December 6, 2010

Hey everyone,


Well, the Christmas season started off with a bang for Elder Dubin, my new companion, and me. This past Saturday, we had two more baptisms: Heather Humphrey and John Connell Jr. It was a really great baptismal service with great talks and great support from the Eldon Branch.

I have seen so many miracles here in Eldon, and it truly has been a blessing to see so many people to "enter into the gate which leads to life eternal".

It has started to get cold here in Missouri. The temperature hovers anywhere between the mid 30s and upper 20s all the time, and when the night comes it drops down to the lower 20s and upper teens. Do not worry. I am staying warm. I have coats and scarves to keep me protected from the cold. Winter here in Missouri is very much like winter in Houston; it never drops below 10 degrees, but the cold cuts through you like a knife! I am still staying warm. :)

The missionary work has slowed down just a bit because the majority of the people we were teaching were baptized. But, the work has still not lost it's flare! Elder Dubin and I are planning on taking a new approach to visit mostly less-active members so that we can strengthen them this holiday season and help them start coming back to church. There are many people on the branch roster that do not attend, so we have our work cut out for us, but I know the Lord will support and strengthen our efforts as give Him everything and have hope in Him.

For the last 3 to 4 weeks, I might have mentioned once or twice that I was feeling very tired. This was in reference to me being "spiritually tired" or exhausted to a point where I did not feel like I could continue on. I was seeing so many great things happen, but I felt like I was doing everything on my own. It was very disheartening to me, and I wanted to be free from the burdens that were upon me. I reflected on how I had overcome tough times before, and what I was doing at the present time to ease the load I was carrying, but the those things were not helping with all of it.

This past week, in a personal study I was engaged in, I was reading an article from Meridian Magazine titled, "When God Allows Us To Be Cast Into A Pit". It was an article that I had not read, but had stored it away in one of my binders for some future time. Little did I know the time was now. I now know that it was the third member of the Godhead, on assignment from the Father, to prompt me so clearly as to dig through all of the talks I have and read this one for my study. While I read, I became almost entranced by every letter on the page. It seemed that I really did not exist where I was currently at in my chair, and I felt extremely light. Then, at the very end of the article, the Spirit struck me in a way had not felt in a very long time. It came when I read the scripture at the very end of the article, and it said:

28¶Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.

29He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.

30Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:

31But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

-ISAIAH 40:28-31

Tears began to roll down my cheeks as I pondered on my wonderful Savior, Jesus Christ, and what He has done for me, and what we can do for me right now. This scripture was exactly what I needed to hear at this particular time, and it is now among my favorites. I have a testimony that God lives, and He hears our prayers. The answer may not come immediately, but the answer comes at precisely the moment it will have the most effect. All we have to do is wait and listen to the answer.

Sincerely,
Elder Fellows