Elder D will be Training a Brand New Elder!

Hola Padres, y todas las otras!                 June 6, 2011  

It is that time of week again, and this time the email comes on the right day of the week. (No Holiday!)  This week was very up and down. We had a lot of struggles and we saw a lot of things not go our way. For instance, we had one night where we had 4 teaching appointments set up and they all seemed to just have some random thing pop up and so we had all of them cancel. We also had two baptisms planned for this Sunday, but both of those didn’t happen either. One didn’t happen because the lady we have been teaching for a long time decided that she was going to try going to another church for a while. This got me pretty upset, because she has had some crazy experiences and she knows the Church is true, but chooses to keep holding herself away from it. The other baptism we were supposed to have was a guy that we have been teaching for a while as well. We finally put a firm date for baptism and we were getting everything set up and he goes to Provo so we couldn’t do his interview last week. Then this week he doesn’t show up to Church and so hopefully we will fix the problems and get them scheduled back up for baptism. I guess these struggles are just part of the work.  Lehi said "there will be opposition in all things", I guess I am just really finding that out for myself. 

I continue to change little things every week. This week I started to carry a hardback cover of the Book of Mormon with me everywhere I go. I have found that it tends to spark little questions and thoughts when people see me with it. It also makes it easier to use and explain the book to people that we contact. 

He didn't eat the whole thing,
 but sure tired!



This week I had the TORTA CUBANA, Pt. II. (SEE PICTURE) It was just as big as the first time which didn’t make it any easier, but a tradition is a tradition right? Well, I didn’t quite finish it this time, but I think since  I had already finished it once before, I didn’t have the same drive to complete it. (A missionary has to eat!!!) 

Also this week I have figured out that people make it seem like the things we ask them to do are the hardest things in the world. I remember in high school, that if someone said I bet you can’t “squat” that much, I would go under the bar and attempt to do whatever I was challenged to do. However, when we ask someone to read a single page in the Book of Mormon and pray about it with a sincere heart, they just look at us like we just asked them to jump out of an airplane without a parachute.  I guess I am just frustrated with some of the people we teach and they act like they are interested and then just don’t do anything. To read a chapter in a book, or THE BOOK, is not really that hard if we understand what is hanging in the balance. But our Heavenly Father has given us our agency "to choose liberty and eternal life or captivity and death", but it is just something I need to understand a little better. Everyone has their right to accept or reject the message of the Restored Gospel. I should be thankful for what the Lord has let me do, just like it says in Alma 29:1-3.

The weather here too has gotten hotter. Everyone always said, "oh this has been mild for here", but now everyone is saying, "the heat has started to come!" That is a true statement. It has been in the upper 90s all of last week and I think it got all the way up to 99! So it is hot, but I am sure Jett (Scrimsher, a friend from our ward currently serving in Panama) is having a worse time in Panama then I am in St. George.

This week we went and gave a blessing to a guy that had surgery to remove some cancer that he had/has. It was honestly really weird to be back in a hospital, especially visiting someone who just had surgery to remove cancer. (Chad’s father had his left kidney removed that had cancer one year ago.)  I thought back a lot to when Pops had cancer and that whole week and how crazy it was. But this time it was a different feeling, I had a strong feeling of peace and that everything is all set up for us and that God has an eternal plan for each one of us. It is just one of those many blessings of the Restored Gospel.



COOL PIC - We DO send Mail Regularly!



Well I have some good news for you all..... I AM GOING TO BE A FATHER!!!!!! (Ha ha ha Chad Thomas)  Well before you jump to conclusions and get your mind going, I am not going to be a real father, just a “father” in the mission field. It means that I am going to train another missionary who is fresh out of the MTC. It is going to be a really weird experience, but it will be a good thing. I am super excited and grateful for the opportunity. So I will be staying here in St. George for at least another transfer. The bad news is that I will once again have another companion. This means I have had a different companion every single transfer. I don’t know if that is a good thing or bad thing, but we will see if the pattern continues. I am bummed that Elder Lopez is leaving, but he is going to be "follow up training" another missionary. That means he will be serving with a missionary that is going into his second transfer in the mission field. We are both moving on to bigger things. We don’t know if they are better things yet, but definitely bigger things in the mission with more responsibility.

News from Home – I asked Chad what he would like (if anything) for his birthday coming up July 30. Well for my birthday, I don’t really know what I want or even what I need. I am pretty set on everything. I am probably going to send a box home of shirts and things that I don’t need anymore.  I will be sure to let you know if anything comes up.  

I am glad that Kevin (Ireland, from Burbank High School) did well in the Feeder game and that he got some more baseball offers. What schools were they? Be sure to let me know what goes on with that. Well I am glad that you splurged a little and bought a pool, which will be nice to have in the summer. It is really 4 feet deep? Does that mean Bryson stands on his tippy toes? If not, that kid is HUGE!!!! (We sent him a picture of 4 year old Bryson, his nephew in the pool, touching bottom!)  Oh and what ever happened with the bathroom? I thought you said something about it needed to remodeled or a new floor or something??? (Yes, it still needs to be fixed, but we ran out of money to fix the floor and get a new shower/tub.  Life happens!) 

I guess that concludes just about everything I can talk about right now or get through. Well I am grateful for the information and the emails that you send! Take care and make each day a little better!!

Live it, Love it, Preach it!     Les Amo!    ELDER D!