October 13, 2009 Rain

Hello!
We had a pretty good week this week. We finally had another positive experience tracting...something we haven't had since August! Ya we were knocking doors out in the rain, light rain, and a guy answered and was really nice. He didn't like us standing out in the rain so he invited us in for a bit. We talked for a while and got to share a little bit about families and and the Book of Mormon. He said that he'd read it as well as a Plan of Salvation pamphlet we left with him(I forgot to restock on Restoration pamphlets). But he was really sincere and a good guy. Hopefully he's there next time we go back, apparently he's a smoke jumper(I think thats the name for it), and is on call 24/7 for the government to go fight forest fires. So he could be in town until April, or gone tomorrow. Ya, good guy though.
We also got a media referral which seems pretty promising. He took of tour of temple square while he was in Salt Lake City and really loved it. He requested a Together Forever DVD and a missionary visit. The only problem is when we contacted him it turns out he runs a resort on a lake in the area and won't be back at his house until after Thanksgiving, so we can't see him until then, but it seemed like he really wanted to visit with us, hopefully he still is that way a month and a half from now.
We got to do a lot of service this week, like usual. Helped out at the Boys and Girls club moving stuff into storage for them. Man they get a lot of donations, but so much of it is junk. Being on the receiving end I'd just like to say...if you donate things to places like this, make sure its good quality, and not just random junk. Its frustrating to deal with. Anyways, sorry for the rant.
We also got to help the Valdez family out with their yard and getting ready for winter, which was fun. One of their friend's furnaces broke so they said he could chop up some fallen wood on their property. So we helped him split it and load it in the trailer. It was fun, especially with the snow everywhere. Nothing like hauling wood.
Oh ya, we also got to see Marcus and make some progress with him. We read 2 Nephi 31 with him(a really powerful chapter about faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. I suggest you read it if you haven't recently) and afterwards committed him for baptism! He agreed, but was hesitant because of some of the struggles he still has, but we told him it will be a goal to work towards and that we'll set a date next time we see him. He's got a lot on his plate and was pretty sick, didn't feel like we should overwhelm him on that day. So that's pretty exciting...most importantly we got to get him to church. Hopefully he can get time off from work to do so.
So that was our week in nutshell. This week is looking pretty promising and I am excited to see what happens. Recently, President Layton shared a powerful quote from Ezra Taft Benson and I'll try to share it as accurately as possible. He said, "When obedience ceases to be an irritant and instead becomes our quest, then God will endow us with great power." What truth! I am learning that more and more on my mission. As we truly give our will to the Father and our only goal is to do what he'd have us do, we will be much more able to cope with the trials that come before us, and not only deal with them but have joy as we do so. I love this gospel and all the truths that are available to us as we faithfully seek them. Have a great week!
Love,
Elder Fitt