May 25, 2011

May 25, 2011 - Week 4 of Transfer 11


This week has gone by extremely fast, busy busy busy. And your right it is so nice to have zone conference over! That was basically an entire week of zero studies and waking up early. Everything went really well though and the Zone Leaders did a great job and took care of things. We were extremely blessed to have President Miller's brother come to each Zone Conference and give us a training on following the spirit. He served in the second quorum of the seventy and as a mission president and recently recovered from cancer, I learned alot from him.

Before becoming an Assistant I thought I loved President and Sister Miller but now it is at a new level. I feel like they are my grandparents. They are identical to you two (mom and dad) in many ways, can't wait for you to meet them. Usually whenever I'm over there I'm busting up in tears laughing. We were over at there house last night until 11:30 and finally President goes I can't believe what time it is! I treat you guys terrible, get out of here and get some rest. The other day we were calendaring and ended up going until the new year January 2012! I got a sick feeling my stomach and I'm starting to realize this is going to go faster than I think.

We have almost had a solid week of proselyting in our area and it is paying off! Things are picking up. We have found quite a few new investigators and have had many spiritual experiences recently. This Saturday Mick Carrig (early 40s) is getting baptized, I wish you could meet these people. Thirteen years ago Mick received a blessing and felt something very strong and since then the Lord has been working him with. Up until 3 weeks ago Mick was quite the drinker and addicted to chew and now he is free from those vices which held him bound! He has had a complete change of character, he really is a new man. This is an exciting event for his family and bringing close together.

We serve in the Salt Lake Big Cottonwood and South Cottonwood Stakes. They are the poorest areas I've ever served in and it is very humbling to see what some of these people go through. We are working with many people from foreign countries including Burma and Nepal. If you could pass the message to Daniel England that the Biswa's (family he baptized) are doing great and we will be teaching their parents in a few months. We taught them this week as they were visiting and they will be moving in about three months, I'm excited.

This past week we did an exchange with the Jordan Temple Zone Leaders who serve in a Spanish speaking unit. I stayed in the area and had Elder Torres come with me. On my mission I experience miracles almost every exchange and now I just have this attitude of expecting them. I can't even begin to tell you the amazing stories that took place this past Monday on this exchange, a few of them are hilarious as well. I am writing one of them in a letter to Lindsay this week you will have to have her share it with you. Its about tracting into a man who wants to be baptized but he is a professional pornographic photographer and well... I will just say I wasn't expecting it! But Monday was the best! The night before I was planning and wrote down an address of a former investigator at 3:00pm and planned to go by them. Exactly at 3:00 Elder Torres and I role up to the apartment building and park. We get out of the car and pop the trunk to grab a Book of Mormon and while doing so I say hello to a mam some 20 feet away, she smiled and waved. Then God told me, "talk to her you fool". So I turned around and immediately walked towards her yelling, excuse me mam! Do you have a minute?

Well it turns out this woman, Susan, and her son moved here from south Florida to live in a city with better morals. She is Catholic but not liking what she is learning as she studies the church. She is confused by the doctrine they teach and had many questions about LDS people and why and how their leaders are able to get them to live by the standards taught! I helped her understand its because it is true doctrine that is taught and that is what changes behavior. We are meeting with her this Saturday after Mick's baptism, now that is a miracle. The Lord never places one of his missionaries without a purpose.

It has been a good week and it looks like it should just keep getting better. This was just a few stories and I hope to be able to remember the others to share with you in February 2012! Thanks for your emails and love, I love my family and am excited for the future.

Love your boy, Elder Pizzey.