Trials of a Zone Leader

Well I can't believe that General Conference is this weekend. It's my second to last one. The time is just flying by. Well everything is going well here. It's really tiring though. I've lost so much sleep since I've become zone leader. But it's all good. It's a lot more focus on other missionaries which is great.We're spending a lot of time helping other missionaries out. It's a little difficult balancing time in our area and the other missionaries areas. Last night we went into one of the Sisters area and went to a stake correlation from them to help them get some things they wanted the stake to do. So we went and did that for 2 hours. And got what we wanted. And we got the Sisters a baptism from it. And we hooked up their dish washer. So it was a great night.

Things have been crazy lately, so I don't really know what to write about. Because there is a lot. But it's all going good. We don't really have any work in our area from the last missionaries. So we're trying to pick up the work in our area and find some investigators too! It's great stuff. Other than that the new area is great. We're covering 2 spanish wards so we're using the members a lot to get the work done. Because it'd be impossible to have us do all the work in the 2 stakes and help all the other missionaries. So we're relying on the members a lot. We had Zone meeting on Monday. I think it went pretty well. It's a little bit different setting teaching a group of missionaries than a few investigators. So my teaching skills should be able to increase. Well that's about all I can think of right now. Hope y'all have a great week and enjoy conference!

Zone Leader in the MillCreek Zone

Well, the things in the district improved. Everybody was able to have a more effective week. It was great. Hopefully they can keep it up. Well as y'all know we had transfers yesterday. I finally left West Valley and now am serving in Millcreek. On Monday Elder Cannon and I were out tracting and we got a phone call from President Winn. And he called me to be a new zone leader. So I show up to the transfer building, and everybody in the mission getting transferred had a meeting in the chapel. Then we went out to the parking lot and all the zone leaders got in a circle to find out where we'd be serving and who our companions would be. They called a few for some different zones, and then they got to Millcreek zone. But the funniest part about it is that my new companion is Elder Widenhouse. So we're back serving together, just like the good ol' MTC times. It should be a pretty good transfer. I haven't really served around any of the missionaries before so it'll be good. Yesterday was pretty crazy. After transfers we ended up having to help the sisters set up some beds in their apartment, and then pick up 2 missionaries and take them to their apartment. Then we got a call from 2 other missionaries and had to give them a ride. Then we got a call from the other sisters in the zone and had to help them change apartments. So it was kind of a crazy day. We're still coming up with ideas for zone expectations and all that. It feels weird having a new area after 6 months of serving in my last stake. I feel lost, and don't know where we're going. But it's all good.

The baptism last weekend went through so that was a great feeling! To finally get someone baptized, even though the family that is thinking about baptism didn't show up. Then this Saturday we have a lady in my last area getting baptized. Someone I worked with a few months ago and then started working with her again. She said as she was in church praying about her baptism that my face showed up. So she asked me to baptize her, which I happily accepted. Hopefully we'll be able to have some baptisms in my current area now! I'm so excited for next weekend with General Conference. It's such a great chance to here the Prophet and Apostles speak. One of the biggest growths in my testimony lately has been that of Joseph Smith. He was such an amazing person.

Improving the District

Well It's crazy that this transfer is almost over. Just one more week. So next week I'll be e-mailing y'all on Thursday. The baptism didn't go through for the 9 year old girl, because she went to her dad's house for the weekend. But we set everything up for this Friday at 3:30 before she leaves for her dad's. Then on Sunday she'll be leaving her dad's an hour or 2 early to get confirmed. The branch president won't let us do a confirmation at the baptism. Kind of lame. Well that's about all going on.

We are still working with a few people. But nobody really close to getting baptized. There's this one lady who is going to church every week so maybe we'll be able to put her on date soon. Then there's also the other lady, the one who had the dream, and she's been going to church too Her son is going to be baptized on the 25th, so we're hoping to baptize her with him. And still hoping that the family will go to the baptism on Friday and desire to get baptized. Those are the three people that are progressing and getting baptized. So hopefully we will be able to start baptizing every week! I think that's about all that's really going on. Just still trying to work with improving the skills that the district has. But oh well. It's all good. Sorry that the letter is so short, but it should be a good one next week. Just some things to look forward to are: transfer information, and telling how the baptism went!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Happy belated birthday mom! 


Well everything here is going good. We weren't able to baptize the family this weekend. They decided not to get baptized last minute. But we will be having a baptism this weekend. A 9 year old girl whos mom is less-active. She's pretty cool. I'm excited. Hopefully the family that was going to get baptized will go to this baptism have a desire and get baptized there. Yesterday we had an amazing lesson with this investigator who has come to church for the past 2 weeks. She's never really been religious, but likes our church. So we should be putting her on date pretty soon. We got a lot of good potential. It's amazing to see all these blessings coming to us. It's not only our companionship, but the whole district I"m excited for everyone. We have like 2 or 3 people on date to get baptized on the 25th. So we're trying to keep them on date. It's pretty exciting. We're trying to stay humble and make sure that we don't get prideful. I don't know. It doesn't seem like I have much to write about this week. We're just trying to work hard and do what we're supposed to. That's about all there is to it. Hopefully I will have more stuff to write about next week!

Dreaming About a Blue Book

Well everything last week was amazing. The trainings were great. It's pretty much teaching us how to do the things they tell us to do in Preach My Gospel. It's a lot more relying on the Spirit. So it's an amazing experience. Even just doing them in role plays, the Spirit is strong and we can find out the needs of the investigators. It's sick. To answer your questions real quick, p-days are still on wednesday for now. There's been some talk of having them Monday's, but we'll see where that goes. And President Atkinson is the first counselor in the mission presidency. Anyways, the family that we've been teaching and hoping would get baptized last Saturday didn't get baptized. But they are going to be baptized this Saturday. So I'm excited for that. And then on Monday night last week we stopped by a former investigator. She had some dreams about missionaries coming by and talking to her about church, but she has been going to a Christian church for a while and really active in it. So in the dream she told them the same stuff she always told us, that "I have my own church and I don't need to change." Then she had another one talking to them again and in it they were talking to her about church, and she says "I have my own and I study out of this, and this is the only weapon I need" and she reached down to pull out a Bible but instead was holding up a blue book. The Book of Mormon. And so we're starting to teach her again, and hoping to get her baptized her pretty soon. Then with the less-active lady with the 9 year old, we stopped by her and talked to her. Elder Cannon talked to the little girl while I talked to the mom. I applied the trainings we received and by the end she was crying and telling me about how she doesn't feel worthy to pray and all that. A lot of the stuff going on in her life. So that was a pretty good experience. Before we left we kneeled down and I asked her to offer a prayer. It was amazing. We have an appointment with her tonight. I'm not going to be able to be there though because I have some exchanges. But anyways yesterday I was on exchanges and my companion followed up on some referrals, and apparently he ran into some people that are pretty interested in learning more about the gospel. So I'm stoked about seeing how those turn out. It should be a pretty good month. Then yesterday we had interviews with the President Winn. Those went pretty well. He asked all of us to think about things we need to improve. So he asked me what my 3 things were, and I told him. Then he talked to me about becoming a zone leader. So I don't know. We'll see how that goes. Well that's about all I can think about right now.