August 23, 2011

Hey everybody,

Elder David S. Baxter of the 70 visited us yesterday! Thats why there was no e-mail. He told us of his conversion story and also emphasized daily study out of the Book of Mormon and PMG will help us to succeed as a mission. Elder and Sister Baxter had similar experiences where missionaries had been rejected by their parents previously but down the road, both of their parents had trials and tragedies in their lives which humbled them to ask God for help in their lives. Sure enough, the missionaires came again and brought their families into the church. Do you think those missionaires who were first rejected had any idea that one of those families who rejected them would eventually have a son who would become a general authority? I'm not sure of the answer but I'm positive that if they did not invite, it would no thave happened.

Things are really picking up now and we're starting to see a lot of miracles! We've been trying to get in touch with Rochelle Across the Mountain these past couple of weeks and we set up a time for Sunday to meet. She drove 30 minutes to the church to meet with us. Talk about commitment! She wants her family to be happy because she's going through a lot of trials right now and she knows this is the path she needs to be on. We taught her L1 and she understood it pretty well. The spirit was strong and with her especially as we talked about how it would bless her family. She accepted a date for September 17th to be baptized!!! She lives out near Glenwood so we prayed and we know she should be fellowshipped in that ward as soon as possible. She understands that she needs to be in touch with other ward members as well.

Brandie has been going through a lot lately. Her schedule is pretty erratic and it's diffcult for us to schedule things with her. She lives out in Jefferson which is about 15 minutes away from Cardston. We've been stopping by her at work and she hasn't been consistent about reading the Book of Mormon but has been praying about the 3rd. She's still worried about her husband not helping her out but we gave her the letter so hopefully she takes the things in there to heart. We're working on getting more fellowshippers from the Aetna ward to help out as well. She wasn't at church this Sunday which bummed us out but I know that she'll get it back together again.

Michelle's daughter is here now and we're teaching her this Saturday. We've already got a fellowshipper picked out for her and I already know that she's going to accept a date. There are so many more things on the prowl. A member told us about their neighbors out in Glenwood. So we stopped by and they want us to visit them on Wednesday! Miracles are starting to happen now and I'm so stoked for it all.

President has committed us to study the Atonement everyday for the next month. I've picked up so many unique insights that I wanted to share with you because I know that they can help. Consecration to the gospel is not perfection. It is something we are always working at and improving. We understand that the Lord's will is more important than ours. Have you wanted something so badly and when you got it, you realized that you didn't want it? That's exactly what happens when our wills aren't aligned with God's will. We think we want to achieve something (that isn't in line with what God wants us to achieve) and when we reach that destination, we realize that it's empty and hollow. I know that if we seek God's will in our lives, we can find something that is wholesome and desirable above all other things.

Love,
Elder Madsen