Transfers, new Sisters, and tender mercies

Hi Family!  What a different, but wonderful week!  I don't have much time, but I'll try to squeeze in as much as possible.

 

We had transfers, and luckily I'm staying put here in Centerville with Elder Christensen.  Almost ALL of this week Elder Christensen and I were prepping the new apartment and getting things going for the new Sisters that have been added to our ward!  Our ward is so delighted and BLESSED to have another set of missionaries - especially Sisters.  Centerville is a very small area, so getting another set of Elders would have meant splitting the area!

 

We weren't able to do as much finding as we would have liked this past week, but yesterday we had a "mini-miracle"!  C____ - one of our most progressing investigators who had sort of dropped off, called and said that she keeps feeling like God is telling her to move on with her life, and move away from D___, her ex-husband who she lives with.  With her son, K_____, getting baptized this month on the 21st, she's come to each and every lesson of his with us, and we teach her too.  She told us how she feels like, maybe she should get baptized and that God is preparing a way for her to do so with K_____!  We are SO happy!  When she called, I started crying because we really thought we had lost her.  The Lord IS preparing people to accept the Gospel!  I can't believe it.  We're keeping our fingers crossed that she'll be able to find a new apartment and quit smoking for good so that she and her son K______ can get baptized together.  This is a work of miracles, both small and large!

 

I really really really love this ward.  I'm starting to grow attached to the members and this area!  I wonder if being content with being in Ohio means that my visa will come sooner... Hahaha.  I wouldn't be TOO sad I don't think if it doesn't come for a while.  I feel like I'm really starting to "get it" when in comes to missionary work, and teaching has gotten much easier.  That being said, THREE more people from my district have received their visas (two of which applied after I did for them), so I'm really starting to think that I'll be out sooner than I think *knock on wood* which actually makes me a little sad!  I didn't think I'd get to this point, but I really LOVE Ohio!  I know that this is where I'm supposed to be at the moment, and Heavenly Father has helped me realize that.

 

This Gospel is TRUE!!  How could it bring so much peace and joy if it weren't?  I know that as we forget ourselves and give our all to the Lord, HE will do all the heavy lifting for us.  He loves you.  He's rooting for YOU!

 

Keep the faith, and God bless!

 

Com muito amor,

Elder Jason Allred

 

Picture - At zone meeting, as soon as Elder Christensen and I rode up to the church on our bikes, the CUTEST kitten ran up to us.  I snuggled it and it purred like crazy.  Look at its face!  He's in heaven.... So is the cat ;)

 

 

Another week

Holy moly!  It's been a VERY busy few days here in Centerville.  Monday was Labor day, so the library was closed, so that's why I'm writing today. (I'll be back this next Monday though :))

 

We have been running around like crazy getting things prepared/copied/secured for the new set of missionaries coming to our ward!  Elder Christensen and I were on "apartment finding duty" and had to spend the majority of a day biking around to various apartment complexes, trying to secure a spot for the new Sisters!  Yes! Sisters! (We're about 90% sure).  We found one, it fell through, then we went finding with the Senior missionaries and had a miracle find that we were able to secure in a matter of minutes.

 

This past week, we had an AMAZING lesson with C____ and her son, our most progressing investigators.  Aaaaaaaannnddd... Now her son is on date for baptism, too!  We're so thrilled because two weeks ago, he didn't want to get baptized, but now, it's looking like he'll get baptized before his mother.  C_____ has been having a really hard time with the Word of Wisdom, and with Joseph Smith/Book of Mormon.  My companion felt inspired to give her a "testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith" pamphlet, and the next day, we got this text from C_____ saying how it was "EXACTLY what I needed a year ago! I loved it! I was swept into his testimony".  It was just the push we needed with her, so I'm so glad that truly ".. by small and simple means, great things are brought to pass."

 

Some other highlights of the week include:

- Eating dinner with an investigator family, the A_____'s.  They're really sweet and we left them with a Restoration DVD and hope to go back!

 

- Finding a PORTUGUESE investigator!!  A few missionaries in the past ran into a lady named Eva, and we got back into contact with her!  She took us out to Bob Evans and I was able to speak with her a little in Portuguese! Yay!  (I guess that means my Visa is coming soon now that I found a Portuguese person to teach, right ;))

 

- Tracting is a lot more fun now!  I'm starting to be more confident and outgoing, and have been able to get some new potential investigators

 

- We received two referrals from church headquarters with faulty addresses, and while we were looking them up, I got a letter from the Church travel department!  My heart STOPPED.....  But all it said was something along the lines of "Thanks for working so hard in the Ohio, Cincinnati mission.  Keep working! We'll let you know when we receive your visa."  Haha these 7 weeks have been a good lesson in enduring.  :)

 

I have such a testimony that Heavenly Father is a God of love, and a God of MIRACLES.  This is a work of miracles, and I know that as we pray to experience miracles, and pray to recognize miracles big or small in our lives, our outlook on life will change for the better, and our faith will increase. 

 

I love you all SO MUCH!  Thanks for your letters and prayers.  They really mean the world to me.

 

Picture 1 - There's this thing called "Skyline Chili" that's reeeeeally big out here!  It's literally chili on top of spaghetti with a TON of cheese on top.  So weird, but pretty good, actually!  It was raining that day, so a nice member picked it up for us.

 

 

 

Picture 2 - Call me the DUCK WHISPERER.  Haha there are SO many ducks E-V-E-R-Y-W-H-E-R-E here!

 

 

Picture 3 - Saving souls one door at a time. :)  

 

 

A rough but great week!

Hi Family!

 

Wow!  Can you believe I've been in Ohio for over 30 days now?  Goodness!  Where does time go?

 

This week was full of good, and had it's sad moments, too.  I went on exchanges with some different missionaries and that reeeeeally made me even more grateful for my companion!  The Elder I was on exchange with that day was SO negative about nearly every aspect of missionary work!  It made my heart really sad!  He's been out for over 20 months, and complained and gossipped ALL day. :(  BUT, while I was with him, we taught a really cool lady named Betsy for THREE AND A HALF HOURS!  Yippee!  It was a looooong visit, but she had lots of great questions about the Word of Wisdom, Law of Chastity, and tithing.  It was a great discussion!  Anyways, that experience made me grateful for my companion who is positive about missionary work, despite his little quirks :)

 

One of our investigators, has decided to stop investigating the Church.  :( He had been doing so well and had been on and off date for baptism, but feels like he has a "different" calling in life.  It's heartbreaking to see someone you care about and have worked with for so long choose to give something up that would make their lives infinitely more meaningful.  We also got a call from our other progressing investigator, that she thinks she's "too old" to make a change like this.... She's 55.....  Thankfully, we're meeting with her and her 12 year old son, tomorrow, and we're really hoping and praying hard that she and her son will stay on track for baptism.

 

We've been having a hard time finding new people to teach this week. We'll walk around for hours at a time through neighborhoods, looking for someone who will hear us out.  We've been mostly unsuccessful, but I have faith that we WILL find someone soon!  There's no such thing as a dry area, just dry missionaries!

 

Some highlights from the week:

 

- After trying to find new people all day, we tried one last street and found a 91 year old woman and talked to her for about 30 minutes!  We'll be going back this week to talk to her :)

 

- That same day, we were riding back home at night on the sidewalk around a runner, who we "scared the *poop* out of" who was actually delighted to see us!  We gave her a super condensed Restoration lesson as we rode next to her and she jogged, gave her our number, and are hoping that she calls!  She kept saying "Amen!" after everything we were telling her and she told us how much she loves God and Christ, so... if anything a seed was planted and it brightened our day.

 

- Yesterday, we had a very special mission-wide meeting in Cincinnati.  Dallin H. Oaks was in the area re-organizing a stake, and agreed to speak to the missionaries only for an hour!  It was amazing!  I SHOOK HIS HAND AND HE LOOKED ME IN THE EYE AND SAID I LOOKED SHARP!  My life was made!  It was such a powerful experience being just three rows away from an apostle of God.  Probably a once in a lifetime experience for me. It was revitalizing being with our whole mission, united as one, with an apostle talking just to US. So special!

 

I know that Heavenly Father is a loving God who KNOWS what each and every one of us is going through.  I know that through the enabling power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, we can not only overcome sin, any feeling of doubt, loneliness, or despair.  The Restored Gospel is so beautiful!

 

I love you all!  Know that you're in my thoughts and prayers ALWAYS.

 

Com MUITO amor,

Elder Jason Allred

Another great week in Centerville! :)

Hello family!  My my my... I seriously can't believe how fast time has flown by this week!  Seriously, I've been in Ohio nearly a month already now!  Crazy!

 

This week was WONDERFUL!  The weather has been cool and mostly dry like a lovely Virginia autumn. 

 

Here are some of the highlights of this week:

 

-I went on my first exchanges!  With the Zone Leaders, too, so I was a little nervous, but it was a GREAT experience.  I went to their area, Englewood, and slept there/worked the next day with them.  Englewood is a much, much poorer area with a high crime rate, and we kept hearing sirens go off every so often!  The Zone Leaders had great pointers for me and helped me get over my fear of talking with everyone I saw about the Gospel.  It was dinner time, and as we turned to meet up with the other Elders, a car zoomed by, screeched to a halt, and three teenage boys called us over.  I thought I was going to get mugged!  Turns out they were SUPER nice and cool, and we talked to them for about 20 minutes about prophets and the Restoration.  It was really neat!

 

-Two nights ago, when we were about to go to sleep, and my companion told me that I was his favorite companion.  I was really shocked and really humbled that he could look over my faults and see the good in me. :)

 

     This past week, I had some time to sit and read the September Ensign, and was touched by the article, "Opening Our Hearts to Revelation".  I've always had a hard time figuring out what personal revelation is and how I can receive it, but I've learned now for myself that it is real and ever important to the well-being and productivity of our souls.  Just as letters  of love, support, advice, and encouragement from home buoy you up while you're away or struggling, personal revelation is the same!  Personal revelation is a message of peace, guidance, and support from a loving parent, our Heavenly Father.  If we could just set aside a few minutes each day from our hectic schedules to be still and quiet, seeking guidance from above, we will be able to refocus on our purpose and priorities, and put ourselves in a position to better receive and feel the messages our Heavenly Father would have us receive.

 

     After an amazing Zone Conference this past week full of learning and the Spirit, I felt dark and irritable for no earthly reason!  I was distracted, unfocused, and unhappy, and we were just about to teach one of our investigators.  The counsel from this article popped into my head, so I excused myself from the earshot of my companion for a few minutes and offered a prayer to Heavenly Father, asking for His help to overcome these feelings.  Just like that, those feelings left me, and my companion and I were able to teach in unity and with the Spirit, AND.... *drum roll please*.... GOT HER COMMITTED TO BAPTISM FOR SEPTEMBER 21st!!

    

I KNOW that Heavenly Father is a God of love, and miracles.  He truly is our tender parent who is aware of His children's trials and struggles, no matter how small they may seem.  Sometimes all we have to do to be more in tune with His messages of love, support, and direction is ASK for His help, and then LISTEN to what He has to say.

 

I love you all SO much!  Thanks for the love, prayers, and support you offer me.  This Gospel is TRUE!  Heavenly Father loves YOU!  I love you!

 

Love, Elder Jason Allred

 

Picture:  Me working on both my spiritual and physical physique  ;)