Week 75

AREA: Tucson—Midvale

COMPANION: Elder Blacker

Friends and Family,

Monday: Just your typical pday... didnt do anything spectacular. Our
investigator Crystal that lives below us made us dinner which was
super nice of her. That was about it though.

Tuesday: Awesome day! This morning we had foodbank as usual and then
we had a lesson with Sister Cole. Sister Armbruster came with us to
the lesson and shared more of her awesome stories! After her place we
headed over the post office quick so I could send off Savannah's
birthday package:) Had a great lesson with Robert on the Plan of
Salvation which went great! Brother Curtis came with and connected
well with him. He also invited him to come to mutual. Ended the night
off with a lesson with Crystal which went great as well:) Taught her
the Plan of Salvation. She is a great example of someone who has been
prepared. She loved church Sunday, she loves the gospel, and loves
the happiness that has come as she has been meeting with us.

Wednesday: This morning we had district meeting at the apartment
because we didnt have anywhere else to meet unfortunately. The library
was booked already:/ District meetings as alright. We talked about the
importance of testifying of the Book of Mormon and being bold while
testifying. Went and visited a few referrals and found a new potential
investigator named Angel. He is pretty awesome, he is a server at a
Casino near by, and he showed a good amount of interest in meeting
with us. Had a lesson with Faith after that, talked about prayer and
the Holy Ghost and how we can receive answers.

Thursday: Today once again was great! This morning Elder Lundell and I
watched a couple of guys change the floor in the apartment. The old
stuff was deteriorating and needed to be replaced. After they finished
doing that I cleaned up the mess all around the apartment. We then
finished up our studies till we met up with Brother Collingwood to go
out and visit a bunch of members in the ward. Our ward is about 4400
square miles, there are ALOT of members too, and not a lot of them are
being visited. Brother Collingwood is one of the most Christlike men I
have met, and he dedicates his time to visiting EVERYONE in the ward.
He reminds me a lot of my Grandpa Smith:) While out with him we were
able to visit with a good amount of people which was awesome! We went
out to Sells and visited with some of the members there. I am learning
a lot from Brother Collingwood and I hope that I stay in the area so I
can learn more! This evening we exchanged back and went directly to a
lesson with Crystal. Taught the last part of the Plan of Salvation and
talked about Family History and it was fantastic! She said she loved
it and learned a lot:)

Friday: Today was pretty awesome :) This morning I had an amazing
study session and had some mind blowing things that I learned. After
studies we did some planning before going over to Kim's for a lesson
with her. Had a great talk with her, she just had her knee replaced
last Friday and she is doing great! We then went home and Sister Lee
came over and did an inspection on our apartment, we passed:) After
that went and got some papa murphy's pizza with some money a member
gave us. Cooked that and did some more weekly planning.

Saturday: Super busy day! This morning we woke up and went straight
over to sister Lucas's for service. Unfortunately she is being evicted
from her place so we helped clean up the property as much as we could.
We then visited the Lujan's who is a recent convert/less active
family. Went home and got showered and ready as fast as we could so we
could go over to the Provstgaards. Helped move a couch into their
place and then had a great gospel discussion. Hurt my back a little
while moving the couch #dontliftwithyourback Should be fine though.
After that we saw the Haynie's while they shared some of the crazy
things their going through. Rushed over to Brother Collingwood's for a
ward mission meeting, went to Gary's, and then went home. Super busy
day... on the way home we received transfer call news, I'm staying in
the area, going district leader, and getting Elder Bradfield. Elder
Blacker is moving to the Gila Valley and getting Elder Stanger. They
should be a great companionship.

Sunday: Today was really good:)This morning we had ward council which
was nice, had sacrament meeting went really well. Since it was Elder
Blacker's last Sunday in the ward, Bishop Rees invited him to go up
and bear his testimony which was nice. We then had sacrament meeting
in Sells so we left for Sells right after church. Before going out to
Sells we actually went and had brunch at the Collingwood's house which
was super good. Brother Fawcett, one of the ward missionaries dad
wanted to experience the Sells sacrament meeting so he came with us.
The service was okay, it was kinda disorganized but it will continue
to get better as we go. After Sells we went over to John and Era's
place to pick up something and headed home. We then went and made
visits to members in the ward that Elder Blacker wanted to say goodbye
too. Ended the night saying goodbye to Hermana Jones and Elder Jones,
the senior couple missionaries that live in our complex.

This week I had a very good study session. One of the subjects I chose
to study one day was the principle of hope. Before studying this it
was a common everyday word I would use in the context of "I hope we
have a good day." If you couldn't tell by that statement it had a hint
of uncertainty too it. The first thing that I thought to do was to
look up the definition for the word "hope." Now the definition I was
looking for was not just a definition found in a dictionary, I wanted
the gospel definition. I chose to look in "True to the Faith," for the
definition and my eyes were opened forever. This definition has now
changed the meaning of some of my favorite scriptures and has helped
my faith in Jesus Christ grow. This definition has changed 
the way I look at things, given me more "hope" and drive to
serve with all my heart, might, mind, and strength. I love you all:)
Have a great week:)

Love,

Elder Smith