Love,
Elder Smith
Monday, December 16, 2013
Stake Christmas Party
Well this week was mostly full of service and only a few lessons. The service that we have been doing is working in a members home remodeling a room that they added on to their house. We have been working on it for a few months now and other than like one thing that needs to be done we are finished. The coming week is going to be similar to last week because we have some service lined up that might take a while and we also have lots of meetings for Christmas and most of our members are leaving so we wont be able to visit with them. The most interesting thing we did this week was go around to the houses in the neighborhood around the church and invite people to the Stake Christmas party. They sent us out two hours before it started, so we weren't expecting much success and also we were missionaries so most people would just say no without us saying anything haha. It was raining like crazy so we just had to have fun with it. the Christmas part was pretty interesting and not a lot of people showed up. About half of the people who show up to events the church sets up are missionaries. In church this Sunday we sang in the Choir and so that was really interesting and I hope the Ward was able to tolerate us singing. We didnt have much practice at all. right now our best bets at anyone to progress is he part member families in our area and so we are trying to reactivate the members and teach the nonmembers. Its going to be an interesting week so hopefully we can keep up good spirits! Today we are planning to go on a bike ride on the levee along lake Pontchartrain. Were hoping it warms up some more so we can have a nice ride. We met some incredibly nice people this week but they just arent interested in learning about the church. The hardest thing we have to deal with is the lack of education in some of the people we teach creates a barrier for us to make sure they understand everything. But also the people who are educated seem to know for themselves and wont listen to two inexperienced young men. We are getting excited for Christmas especially to call home. Well I know the church is true and that Christ is my Savior. When I rely on him everything seems to work out. Well family keep smiling and have a very merry Christmas!
Love,
Love,
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
Dear Family,
This week was just about the same as every other week except that we saw fewer people and did a lot more riding of our bikes. So, I will just talk about some notable events that happened this week. First off, on Tuesday we were in charge of the Family History Center and one lady showed up to make a Christmas gift for her brother in law. She wasn't a member so, it was a really good experience to be able to help her find so much information and help out as best we could. She really appreciated it because when she was leaving she offered to buy us pizza, we had already eaten so we just said we were full. On Friday Brother Ferrell took us to chik filet and when we were leaving the mall he tried to spin cookies on the wet parking lot. It was pretty wild because he has a massive truck and we just had quite the exciting ride. On Saturday we went to the temple with Bro Jennings and after he took us to eat at the cracker Barrel. We watched the Christmas devotional on Sunday then watched it again Monday with Bro Jennings. We've rode our bikes so much this week and just kind of struggled to see anybody. The people that we met with were most of our usual's that aren't really progressing and everyone else wasn't available. We are hoping this coming week will be better especially because we have a little bit more open schedule than last week. Its starting to feel more like Christmas and the only thing thats missing is family and snow! haha I'm doing well and working hard! Sometimes we want to get discouraged with things but the easiest thing is just to remember all of the good things instead of the bad. Most of the time when we aren't happy with the way things are going or are discouraged we just are focusing too much on the negative and not enough on the positive. I have found out that the positive always outweighs the negative. Well I love and miss you all and hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas!
This week was just about the same as every other week except that we saw fewer people and did a lot more riding of our bikes. So, I will just talk about some notable events that happened this week. First off, on Tuesday we were in charge of the Family History Center and one lady showed up to make a Christmas gift for her brother in law. She wasn't a member so, it was a really good experience to be able to help her find so much information and help out as best we could. She really appreciated it because when she was leaving she offered to buy us pizza, we had already eaten so we just said we were full. On Friday Brother Ferrell took us to chik filet and when we were leaving the mall he tried to spin cookies on the wet parking lot. It was pretty wild because he has a massive truck and we just had quite the exciting ride. On Saturday we went to the temple with Bro Jennings and after he took us to eat at the cracker Barrel. We watched the Christmas devotional on Sunday then watched it again Monday with Bro Jennings. We've rode our bikes so much this week and just kind of struggled to see anybody. The people that we met with were most of our usual's that aren't really progressing and everyone else wasn't available. We are hoping this coming week will be better especially because we have a little bit more open schedule than last week. Its starting to feel more like Christmas and the only thing thats missing is family and snow! haha I'm doing well and working hard! Sometimes we want to get discouraged with things but the easiest thing is just to remember all of the good things instead of the bad. Most of the time when we aren't happy with the way things are going or are discouraged we just are focusing too much on the negative and not enough on the positive. I have found out that the positive always outweighs the negative. Well I love and miss you all and hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas!
Love Elder Smith
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Thanksgiving
Dear Family,
Well this week really flew by. I was really surprised by how cold it got! I have been so used to being able to ride around in a short sleeve shirt that I didn't really know how to handle the cold weather.. especially on bikes. Thankfully we were able to go buy some warmer clothing and now we feel much better prepared for some of the inevitable cold weather that we will have. But I really shouldn't be complaining because it sounds like ya'll are going to have some really cold weather in the next couple of days! Below freezing weather sounds miserable! On Wednesday we were able to visit with a less active sister who has a nonmember husband. She said that she put on Facebook that she just loves it when the missionaries come by and she said they always come by right when she needs them. Her mom had "liked" the statement and the less active sister has started to really have a desire to change her life and try to get back to church. Her goal right now is to, in the near future, be able to go to the temple and hopefully get sealed to her family. We have been really excited to see her progress and we hope one of these days she can start the habit of coming to church. Another thing that happened Wednesday was that we met with our Vietnamese lady and she gave us loads of interesting food to take home! She gave us a bag of Oriental noodles a couple bags of beans and a huge box of tangelos. WE gave the oranges to one of the members and he definitely appreciated them. We got a referral for the Mayor of Kenner Mr. Mike Yenni and we emailed and called him so hopefully in the next little while we can hear from him and see if he wants to be taught. Apparently some missionary was sitting next to him on a plane and talked to him and got his information. We have been really excited about that and it has definitely gotten some of the ward members a little more excited about missionary work.Our Thanksgiving was interesting because we didn't have a real Thanksgiving dinner. It was dirty rice, stuffed mirlitons, green bean casserole, cornbread dressings, meatballs, creamy corn, and macaroni. We also got some leftovers which was really good and had a pretty good day. It was sure odd not being around family for the Holiday, but it wasn't too bad. Well, other than that, our week has been pretty uneventful. We are trying to find some new people to teach and have definitely been blessed with how many referrals we have gotten. we have found a couple through tracting but we really need to teach some people that are invited by members. Whoever we teach is most hesitant to come to church because they do not have a friend or someone they know o help them out and answer questions. We try the best we can but it would just work better if the members invited people they know to be taught by us. We were talking about that in coordination meeting and we feel like the missionary effort in our Ward is split in half with the missionaries teaching the peole we find and the members giving people Book of Mormons and sharing scriptures but never inviting us to teach. So that is something we are going to try to work on. We also decorated out apartment and it looks pretty sweet haha. Well that's all for this week and I love and miss everyone! Keep smilin!
Love Elder Smith
Well this week really flew by. I was really surprised by how cold it got! I have been so used to being able to ride around in a short sleeve shirt that I didn't really know how to handle the cold weather.. especially on bikes. Thankfully we were able to go buy some warmer clothing and now we feel much better prepared for some of the inevitable cold weather that we will have. But I really shouldn't be complaining because it sounds like ya'll are going to have some really cold weather in the next couple of days! Below freezing weather sounds miserable! On Wednesday we were able to visit with a less active sister who has a nonmember husband. She said that she put on Facebook that she just loves it when the missionaries come by and she said they always come by right when she needs them. Her mom had "liked" the statement and the less active sister has started to really have a desire to change her life and try to get back to church. Her goal right now is to, in the near future, be able to go to the temple and hopefully get sealed to her family. We have been really excited to see her progress and we hope one of these days she can start the habit of coming to church. Another thing that happened Wednesday was that we met with our Vietnamese lady and she gave us loads of interesting food to take home! She gave us a bag of Oriental noodles a couple bags of beans and a huge box of tangelos. WE gave the oranges to one of the members and he definitely appreciated them. We got a referral for the Mayor of Kenner Mr. Mike Yenni and we emailed and called him so hopefully in the next little while we can hear from him and see if he wants to be taught. Apparently some missionary was sitting next to him on a plane and talked to him and got his information. We have been really excited about that and it has definitely gotten some of the ward members a little more excited about missionary work.Our Thanksgiving was interesting because we didn't have a real Thanksgiving dinner. It was dirty rice, stuffed mirlitons, green bean casserole, cornbread dressings, meatballs, creamy corn, and macaroni. We also got some leftovers which was really good and had a pretty good day. It was sure odd not being around family for the Holiday, but it wasn't too bad. Well, other than that, our week has been pretty uneventful. We are trying to find some new people to teach and have definitely been blessed with how many referrals we have gotten. we have found a couple through tracting but we really need to teach some people that are invited by members. Whoever we teach is most hesitant to come to church because they do not have a friend or someone they know o help them out and answer questions. We try the best we can but it would just work better if the members invited people they know to be taught by us. We were talking about that in coordination meeting and we feel like the missionary effort in our Ward is split in half with the missionaries teaching the peole we find and the members giving people Book of Mormons and sharing scriptures but never inviting us to teach. So that is something we are going to try to work on. We also decorated out apartment and it looks pretty sweet haha. Well that's all for this week and I love and miss everyone! Keep smilin!
Love Elder Smith
Monday, November 25, 2013
Happy Thanksgiving
Dear Family,
Well I hope everyone has some good plans for Thanksgiving! I know that it's definitely going to be the highlight of my week. Hmm, to be honest our weeks go by much the same every week. We teach roughly the same people and see a little progress every week. So, instead of an account of my week, it's going to be more things I have felt or learned this week. One thing that stuck out this week was just yesterday. We have about six people that are investigators and we only get to see about one each week. So we went by one of our investigators house (and he had the greatest potential) He answered the door and told us that we can't come by anymore. His attitude has changed 180 degrees and it was just tough to see that he had been led a stray by someone or something. There are a lot of ministers of different churches that will tell their congregation anti Mormon things and it's just something we have to deal with down here. I have been thinking quite a bit about the things that I am grateful for, as have, I'm sure, most of you. From reading talks and just day to day experiences I have been struck by how grateful I am for my Savior. The church makes bible videos of Christ's ministry and they are very well done. I would suggest that you watch a few of them and just think about how they make you feel.
I really don't know what to talk about because this week hasn't been very exciting. It has been super cold and most of the ward is leaving for the Holiday. I think its going to be a tough week to see members but I'm hoping that a lot of the less actives will have all of their families at home so that we can see them and strengthen their families.
Well, I guess that is going to be it, this week, sorry I don't have much to say. Next week, I will write some things down that I can talk about. We are going to see how cold we get this week and see if we are going to break down and buy jackets. Thanks for everything you all do and remember that I love and miss you. It is going to be really hard not to be home for thanksgiving dinner! Make sure you all eat plenty of Turkey and just enjoy the little things this weekend. I'm doing good here and have nothing to complain about.
Love Elder Smith
Well I hope everyone has some good plans for Thanksgiving! I know that it's definitely going to be the highlight of my week. Hmm, to be honest our weeks go by much the same every week. We teach roughly the same people and see a little progress every week. So, instead of an account of my week, it's going to be more things I have felt or learned this week. One thing that stuck out this week was just yesterday. We have about six people that are investigators and we only get to see about one each week. So we went by one of our investigators house (and he had the greatest potential) He answered the door and told us that we can't come by anymore. His attitude has changed 180 degrees and it was just tough to see that he had been led a stray by someone or something. There are a lot of ministers of different churches that will tell their congregation anti Mormon things and it's just something we have to deal with down here. I have been thinking quite a bit about the things that I am grateful for, as have, I'm sure, most of you. From reading talks and just day to day experiences I have been struck by how grateful I am for my Savior. The church makes bible videos of Christ's ministry and they are very well done. I would suggest that you watch a few of them and just think about how they make you feel.
I really don't know what to talk about because this week hasn't been very exciting. It has been super cold and most of the ward is leaving for the Holiday. I think its going to be a tough week to see members but I'm hoping that a lot of the less actives will have all of their families at home so that we can see them and strengthen their families.
Well, I guess that is going to be it, this week, sorry I don't have much to say. Next week, I will write some things down that I can talk about. We are going to see how cold we get this week and see if we are going to break down and buy jackets. Thanks for everything you all do and remember that I love and miss you. It is going to be really hard not to be home for thanksgiving dinner! Make sure you all eat plenty of Turkey and just enjoy the little things this weekend. I'm doing good here and have nothing to complain about.
Love Elder Smith
Monday, November 18, 2013
Visiting with members and less actives
Dear Family,
Well this week has been a really good time. It was kind of interesting because we didn't meet with any investigators or do service. All of our time was spent visiting with members and less actives. Quite a few of the less actives have family that are active and I really hope we can help them in getting these people to get back to church and praying. On Tuesday night we had another dinner with the brother Ferrell and we went with the zone leaders. They happened to be on exchanges that night so the new Elder was Elder Murula from the Congo. He had only been out for about a week so it was pretty fun to be around a new missionary. After the dinner Bro Ferrell took us into his cousins room and showed off a collection of LOTR swords that his cousin had. I thought it was pretty great so i took some pictures. Wednesday we bought some sweaters since I have been getting a little cold and then we went to see some members throughout the day. Thursday was a really good day because we had interviews with President Wall. In my interview we talked a lot about how the mission is and then just life stuff. President Wall is a great guy and just makes you feel like a million bucks when you talk to him. Near the end of the day we went to see a less active who just complained to us about Republicans and Romney. I had a really hard time but I had to just grin and bear as he lectured us for about an hour and a half. It was quite the lesson! The rest of the week we just went around to a lot of member and less active homes and tried to find more people to teach. We were excited to see progress in some of our less actives since they had started to read the Book of Mormon more regularly and start to see their desire to come back to church grow. Quite a few of them were nervous about coming back to church mainly because they just feel like the people who are active will look down on them for not having come to church for so long. We are trying o get members in the lessons with us but is kind of a struggle. We got a call from the second counselor on the Bishopric on Saturday night asking me to talk on Sunday so I gave a talk yesterday about member missionary work. It made me really glad I did speech and debate so that I can talk without much preparation. We went home teaching with the bishop last night and it is just funny to be around him. Bishop Brown is only 28 and is studying to be an actor so ya. Today we are planning to go out to eat with the missionaries in our district so we are looking forward to that. Things in Kenner are going really good and Elder Porter and I are having a good time!
Love Elder Smith
Well this week has been a really good time. It was kind of interesting because we didn't meet with any investigators or do service. All of our time was spent visiting with members and less actives. Quite a few of the less actives have family that are active and I really hope we can help them in getting these people to get back to church and praying. On Tuesday night we had another dinner with the brother Ferrell and we went with the zone leaders. They happened to be on exchanges that night so the new Elder was Elder Murula from the Congo. He had only been out for about a week so it was pretty fun to be around a new missionary. After the dinner Bro Ferrell took us into his cousins room and showed off a collection of LOTR swords that his cousin had. I thought it was pretty great so i took some pictures. Wednesday we bought some sweaters since I have been getting a little cold and then we went to see some members throughout the day. Thursday was a really good day because we had interviews with President Wall. In my interview we talked a lot about how the mission is and then just life stuff. President Wall is a great guy and just makes you feel like a million bucks when you talk to him. Near the end of the day we went to see a less active who just complained to us about Republicans and Romney. I had a really hard time but I had to just grin and bear as he lectured us for about an hour and a half. It was quite the lesson! The rest of the week we just went around to a lot of member and less active homes and tried to find more people to teach. We were excited to see progress in some of our less actives since they had started to read the Book of Mormon more regularly and start to see their desire to come back to church grow. Quite a few of them were nervous about coming back to church mainly because they just feel like the people who are active will look down on them for not having come to church for so long. We are trying o get members in the lessons with us but is kind of a struggle. We got a call from the second counselor on the Bishopric on Saturday night asking me to talk on Sunday so I gave a talk yesterday about member missionary work. It made me really glad I did speech and debate so that I can talk without much preparation. We went home teaching with the bishop last night and it is just funny to be around him. Bishop Brown is only 28 and is studying to be an actor so ya. Today we are planning to go out to eat with the missionaries in our district so we are looking forward to that. Things in Kenner are going really good and Elder Porter and I are having a good time!
Love Elder Smith
Thursday, November 14, 2013
Trying our best to be good examples.
Dear Family,
Lets see where to begin! Well first off I just want to say a little bit about my companion.Well my companion and I are like best friends. We get a lot of looks from the other missionaries like we are crazy and we just have a good time joking around with each other. We went bowling on Monday and I surprisingly didn't do too bad. That night we had good visit with a less active who told us of a missionary moment she had, which was really neat. She said that she was talking to one of her sons friends and shared her testimony and just let him know about the church. We didn't get to meet him but we are excited to hear back from her about him.
The rest of the week went by as normal, visiting most of the regular people and trying to get them to come back to church. We had some good lessons with members and did some service for another member. We are working hard and trying to help the ward get back to where it needs to be with active members. I hope we can help them feel comfortable and have that desire to come back to church.
Today we had a really good district meeting and it is just really good to be able to feel the spirit and share what we have learned. Overall it has been a great week and since its pretty late the email is going to have to be pretty short. I saw two alligators in the canal as we were driving to the church and it was kind of funny because the rest of the Elders who have been out for quite a while haven't seen one and I have already seen two. I love being here and am glad to serve the people in Kenner. We are trying our best to be good examples and to give hope to people.
Love Elder Smith
Lets see where to begin! Well first off I just want to say a little bit about my companion.Well my companion and I are like best friends. We get a lot of looks from the other missionaries like we are crazy and we just have a good time joking around with each other. We went bowling on Monday and I surprisingly didn't do too bad. That night we had good visit with a less active who told us of a missionary moment she had, which was really neat. She said that she was talking to one of her sons friends and shared her testimony and just let him know about the church. We didn't get to meet him but we are excited to hear back from her about him.
The rest of the week went by as normal, visiting most of the regular people and trying to get them to come back to church. We had some good lessons with members and did some service for another member. We are working hard and trying to help the ward get back to where it needs to be with active members. I hope we can help them feel comfortable and have that desire to come back to church.
Today we had a really good district meeting and it is just really good to be able to feel the spirit and share what we have learned. Overall it has been a great week and since its pretty late the email is going to have to be pretty short. I saw two alligators in the canal as we were driving to the church and it was kind of funny because the rest of the Elders who have been out for quite a while haven't seen one and I have already seen two. I love being here and am glad to serve the people in Kenner. We are trying our best to be good examples and to give hope to people.
Love Elder Smith
Monday, November 4, 2013
Seeing some progress
Dear Family,
This has been a really good week and we have seen some progress in people we visit.
Wednesday we rode our bikes all over the place trying to contact referrals weren't very successful but did get one person who we might be able to teach.
Thursday we were able to meet with quite a few people and had a couple of lessons with investigators.
Friday we started exchanges with the zone leaders did service most of the day moving bricks from a members yard and then visited a less active man.
Saturday we did service continuing to build the barn shed we have been working on and this time we pretty much got it finished. We heard lots of stories from the member we were doing service at about his days in Vietnam about being a helicopter pilot.
Sunday i bore my testimony in church and was strengthened by all of the other members testimonies the spirit was just really strong and I was glad to see how much the members have gotten the spirit of missionary work!
So overall it was a pretty good week and I learned quite a few things. One that Elder Porter is a great companion and I really appreciate him and that by small and simple things we do as missionaries bring great things to pass for the people we visit. Whether its just a simple question or invitation to pray. I love it and love serving a mission! It is the best thing that anyone can do other than raise a righteous family. I'm loving it here in Kenner and am excited to serve her for another five weeks.
Love Elder Smith
This has been a really good week and we have seen some progress in people we visit.
Wednesday we rode our bikes all over the place trying to contact referrals weren't very successful but did get one person who we might be able to teach.
Thursday we were able to meet with quite a few people and had a couple of lessons with investigators.
Friday we started exchanges with the zone leaders did service most of the day moving bricks from a members yard and then visited a less active man.
Saturday we did service continuing to build the barn shed we have been working on and this time we pretty much got it finished. We heard lots of stories from the member we were doing service at about his days in Vietnam about being a helicopter pilot.
Sunday i bore my testimony in church and was strengthened by all of the other members testimonies the spirit was just really strong and I was glad to see how much the members have gotten the spirit of missionary work!
So overall it was a pretty good week and I learned quite a few things. One that Elder Porter is a great companion and I really appreciate him and that by small and simple things we do as missionaries bring great things to pass for the people we visit. Whether its just a simple question or invitation to pray. I love it and love serving a mission! It is the best thing that anyone can do other than raise a righteous family. I'm loving it here in Kenner and am excited to serve her for another five weeks.
Love Elder Smith
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
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Working with less actives
Dear Family and Friends,
Well, it has been a great week here in Kenner. We have been working really hard and have seen some neat progress in some of our less actives we teach. All the progress happens when we aren't there, so its really exciting to show up and see their enthusiasm and increased love for the Savior. We have not been able to meet with our usual investigators but this week have seen lots of progress in a couple of the less active people we teach. When we visited with them the were very excited about the Book of Mormon and really wanted to continue to read from it and learn more. The weather has been really good and we have been trying to serve everyone we see. Yesterday was proselyting Monday since we were having transfers this week. I wanted to stay here in Kenner with my companion and that's what happened, so I am very excited about the next six weeks. One thing I have learned this week is that it is by small and simple things that great things come to pass. We don't have to do or say wondrous things to bring about this work of salvation. It really is as simple as teaching about prayer, daily scripture study and the miracle of the Atonement!
Elder Smith
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
A very good week
This has definitely been a very good week. Starting on Monday we had a really good discussion with a less active member about his mission and just funny things that happened to him. I was grateful that nothing so crazy has happened to me yet.
Tuesday we had dinner with a new member that moved to the area for nine months before his family is coming and has just really been very kind to us missionaries. He has invited to feed us every week and wants to come out with us one day a week to go teaching. Afterward we went to ward splits night but only two members showed up so each companionship took one member. We werent able to visit any of our investigators but did have some time to fellowship this member. Later that night we went out walking to do some tracting and while in a neighborhood a cop pulled over and told us people would probably call the cops on us and pretty much told us to get out of the neighborhood. While leaving we stopped by a house with a couple sitting outside and talked to them a little about the restoration and she said she used to be a JW but that she really wanted to come to church and learn more.
Wednesday was pretty busy meeting with a few member and less actives then going to dinner with a member to IHOP it was pretty good!
Thursday we had dinner with our usual LessActive and this time her son (who is 60) sctually seemed interested so now we will focus on him.
Friday we had exchanges so I went out with Elder Provost and the first thing he said was that every transfer he sees a miracle. We headed out after studies and were going to the farthest area which is where I had my flat tire the first time. So of course as soon as we get as far as possible I get a flat. We walk to a Walmart that is close to get a pump. When we first get to walmart an employee who had just taken his break began talking to us and so we bore our testimonies and he said that he wants to learn more and used to have God in his life and recently been looking again. He wanted to meet with us again but wasnt in our area and then sent his referral to that area. We talked to him for a good 80 minutes and just really had a good time. I knew that we had been sent there at that time and place in order to talk to him and teach him.
Saturday was a very rainy day and we were working outside all morning. we were building the shed and were working on the roof so that was interesting.
Sunday was good of course and it seemed like we were at the church all day.
Today we are going to hang out at the apartment and clean because inspections are tomorrow.
The greatest thing I have learned so far in my mission is the importance of daily scripture study. As a missionary we take one hour each morning to study the scriptures and Preach my Gospel. In this time I find insights into questions I had been praying for and what I need to share with those that we meet. Because of this I have realized how grateful I am for the blessings of the scriptures. I have been blessed with the knowledge of the Gospel and the light it brings into my life. I know that God loves each one of us no matter what and that his church has been restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith.
Love, Elder Smith
Monday, October 14, 2013
Doing service
Dear Family,
This week has been pretty good. We did a lot of service and had a few meetings, so we didn't really get a chance to teach many people. Today for P-day we are going to the WW2 museum in New Orleans, that should be fun. Right now the work is pretty slow and not many of the people we teach will keep their commitments. It's hard to see any progression, they are refusing to listen and the blessings, they will not accept. One new person, I met this week, is a young man who is 17 and has been investigating different churches. When we met with him he just tried to tell us why we were wrong and tried to convert us. Its disappointing to see someone choose not to read and pray and instead only look at anti Mormon stuff but that's just how things are.
Love Elder Smith
Thursday, October 10, 2013
Saints Vs Saints
Dear Family,
As most of you probably now a tropical storm was headed my direction this past weekend. To be honest it was one of the most underwhelming moments in my life! The news and members that called or text us told us to all watch out and our mission president even told us to stay inside. The day before we had been talking to a member and he said he always gets frustrated when the storms end up not doing anything because people go crazy. So, on Saturday when we were expecting the storm nothing happened. It sprinkled for like ten minutes and then it was sunshine the next two days. I was a little disappointed.
Anyway the week was overall pretty good. On Monday we hung out at the apartment because it was raining all day and then we went out to visit some less actives and to go tracting. The first person we met with was a man from India who said his family was the first to be baptized in New Delhi that were Indian. He said his father was the first branch president and his sister was the first missionary from India. He says he is too busy for church and he tries to hide that he smokes but I really hope that we can give him some support and help him get a desire to come back. After visiting with Bro. Das we went to a neighborhood and knocked on some doors. Most people would yell at us through the door to go away or would open the door look down and say they were catholic and didn't need us there. Another big factor was that the Saints game was on and oh do the people here love their Saints! Once we were done with a few houses we met with one man watching the game and as we began he said that her believes in the Bible, but thinks that there is something missing from it. We gave him the Book of Mormon and told him that it contains a fullness of the Gospel and that he can find what he is looking for in that book. We haven't been able to see him again but I hope he has read and wants us to come back to teach him.
Tuesday we visited with a member and then did family history for three hours at the church.
Wednesday we met with our regular less actives and a few members to teach them, Thursday was service at the Reitz helping them put laminate flooring in their small bathroom. I was expecting it to take a couple of hours but we were there all day. Us missionaries were pretty clueless on what to do and the member and less active weren't very effective at giving us direction. It was fun to be there and was a good time to bring the spirit into their home for the day.
Friday was a crazy day because we were expecting a storm to come and baptize our area but nothing happened. We tried to visit a few different people but no one answered their doors and ended up eating with some members that night.We had cafe Rio type of food and were sent home with leftovers so that was great.
Saturday and Sunday were both taken up by conference. It was refreshing to hear from the leaders of the church and to be strengthened by them. My favorite talk was given by one from Papa New Guinea.
I'm doing great and am learning so much. I love it here and today the weather is perfect. I hope the snow isn't causing too much trouble! I love you all and appreciate your prayers!
Love Elder Smith
As most of you probably now a tropical storm was headed my direction this past weekend. To be honest it was one of the most underwhelming moments in my life! The news and members that called or text us told us to all watch out and our mission president even told us to stay inside. The day before we had been talking to a member and he said he always gets frustrated when the storms end up not doing anything because people go crazy. So, on Saturday when we were expecting the storm nothing happened. It sprinkled for like ten minutes and then it was sunshine the next two days. I was a little disappointed.
Anyway the week was overall pretty good. On Monday we hung out at the apartment because it was raining all day and then we went out to visit some less actives and to go tracting. The first person we met with was a man from India who said his family was the first to be baptized in New Delhi that were Indian. He said his father was the first branch president and his sister was the first missionary from India. He says he is too busy for church and he tries to hide that he smokes but I really hope that we can give him some support and help him get a desire to come back. After visiting with Bro. Das we went to a neighborhood and knocked on some doors. Most people would yell at us through the door to go away or would open the door look down and say they were catholic and didn't need us there. Another big factor was that the Saints game was on and oh do the people here love their Saints! Once we were done with a few houses we met with one man watching the game and as we began he said that her believes in the Bible, but thinks that there is something missing from it. We gave him the Book of Mormon and told him that it contains a fullness of the Gospel and that he can find what he is looking for in that book. We haven't been able to see him again but I hope he has read and wants us to come back to teach him.
Tuesday we visited with a member and then did family history for three hours at the church.
Wednesday we met with our regular less actives and a few members to teach them, Thursday was service at the Reitz helping them put laminate flooring in their small bathroom. I was expecting it to take a couple of hours but we were there all day. Us missionaries were pretty clueless on what to do and the member and less active weren't very effective at giving us direction. It was fun to be there and was a good time to bring the spirit into their home for the day.
Friday was a crazy day because we were expecting a storm to come and baptize our area but nothing happened. We tried to visit a few different people but no one answered their doors and ended up eating with some members that night.We had cafe Rio type of food and were sent home with leftovers so that was great.
Saturday and Sunday were both taken up by conference. It was refreshing to hear from the leaders of the church and to be strengthened by them. My favorite talk was given by one from Papa New Guinea.
I'm doing great and am learning so much. I love it here and today the weather is perfect. I hope the snow isn't causing too much trouble! I love you all and appreciate your prayers!
Love Elder Smith
Tuesday, October 1, 2013
Rainy, busy, and hoping for more investigators.
Dear family,
This week has been wonderful. When I first got into my area I had made a comment to my companion that I've never seen so much water in my life! The first week it rained almost everyday which made riding a bike very dirty. We have eaten a few meals with members. Two with active members and one with a less active family. Our assignment for the week was to find all of the young people who could serve missions in our area and see what their situation was. This kept us very busy and wasn't very productive. About seventy five percent of the people we attempted to visited had moved and the most of the rest didn't want anything to do with the church. The one we did meet with is a girl that doesn't know much of anything about the church but wants to learn more. She has been baptized, and hopefully we can help her learn about the church. After that we went to a mans house that previous missionaries had taught. This man had already known that the Book of Mormon was true and wants to get baptized. We have tried to meet with him but he is very busy with work. Last night we went to a ladies house who had fed my companion a month ago. She is from Vietnam and really loves Christ. She thinks Christ was a great man but doesn't know exactly what he did and who he is. She has a Book of Mormon that she struggles to read since its in English. I noticed in the material room in the church they have copies of Book of Mormon in lots of different languages, so I hope to get one in Vietnamese for her. We did some service for members, painting some rooms in their house with a member named Morris Reynolds. He goes by Mo and is quite the character. Mo is a recent convert of about a year or two. While we were painting he would periodically stick his finger in the paint and lick it calling it either milk or chocolate milk depending on the color. Yesterday we did service for an older couple that are building a shed. The "shed" is taller than most of the houses in the area and has two stories. The less active family that fed us is an elderly lady, her brother, and her son. She loves having us over and makes sure we put down a day each week to come over. Other than that this week has been lots of bike riding to houses where people have moved out of. Not too exciting! I'm hoping next week we can actually teach and get some investigators.
Love Elder Smith
Monday, September 23, 2013
A Challenge
Dear Family and Friends,
I landed in Baton Rouge on Tuesday and stayed at the mission home for the entire day to get some housekeeping stuff in order. When we were done with that we were able to take naps and eat dinner later that night. In the morning we drove to the temple and the stake center and attended our first transfer meeting. My companion is Elder Porter who has been serving for seven months. He is a wonderful example and will be a great resource for help that I need. We don't have any serious investigators at this time and we visited many members and less actives. We went tracting for an hour on saturday and my companion said he hasn't done that for probably three months. Our ward mission plan is to fellowship the members to get them excited about missionary work so we can get more successful investigators. I have had a good experience so far and hope to continue to help those around me. Its probably rained here more than I've ever seen in my life and the lake I drove by, that Kenner, is near was huge. Today for P-Day we are kind of just relaxing, but since we are close, one of the following weeks, we will go with the zone leaders to New Orleans and see some sites. The biggest bug I have seen was a cicada and they are annoying because they are so loud. I was fed a "green" dinner by a member family and we already have two or three dinner appointments this coming week. The bishop is about 28 and I didn't get to really meet him, but most of the members are people who are going to school or went to school here and decided to stay. Some of the people are really different and its fun to be around them. Oh, and mom I want longer letters from you! haha tell me whats going on and how things are! Thanks for all the support and love! I will continue to pray for everyone!
Love Elder Smith
P.S. Well i'm really glad you sent me the stories from our ancestors they really are a strength to my testimony! I want to challenge the family to have a missionary experience every week and to let me know what the experience is like. It can be anything from serving someone or bearing your testimony. I expect some emails in the next few weeks about these experiences. Written letters are preferred on these experiences. Thanks
I landed in Baton Rouge on Tuesday and stayed at the mission home for the entire day to get some housekeeping stuff in order. When we were done with that we were able to take naps and eat dinner later that night. In the morning we drove to the temple and the stake center and attended our first transfer meeting. My companion is Elder Porter who has been serving for seven months. He is a wonderful example and will be a great resource for help that I need. We don't have any serious investigators at this time and we visited many members and less actives. We went tracting for an hour on saturday and my companion said he hasn't done that for probably three months. Our ward mission plan is to fellowship the members to get them excited about missionary work so we can get more successful investigators. I have had a good experience so far and hope to continue to help those around me. Its probably rained here more than I've ever seen in my life and the lake I drove by, that Kenner, is near was huge. Today for P-Day we are kind of just relaxing, but since we are close, one of the following weeks, we will go with the zone leaders to New Orleans and see some sites. The biggest bug I have seen was a cicada and they are annoying because they are so loud. I was fed a "green" dinner by a member family and we already have two or three dinner appointments this coming week. The bishop is about 28 and I didn't get to really meet him, but most of the members are people who are going to school or went to school here and decided to stay. Some of the people are really different and its fun to be around them. Oh, and mom I want longer letters from you! haha tell me whats going on and how things are! Thanks for all the support and love! I will continue to pray for everyone!
Love Elder Smith
P.S. Well i'm really glad you sent me the stories from our ancestors they really are a strength to my testimony! I want to challenge the family to have a missionary experience every week and to let me know what the experience is like. It can be anything from serving someone or bearing your testimony. I expect some emails in the next few weeks about these experiences. Written letters are preferred on these experiences. Thanks
Saturday, September 21, 2013
Thursday, September 12, 2013
First Letter from the MTC
Dear family,
My stay here at the MTC has been one of the best experiences I've ever had. My testimony has been strengthened and my knowledge has grown. My first day was a very long day. I was unsure what I was getting myself into and nervous to begin this adventure. When I was able to meet my district and meet my companion it made me even more nervous. After a few moments of getting to know everyone I realized that everyone was just as nervous as I was, which calmed me down. We went through lots of rules and then we were sent back to our rooms to get ready for bed.
The next day I woke up at 630. I was surprised that I was able to and didn't roll over and go back to sleep. When we were ready for the day we went to our classroom and studied for like 5 hours! It was very difficult not to just lay my head down on my scriptures and fall asleep. Since we did not have a real class yet and it was just personal study that whole time a few of the Elders did just that. I have been blessed by being able to focus myself and learn as much as I can in my personal study. I have found revelation that has been crucial in helping me teach by the spirit and be an effective missionary. After study time we went to lunch and then started with our first real class. The joke at the MTC is that it feels like trying to drink from a fire Hydrant with all of the information they throw at us. At the end of the day we went back to our residence hall and met the other Elders who are in our zone, they were all going to California. One of the Elders was from Ghana and I spent a lot of time talking to him. I practiced shaking his hand and clicking my fingers and we finally were able to get it right the day he left. The Elders in my zone were very friendly and welcomed us all with hugs.
Each day goes about the same way with us studying for a couple of hours and then class for six. Though the week as a district we have grown very close and shared spiritual experiences. I know that God has a plan for me on my mission I know that there is a reason why I have come to the MTC now, and why I am serving in Louisiana.
My branch President is a very awesome "little" man. President Wenn was a convert when he was about 20 while he lived in Baton Rouge. He is about four and half feet tall and full of love. the experiences he has shared have shown how much the gospel will bless the lives of those who we are going to teach. I'm so excited to be here and I am grateful the Lord has called me on my mission.
We teach "investigators" at certain times in the day with our companion and these lessons are very good. Then man that me and my companion taught name was Thrijae. He was born in Hawaii and was referred to us by his friend Mario. When we first got to his "house" and knocked on the door I just walked in when he said hello. I was incredibly embarrassed because he soon became very nervous about why we were there. I told him we were missionaries and we wanted to share a message with him. He was reluctant but let us sit down. At the very beginning he told us he didn't want us to be there and my companion kept elbowing me saying "Elder Smith lets go" I felt impressed to stay and to tell him how important what we share with him will be. I told him that god loves him and that if he listens it will bless his life. Finally he told us that he had just lost his Dad a week ago to Cancer and that for his whole life his dad never told him that he loved him. he said that on Friday he went to the Hospital since it was his turn to be with his father and his father told him he didn't have much longer and wanted Thrijae to get his six other brothers. When he got back with his brothers he told them to line up by age and their father told them that he loved them and was so proud of who they had become. Thrijae was wiping tears away and said that he wanted all the pain to go away and to end his life. At that moment I knew that what we had shared with him had saved his life. After a few lessons Thrijae prayed and read the Book of Mormon he said he saw his Dad in a dream and that he wanted to learn about being with him again. Our last lesson with him was yesterday and he told us that he loved us and was going to bring his family to church with him the next week, I know that if we listen to the spirit he will show us how to touch the souls around us. We do not know the pains others are suffering but God does.
Even though this wasn't a real investigator the story of Thrijae was real. Either the man we taught knew Thrijae on his mission or had the same experience with Missionaries in his life.
I know that this church has been restored by the Prophet Joseph. I know that Christ suffered for my sins and took upon him my infirmities and pain. Christ is the perfect example and we should strive to be like him a little more everyday.
I hope everyone can understand if i didn't get a message to them individually. I love you all and am praying for you!
Love Elder Smith
My stay here at the MTC has been one of the best experiences I've ever had. My testimony has been strengthened and my knowledge has grown. My first day was a very long day. I was unsure what I was getting myself into and nervous to begin this adventure. When I was able to meet my district and meet my companion it made me even more nervous. After a few moments of getting to know everyone I realized that everyone was just as nervous as I was, which calmed me down. We went through lots of rules and then we were sent back to our rooms to get ready for bed.
The next day I woke up at 630. I was surprised that I was able to and didn't roll over and go back to sleep. When we were ready for the day we went to our classroom and studied for like 5 hours! It was very difficult not to just lay my head down on my scriptures and fall asleep. Since we did not have a real class yet and it was just personal study that whole time a few of the Elders did just that. I have been blessed by being able to focus myself and learn as much as I can in my personal study. I have found revelation that has been crucial in helping me teach by the spirit and be an effective missionary. After study time we went to lunch and then started with our first real class. The joke at the MTC is that it feels like trying to drink from a fire Hydrant with all of the information they throw at us. At the end of the day we went back to our residence hall and met the other Elders who are in our zone, they were all going to California. One of the Elders was from Ghana and I spent a lot of time talking to him. I practiced shaking his hand and clicking my fingers and we finally were able to get it right the day he left. The Elders in my zone were very friendly and welcomed us all with hugs.
Each day goes about the same way with us studying for a couple of hours and then class for six. Though the week as a district we have grown very close and shared spiritual experiences. I know that God has a plan for me on my mission I know that there is a reason why I have come to the MTC now, and why I am serving in Louisiana.
My branch President is a very awesome "little" man. President Wenn was a convert when he was about 20 while he lived in Baton Rouge. He is about four and half feet tall and full of love. the experiences he has shared have shown how much the gospel will bless the lives of those who we are going to teach. I'm so excited to be here and I am grateful the Lord has called me on my mission.
We teach "investigators" at certain times in the day with our companion and these lessons are very good. Then man that me and my companion taught name was Thrijae. He was born in Hawaii and was referred to us by his friend Mario. When we first got to his "house" and knocked on the door I just walked in when he said hello. I was incredibly embarrassed because he soon became very nervous about why we were there. I told him we were missionaries and we wanted to share a message with him. He was reluctant but let us sit down. At the very beginning he told us he didn't want us to be there and my companion kept elbowing me saying "Elder Smith lets go" I felt impressed to stay and to tell him how important what we share with him will be. I told him that god loves him and that if he listens it will bless his life. Finally he told us that he had just lost his Dad a week ago to Cancer and that for his whole life his dad never told him that he loved him. he said that on Friday he went to the Hospital since it was his turn to be with his father and his father told him he didn't have much longer and wanted Thrijae to get his six other brothers. When he got back with his brothers he told them to line up by age and their father told them that he loved them and was so proud of who they had become. Thrijae was wiping tears away and said that he wanted all the pain to go away and to end his life. At that moment I knew that what we had shared with him had saved his life. After a few lessons Thrijae prayed and read the Book of Mormon he said he saw his Dad in a dream and that he wanted to learn about being with him again. Our last lesson with him was yesterday and he told us that he loved us and was going to bring his family to church with him the next week, I know that if we listen to the spirit he will show us how to touch the souls around us. We do not know the pains others are suffering but God does.
Even though this wasn't a real investigator the story of Thrijae was real. Either the man we taught knew Thrijae on his mission or had the same experience with Missionaries in his life.
I know that this church has been restored by the Prophet Joseph. I know that Christ suffered for my sins and took upon him my infirmities and pain. Christ is the perfect example and we should strive to be like him a little more everyday.
I hope everyone can understand if i didn't get a message to them individually. I love you all and am praying for you!
Love Elder Smith
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