Hey family!!!!:) It sounded
like you guys had a great week. Were able to get some running in and go to the
hills. Enjoy every minute of those experiences you don't realize how bad you
miss that stuff until you are away from it. I bet the
snow will be gone here shortly, I'm sure that was a beautiful ride though!
Colby is a priest already, holy cow, I'm so dang proud of him, he is a
great young man. I’m happy that he has some kids his age to hang out with
now. I can't believe school is almost over; I will miss you guys this summer
a ton!! I loved being able to hear your voices but its true dad it does somehow
make it hard and better. I miss you all tons, but I’m doing great, I'm staying
super busy and I can't believe this transfer is almost done. Mom I would love
the general conference talks only when you send a package, I don't really need
anything but more pictures so it’s okay! I love you guys tons!!!
This week was amazing; we saw so
many dang miracles and had just a ton of fun doing it!!!!! Missionary work is
so hard but it’s so rewarding and somehow the lord gives you the strength to do
it, to say the least I don't think I have worked this hard ever, You are on
your feet always, in the sun and its long days, I am tired all the time haha
but it’s so dang sweet!! It’s crazy once you learn that this is the lord’s work
and we as missionaries are just merely the messengers or the instruments for
our Heavenly Father that is when everyday seems doable. I love this work,
it’s truly the hardest thing I have done, but it’s the most rewarding as well!
This week we had so much success the lord really helped us this week.
I’m not a fan of numbers so I won't put them...I don't want to make other
missionaries in the world to feel bad haha but no I don't like numbers they
take away from the people, but we had a great week. We were able to
contact and meet some new people who have a lot of potential and we will work
with them this week as well.
Overall this week was the best week
I have had in the mission thus far. We had 5 investigators at church!!
E will get baptized next week with J and hopefully J’s
husband, and sister as well! We are preparing all 5 of them for baptism
for next week and the following as well. The lord is really hastening his
work in this area! Well J is a part member, her mother in law just
got baptized like 4 months ago and just wants all her family to be baptized and
everyone she knows, she is awesome. She feeds us every day we go there, and she
loves us. I always joke with her and its funny my reputation in Oda was the
white man who could talk plenty and now it’s the same here, haha you know me I won't make things awkward but she says I talk plenty lol! I love her to death
the mother in law\s name is G and she has a great sense of humor, we get along
great! Well we have been teaching J and she loves the teachings she
knows it’s true and she can’t wait to be baptized. Then her husband
starts coming to church as well, we had her baby blessed last week so he came,
and now he came this week as well. I talked with him a lot and he is a
great guy and he wants what is best for his family which is why he loves the
church. He is a super busy man but he said he will take off work to meet
with us, we talked to him last night and he said he wants to learn for 2 hours
tomorrow and he wants to be in the baptismal class as well, so he is thinking
baptism...I'm so pumped!!!! Well we have a return missionary from our
mission, he was my companions zone leader and he is staying right next to this
family, and he has been doing family home evenings with them and he sat down
with G's daughter who hates the church and had a casual talk and then it
turned into a 5 hour lesson I guess, During the lesson she had personal
revelation on what he taught her, she just said I know this already and she
asked him what she should do and he said get baptized and so she is getting
prepared as well. The return missionary is really helping us... I hope I
am like him when I get home!!! The woman he taughts name is B she is
J’s sister in law and G's daughter and she came to church on Sunday as
well and we taught her small, I noticed she is like our family, she doesn't want religion crammed down her throat...so basically I know how to handle them
and I got her laughing and she opened up with us everything...it was merely a
miracle!
This week as well one day when we
were contacting, we had another miracle. We were riding our bikes and a
man was carrying water in a wheelbarrow so I grabbed it from him and helped him
take it to his house. He had a nice house on the inside and we started talking
to him about what he does and he was a firefighter and so we started just BSin
and he asked what we do and we told him and asked if he had 5 minutes, he said
he did so we had a small 5 minute lesson. Well at the end of the lesson as we
were bearing our testimonies I just started talking about how hard life is and
how the gospel gives us a purpose. Well he started getting a little
emotional and he told us he was marveled because he had been praying for things
like that and he was shocked because he said that I said everything he was
praying about...crazy miracle. This is truly the lords work haha its
crazy, just have to be humble enough and know your purpose here! As well
that day we were contacting we contacted a house and went inside well we
quickly found out that the man was a false prophet. So he started telling
us how he could teach us the bible, and here the people go to bible school for
years to be a prophet haha people just take advantage of these people, well
this man went to school just to study the bible haha well it went okay at first
and then it started getting a little confrontational and then my companion got
a little riled up so we got asked to leave haha so we did and then he said a
comment that pissed me off (by this point I was the most calm out of all of us
haha surprisingly) He then said that we were going to hell and joseph
smith was from the devil...well I just said sir, I want you to read Mathew
chapter 10 about how the savior tells us our words will condemn us in the last
days and I said I testify those words will condemn you! He didn't like
that, he started yelling at me but then my companion and I started to leave and
noticed his church sign was using our picture of Jesus holding the sheep and I
said sir you're even using our picture haha and then we left it was the first
time I have had a door slammed in my face to say the least, it was smooth
though, no worries!!
Other than that, it was a great week
and we will continue to try to have another great week this time! Family Thank
you so much for everything. I love your emails and love hearing from
you...don’t be afraid to tell me everything! I miss the heck out of you
guys and want you to know how much I love you! I thank my Father in
Heaven every day for my family and know that he is watching out for you!! I
love you three so very much!!!
Love you guys so dang much!!!
Elder Duke
