Week 86

Hello everybody!

This week was another one for the books, haha. I felt so drained by Sunday, and I am so happy today is Monday! We had three exchanges last week, and every single day we had with them was an absolute BLAST! I get to learn from so many missionaries. I love it so much. The weather is being weird over here again; it was 70 degrees last week, and now we are sitting at a nice 54 as today's high. That's Nevada for ya. A lot of the experiences I had this week were eye-opening and helped me build my understanding of the gospel principle "Enduring to the End."

My first exchange last week started on Monday night, and the weather was so beautiful! I went with Elder Rhoades, and something so fun was that we went to this apartment complex, prayed to know where to go, and next thing I know, we are almost running from door to door trying to share the gospel. It may have seemed weird from a different perspective of these two white guys in white shirts and ties running from door to door, but it displays the urgency of this message we bring. We met this gentleman who had been going through a rough patch in his life, and as we helped him up his stairs, we began to share the gospel so naturally. It was not forced; it came up like it was just another thing we all talk about. I loved it so much!

My next exchange was with my good pal Elder Evans! We served around each other when we first came into the mission, and we had a lot of fun reminiscing on the old times! We had the coolest miracle happen, and I have to share it with you. Don't mind this crazy everywhere email, haha; bear with me. We have these two recent converts in our area that have the hardest life. They are two kids that had the biggest desire to be baptized. After being baptized, the wards in the area split, got combined with others, and a whole lot of jumbling happened. Elder Evans decided that instead of reaching out by phone, we would stop by where they lived to see if we could find them. We get to where they live, and as we are knocking on the door, someone tells us that they had moved. We had no idea where to contact these people because we had no idea where they could have gone or their number. Elder Evans and I were pretty sad, and we decided to go to our next appointment. In the middle of a porch contact, we look to the left and see a bright smile from the cutest kids. It was them. We both ran right over there and said hi and figured out that they just moved into the complex we had been visiting. God is so good! I could not believe that we found them and now are in contact with them again. It was a huge miracle, and I still cannot express my gratitude for what happened that day. It is real, this is ALL real, no doubt.

Elder Kinghorn and I had a fantastic exchange the next day since he is Spanish. We were able to speak in Spanish all day, and it got me back into practice a little bit. Granted, I still talk to some people in the area who are Hispanic, so that is a plus. We had some good times and got to know each other better while lifting each other up. The week before last, we got a referral from a girl who is going to UNR and is interested in learning more and joining the church. We met her at the institute building here in Reno and had the best lesson ever! It was so cool to see someone so eager to learn more about Christ and come closer to Him. Elder Kinghorn and I taught in great unity, thanks to the Spirit. We were able to go downtown and talk to a few people, which may or may not have resulted in some jokes made at our expense. We had a lot of fun, and I have learned so much from that guy these past few months!

This week was crazy, but I love it so much. I am so grateful for this work I get to be a part of and help others feel Christ's love. I probably say that so much in these emails that you probably think I am crazy. Well, I will admit, I kind of am, but for Jesus. This stuff is too good to not have. The gospel is way too valuable not to share with everyone I see. I have learned so much as I have come closer to my Savior! This week, I have been studying what faith in Jesus Christ really means. I liked this phrase I found that really stood out to me, "You accept Him as your Savior and Redeemer and follow His teachings. You believe that your sins can be forgiven through His Atonement. Faith in Him means that you trust Him and are confident that He loves you." How powerful this statement is! I love it so much. Do you have faith in Jesus Christ? What can you do to have more faith in Him? Just some questions to ponder. I will quiz you next week.

Yes, I am a missionary. This is amazing. I hope you are all doing well. If you ever need anything, feel free to reach out! I always love reading your replies back. Sienna Vista got my heart, man. Be safe this week!

Mosiah 5:1-2

And now, it came to pass that when King Benjamin had spoken to his people, he sent among them, desiring to know if they believed the words he had spoken to them. And they all cried with one voice, saying, Yea, we believe all the words which thou hast spoken unto us, and also, we know of their surety and truth because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil but to do good continually.