Email from Elder Lofthouse 12/19/12 (with pictures!)

The first one is my district as drawn by Hermana Kennard. :)

The next one should be my companion, Elder Montgomery (the one with the red hair).

Then there's Elder Williams and Elder Nichols, the other two missionaries in our room.  Elder Williams was our district leader, but he and Elder Nichols were made Zone Leaders on Sunday and I'm now our District Leader. 

There's also a picture of four missionaries at the temple who were my first four zone leaders.  They're not sitting next to their companions in the picture.  The one on the right and then two left from him were my fist Zone Leaders, Elder Willie-Starkey, and Elder Dubose.  They were the best!  The other two are Elder Flynn (red hair) and Elder Burnett (the one with the glasses).  Those two just left for Tennessee on Monday.

There's another one of him (Elder Montgomery) at the temple.

Then there's a picture of the four hermanas in my district, Hermana Prince, Hermana Kennard (companions), Hermana Poston, and Hermana Barron (companions).

Then there's a picture of my first Zone of which my District is the only one left.  I love my district so much.  They're just awesome.

          
We're getting a brand new district today, and I'm so excited!  We had one of them come yesterday because he's from France.  And the crazy thing is, he's going to the Paris France mission, Spanish speaking.  Whoa!

Elder C. Scott Grow spoke to us yesterday.  He said that he was trying to prepare a Christmas talk but the Spirit kept guiding him in another direction.  Well of course, that made us listen closer.  We knew that this was coming from God and it would be what we needed to hear.  It was a very enlightening and powerful talk.  He spoke of four prerequisites to teaching with the Spirit: Faith in Jesus Christ, Obedience, Sacrifice, and revelation.  He shared a story of when he was a mission president in Uruguay.  He had each of the missionaries pray and fast to receive inspiration for a baptismal goal they could set.  As he visited with them about what their goals were, one missionary said, "Twenty-three."  He was surprised by this number.  The most baptisms any companionship had gotten in one month for years was eleven.  Moreover, this missionary had only been out for two months.  So of course, Elder Grow told him he needed to make realistic goals.  And this missionary said, "President, you told us to pray and fast about this, and this is the goal I was prompted to set."  Well his companion thought he was crazy too, but after praying about it, he received the same confirmation.  The next month, Elder Grow met with this missionary again and asked him about his goal.  "President," he said, "we haven't met our goal.  We've only baptized twenty."  Elder grow was amazed!  But then the missionary said (oh yeah, his name was Elder Smith), "But after I'm finished meeting with you, we have a baptismal service and we're baptizing three more."  Elder Grow said that that mission changed dramatically.  "The glass ceiling had been shattered."  Baptisms shot way up as the Elders realized that inspired goals could be met.  He counseled us to set realistic goals but to not let our faith be held hostage by previous realities or other people.  

Before Elder Grow spoke, his wife shared a story.  She has a nephew on a mission in England.  He and his companion were teaching a man whose family were members, who'd been taken the lessons for a long time, and just wasn't going to listen.  He (the investigator) finally said, "Look, I will open up this Book of Mormon, read a verse, and prove to you that it's not true."  He was a man who believed that religion was just a way for people to explain things that science couldn't understand yet.  He opened up to Alma 30 and read, "Ye have had signs enough.  Will ye tempt your God?..."  After reading that whole verse, he agreed to go to church with his family.  Miracles have not ceased.  This work is hastening.  I hear more and more of the coming wave of missionaries.  God guides this work and it will not be stopped.  The gospel will roll forth to fill the earth as Daniel prophesied.  And we are a part of it!  Don't be afraid to lift up your voice, to reach out, to bring light to this darkening world!  Read the Book of Mormon every day.  Pray constantly.  Seek to give up your will to Heavenly Father and trust that He knows what is best for you.  Miracles happen as we sacrifice and live obediently.  

I'll write again next week!  Merry Christmas!!
-Elder Ryan Lofthouse-