Think clean thoughts

This weekend we heard a righteous assault on the home and family. I could not believe how many speakers were centered on those things in one way or another. Surely it is of the utmost importance right now. Preparing each other. Being leaders. Loving one another and reaching out. So many things. Good Conference indeed.

Well, right now some of the trees are beginning to bud thanks to the beautiful weather we have been blessed with since Thursday. When the evening sun lands on a hill of trees, it illuminates it in a very cool way due to the red buds. I love seeing color in nature. Makes me feel alive or something. Tuesday it poured rain and by lunch time we were totally soaked from the waste down give or take. We were low on miles (end of the month) and had to do some walking. And of course it would pour rain on the last 2 days of the month. But actually Wednesday wasn't so bad so it seemed like the best day ever because it wasn't pouring rain. Perspective is a funny thing.

The work is extremely difficult right now. We basically don't have a teaching pool. No one is progressing, and we struggle to find people to teach. Lots of the same old folks who don't come to church, don't read the Book of Mormon, etc. Its hard. I wonder sometimes. They say you can find teach and baptize anywhere. When I came to Waterbury it was on fire. They had had a ton of baptisms and lots of good things going on. But it seems that the kingdom that Elder Park (my predecessor) built, is crashing under my leadership! Ha, kinda makes me laugh. We haven't taught one of our investigators in about two weeks! Isn't that outrageous! It's certainly not for a lack of trying, everyone just seems to be bailing. Even potential investigators are giving us the cold shoulder. It's crazy. Perhaps we're in a great trial. The weather has helped to brighten our moods.

But I think the biggest thing that is helping us to endure this difficult time is each other. It is truly an amazing blessing to be able to enjoy the person you are with. Especially as a missionary! People have such an impact on us! Earlier this week I kinda had a short breakdown one night while trying to plan for the next day. It just seemed like there HAD to be something more for us to do than tract (we weren't tracting all day, but a fair amount and it often seems terribly ineffective). I sat and sat and could think of nothing. Nothing. You could probably imagine my companion wasn't of too much help. Eventually I kinda flipped out and threw my pen against the wall and just said whatever! I'm over this, we'll just tract! I finished the rest of the planning process and said a terrible prayer of only gratitude. I'm not sure why.

Well anyway, I only share all that to say that afterward my companion was real nice and just tried to talk to me. He did it in a kind of hoaky way, but I talked to him. I vented some of my frustrations. At the moment I really was just frustrated with planning and not being able to come up with anything to do. But we talked about some other stuff. This is getting really long just to say that this little experience has helped us to kinda grow closer. Things have been relatively good between us since then (not that they were especially bad or anything before). Sometimes I see that being here with Elder Mansfield is just as much for me as it is for him. There are so many attributes I need so much work on that I've neglected to recognize until as of late. I gained a lot of insight during conference into things I need to be doing and trying both with him and myself. Life is crazy. Its crazy how well the Lord knows us and guides us through things. Really what more can you ask for than to at least get along with a person you spend every waking moment with? Serving really does help us to love. its amazing. The doctrines of the kingdom!

Well I did have another excellent experience this week. It was with Natasha! Remember her?! Well I wrote her a letter a while back, just giving her some encouragement, hoping things were going well and stuff. She wrote me back immediately. I got a response that same week! It was a great letter, but she said she had been kinda struggling to feel the spirit lately. Going through some trials in life. Some people just got it rough! We are very lucky. Anyway, I wrote her back and told her that she should fast on the upcoming fast sunday to have the spirit in her life more abundantly. And I told her to bear her testimony!

So I got this letter back this week after a month or so. She totally did everything I asked her to do, and had some amazing experiences doing them!! I was so happy! She said she almost crapped her pants bearing her testimony and only did b/c I asked her. But said it was an awesome experience. But fasting - she was fasting for the spirit and some specific answers to some big things in her life right now. Long story short, she had an amazing spiritual experience and received specific answers to her question(s) through the power of the Holy Ghost and knew exactly what she needed to do! It was so cool! But - what she needed to do was really really hard, but as time went on, the Lord totally provided her a way! Ah man I just want you all to read this letter she wrote me, it is fantastic! Like the best letter a missionary could receive from a recent convert. Totally helped lift me.

And guess what?! Natasha is moving, in August, to Utah! Can you believe that? With some friends she met here in CT. This is the craziest thing I've ever heard. To Provo nonetheless! I taught Natasha for 6 months and her moving to Provo is kinda like moving from Babylon to the Promise Land. Ha, or something like that. At any rate, its crazy and I am really really excited to hopefully be able to see her on a more regular basis in life, assuming things go to plan for her. Hey - maybe ya all will be able to meet her! I hope so, she's awesome. And kinda crazy, but that's what makes her awesome.

So it was great to hear of her amazing experiences. She spoke of how she remembered what I told her about how God only gives us what we need and what we can handle and stuff. It was great because sometimes I didn't know if she was ever going to remember anything I said to her. I was very proud and felt like a father or something. Ha ha. Blessing of being a missionary.

What else... yea a rough week, but also a nice week simultaneously. Easter totally got over shadowed by conference for me. Conference. So many great things I could write for an hour! One of my favorites was Bradely D. Foster who said A distraction doesn't have to be evil to be effective. This is soooo true. Kind of along the lines of good better best perhaps. He spoke of how it might just be "shade". Something taking us away from what we should be doing. Pres. Uchtdorf in the PH session spoke of patience. Yes. That was for me. He said it means holding your tongue. How impatinoce is selfishness. He said that in our patience, we gain self mastery. I love that. I love the idea of self mastery. Its seriously freaking difficult though! Anyway, Elder Holland - the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step - watch your step! Loved that. Don't even start stepping down the wrong paths! We must continually watch ourselves. I can't remember who said it right now but he mentioned how we remember Christ by trying to follow His example. I love that in the sense that we don't need crosses around our neck to remember Christ. We don't need objects and things to worship. We remember Christ by trying to be like Him every day of our lives. Every week through the sacrament. Julie B. Beck gave a great talk. She is a great speaker. Anyway, again, there was such a heavy heavy theme of family and the home and the things that happen there and being better in our roles as husbands, fathers, mothers, children etc. It seemed to be so much about perfecting the Saints. Being examples in all things and to all people around us. I felt this call to really rise up. Not so much as a missionary (I feel that every day) but as a Latter Day Saint. We are His hands. We are His servants. We should BE his servants. Something like that.

Well, life is good. Its really hard and I'm not completely in love with Waterbury, but I can endure it. Oh that's one more thing someone said, maybe Pres Eyring - its one thing to endure, but its another to endure it well. A scripture that has been in the back of my mind lately that was quoted this weekend and brought it more to the front of my mind - Romans 8:28 I believe. All things work together for good for them that love God. Something like that. And - if you love me, keep my commandments. If we are doing what's right, He's gonna take care of us when the storms come. So in my storms, I just gotta remember that "all these things will give thee experience, and be for thy good." Hard to remember that some days, but comforting when you do.

Have a wonderful day. Spring is great. The seasons are great. Amazing how many reminders of the gospel God has given us in His creations. I love our family!

david