Week #81

Hi mother,

Well the week has been a lot better. We have had some struggles  just trying to build the church here. We had a lot of success this week. Elder Erickson and I are both determined to have success here. We want to "succeed as bad as we want to breathe." We were really busy this week with service activities and appointments. We taught the peters (the German Mennonite family) on Saturday night and they are our new investigators! We have appointments with them all through out the week. We taught them about faith and answered questions that they had about our faith. What a neat experience it has been being able to help establish the church where there is no church.  It feels like the old days where the mission president sends you out and says "alright well establish the church and make it happen." 

I don't think we will have a branch here for a while though, but we will still continue to build the church. And so far it is going really good. The community knows we are here. Everyone at service loves us. So it is going really good.

We got in contact with the De Vears the Filipino family so hopefully we will be teaching them this week.

I am glad that this work helps you stretch and grow. All I want to do in life is succeed in everything I do and my mission has really taught me that. I have been able to put in all my effort in everything I have done here, some things didn't work at all, and so we reevaluated and went back to work. I am grateful for this time of my life.

Last night we had a miracle. We got a call from a member and we ended up going to see an unknown less active member that wants to come back to church.  We will be seeing him sometime this week.

Well I know that prayer is real and that the answer isn't always given right away. But it does come. I have found power through the scriptures, they are true. The only way to know if anything is true is to ask god if it is. Either it is or it isn't. But it is and I testify that it is true.

Love you and all of you so much. :)

-elder Clark

Week #80

Hi mother,

Well my week was horrible...... I was sick all week until Friday I had the flu.... :( this is the first time I have ever been sick on my mission. I was on my death bed we couldn't keep anything down. We slept and just rested all week, until Friday when we felt decent enough to go paint for service. But it was bad we were so dumb....we figured since we weren't keeping anything down we should just eat some fast food since we have been working out and on a health diet, so we got fast food and it was just dumb, we were just throwing it up.

Steinbach is going good though. We got in contact with our Filipino investigators through the Valdez family so hopefully we will be meeting with them soon. Other than that things are going OK, its just really hard here, I'm not discouraged just confused of what to do next. We aren't really seeing success here at all. This area does not compare to any other area that I have served in. I feel small and out numbered here. We are struggling but Elder Erickson and I keep thinking about ways to improve so we keep trying and trying there is no giving up. I guess trials and challenges like this is what makes men out of mere boys.

I feel your prayers for me so thank you so much. I am still giving it all I have and we are doing our best here. I know that things will get better we just have to have faith and hope things will get better.

I bear you my testimony that we are the only true church on the face of the earth and that no one can stop this work. I love how a group of pastors have to have a meeting and council together on how they are going to stop four 20 year old boys. The restoration is real and Christ lives. 

Love you and all of you so much

-elder Clark

week #78 & 79

Hello mother,

 6  of the main churches have a board where all the pastors meet together and discuss things. We have heard that they are working really hard to not let us volunteer at certain places. We feel this is  one of the main reasons why we are not having success here. The only way for us to succeed here is to go about doing good everywhere we go and to be non threatening. 

So we confirmed it through prayer and through the scriptures and  I called an immediate district meeting and we discussed. And  we came up with......"The Ammon Project" ( I came up with the name)  so basically we are trying to become the communities friends and go about and do good everyday and it is working. So far we have had so many opportunities to serve and do good and more people are starting to like us.  

We shoveled and chipped this ladies driveway and it turns out that she knows Elder Erickson's relatives. She wants to meet with us again. Also the places where we volunteer are going good and we are asking the people there how we can serve them outside of volunteering. We will go to city council and I will literally tell the Mayor that I am his slave and I will do anything for him and ask him how we can serve him. 

This place is the hardest area that we have in the mission. I am serious nothing compares to it.

We have seen a lot of success this week and we are meeting with our Filipino people this week. And we will teach them.

Facebook is going supper good. We have set up so many appointments through it and have gotten other elders referrals through it. It is a great tool if you use it wisely.

I know that Christ lives that this is the lords work. I know by the power of the holy ghost that the Book of Mormon is true I really do. Prayer is real it works. I know that god never forsakes us. 

I love you mom and I love you family

-Elder Clark

 

 Hello mother,

We have a lot of service going on as well as appointments.  We aren't close to any baptisms. It will be hard to have baptisms out here because we don't have a church out here. But we will still expect to have baptisms. So it will be an adventure. I think I will finish , my mission here with Elder Erickson. I wonder if president will keep me here because I am learning Tagalog. But lately we haven't had any success with the Filipinos they are so busy with work.

The Ammon project is going good we are always trying to improve it. We have made a good friend in the community. Her name is Renate, she is a German Mennonite and she stood up for us at the board meeting when they talked about us. We will teach her and her family soon. This area is literally all about building relationships its really different.

We found a new investigator this week her name is Treena. She teaches us how to paint and we just share a little message after. This week we have an appointment with her and I will ask her to paint the restoration for me, so then hopefully she might feel the spirit when she paints. Clever hey?

This whole week I have been reflecting on all the experiences that I have had on my mission and they have been amazing. I am so glad I came on a mission, and that everything I have done out here has been hard. Every area that I have had has been such a challenge and I have been able to rise above and see success. I am just very grateful for this time I have had.  I know the church to be true that the power of prayer is real. 

I love you and all of you so much.

-elder Clark