Week #21

This week has just been so crazy. Last Monday we barely even had a P-day and then Tuesday and Wednesday we were at the church assisting President Thomas while he was doing interviews with all the missionaries. That's where you saw me shining that sister's shoes. Then on Thursday we had Zone conference and that was really fun. We did a white elephant exchange and guess what I bought for my gift? I bought a pair of XL men's white underwear from value village.... and guess who picked my present?? A sister missionary! Oh it was so perfect and funny. Elder McDanel and I were just laughing so hard!! And all the senior missionaries that work in the office were laughing too because we showed them our gifts before hand.

 

After that we went on a sleigh ride as a zone and it was really fun! Cold, but very fun. The Clark's sent me a Christmas picture of all of them together. That was nice. Thanks for sending me my CTR ring! I thought I lost that.

 

So on Friday, we put together a sports night at the church to try and get less actives, members, and non-members. It was a good turn out for our first time! We had about 25 people show up and now we are teaching a family because of it! So we are going to keep doing it like twice a transfer!! There is a lot of changes happening in the CWM but they are really good! I had an interview with President and he said that he wants to send Elder McDanel back out in the field for the rest of his mission since he only has 6 months left, and basically what he told me is that I'm not going anywhere soon....soo we will see how it works out. 

 

Saturday we just planned like crazy! Which is good because because we have been so busy we just haven't had anytime to plan. Then on Sunday we took this Filipino kid with us to go visit his friends that he brought to sports night (which is that family that we are teaching now) But it was super good because he is 13 and just wants to do missionary work with us!

 

My mission has been really interesting so far. But I love it. I absolutely know that this is the Lord's work. I have seen so many life changes and I love it. I was thinking about why I was out here, just kind of pondering on the reasons why I came out and I know I'm out here because I love my savior. I'm not out here to change or to say I went on a mission. I just want to serve the Lord and do whatever he asks of me. When I read your letter the other day it was comforting, because I don't know everything but it really reminded me of the Scripture 2 Nephi 28:30:

"For behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which they have."

 

I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God.

 

 

All is well,

-Elder Clark

Week #20

So this last week we were in Saskatchewan for Zone conference, so we had to be in the church with the missionaries that were getting interviewed and show them like a video for driving and then go out and check their cars. Then when we had zone conference we did about a 10-15 minute portion. It was a great time. Elder McDanel served up in Regina for a long time and so we went and visited some members he knew and they took us out to Montana's and it was really good, then after that we went to the temple and we went as a zone. It was a super neat experience I liked it a lot. 

So we left Regina on Saturday and here is a crazy/neat story. Ok so we are driving back to the peg and Elder McDanel says "I gotta pee" and there was no washrooms near by. So he slammed on the breaks and pulled over to this road and there was another little road that had trees by it and so he wanted to go that way so the trees would block him peeing haha. So we pull in there and then he says no we might get stuck. So he pulls out and goes up this road, but there is no other place to pee so we go back to the road we were on and we drive to the trees and then all of the sudden we get stuck. It was bad we were STUCK! So we start digging ourselves out and nothing is working and so he says Elder lets just go to that house and ask for a shovel. We go there and this lady is home and she says "Well I'm very busy but that's my only shovel so bring it back". Wo we go and we dig ourselves out and finally we get out. We were stuck for about an hour and a half. So we go return the shovel and we end up talking to the lady for like almost an hour and she is so prepared for the gospel. She didn't even know we were missionaries and her eyes were just lighting up she said she loves the Mormon church and follows it because of its morals and etc. But it was so neat I know that we both had the prompting to go to that house for a reason. And her neighbor is like 5 miles away and so she would have never seen any other missionaries come to her house. So we are going back up to Regina for exchanges with the ZL's on new years and we are going to stop by her on the way. So usually it takes about 3 hohours to drive from Regina to Brandon but it took us 6 hours because we got stuck. But it was a super neat experience.

So on Saturday we finally got home to the office and then we planned and then we got a call from the sisters to see if we could teach their investigator Mani who is an East Indian. They needed us to teach because they couldn't find fellowship. So we taught him the gospel of Jesus Christ and it was one of the most spiritual lessons I had ever been in. This guy Mani was crying because he was feeling the spirit super strong, in fact all of us were crying. I bore my testimony on how much this gospel makes me happy and he looks up at me and says "how long did it take you to be happy". I said a while, but through this gospel it is possible. Mani never believed in God. But I know that this church and this gospel is the true church and gospel, because I had witnessed someone who never believed in God and was very consistent in his culture and his traditional beliefs feel the spirit of God and cry and say....."I have never felt so happy, this makes me want to follow God." We invited him to be baptized but never set a date. I love that guy.

Last night we taught our investigators Takuma and Roel and those guys are great. It was a really good lesson. Roel is the man. I love Filipinos, they treat you like family. My Tagalog (Filipino language) is getting pretty good!
I love being a missionary. I know without a doubt in my mind that this is the Lord's work.

All is well,

-Elder Clark

Week #19

I will be headed up to Saskatchewan tomorrow for Zone conference it is pretty neat when you get to see all of the mission. The only part I haven't seen is Ontario but soon enough I will.

Well yesterday it was -35 outside......and today it's about -30 wow it is cold. You go out and it's not too bad but then less than a minute your face is freezing. The other day we went to Dairy Queen to get a blizzard and when the guy handed me my blizzard he said...would you like a serviette with that? And I said eh? And he said a serviette and I was like what is he talking about? Does he mean like sprinkles on my blizzard? Well I don't want that, who would put sprinkles on a blizzard and so I said no thank you and then when I walked out the door I realized that he was asking if I would like a napkin.

We had those guys come from the MTC to basically evaluate and see how the mission is doing. They went on an exchange with us, since we are the assistants... but it turned out to be really really good! I learned so much from them! Then we just had meetings after meetings! Busy busy. Something really neat that happened was Elder Montoya (a zone leader) and I were in McDonald's and when we left I turned around and said to this lady "Hello how is your day going", but she didn't answer....I thought hmm maybe she just doesn't want to talk. Then I see this guy looking at us so before I go I feel prompted to leave him a mormon.org card...when I did that the lady came rushing over and looked at the card and just liked grabbed it from him. I pulled one out and said would you like one and she shook her head saying yes yes! It turns out that she was deaf... and so when I talked to her she couldn't hear me and just didn't know what to say. It's so neat how God puts you in the time and place ya know? Also the guy from the MTC said that we taught one of the best lessons he had ever seen, and he teared up when he said it. It was a great humbling experience for me.

So we taught the family from Nigeria again! They are doing great, and also we taught our Filipino investigator Roel! We had a super good lesson with him yesterday the spirit was just there so strong :)) and also today at church I met a Filipino guy named Scott! Super good guy and has style! He cuts hair for a living and he cuts famous people's hair. He cuts the jets (hockey team) hair and also he has cut Mac Miller's DJ's hair a bunch of times!! Pretty neat eh?

Right now we are teaching Belatu (a lady from Sudan) and we are teaching her son. Belatu is already baptized but her son isn't and so we are working with him and getting him ready, he is 8 years old. They are such great people, I love that family a lot and it's hard to go over and see them sometimes because their place is full of bugs and cockroaches :(( but they are just such a great family and are strong in the gospel. 

I had a really good week though. I love this gospel with all of my heart. I know that the Book of Mormon is true and the the Bible and Book of Mormon complete each other and that is what we call the gospel of Jesus Christ. There are a lot of changes happening in our mission right now! Things are going to get crazy, but I am excited for it 

All is well,
-Elder Clark

Week #18

Here it has just been snowing and it was -24 this week.....my face was numb. I had to buy a parka, because the one I got when I first came into the mission was just way too big for me. This one is really nice it goes down to my knees.

Well we had a really good week. We had meetings and what not, but we really fit in some time to go finding. We went to the town houses, which are just the best, and we ended up finding 2 investigators there and then later that night we were calling Brother Richard for fellowship for a lesson that we had tomorrow, and we call him and he says "I'm just learning Japanese with my roommate right now" and I say "hey I took Japanese in high school" and so he told me to talk to his roommate Takuma. So I said the only words that I know but then we were like you should teach us Japanese and we said we will be there in 15 minutes. So we show up and we end up teaching both of his roommates. Their names are Roel, who is Filipino, and Takuma. They are both 2 new investigators! Takuma doesn't believe much in religion though, but we invited them to the Christmas devotional.

So at the Christmas devotional only Takuma and Brother Richard showed up because Roel had to work. But at the end of it I was talking to Takuma and asking him what he thought and he said it was different but he liked it. We then asked him how he felt. He said he felt really peaceful and felt like clean water. We told him that was the Spirit of God. We asked him if he would like to always have that feeling and he said yes, but how is it possible? We talked about baptism and told him that when we teach him more we can help him understand how he can have those feelings. It was a great miracle. I really know that this is the Lord's work.

The bishop from the Dalhousie Ward invited us to their Christmas party, and it was a Filipino Christmas! It was the best thing ever. That was some really good food. All the Filipinos cooked food and did a whole program of stuff, it was a lot of fun. I love the Filipinos!

We got all of transfer planning done and this next transfer we will be sooo busy.....Also i am feeling a little under the weather today so I hope I can get back on my feet real quick, because we have those brethren coming from the MTC tomorrow.

All is well,
-Elder Clark

Week #17

So this week we had some really neat experiences! We went to Taco Bell, of course, and when we went in this guy started yelling at us saying "hey you preaching the word!!" and we say "you bet we are" so then we just kept talking to him and then started talking to his friend and his friend Carlos just loved us!! He was like lets go sit by them and he says yeah sure that's fine with me. So Carlos was just super interested in all that we had to say and the other guy wasn't too interested but we split up and we just started teaching 2 lessons... in Taco Bell! It was so neat and at the end Carlos was saying please call me! So it was a neat experience.

Then on exchanges we tracted into this lady from Nigeria! We set up an appointment with her. Elder McDanel and I taught her and her son. So we have 2 new investigators and they're both from Nigeria! That's what I love about Canada, especially Winnipeg, because you don't need to go to another country to teach people in a different culture. Just come to Canada because they all live here.

We had Thanksgiving on Thursday and that was really fun. I need a nap but just haven't had anytime to fit it in. Oh well. We are doing transfer planning this week so this week will be very busy as well.

I have been getting really good at knowing my scriptures but I still need to work on it. I love serving a mission. I love the people of Canada, too! Especially the Filipinos! They are just soo great!

All is well,
-Elder Clark

Week #16

This week has been something else....it has just been super busy and just go go go. I love it though! I saw the northern lights while I was in Regina! They were big and bright and neon green in the sky. They were so neat. Elder McDanel and I went like out of the city and in the middle of nowhere just to look at them! They were huge! It's just like you would see them in the movies!! I love Heavenly Father for sending his son to create all these wonderful things. 

 We went on exchanges with a lot of the elders up in Regina and then in Saskatoon. I was on an exchange with Elder Perkins who is a zone leader and we were doing work. We were late to our appointment and we parked downtown in Regina and figured out that we were at the wrong place so we just started running to the place in
downtown Regina. Elder Perkins stopped in 7-11 to get directions and we ran in to buy a water and give it to a homeless man. We got to our appointment and everything worked out fine and then we were late to our next one but they called us and told us they were running late. It was super neat because the Lord just made everything go well just from that small act of stopping and getting that homeless guy a water.

We went to Brandon on Saturday and they baptized a guy from Rwanda who I was able to teach a month ago on an exchange with Elder Barfuss so it is just super neat to seem him baptized. It was a very good experience. 

Every Tuesday we go and play basketball with the Filipinos! I love those people!! I'm getting good at basketball so watch out! I'll be shooting 3's for days whoop whoop. 

Canada is full of people from the whole world! I really want to try buloot or whatever it's called. The Filipinos eat it. What it is is an undeveloped egg. Gross hey? Apparently it's really good. 

Everything has been going really good here. Except the elders that were here that we were helping out left the milk and chocolate milk out before they left, so we came home to some gross milk....who does that eh? You're always supposed to put the milk back. 

Well I met with president today and it was really good! I love that man and he helped me out. So I think I know what I'm doing here. And we're having Thanksgiving on Thursday! I'm excited. 

Well that is pretty much my week. I've just been on the road a lot and have been eating a lot of fast food. I feel fat but I'll work it off. 

I know the scriptures are true, as we truly liken them to ourselves, then they have way more meaning and they make sense. I know this is the Lord's work and I love this gospel. GALATIANS 5:22 and that is exactly what I feel when I read The Book of Mormon. That is how I feel when I go out and do missionary work.

All is well, 

-Elder Clark

Week #15

Robert hit the 4 months mark yesterday! He is 1/6 of the way done!

I'm just busy busy it seems like! We got a ton of snow and it was like -12... so 10 degrees I think! Elder McDanel and I get along great! We are like the same person in a way, it's great. He pushes me like no other, which I like. He makes me work harder!

Our mission will be getting a minimum of like 144 missionaries because of the new revelation!!! It's gonna be a handful but exciting!!!

We are traveling to saskatchewan today, headed up to Regina and the Zone leaders got us a time to go to the temple when we get up there so I'm really excited about that! Well my week has been really busy. We have just been working with the I-fall elders and keeping them busy. We have also been working with less actives now. There is 28% of activity in the church here in this mission. We need to bring back the less actives before we can find new investigators. There are a lot of less actives with part member families. We're focusing a lot on them mainly because we don't  want to baptize new investigators into the church if the members are leaving and becoming inactive. I know what it is like to not want to come to church, so I can relate to them. I'm just really excited to work with less actives!

On Thursday we went and fed the homeless! I love those people so much. They are great people and smart, too. They're just in a bad circumstance. Also we were able to teach some people as we were on the hunt for less actives. 

I have a strong testimony of this work and of this gospel. I just love helping people and bringing them the gospel in their life! 

All is well,
-Elder Clark

Week #14

I still do a lot of my own cooking but Elder McDanel and I have just been getting sushi all the time! There is this super good place called California Sushi! The Asian man just loves us, he even gave us free noodles. But there are a lot of the times where we will go over to the mission home and eat with President and Sister Thomas. We stay in the mission office home and there are two rooms with two sets of bunk beds, so a total of 8 missionaries can stay there, which happens for things like zone conferences or ZTM or when trainers and new missionaries come. Honestly we don't do a lot of tracting....kind of lame :( We are currently helping out two missionaries who just need some help getting back on their feet. They have been with us since last week and this week, and then we will travel up to Saskatchewan for exchanges with missionaries, and so we will be up there for a week. Then the following week we will be doing exchanges with missionaries in Manitoba and then the next week we do transfer planning. We have just been super busy with meetings and just helping out missionaries. For exchanges with Manitoba we bring missionaries into our area and tract out our area. 

So this week has just been really busy. I don't get to bed until like 12. I have never been so tired in my life. I am just dead, but i love it. It's great! Everything is still just super new to me so I'm still just trying to get a hold on things, but it will be ok. Elder McDanel is from Preston, Idaho and he had Napoleon Dynamite's locker...haha. He's a super great guy. He pushes me to work harder, it's teaching me a lot.

This week we had meetings, but last night was one of those most spiritual nights I have had yet. Elder McDanel and I were running to do some errands. We saw this guy on the side of the road because his car broke down. We both had the impression to stop, so we did. We went over there and asked if there was anything we could do to help and he said no because he was just going to call a tow truck. We both said a little prayer in our hearts that the car would start and we gave him a pass-along card. We turned around and took 5 steps and his car fired right up. Then, we were driving home and we saw these girls lighting candles where their friend died. She died last Thursday. She hit a tree and died on impact. We drove by and both had a super huge impression to stop and go teach them about the plan of salvation. We had no idea what we were doing haha we said a quick prayer. They were in their car and so we stopped by the place where they were lighting candles and then we walked to their car. They rolled down the windows and we just testified of God's plan and gave them a card to look at mormon.org. By the time we left they were just about in tears and we saw them pull out their phones and start looking up the website. It was just neat! God put them in our path for a reason.

Everything is going great here! Our meetings have gone super great as well. Being an Assistant is for sure a challenge. It is not easy. It's something I'm not used to but I'm just going at it with a willing heart and a willing mind. 

This week and the rest of the transfer will just be super busy! But I love it. It is so great! :)

All is well,
-Elder Clark

Week #13

This week has just been crazy and kinda stressful. But I'm feeling better now. I still have p-days on Monday. We have only tracted for an hour this week....just because we are super busy. We don't get to bed until like midnight because of call-ins with zone leaders and indicators and planning for meetings. I have never been so tired in my life... I'm dead but I love it. We picked up new missionaries at the airport on Wednesday, and that was fun. We had a training meeting and then a meeting for the new missionaries. This week is full with meetings and then next week we will be busy with exchanges with some of the missionaries in this zone. The following week we will be up in Saskatchewan on exchanges as well, and I think we might fly because of snow but not sure. We are just traveling everywhere, so i get to see the whole mission!

My new home is at the mission office and it's a two story house. It's fun I like it. I have just been super stressed and I don't know what's going on this week. I have just been a little down and not myself but I realized that and thought to myself, "what are you doing, you need to check yourself" My companion Elder McDanel is from Idaho! He is the best I love him, He's a crazy redneck! Also I met Tonya Fields' sister-in-law the other day!! Small world!! 

Being an assistant is great, I get to be around President and I love that! We had a steak dinner the other night! Pretty good eh? I don't know how long I will be an AP for....Probably a while. So I better get used to it.

President got back from a seminar in Nauvoo and said that because of the age change and increase of missionary applications, most of the people who are in North America will be serving in North America!

The baptism was sooooo good and it was just neat! Elder Wilson had to break the ICE, it was pretty thick! I baptized Logan, and let me tell you what....It was cold like ICE cold, but I just acted as if it were warm! Logan on the other hand was crying after he was baptized because it was so cold. He was in shock! Poor guy. 

I have been getting tons of letters this week that I don't know if I can even keep up with writing back. 

It's getting cold up here. Life is good though. I feel the spirit so much more now for some reason. 

I have been studying the doctrine of Christ for 7 days and it has changed my life.....I promise if each and everyone of you study the doctrine of Christ for 7 days, particularly the atonement, then you will see it change your life in a way you couldn't imagine. President and Sister Thomas challenged us to do it and the promise was real. My testimony has just grown so much from this week and just from the scriptures. I love it! 

All is well,

-Elder Clark

Week #12

I don't even know where to start... this week was just so spiritual and just crazy. 

Crystal is actually getting baptized in a river now!! and yes because we don't have a font. I had to go in and check if the water was deep enough, and i got it OK'd from the assistants. AND WOW THAT WATER IS SOOOOO COLD!!! I'm glad I'm not the one getting baptized. But I will make sure to take lots of pictures

Thursday we had district meeting and President and Sister Thomas and the assistants came. Elder Deeble, one of the assistants goes home this Friday. So President came to do a portion in the district meeting and also at the end to give us our transfer calls. This will be my second transfer, because I've only been out for 12 weeks and I just got done training. I had the weirdest feeling about that day. I just felt something was going to happen. President called Elder Wilson and I in to give us our transfer calls... I was worried because Elder Wilson and I wanted to stay together. So President told Elder Wilson that he would be staying in Dauphin to train Elder Nelson, a new missionary. Then he looked at me and said Elder Clark you'll be going with Elder McDanel. You will be the new assistant... I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Elder McDanel bore his testimony and said "When I saw your picture up with mine there was peace and comfort throughout my whole body and I know you are supposed to come to the office with me. You are supposed to be the new Assistant". President Thomas felt the same way....this doesn't happen....I just got out of training.....They said that it was all the Lord's doing. I know that the Lord has called me to be the new assistant. I'm a brand new missionary and there's tons of missionaries who have been out here for a year and I didn't understand why he didn't call one of the zone leaders. But I know that the Lord has called me to do this and that he sees something in me. This has been a very humbling experience for me. The last two days my mind has just been trying to get a hold on all of this. But I'm excited and it will be an adventure. Elder McDanel is such a good guy though! I'm learning tons from him! The only thing I have been worried about is respect from the other missionaries. But ill just jump in with a positive attitude. This coming Friday I get to pick up the new missionaries from the airport! Woohoo!

We had stake conference and Elder McDanel and I were just receiving tons of revelation on how we can help the mission. The spirit was just so big it was like punching me. Being an assistant is great and I just feel way closer to the spirit.

I will also be going up for Crystal's baptism as well because the assistants go to the baptisms. Fun. I get to do a lot of traveling I think! And I get to be around the office staff and President and Sister Thomas. I also live in the office home. This means I get mail faster because it all comes to the mission office.

I love this mission. I love my savior and everything that he has done for me and everyone. The atonement is real.

All is well,

-Elder Clark

Week #11

I forgot to tell you this last Monday, I taught a guy from Rwanda while I was in Brandon! It was great! He is solid. Oh and also my companion Elder Wilson is from St. George, Utah and he knows Jef from The Bachelorette... like he grew up with him and used to hang out with him all the time. He told me that Jef has always wanted to be a celebrity like all his life. It's interesting. But super neat because we saw the magazine in the store and he just stopped and was like WHAT?! haha it was funny. 

So here's my week:
Monday-Wednesday we were traveling and going on exchanges so we weren't even in our area for like 3 days..... Then when we got home Wednesday we were busy because we just had appointments. Then Thursday our day was just full with appointments. We have just been teaching a lot so it's been crazy busy. And pretty much everyday we teach Crystal and her family. They are so solid! Crystal is just super solid in the gospel I love it and you can see the peace that is in her life. I'm a little worried about her daughter Raven... :( She's going through some things in her life right now. Friday we worked on the farm for most of the day. Tt took us an hour to get out there and then we were there till 3 and then an hour to get back and then we went to Sister McCurry's and we raked up her lawn and then she fed us supper. She's like 85 or something, love that woman. On Saturday we tracted all day and it was nice because we just haven't had time to tract a lot because we have been busy teaching. Some people let us in too but only because they were JW's and just wanted to talk with us. It was fun though, they were very nice people. Then we got a call from Sister Watson. She called because she need a blessing so we drove over and gave her a blessing, I love giving blessings and having those experiences :) The assistants came to Dauphin on Sunday and went to church with us and that was fun. I taught primary again... We cooked a huge pirogi supper for the assistants oh it was so good. Then we went over to Crystal's and taught her and her family. The kids were a little bad and not paying attention. Raven didn't seem to care much about going to church and just other stuff. I bore my testimony and just words flew out of my mouth. The spirit was super strong I even cried and the room was just dead silent! I love baring my testimony and just listening to the spirit. I know that those were the words that god needed me to say.

When we went tracting on Saturday I had a feeling to go to Merrel Ave when we were planning so we went there and I was just thinking...."Why did we go here no one is home." Then this lady pulled up in a white truck and we had a really good time talking with her and she really opened up to us and wanted us to come over. It's just neat how the Lord works, I know that if we would have never gone to Merrel Ave then we would have never have met her. The lord sends his servants where they are needed and he sends them to a specific place and time.

All is well,

-Elder Clark

Week #10

It is getting cold here....the last couple of days have been from -1 to -4 plus wind so it's like feeling a northeastern wind, and that's nothing to -40. They say this winter is going to be really cold because we had such a hot summer. Good thing I got a parka. Brother Olsen gave Elder Wilson and I some co-op tuques (hats) they are soooo warm. 

Conference was incredible. I loved Jefferey R. Holland's talk the most. It made me seriously think about after I come home. Rather than going back to life and old things I want to continue to serve and show my love for my saviour. This is why I love the CWM (Canada Winnipeg mission) because most of the missionaries who are out here, were all inactive before they came out. They say 50% of missionaries go in-active when they get home, but I don't think the CWM will because we were already in-active. When Elder Zwick of the seventy came to talk to us in zone conference, he said "the most powerful missionaries who ever walked the earth are sitting in this room." I know and have a testimony about this because all the missionaries in that room have all been inactive and have all experienced the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

Commitment is what it is all about, and sometimes it is hard, but I really think people forget how to trust God. Like in conference it was said that "god is not hiding, we are hiding."

I had Thanksgiving supper on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and am having it today in Brandon with all the missionaries in Brandon. A member in Brandon is feeding us too.....I'm so full. I also ran 3 km today. But I cannot get enough of that pumpkin pie....mmmm it is good.

Crystal came to every single session of conference!!!! Her kids came Sunday morning and her sister came for both sessions on Sunday. Crystal is still getting baptized. She is solid. She reads and prays everyday. We had an experience though this week when we taught tithing. It was hard for her because she's a single mom and doesn't make a lot of money. She texted us and said she didn't want to continue meeting.....we were worried. But also didn't believe that for one second. So we prayed and prayed and prayed. We went and got her a a funny card and wrote our testimonies in it. We were going to leave it at her door, but then she called us. It was perfect timing and a miracle. We helped her with her concern and she is just stronger than ever and is still getting baptized! It is the 27th though because the 20th is stake conference. She still wants to get baptized in the lake, and all of her kids are getting baptized as well!!! :)) Conference even made her stronger!!

I have just been so tired lately that sometimes when i say my prayers at night i start falling asleep....oh it's weird. I have to start over again and repent for falling asleep and then I fall asleep again! haha

I love this Gospel with all my heart. This is challenging work, especially in the CWM. But it is so rewarding. I testify in the name of Jesus Christ that this gospel is real. I have seen it change someone's life. I love the CWM.

All is well, 

-Elder Clark

Week #9

Here is my week.....it's like.....It's a miracle

 

Monday we had P Day and after that we just tracted. Then on Tuesday we were in Brandon, and stayed there for exchanges and Elder Hatch tracted into an MMA fighter and we taught him the gospel, he was very receptive. On Wednesday we fasted for our investigator Crystal and her family and that they would all progress towards baptism and that Crystal would receive an answer to her prayers.

 

So Wednesday we went over to Crystal's and shared The Restoration DVD with them. Sister O'Sullivan has been praying for Crystal's sister that she might have the chance to hear the gospel, because they're neighbors. Well we show up at Crystal's and her sister is living with her now. Crystal has been telling her sister all about us and that she should sit in for the lessons. We taught crystal and her family and her sister and they for sure had a spiritual experience. And then they asked if we could come over tomorrow. We said sure! They all committed to come to church as well. After Crystal we went and taught Ben and he's such a good guy! I just wish he would come to church! 

 

So Thursday we went and taught Crystal and her family and sister again. We taught the plan of salvation. We had the kids draw it out on a big poster board. Her daughter Raven, who is 12, is insane at drawing and it was the best plan of salvation drawing I have ever seen. A lot of the questions Crystal and her sister had were answered through what we taught. We invited all of them to be baptized on the 20th of October, because Crystal has been reading and praying every night. But crystal said she hasn't received an answer yet, and if she does this she wants to make sure she's received an answer. So we get a text Friday night from Crystal that said.....

"I have done a lot of thinking today, I came to realize that for about 2 years now I have been questioning religion and wanting to know  the right thing to do. I have prayed asking about it too and I have not known what to do. Something always has come between the kids and I getting baptized into the church we were going to and today I realized that having you guys come and teach me about The Book of Mormon is God's way of helping me out and I have just not realized it until really thinking about the way things have unfolded until today. It's like a weight off my chest was lifted" 

We then told her that it was the spirit. She said she wants to be baptized. Elder Wilson and I were just so happy! I wanted to cry because I was just so happy. I know that The Book of Mormon is true and that this is His gospel and that it has been restored back to the earth. Seeing someone receive an answer to their prayer is a witness to me that this is real. She even told us, that it's weird that there were missionaries here before because she's lived here since 2005 and none of them have knocked on her door. I know that I was sent here to Dauphin to be one of the missionaries to teach and baptize Crystal, and that I was meant to find her.

 

So she came to church but her sister and her daughter didn't because they got stuck in Moose Horn. But we went over there again on Sunday and we taught the gospel of Jesus Christ to all of them, and our lesson went really good. We then invited her sister and kids to be baptized and they all said yes! We are baptizing Crystal and her family and her sister on the 20th of October! And she said she wants to be baptized in the lake! It will be so fun and something to always remember! The Lord is blessing Elder Wilson and I for just going out and working hard, and especially applying the big boost. Missions are great!

 

The Canada Winnipeg Mission is the best mission ever. I'm literally in the middle of nowhere teaching people the gospel. This is all the Lord's work, not mine. I am only a minor part in this work, and the miracles are because of Him.

I love it Here. This is the closest I have ever been to the gospel. 

All is well,

-Elder Clark

Week #8

The weather here is getting cold. It will start snowing by October... But I'm really excited for that. It will be an adventure. We tracted into this guy named Jason and he was like "sure come over" and I guess he even set up a supper appointment. We fasted on Wednesday, and my testimony of fasting grew. We saw tons of miracles that day. So the week went by and really we just tracted nonstop the whole time, and not too much happened but that's OK. 

On Sunday Crystal showed up to church! When she got there she knew someone from the branch... we were so excited actually because now she'll have some member support. She said she really enjoyed it and wants to keep coming. She is solid. She has been reading and praying every night! Also Gus came to church too. He made us some borscht which is beat juice. It's Ukrainian and we haven't tried it yet but we will. Also Sunday was really good because we have been teaching less actives and trying to get them to church and boom they just all showed up! It was a miracle Sunday that's for sure. So after supper on Sunday we went out tracting and we came to this house and this lady opened up the door and we told her about The Book of Mormon and how it is another testimony of Jesus Christ and she said "well no it isn't" and she just kept interrupting Elder Wilson and arguing with us but we weren't even arguing. She was just saying her point I guess. So I just bore my testimony hoping she wouldn't interrupt and I said "I testify in the name of Jesus Christ that The Book of Mormon is true because I have prayed and asked God and I received an answer from the power of the Holy Ghost", and she just had nothing to say...it was great. I felt the spirit so strong while I was baring my testimony and then after I did that I just said that we appreciated her time and is there any service we can do for her and then we left. It was powerful! Missions are great.

Oh and this week we have just got a lot of potentials so that is really really good.

Elder Wilson is great. It is great when you just click with someone. 

Oh! So Crystal came to church and the lady that she knew was sitting with her for sacrament meeting and Sunday school. Then Crystal was going to go to relief society alone because Sister O'Sullivan teaches primary and so we were worried that Crystal would just be in relief society alone and then I thought to myself... You know how  to do primary. So I said "Hey I'll teach primary if you wanna go be with Crystal" and she said really?!! She was excited. So I taught primary this Sunday and did singing time and we did all sorts of fun games. It was a blast. They had the same manual too so it was perfect.

This week we've got some really good appointments! I'm super pumped!!! I'm learning a lot out here...it is crazy, but I love it. This is some of the hardest work I have ever done. Especially when people swear at you at the door step haha but that doesn't even affect me anymore.

All is well

-Elder Clark

Week #7

On Tuesday we went to Brandon for zone training then I stayed there until Thursday because I was getting a new companion. So Elder Ronald, my companion, went on an exchange with Elder Barfuss and I went on an exchange with Elder Hatch and we were in the MTC together. And an incredible experience happened... Elder Hatch and Elder Barfuss are teaching this less active Hispanic guy. And so Elder Hatch and I went to go see him to get him back to church. He only speaks mostly Spanish but can understand English when you speak it to him. So he told us why he wasn't going to church, but he was telling us in Spanish....I sat there, and said a quick prayer in my heart to be able to understand what he was saying. He spoke again and I listened and paid attention to his body language. After he was done speaking, Elder hatch looked over at me and asked, if I got all that? I said to the guy, "So what your saying is......" and He said yes (si)...he spoke again and I was able to interpret what he was saying. I'm not saying that when he spoke Spanish I was able to be fluent or that Spanish was able to sound like English to me. I payed attention to how he was feeling I guess, and the spirit was able to let me interpret what he was saying. I then taught him like a little kid, saying we need to pray and asked him if he would ask Heavenly Father if he wants him at church. I asked him to kneel and pray and he prayed in Spanish so I couldn't understand it, but it was a beautiful prayer. The spirit was so strong. I could feel it burning. We invited him to church and he said yes. So when I saw Elder Hatch again he said this guy was at church and wants to keep coming back. I know that I wasn't able to do that without the help of my Heavenly Father. It was because of Him and I'm only his servant. It was an amazing experience. My testimony grew that day of the gospel and prayer.

So I got a new companion Elder Wilson! He is literally the greatest. We are like the same person pretty much. And he makes me want to get out and work! We have already become best friends pretty much and we're just having a blast. He is working me hard but that's what i wanted. Elder Ronald was a great companion but I'm looking forward to serving with Elder Wilson.

The weather is starting to get cold at night it gets down to like 3. 

Teaching is my favorite thing I think. I also like just talking to people. So far with this transfer I have opened up more. I think last transfer I was trying too hard to be a different person, but now I'm just being myself and being a missionary. People love talking to Elder Wilson and I because we are both people persons.

No baptisms...yet! Our investigator Crystal is very close. She has been reading The Book of Mormon and she has been praying! She has 3 kids - 2 of which are 9 and 12. We have been teaching them too and they want us to come back. We will be meeting with her on Thursday. We are still teaching Gus and he has been coming to church every week. We are also teaching this guy Ben and he is great. We have some new appointments this week as well. But missionary work isn't about baptisms. A successful missionary is committed. So I'm really trying to be as committed as I can. But I know we will get a baptism soon! :)

All is well

-Elder Clark

Week #6

This week was busy, we tracted a lot, but on Wednesday we got a call from the assitants, my companion has been called to be the zone leader for Winnipeg and my new companion will be the district leader from Winnipeg and his name is Elder Wilson. President Thomas said he would work me hard and I said good because I like to do the work.

On Monday we taught this young man named Ben, and it went really well because the way we have been teaching has been really effective. He said he would call us again to set up a time to meet, which means he won't because apparently when investigators say that it means they don't call. But on Wednesday night he called and said he would love to meet again on Thursday. I was so suprised it was great! Also on Wednesday we taught this lady Crystal and she has three kids, and the lesson went really good. Her son is 9 and I can just see him as being a missionary one day. After our lesson she said to give her 2 weeks and then we could meet again...:( but on saturday we told her to look at Mormon.org. On sunday she texted us and just said that website is so great! She sent us like 9 texts about how much she loves the website and then asked if we could meet sooner, and so we are meeting her tonight at 7...Isn't that so great?! She wanted to meet Sept 19 but the spirit is just working right through and now she wants to meet tonight! Missions are great!

We ran into kevin again ( the gangster) I feel a little sick to my stomach every time we talk to him just cause he's a serious guy about some things. But I learned that he is a child of god and that it doesnt matter. I need to love him as much as I can. Oh we were in Brandon on Thursday and I went tracting with 2 other elders while my companion was in a zone leader meeting. These two other elders are great guys! But they were in some cranky moods..:( before we went out tracting I said a quick prayer in my heart and asked Heavenly Father to provide us with a mircale and to remind these guys that this is His work. Boom first door we knock on guy lets us in and we teach him, he feels the spirit, says the prayer, and tells them to come over first thing tomorrow at 10. I do know that this is the Lord's work and he has reminded me time and time again. I can always rely on him through prayer, and because of that it reminds me that I need to always be humble.

Gus came to church again on Sunday so that was really good. He cracks me up all the time.

Oh also we bible bashed with this guy on Saturday... oh that was a waste of my life. Well, I didn't bash we just kind of argued. But his whole purpose was that he wanted us to leave the mormon faith and that we weren't saved. So I asked him what his definition of saved was. What do we have to do? He named them off and I said ok then by your definition and your reasons mormons are saved. And then he just said no your not because you're mormon and you're a cult. I stopped him right there and told him I would not be out here on a mission if it wasn't for the night that I knelt next to my bed and cried for about an hour just telling my Father in Heaven how sorry I was for the things I have done. Then I testified that because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and his endless love for me, I have changed my life because I have felt his atonement. I know the Book of Mormon is true because I have felt the Holy Ghost bare witness to me that it is true. And I told him I didn't want to be rude because I respect him for who he is but I don't care what he says I will never leave this faith. This faith has brought me so much closer to Christ. Then I said we appreciate your time and we've enjoyed our conversation but we need to get going because we have a curfew. It was just powerful for me. All I could do was bare my testimony. But then he kept talking. It was a waste of time.

Also on saturday this lady called us and said she wanted to meet with us, and we have never met her. So we met her and it was just different...I guess missioanry work just got really real for me. She's just stuck in her life and drugs are taking over her life and we just talked to her and testified of the savior and his atonement, and just tears came streaming down her face. She wants to change and she knew that what we were teaching was true. I guess just watching someone cry after baring my testimony on the Savior's atonement was just a different experience for me...I have never seen it have that effect on someone.

We had to drop Ron just because he's not progressing, but he always still finds us on his bike. I love it! It seems like he sometimes sees us when he needs a little uplifting talk. 

Oh and my new favorite dessert is Apple Crisp and vanilla ice cream....oh I love it!

Gosh I don't even know what my mission will be like because I'm just taking it one day at a time, but I know it will sooner or later mean a lot to me. I love doing this work, there is no better way to find people to teach besides going out and tracting and sharing the gospel and baring your testimnoy. I do know this is the Lord's work, and we have just had miracles again and again.

All is Well,

Elder Clark

Week #5

This week was so good! We have just tracted like crazy. We walked all day on Wednesday and it was 40 C out (104 degrees) and we tracted all day....oh wow that was the hottest day of my life. Lisa is no longer getting baptized. But that's OK because I trust the Lord. I think one of her sisters talked her out of it. But I knew that we would be able to find more people and so our goal this week was to find more investigators. It happened too! We have been teaching Gus and he's 60 and does a lot of work with tools so I was able to talk to him about welding and different tools because Hector taught me all about it. And Gus came to church! So that's really good. Then we met this girl Brittney and when she opened the door, she said she's been waiting for us. I was like what? She wants to get baptized, which was so good to hear. 

Elder Ronald and I decided for personal study to try and find scriptures that would help our investigators, especially Brittney. When I was praying I asked that I would be able to be guided to know what to study and when I was done this thought came into my mind to go to the questions of the soul in Preach My Gospel. One of the questions really jumped out at me and gave me a scripture reference in Alma 36. So I'm reading it and I think to myself where is this going this doesn't seem right. Then, when Elder Ronald and I asked each other what we both studied, we ended up studying the exact same thing but only different scriptures....It was a great experience for me. It grew my testimony about The Book of Mormon that day I just remember looking at it and just feeling my heart pound and warmness overcome my body. I know that The Book of Mormon is truly the word of God.

On Thursday we met this guy Bryden on the street and asked him if we could come visit and share a message and he said yeah for sure. So we went over there on Sunday and just talked to him and our lesson was just super powerful. This Sunday was fast Sunday and I told Elder Ronald we should fast for one of our investigators or potential investigators to get a baptismal date. On Sunday when we taught Bryden we invited him to be baptized and he said yes. He said that he wants to even talk to his girlfriend and have her get baptized with him. It didn't hit me until after we got to the car that the Lord answered our fast. I was so happy. I am growing in the scriptures and just getting to know them so well but more importantly I'm growing in Preach My Gospel. I love doing this work. I'm seriously giving it my all and relying on the Lord.

Also, we met this hardcore thug. Like, I mean hardcore. We sat down and talked with him about the Gospel and later he said he'd been praying that someone would just talk to him because he needed someone to talk to. We ended up giving him a hug. So I can proudly say I've given a hardcore thug a hug. I mean, you should have seen this guy and just listened to the things he was saying. It was actually kind of scary. We also ran into the Manitoba Warriors last Monday. They're a native gang. They're actually pretty hardcore. These are some wicked guys. But we just talked to them and they were nice. You gotta love missions sometimes!

One more experience we had: we tracted into a Born Again Christian who wanted to Bible bash with us. It was my first time so I was a little quiet at first. He tried to prove that the church was false and a cult and that The Book of Mormon was false. He went around everything and went around The Book of Mormon, but never talked about what was in it. We bore our testimony again and again about the savior and that The Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ and that on every page you will read that it talks about Christ again and again. It was so neat because he couldn't say anything back to us. He just said, "well my mind is drawing a blank here because I haven't been studying as much", but I know that it was the spirit that was blocking his mind. After that day I decided that I would never be that quiet again, and that I would defend the kingdom of God and testify of Christ. It was a neat experience. It was scary but it was really good.

All is well

-Elder Clark

P.S. The guy Ron who we've been teaching... he is seriously like Batman. He'll come and find us on the street on his motorcycle. And then we'll talk to him and teach him a little bit and then we ask him if we can set up a time to visit (like a specific day) and he says "Oh, I'll be around" and then rides off on his bike exactly like Batman. It just leaves me laughing.

Week #4

This week was pretty crazy! We just have miracles everyday. We are able to teach about 2 other lessons a day just from tracting and so that's really good. Lisa is doing really good - she is reading and praying, and Ron is amazing! I seriously love that guy. 

Ok so we're tracting all week and on Wednesday we see Ron drive by on his motorcycle like he's looking for us or something. So we see him sitting in the park and we go over and talk to him, and I kid you not this guy is so happy to see us. He says "Elderly Clark Elderly Ronald!" haha that's what he calls us. So before I go into detail let me tell you a little about Ron. The first time we met him he just looked like the saddest guy on the earth. And then when he called us up that Saturday he still looked just sad... and we gave him The Book of Mormon and some chapters to read. Ron struggles with a gambleing and smoking addiction, And it's bad... so when we went to go talk to him in the park he just looked so happy. He said "You guys I haven't gambled in 5 days!! I have 30 dollars in my pocket can you believe that?!" we were so proud of him! He said "I don't know what it is, I just haven't had the urge to gamble". Well we find out that he's been reading The Book of Mormon and the verses we gave him. We told him that we pray for him everyday to have strength to not gamble. He said when he's reading he just feels all of this pressure lifted off, and he just feels good and i hasn't had any desire to gamble...Ron then says that we have given him a gift and that he wants to give us a gift and so he took us out for subs. I have never seen the power of The Book of Mormon like that. I truly know that The Book of Mormon has such a great power to it, and that it can help anyone with their trials. I just remember that first day and that second day we talked to him and how horrible and depressed he looked. I know that The Book of Mormon is true. It was an amazing experience!

This week we got 7 new investigators! We are working so hard. I have decided that anything I do I need to give it 100% - doesn't matter what it is. We had the zone leaders out for exchanges and that was good I got to learn new things as well as some other things. When we were done for the day with exchanges the zone leaders stayed the night, and one of them was talking to me because he goes home in 2 weeks, and he shared with me this list of all the movies he's gonna see when he gets home. When we were on exchanges he told me he was inactive for 5 years. So when he shared with me this movie list I realized that a lot of them were rated R. It made me really think about my mission and after my mission. I wanted to tell him to grow up, and that he shouldn't be making a list of movies he wants to see, especially if they're rated R. It was just sad to hear. I know that when I'm done I want to continue to serve the Lord. There is just no way that i can waste time doubting or being discourged. I have to give 100%.

I know this gospel is real and true. I love this work and I know I can't say much because I'm only 5 weeks in, but I don't care. I love this work! It is hard but rewarding. I have seen so many miracles.

All is well,
-Elder Clark

Week #3

This week has been soooo crazy! We were in Winnipeg from Tuesday till Wednesday for specialized training and then we were in Brandon all of Thursday for exchanges. so we were out of our area for a long time. When we got back we went out tracting on Friday and we decided to stop by all of our investigators houses. We first went to Lisa's and we haven't heard from her since we met her which was the first Sunday we were here, and we were trying to get a hold of her for awhile too, anyway we go knock on her door and no answer....we knock again, and Lisa opens the door! Oh I was so pumped! We asked her if she read the chapter in the Book of Mormon that we gave her and she said yes, she could really relate to it and has found herself hungering for more. I couldn't believe what I was hearing! We set up a time to meet with her that very day at 8:30.

 

So we continued tracting that day and it was just a good day. A lot of good things happened. So 8:30 rolled around and we met Lisa at the church and gave her a tour and then sat down and just had a lesson. This lesson was on the sabbath day and the atonement and faith in Jesus Christ. I taught her about the sacrament and the atonement of Jesus Christ. It was going really well. Then I testified of Jesus Christ and then asked Lisa if she will follow the example of Jesus Christ by being baptized by someone holding the priesthood authority of god? she then said we'll I'm getting ready for my baby and I wanted to do a double baptism, I then knew what to say. I went to Moroni chapter 8 and told her that baptism was a special thing and that it needed to be at a time where we are accountable for our sins, and I said some other things too. She then said it made sense because she had always been wondering if people should be baptized when they are accountable, and then I did something I thought I wouldn't do, I invited her to be baptized again and she said yes. She's getting baptized on September 8th! and I guess we might be doing it at the lake! Elder Ronald said that was really good that I asked her again because he said most missionaries just ask once and when they say no then they are  like oh OK and just set up another time to meet. I'm so excited! I've never been happier in my life like I think I grew an inch or 2 because of that...haha. Lisa also came to church on Sunday as well and stayed for all 3 hours.

 

So on Saturday Elder Ronald wanted to get 4 lessons because we've been out of Dauphin like all week so he wanted to make up for it. One of our investigators randomly called us and said we need to meet I need to talk to someone. So we met with him and boom lesson 1. We got to his concerns too, he said that his family isn't ok with him being interested in the church, so I'm glad that we know that now, but it gets better haha. We're out tracting and we see all of these bikers roll into town, like they almost looked like they were a biker gang, so we're tracting and guess who we see with the bikers....Ron! haha. So now we know who his family is. It's his biker friends, They look like a tough crowd too. it was just funny. Then, we ended up having another lesson so boom lesson 2. We're tracting for hours, and nothing is happening. Elder Ronald then says I've lost my faith in tracting for the day and he turns to me and says promise me we'll get 2 more lessons. I thought about it for a couple of seconds and said I promise you. We went and had dinner at a members house found out shes less active and her husband isn't a member boom lesson 3. Then were out tracting at like 8:30 and within 5 minutes we knock on a door and this little old lady says come in come in. We go in and teach her by her door and boom lesson 4. We walk out and I said see I told you we would haha. It's just silly to doubt, I don't get the point. We've had so many miracles that I can't doubt and sure there may be days where nothing happens but we have so many days out of 2 years.

 

Our Branch is full of cowboys....like they have a pair of blue jeans for church and they get them pressed haha they wear their cowboy boots and belt buckles and their hats and a lot of them are youth like 16 and then there are a couple dads and older men. but it's just so funny. I'll have to get a picture with them! They all do rodeo too and they all ride the bulls.

 

I love it here it's so great! I can't believe that I've already got a baptismal date! Also I found out why there are so many less actives. I was studying preach my gospel and reading in D&C and I came to some verse that talked about teaching with the spirit and teaching in some other way. As we have talked to all the less actives we've gotten to know their concerns. This scripture hit me so hard because I found out that all of them have been taught in some other way that is not of god. They have all been convinced that it is true. They have not been taught by the spirit. Experience is non-transferable. If they do not have an experience with the spirit then they are taught in some other way.

 

I miss all of you so much and pray for you all the time. I know that this is the lords work with out a doubt in my mind.

 

All is well

-Elder Clark

Week #2

It has been such a crazy week....We had a district meeting in Brandon and then we went on exchanges. We tracted so much this week and not too much happened but we did have some miracles. All of the answers we get out here in Dauphin are "no thanks" or "i'm not instrested i've got my own religion". A lot of the people here are hard in there hearts :( and it is hard sometimes when you get the door shut in your face a lot but I do the work because it's true.

 

Dauphin is a very beautiful place. I think this is one of the only places with tons of trees and so it's nice. I heard that they don't let us go out at -40 because it's very dangerous but if its -39 then your out and about. The way people talk here is so great i love it! I will have so many impressions for you when i get home! Candians definetly do not at all sound or talk the same! ahh it's so great! I bought a MTN DEW today! You wouldn't believe how great it tasted, but finding and teaching people is still way better.

 

There are a lot of Native americans up here, we have run into so many! They are so great and are very close to the spirit. I have had so many great experiences this week! We had another lesson with one of our investiagators and we didnt even get to teach a lesson because it turned into 20 questions and they were very hard roman Catholics, but we answered all of there questions and they wanted us to come back. We tracted into this girl named Jennifer. We taught her the first lesson and she wanted us to come back. She's going through a lot in her life and I feel like we were able to help her, we also gave her a book of mormon and she was reading it after we gave it to her. We also taught Jebi and Allenso, their phillipenos. There are a lot of phillipenos here too because they all work at the hospital I guess. And I heard some of the missionaries in Brandon are learning spanish.....because there are tons of spanish people there and they don't really speak english... so that would be fun if I got to learn spanish!

 

So we were tracting one night and nothing was happening and we had 5 minutes left until we had to end the day and within that 5 minuets we had success! We taught this Native American named Jim, and guess where we taught him...?? We taught him the Plan Of Salvation in his teepee! It was so great! It was so nice and quite and he wanted us to come back, we also found out that his wife was a memeber a long time ago.

 

On Saturday we tracted into this guy named Ron. And that went so well. He's going through so much in his life and we invited him to church, and he showed up. I was so excited to see him at church! Plus Elder Ronald and I were giving talks during sacrament meeting. So we'll see what happens with Ron. Then later that sunday we went out and went tracting and we taught this guy Rick, (also native american) and it went really really good. We then decided to go try and track down Bob, who we had been trying to get ahold of for days. We knocked on the door, and no answer, then we went to 7th Ave and before my companion and I got out of the car he said, let's go back. and so i said ok? sure yeah lets go! So we get there, and right when we get out of the car guess who's walkin across the street to his place??... it was Bob and he was like hey guys! and we were so glad to see him. We set up a time to meet with him, too. I love how the spirit works. You just have to listen. I know that God was looking out for us and let us know that we need to go back.

 

It is hard out here sometimes especially when people close the door on your face or ask "Are you a JW?" and you say no and then they ask "Well are you a mormon?", yes... and then they shut the door haha. But no worries I know that there are people out there who are prepared and that's what matters. Well I hope everything is going good at home! 

 

All Is Well

-Elder Clark

Week #1

I've made it safe and sound to Canada Winnipeg! This place is flat, no mountains. So my first area that im serving in is a place called Dauphin. Dauphin has been closed for like a long time and my

companion and I are reopening it, and we are the only missionaries in Dauphin. It's a small town but they consider it a city now. There are a lot of roman catholics and catholics, and ukranians. My companion is Elder Ronald and he's from Alberta, and he's the district leader! He's such a

good guy I couldn't have asked for a better companion. Dauphin is about 4 and a half hours from Winnipeg and everyone in the mission has cars. So far the missionaries that have to go to moosejaw or regina have like a 7 hour drive...haha and twin falls minnesota is part of the mission so i will

most likely be going there at some point, but not sure when. I'll be in Dauphin for 12 weeks and then who knows where I'll be after that. We arrived in Dauphin on friday. We have no tracking record books and no area books. We are pretty much starting from scratch because we are

re-opening Dauphin. We have to wait until tomorrow to get all these things when we go to the district meeting. Our mission is a 100% Preach My Gospel mission so I don't really get time to read The Book of Mormon I just study the scriptures that are in Preach My Gospel. So we got a map of the city and said a prayer and picked where we felt we should go. We picked 4th Ave and asked for miracles. We ran into so many inactive members on this street it was amazing and most of them have a brother sister or wife who is interested in the church! We were so excited. Then we ran into this lady, Florida Runners haha. There are quite a few natives up here. and she says that she's an ex member and that "she dont believe in no prophet joseph

smith who had 5 wives" haha oh i wanted to talk lummi so bad. But it was sad to see how she has gone astray from the church. At the end of the day we went to Forest Ave and before we got out of the car we said another prayer and asked for miricales, and right when we got out of the car this lady

said she's been waiting for us elders. Her name was Julie Stanley and she's a member but hasnt been to church in 4 years. She has 5 kids who aren't baptized and her daughter especially is very interested in the church. it was so amazing! She wants us to come over and to share messages. 

On saturday we continued tracking and not a lot happened but we taught 4 lessons just with people who were outside or in their house. It was pretty neat! Then we were tracking and tracking and nothing really happened. We came to this house and knocked on the door and a lady opened it up and we

said we were sharing a message about Jesus Christ and she said oh no thanks I have my own church. But then she said, You boys hungry? Have you had any supper eh? We said no and she asked if we

wanted any and we said sure! haha so we had dinner with them and there were 7 family members in the house. They fed us ribs and steak and vegetables from the garden, and we talked with them and laughed with them. Their mom was turning 85 so they had us for cake too. We offered to help clean up but they said no. My companion then said, "well we've got to get going, but its

tradition that we share a message after a meal." So they gathered all 7 people into the kitchen and we taught them the restoration! It was so great. You could see they smilies it brought to their faces and they were all quiet, no interruptions at all.

Sunday we went to church. You should see this church! It's a little tiny branch and only 20 people come. It's about the size of the dollar store but maybe a little smaller. It's great! Oh and the people in the city of Dauphin are so friendly. The people at church are my favorite. I love their last names, very canadian. And they talk super canadian too. I've already got into the habbit of saying eh and my

O's somtimes sound funny especially when i say home or Atonement. So, after church we had a meeting with the branch president and we told him about all that was happening and he was sooo impressed he couldn't believe it. So we definetly have a good trust between the members and the branch president and ward leaders. Also before we got to Dauphin we stayed at the

branch presidents house so we already got to meet him. President and Sister Beaumont are great and we met Brother and Sister Drinkwater while we were there too. Ok so after church we had a bunch of

appointments to go to at 5:00 pm so we called it the "5 O'clock Run." All of our appointments fell through and no one was home. So we decided to go see the guy with the guitar that we met on the street yesterday. So we go there and there's this lady sitting outside smoking and we say hello and she says "Leisa's inside, Lesia's inside." My companion and I both looked at eachother with confusion on our faces and then she said it again "Lesia's inside, Lesia's inside." So we go in there and we say

uhhh Lesia and then the phone rang. You should have seen this house. The mirrors were hanging to the side, and walls were dented and the wood was chipped on the walls and floor. We talked to her and then we taught her the restoration. We asked her if she thought what we were teaching her was true and she said yes.... we told her about The Book of Mormon and hows it's comparable to the Bible but brings us closer to our savior and she said do you have a copy? and we gave her a Book of Mormon and she wants to learn more! Our next visit with her is this Saturday. I know that the lord does preapare the people and that because we fasted and prayed for miracles He gave us Miracles. I never expected to see this in my life... this is amazing. I know that god lives. I have had people yell at me and shut the door in face. I have already had people say you can get the heck off my porch before i sick my dog on you. I have experienced so much in these three days without an area book or tracking book. I love the gospel.
Oh and I got myself a big black parka with furr on the hood like an eskimo, and i got it for free so I'll be in good shape. I guess most of the missionaries don't wear boots in the winter because the snow is so dry. They just wear really warm socks and their church shoes and go out and trackt. I only get mail every 6 weeks :( 

I love and miss you and all of you so much but I know I need to be here. I'll talk to you next monday.

All is well

-Elder Clark

A Quick Note

We recieved this email this morning about Robert. He left for Canada on Wednesday!

 

Good morning. Just a note to let you know that your son has arrived in his new area. I am the Branch President of the Dauphin Branch. We live 1 1/2 hours from Dauphin and we had the missionaries stay overnight from Winnipeg on their way to Dauphin. We have not had missionaries for a year so we had them come for an orientation. Last night we had them present a discussion to our family and it was very well done. Your son did a very good job and one would never know that he had not been out for quite awhile. I was very impressed.
 He and Elder Ronald are up, have been out for a run and now are in the process of showering and having their breakfast. And it is just 7:30 so they are looking like they will follow the mission rules. Elder Ronald will be a good trainer for your son.
They will continue on to Dauphin this morning and get to work.
 We are so happy that they are here and thank you for raising a son that was willing and ready to go on a mission.

Marvin Beaumont

Catching Up - MTC

I'm starting this blog for Robert's mission. I will be posting weekly emails and any pictures he sends us so everyone can follow easily. I will also post addresses for anyone who wants to write him a letter. So here we go:
MTC Week #1

Hi!!!!

I'm loving the MTC so much! thanks for the M&M's and the gum! You have no idea how much that saved my life haha. wow the first day here at the MTC felt like a month it was so crazy! and i had like no idea what was going on.... My companion Elder Ford is a good guy he's got a good heart, he's a very different person personality wise so at times im kind of like his mother and i help him out a lot. I'm senior companion too and have already begun to teach people but only in role plays. But the role plays were real so it was a good experience. This coming monday Elder Ford and I will be teaching our first investigator Sarah Pospicil so im really excited to teach her and try and bring her closer to Jesus Christ. I have learned so much here and im already so happy all the time. oh, and they have a sweet work out place! so i've been in really good shape these last couple of days. i have so much going on though it's crazy i feel like i have no time! but i'll figure it out hah. they have those sangria drinks in the book store the one that marcos gave to me! so i've been drinking those ha. I really like the MTC. My teachers Brother Gardner and Brother Bacon are awesome they teach so well, which i like. my district is really awesome too! there are 8 Elders in my district and three of us are going to winnipeg, 2 of them plus my companion are going to San Jose california and the other 2 are going to Louisina. oh did i tell you my companion has a twin? haha and they're both in our district! they wear the same ties have the exact same backpack and water bottles! and they're both Elder Ford! sometiems it's really hard to tell them apart. oh and one of my zone leaders Elder Strudler is from Dallas and Adam served in his ward for the last of his mission so small world huh?! I learned something so important and beautiful about my purpose as a missionary that has just stuck with me... My purpose isn't to have my investigator become a member, or add another member to the church....My purpose is to have my investigator become closer to Jesus Christ. I'm so excited to go out and serve others and help them come closer to their savior. I'm trying to write letters to Holley and Brett and Taylor and you and Dad i'm just really busy right now but i will get time to right you all so don't worry :) I know this gospel is true and can help so many people come closer to their savior. I know the book of mormon is true and that my savior lives

 

Take care! I love you all so much :)

-Elder Clark

 

We've recieved several letters since then and they're all so wonderful!

 

MTC Week #2

My P Days are only on friday, but i'm not sure because everything is moving so fast. i've learned so much here it's absolutley crazy.... I love it here. it's hard sometimes with Elder Ford, but all i can do is strengthen him. sometimes it gets hard... I feel like I dont get any time to study because i'm always helping Elder Ford, but during zone teaching we were doing roll plays and I was a member that was meeting with an investigator with the missionaries and they had me bare my testimony and I bore it on the Atonement and the way I said it just connected with the investigator and the other elders told me it was their revelation for the day, so even though I feel like I don't get much time to study, I am always reminded that I am doing just fine. It was a really nice experience for me and keeps me going.

I got my travel stuff already! it's weird.... I leave August 1st and I am the travel leader so i'm in charge of 10 other missionaries... so we'll see how that goes. I'm sending letters today for Taylor, Brett, Holley, and you and dad. 

The food is alright.... haha i eat so much though because im always hungry!! But I haven't gained weight because i'm always working out, so that's good!

I love the Gospel sooooo much! I'm so excited to go to Canada and bring others closer to Christ. I love you and the family a lot and miss you a lot but I know this is where I need to be right now. Everything is going great.

Love you so much

-Elder Clark

MTC Week #3

 

So much has happened this week.....

I have had some amazing expereinces. This week i was just not sure if I have been doing a good job. I remember on my Pday i was just praying so much like over and over again, and i decided to just move on and keep going. So that night we had class and elder ford and i were teaching Landon. I've told you about Elder Ford and how he is a little slow so i have to work with him a lot. anyway we taught Landon...and it was amazing the spirit was so strong! Brother Gardener (Landon) pulled me out of class and told me, I appreciate how you set an example for your district with your patience for Elder Ford you are doing so great here and i see how christlike you are and i appereciate you so much! i knew from that that my father in heaven did answer my prayer and that he truly does know me. when he told me that it just hit me so hard. Then Elder Ford and i taught Brother Bacon as Doug and again we did so amazingly well. He told us that it was one of the best lessons he had ever been taught in the MTC and that it gave him a lot to think about as himself and not Doug! It was so amazing.

 

So this Wednesday I will be in Canada! Oh and real quick in TRC we were teaching Sarah and we got her to Pray! and she felt the spririt! man i love the gospel!

 

Wow im running out of time because the email only gives us 30 minutes!!! what theHECK

 

Mom i love you and miss you so much I will email you when i get to Canada i hope i dont lose any elders on the way

 

All is well

-Elder Clark