Dear fam!!!
Another great week
eh? This week was great for me because I heard from a number of sources about
the great call to serve!!! Congrats brother! I felt the spirit when I heard
about your call and I know you will do great things! Just like in basketball
and football I know you'll go farther than me and I know that you'll be more
prepared than I was! I can't wait for you to join me out here in the South
preaching the word!!! There is no greater call! I know that you will be an
awesome missionary on one of the most important fronts in the church right now!
I'm so certain you will do great things and learn and grow like never before!
It's a demographic and culture that will be tough, and that is why they were
prepared for Elder N Gottfredson! Right in the thick of the Bible Belt
bro!!! I'm so happy for you!!! There's so many things to learn on a mission and
so much worthy about serving anywhere. Your mission will help you stretch and
grow- there will be dry months where God wants you to grow, but more often, the
Lords plan is for you bear fruit and he wants you and those people he is
preparing right now to have the joy of the Gospel! You'll help families prepare
for baptism and the temple. That's the Lords plan! Places like the south
east US and Europe are places where it doesn't come cheap. People really have
to be converted to make changes in these environments. So face the future with
faith!
On a side note!
Maybe you'll meet Zac Brown or you can baptize and send a Georgia
Peach my way! (; It's going to be a lot of fun! Send me a confederate belt
buckle! I'm talking with two Elders who have buddies in your mish elder
Riley Robbins and elder Sado from Japan! They are zone leader's
there.
These week was full
of miracles! We're really focusing as a Zone on finding the elect!!! We found Avi!
A Jew who has a Mormon friend and we started teaching him! He's a photographer
for TIME magazine and he has like a bunch of beautiful Peacocks in his yard
crazy stuff man! We also found Jacob- a WWE wrestler! Like 6'10 290
pounds of ripped muscle! He's fought like the Rock and stuff! He has a code
name and a lot of it is just acting but I guess they do a lot of actual
fighting too. Me and my comp are both pretty big, but he definitely made us
feel like girls! Also Steve! A marine who is dating a less active member from Richfield.
The people here are classic! Shantrese accepted the law of Chastity
and she's progressing beautifully! See Nate, black people are the best!!! Just
ask brother Blue out in Titusville! Sometimes I wish I was black! I love
my black companion right now too! There's some awesome brothers in Christ
saying in their hearts! "preach to meh Elda G!" Here
is the biggest thing you will come across, they will not like the reverence of
sacrament meeting- so you have to get a gospel art book and turn to the last
supper page and tell the story "on the last night of the saviors
life...." Basically the spirit testifies of the scripture and then ask the
question "What would your attitude be if you were one of the people there with
him that night?" Clapping up and down and screaming? I would just be
trying to soak it all in and be reverent." Anyways man, we have so much
fun stuff to go over!!! Also Armando is just funny- he's going back and
forth with us on coffee and he says he can't drink water because if he does it
will hospitalize him. He says water dehydrates him and causes his body to swell
because he's drank coffee since he was 3. Lol Armando come on! Also
Manna from heaven Linda and Brian came to church! Only thing is next week after
church we're going to theirs! This is the first time I've done this on the
mission or ever really! I read over their doctrine and it's better than a lot
of things, but still pretty bad. It's a rock concert/eloquently worded sermon.
It'll be fun!
This week I got
this letter (see below) from a lady gave up a lot in the the way of
drinking and working Sundays etc. and was baptized in February. It all started
with a street contact. It's hard to stop people who are running because they
get annoyed usually, but you won't ever regret it- and you never know which one
needs Elder N Gottfredson or How many will need the big #54 Elder M Gottfredson to
just bring the peace and true happiness of he Restored Gospel into their lives.
Trust the promises in the scriptures. You'll find that there is no better cause
to devote yourself to.
***I used to
believe that everything happened for a reason and now I know that is the truth.
I am so thankful that you guys came into my life when you did, you
literally saved my life. I never told you or anybody else this but the
day that you stopped me while running, I actually planned to kill myself that
night. I had convinced myself that I am a bad parent and Lily would be
better if I wasn’t here. I couldn’t protect her from the abuse that my
ex-husband put me through and most likely would put her through. When you
guys talked to me, I decided I will just wait until after I spoke more with
you. The more often you came around, the more I started to change my
mind. You kept reminding me that all I have to do is endure and things
will start getting better. There are days that I still struggle and I
realize that I will always have those days but all I have to do is keep my
faith, pray, and endure because things will get better. So I just wanted
to say thank you for everything.***
It's such a
blessing to be out here right now and it's going by way too quick! I hope you
are having the time of your lives right now!!! I forget what it's like to even
swim in a swimming pool much less surf in Hawaii!!! That's so cool you're going
sky diving!!! You just have to one up me in everything!!! I can't believe
you're 18 kid! And Matt man!!! You look buff!!! No wonder the ladies swarm you!
I can't wait to spend time with you!!! I'm kinda jealous Nate gets all this
time with you! I hope things are good! I miss it the weeks I don't hear from
you! I love your emails so much! Sometimes the highlight of my week is
something you tell me about sports about girls etc! I know middle school was some
of the roughest times of my life just because it's an awkward age! Things
always get better! You have to push through anything that's uncomfortable so
you get all the payoff in high school. But what am I talking about you are sittin on
some of the nicest beach in the world! I hope you still listen to jack Johnson
for me! You're my hero and you look like a super buff 16 year old!
Mom and Dad thanks
so much for all you do for our family! Some day I hope I can be more like you!
I hope your feet are holdin up in Hawaii! Nate and Matt are luckier
than they know to be with you guys right now. You guys are awesome! Eat a malasada for
me!!! Love ya tons!!!
Elder Gottfredson
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