Dated: February 24, 2014
This was a fun week. We have had sunny weather for the most part! We had Zone Conference this week which was just fantastic! I always love those meetings. We talked about a lot of things that our mission is doing to become. We are a Becoming Mission. We are seeking to be about a Zion mission, and that is what we are working to become.
Karen is doing great. She had us over for dinner a couple of times. We made Chocolate Dipped Strawberries with her. YUM! We also had her come to a lesson with us to a new investigator that we found. She bore powerful testimony to her. Karen also brought another investigator to church with her. His name is Jerome. He is 12 years old. We have been trying to contact his aunt for a while now. There are 3 sisters that all live in this house, and they all have kids. One of them is Jerome's mom. He asked us when we were there on Saturday if he could come to church with us. His mom said he could, so we went and got Karen and introduced her to him. She picked him up the next day and he LOVED church. He was a little rowdy during the 2nd and 3rd hour, but he did good. Before Sacrament started, he went to each person in the chapel and introduced himself to them. They all got a kick out of that. It really impressed all the people there. The ward loves him. Hopefully he will come back. When Karen took him back, she talked to his mom and invited her to church. She said she would come next week.
Other than that we walked around the West Side a bunch and handed out cards and tried to talk to people this week. It feels good to be a missionary.
This morning I was studying prayer, and something took me to the first vision. I learned some things about the power of prayer through studying it. I’ll share it with you.
We know the importance of ASK, SEEK, KNOCK. We must first have a question, and we then must ponder. Then we go to God. We see this in Joseph Smiths account:
JSH 1: 11 ...I was one day reading the Epistle of James, first chapter and fifth verse, which reads: If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
12 Never did any passage of scripture come with more power to the heart of man than this did at this time to mine. It seemed to enter with great force into every feeling of my heart. I reflected on it again and again, knowing that if any person needed wisdom from God, I did; for how to act I did not know, and unless I could get more wisdom than I then had, I would never know; for the teachers of religion of the different sects understood the same passages of scripture so differently as to destroy all confidence in settling the question by an appeal to the Bible.
13 At length I came to the conclusion that I must either remain in darkness and confusion, or else I must do as James directs, that is, ask of God. I at length came to the determination to “ask of God,” concluding that if he gave wisdom to them that lacked wisdom, and would give liberally, and not upbraid, I might venture.
He had a question, he pondered, studied, sought for the truth, and he found out what he needed to do. He gained wisdom, and that wisdom was in a sense, God can give me more wisdom so I can know what to do if I but ask Him. He acted. Lets see the wisdom he gained from his prayer.
I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, (We know that God is the Light of the world. Other words for light is Spirit, and Truth. The Glory of God is Intelligence and intelligence is Light and Truth.)
which descended gradually until it fell upon me. (We don't gain understanding or knowledge all at once. It comes gradually.)
It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. (We know that light dispels dankness, truth helps us stay away from evil. The more truth we know, the more we are able to stay away from the traps and snares of the adversary)
When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. (Joseph Smith came to know who our Heavenly Father is and who Jesus Christ is. As we pray, we come to know them too. We see how much they play a role in our lives. We start to understand who we are and who they are.)
One of them spake unto me, calling me by name (Joseph Smith learned from this that God knows him personally, and that he does speak to men in this day and age. The HEAVENS ARE OPEN! God Knows each of us personally and as we seek his guidance and help, he can speak to us though the Holy Ghost)
and said, pointing to the other—This is My Beloved Son. (We learn how God feels about his Son, Jesus Christ, and we can know that when we follow Jesus Christ, He feels the same way about us)
Hear Him! (Christ is calling each of us to come unto him. Are we listening? That is the same invitation that we, as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are declaring. HEAR HIM!) P.S. Also notice the exclamation point.
That is just something I thought I would share with all of you. I don't know why, but it is something that has helped me understand the power of Prayer. Joseph Smith learned about more than what he was seeking. "Sometimes we ask for a slice of bread and he gives us a loaf" -Sister Crapo. Joseph Smith received more wisdom, so he could know how to act. In our life, we have choices to make. Our agency gives us the ability to choose how to act. We need to gain wisdom so that we can act correctly. We will be judged by our actions and the desires of our hearts. So as we gain wisdom we will be able to make correct choices. We gain wisdom from studying the scriptures, praying, and keeping the commandments, and as we act on the wisdom we receive, we will receive more.
Anyway, that is enough from me. I love you all. Keep up the good things you are doing. ALWAYS PRAY!!! Ask, Seek, Knock and it shall be GIVEN you. :D
Love you all!
Love,
Elder Josh!
P.S. This is my Hump Week. One year baby! I am so glad I still have a full year. I have so much to learn and work on. Love you all! Keep it up!
SOUP?
Dated: February 17, 2014
Well, this was a crazy week. Transfers were this week. To start off, we were going to be taking out a new missionary with us on Wednesday, the day before transfers. That is usually our P-day on transfers week, so we took ours on Tuesday so that we could have the full day Wednesday to take the new missionary out. So Wednesday, it snowed like 8-12 inches. Now, that's not that bad in Utah, but out here, they only plow the main roads, and people are terrible at driving in the snow. They canceled the flight for the new missionaries coming in, so some of them were stuck in Texas and others were stuck in Georgia. They pushed transfers to Friday, but the weather was so bad still, they pushed it again till Saturday. The new missionaries finally got to the mission on Friday, and we took them out for a few hours. We went with Elder Lopez. It was fun.
On Friday morning, we started to go and volunteer at a soup kitchen called 'Manna Meal'. They had us make a salad. It was awesome, I was cutting up lettuce, onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, peppers, and a bunch of other things. We also cleaned the kitchen and helped unload a truck. A lot of people seems to be a little leery of us, "the Mormons" there. But it is good because we will warm them up to who Mormons really are. We are going to go every week to help them with breakfast and everything. They feed 410 people a day and they do it 365 days a year. There are some cool people there. It is so fun to do service.
Today I was reading Mosiah 5. It stuck out to me about what it means to take Christ's name upon ourselves. When we are born again, we become His Sons, and His Daughters. That is why he is the Father. He is responsible for our redeemed soul. When we are born to this earth, we take the name of our parents. For example, I have the name SPENCER. People know me by that name, especially out here. I represent our family, because that name identifies our family. It is a part of who I am as a person and it signifies where I came from, and whom I came from. It is the same with Christ's family. When we take his name upon ourselves, we are a part of his family. We stand with him, we represent him, we know to whom we belong, where we are from. We know families can be together forever. Entering into covenants is how we are sealed to our families and to God. Covenants bind us to God, they make us closer to God. So "I would that ye should remember to retain the name written always in your hearts..." and "that ye should be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in good works, that Christ, the Lord God Omnipotent, may seal you his, that you may be brought to heaven, that ye may have everlasting salvation and eternal life..." (Mosiah 5:12, 15) As we take his name into our hearts, it becomes a part of who we are.
This work is so great. I love it. I love all of you. Keep up the Faith. Study, Pray, and GO TO CHURCH because if you do, then you will be blessed!
Love,
Elder Josh!
Well, this was a crazy week. Transfers were this week. To start off, we were going to be taking out a new missionary with us on Wednesday, the day before transfers. That is usually our P-day on transfers week, so we took ours on Tuesday so that we could have the full day Wednesday to take the new missionary out. So Wednesday, it snowed like 8-12 inches. Now, that's not that bad in Utah, but out here, they only plow the main roads, and people are terrible at driving in the snow. They canceled the flight for the new missionaries coming in, so some of them were stuck in Texas and others were stuck in Georgia. They pushed transfers to Friday, but the weather was so bad still, they pushed it again till Saturday. The new missionaries finally got to the mission on Friday, and we took them out for a few hours. We went with Elder Lopez. It was fun.
On Friday morning, we started to go and volunteer at a soup kitchen called 'Manna Meal'. They had us make a salad. It was awesome, I was cutting up lettuce, onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, peppers, and a bunch of other things. We also cleaned the kitchen and helped unload a truck. A lot of people seems to be a little leery of us, "the Mormons" there. But it is good because we will warm them up to who Mormons really are. We are going to go every week to help them with breakfast and everything. They feed 410 people a day and they do it 365 days a year. There are some cool people there. It is so fun to do service.
Today I was reading Mosiah 5. It stuck out to me about what it means to take Christ's name upon ourselves. When we are born again, we become His Sons, and His Daughters. That is why he is the Father. He is responsible for our redeemed soul. When we are born to this earth, we take the name of our parents. For example, I have the name SPENCER. People know me by that name, especially out here. I represent our family, because that name identifies our family. It is a part of who I am as a person and it signifies where I came from, and whom I came from. It is the same with Christ's family. When we take his name upon ourselves, we are a part of his family. We stand with him, we represent him, we know to whom we belong, where we are from. We know families can be together forever. Entering into covenants is how we are sealed to our families and to God. Covenants bind us to God, they make us closer to God. So "I would that ye should remember to retain the name written always in your hearts..." and "that ye should be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in good works, that Christ, the Lord God Omnipotent, may seal you his, that you may be brought to heaven, that ye may have everlasting salvation and eternal life..." (Mosiah 5:12, 15) As we take his name into our hearts, it becomes a part of who we are.
This work is so great. I love it. I love all of you. Keep up the Faith. Study, Pray, and GO TO CHURCH because if you do, then you will be blessed!
Love,
Elder Josh!
SATURDAY WAS A FANTASTIC DAY
Dated: February 11, 2014
Howdy! So, we are taking our p-day a day early because Sister Pitt asked us to take a new missionary out tomorrow. They told us on Saturday that both Elder Ramirez and I are staying together (yay!). So I will be staying in West Side for at least another 6 weeks. I will know for sure this evening.
So, Saturday was a fantastic day (well, everyday is a fantastic day)! There were 19 Baptisms around the mission. That is the most we have ever had in one weekend. Karen was one of those baptisms. We were not sure when she was going to be baptized, but, as we were talking to her last week, she wanted to get baptized. So we met with her every day last week. We taught her with the Bishop, the Aliffs (who are some members) and we even went to teach her with President and Sister Pitt at their house. It was so much fun! Karen is just so great. She loves to learn. It made me think of this scripture.
Alma 26:30 And we have suffered all manner of afflictions, and all this, that perhaps we might be the means of saving some soul; and we supposed that our joy would be full if perhaps we could be the means of saving some.
It was a great baptismal service. Church the next day was great too.
So, thank you so much for the cookies. They were all very good. We really enjoyed them. Also, Thank you for the awesome Valentines. All of us in the house solved the puzzle together. I only got one wrong. I put "Sweethearts Sister" instead of "Whatchamacallit Sister".
Well, the work is great! I love being out here in WV. It is so much fun! There is so much joy, and I know that this work is real and true. Jesus Christ Lives, We are Children of our Loving Heavenly Father, and He is watching out for each of us. Isn't that just great! I love you all!
Love,
Elder Spencer
Howdy! So, we are taking our p-day a day early because Sister Pitt asked us to take a new missionary out tomorrow. They told us on Saturday that both Elder Ramirez and I are staying together (yay!). So I will be staying in West Side for at least another 6 weeks. I will know for sure this evening.
So, Saturday was a fantastic day (well, everyday is a fantastic day)! There were 19 Baptisms around the mission. That is the most we have ever had in one weekend. Karen was one of those baptisms. We were not sure when she was going to be baptized, but, as we were talking to her last week, she wanted to get baptized. So we met with her every day last week. We taught her with the Bishop, the Aliffs (who are some members) and we even went to teach her with President and Sister Pitt at their house. It was so much fun! Karen is just so great. She loves to learn. It made me think of this scripture.
Alma 26:30 And we have suffered all manner of afflictions, and all this, that perhaps we might be the means of saving some soul; and we supposed that our joy would be full if perhaps we could be the means of saving some.
It was a great baptismal service. Church the next day was great too.
So, thank you so much for the cookies. They were all very good. We really enjoyed them. Also, Thank you for the awesome Valentines. All of us in the house solved the puzzle together. I only got one wrong. I put "Sweethearts Sister" instead of "Whatchamacallit Sister".
Well, the work is great! I love being out here in WV. It is so much fun! There is so much joy, and I know that this work is real and true. Jesus Christ Lives, We are Children of our Loving Heavenly Father, and He is watching out for each of us. Isn't that just great! I love you all!
Love,
Elder Spencer
 |
| Karen's baptism. |
 |
| Somebody made a typo. ("Stale Young Women") |
 |
| Yum! |
 |
| Solving the Valentine candy bar puzzle. |
I'LL TAKE IT!
Dated: February 3, 2014
What a week. P-day we just chilled out, went to Cabelas, and other stores. I went on an exchange with Elder Stout. While we were walking through East Side of Charleston, some lady just came up to us and pointed to the Book of Mormon in Elder Stout's hand and said "what’s that?" He said, "The Book of Mormon," and then she said "I’ll take it" and just grabbed it out of his hands and walked away. She didn't even let us talk to her. It was super funny! We have been teaching Karen a lot this week. We are excited for her. She came to see a lady named Lisa get baptized yesterday after church. It is neat to see how she is progressing. She is fun to teach. She has really good questions too.
As for the rest of the week, this is what we did. WORK. It was FUN. We saw some less-actives, and saw some investigators. On a sad note, Elder Simmons got emergency transferred down to Beckly (which is only about a hour away). He didn’t do anything bad. There was a big emergency transfer around the mission and he just had to go fill a place for another missionary that was moved around. We are sad to lose him but we are now down to 4 people in the house.
I love you all and hope you are all doing well. I know I say that every week, but I mean it.
Love,
Elder Spencer
What a week. P-day we just chilled out, went to Cabelas, and other stores. I went on an exchange with Elder Stout. While we were walking through East Side of Charleston, some lady just came up to us and pointed to the Book of Mormon in Elder Stout's hand and said "what’s that?" He said, "The Book of Mormon," and then she said "I’ll take it" and just grabbed it out of his hands and walked away. She didn't even let us talk to her. It was super funny! We have been teaching Karen a lot this week. We are excited for her. She came to see a lady named Lisa get baptized yesterday after church. It is neat to see how she is progressing. She is fun to teach. She has really good questions too.
As for the rest of the week, this is what we did. WORK. It was FUN. We saw some less-actives, and saw some investigators. On a sad note, Elder Simmons got emergency transferred down to Beckly (which is only about a hour away). He didn’t do anything bad. There was a big emergency transfer around the mission and he just had to go fill a place for another missionary that was moved around. We are sad to lose him but we are now down to 4 people in the house.
I love you all and hope you are all doing well. I know I say that every week, but I mean it.
Love,
Elder Spencer
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)