Jordan-Ouch I'm sorry to hear your feet are out of commission. I actually got to read your weekly email last week on Monday. Our apartment complex is a really nice one and they have an office thing in it and there is a computer that residents can use for a little while and so toward the end of P-day I went down there to see if your letter had come in yet. I did that last week as well but I went in there for some other reason that I forgot. But what I'm trying to say is that I read it and that really stinks that your feet are bothering you. If it makes you feel any better when I first got into Upper Darby and started walking around the bottom of my feet and the muscles behind my knee hurt for a week or two so I can say that I think I know a tiny bit of what you're feeling. It's also too bad that all your investigators fizzled out. But nothing happens with no reason, especially in the mission field. I hope you get better soon and are able to get back to doing missionary work without any problems.
This week was a week just like any other. Well no week is exactly like another but it was kind've like last week. We weren't as effective as we could've been and it rained 2 or 3 times this week really hard so that made the work hard as well. Tuesday we spent the first half of the day mowing a former investigator's backyard. They had a hayfield for a back yard. I wish I had had my camera and I would've taken pictures. It was probably up to my waist at certain parts but most of it was about a half a foot shorter than that. I enjoyed it. It took me back to my days of lawn mowing. It was also nice because I got some quiet time to think to myself where I don't have to be thinking, okay where do we go now, who lives around here, or how can we use this time effectively. I was just able to think to myself about just anything. That was pretty nice.
Tim Robinson is doing well. He is slowly whittling down on the cigarettes. He is doing a lot better. He's down to about one or two a dayish. His date is for the 18th of September. He seems to be doing well. He's reading the Book of Mormon and he comes to church. He's a really cool guy. Quiet but a good guy.
We weren't able to see Renee Washington this week. She had a whole bunch of things come up this week and she ended up having to reschedule 2 appointments and then she called us Saturday and said she wont be able to come to church Sunday because her jeep broke down and she had to pick it up so she could get to work on Monday. We kind've thought she was making excuses and things like that but when we called her Saturday night, the night she told us she had to get her jeep on Sunday, I said "bummer, we're going to miss you at church." She then said "You're not going to lose me. That's not even in the picture. So don't worry about that. You're not going to lose me." So that was reassuring. That was kind of what I was trying to get from her. I was trying to see if she was going to give some sort of "I'm still interested but stuff just came up" or if she was just going to leave excuses. I was trying to read whether or not she is still interested and I got what I was looking for. Which was good.
Erique Dorestil, a guy from Haiti, I believe I've mentioned him before. If I haven't it's an epic fail on my part because we've been teaching him for 2 months. We weren't able to see him. Apparently he forgot about his appointment. So we weren't able to teach him yesterday (Sunday). He has a date for the 18th of Sept.
Wes Sachau who was baptized in June is moving up to Newark area. It will be sad to see him go. He's moving the first week of September. (I may or may not be here. This transfer ends the 28th of August and so I could get transferred because I've been here for 4 1/2 months so I could leave or I may stay. I'm not sure. Either way if anyone is going to send me something please send it to the mission home address so it wont take super long to get to me.) Back to what I was saying about Wes. He's a real cool guy and I am so blessed to be able to have been one of the missionaries that was able to teach him. He is such an awesome guy and he's super solid. He is going to do great things in the church.
Alan Lavere is getting baptized next Sunday, the 28th!!!!!!!!! I'm super excited. He is the son of Angela Lavere who was baptized on July 3rd. He's ready. He's an awesome kid. Definitely one of those special kids who was blessed with spiritual sensitivity. If it wasn't for him his mom probably wouldn't be a member.
There is also another investigator that we teach named Janice. She is relatively new and is real quiet. She is kind of in a mode of "I'm just trying to learn what you be live before I commit to too much." She is doing pretty well. She's read from the beginning of the Book of Mormon through 2 Nephi 15ish. She lives alone and doesn't have much to do so she has a lot of free time so she's been able to read a lot. She says she is praying for an answer but hasn't gotten one yet. She also doesn't really want to come to church until she knows that it's true. (Obviously we'll have to get her to church to help her know that it's true but we're not to that point yet with her.)
Also before I forget. Mom the stuff you told me about Rob Allen and his mission is insane! No Book of Mormon? No manuals? That would make missionary work practically impossible! I hope he and the other 6 returned missionaries translate quickly, six years is a long time. I definitely sense the had of the Lord there don't you? He goes to a country that doesn't have the Book of Mormon in their language. He goes to learn their language. Translators need to know English and Georgian, or whatever they speak, to get the Book of Mormon in Georgian. He goes there for two years, learns the language and then comes back being able to speak both languages and now he's helping translate the Book of Mormon. What an honor. Can you imagine how cool that would be to know that you were one of the people who helped the Georgian people get the Book of Mormon in their language? That would be awesome. It sounds like the church in Georgia needs a lot more missionaries and members who can lead the church who have experience. It would be crazy to go to a country and tell the bishop how to do his job and the elders quorum president how to effectively do his job. That would be really different. Out here in the U.S. It's a very, the bishop knows what he's doing and you can't receive revelation for him but he trained them. Pretty cool. I'm grateful that I have manuals in English and the Book of Mormon in English. It's awesome.
The Book of Mormon is undoubtedly true. It is the word of God without question. It brings the spirit into our lives whenever we read it. God loves us and He sent His son Jesus Christ to die for us. Because of Christ we can repent and improve our lives and become more like God.
I love you and hope you all have fun starting school back up. :) Hehehehehehehe You have to go back to school and I don't. Hehehe. But I'm going to be quiet because in a year from now I'll have to start school and a whole bunch of other things so I'm going to be quiet so I don't have to shove my foot in my mouth as hard.
Love,
Elder John Schouten
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