Hey everyone!

It is my last week of being trained!! 

I have enjoyed the first 3 months of my mission so much. I am developing good habits that I will be able to use the rest of my life. It is so nice to have a routine that we stick to every single day. And the short amount of time I have been out I have had experiences that I will never forget.

I went on exchanges with Elder Capulac this week. It went so good. And I got to have some laughs out of it. The first guy that we talked to was a referral that we contacted. I will tell you the funny part later on, but first I want to tell you about something that struck me so hard. We started talking to this man. His name being William. He told us to call him Willey, which is cool because that was my nickname in high school. But we started talking to him and his girlfriend came out and told us we were wasting our time and that Willey was not good enough for us to be talking to him. It struck me because NO ONE is not worth it. No one is not worth God's time. Willey was really drunk, but I know that he felt loved. Being here on a mission has really helped me realize how much God cares about all of his children. Missionaries have a special ability of seeing people as Jesus sees them. I can testify to that. Now for the funny part. Willey would not listen to our lesson hahah. He would crack jokes every other minute. One of his jokes made Elder Capulac and I laugh really hard. He said, "Jack and Jill went up the hill to have a little fun...Jill forgot to take her pill and now she has a son." Hahaha. I laughed and I thought.....How ironic...That is how I was conceived. Hahaha. Sorry Mom and Dad. I had to say it. I am THE accident. So yeah Willey is one of the faves.

The work has been very slow because we are spending so much of our time trying to find new investigators. It has definitely been a journey. Ha. My spiritual thought actually has to do with this. I was studying something and I totally forgot what it was, but I ended up in D&C 52: 9-10. It reads, "9. And let them journey from thence preaching the word by the way, saying none other things than that which the prophets and apostles have written, and that which is taught them by the Comforter through the prayer of faith.

10. Let them go two by two, and thus let them preach by the way in every congregation, baptizing by water, and the laying on of the hands by the water's side."

This is our purpose. To preach by the way. President Palmer was truly inspired when he sent a charge through our mission asking us to preach by the way. People start to see us outside and start to recognize what we are doing. I know I look goofy as crap in that helmet, but hey if I am in the helmet for the Lord it is okay.

I had a really cool experience at a members house last night. I was talking about President Nielson's talk on Joy. I shared that man can choose whether or not to be happy through trials. We can choose. This brought me back to when I was being set apart as a missionary. I remember being told, "Happiness is a choice." It was super cool.

Vierra is doing great! She was able to join Elder Lamm and I at Bishop's house for dinner last Friday. It was awesome. She is from Germany so the Bishop's wife cooked German food and it was super good. We were able to share our testimonies about Joseph Smith. What an amazing man. I read a little bit in Joseph Smith History this morning and I could really feel the spirit. It all goes back to the Book of Mormon though. If we know that it is true we know that everything is true.

I love you all and hope you have a great week. I love my family and hope they are doing so well. I appreciate all the love and support as I serve the Lord. THANK YOU!

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Love,

Elder Willden