Regarding a box..... hmmmmm honestly I truly don't want anything. I am doing great. I'm very blessed. Often times I feel I have too much. The only thing I need (truly it's a want) is basketball shoes. I blew off the entire sole of the right shoe playing basketball on a Pday zone activity about a month ago. It was a Spanish zone vs the English zone activity. We destroyed ....honestly a surprise since the English Elders play basketball all the time and we play soccer. Elder Ingram, another elder from my first district, and I were among the 5 in our Spanish Zone to play against the English Elders. It was great fun. The only sad part was that the game retired my favorite basketball shoes I have ever owned.
Regarding the missionary work. Before this week, we were going to have 3 baptisms on the 25th of this month. Now, we only have one person still progressing towards their goal baptismal date. Two of our investigators, a young unmarried couple, asked us to stop coming by. It's an interesting and probably not so important story....so I will just explain it by saying that they were just looking for a way to put the blame on us for why they wouldn't be continuing to progress in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The last lesson we had with them though went in such a way that I feel it would be beneficial to stop by again in the coming week regardless of the fact that they texted us to tell us they wouldn't be continuing. But the good news is that we still have one person progressing towards her baptismal date. And she is so excited for it. She is AMAZING!
She is absolutely devouring the Book of Mormon. It's amazing to come over for our visits and have her excitedly tell us everything she is learning from the Book of Mormon. She is sucking it up like a sponge! We met her family the first week I was with Elder B. We were knocking on the door looking for a former investigator. The people we had been looking for had moved out long ago, but it was a wonderful opportunity for a contact. I love this family. I am confident that the entire family will one day in the near future be a forever temple family. But for now, its just mom leading by example for the rest of the family. And its a responsibility that she happily adds upon her many other responsibilities. She feels the need set the course for her family. Actually, to be honest, it is her and her 7 year old daughter setting the course for the family. Her daughter wants to be baptized the 25th as well. But since she cant, she is excitedly waiting for the day when she gets baptized when she turns 8. So mom and daughter are setting the example for the rest of the Family (Dad and 2 boys). Additionally, she has been encouraging her Mother (someone who was baptized when she was young and then went immediately less active) to return to activity in the Church.
The experience we are having with this wonderful person and her daughter is an absolute testimony to me in the power of member missionary work. Yes, we missionaries have our role in the process as well, but truthfully, watching the amazing fellowship that is happening here is inspiring to me. And that fellowship is happening on an even higher level than I planned for. What do I mean by that? Well we make plans for how we are going to get members involved in the conversion process, and yes, those plans are indeed working out. But what is more important to me is what has been happening of recent even without my knowledge. I have learned from our investigator (not from members being proud of themselves and telling me about themselves fulfilling their responsibilities to be missionaries) that a few Hermanas from the ward have called just to chat with her! These chats have played key roles in her conversion process. She has told us several times something to the effect of, "I was feeling a little nervous about this. But then, when I was talking to Hermana so-and-so, she helped me feel better." It's amazing to me. I love the members we have here in this Ward. They work miracles.
We are going on a ward temple visitors center trip this weekend. The purpose is missionary work. I'm so excited for it. We are planning on having a bunch of investigators there with our members. It will be an awesome experience.
Well,
Love you All!
Elder Ostler
