Records Broken

We had 5 Investigators at church! Which is huge! haha I have never had that many there before! We saw so many miracles out here this week and we are having so much fun! I’ll just go through and tell you about our investigators.

Justin Sehna and his Family.
So last transfer we knocked into them. The mom and the step dad and the 15 year old daughter are members. They moved here from Wisconsin last summer. We transferred their records. They have about 10 kids all under the age of 8 besides one! haha And the mom is due this month! So Justin is 10 he is a stud, Christina is awesome too, we can tell she was active where they lived last. The mom also has 2 of her brothers living there, one of them is a new investigator that was supposed to come to church, but he didn't for some reason. Justin is getting Baptized on the 19th!

Peter and Lihne Artui.
They are from Pohnpei just like Justin and his family. They are related some how too but are not on speaking terms for some reason. We found out Peter is next in line to be king of an island in Pohnpei! We read 3rd Nephi 11 with him and he was almost in tears! He said it really hit home for him and his people. He even is giving us address's for more families in town that are from Pohnpei because he wants them all to have this message! So we’re teaching several families from there now. Him and his wife lihne were out of town this past week so they didn't make church. He also said when he goes back to Pohnpei he is going to preach the Book of Mormon to his people!!

Jennifer and Matt Olsen.
So Matt is a Less active recent convert, but we got him and his Girlfriend to church! We have taught them several times now and she is on date to be Baptized on June 16th!

Barry and Jackie Huff.
So they are our neighbors right across the hall, we have taught them a lot. They even have us over for dinner! Pretty stubborn with the church, but they love us a ton cause they never get visitors. We finally got them to come to church tho, it took a lot of convincing haha. They even dressed up for it. It was awesome to see Barry in a shirt and tie! We sat right by them, there were a lot of people at church cause it was ward conference. That evening we went over to chat about church and when we walked in Jackie was shaking her head and she said she didn't like it! She said she just didn't get a good feeling like she normally does. hahaha She also told us how stubborn she is. hahaa We’re working on getting her to church with a good attitude instead of going just to say she doesnt like it. haha

Also teaching Ryan Baker.
We were shoveling snow for a widow in the ward when he walked up and said "have you accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?" We said yes. haha Then we talked and he chilled out and we have taught him a little bit. But turns out the widow we were shoveling snow for is really good friends with him and his dad! So she gave him a ride to church and he is on date to be Baptized June 23rd!

I love sharing the Gospel! Everything changes with Missionary work when the sun is shining and its warm outside, so we’re lovin life! People are out and about and so are we! People are a lot happier too! Oh and we sang karaoke at the old folks home! They loved us there, I sang supercalifragilisticexpealidoshish. idk how to spell that but it was fun!

The church is true! Love,

Elder Anderson

Hola Amigo's!

Elder Fox and I on exchanges in fort dodge wrote this on a court!

60s and Miracles!

It is finally hitting the 60's here! There is still giant snow banks everywhere but they are melting fast! It feels like the 90's because I'm not used to warm weather haha. I feel like it has been winter forever!

So we went to the Sister's Circle. It was actually at Charlene's house. We went over and had some good breakfast. We got in there and there was a giant Book of Mormon sitting on the table, she had found it at her Church's Rummage sale! haha Super cool. It is a super large print one, I guess cause it is huge! Then we all sat down in the living room and there were about 8 ladies and they asked us a lot of questions. Then Charlene was kinda thanking us for coming and sorta saying we need to go now because they had another meeting after, that we didn't need to be there for. But one of the other Ladies said well we have time we can hear more of what they have to say! So we shared the whole Restoration with them! It was great! They said it definitely gives them something to think about, which is good enough for me!

Then one day we called up an investigator to see if we could meet and he said ya, just meet me at the community kitchen. So we did, and him and about 8 of his friends were there eating. Lots of people were asking us who we were and lots of other questions. So we decided to teach them all the Restoration! It went great, they had lots of good questions. I felt kinda like Jesus. haha We were just going around preaching to large groups of people.

We also met a man while knocking who had lots of Questions and was really cool! He told us he was just Spiritual. We got talking and shared the Restoration, and he had some deep questions we answered. Then right before we left he told us he was a pastor and invited us to his church. Also said he would have to take us out for a cup of coffee some time! ;) haha We made him a new investigator also!

Idk if you guys remember me talking about Gracie Clark, but my first week here we got a media referral for her. She drove 40 minutes to the church to meet with us and some members. Long story short it was an awesome lesson and the member was perfect for her. But we haven't been able to meet with her since because she has been so busy, I guess haha. But one night this week we went out for Ice Cream with Astrid and Evan Escobar and Evan said he was bringing a friend from class and it just so happened to be GRACIE! haha I was shocked when she walked in! But now she has 2 perfect fellow shippers! We are so excited for her! Astrid and Evan Escobar are killing it, their the best!

What a week! And to top it off we had stake conference this weekend in Ames! I even got to see a lot of members from the Marshalltown ward! That was awesome seeing them again! Our Bishop also got called to be in the Stake Presidency so that was cool! We are excited to see who the new Bishop will be!

Love you all!

Elder Anderson

Pic is of Elder Fox and I at Stake Conference!
Good to be back in the same District as him, this will be 9 months in the same District!

Also please pray that my hair grows back fast! haha

Transfers

I'm staying in Mason City for at least another 6 weeks! I'm Happy about that! Elder Gardner got transferred to Ankeny with my old companion Elder Olson! My new Companion is Elder Schoeneman, he is from Washington, and was trained by my old Companion Elder Olson in Hannibal! haha He just finished being broke, so he came straight from Hannibal! So he went from the farthest south in the mission to the farthest north! He started from the bottom now he’s here! Since we both started our missions in Hannibal we always talk about it and the people there! Good times! He is a great missionary and works hard so I'm super excited! He also balls so that is real good!

This week we got TONS more snow! It just keeps coming, there is another storm coming this week! One night it was a crazy thunder storm with tons of rain and rained all night and we lost power. Then in the morning it turned into hail, then snow, then a blizzard! We were out and about in it, cause weather cant stop us! We were knocking and then we started shoveling snow for random people and going around helping people. We always have our shovels in the back of the car, so we’re always ready!

We did service at the food bank again with Charlene, the lady that showed us her farm. Then we talked with her and her husband for a little bit. She invited us to come to her Methodist church to speak at what I think she called a Women's circle! SO that's AWESOME! Then last night our Bishop told us an awesome story at dinner. He served in El Salvador, and he had just started training a new missionary, and he was about 6 months out. They went to another church cause they felt prompted to. And when they did the pastor found them and told them to come sit in the front. Then after the pastor grabbed them and asked if they could talk for a little while and they said yes. The pastor said he had been reading the Book of Mormon and had used parts of it in his sermons. He even told the people that Jesus Christ visited the American Continent and they all thought it was awesome. So they started teaching him, it didn't take long to baptize him! Then they baptized his whole congregation!!!! Crazy story! It just made me think we are going to talk and answer questions at the Methodist church this week! Apparently the Methodist church is struggling here, they have a ton of money from the farmers but only about 70 old people come to church and they have like 1200 members in the books for this area. Our Bishop knows one of the leaders there.

Stay tuned for next weeks email and I will let you know how it goes! We also went out to dinner at an awesome Italian restaurant this week with a dope member here, Astrid Escobar! She's sweet and we are playing Racquetball with her today, I haven't beat her yet but today is my day!

Anyways it has been a great week! I'm loving the mission life! We have a brand new District this transfer, everyone got transferred but me! Its an awesome District so I'm super excited for that!

I love you all! Do something epic today!
TODAY IS YOUR DAY!
Elder Anderson

A welding dude and I

Elder Schoeneman and I with a big pile of snow

Where is Spring??

This week we had 2 more snow storms hit us! One last Tuesday that put about 8 inches on the ground and one yesterday that did the same thing! So I am just patiently waiting for Spring to come! We had a good week! Last Monday we played Racquetball with the Escobars again and then went to lunch! They are the best!

Tuesday we did some planning, knocking, shoveling snow, and dinner with some great members the Fox’s! Wednesday we had a great District meeting, I trained on how to not settle in life. It is natural to settle and get into a routine of missionary work. When that happens we are not being as effective as we can be. So I came up with the Dillicycle! The Diligence cycle! haha I will send a picture of it. A way to get back on track and never settle and always look for ways to do more and more! Starts with Obedience, then a very effective planning session, then following through, then having the Faith to see success. In the pic it talks more about it. I think it refers to all different kinds of lifestyles. After that we shoveled more snow for people, then did some knocking out in Britt, IA.

Thursday we went on exchanges here in Mason City, I went with Elder Espinoza he is a spanish missionary. We did a lot of knocking. We had a lot of lessons scheduled but they all fell through so tough stuff. That night we all played ball with the Elders quorum and some non members they invited. Super fun.

Friday, Astrid Escobar told us to go to Subway to meet her and her non member friend. She said to just randomly show up and then talk to her friend about the church haha. So, we went to Subway but we went to the wrong one. But someone bought our lunch there. Then we went to the right one and Astrid bought our lunch and we talked to her friend and she is awesome! Then they went back to work, and we had a sick lesson with a couple from Pohnpei, then Astrid said her friend wanted to talk to us more, so we met them at Starbucks and answered her questions about the church! Super cool we’re excited for her, and the couple from pohnpei! Tough time at church tho, no investigators showed. Great week with those miracles!

Love you all! Choose the right!

Elder Anderson

The DilliCycle

With Elder Lewis

The District...

17 Months Ago...

Well 17 months ago today I left home. Crazy to think! So much has happened since then! Our Mission is finally getting Smartphones! So that is exciting, the Lord's work is pressing forward.

General Conference was awesome! I love the new changes, Russell M Nelson is a Prophet of God! He truly see’s the needs of the Church and God works through him. My favorite talk was probably Russell M Nelson’s. He covered so many great things and told us more of his life! Wow God has truly prepared him for this calling! All the talks had small things that spoke to me! I loved the one on Forgiveness, the Atonement is the Sin eraser! Sometimes we are the ones that need to forgive ourselves! Also loved how the Prophet talked about receiving our own personal revelation! Which is very important in our lives.

Well we had about 6 Investigators tell us they would be at General Conference but not one made it! Super sad, it's hard to trust these people. We ended up dropping a few of them so this week we get to start over. Our Investigator Chuck, we taught him and we brought up the Word of Wisdom and I asked if I could take some of his Cigarettes to help him stop smoking. But he kept saying no and now we haven't seen him since.

We have an open week to work hard tho and find new people! This work is tough with a tough audience, but everyday is worth it. Every door we knock on is a seed planted. It is hard to see that sometimes but I know it is. General Conference was a real testimony builder. The spirit was so strong with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and the announcement of more temples! Gave me chills! I encourage you all to pray and ask God for a stronger testimony and he will guide you!

I love you all! Elder Anderson

More Snow...

This week we found a sweet Food Pantry to do service at. We met a lot of people and one of the volunteers invited us over to watch her husband bottle feed the calves. Then they took us to their huge barn with all the huge tractors! That was really cool. We had a great lesson with our investigator Loriann. We had sis Whiltsie come with us because she is so great! She even brought Loriann cookies!

We had Exchanges with the Hampton Elders also, it was a great exchange and we got a lot of work done! We found 7 new investigators and one of them came to church! His name is Chuck Kostka, a really good guy and the Ward loved him. Chad Rugland came to church again also. Loriann was gonna come for the last hour but ended up not making it. She couldn't make the beginning because she promised her uncle she would go to his Baptist church!

Then just when we thought spring was here because all the snow was gone, it had to dump on us! Saturday morning we woke up to around 17 inches of snow! All in one night! And it was still a blizzard! The plows didn’t make it to our apartments until late that night so we had to dig a trail out for our car! But they grounded cars at the first of the day to wait until it got better. Luckily a member came and got us and we helped them. It was like we were at war with all the snow plows, tractors, bobcats, snowblowers, and people shoveling snow everywhere you looked.

Sunday morning after Ward Council we found out an older lady was snowed in. So us and a member flew over there and it was a way long drive way for the 25 minutes we had. But we went to town and got it done! Just barely made it to church before it started and they asked me to speak! They texted us Saturday night asking me to be the back up in case one person that was supposed to speak didn't show. So they didn't show and I didn't prepare anything. But I got up there and spoke about the Importance of Modern Day Prophets and how listening to the Prophets voice gives us greater knowledge and that gives us greater power, which gives us more confidence in all that we do! It turned out pretty well, I took about 15 minutes, they didn't give me a time frame.

Then after church we were going around visiting people and looking for people to help dig out of the snow. We went by one member and he wasn't home but I felt prompted to knock on his neighbors door so we did. She came out and we introduced ourselves and she slammed the door. Then we heard on the other side that she just wanted someone to dig her van out because she had left it on the street so the snow plow literally packed like 5 feet of snow all around it. So we did and right after we were done she came out and was almost in tears and kept telling us how grateful she was. Turns out she is a friend of our investigator Loriann! So she promised us she will be at the church this weekend to watch a session of General Conference! MIRACLE!

I love this work! The Gospel is true! Love,

Elder Anderson

At the church

SNOW!

With Mr Eggwards =)

Lunch With a 70

Man we had a great week! I love the work! Time is flying by. Last Monday we drove down to Ames for Preparation Day and had a ton of fun with the zone. Played some good ball, and volleyball!

Tuesday we were able to take one of the priests from the Ward out with us! He is 16, he is a stud! Super funny, we had a blast with him and he even gave out a Book of Mormon! That night we had dinner with the Wiltsies! An awesome couple from the Ward, they are so much fun! They are doing great things here for the Ward. We helped them with their Family History since my companion used to be a Family History consultant, so I am learning a lot from him too! All the Families here are great and want to share the Gospel but most struggle on knowing what to do, so we are helping them with that!

Wednesday we had a good meeting with the Ward Mission Leader! When I got here they didn't have any Ward missionaries or a Ward mission leader assistant so we talked to the Bishop and we should be getting them soon! That will be great for this ward. After that we did some knocking for a while and man ever since I have been here, when ever we go knocking I swear there is never anyone home! haha so thats been rough but it should get better as it warms up outside. Knocking is a lot of fun when there are a lot of people to talk to, we always get some funny stories. That night we drove to Ft Dodge, and right when we got there I went to a lesson with one of the Zone Leaders. We taught a solid family from Haiti! Super cool!

Thursday we drove to Des Moines and had Mission tour! Elder Costa of the 70 was there! We had a leadership meeting with him right before and that was awesome! I learned a ton from him! He is from Argentina and is really funny! When we went to have lunch I sat down at a table with some homies and Elder Costa came and sat right by me! Same with President and Sister Badger so we had a great time, it was really cool to be able to talk to him about the work here. Elder Costa was baptized at age 24, he was an active Catholic before that. After Mission Tour the Zone all went to T Roadhouse to celebrate!

Friday we had some good lessons and finally caught a Less active family and they are super cool. We invited them to the Ward BBQ on Saturday night and they came! And we’re going back for dinner with them this week! The Ward BBQ was awesome! Lots of non members and Less actives we got to meet!

Sunday right before church I was flipping through the area book calling every teaching record that had a phone number and the last one I called answered and was down to come to church! And he Did! It was awesome! Hopefully we can start teaching him!

Also had Lorianne come to church! The missionaries here just haven't really strived to teach her yet for some reason. But we are and she is solid, we set a baptism date with her. Awesome week I am loving it here in Mason City! Love you all so much!

Elder Anderson

Elder Gardner and I at Clear lake, in the ice cream thing there is a fish that our investigator gave to us. But since we cant have pets we dumped him in the lake to be free. But there lake was freezing and we watched him die! lol

Hello FAM

Another week in this 2 year journey!
So last week for P day we just shopped and cleaned the apartment. The Apartment was nasty when I got here so we got some cleaning supplies and some good candles and wax stuff. So it is real nice now!

Tuesday we had a lesson with one of our investigators. We’re pretty sure he has some mental problems, but the Gospel is for everyone! Then the AP's came over and we had lunch at B-dubs and then went to the other apartment here in town and the AP's took all the furniture out of it because they closed that area. Then they left us to clean it completely and get it ready to sale! That place was disgusting!! The Elders left so much trash and a full sink of dishes! So we spent almost all day cleaning!

Wednesday we did some more cleaning in their apartment and then got to work! I love the Ward here we get fed quite a bit so we have had dinner with a few really cool families.

Thursday we went on Exchanges with the Zone Leaders in Fort Dodge, IA. We had a good time there! I went with Elder McCain from Washington. We drove a ways out to go to a media referral they got. When we got there, we knocked and someone said "who is it?" we said "the missionaries" then she came and looked through the curtain on the door and said "tell me why I shouldn't call the cops right now!" and we were like we’re just missionaries, we showed her our name tag. Then she opened the door and was calling the cops! lol turns out the guy that we where there for, actually held this woman captive a couple weeks ago and he is wanted for leaving the country while on parole. So when she heard his name she freaked out. So the cops showed up and got it all figured out. Apparently the guy we wanted just goes from Church to church asking for money!

Friday we had interviews in Fort Dodge and that lasted about all day, it was great tho always good seeing the Badgers.

Saturday we finally had a full day to work. So in the morning we had an awesome member from Utah and her son come pick us up and take us to a lesson with a Less Active family that has a 7 yr old and a 9 yr old. Their pretty strong good members, but their excuse is that they work too much. The 9 yr olds name is Allen and he is super smart! We had a lesson on the Restoration and just asked a bunch of questions and whenever they got it right we gave them candy! It worked super well! They payed attention the whole time! The thing is his mom for some reason doesn't think he is ready for Baptism. Which is tough because he really is! He knows way more about the church than I did when I was 8. After that we got back to Mason City and had a lesson at the church with a media referral we got! We still had Sis Woods and her 16 yr old son with us for that too! Her name is Gracie and she is a media referral from a while back, but she was uncontacted so the mission re sent it! We called her and set it up. She lives 45 minutes from the church and drove all the way there! She is 18 and has had a tough life with her family not supporting her. So a friend of hers adopted her, and her family turned on her even harder. She is a super good wrestler and goes to the community college in Forest City. It was an awesome lesson, if we didn't have Sis woods there it would have been sooo different because she adopted her son and they had so much in common! So Sis woods is inviting her over for dinner this week with us! Super excited!

That is about it for this week! I’m loving the mission and am so thankful to be out here!

Love,
Elder Anderson

Mason City

They Transferred me to Mason City.

It is a big town and we have a ton of ground to cover! Normally there are a lot of missionaries serving in this area but since our mission is down sizing so we can add the Peoria stake into our mission and all the missionaries that will be joining us from the Chicago West mission when it gets dissolved.

So our hands are full! We met with the Bishop and Ward Mission Leader yesterday and had a awesome meeting. We went over things about the Ward and what we want to be doing. I learned a lot from Bishop, he is super smart! My new Companion is Elder Gardner and he is from Arizona, Sun tan valley. He just got done being trained so he has been out for 4 months. This is the 3rd person in a row I have broken! Crazy!

It was really bittersweet leaving Lenox, it was a really tough area. But the people I got really close to the Steeles and the Ralstons, so it was hard saying good bye! They were like family! But President Ralston said he will take me Turkey Hunting out here when I come back! DJ Steele said we will go deer hunting when I come back too! So that's awesome! Last P day in Lenox we went to the YMCA one last time and I was able to play with some of the guys from the College team. That was fun! I also talked to them about the church afterwards so that was awesome!

Tuesday night we went to the Steeles to say goodbye, and they fed us some really good roast! Then they remembered that DJ promised me his famous Ribs, so they invited us over Wednesday night too so I could have some of his famous RIbs and play games and we had an awesome Gospel Discussion! They are slowly being prepared. But they will get there soon! And boy were those some awesome Ribs!!!

Short on time today! I Love you all!

                                                             Elder, Anderson

Elder Gardner and I

The Ralstons. He was the Branch President in Lenox.

My Man DJ Steele!! Love this guy!

The Austins (the old couple) and the Bloyds! Austin is the young one and he is the one we would ball with at the Y every week!

IDMM

This week started off with basketball at the YMCA last P day again and that had to have been the best ball there since I have gotten here! Lots of good ballers, so it made for an awesome exercise! As we were walking out we saw Sis Ralston the Branch Presidents wife, so we talked to her and she invited us over for Dinner! So we had a great night there!

Tuesday we left right after studies to go to the Leon Elders area and do some work there! They haven't found any new investigators all transfer. These Elders have not been very motivated cause they know they are in a tough area and it seems that when I try to motivate them, they get Demotivated. So kinda tough but we hit it pretty hard and were able to find 2 New Investigators that day. Sadly we had to go in early at 5:30 because of the freezing rain.

Wednesday we left from Leon up to Osceola and had District meeting. I didn't have hardly any time to prepare a training, but I had some thoughts and just winged it and it worked out. The spirit just took over. It was on planning and how to better plan our days and use our daily planners more effectively. So we’re all striving to have Golden Planning sessions. Then right after District meeting we took the long drive down to Centerville to go on exchanges with those Elders! It was a great exchange and we found 5 New Investigators! We also had a lesson with a couple they have been working with and since Centerville, Iowa is apparently the Meth capital of the World, he told us about some of his past and the crazy things that are always happening there, as he was drinking out of his giant king mug full of Whiskey and Tea, and he went through a couple of them! lol Also last night when I called to get a weekly report from the Centerville Elders, they told me that while they were out knocking they heard a bunch of Gun Shots and then a lot of sirens just a block from them!

Thursday we finished Exchanges and were planning on going to Indianola for exchanges with the Zone Leaders but we had to call if off cause of the bad weather. So we took the long drive home. The rest of the week was filled with knocking and not much success. Lots of rejection this week. But my studies this week have been great, I have been reading a lot of the Bible Dictionary along with the Book of Mormon. I love the mission and the time I have to study! I learn so much everyday! I encourage you all to find time to study the Word of God!

Love you all!
Elder Anderson

                                          

Exchanges in Leon

The District

Rathbun lake over by Centerville. As we drove by it we saw like 6 eagles out on the Ice and flying around!

Some good ole Whitetail! We saw a whole heard driving home from Lenox yesterday. The one in the bottom left has already shed his left side!

Missionaries

This week was full of missionary work! haha as always! Nothing too crazy, we had Zone Pday last week in Waukee and Zone Conference in Des Moines. I learned a lot in this one on specific things I can be doing with my Investigators.

Wednesday we had dinner out in Mt Ayr, IA and that's about 45 minutes away so we went early and hit some small towns on the way, we knocked every door in Benton, IA with no success. We stopped in Diagnol, IA and went by a referral from our Branch President. His name is Robert Ikenberry, he has been a member for a long time and has lived there for a few years but his records have never been in our boundaries. So apparently he was last active in Colorado and the church called him and found out where he is now and sent them his way. Really nice guy and has a family of 4 he is the only member. He said he has been planning on getting active again. They also said they would be willing to feed us anytime so were hoping to see some success there! Had a good time at dinner with the Recent converts and taught them about Families and Temples and hoping to get them both to the temple soon.

Thursday while knocking we came across a baptist pastor and he let us in and we had a good chat, lots of questions and answers. Not really a bash, he believed in the trinity and couldn't accept that God and Jesus Christ are separate. Nice guy tho.

Well the work carries on and we continue to try to meet with our most solid people but things keep coming up keeping us from meeting. Satan is very real and is very against this work because of its truthfulness. I know with all my heart that this is true and everyday through my studies and experiences my testimony grows! This is by far my toughest area, I have been doing much fasting and prayer with the Lord to hopefully see some kind of success. I know that we will get an investigator to church this week! The Lord will provide! Keep our area in your prayers.

I love you all! Go to Church and Read and Ponder the words of the Book of Mormon everyday no matter how busy you are!

Love, Elder Anderson

Level B roads are everywhere out here and since it is warming up they are so muddy. My GPS took us to this one and you can see how far our tracks went.

RLDS or Community of Christ here in town.

Iowa Sunset

Saw tons more eagles this week.

8 Inches of Snow

Hello Family and Friends!
We got about 8 inches of snow this week so we did some shoveling! The Community is pretty good with the snow removal out here.

Tuesday the Leon Elders came to our area to go on exchanges, Elder Alton and I went out to Kent IA and knocked on every door there! We found some cool potentials and met an older couple that let us in to warm up and they enjoyed our message and want to learn more. There names are Doc and Linda and Linda has our Branch President as her doctor and she said she just loves him! So we’re hoping to start teaching them.

Wednesday we went out to Indianola IA for Interviews with President Badger. Sister Badger had to stay home since she was sick. For District meeting that day I had everyone give a short training. So last Sunday night I asked them all what they would like to hear me give a training on and whatever they told me I asked them to give a training on. Haha It went great and I think they were all able to learn a lot.

Thursday we had the Centerville Elders over for Exchanges. Elder Orme (from Utah) and I went on Exchanges and taught a few lessons and gave one of our investigators a blessing.
Friday and Saturday it snowed a lot and we went out to the smaller towns and did work. Met a lot of great people and hoping to have some great lessons this week.

Sunday we had a good time at Church and Afterwards the Elders Quorum had set up a bunch of appointments with Less Actives so everyone went out and had great Visits. We met with the Gottemoeller's and that was fun. The Husband there isn’t a member and is still angry at God because he watched his Dad pass away in a farming accident. But the Branch loves them and hopefully one day he can get baptized.

Love you all! Elder Anderson

Blessed

This week was amazing! We did so much it flew by!
So last P day we balled at the YMCA again with a Less Active priest from the Branch, he is really good, but couldn't beat us in 21. haha

Tuesday we left for sharpsburg Iowa, a really small town and we knocked on every door there! Met some really nice people and got a cool new investigator! That night we went to the Price's for dinner, a really nice family that is cousins with the Nybo’s from back home so that was cool! We got permission from our Mission President to spend the night at there place to save miles and go to more areas we haven't been. They had a nice separate living place for us so that was great! They were super nice and had breakfast for us! So the next day we did some work in 3 more small towns, Bedford, New Market, and Gravity. It was a lot of fun!

Thursday we had District meeting and I trained on how to work with your Ward/Branch leadership. A lot on how the Church is to Comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable! And us missionaries are the afflictors for the Bishop and others. haha We’re the comforters too I guess. But it was a lot on having a good relationship with your Bishop/Branch President. And how to be a better blessing not a burden. Also made sure they were all having Ward/Branch Coordination and council, and how to make those better and to use them. Us missionaries go to so many different areas we see so many different things so we can bring lots of helpful things to strengthen the area we are in and be more involved with the Branch. I made up an object lesson with Ping Pong, so we played Ping Pong. haha The Bishop was one paddle and the person holding that paddle was satan making bishop look intimidating. The other opponent was the missionaries and the ball was responsibilities and the net was fear. So we had to keep the ball going to keep up on our responsibilities and get over the net or over our fear! Hahahaha It was awesome we all took turns and it turned out super great!

We also contacted a Referral from Sister Ralston the Branch Presidents wife, her name is Mindee and she is so awesome, she has 3 kids and they want to learn more so we are going over there this week with Sis Ralston to teach them!

We also finally got back over to DJ Steeles house and spent the night with his family and had dinner! I love going over there, they are so much fun and we have the best conversations! But he is apparently still offend by the last missionaries so he won’t come to church, but we will get them!

Yesterday we were driving around in the richer area looking for Superbowl parties and the first one we found we went and knocked on the door and they weren't interested but they let us in!!! They had tons of good food and snacks, so that was a MIRACLE we watched a little bit of the game but not much.

We prayed hard to find someone who would be willing to come to church but no one showed. But the lord is blessing us and we will get lots of people there soon! I love the work so much and my testimony grows each day! This is hard work but the Lord is blessing us as we are striving to be exactly obedient!

I love you all! Spread the love this week!

I hit a skunk the other night! lol

Crazy 3 horned sheep, Iowa haha

I took this pic of some Eagles we saw driving home from church!