Give It All Up

Hey Everyone! 

This letter will be brief since I just emailed like 4 days ago!

Anyway not much has happened except the baptism of Mary Mooney!

Mary is amazing.  The way we met her was no coincidence. We were at a Wal-Mart checkout line and my bug mouth just started talking to her!  Turns out she didn't live in OHIO.  She was visiting some family.  So I got her number just in case she ever came back.  Well she did like 3 months later, and she already had friends in the church!  So we began teaching her and though a long and emotional process she was baptized this past weekend!! I love Mary. She is so fun and sassy and so we get along great! She is so cooooooooool!!!

Well also this week I have been doing A LOT of self reflecting.  And after reading this talk about being a missionary I found that I have to "Give It All Up".  Which means, I have to not only forget about my past but also give up the future.  I have to be in the "now" .  That is more difficult than it sounds!  Not thinking about what will happen or my dreams or aspirations post mission is hard!  But, the value of it is great!  When we forget ALL of ourselves we become true disciples of Christ. In Matthew 4:19 IT READS,"Now as Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. And He said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.…"  I think that is so profound.  Its a invitation to be follower of Christ.  Although he didn't directly ask me to follow him, the invitation is for all men everywhere.

The thing about invitations is it's a two part deal.  Someones extends the invite and the other party accepts it. So are we accepting the invitation?  It's so very humbling to figuratively drop everything and follow something we cant tangibly see or touch. Its kind of seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.  We don't know what will happen, but we take these small steps of faith until we are that much closer to the LIGHT.  And I equate LIGHT to Christ, because that is one of His divine names.  The LIGHT of the World.  So my invitation to all of you is to, first see the Light, and then to take steps towards it.  I KNOW the blessings of doing just that faaarr outweighs the any sacrifice.

I love all of you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh I am still in Marion, OH

My address is:

1385 Southland PKWY

Marion, OH 43302 

stay classy.

Elder Patch

Pics.

Mary and clan

and our investigator named Justin.