Jordan: 5/14/2012

From: Jordan Schouten [mailto:jordan.schouten@myldsmail.net]
Sent: Monday, May 14, 2012 10:05 AM
To: John Schouten; schouten.julie; Mike Schouten
Subject: my letter 5/14/2012

 

Well, there´s not much to say because i just talked with you all a couple of days ago. This week was pretty good. We had a couple of rough days, but we had some good days too. We have an investigator named Gabriel that is doing really well. He couldn´t come to church yesterday, because he had to travel, but we got to talk to him last night. He´s reading the Book of Mormon pretty consistently and he is a really humble guy that is searching for the truth. He told us that he´s always been looking for the true church and he really wants to know if this is the true church. We talked a lot last night about how we recieve answers from God (the Holy Ghost) and what we have to do to recieve answers. We talked about how it´s not a super easy simple process. It´s not impossible, but it´s something that requires work (reading, praying, coming to church, etc). He was really acceptive and we had a really good lesson.

All of our other investigators were impossible to find this week, because of health problems (pregnant women are so difficult to find in their houses. For all you future missionaries, if you ever find someone to teach that´s pregnant, write the name down in the Area book and go back to teach when the baby is born. It´s so depressing to try to visit someone every day of the week and there never home because they´re in the hospital. :)

Also, mom, my companion told me that his parents told him during the phone call that you told his mom at the mission moms night thing that he got sent to me because there was problems with his other companions or something like that. I never said that. I said that Elder Hinton (my last companion) wasn´t super obedient, because of his trainer, but i never said anything like that about Elder Reid. Elder Reid is my favorite companion yet, other than Elder Ashcroft (the kid that i trained for 1 change). Elder Reid is super good. Kind of a stiff at times and sometimes he´s a little critical, but he works so hard and we really get along super well. Me and him have completely changed in our 2 transfers together. So, that was just to clear up some things about him. Actually, i´ll give you a run down of all my companions, just as a reminder.

Elder Cano- my trainer. From columbia. Excelent teacher. You´ll probably never see him or talk to him, or anyone from his family

Elder Ashcroft- the kid i trained for one transfer. The most obedient missionary i´ve ever met and honestly, one of my best friends ever. He´s from Arizona.

Elder Hinton- from Orem utah, kind of disobedient when i got here because of his trainer, but he really shaped up and we got along decently well by the end of out time. i had one transfer with him.

Elder Reid- from Orem utah as well. we´re on our second transfer together. Super obedient. Very diligent. Kind of nerdy, but i´ve learned so much from him. We´ve totally changed in out time together.

Other than that, not much to talk about, seeing as i talked to you all 2 days ago.

oh yeah, you said a couple of weeks ago that it was the Case´s farewell from the ward. But no one ever told me why they´re leaving. I´d like to know, please. :)

Mom- glad your week was a little bit calmer. I hope everything goes well with the bridal shower.

Dad- that movie sounded pretty cool. Remind me to watch it when i finish my mission.

John- it´s a bummer we couldn´t talk together, but last Christmas was a disaster, but, we´ll talk next Christmas. It´s really not that far away. Time goes by SO fast. Before we know it, we´ll talk for Christmas, and then, i´ll be home. Weird. I don´t like that at all.

Austin- you sang Lily´s Eyes in Choir? How cute. Nah, just messing. That´s cool. I never once sang in choir at viewmont. I don´t like sining solos. I´m not cool like you.

Natasha- sounds like it was a good week, like always. Keep having fun and do what´s right.

Shaylee- i liked seeing your braces. And your story about running a 5k was pretty cool. I´d never do that. I don´t like running at all. Maybe after the mission when i don´t walk 8 hours a day, but i doubt it. I just don´t like running.

Well, I know without a doubt that this church is true. Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. He really saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. He recieved the Priesthood authority. I know that because of the priesthood, we can be and are an eternal family. If we keep our covenants, we will live together in the Celestial Kingdom. I love this Gospel. It is the only thing in life that brings true happiness. If we´re obedient, we will always be happy, even when times are hard. I love the Book of Mormon. It has changed my life. I love reading it everyday. If we study it daily, we will get closer to God. I love being a missionary. It´s the greatest blessing that God has given me. Everyday i can see so many blessing that i only have because I´m a missionary. I love sharing the Gospel with others. I´ve seen many people´s lives change, but more than anything, I´ve seen my life change. The mission has changed me so much. I´ve got a long way to go, but the Gospel has changed my life in this short short year that i´ve been on my mission. I love you all,

Love,
Elder Jordan Schouten