ton of joy in the work lately. So yeah my life is good. Really good. (Nacho Libre voice)

 

Well, I hope everyone back home has a good week this week! I know that God lives, and He knows us personally and He wants us to get to know Him personally. So find out something new about God this week! As you seek to get to know Him better, he reveals more of himself to you. Keep the faith!

Week of June 2, 2014

What's happenin fam?

 

Man I hope everyone's week was as good as ours! We had a fun one! It rained a lot early on in the week, and it's raining today, but that's good because the state needs it. It looks like we went a whole May without even having to get to a shelter, so that's good! But school is out so there are plenty of people to talk to, and people are out and about! The weather is getting really warm and humid, so I'm excited about that!

 

This week went by real fast. We had a great week though so it was good! Nothing too crazy happened, but oh well. Sunday was probably the highlight. We had a recent convert out with us and we were able to get in and talk to a lot of people with him! The coolest thing though was we were driving from one house to another, and Chris sees a lady out in her driveway sweeping. He pulled over and was like, "Lets go talk with her." So we got out of the car and walked over to her and started talking to her. She turned into a new investigator and when we recited the first vision to her she said, "I really hope that's happened or that it will happen soon." So we'll see her in the next day or 2 and get to talk with her. It was way cool to see the member have the desire to literally talk to everyone he saw!

 

I was able to play some more ball this week. We picked up 14 potential investigators from stopping and playing basketball with some people. Haha- the first time there were 3 guys out playing and I'm in a trio for a bit and so we went and played them 3 on 3. We beat them really bad (and they told us they thought we were joking when we asked if we could play, and they thought they'd kill us) and so the old guys stepped out to play us. We beat them 10-8, and afterwards we talked to them a lot about who we are and what we do. We prayed with all 12 of them and then they invited us back! Haha- it was fun we had a really good time with them! The other time was there were a couple kids who were high school age and we saw them out playing so we started talking to them and I said, "Maybe next time we're here we'll have to stop by and play against you guys." One of they guys said, "You may not like what you see." Haha- so I said "Alright well lets play a quick game to 5 to see what's up." So I gave him the ball and he started dribbling and he tried to go around me and I stole it from him and his friend started freaking out. I ended up beating him and we had a good time. They said next time we can talk to them about Christ so we're excited! Haha- and we found an investigator last week from playing basketball with them, so looks like an effective finding tool! I've never had to work so hard for investigators though. :)  It's been fun!

 

Other than that not there isn't too much going on. All of our solid progressing investigators have been on vacation or busy, so we haven't been able to make too much contact with them, but we were able to find a ton of other people to teach so it wasn't a huge deal! Life has been good out here!

 

Hope you all are having a good one! If not then start having a good one! Haha- until next week.....

 

Week of May 26, 2014

What's goin on?

 

This last week was an interesting one. We had some good things and some not so good, but overall not a bad week!

 

I guess to start it doesn't look like KB is getting baptized this weekend. She still isn't married and said they probably won't be married until late July. We're going to keep working with them and hope that that gets moved up because the way that Satan works something will come up then too. So we'll see what happens.

 

Other than that no big news. We were able to find quite a few new investigators this last weekend, and it's the first week of summer out here so we're hoping that it will be a good week this week as well! Our car was taken back. I guess another missionary broke a limb and they think they need it more than us so we're back to being a bike area, and with Elder Carter's bike being broke that means we're on foot. We walk an average of 11-15 miles a day, so it's fun! And it's been raining here pretty good lately so we've been doing wet walks. Haha- double fun!

 

Not much else to report on here. Serge Ibaka coming back and the Thunder winning the other night was the buzz of the city here and so there's life again in the city! Haha so that's a good thing! Still haven't had any tornados anywhere close to where I am, and haven't heard of any coming soon. So still good weather here this year!

 

Hope everyone has a great week! Keep the faith!

Week of May 19, 2014

What up family and friends? Hope life is going well!

 

This was an interesting week here in Del City. We had a couple sweet miracles, but for the most part it was pretty quiet. KB is a girl that's been taught by missionaries since September, and could never get baptized because she wasn't married. They wanted to push it back until July, but Elder Carter and I had a good lesson on faith and invited them to pray about whether or not they should get married now. Moving out isn't really an option because they have a 3 month old baby with each other. Well they prayed and they feel that they need to get married, so they're getting married in a week from today if not sooner, and she's going to be baptized on May 31st! She's been waiting for this for a while, so she's excited and so are we!

 

The other sweet miracle was we were teaching a referral from a member in the area. His name is M. M has come to conference and church, and so we went over there and asked him straight up if he feels that these things are true. We talked about it for a while, and we helped him recognize and identify the spirit. He feels the spirit very strong when it comes to the temple. Every time he sees it he says that his heart jumps and he feels good. Well we had a really good chat with him, and he wants to get baptized shortly! At the end of the lesson we were talking about the church and he said, "So our church is world wide then?" And we were like super stoked that he said "our church" haha. It was awesome!

Well that's mostly it! We had an investigator come to the baptism, and she's wanting to get baptized now as well, but that will be a bit of a process. But life and the work has been good! Hope all is going well back home. Keep the faith! Love ya'll!