Elder Alex Olson's Florida, Orlando Mission Adventures: Wild Baptism Week!!

Baptism day for Quay, Ashanti and TJ!

Happy Monday everyone! I hope you guys are having a swell day!:) Our week was pretty epic and as usual it started off pretty average, with the same old stuff like teaching appointments and such. Wednesday we actually had interviews with our mission president- President Berry. It was great!!! I was super excited to be able to have an interview with him, mainly because I think that it was my final interview with President Berry. We might have one more before he leaves In June, but I'm not sure. Either way it was great. We just talked about future plans after mission, current standings on Lake Placid, etc.. It was great! He's such a great guy! They even took us 8 out to dinner because the interviews took up our dinner time!

Tuesday we spent hours doing service at a food bank, which was awesome. We just helped them stock their new shipment of canned goods in. But their storage room was all out of shambles so we spent extra time sorting their old stuff, putting them in proper places, reorganizing and stocking the new! It was surprisingly really fun!...plus they have us peaches and orange juice, so it was a win-win.

Thursday we had yet another meeting, this time it was our fun 2 1/2 hour trek to the meeting in Vero Beach! It was just a normal monthly meeting.. So it was pretty good as it usually is! We just talked about setting goals in our personal lives and areas so that we can continue to see success!

Friday was a typical weekly planning day, with nothing too special. Elder
Rowley is signing up for college classes and registering for that so we spent a little while Friday working on tests and stuff as well! He goes home like 3 or 4 weeks after I do, so we are both heading to the end soon. It's weird though, because the branch members keep bringing that up. hahah!

Saturday was hectic but AWESOME!!! Sebring ward had a "Fish Fry" activity so we went to that one, which was good. Then right after that, Elder Rowley and I were preparing for the baptisms. There is a fun little story that goes along with that one..We had everything set up, and we started filling the font and realized, the water was FREEZING!! So we worked on it, worked on it some more, then called our branch president who said the water heater had been busted for a few weeks!... I decided that as Elder Rowley prepared the room and got the program printed off I would go boil big pots of water so we could dump those in to warm it up a little...well... That was a good thought, except the kitchen didn't have a stove top. So I switched to Plan-B which consisted of putting water in the microwaves they had, and dumping them into a 5 gallon cooler (for insulation) and running it down to the font and pouring it in! So I did that for a good hour, it worked, not well...but it warmed it up a few degrees! Hahaha!

But overall the baptism went great! I'm so proud of Quay, Ashanti, and TJ for the steps they are taking towards their Heavenly Father! It was definitely a special day for them and for us. Seeing people change their lives around to follow Jesus Christ is always a huge blessing to witness. It was a great program and the confirmations Sunday were fantastic. Quay even cried during the whole thing. She said she has never felt that amount of love pouring out from God before that day! I will attach some pics of the baptism for y'all!

But that was about our week this week. For a spiritual thought I just took another one of my favorite talks from General Conference. Talking about how at times we all become lost to the gospel, through different trials, etc.. But through the love, grace, and Atonement of Jesus Christ we can find that peace and stability again. ."My dear brothers and sisters, my dear friends, I testify that God sees us as we truly are--and He sees us worthy of rescue. You may feel that your life is in ruins. You may have sinned. You may be afraid, angry, grieving, or tortured by doubt. But just as the Good Shepherd finds His lost sheep, if you will only lift up your heart to the Savior of the world, He will find you. He will rescue you. He will lift you up and place you on His shoulders. He will carry you home." (He Will Place You on His Shoulders and Carry You Home) -Dieter F Uchtdorf

I know that as we continue to search for the Savior, and apply the most amazing thing, the Atonement, into our lives, we can receive that "rescue" we can witness the change in our lives, the increase in our faith, and feel the absolute love our Father in Heaven has for us! Thanks for all you guys do! I love and miss you guys!

-Elder A. Olson