Dear Family,
What a great week! I know
it sounds cheesy, but I love the mission. I don't think I've ever gone
through so many trials, but as I look back on every one I can see how
they were heaven sent to help me grow, learn and do better. I'm going
to miss this. But, I try not to think about that as much as I can cause
it just gets me depressed.
We didn't see as much success this Sunday as the
last one, but we still had some cool things happen. When I get home,
remind me to tell you the story about Lyle Evans. He's an African American man we found and set a baptismal date with in this last week.
The lesson with him was one of the coolest/funniest lessons I've had in a
long time. Typing it over email won't do it justice, so just remind me
to tell it to you when I get there.
Rose-Ellen went to the Virgin Islands?? When did
that happen? That sounds like a pretty intense vacation. I hope she
had a good time. I guess it just surprised me because I think she's the
first person in our family to go on a vacation like that. But hey, more
power to ya. That's pretty cool. Too bad the stingray spooked her.
Those things took down Steve Irwin, so nobody's safe, pretty much. Just
kidding =)
We had zone conferences this last week. Our mission
president gave us training on the Restoration which was really cool.
He went into depth about the apostasy, covering details on the
deaths of the apostles, the loss of priesthood keys, the changing of
doctrine and the efforts to reform. It was more than we'd really ever
teach to an investigator, but it was really interesting to learn about
and see the depth of the need for a Restoration. I think I'm going to
ask him for a copy of his Powerpoint, it's pretty informative.
In the zone conference I gave my last testimony. It
was an experience I wasn't really expecting, and I don't think I really
realize yet that the best two years are drawing to a close. I shared a
couple scriptures from Mormon chapter 9 that I really like--pretty much
all the ones about miracles. My favorite I think is verse 16. The
miracles of God truly are marvelous in my eyes. When I see everything
that he's done for me and the people that I've loved in these past two
years, I marvel at His goodness, His grace, His power and mercy. And
just like Mormon says, I think I scarcely comprehend his miracles.
The part that I remember the most from my testimony
is when I said, "I love Him. He's changed me into the person I've
always wanted to be." I don't know why, but I broke down when I said
that. I know that in these last two years I've seen the Lord help a lot
of people, but I think the person he's helped the most is me. It's
funny how when we leave to rescue the lost, we come back with two
people, both closer to the true path of righteousness. Bringing the
lost sheep back we realize that we weren't as close to the Shepherd as we
thought we were. I truly am grateful for everything He's done for me. I
don't think I'll fully comprehend all of it, but the small part that I
do helps me to realize just how great He is.
I hope everyone keeps on growing and keep working on
their conversion and self-mastery. Know I love you. You're always in
at least one person's prayers. Take care, God bless.
Love,
Elder Wood
