I am an instrument in His hands

Dear Family and Friends, 

It is crazy just how fast the time begins to fly as I am trying to focus in a little more on my mission! Everything has been going so well, and my area is slowly beginning to pick up in activity! 

Before I tell about my week I want to start with a big congratulations to Skyler and Melissa on having a cute baby Charlee!!! I think you need to send her to me!!!!

Week February 1-7 2015

Monday:

Today was one of the weirdest Pdays I have had in the mission, but for me I still enjoyed it fully! So as Pday came around we received a zone text from our Zone Leaders telling us to avoid meeting in big groups to have Zone Activities at the church, and it confused all of us so much on why. The Zone leaders didn't really explain the why behind it, and that is what was so weird. So today as we played all these games at the church, there was only about 8 missionaries there playing when we usually have around 30. It just didn't feel like a real Pday with out everyone, and the mood was really a different mood. However, to start off PDay we went and I got a really good haircut and we did some really good shopping then we decided to go to the Institute building for a bit to play ping pong before we went to the church with the few missionaries that we did have. While at the institute building Sister Bond and Elder Bond made us pop corn and came and visited with us! I really just love them so much!

We made the best of it and spent a lot of time playing a new game called Nerf Tag where if you get shot by the nerf gun you are it and have to hit someone else! It was way fun and I was able to get all of my stress out! A lot of times I feel as a missionary the only way to get your stress out is to run around and play like you are a kid again.

This evening we taught a lesson in Family Home Evening about the Apostasy and the Restoration, but man it was hard with all the kids talking and not listening. They somehow all learned something new, but what surprised me was a non member kid who had some amazing answers to the things that he learned telling us it was necessary to have the apostasy before having a restoration. Today was just a different day, but everything was better as I was able to just email my family and think about them for a bit!

Hopefully we can figure out this new rule so we can still have some enjoyable stress relieving time together as a district and zone!

Tuesday:

Today was a really good day!

We had the great opportunity to again go to the community garden and to work there for about 3 hours on making the paths look nice and pretty! As the main worker drives his tractor down the rows dropping mulch, we would walk behind it and spread it thick down all the rows to prevent weeds, and it really changed the look of the garden to look a lot nicer! Also while we were working we got to know young boy about or age by the name of Jonathan that had begun his missionary work for bible study and have began to dedicate his whole life to the service of being a minister. I admire people for their dedication to stuff like that, but as he was asking us questions you could tell he was very interested in how we could go back and get married after our missions to complete the will of the lord and be able to return to live with God in the highest degree of glory. We had a really good conversation with him and it was just lots of fun! 

We had a great dinner with the Strasser Family and shared a great message about the importance of never feeling like you have not done something worth while in the day. After sharing a short video we found a scripture in Mosiah 23:10 that states,

"10 Nevertheless, after much tribulation, the Lord did hear my cries, and did answer my prayers, and has made me an instrument in his hands in bringing so many of you to a knowledge of his truth."

This really has helped me see that even the simplest things make a difference to others, and the fact that I am an instrument in the hands of God.

This evening we did some contacting in some apartments and it was amazing! The people we have tried to talk to before who always just rejected us finally agreed to us passing by another day and we finally got back into a families house that we thought was trying to ditch us. The Selalla home was the one who finally opened and the son answered the door. As we looked in we saw that the mom was holding a small new born baby that was only 20 days old and was named Emily. The son and the mom really wanted us to go in and then we had to explain the respect rule for not having a husband in the house because he was working and it worked out perfectly. We were so happy that they were not ignoring us the past few weeks, but just taking care of some necessary things so that we could come back! And now we feel like they will be more open to hearing our message, so we will be returning back this Sunday!!!

What a great blessing it was to see their happy faces as they opened with this cute little baby that was glowing. I think we have definitely found our way into teaching this family about the Plan of Salvation!! What a great day!

Also we found this cool sketch while knocking doors! These kinds of things are all over the place!

Wednesday:

Wow today was a fast fast day!

So today we had the opportunity to have a district meeting and I really liked the way that my District leader put it together! So he asked us to all study that morning about a characteristic of Christ that we felt we needed to work on and then he had us share a 3 minute talk on what we learned with our testimony. I feel that I learned more from the spirit in this meeting than I have in a lot of meetings because everyone was very involved in the meeting and it was just very spiritual. Sometimes I forget we are talking  Spanish when we have our meetings, until after the meetings when we go back to the English districts and have to switch back so that they don't get mad that they can't understand us. So one of the main things I learned is how to teach someone. We use what is called PCD or purpose driven learning! First we teach someone using the D for doctrine and then we leave a commitment for C which after them doing their commitments leads them to our purpose of baptism as P. 

It was a really good things to learn for me as a newer missionary!

So this evening we kind of had a full evening of just a big meeting when we sat with the relief society president, Hna. Saldaña and discussed how we could be like a 3 counselor for her and help he have less of a load. It went really well and we have a lot of really good things that we will begin to work on so that we can help her and have lots of things to do. My dream would be to be so busy we have to tell people we will put them on our schedule for the next week. But right now we hardly have enough for every day. I have the faith however that if I keep putting in all I have to find and work hard with the ward that this area will catch fire with people to teach and that we will be super busy! My quote for the day was from our District meeting from Hna. Sperry who said, "There is a huge difference between being still and doing nothing." Always have hope for the future and make sure you aren't doing nothing, but work your heart out and you will receive as much as you put in, maybe even more!

Thursday:

What an amazingly fast day it was today! So today was a special day for Elder 'Otuafi, he hit his year mark today and so of course we had to celebrate and stay busy at the same time! So today we had the opportunity to go to the library and have our weekly planning to prepare for the last week that is coming together and how we can really make it the best full week by working hard and getting as many lessons in as possible. We were also able to think of a lot of ways of finding more people and are noticing that we are being blessed with people to teach as we keep working super hard and as we don't give up. So after we had a really good planning session we went out to contact and just explore a few new areas that we have never really looked around, and it was awesome, we had about 15 minutes to contact and we found a guy who was interested and we taught him a small lesson and set a return appointment as well. For dinner the District Leader, Elder Parkin, and his companion, Elder Escobar, met us at a really good hamburger joint called Roosters where we celebrated Elder 'Otuafi and Elder Parkin's year mark. It was a really fun time to just get to relax and get to know each other more. It is crazy to think that these missionaries are my best friends, but I have only known them now for 12 weeks. As we finished dinner we were able to get straight to work and we taught Modesta, an investigator, but she told us she just doesn't want to change religions. So,whose as I was watching her tell me this I could see a sadness or and trapped look in her face like she just didn't want to change because of her culture. But we can't force, so we bore testimony and left her to think, read and pray. So we also had an appointment with Emanuel who had a baptismal date, but it fell. As we got to his house he text and said he wouldn't be home to later, because he had a small project he had to finish at work and would be there for a while, so we went to his neighbors house who let us in a few days back. As we knocked just to see if he would have a little time, he came out and we had a great lesson that started out being about going to church and then lead into a lesson 1 without even trying. As we asked him questions he told us that he felt there had to be prophets today and so we showed him that there was and that we have them and a Book of Mormon to help us. He was super into learning more and it was just a blessing that he was put in our path just by following our feeling to knock his door! I always say this, but I know God is real because of these experiences that I have had on my mission. He does love me and you and wants the best for us, and that is why he sent his son to show us the way and give us a chance. As we use our agency let us choose to follow God because we love him, and our burdens will become lighter with his help. I testify that the Book of Mormon is the most correct boom and that Joseph Smith is a true prophet and I stand by him and will always stand by him through whatever trial that comes my way. 

Friday:

So today was really an awesome day for us! We were able to do a lot of really good service and we actually moved two guys from an apartment to a full house! So today we started off the day by waking up at 6 am and going to work out in a giant fitness gym and then after that we had a great opportunity to give service. So for our service we stayed with the English missionaries and went and helped a member move her inactive dad and non member brother into a house that she and her husband bought and then fixed up so they lived close. It was a very nasty house that really smelled horrible and musty. We were so glad to get everything out of there and put together and ready to be used in the other house in a short amount of time. Within the time limit of 8:30 to 12 we had both houses cleaned and put together! It was a really good opportunity to get to know the members who are English and see that they are really nice and love the missionary program and it was awesome to see how both the inactive dad and brother changed their thoughts on missionaries and possibly wants them to go back and teach. So this evening after our studies, Hna. Farfal took us out to dinner again at a different restaurant on the square and it was a lot of fun, but after for desert we went to an old fashion ice cream joint and it was so good! She needs a lot of attention and it is fun to be able to hear all about her stories and life and now we are just glad that we are on the same page again! So this evening we were not as lucky when we were knocking doors. As we knocked, no one really answered the doors or was willing to listen, but it was okay so we just decided it would be best to go home and to plan good for a long day tomorrow. So as we were planning we got word that one of the English missionaries had a baptism tomorrow so we invited all of our investigators to attend it and we are so excited! One of the numbers I called tonight was an investigator, or so we thought and as I began talking a different man said I had the wrong number, so being a missionary I asked how he was doing in Spanish and where he lived and he said he lived in Argyle and was interested in going to church on Sunday to learn more. So it was a really cool experience to have a random guy ask what time church started instead of me telling him that we have church. I hope and pray that all goes as planned for the next few days, but if not no worries, because that is the joy of missionary life!!

Saturday:

Well today started out really good where we had a wonderful service and then ended in a little bit of a struggle for us! So today we had the opportunity to go to,the community garden and to help plant over 10,000 onions with the help of about 30 helpers in the field! As we finished planting we were also able to help them lay down lots of water dripping systems to be able to water the onions for the summer and it was a lot of fun to be able to learn more about gardening and tips so that when I get home I can use that knowledge to have a really nice garden. So we worked there all morning and then we were able to do our studies until dinner where we were picked up by the other missionaries who had a baptism that we invited investigators to come to. Well as the baptism started none of our investigators showed up, so we decided not to waist time, but to go contacting. After about a half an hour of hardcore rejections we were getting down and we decided we would go back and finish writing our weekly email in a warm church building. As I was sitting there thinking about how no one showed up and how we didn't have a lot of success, this quote popped into my mind. 

“If only you could see the vision as I have, I wish I had your bodies to do the mission work, I would run to every house to teach the gospel and when I could no longer run then I would walk, and when I could no longer walk, I would crawl on my knees, and after my knees were so bloody that I could not use them, I would use my arms to drag myself, and once every muscle in my body was gone I would begin to yell! Oh that you could see the vision that I have."

I kept thinking, "how can I have that kind of passion strong for the work so that no one can get me down?" I came up with the answers, first have a testimony firm and unshakable and secondly, have the attitude that everything is alright and that the gospel is right for everyone. I have learned tonight that Attitude is everything.

All I can hope is that tomorrow is better and that I learned from today!

Sunday:

Wow, today was the best day for me to fast!! I felt like the fast I did was well worth it. For my fast I was really focused on my investigators and also my ward and area. This past week got me to thinking and praying a lot for them. The reason behind it was that we had a really rough week and didn't have a lot of super amazing success and our area is just burning out and we just need this help from God right now. So as I fasted and prayed really hard yesterday and today everything seemed to go as needed. We found and taught some new investigators tonight and we got to go out with the bishop tonight to talk to some and teach 2 less active families and it was really amazing! So after church today all 8 missionaries in our ward got to go to the bishops house and eat with him and his family and wow his wife knows how to cook really well. We had a great meeting on how to build as a ward and mission and how we can connect together, and we got lots of really good ideas on how to get better. I learned something very basic tonight that really got me to thinking. I learned that we are all brothers and sisters of Gods family and God our father knows us perfectly. All we have to do is use his Holy Ghost to also receive revelation on how you can help your friends to know more about the church or God. If we truly love God we will focus on our neighbors. I know that God will bless you in this work of life. So this evening we called a young priest in our ward named, Solomon, who was having some struggles with life and church and didn't want to go on a mission. He finally opened up to us the other day and we invited him to fast with us, and tonight we got some amazing answers and how we can help him and he is finally opening up more to us and he is also seeing what we do as missionaries and he is getting more interested! I love helping the youth of our ward to become stronger and I hope one day I have the chance too do more! God gives you life just as he gives you choice. So how will you use choose to live your life?

I hope that you all have an amazing week, and know that I love you!

Thank you for always keeping me in your prayers! They are very much felt!!!! Have a great week!

And Skyler and Melissa, I need more pictures!!!!

Con Amor,

Elder Spendlove