Where the Bike Lane Ends

The dishes are washed, my hairs are cut, and there's a brand new carton of Great Value fudge tracks ice cream in my freezer. These can only mean one thing: It's P-day!

This last week was awesome. We were super busy. 

Thursday was especially fun because it was one of the few days I've ever experienced that actually sort of went according to plan. We went out first thing that morning and talked to a whole bunch of people and were able to contact some people who were previously taught by missionaries and we set up with them to come back and teach them. Then we scadoodled on back to the apartment and ate lunch and studied before skedaddling on out again to try to contact more people and knock on people's doors. After dinner we scurried on over to the church for basketball night and we saw an older lady in a motorized wheelchair with her dog outside the Church. So we went and talked to her, and had the most delightful conversation! Her name is Linda, and she has a lot of thoughts about religion and Christianity, and also a lot of questions for us. We talked with her for a good 30 minutes and she wants us to come back this week to do some service for her and also teach her. So that's exciting! 

Wednesday was also great. We were able to meet with Aaliyah, and also her brother Jalen finally. And we set up for a visit with them next week, despite their crazy busy schedules. They're really awesome and they've been reading from the Book of Mormon and enjoying what they've been learning.

On Friday we were recruited by the Sister missionaries to help them do service for a lady. Her name is Bessie, and she's the most adorable little old Greek lady I've ever met. She's also the only little old Greek lady I've ever met, but I'm confident that if I ever meet another one, Bessie will still be the most adorable. She lives down at the most southeast corner of the ward boundaries which is technically on a Native American reservation, and it's a pretty busy road, and there isn't a bike lane to get there and so you have to ride on a narrow sidewalk against the flow of traffic. So that was fun. Then we got there and there wasn't actually really anything to do, because her son was there and he was like, "yeah she's kind of not all there, there isn't anything to do." She was very insistent on us watering her flowers though, but her son was like, "yeah no it's 115 degrees and the steam from the water will kill the flowers." So we compromised and pretended to water the flowers while in reality we just dumped the water out.

Well, some things came up, and I am as out of time as I am out of excuses.

So here are a couple scripture verses that have been on my mind, and I would just invite you all to read them and ponder them for yourself.

"He is the light and the life of the world; yea, a light that is endless, that can never be darkened; yea, and also a life which is endless, that there can be no more death."

-Mosiah 16:9, The Book of Mormon 

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?... Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us."

-Romans 8:35 & 37, the New Testament 

I know Jesus Christ loves us. That's something that I truly know. And I know that He is the light in our lives.

Til next week,

~Elder Oswald 

New Companion, A Big Difference

Well, it's that time again.

And that time is already almost up, so I'll probably make this quick.

First of all however I want to address the picture of the cat I sent in my last email. I realize that it was pretty disturbing and so I apologize for that. To be honest I really was just excited about the opportunity to make the  catastrophe pun. 

So I hope I didn't catch anyone off guard. 

Anywho, it was a wonderful week here in Scottsdale. However, I am out of money for the month so if this is the last correspondence you ever receive from me, it's because I died of starvation. 

I'm just kidding. I bought some ramen today and also some milk. And I'm pretty sure I still have taquitos in the freezer, not to mention whatever's left of my Reeses Puffs. So I'm set. 

As mentioned last week, I have a new companion! And his name is Elder Sellers, as in the plural form of someone who sells things. He's from Wyoming and Idaho, he has a cool country accent that reminds me of being back on the ranch, and he is also exceeding large in stature. He's just a big dude. So that's a fun contrast between the two of us. We're like that classic slapstick comedy duo that every good movie has. Except for we're not really like that at all.

He's great though, it's been a good week.

We found a lady this week, she's someone I've been trying to contact pretty much the entire time I've been in this area, and we successfully contacted her! And we're gonna be able to start meeting with her. So that's cool.

Elder Sellers had some bad luck that day though. Cause right before that we were biking, and his water bottle flew off his bike and broke. Then I accidentally led him under a low hanging branch, which was less low hanging for me than it was for him, and he crashed into a fence. Then the next day he broke a spoke on his bike tire. Then the loaner bike he was using all weekend, just got a flat last night, so today we picked his actual bike up from the shop and dropped off the loaner bike to the shop because not only is the tube flat but the tire is just messed up too. So it's been wild.

Then Saturday was exciting, we had the Ward Pool Party!!! Which was so much fun! Except for it was 117° and missionaries can't actually go swimming so it was kind of terrible. It was a lot of fun though. We got to talk to a lot of people and eat a lot of pizza and drink a lot of soda. It was fun, when the party was dying down and we still had left over food we went around to random people and offered them free stuff. Now that I think about it, we probably looked really weird being at the pool since we were wearing shirts and ties and whatnot. It was a great time though. 

The most exciting thing this week however was that Omar and Louisabella got baptized! I explained their story already I think, but it's just amazing. The change in Omar is miraculous. And that family is just going to be so much closer and happier as they continue on this path. The highlight of the service I think was during the closing song, "Families can be Together Forever" just watching them sing that together with their arms around each other. It sounds cheesy when I describe it, but it was actually really touching and heartwarming. So awesome. 

As I said, I would keep this short, so I just want to share one more thing. I've shared it before, but I'm going to share it again because it's one of my favorite verses and it's also Omar's favorite verse. Its 2 Nephi 31:20: "Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life."

What I love about this is that we can't ever give up, and we always must be seeking to strengthen our faith in Jesus Christ. It doesn't stop after we have one faith building experience. It doesn't stop after we repent and are forgiven once. It doesn't end after we get baptized and after we receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. It has to continue throughout our entire lives. And as difficult as it can be, it is possible, and it is worth it. Because then we "shall have eternal life." 

Have a great week,

~Elder Oswald 

P.S. Pictures 

1. Elder Sellers, myself, and our tacos 

2. Elder Sellers after crashing into a fence

3. Ice Cream with Doug #dougistheplug

A Broken Heart and Broken Glasses

I have come to learn by much experience that missionary work is a lot like stabbing a salad crouton with a fork. It is very difficult to do, but it is very rewarding when you do it. 

Well, it has been another hot, busy, exciting, week here in Scottsdale. And believe it or not we have come to the end of yet another transfer cycle. And with transfers comes change. And this time round things have certainly changed, however not in the way we thought they would. 

When we learned that one of us would be transferred, first of all we were really sad because things were going so well and we'd been having such a great time together, but we were also sure it would be me, since I've been here the longest. But if we have learned anything from President Cox, it's that nothing is as it seems. For much to our surprise, Elder Salter is the one leaving, not I. He will be going up to the mountains, escaping the heat which is nice for him. How long he will be up there, I don't know. He'll be coming down the mountain when he comes I guess. 

But yeah, I'm very sad to see Elder Salter leave. My new companion is named Elder Sellers though. He seems like a cool cat. 

So to update you on the week, it was a great week. However many things happened that we didn't expect, and many things didn't happen that we did expect. Tuesday in particular, we had many plans made and literally all of them were defenestrated, a word which here means thrown out of a window. 

Tuesday was also 119° at one point. Just thought I'd mention that. But we ended up meeting this super intense guy. He's super spiritual, he loves the Gospel. So much so that he has heart problems from getting too worked up about stuff. It's a little concerning. He lives in a different area though so the other Elders in our district have had some more adventures with him. 

Then throughout the week we had some appointments cancel. But we were able to visit some other people which was good. 

A tragedy happened Thursday night though. It was our weekly basketball night with members of the ward and anyone else we invite, it was going great, I made some baskets, I felt like Michael Jordan in Space Jam, it was awesome. But then a sister missionary tried catching the basketball, except instead of catching it she ended up smacking it right into my face. Now, I know what you must be thinking: "well that's okay, he wasn't wearing his only pair of glasses right? Right?"

If only that were the case. 

It is with much sorrow and regret that I say I was indeed wearing my only pair of glasses. 

It was as if the world moved in slow motion. I saw the ball getting closer, and then I saw nothing. All I felt was my glasses bending into my face, the wire frames crushing under the weight of a basketball much like my hopes crushing under the weight of reality, and all I could hear was the clatter of a glasses lens onto a lonely gym floor. 

Twas a tragic day indeed. 

I am currently using the other broken ones, that are now good as new thanks to my handy dandy scotch tape. 

But anyway, I think the lesson I have learned here is that I shouldn't wear glasses during sports. 

The highlights of the week however were when we met with Omar and Louisabella. Especially in Omar, seeing the change the Gospel of Jesus Christ has brought in him, is really amazing. In just less than 3-ish months I've seen his desires and his commitments become stronger, and I've seen him become a happier person as well. 

I just want to testify of the good I know that Jesus Christ can do in our lives. He has made it possible for us to have power, peace, joy, and forgiveness, and all sorts of other great things. We just have to live His teachings, and those blessings will become a part of our lives. I know the Savior can really help us change, to become better people every single day. I know that He really loves us and knows us and cares about us. I know that the Book of Mormon is here for us to help us grow our faith in Him and to come closer to Him. I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ so much and I know it's here for us to have the blessings Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ want for us. And I love sharing this message with other people. 

Back to the analogy of the crouton, despite the difficulties and the hardships and the defenestrated plans and expectations, sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ is more rewarding than any temporal or culinary achievement you can make.

Til next time my friends, 

~Elder Oswald 

P.S. Pictures!!!

1. Singing in Chinese for the 4th of July! (A couple weeks late)

2. The lunch of Champions 

3. Bowling with part of the Zone in our matching t shirts 

4. Elder John and I on our exchange eating the popsicles we found in the church freezer (excuse our helmet hair, I know Elder John's is really bad)

5. A catastrophe 

"At Least it's a Dry Heat", Among Other Lies

Happy Monday Everyone!

This has been a really great week. So much has happened, I can't even remember it. 

Also, real quick, I have a word or two to say about the heat. 

So many times I've heard people say "well at least it's a dry heat" when talking about Arizona. And yes, humidity is not fun by any means. And it can make the temperature feel hotter than it is, however, 90° that feels like 97° is still not as hot as 115° that feels like the flames of hell are burning your face off. 

And the wind, don't even get me started on the wind. Wind is supposed to be cool and refreshing but instead it feels like we're riding our bikes against the forces of an unusually large hair dryer that is powered by Smaug the dragon, breathing fire and death to any unlucky soul who happens to be outside. I have never experienced such pain from simply being outside. It's crazy. We step outside and it's like, "Ouch, my skin hurts." And not just the skin either, the eyes too. We ride our bikes, and despite our glasses, the fire wind gets in there and inflicts such profound discomfort upon our eyes it's amazing. 

Anyway though, those were just some things on my mind. I really love Arizona though. I have absolutely nothing but good things to say about this state. Just like the hymn, this is a "Lovely Desert." Except for the hymn says "deseret" instead, which to my understanding is a fancy word for beehive. 

Speaking of dessert, we had a lovely dessert of chocolate cake this morning, while waiting for our interviews with President and Sister Cox. They are so cool. They do things differently than the Robinson's, but it's so good. I am so excited to serve with them and get to know them more. 

So to get to the point of this email, my week was great. 

The week started off kind of rough though. We were in some situations that were more sad than drinking warm water and more uncomfortable than wearing dress clothes in 115° temperatures. All humorous comparisons aside though, Tuesday was pretty rough. Things are only getting better though. It was still a great week, and this next one will be even better.

On Wednesday we had an awesome visit with someone named Aaliyah. It was such a good discussion about the Book of Mormon and about how we can come closer to Jesus Christ by reading it. She has such a strong desire to learn, it's awesome. 

We also visited with a super wise old man on Wednesday. He's so nice. I love visiting him. 

The rest of the week was pretty normal, pretty busy, and pretty awesome. 

And then came Saturday. We were on exchanges. I went with my good friend Elder John into his area, and we had a great day. It was very long and very hot. We talked to people and we had an interesting lesson with a guy at a fishing pond. They found him fishing at that pond, and since then they've met with him several times, while he fishes at that pond. It was a solid day. 

Also, Elder John is from Kenya, and he was teaching me some Swahili. For example "Book of Mormon" is "Kitabu cha Momoni" and "garbage" is "taka taka." I seriously am a foreign language missionary. I can pretty much carry on a conversation in Spanish, I've given a Persian Book of Mormon to someone, I sang songs in Cantanese and Mandarin, I have a friend who knows Swahili, not to mention that I learned British from Elder Adamson in the MTC, and now I've learned Canadian from Elder Salter. So counting English, that's 8 languages I'm pretty much fluent in.  

Anyway though, things have been good. In other news I chugged half of a half gallon of chocolate milk this afternoon despite sort of having a stomach ache, and I haven't felt the same since. And not in a good way. I feel like taka taka now. 

Well, I just love being a missionary. I was just reading this morning in Alma chapter 36 in the Book of Mormon. I have read that chapter many times, and this morning it hit me once again just how much I love that story. It's about someone named Alma, and the chapter is pretty much him telling his dramatic and inspiring conversion story. After spending all his time seeking to destroy the Church, he was stopped by an Angel, and he came to a realization of all his sins and his guilt, and he was "racked with eternal torment."

As the story continues however, he remembers what he had heard about Jesus Christ, and he cries out for mercy and he Then can remember  his pains and his sins no more. And from that moment he had a dramatic change in his heart, and he could see the light and the hope made possible by Jesus Christ. And while we might not have as dramatic as an experience as Alma, each of us can still have experiences throughout our lives that are nonetheless miraculous and powerful, where we come to know of Jesus Christ's role in our lives, when we realize He is our Savior, and His sacrifice is real. 

I know Jesus Christ lives. I am coming to know that for myself, and how He has a role in my life, personally. I know His Gospel has been restored. I love Jesus Christ and His teachings, and I love being able to share this message of hope and joy with other people.

Til next week,

~Elder Oswald

Happy 4th of July--Chinese Edition

Well, much like the title of this email, this week was rather strange.

Everyone decided to be out of town this week which made it difficult to find people home or set up visits with them. However, it was a great week just the same. 

We met our new Mission President, President Cox, on Tuesday. He's a super cool guy and he's really funny. It's exciting to have him here and to get to know him. He'll be a great Mission President.

Also, for those of you who didn't know, the fourth of July was this past week, which was rather interesting as a missionary, because we weren't allowed to knock on doors or stop by people unannounced, and we had to be in by 7:30 in the evening probably for safety. 

The good news was that we had planned for this. And we, along with the 18 other missionaries who constitute our "Zone" had been signed up to help out all day at a Fourth of July event. But it wasn't just any Fourth of July event, it was a Chinese one, which is very similar to a regular one except for there were 700 Chinese people there. And it was wild. From 10:00 to about noon, there were activities like ping pong and some other activities, all around the Church. Then we had lunch which was hamburgers, hot dogs, and chow mein. Then there was a big program of all sorts of songs and dances, most of which were related to the fourth of July. Some examples are, the Chinese choir who sang America the Beautiful, the Chinese orchestra who played the Star Spangled Banner, and a personal favorite, the Baritone solo rendition of God Bless America. 

The best part of the show however, was the closing act, when the 20 of us missionaries got up and sang two songs in Chinese. We sang a hymn in both Cantonese and Mandarin, and then we sang a random Chinese song. We were a hit, the crowd loved us. It was so much fun. 

We gave out a ton of Chinese copies of the Book of Mormon too which was cool. It was a good day. 

So another highlight of the week, was Friday. 

We had such a nice evening planned. We were going to stop by a lady and try to teach her, and we did! It was cool, we said hi and all of a sudden she was pulling out chairs outside for us to sit on before we even asked if we could meet. So then we taught her right there. It was cool.

Then we had planned to go by another guy and pretty much try the same thing. For this part of the story though, I need to paint you a picture. We were on a side street. North of us a ways was a street called McDowell. South of us a ways was a street called Roosevelt. Both of those streets run east and west. And we needed to go east to get to the next person we were going to visit. So we had the choice of going north to McDowell to then head East, or going south to Roosevelt to then head East. And as we came to the intersection at which we needed to make the decision, I for some reason turned right to head down to Roosevelt. And as soon as I did that, I realized how silly I was. Because I remembered that McDowell was closer and made more sense. So all the way down the street, and even as we began heading East on Roosevelt, I just kept thinking to myself "why would I do that? that's so dumb of me" 

And then all of a sudden an old lady flagged us down from the sidewalk and was like "are you missionaries?"

And we were, so we told the truth and said "yes." Then she went on about how she's Christian and how her life has changed because of Jesus Christ, and how grateful she is to see us and how it isn't a coincidence that we crossed paths. She was like "I've always wanted to see missionaries come down this street, but I never have!" Then she talked to us for 45 minutes and told us her whole life story of all the horrible things she experienced early in her life but how things are so much better now because of her faith.

It was cool. She wasn't interested in meeting with us or anything, and she was a little crazy. 

Every once and a while she would pause her story to comment on how she likes motorcycles (If a motorcycle passed by) or to comment on how handsome Elder Salter is. That happened a couple of times. She was like, "You're just so handsome, you stand so confidently."

Then she'd turn to me and say, "And you! You're awesome. You're just like a wise little monk."

So I'm taking that as a compliment.  

Anyway though, she was kinda crazy, but I do believe it was not a coincidence we biked down that street. Because even though she wasn't interested, that interaction meant a lot to her, it was what she needed, and that was one way we were able to bless someone's life. Once again, it is amazing how many different ways there are for the Lord to use us to bless others lives. And it's such a blessing to be able to be made an instrument in His hands, and to be placed in those situations where we can help other people. It's so awesome. 

I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know it's true. I know the Book of Mormon teaches and testifies of Jesus Christ and His Doctrine. 

I hope everyone has another great week!

Til next time,

~Elder Oswald

Happy Canada Day!

Well everyone, I learned from my Canadian companion Elder Salter that today is in fact Canada Day, the celebration of Canada becoming it's own country.  

So before you bust out the red, white, and blue hats and the fireworks, take a moment to sit down, relax, have a nice cup of maple syrup, and enjoy your Canada Day, or as I like to call it, "the 1st of July."

I could use many words to describe this past week. I'll name a few of them:

Hot.

Miraculous.

Exhausting.

Hot.

Exciting.

Long.

Busy.

Hot.

Bike.

But above all, the word that can describe it best is this one: Fantastic. 

All week was just super busy and awesome. But to conserve time I'll only share the most important details. 

So Tuesday, we were invited to lunch by an old couple in the Ward. They live in a retirement community, and it is seriously the coolest retirement community ever. I'm honestly considering retiring there some day. First of all, lunch in their "cafeteria" was actually like a 5 star restaurant. We ate so much food. But after lunch they showed us around and that place is so nice! There's billiards and card tables at every corner, there's a theater that plays old classy movies, there's a library, there's a barber shop, there's everything you can ever need, and there's also a lot of really nice old people who really appreciated that Elder Salter and I were wearing dress shirts and ties. So that was great.

One of the other days this week we biked up to the gas station at which Omar works as the chef in the  restaurant. He made us Philly cheese steaks and didn't charge us which was really cool.

On Friday we met with Reza again! He was the one who requested the Persian Book of Mormon. So Friday we stopped by to deliver it since he was busy earlier in the week, and he let us in and we talked some more. He is so excited to read the Book of Mormon, and he said that he's going to read the whole thing within a week. We made sure he knew he didn't have to feel rushed, but he said that he loves reading and doesn't have anything else to do. So that's cool! He's had some amazing personal experiences as well so that has been cool to discuss with him. 

So Saturday, it was a special day indeed. Such a good day. And every day is a good day, but Saturday was just extra good. Elder Salter and I just got super hyped up and we went out first thing Saturday morning to go spread the Gospel. We began by trying to visit a couple members of the congregation but they didn't answer. So we then went across the street to the apartment complex that we had previously decided to knock doors in. We get there and Elder Salter goes "Let's do building E" So we did building E. On the first floor, no one answered their door. On the second floor, one person answered the door except the lady was super weird and not interested and it was kind of awkward. Then the third floor. No one answered their doors, until we came to the very last door. And a woman answered. And she said it wasn't a good time because they just came back from an early flight from, guess where, Michigan. So, instant connection right there. And she said she would like us to come back another time to talk. So that was super cool! It just shows how even when we think our small efforts aren't doing anything, like knocking on a bunch of doors with no one answering, sometimes that's what it takes, because it shows the Lord we're trying and we're ready and willing to be led to those who He is trying to lead us to, so that we can be an instrument in His hand. 

But the miracles didn't stop there, after leaving that complex, we decided to go try and find a man who is named either Kelvin or Eugene. Some other missionaries told us he called them saying he wants to meet, so they gave us his address and phone number. And we've been trying to contact him but he doesn't answer his phone and his address doesn't exist. It's pretty strange, the house numbers just skip the number we have for him. So we decided to just knock the houses on the street and see if they know a Kelvin or Eugene who lives on the street. And we started going down the street, and it was so hot. Unlike the shaded complex, we were right out in the sun and it was like 113°. And there was a moment where we were like, no way we're knocking all these doors in this heat, but we quickly reminded ourselves of how it isn't about us and we got ourselves hyped up again. And the first couple doors didn't answer. Then we saw a lady outside and we talked to her. She was not interested but she was very nice. Then we knocked a couple more houses and no one answered. But then the next house, we knocked on the door and a woman answered. She was on the phone with someone but she still talked to us and she took our information and said she wanted us to come back. Her name is Delma, she's old, as you can tell from her name being Delma, and she is just super nice. It's super awesome!

And riding back afterwards I was just overwhelmed with gratitude for being made an instrument in the Lord's hand. We don't knock doors all that super often, and of all the many doors we could knock, we don't know who lives where and what people are ready to listen to our message. And so we just have to do our best, and the Lord put us in people's paths or put people in our paths. A perfect example of this is Kelvin/Eugene' s nonexistent address. I'm honestly starting to think he's not even a real person. But we had that address, we couldn't find it, and it was on the most random, tiny little street that I would have never in a million years thought to knock the doors of. And we did. And we found Delma. It is just so amazing. I am just so grateful to be a missionary and to be able to be placed in situations where the Lord can use me to help and serve others. It is amazing.

I know that Jesus Christ lives. That we are all a part of our Heavenly Fathers plan for us. I know that Jesus Christ's Gospel has been restored. I know that the Book of Mormon contains God's word and that is on the earth for our blessing and benefit. 

I love you all, and I hope that your week to come is everything that you hope it to be and more. 

Til we email again.

~Elder Oswald

P.S. - Attached is a picture of me and Elder Salter celebrating Canada Day

Splitting the Ward...and My Pants

There are many things that are great. For instance, the Great Wall of China, the Great Barrier Reef, the Great Lakes, the Great White Shark, and Great Value brand stuff at Walmart to only name a few. And much like all of these things, this past week was very great.

The week began with Zone Conference on Tuesday. Last Zone Conference supposedly was President and Sister Robinson's last Zone Conference, however, the one we just had on Tuesday actually was his last one. The previous one was where we were broken into smaller groups and were able to talk more one on one with President and Sister Robinson. And this one on Tuesday was a big conference of all the missionaries in the Valley. It was really cool. It's also really sad to see President and Sister Robinson leave next week. 

Then the rest of the week was pretty much normal after that. 

Thursday was particularly crazy busy and awesome. We just had a lot of people we were able to visit, and the people we tried to contact actually were home and we were able to talk to them! 

Things have been going well with the Ward being split with the Sisters as well. We're figuring out how to coordinate and balance things better. So that's good. 

This is just a good ward. There are such great people here. 

Also, as the title of this email implies, I split a pair of pants. Luckily it was while in the apartment and not while in public. But yeah so after this, the cactus incident, and another incident involving bleach, I am now down to only 3 pairs of slacks.

Also, Elder Salter is great. As I mentioned last email, he is from Canada. He says "eh" every once and a while so that's really awesome.  He's also just a great missionary and we have been working super well together. It's been a fun couple of weeks. 

Oh yeah so we are pretty much foreign language missionaries also. In one of our visits, it was with a guy named Reza, and he speaks English well, but his first language is Persian, and he was like "I really want to read the Book of Mormon, but I prefer to read in Persian because it's easier. I know you probably don't have anything for that though." And we were like actually we do, give us a week. And so we obtained a Persian Book of Mormon today, and we'll be able to give him that which is cool. 

Then with Omar, his first language is Spanish, and our first visit with him he expressed that he struggled to read in English, and I just so happened to have a copy of El Libro de Mormon in my bag that I could give him. And since then, in almost every visit with him when we read from the Book of Mormon, we read in Spanish. So that has been really cool. 

Speaking of Reza though, sorry I'm all over the place today, when we we visited with him, after the prayer was said to close the lesson, he says, "Wow, I feel really good, I'm not superstitious or anything, I just feel like I was hit with something, I feel very good." It was pretty amazing. 

I know that God knows us and hears our prayers. And I know that we can feel His Spirit testifying to us of Him and of our Savior. I know They live. The wonderful feelings we have when we come to Church and read the scriptures and pray, are powerful feelings that come from God. He blesses us with those experiences that strengthen our testimonies and help us learn for ourselves the love that He and His Son have for us. In our last visit with Omar, he was talking about how good he feels when he reads the Book of Mormon and when he prays and when he hears the speakers at Church. And in his awesome accent he said, referring to the Gospel, "I see it, I feel it, I love it. And I'm not gonna give up." There is so much wisdom there because we can have the spiritual experiences and the testimony strengthening things, but if we give up and don't do anything with what we've been given, then it will "be taken away even that which [we] hath." We have to keep doing the little things in our lives to continually deepen our conversion to Jesus Christ. And when we do that, when we "press forward with a steadfastness in Christ," then no matter what, everything will be okay, and we will see so many blessings in our lives.

Have a great week! Til I write again,

~Elder Oswald