Well it sounds like a very eventful and busy week for you all back home. I am glad everyone is safe and sound. Tell Jane and Jacque good job with their tennis this week. I bet they played so well! And hey you can't know the good until you experience the bad. So don't give up, but keep pushing and working harder. You have to want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe, then you will be successful. "Eric Thomas" I like that quote and I have thought about it a lot out here. but anyway mom you are right... It was a great year full of amazing things that happened to our family! I am so thankful for everything that did happen. It is just crazy how far we have all come. Hey and for the 2015 quote what about "Re-united in 2015". I don't know haha I got nothing. Well I hope everyone back home gets over their sickness. I still have mine as well. It is just a nasty cough with a ton of mucas. Kind of gross. What does everyone have back home? Oh and dad how are you feeling from your 2nd surgery? Can you tell of any improvement? I sure hope so. I am expecting you to be my tennis partner again when we go down to Arizona so we can whoop up on Ryan and Daniel again! :) That is going to be so much fun. Mom it sounds like you are being a great nurse, except for passing out for 3 hours haha. That is too funny! It sounds like you need me their to take care of both of you. Well everyone I hope you all made some new years goal that are going to last for the whole year. I know I did and they are already helping me out a ton. I mean writing in my journal for 4 days in a row is a record for me! :) Well I love you all and I hope all is well back home! Keep up the good work!
Now for my week. It has felt like one of the longest weeks of the mish so far. I don't know why.. I think I was feeling the same way you were mom. Just missing the family just a little bit. But that is normal. It hasn't effected our work at all . We have been working hard and have had some really good lessons this week. First off for new years all of us missionaries (elders) we had a sleep over. We played apples to apples. It reminded me of lake powell with Tyson! Remember how badly he wanted us all to play that game? It was a ton of fun! :) Then after that we played Monopoly. I got destroyed. I never knew how to play that game until last new years when we played it. We had a great time and yes I did bang some pots and pans, but boy I was regretting it the next morning at 6:30. oh well though those are the memories! :) This week we got fed by some awesome members. It was really fun and we became a lot more close with some people. That was nice. Then our lessons this week with our investigators went pretty well. We were not able to meet with B. and he didn't come to church. We called him an hour before church to see if he would be coming, but there wasn't a chance with all the football games on. He had a party with all of his friends. But then Elder Jones and I taught ms R. the Plan of Salvation. It was such a good lesson. We were really bold with her this time so she knows the exact reasons why we are over there. We don't want her to get to comfortable with us because in the end it is our job to help her come closer to Christ and help her enter into the waters of baptism. She had some really good questions and it was so incredible because during the lesson I felt the Spirit very strongly. I know he was guiding me because all of her questions like about the Sacrament, baptism, priesthood, authority, different churches, and pretty much everything else I was directed to different Scriptures in the bible. Which really helped her understand some new principles which were taught. It is nice to be able to have some scriptures memorized and also to have the Spirit help bring this to my remembrance so we can help her. We did ask her to be baptized and she said no. She wants to know completely for herself before hand. She has some questions about Joseph Smith. I guess there is a lot of bad stuff going around about him right now. So we will be going over some things with her next week. She did not come to church this week because she went to her daughters church instead. Ms R. is pretty stubborn, but we aren't going to be giving up on her! Then with another investigator named L. we hadn't been able to get ahold of him in a few weeks. It just seemed like he was dodging us. So we made a surprise visit and just showed up at his house. He was surprised, but he let us in. It was honestly one of the best lessons I have been in. All of us felt the Spirit. Especially L.. We were sooo pumped because we knew he was going to make changes. Well Sunday roles around and we for sure thought he was coming because of how great the lesson was and all of the things he told us. Well he didn't show up... Then a few minutes after church started we got a text from him.. It said this "Hey man nothing against you guys or your religion, but we are just not interested". Talk about a swift kick to the gonads... It just didn't make any sense. We think it is his girlfriend. But in the end it sucks because everyone has their free agency to choose for themselves. But it still was a tough one. Elder Jones really took it pretty hard, but it is good because for the most part of his first month hardly anything went wrong. It was like we were walking on cloud nine so it was a humbling experience. For both of us. But we didn't let that stop us!! We kept our head held high and kept on pluggin along.
We did a lot of tracting this week again. We are just trying to find more people to teach. And when we aren't tracting we usually are up at the hospital or visiting less active members. We have had a lot of people in the Hospital this week. Brother H., the crazy guy who thinks he was abducted by aliens is not doing good. It is pretty tough because I have grown so close to him over these past 6 months. He is most likely going to be put on life support today. And the doctors don't know if he is going to be able to make it through it. We have been visiting him everyday. He loves us. Even though he hasn't been active I know that he still believes. And I know this is going to end up being a teaching opportunity for his daughters who are not members. We have become really close with one of them and she thinks we are the best. It has been tough, but I know that there is a plan for everyone. So keep him in your prayers this week. It might be his last.
Well I know this letter may sound kind of down, but don't take it that way! I am doing great and sooo happy. Yesterday at church I sat by Wun and had a strong feeling to invite Wun to bear his testimony. He said his English isn't good enough and I told him of course it is! I said he should tell his conversion story. He said next time and that he would write it down. Well then about 5 minutes later he said I really want to bear my testimony now. I told him then I would go up with him and bear mine first and then he could do his. He agreed. So I ended up bearing my testimony. It was really good because it had been a good minute since the last time I bore it at church. But mine was put to shame when Wun got up. It was the most simple, but most powerful testimony ever. He told how he came over from asia and how he wanted to know God. and then the next day we knocked on his door. he said how his whole family, including his wife, is against him. He said he just knows that what he is doing is right. He said how he knows this church is true. It was the best testimony I had ever heard. It strengthened mine so much. I was blessed just being able to be their and listen. I love Wun! He is the man! So that was a great day! It was a great week, but just felt very long. I know this week will be better. I know the Lord is seeing the effort we are putting in and he is wanting to help us and guide us.
Well I hope you all have a great week! Mom and dad I love you both as well as the rest of the family! Dad get feeling better and mom you as well! I love you all and Happy New Year!!!! :)
Love Elder Smith
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