Monday, November 24, 2014

G e t T o T h e F r o n t

"Be still, my soul: The Lord is on thy side."
-Hymn


Well this week has been great!  Not super eventful but just good!  We have had some miracles in meeting totally prepared people!

We were knocking on these apartment doors in a really sketchy area.  We prayed and prayed about where to go.  This is what we felt.  So after getting doors shut in our face about 5 times we decided to leave.  As we were coming down the stairs we both said almost in unison "we forgot that door".  We knocked on every door except the one right in front of us.  We knocked and this 22 yrd old young mom answered.  She just smiled.  She said you guys are Jesus people huh? and we just laughed and Said "YOU KNOW IT!"  she laughed and asked if wanted to come in...

Well We sat down and had no idea what to say.  I just looked at her and wanted to cry, because for the first time in a long time I saw someone in white.  Later after the lesson my companion said he felt the same thing.  We started asking her about her faith.  She said she has always wanted to know if there was a God.  I felt so good telling her honestly that she has a Father in heaven who loves her so much. I wish I could have taken a picture of the smile on her face.  We just told her all that Heavenly Father wants for her and her son and Fiance.  It was amazing to hear her answers to our questions.  It seemed almost relieving for her to find reassurance in our words. I don't know if I have ever said this but... I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!!  She prayed for the first time with us out loud.  Man I wanted to hug her so bad!!!!!! She is just a normal girl trying to find her purpose.  I can't wait to see who she becomes.

We had awesome church meetings this week!  Elder Seldon of the Seventy said, "The soldiers on the front lines always get the best equipment."  That really made me think! So my thought is that if we are Gods Soliders where are we in his ranks?  Are you in the front lines ready to fight?  Or are we somewhere in the middle, maybe a little hesitant?  Or are we in the back watching our Brothers and Sisters in front of us defending what we too believe is true.  I hope that we can all say we are on the front lines.  And if youre not.. thats okay too.  You can get there! 

We have nothing to be afraid of, THE LORD IS ON OUR SIDE! I can think of no one else that I would rather have leading me in battle than Jesus Christ.  So I invite all of you to get to the front of the Ranks and start fighting for what you believe.  Get involved in making this world a better place!  

I know God lives.  I know Jesus lives.  I know they love us.  I know they love you.  


Love

Elder Patch 

Monday, November 17, 2014

Make It Rain

" ' ' '   ' '"  
' "  '   '          ' '             "    '' '
''  ' 
"''       "'' ' ' ''      
"Heavenly Father is constantly "
'''raining blessings ' ' "
 '  '''upon us, but it is our fear, ' ' "        "
doubt, and sin that, like an
umbrella, block these blessings''
"  ''from reaching us. "
- president uchtdorf
" ' "' '
"               " '''"     
" ' 
'  
Please ignore my attempt to create rain on a computer, but I thought it was worth a try!  Well family I love you! I love you much!!!

So this week has been really HARD!  I was waiting for a hard week!Ha I swear my mission has just been really easy and fun!  I was due for a little struggle!:)  So almost all of our investigators here are not progressing!  It was sooo frsutrating for me, cause I just got here and I left an area that was doing so well.  I got impatient really fast.  So I decided to do what I know best... Pray.

I spent this whole week praying for specific people and an increased amount of spiritual guidance!! Guess what!!!?!  Nothing Happened.  But Finally I got some spiritual promptings.  A thought came to me that said,"curiosity never promotes change, but true desire will.'
That came to me at such a perfect time.  I have realized that most of the people we were teaching were just curious, but were not sincere in their desire to come closer to Christ.  I know that God Loves all of his children , but I have so much respect for him.  He won't force us, his children to choose him.  What an amazing Father!  I love it! I love him.  So as we continue on I am going to ask people if they have an honest desire to draw nearer to God or just curious.
 
I invite all of us to think about that!  Are we just curious about living the gospel fully?  I know I have been guilty of that!  Do we want to just believe but not act?  How can Heavenly Father give the full amount of the promised blessing if we only give half our heart?  It just won't happen.  I know I have many changes to make!

It looks like the movie FROZEN over here!! I don't know what happened.  There was no snow and then BOOM Winter wonderland!  Good-bye fall!! hopefully everyone enjoyed the short time period of warmth!!  
Thank you all for everything!Especially Thank you for sharing the gospel with those around you.  The gospel is so real! I look around and see so many people that just live.  I wonder what they think their purpose is?  Do they know why they are here?  If we were just sent here to live; to leave Gods presence and then to experience separation from Him just to return... WHAT WOULD BE THE POINT?  There is no point to that!  WE ARE HERE TO DO SOMETHING!  If you don't know what that is I suggest you ask HIM!

Love Elder Patch


Enjoy the Picture... ;)

My address:  1715 Deer Creek Dr. Ste 5
         Xenia, Ohio 45385

 

Monday, November 10, 2014

HOW DO YOU FACE?

"pure christ-like love
flowing from righteousness 
can change the world."

-Jeffery R. Holland
In a recent talk in General Conference Elder Robbins asked this rhetorical question "Which way do you face?" This talk really was enlightening and humbling for me.  I suggest you read it.  There are some key points I want to take from it before I share my thoughts about another perspective. . I quote, "We seek respectful coexistence with those who point fingers, but when this fear of men tempts us to condone sin, it becomes a “snare” according to the book of Proverbs (see Proverbs 29:25  ). The snare may be cleverly baited to appeal to our compassionate side to tolerate or even approve of something that has been condemned by God."  How true this is, especially in our society today!  Society would have our sympathy go beyond the very divine of God.  Indeed Satan does have power- the power to bruise our morals and blind our divine heavenly vision, but we also have the power to crush Satan's head.
He continues , "When people try to save face with men, they can unwittingly lose face with God. Thinking one can please God and at the same time condone the disobedience of men isn’t neutrality but duplicity." This brings me to my topic.  Although we have the direction we face, I ask, where are our feet?  Are they square to that same direction?  Or are we  merely turning our heads toward God but leaving our feet planted in comfortable soil called neutrality.
I invite you to ask yourself where you stand and if you are looking in that same direction. And once you figure out if your body and head are facing toward God THEN MOVE! Pick up your roots and move to higher fertile ground filled with nutrients deriving from heavenly streams and glorified light. IT IS TIME TO MOVE.  Christ Often said "To know me, is to know my Father."  I hope it can be said of us that to know us, is to know the Savior.  Lets lift each other to get there.
This past week has been so sweet.  I am loving this country town of Xenia!  The people here are so nice and open!  We are teaching a guy named Luke (I sent a picture) and he is a alumni football player from Purdue!  He is so awesome! He and I have developed a brotherly bond.  I talk to him about how I am doing and he mentors me.  He loves Christ.  Although he struggles with some of our doctrine he continues to pray to find answers.  Luke also has taken upon himself now to be my personal trainer! hahah He said he wants to get me back into shape! Sooooo... let me tell you how this looks!  I wake up at 6 every morning and then he PRETTY MUCH KILLS ME FOR AN HOUR!!!! I DO NOT MISS WORKING OUT!!!! But I feel a ton better!  I love Luke!  Such a solid guy!

So many miracles this week with people we meet!  God is mindful of his Children.  Don't ever think he doesn't care about what you are doing, thinking, or feeling.  HE does.

I love all of you!!! Thank you for the letters!!!!!!!

xoxoxo
 Elder Patch




 

Monday, November 3, 2014

X E N I A

" those who move 
move forward
with a
happy spirit
will find that

things work out."
                        
                            -Gordon b. Hinkley 

Hello Family!! I sadly got transferred... BUT I love where I am. It is weird being back in a country setting.  It reminds me of Marion- where I started my mission.  Heavenly Father has blessed me SOMEHOW with a really positive attitude about being here.  I just feel like I am moving right along in this whole journey... so thats good! 

I am still a zone leader.  I like being one but It is always hard to come into a new area and try to get the trust of all new people!  We are out in the most western part of our mission!  It is so weird to be so far away from things!  But kinda nice too!

Shoutout to my Navajo Family!! THE BENALLYS!! I made a family Indian Fry Bread!  It was soo good! Nothing to excited has happened this week, but we have been able to teach the most amazing people.  I love the people here in o h i o  so much.  I am so thankful to just meet people and talk to them!  We have a couple families we are teaching and we are so excited to see where they will go!  I am learning so much from what can come from happiness.  It is totally a CHOICE!.
I never want to stop showing people how much they mean to me.  I want to keep going cause I love them.  I love not thinking about myself! I know... SHOCKER.  But It is fulfilling to just focus on what you can do for others. True happiness comes from serving others. It is so weird to think I only have 8 months left... It is scary weird.  I want to serve with as much love as I possibly can.

Thank you for each letter, card, note , package!!  They mean so much to me!! I love all of you so much!  Thank you for all you do, especially sharing the Gospel with those around you.  

GOD LOVES YOU!


Elder Patch

New Address:
1715 Deer Creek Dr. Ste 5
Xenia, OH 45385