October 21, 2013

Well Good Mornin,

 

To start out I want ya'll to know how much I thank you for all of the prayers and support from home. It helps the work move forward faster than we could ever comprehend, and I also want to thank my sister Shannon for fixin' my pants. That was a lifesaver and I will be using them at president interviews this Friday so I will look sharp. Story of the week: so my companion's dad sent me a gps out of the blue. I asked him because he works at Garmin and to see how cheap of one I could get so he just sent me one and said take my son out to lunch sometime and so it was a deal. Until one day after zone conference we got back to Sedalia and walking out of our church building to walk to dinner I saw a big grub (like on quigley down under the movie). I made a deal with my companion if I ate the grub I didn't need to take him to lunch. So we made the deal and he video taped me as I did it. MAN IT SUCKED and it didn't taste very good but it was definitely worth it haha and i would probably do it again.

 

Then yesterday we talking to one of our investigators Delorus, she is a 80 year old lady who lives by herself and loves our church and I invited her to be baptized and she said yes! The only problem is that two months ago she almost died: she had a stroke and passed out on her floor for two days before someone found her so its very hard for her to read and to walk. So I found a wheel chair we can get her to church and I got her audio recordings of the Book of Mormon. She will be baptized on the 9th of November should be a very good service. This week me and my companion and some members in our ward participated in doing service Saturday which was loading 100 trucks and trailers full of food about 75 pound boxes over my head for about 8 hours. I just about died but I loved doing it and it was called Festival of Sharing.

 

Well stress is a major cause of giving middle aged grandmas gray hairs so watch out mother haha, you might just end up with a head full of gray hairs. Oh buddy that's super exciting that the stake got re-organized. Hope that he does great in his calling and tries to magnify it whenever possible! Well I can't believe I'm missing the Halloween party but I guess I will just have my own here in Sedalia at the church. They are having a trunk or treat and we were going to get some candy at that (hopefully) then go home cause missonaries have to be home at 6 that day for safety reasons - crazy huh. How about you just eat a extra bowl of chili for me and a piece of pie as well! That would be great!

 

Love Ya'll

 

Elder Davies

October 14, 2013

Dear Fam or howdy!

 

 

Well just me here in Sedalia haha love it out here. I get to see cows and horses everyday and the smell out here is sooo good, it reminds me of the ranch. I have been working on getting up and working out... it sucks when its soo pickin' cold outside! There is frost on the grass every mornin. My new companion is great. He is from Caldwell, Idaho and he is a great missionary. He is quiet though and doesn't like social interaction very much.

 

So I hope that I am rubbing off on him! I love being confident. People can tell when you are teaching them and that they will respond better when you are. Well the trouble with this new area is that it used to be a full-time car area untill i got here now its part-time and it sucks cause we live five miles out of town! We gave up the car today so hopefully I lose some weight! Our church is simple on the outside but its like a beautiful log cabin in the chapel. I love it. There are about 200 members and I'm just fine with that.

 

Well the members here are ok, a lot of old folks and not very much member missionary work which sucks. I had 12 sit-down great lessons but no member would come with us so we will be working on that. Other than that its great! No cute girls in the ward means to me no distractions haha jk its so much fun though, a lot of rednecks and black people. There is also lots of excommunicated members that we work with out here its interesting! 

 

Well tell Sonnett to stop putting herself under so much stress! That's what's happening but I agree that she needs to have that baby in there as long as possible. Tell Shannon that I have been praying for her to pass her test! I have been cooking a lot of eggs farm fresh, I get them for free and I wish someone had fresh milk I would like some of that!

 

Love you all TTYL

 

Elder Davies

October 7, 2013

Well this week has been great! I got transferred to Sedalia, Missouri and its super great its country/city. My area is huge and I love the people reminds me of home. I love my new companion his name is Elder Hartwig. He has been out the same amount of time I have and he is really fun. Conference is the best isn't it?? I loved they said that cause that was what one of our investigators needed to hear. Man, personal revelation at its finest. Well still learnin' my new area and its super fun. We live with members but we live in the basement and its a dungon. It kinda sucks haha but its whatever we have a ping pong table and a pool table so that makes up for it haha. SOO many cute sister missionaries its crazy. Its so hard not flirting with them cause I have a flirty personality but after the mission should be great!

 

Man this mission thing is flyin by and I am loving it out here in Sedalia. Its super fun being able to talk to all the country folk Im lovin it! But on Tuesdays we volunteer at a place called Open Door which is a food pantry and I'm excited to finally do some indoor work. All I have been doing is outside hard manual labor which I love (building fences, landscaping, building decks, and installing in-ground pools) haha so much fun and not forgetting moving a lot of people. 

 

Well Sonnett sounds like she is having wayy too much fun with baby on the way and the little rascal, Well I love her and I know the lord is watching after her and He doesn't put anything in front of us that we can't accomplish. Thank you for fixing my pants and yes my suit is getting worn but its all good cause its because hard work that we are doing. You could always send anything else in the package as well. I'm running low on jerky and Shannon my lovely sister I would love ties from you: some colorful ones! Its the only piece of missionary's wardrobe that you can show your personality.

 

Love you all!

 

Elder Davies

September 30, 2013

Dear family,

    

 Well this week has been one of bounteous blessings and miracles!  I can’t even tell you how much a mission has blessed my life and all of those around me. We had a wonderful week and we have been teaching Logan and Gavin.  They are brothers and they both were baptized on Saturday and had the wonderful experience to have their mother at their baptism.  Their mother is not a member and at first she was really apprehensive about having them join the church, but she was softened and she cried through the whole baptism, the most spiritual one yet!  I don’t know what it is but I started crying when I was asked to share my testimony that I know this church is true and the plan of salvation is for families to be together forever. On the 17th of October the Swoffer family is getting sealed in the temple and they asked me to be a witness.  I am so excited to go with one of the families that got converted to the gospel and that they would give me the privilege of being a part of it. 

It is a sad reality that Brother Dascomb died.  I prayed for him and I prayed that the lord would grant unto him what he stood in need of and that he might be able to endure what it was his path to do. Mom, it sounds like there were some powerful experiences that you had with the hospital and with the funeral.  I know that God puts trials in our path to test our faith and that he only does that because he loves us so much and wants what’s best for us. I conducted a fast for him over here and want you to know that Blue Mills Ward sends their love to the family. It’s hard to have death come into our lives but being on a mission has really put it in prospective for me.  I teach everyone about the plan of salvation and how families are forever.  I know that they are forever and I want to see Grandpa R again and be with our family forever and I love sharing that message with everyone I come in contact with that families are forever!

It hit me hard when I started thinking of what would I do if I had a close family member of mine die while I was on my mission.  I was talking to my companion about that and I said I don’t know what I would do.  All I know is that I would have the comfort of knowing that I would be able to see them again, and that the church is true. I don’t know if I would have the courage to stay out on my mission. I think that I would come home and comfort those that stand in need of it but with the determination to try to come back out and teach all those that are in need of the gospel.          

Me and my companion are getting along way great!  We are best friends out here.  We both love to push each other’s buttons and he is a lot better than I am. We love teaching the gospel together.  It just flows when we teach with the convicting power of the spirit. I am having a bad feeling that I am going to be transferred this week and I don’t want to leave.  I don’t want to leave all of my converts, Dad I don’t know how you did it.  I know they are in great hands but it’s hard. We get to know by Tuesday night.  Hopefully I’m not getting transferred, but come what may that I know that by the things I have done here and the people that I talked to and taught more about the gospel, they will be blessed. I know that my converts will be strong members of the church and I know that by my obedience and diligence in teaching them everything is possible that they can live there lives to the fullest.

           

             Yes about grandpas package-thank you a million!   I was getting low on my rations and now they’re gone again!  I shared all of it with my comp and we loved it.  I love the dried plums. They are sooo good and I love the fruit leather. I am looking forward to conference too this week.  I can’t wait to hear the prophet speak and to be refreshed with all of his words. Transfers are this week and I don’t know what’s going to happen but I really don’t want to leave because the work is exploding here but I want to bless others with my testimony and I know that I will be able to where ever I go.

Well Dad, that stinks that no hunts are planned and you’re going through withdrawals, haha, me too! We are in the same boat but iI saw a huge white tail that one of our investigators shot, it’s massive. The last couple years the Lord has blessed us and I know he has! There will still be meat in those freezers until I come home and we will need to replenish it with the trusty 300 mags!  Now my little Miles can say those words?  His next word needs to be my name, haha, so he can remember me when I get home!  

           

          There is a package coming that I sent this morning.  It’s a box that has some pamphlets that we give out and has one pair of my suit pants they need to be fixed. Take them to Mr. Mac and please dry-clean them while you have them, haha-bad days playing basketball and one wrong step and rip- hahaha! I love you and miss you bunches.  I better be getting some of those dried apples you all have been doing!

 Love you,

Elder Davies

September 16, 2013

Great day to be a missionary!  This is Elder Davies,

 This week has been a great week for having solid sit down lessons with our investigators.  We have been having members come with us to the appointments and it has really affected our teaching because now we can teach by the spirit through three different witnesses of the truthfulness of the gospel which is so amazing!

 We have been teaching Logan and his brother Gavin. They are amazing and they love learning more about the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Their parents on the other hand are a little bit more apprehensive about our teaching.  

 They will come around because they love the great people and the way all of the members act.  They are really impressed by our standards!

 As well as teaching other investigators this week we had dinner with a pmf or part-member family.  We were teaching Jeff.  He is a big time hunter and loves to talk to the missionaries.  

 He and I just mesh together very good.  Last night’s lesson got a little heated between him and his wife and ended up him going sitting in the kitchen because his wife is just being hotheaded and is just frustrated because he hasn't joined yet.  I went in the kitchen and started talking to him about how sorry I was if I offended him and started talking about what concerns he has about the gospel and how can I help him. He opened up to me and said he is just frustrated because his wife always is getting on to him about joining. I started telling him my story and everything and how there was a reason why they left me here longer in this area and that maybe he is that reason.  He stared at me and said I think you’re right and I said the spirit has told me that you needed to talk to us and that all the time I have been in this ward me and you really have connected and I know that I can help you. He said well I would like to talk to you and your companion without my wife here so we can just discuss things.  I said I would be super excited if he would do that.  I am so excited to teach him!

 I love the Book of Mormon.  I just finished it two weeks ago again and I’m in Jacob 5 now and I love learning all I can so I can share it with others! I challenge you and everyone reading this to read the Book of Mormon and really pray to ask God if it’s true and I know you will get an answer by the power of the Holy Ghost. I love you all and know that you will all be blessed according to your faithfulness to the commandments of God.

 Well sounds like life at home is being quite fun! I’m glad I’m not in the drama of that but I love to hear how everyone is doing and that the Lord is blessing us so much and we take it for granted every day. Well Dad having a Facebook page?  What is this world coming too?  Haha!  Well, I told him he would get one eventually haha!

September 9, 2013

Well howdy Family,

 

 

I send all of my love to you and to my home ward, this week has been a week full of trying our hardest to stay busy finding more people to teach because our teaching pool is all getting baptized or they are dropping us cause they wont keep commitments and they love us coming over for company but thats not what were here for and they just wont try but its all good we are finding more and more people that want to hear more about the gospel and i am so excited!  A member in our ward just got off his mission last thursday and he wants to fully engage in missionary work back here and his family is all for it as well. They have been working on a kid named Logan and his family he already wants to go on a mission and he is twelve years old and he is excited to get baptized into our church he has a firm testimony of the church and wants all his family to know of the truth so we are having a dinner appointment this Wednesday hopefully it goes great! Well other than that last week was sooo hot here i hate the wet heat out here it was like113 with 100 percent humidity and we were tracting all day but haha i think i lost five pounds that day it was fun!

 

Well sounds and looks like you and dad and the boys had fun in alaska i am glad that you had some time with dad without us kids to interrupt you guys haha well i look forward to hearing more about it. Just so you know i hate planes and i am not getting on one to go home you and whoever can come pick me up and we can go to all of the church sites and we can visit all of my converts and areas that i served in when that time comes! Um well i will send you my email from last week in the email i send soon. I hope work will be made easyer for you but that you will be able to accomplish the tasks that are put in front of you. I really miss all of you and i hope that everyone is doing ok haven't heard much from everyone but i send you my love and hope, pray for you daily. Send my package to my apartment 18925 east tepee court independence mo 64056.

 

Love you if you need anything just ask!

 

 

Elder Davies

September 3, 2013

Well Howdy Family!

 

 

This week has been an amazing week for finding new investigators and it has been great for me personally, was reading over my patriarchal blessing and i just hit me this week that i really need to work on being exactly obedient i have been this whole week and it shows that we have had better week of visiting and contacting new people to hear about the message we share one experience i would like to share. We were walking through my favorite part of town which is the getto part and we were tracting out a neighborhood with a member, the member said to knock on this certain door so we did, a younger lady answered the door and said how are you and we said we are missionaries and we share a message about Jesus Christ and how it blesses our lives she immediately opened the door and invited us in i had a distinct impression to share about the plan of salvation so i did five minutes into the lesson she starts bawling starting flowing out of her eyes said that i really had a screwed up life im a recovering addict and that i feel like there is no purpose in my life i want to find out where i belong. Then she started talking about how she had a abusive husband she got divorced to about a year ago and that she lost her brother to a drug overdose. She Started crying even more when i asked how would you feel if you could see your brother again and live with all of your family forever? She said it would be perfect and i would do anything to have that opportunity. She then told us the rest of her story and i love her to death and she said well where is your church i want to go very bad i want to change my life, We told her where it was and she was like well my car was stolen last week im new to the neighborhood and is it possible to get a ride i said we can get a member to come pick you up and we will be waiting at the church and help you and your kids in church. She was so excited to hear that she wanted to give us hugs and i said we cant but i can give you a hand shake haha sucks sometimes but its all good. We are actually going to see her today and i am very excited to be able to teach her the restoration!

 

Yea i'm jealous that mom and dad are in Alaska i always wanted to go but know when i leave they decide to up and go and i think its a good thing for them to get away they deserved a little time to themselves! Well all i can say is that i better be getting some shrimp mailed over or just drove here! Well i love my new companion we are doing work as a companionship that we are teaching a lot more and he thinks it would be funny if i stayed here for a year i don't think that's very funny i would gain wayyyyy toooooo muchhhh weight haha well were the lord needs me i will be and there is always time to lose weight!

 

Tell me more about Alaska i better be getting a bunch of pictures, well i love you have fun up there dont die i still want to see you in 17 months!

 

 

Love,

 

 

 Elder Davies