Still Moving Forward

Xander is getting baptized on Saturday!! We have been teaching him a lot this past week and he is the best! When we first started teaching him he was the typical 13 year old attitude. He wasn't really focused. but that has totally changed. We taught him about the Word of Wisdom at the beginning of the week and he wasn't so sure about it. He loves his tea and everyone else in the house drinks tea and coffee. But he has kept his commitment! And all the other ones we have given him! We joke around with him like he is our little brother. It is fun. He is always worried about what he looks like and so when we had him try on the jumpsuit yesterday he didn't like the look of it. It wasn't cool haha but he is really excited to be baptized! And he is doing it for the right reasons. I have been greatly surprised at his dedication. 

Sammy came to church this week! and she is scheduled to be baptized this next Friday, the 26th. She is still looking for answers and we are giving her everything we can to help her receive it. I guess we just need to be patient. She has been studying the Bible with the Jehovah's Witnesses still because she likes their workbooks. She told us she doesn't agree with all of their doctrine, just the workbooks. She has a hard time remembering things because of the injuries she had while in the service so she likes the questions. We ordered her a study book so she can start using that with the Book of Mormon. She has to stop smoking by this Friday so she can be baptized next week so keep her in your prayers!

We were finally able to meet with the Kersey's this week. The kids are all really excited to be baptized. They were scheduled to be baptized this Sunday but the parents are having a hard time working everything into their schedule so we are going to try and push it back a week. That will also give Bother Kersey time to receive the priesthood so he can baptize them! 

Sunday after church we had a pot luck. I guess we have one every second Sunday of the month. Me and sister Brog didn't know about it so it was a great surprise! I also got to teach the lesson on Sunday for gospel principles. The teacher has had to start working night shifts and because I'm the new missionary I get to have the practice of teaching! It went a lot better then i thought it would. I didn't have anything prepared but it went really smooth. I loved how the spirit spoke to me and had me share scriptures that I had read in my studies a few days earlier. I love this gospel! 

While out tracting this week we met a man named Neil. He had studied with missionaries about ten years ago for a while, and was never baptized! He said he is too addicted to smoking. He tried the Stop Smoking program and it didn't work. We challenged him that this was another time to try it! We have met with him and his girlfriend twice and they are really nice. They have twelve chickens in the backyard and offered us eggs! So when we go back this week (and when we have the car) we are going to take some. 

We also met another lady who came out and just started talking to us. She was really nice and then started talking about the gospel... We were like uhh are you a member?? Apparently she hasn't been to church in thirteen years. When she moved from California they never had their records moved so no one knew they were here! We are hoping to start teaching her and her husband. 

Sunday night there was a really bad storm! It woke me and Sister Brog up at about 5:30 in the morning. You could hear the electricity before the lightening struck. It was crazy! The thunder was soo loud and it looked like someone just had a flash light shining in our room the lightening was so frequent. Monday morning we had to stay in for about two hours longer then we had planned because it was raining so bad. 

Well, i love  you all so much! Thank you for the thoughts and prayers. I know this is the only true gospel on the Earth today. God loves us all individually and no matter what we do that will never change. This week I was studying Helaman chapter 3. Verse 35 talks about becoming sanctified and there was a quote from the study book i use that says, "Our greatest hope should be to enjoy the sanctification of our souls." This is a time to be enjoyed. God wants us to be happy! 

Love you all,

Sister Erika Kelly