March 9th 2015

A week of acting in faith and followed the will of the Lord!

Well first off we have a new investigator. Her name is Dee. She is sooo sweet and I love her. She told us she doesn’t normally let missionaries in her house but we were different. She was telling us about her yard and how she really needs to get the leaves out of the yard and clean it up for spring. Sooo on Thursday we did service at Dees house and she told us that she wrote a letter to the church about us. lol I didn’t know people did that. We are going to put her on date today for April 4th we are so excited for her to progress.

Andrea is kind of in a place where she can’t progress. She is living with 2 men because she is homeless and we are trying to find a cheap place for her to live. We found a really small one bedroom house that she might be able to get. I hope so. On Tuesday we are going to put her back on date for March 28th.

We had a lesson with a guy named Ryan. He is very smart and kind of intimidates me. I always feel like I have to say something really profound for him to acknowledge I exist. lol but the other day I just told him my testimony about the atonement in very simple terms and he looked at me and said I agree. It shocked me. I just know the Holy Ghost will help us talk to anyone. If we keep it simple they will be able to understand it in their own language too :) it was cool. We are going on exchanges tomorrow and we have a lesson with him and we are going to put him on date for April 4th. I get to be the one that stays in the area. There are a lot of set appointments on Tuesday where we are going to put people on date and have members in their home with us. :) On Friday we contacted a referral that a member gave us. It was their neighbor. Her name is Mary and she is another new investigator. We asked her if we could come back and teach her more she said yes. We were headed over to our members house so we invited her to invite her neighbor to the lesson. She was like yea of course. lol it was so cool.

We had an awesome zone meeting on Saturday in Milton Freewater. We had trainings on so many things that me and my companion where really struggling with. We didn’t really know why we were but we were. Well one thing that came up in a discussion was when you put people on date to be baptized you put them on date for four weeks, no further. Me and Sister Rasmussen looked at each other and looked down. We were going to put Casey on date for July and we felt so silly. Then we had training about having faith to drop. When I heard that topic I thought of Thomas. He currently is not progressing because he is living with a less active member and she doesn’t want to marry him and he doesn’t want to kick her out well because he loves her and she doesn’t love him. So he can’t be baptized. This week we have to have a drop lesson and really help him understand how important it is to be baptized and not procrastinate the day of your repentance. He knows it’s all true and he wants to be baptized. But he loves this girl more than God right now so we have to have enough faith to drop him. I learned that we need to act in faith a lot more and follow the will of the Lord.

We got dropped off in Adams and tracted the whole day. A lot of people weren’t home but to the people that were we taught the restoration and even invited one to be baptized. She said yes if she came to know what we have is true. She said we can come back but wouldn’t give us an exact day and time so we are going to try her on Saturday. We talked to a lot of really nice people that said they wouldn’t change but they want us to come back so we are going back.

We made it to stake conference and my first ward mission leader brother Ryan Wood was there. It was so cool. I didn’t get to say bye to them when they moved. Our ward was chosen to do a role play about ward counsel. It was really scary and fun. lol then he invited the people that have ever been less active in their life time stand up so I did and 4 other missionaries did in my zone and half of the people in my ward counsel. I looked at a lady and when she saw me she started to cry. After stake conference was over she came up to me and said “you are so strong. I’m grateful you are on a mission to share your conversion story.” I didn’t know the lady and she had no clue my conversion story but she knew by looking at me that it changed my life. I found out later she was a bishops wife in Walla Walla. Brother Wood and Sister Wood, ward mission leaders in the 1st ward, drove us home and bought us some ice cream. When we got home I was so tired because of the time change. lol Sunday I had a hard time waking up but I did it and we got to Walla Walla again for the Sunday Session. Andrea didn’t make it :( after conference we went home and talked while we ate lunch. Well since my year mark I’ve been struggling with thoughts of going home and staying out. I’m so tired all the time and the work is really flat. I didn’t know what to do. I was wondering if I had the desire to stay out or if I just needed to go home. Well I told my companion that and she felt the same. We have both been struggling with that. We both figured out that we still have the desire to do the Lords work we are just really tired. Well I told her that I just need a second wind and then I know I would be able to finish my mission strong. I told her I want to be able to hug my family and tell them that I did it. I finished my mission and I have no regrets :) well that night we got the promptings to go to a guy named Kevin’s house. He married a member and has been going to church every week since I’ve been here. We have asked the bishop 3 times if he could invite him to take the lessons. Every time we follow up he says he will and never does. So after dinner we went to Keith’s house and taught him about the restoration and invited him to be baptized on April 4th. He thought about it and said well it will help him get to his other goals like being sealed to his wife in the temple so he said yes and he said if he can’t on the 4th he will aim for the 11th. We got in the car and just screamed! We were so happy. We acted in faith and followed the will of the Lord. Right after that we ran to Casey’s house and we sat him down and went over his reading and then proceeded to put him on date for the 4th of April as well. He asked if we can move it up to the 28th of March and we said yes. He said thank you so much for caring enough that you didn’t give up on me. I know that what we did that night was an act of faith and I know that we followed the will of the Lord. He really does listen to us. I found my second wind and I’m ready to finish my mission at a dead sprint. I’m going to act in faith and follow the Lords will.

This is the Lords work. It’s His will and we have to be willing to say not my will but thy will be done. I’ve learned that the work is easier when you act in faith and follow the will of God. I love this work and I only have one time in my life that I can serve a mission like this one. I know there are many missions out there waiting for me. I just have to show my self I can do this with the Lords help.

Alma 37:47 And now, my son, see that ye take care of these sacred things, yea, see that ye look to God and live. Go unto this people and declare the word, and be sober. My son, farewell.



Our missions are to do the will of the Lord now. Look to God and live. Act in faith and invite Gods children to come unto Him. I know that this work is the work of the Lord. In these things I pray in the sacred name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.

What we got done this week

A pile of wheat