Week 31:  7 Months! [February 26, 2018]

Hi everyone,

This week started off slow, but near the end it started to pick up. 

Monday for district activity we went to a place called Daniel's Wood Land. It's owned by a member and what they do there is they make really cool things out of wood like sculptures, promotional stuff for movies, and tree houses. I'll include some pictures. 

For most of the week Elder Baker and some of the other Elders had choir practice in preparation for zone conference on Friday. Aside from that Tuesday we visited with a less active member and then we we contacted the rest of the night. 

Wednesday we went by quite a few potentials down in Templeton. Aside from that not much. Elder Baker and I came up with the idea for the Disney movie, which is essentially all Disney in one movie. It was a pretty crazy conversation. 

Thursday we had our weekly planning as well as our weekly service for Cowboy Larry where we helped move a rock and dig some holes. Here's a selfie with a sheep.

Friday we had our zone conference. A lot of it was talking about how we need to make our night-time hours more productive. This included making sure our dinners are at 5:00 and no later. Also how we shouldn't be afraid to knock on doors after 8:00 because that's been a big thing. Over all it was a very spiritual meeting as I felt that the things that were spoken about were the things that we needed to do. Also before zone conference we got doughnuts and I got the weirdest looking doughnut I've ever seen. I'll include a picture.

Saturday morning we tried by quite a few people, they were either not there or too busy. We ended up having a lunch instead of a dinner with our members which was unusual, but good. We met with the zone leaders to go over our baptism goals. We met with a less active and we were able to set up two appointments with some potential investigators. 

Sunday we had a great sacrament meeting. Our bishop's daughter came home from her mission and she gave her homecoming. Also since there were no investigators or recent converts, we got to go to gospel doctrine, which I've only been able to go to once before. We met with the young men and they had a combined meeting on how they need to prepare for a mission. We met with one of our less actives after dinner for the rest of the evening.   

Today's also my seven month mark! It doesn't feel like long ago that I celebrated my six month mark. Time is speeding up. 

One thing that we have been doing for  our dinner messages lately is sharing President Monson's final address with the members and talking about it. One thing I like in there is that by reading the Book of Mormon, and strengthening our testimony in it by reading it everyday, then we will be able to be protected from the wickedness in the world today. Quite a few others talked about gaining a testimony of the Book of Mormon in this last conference (President Nelson, President Eyring, and Elder Calister) 

Here's an excerpt from President Eyring's talk:

"Last April, President Thomas S. Monson gave a message that stirred hearts across the world, including mine. He spoke of the power of the Book of Mormon. He urged us to study, ponder, and apply its teachings. He promised that if we dedicated time each day to studying and pondering and kept the commandments the Book of Mormon contains, we would have a vital testimony of its truth, and the resultant testimony of the living Christ would see us through to safety in times of trouble. (See “The Power of the Book of Mormon,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2017, 86–87.)

Like many of you, I heard the prophet’s words as the voice of the Lord to me. And, also like many of you, I decided to obey those words. Now, since I was a young boy, I have felt the witness that the Book of Mormon is the word of God, that the Father and the Son appeared and spoke with Joseph Smith, and that ancient Apostles came to the Prophet Joseph to restore priesthood keys to the Lord’s Church.

With that testimony, I have read the Book of Mormon every day for more than 50 years. So perhaps I could have reasonably thought that President Monson’s words were for someone else. Yet, like many of you, I felt the prophet’s encouragement and his promise invite me to make a greater effort. Many of you have done what I did: prayed with increased intent, pondered scripture more intently, and tried harder to serve the Lord and others for Him.

The happy result for me, and for many of you, has been what the prophet promised. Those of us who took his inspired counsel to heart have heard the Spirit more distinctly. We have found a greater power to resist temptation and have felt greater faith in a resurrected Jesus Christ, in His gospel, and in His living Church."

That sums up my week. Hope you all had a fantastic week as well and have a great week this week!

Elder Jason Riches