Sent April 29, 2013
Hey fam whats up! Elder Cook here. The sun has been shining in Washington almost all week and it has just been glorious! Preparation day is always a refresher and I am happy I get to sit down and email you all today!
The last two weeks have been pretty tough! A couple of weeks where you don't see the automatic fruit of your efforts, but thats all right! Im still smiling :) I have decided that patience is just faith in Jesus Christ that all will be best when done His way and in His time. As well as continuing to work with optimism even when you are not seeing the desired results. Patience isn't really patience if you don't keep your hope and happiness! So ya we have had a hard time getting people to keep their commitments and come to church. We currently only have one progressing investigator, but we have a lot of awesome potentials and some other great things happening!
We haven't heard word on the Branch yet. I don't know if it will get created this transfer, but hopefully very soon! We had an awesome miracle last night! We went to a Spanish less-active family that lives in Auburn but goes to the Kent Branch when they do go. We have talked to them a couple times about coming to Aubun but they haven't. Last night we sat down with Brother Rappeloe and told him the situation and how much he was needed here at this time. He got really excited and committed to come and help build the branch! He then went on to tell us about all these other people that he knew around Auburn that we could get to come to the Branch, it was the miracle that we had been praying for! I love Hispanic people. Haha they are so great. I wish I could converse with them more. Too bad.
So Dayle has a crazy story. She has been on date for every single weekend since the end of march at some point, but every week something crazy happens. The last two weeks it has been a problem with her apartment. She is behind on her rent so she has been temporarily evicted and they changed the locks on her house. She is living with family up in Everett right now but she is hoping to get it worked out this week. The tentative plan is to hold the baptism this next sunday. So we are just praying praying praying that we can get it to work out! It has been quite the battle but I want so badly for her to be able to enter into a covenant with God that will bring her so much happiness! And her cousin Aaron is down here and is going to baptize her. So hopefully I will be getting some signed BYU memorobilia to send home ;) haha
I am happy to hear Addie is doing so well in track. That is extremely fun! Congrats on the talk mom! I am happy to hear about Derek and Clancey, that is so awesome.
As far as the mission split goes. I do not care which mission I go to, BUT I kinda want to be in Federal Way haha. It is going to be STACKED! All of the top zones in the Seattle mission will be there and two of the top from the Tacoma mission will be in it. And most of the new mission calls going out right now are going to the Federal Way mission, so it is just going to be a young, optimistic mission full of missionaries that are ready to work and testify! On the other hand, Seattle is just downright awesome and Elder Choi from the 70 will be the President which would be absolutely sweet! So It will be exciting. We have transfers next week and then seven weeks after that we will have the transfer that decides which mission we will be in! Crazy. Im excited.
Just another little miracle I had this week. It was a couple of hours before church was going to start and I was just praying we could get people to come. I was sitting in my chair and I just had a thought to text Naomi Wine, who was investigator about 6 weeks ago that we dropped because she wouldnt contact us or answer calls or texts. So I texted her and asked if she would be coming to church and she said "Ya ill be there, its at one right?" I was so happy. It turned out that she couldn't make it to church which was a bummer but now we have another appointment with her and she wants to come next Sunday. And she could get baptized after she comes to church once more. Such a great miracle that we have another investigator. Hopefully she will coninue to progress frome here on out!
Can you believe it is May in a couple of days. Before we know it school will be out and it will be June and then it will be my birthday! Crazy. Time flies.
Here is a story that sums up a lot of the things I see on a daily basis: So we are sitting in our apartment studying one day and a truck drives up and parks in the parking lot in fron of our neighbors in the building a cross from us. What happens next? Our neighbor, a lady in her early twenties, walks outside, gets inside this huge box, they throw it in the back of the truck and then drive off.... What the heck. I don't know why that happened but it was sure weird. I have just learned not to question some things haha. People are crazy, but I love them all!
This gospel is incredible. It really is so simple. Faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. That is how we access the Atonement in our lives. Quote from President Larkin "no one can access the blessing of the Atonement until they are baptized" , that is why we have been commanded to go forth unto all nations, teaching and baptizing them. The Gospel is how we ACCEPT the Savior, and mercy has claim upon those who do accept Him this way.
Oh ya, we had zone conference last week. It was so great. I forgot to write about it. But President Larkin gave an incredible talk. His topic was how we can be disciples of Jesus Christ and he talked about Peter saying that we would do anything for the Savior and follow Him anywhere, and then how he denied him three times. His point was, and I will never forget it, "it is not just enough to be devoted to the Savior, we must be like Him. It is not just enough to be willing to die for Him, we must love like He does." That is the goal. It goes perfectly with the quote by President Uchtdorf that I used in my farewell talk. "Love is the true altitude of our discipleship." Why is charity so important? Because WE MUST BE LIKE HIM. I wil continue to strive every day to become more like my Savior. That is my greatest desire, to be like Him. And I hope it is yours as well!
Transfers next week, we will see what happens! I would love to stay in White River for a long time. I love it here. But other places that I would love to serve (well anywhere of course) but specifically... Elliot Bay Ward- the heart of the city of Seattle, i'm talking downtown Seattle, and theyu are on fire right now. And Red Square - University of Washington campus. I just love talking to everybody and I can relate so well to people around my age, it would be awesome to serve there! But anyways, transfers are always exciting. Of course you will know next week what happens!
I love you all so much! Thanks for your prayers and support. Love your letters and emails. Wish you all the best this week! Keep smiling, be happy! I love you!
Elder Cook
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