Monday, January 25, 2016

Eighteen Months Down!!


(Since I wasn't able to get his pictures to upload, I included a video of Alex from our Christmas Skype...he still is a character:)  Diana)

Hey everyone!! How are y'all doin?! Things have seriously picked up here in Sebring this week. We've been slammed with how crazy our schedule has been the last few days. We had a lot happen, but it seems like typical stuff, which included our usual exchange for the week. I went to Okeechobee again, but this time I was with Elder Amos. It was a pretty good exchange and nothing out of the ordinary really happened. Well...I guess something did! While we were inside, a cleaning company van hit out car. It left just a little scratch, but we had to fill all the church paperwork out! Then we got stranded outside because we locked the keys inside...so yeah! That was interesting! Now tonight we have another exchange, but I'm staying in Sebring with Elder Harrison.

Wednesday we had a AWESOME meeting! It was a special worldwide broadcast to all the missionaries. It was the first broadcast like that in over a decade and it was absolutely amazing!! It was basically like a session of general conference, as in there were lots of General Authority guest speakers. The instruction they gave was perfect and I wish it would have come sooner in my mission, because it definitely changed me! It talked a lot about Faith, Repentance, Baptism, and the Holy Ghost. One really awesome thing Elder Bednar said in his section was: "Part of our role is to understand how the Holy Ghost touches hearts of people. We are the vessels that can bring the spirit UNTO the hearts of Gods children, but it is ultimately their job to invite that same spirit INTO heir hearts."

On our way back from that meeting, (since it was a 2 hour drive to Vero Beach) we stopped at a little pond because we spotted some Alligators! They were pretty good sized too, but I forgot my camera.. So I'll keep my eyes out for some more:) We also did a lot of service this week. Elder Davis and I have  really connected with this couple in our ward, Jay and Amy. They are AWESOME and are seriously like my favorite people in this area! We love being over there with them. Also, Amy is a recent convert of only a few months, and it's a blast hanging around them! Anyways, we went with Jay and helped one of his non-member friends move stuff out of her storage unit and into her new apartment. This lady has been having a REALLY tough time with things lately, so we were happy to spend those few hours helping her out.

Also, we found a few new investigators this week, well...4! So that was a huge miracle. Some of them are a little iffy. Like one, she was really cool with meeting and happy to learn, but she called us and told us she doesn't want us back because her husband had read anti-literature on the internet... We asked if they got their info from LDS.org or Mormon.org, and they didn't respond so we basically explained that's like asking a math teacher to help you with your history homework. You're going to the wrong source of information to learn. But we also found a girl named Melody from Puerto Rico, and she has recently moved here and was meeting with missionaries over there! So she is super prepared and solid. So we are now working with her some more!

Nothing else cool I guess, but before I close just a quick thought today. As I was reading through a book something stood out to me, and I wanted to share it! 1 Corinthians 2:5 states "Your Faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." Remember, Faith and Doubt cannot exist in the mind at the same time, for one will dispel the other. Cast out doubt. Cultivate Faith. Strive always to retain that childlike faith which can move mountains, and bring heaven closer to heart and home.

Thanks for everything everyone! I love and miss you all, and hope you have a splendid week ahead of you!!


-Elder A. Olson

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