February 27, 2012...Dear Family,
Exciting things are happening here in St. Augustine! The biggest news I have is that the ward split. Before the split there were about 700 members total. I'm not sure how many there are now, but from what I understand they split it evenly. So 350 members per ward, give or take a few. The new ward is the St. Augustine Shores Ward. The Sister missionaries will be serving in that ward. Elder Gebhard and I will still be in the St. Augustine Ward. It will just be a lot smaller.
With the Ward splitting it offered another opportunity to recognize the Lord's hand. Over the last month and a half I have been working mostly in the northern part of St. Augustine. That's where all of our investigators are and we have been really blessed as we've worked in that area. Well, when we found out about the ward splitting and where the new boundaries are we immediately noticed that all of our current investigators are in the ward we are in. The Lord has been guiding and preparing us for this moment for quite some time.
Last week we found some great new investigators too. One of them is PJ. He is a young man and his best friend is a member. PJ is almost always at his friends house and is pretty much a part of their family. We taught him twice last week. After the second lesson we asked him how his mom felt about us teaching him. He said that she is really happy for him and excited for him to join the Church. Then he said he is excited to join the Church. Elder Gebhard and I are excited too! We haven't been able to set a date for his baptism, but will be teaching him tonight. Pray that we will be able to help him set a date and get baptized in March.
Things with our other investigators were a little slow. They all had a bunch of things that came up. It's okay though. We did have at least one good lesson with most of them. It's been really wonderful having many people to teach.
On Friday we went to seminary and the young men & young women got to ask us questions about our missions and missionary work. They had good questions. It was an enjoyable event. A lot of their questions gave me an opportunity to reflect on the last 22 months. As I did so, I was very uplifted. I was able to see the growth in my testimony, and the growth of those I've taught. I was able to bear testimony of many things, and share the joy that I have felt while out here. I'm grateful I have the privilege of bearing the name of Jesus Christ upon my chest every day. Even when that tag is gone I will bear his name because it is engraved upon my heart.
Love Always, Zach
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Monday, February 20, 2012
Press Forward!
February 20, 2012…Hello Family,
Many blessings are coming to us here in St. Augustine. There are so many things I could write about, but time is so limited! The whole week went well. One very satisfying thing is that we were able to teach many lessons to members and investigators. The week goes so much better when we teach a lot of lessons.
After all, that's what I have been called to do!
We were blessed to find some more new investigators. We also started teaching Zay again. This time we're going to do a better job teaching to his understanding and at his pace. Repentance is such a wonderful blessing...
The new investigators are really great. One is Tessa and she is the non-member wife to a less-active member. They have three kids. One of them is eight and will be getting baptized within the next month. Hopefully Tessa will be able to get baptized with him. They're a great family. We had two lessons with them. After the first lesson they committed to reading the Book of Mormon as a family daily and praying together. That was on Monday. We then taught them again on Friday and followed up with their reading. They had already seen blessings coming from daily family scripture study and prayer. Both the member, Doug, and Tessa mentioned that their kids had been getting along better and that there was more peace in the home. We then shared a short lesson about the many blessings that come to families as they study and live the gospel together. It was a short yet powerful lesson.
The other new investigator is Chris. He is a single man that is trying to completely change his life. He's very different than our other investigators. He will have a lot more temporal struggles to overcome, but is so sincere and has pure intentions. He is another good person that went down the wrong path and is now fighting an uphill battle to get on the right path. I know he will be able to do it as he relies upon the Lord.
That's the beauty of the gospel. No matter what we've done or where we are there is always hope. There is always a way to get back on the right path. We can take comfort in knowing that we are not alone in that quest. Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are there to help us. To lift us when we are feeling weak. They are there to strengthen us when we feel we no longer have the strength to press forward. I've felt that lift and strength so many times, and I pray that each of you may feel it as you go throughout your daily lives, especially in these trying times.
With the deaths of Grandma Davis and Grandpa Snow some of your heads may be hanging low. But be of good cheer, and take comfort in the knowledge that we can be with them again. Until that time let us, "press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men." -2Nephi 31:20
Love Always, Zach
Many blessings are coming to us here in St. Augustine. There are so many things I could write about, but time is so limited! The whole week went well. One very satisfying thing is that we were able to teach many lessons to members and investigators. The week goes so much better when we teach a lot of lessons.
After all, that's what I have been called to do!
We were blessed to find some more new investigators. We also started teaching Zay again. This time we're going to do a better job teaching to his understanding and at his pace. Repentance is such a wonderful blessing...
The new investigators are really great. One is Tessa and she is the non-member wife to a less-active member. They have three kids. One of them is eight and will be getting baptized within the next month. Hopefully Tessa will be able to get baptized with him. They're a great family. We had two lessons with them. After the first lesson they committed to reading the Book of Mormon as a family daily and praying together. That was on Monday. We then taught them again on Friday and followed up with their reading. They had already seen blessings coming from daily family scripture study and prayer. Both the member, Doug, and Tessa mentioned that their kids had been getting along better and that there was more peace in the home. We then shared a short lesson about the many blessings that come to families as they study and live the gospel together. It was a short yet powerful lesson.
The other new investigator is Chris. He is a single man that is trying to completely change his life. He's very different than our other investigators. He will have a lot more temporal struggles to overcome, but is so sincere and has pure intentions. He is another good person that went down the wrong path and is now fighting an uphill battle to get on the right path. I know he will be able to do it as he relies upon the Lord.
That's the beauty of the gospel. No matter what we've done or where we are there is always hope. There is always a way to get back on the right path. We can take comfort in knowing that we are not alone in that quest. Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are there to help us. To lift us when we are feeling weak. They are there to strengthen us when we feel we no longer have the strength to press forward. I've felt that lift and strength so many times, and I pray that each of you may feel it as you go throughout your daily lives, especially in these trying times.
With the deaths of Grandma Davis and Grandpa Snow some of your heads may be hanging low. But be of good cheer, and take comfort in the knowledge that we can be with them again. Until that time let us, "press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men." -2Nephi 31:20
Love Always, Zach
Monday, February 13, 2012
The Prayer of Faith...
February 13, 2012... Dear Family,
What a great week it turned out to be. The Lord blessed Elder Gebhard and I in many wonderful ways. I think the biggest success came with the members. One fun thing we did with many of them was we role played. I used to hate role plays! I felt so uncomfortable and awkward. However, now I really enjoy them. They are a fabulous opportunity to get all the mistakes out and be led by the Holy Ghost. Some of the members were hesitant at first, but we would give them an example and then they would be more excited. By time we were leaving they were all fired up to share the gospel!
We had some great miracles. We were able to find two new investigators through talking to everyone. They are sisters. We taught them on Saturday and invited them to come to church with us on Sunday. They did! They really enjoyed it, and things went well.
However, Elder Gebhard and I felt that, because they are women, it would be better for the Sisters to teach them. It was a hard decision, yet at the same time it wasn't. I was pondering about it right before personal study on Sunday and was thinking to myself,"What would be most beneficial for them. What would give them to best opportunity to truly accept the gospel?" As I knelt to pray I knew before the words even left my mouth. I knew that having the Sisters teach them would be best. The hard thing was that they were the first people we had found in quite some time. I was being selfish and lacked faith at first. However, I was able to trust the Lord and it was a great learning opportunity.
We also had another great thing happen. There were twelve non-members at church on Sunday. One of them was the son of an active member, however we didn't know for sure while at church. I felt the prompting to go and stop by at this member's home, even though it wasn't in our plans. When we got there the member welcomed us in and it was almost as if he had been expecting us to show up. He didn't act surprised at all. He called in his son, PJ, and we sat down and had a lesson. During the lesson we taught some simple and basic truths. We also had the opportunity to give PJ a blessing. I annointed and the father sealed it. It was a tender moment between father and son. At the end of the lesson we knelt and asked PJ to say the closing prayer. He was hesitant at first, but through encouragement he said it. It was an exquisite prayer. It was very humble and heartfelt. Immediately afterwards PJ had more joy than before and the Spirit was there. It was a humbling and powerful experience.
I had a lot of humbling yet powerful experiences. I felt more in tune with the Spirit and had more faith in following promptings. I didn't know why I was being prompted to do things most of the time, but I followed and blessings came.
We had another incredible miracle on Wednesday too. To start on Wednesday and Thursday we had a leadership training meeting. Because it was a two day meeting the missionaries who had to travel from the further areas stayed with missionaries who didn't have to travel as far. So, Elder Gebhard and I had three missionaries come and stay with us. Wednesday night Elder Gebhard went out with two of them and I went out with an elder named Elder Drake. They went and taught a member named Chris. During their lesson they did a role play with Chris. He role played inviting a friend named Skyler to church. The lesson went really well, and Chris was excited to invite his friend. Meanwhile Elder Drake and I were on the other side of town trying to have a lesson with some members. We worked for a few hours, but not much was happening. Towards the end of the night we were tracting by some members in an apartment complex. We knocked on a door and nobody came. Just as we were walking away I got a phone call. It was from the member Elder Gebhard had taught earlier that day, Chris. While I was talking to him a man got home from work and went up to the house we had just knocked on, however he was locked out. While I was talking to Chris, Elder Drake went and talked to the man. I didn't hear their conversation except one part. I heard the man say Chris' name. I was in shock! I was talking to Chris on the phone and this man talking to Elder Drake just said Chris' name! I went right over and asked the man who he was. He told me," Skyler." I immediately put the phone on speaker and informed Chris who I was talking to. They talked over the phone for a second and then Chris invited Skyler to church. It was incredible. There was no way something like that could have been orchestrated by any of us so perfectly. It was a clear sign that THIS IS THE LORDS WORK! What a special experience!
My faith has been greatly built over the last week. I've been a part of many wonderful things, and had my prayers answered. I know that as we all pray and act on those prayers that we will be guided and blessed.
Love Always, Zach
What a great week it turned out to be. The Lord blessed Elder Gebhard and I in many wonderful ways. I think the biggest success came with the members. One fun thing we did with many of them was we role played. I used to hate role plays! I felt so uncomfortable and awkward. However, now I really enjoy them. They are a fabulous opportunity to get all the mistakes out and be led by the Holy Ghost. Some of the members were hesitant at first, but we would give them an example and then they would be more excited. By time we were leaving they were all fired up to share the gospel!
We had some great miracles. We were able to find two new investigators through talking to everyone. They are sisters. We taught them on Saturday and invited them to come to church with us on Sunday. They did! They really enjoyed it, and things went well.
However, Elder Gebhard and I felt that, because they are women, it would be better for the Sisters to teach them. It was a hard decision, yet at the same time it wasn't. I was pondering about it right before personal study on Sunday and was thinking to myself,"What would be most beneficial for them. What would give them to best opportunity to truly accept the gospel?" As I knelt to pray I knew before the words even left my mouth. I knew that having the Sisters teach them would be best. The hard thing was that they were the first people we had found in quite some time. I was being selfish and lacked faith at first. However, I was able to trust the Lord and it was a great learning opportunity.
We also had another great thing happen. There were twelve non-members at church on Sunday. One of them was the son of an active member, however we didn't know for sure while at church. I felt the prompting to go and stop by at this member's home, even though it wasn't in our plans. When we got there the member welcomed us in and it was almost as if he had been expecting us to show up. He didn't act surprised at all. He called in his son, PJ, and we sat down and had a lesson. During the lesson we taught some simple and basic truths. We also had the opportunity to give PJ a blessing. I annointed and the father sealed it. It was a tender moment between father and son. At the end of the lesson we knelt and asked PJ to say the closing prayer. He was hesitant at first, but through encouragement he said it. It was an exquisite prayer. It was very humble and heartfelt. Immediately afterwards PJ had more joy than before and the Spirit was there. It was a humbling and powerful experience.
I had a lot of humbling yet powerful experiences. I felt more in tune with the Spirit and had more faith in following promptings. I didn't know why I was being prompted to do things most of the time, but I followed and blessings came.
We had another incredible miracle on Wednesday too. To start on Wednesday and Thursday we had a leadership training meeting. Because it was a two day meeting the missionaries who had to travel from the further areas stayed with missionaries who didn't have to travel as far. So, Elder Gebhard and I had three missionaries come and stay with us. Wednesday night Elder Gebhard went out with two of them and I went out with an elder named Elder Drake. They went and taught a member named Chris. During their lesson they did a role play with Chris. He role played inviting a friend named Skyler to church. The lesson went really well, and Chris was excited to invite his friend. Meanwhile Elder Drake and I were on the other side of town trying to have a lesson with some members. We worked for a few hours, but not much was happening. Towards the end of the night we were tracting by some members in an apartment complex. We knocked on a door and nobody came. Just as we were walking away I got a phone call. It was from the member Elder Gebhard had taught earlier that day, Chris. While I was talking to him a man got home from work and went up to the house we had just knocked on, however he was locked out. While I was talking to Chris, Elder Drake went and talked to the man. I didn't hear their conversation except one part. I heard the man say Chris' name. I was in shock! I was talking to Chris on the phone and this man talking to Elder Drake just said Chris' name! I went right over and asked the man who he was. He told me," Skyler." I immediately put the phone on speaker and informed Chris who I was talking to. They talked over the phone for a second and then Chris invited Skyler to church. It was incredible. There was no way something like that could have been orchestrated by any of us so perfectly. It was a clear sign that THIS IS THE LORDS WORK! What a special experience!
My faith has been greatly built over the last week. I've been a part of many wonderful things, and had my prayers answered. I know that as we all pray and act on those prayers that we will be guided and blessed.
Love Always, Zach
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
New Opportunity...
February 6, 2012… Dear Family,
I got my new companion on Wednesday. He is Elder Gebhard and he is from Grand Junction, Colorado. He has been out for nine months. We've done really well together so far. I'm excited for the many miracles we're going to see while together.
That's one new opportunity I have. The other one is that I am now an online missionary. Which means I now have a missionary facebook account and will be sharing the gospel on there. I also will be able to start a blog if I decide I want to. I'm not sure if I will do the blog. Now that I'm on facebook I'm going to disable my other profile. I can also add you, family, as friends to my missionary profile. However, I won't be able to interact with you on there. Also please don't say anything about me coming home. I don't want distractions. You can comment on my posts, but again I won't be able to communicate directly with any of you. I'm really excited to be able to share the gospel online. It will be a great opportunity to reach out to people and get them more involved.
With all that being said, the week went well. Paul is doing really well. We taught him and his wife, who is less-active, about the Sabbath day. We invited Olivia, the wife, to pray to be able to get work off on Sunday. At least long enough to come to church. She works and that has been keeping both of them from coming. If they could come on a consistent basis it would be really wonderful. Please keep them in your prayers.
Zay isn't doing as well. We didn't get the chance to see him last week. We tried a few times, but we couldn't catch him. Hopefully we will be able to get back in contact with him and help him get back on track.
Our big focus last week was working with the members more. We were able to help a few of them start their own family mission plans. They were really excited to be able to share the gospel with more focus and to work towards specific goals.
Yesterday, for fast Sunday, the missionaries and members fasted for the opportunity and courage to invite someone to church this upcoming Sunday (the 12th). I'm excited to see how it goes. During fast and testimony meeting I bore my testimony early in the meeting regarding missionary work, the power of fasting, and inviting others to church. It felt good. Then throughout the meeting many other members bore testimony about missionary work and how it has blessed them. The bishop even got up and bore his testimony regarding the opportunity to fast. It was a really powerful meeting. A little later in the meeting a sister bore her testimony and announced that her non-member husband, Andy, had recently decided he wants to get baptized in March. It was really exciting! Later that night we were having a lesson with some members and the meeting came up. They said it was one of the best fast and testimony meetings they had ever been to!
This week while studying I read in True To The Faith under "Scriptures." In there it says this,"Daily, meaningful scripture study helps you be receptive to the whisperings of the Holy Ghost. It builds your faith, fortifies you against temptation, and helps you draw near to your Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son." I love studying the scriptures and as I read that passage the Spirit bore witness to me once again the importance of reading, pondering, and praying about the scriptures daily.
Another thing I studied was from the Gospel of Jesus Christ pamphlet. It says that God sent Jesus Christ "into the world to show us how to live meaningful and happy lives and experience eternal joy after this life." The term "meaningful" stood out to me. I want to have a meaningful life. A meaningful life is more than going through the motions. It's a life of continual progression. A meaningful life is an abundant life. I know that living the gospel of Jesus Christ is the only way to have a meaningful, and abundant, life. That means a happy life here as a family and in the eternities as a family.
Love Always, Zach
I got my new companion on Wednesday. He is Elder Gebhard and he is from Grand Junction, Colorado. He has been out for nine months. We've done really well together so far. I'm excited for the many miracles we're going to see while together.
That's one new opportunity I have. The other one is that I am now an online missionary. Which means I now have a missionary facebook account and will be sharing the gospel on there. I also will be able to start a blog if I decide I want to. I'm not sure if I will do the blog. Now that I'm on facebook I'm going to disable my other profile. I can also add you, family, as friends to my missionary profile. However, I won't be able to interact with you on there. Also please don't say anything about me coming home. I don't want distractions. You can comment on my posts, but again I won't be able to communicate directly with any of you. I'm really excited to be able to share the gospel online. It will be a great opportunity to reach out to people and get them more involved.
With all that being said, the week went well. Paul is doing really well. We taught him and his wife, who is less-active, about the Sabbath day. We invited Olivia, the wife, to pray to be able to get work off on Sunday. At least long enough to come to church. She works and that has been keeping both of them from coming. If they could come on a consistent basis it would be really wonderful. Please keep them in your prayers.
Zay isn't doing as well. We didn't get the chance to see him last week. We tried a few times, but we couldn't catch him. Hopefully we will be able to get back in contact with him and help him get back on track.
Our big focus last week was working with the members more. We were able to help a few of them start their own family mission plans. They were really excited to be able to share the gospel with more focus and to work towards specific goals.
Yesterday, for fast Sunday, the missionaries and members fasted for the opportunity and courage to invite someone to church this upcoming Sunday (the 12th). I'm excited to see how it goes. During fast and testimony meeting I bore my testimony early in the meeting regarding missionary work, the power of fasting, and inviting others to church. It felt good. Then throughout the meeting many other members bore testimony about missionary work and how it has blessed them. The bishop even got up and bore his testimony regarding the opportunity to fast. It was a really powerful meeting. A little later in the meeting a sister bore her testimony and announced that her non-member husband, Andy, had recently decided he wants to get baptized in March. It was really exciting! Later that night we were having a lesson with some members and the meeting came up. They said it was one of the best fast and testimony meetings they had ever been to!
This week while studying I read in True To The Faith under "Scriptures." In there it says this,"Daily, meaningful scripture study helps you be receptive to the whisperings of the Holy Ghost. It builds your faith, fortifies you against temptation, and helps you draw near to your Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son." I love studying the scriptures and as I read that passage the Spirit bore witness to me once again the importance of reading, pondering, and praying about the scriptures daily.
Another thing I studied was from the Gospel of Jesus Christ pamphlet. It says that God sent Jesus Christ "into the world to show us how to live meaningful and happy lives and experience eternal joy after this life." The term "meaningful" stood out to me. I want to have a meaningful life. A meaningful life is more than going through the motions. It's a life of continual progression. A meaningful life is an abundant life. I know that living the gospel of Jesus Christ is the only way to have a meaningful, and abundant, life. That means a happy life here as a family and in the eternities as a family.
Love Always, Zach
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