We're learning to work with the members more. I'm really excited. It's a whole new ball game. We have worked and worked and worked and WORKED and it's almost like spinning our wheels in the dirt. No effort is ever wasted and I needed to do it with Elder Donovan. We grew so much from it and bonded and saw many miracles from it. But it's time to move on to bigger and better things. We'll still work our fannies off though. Members are more of an investment though. You can see progression faster with personal contacts but with members it's tricky. LDS members don't have many friends so it's harder for them to share the Gospel. I love the story of Ammon for that. He went out of his way to make friends with the lowest of the low to have more opportunities to share the Gospel. Ammon is my role model. Members can be such powerful missionaries. They can develop a real love for their friends. You can while tracting but it's different as a member. I love finding out of our own efforts because it's taught me a lot about how to be a missionary for the rest of my life and the importance of it.
The 9th Elders had to pass off their most progressing investigator family on Monday when Elder Donovan accidentally found out that they actually live in our boundries by 300 feet out in the country of Palisade. The Grays are such an awesome family! Blue, Jaida, Steal, Stone, Violet, Jet and their dog Cash. Everyone has an awesome name. They have been taught on and off for 2 years and said they feel it's finally God's timing for them to look more into the Church. They have been reading everyday and praying about it everyday! It's amazing! We're so excited for them!
Lee Holt almost dropped us as a result of the last member we brought with us... Just remember to love the people the missionaries bring you to. Everyone thinks that it's the missionaries that must gain the trust of the members which is very true. But the members also need to gain the trust of the missionaries. This work is soooo important. It should never be treated lightly for a second. Realize what your signing up for when you go out with the missionaries. It should be no light thing. These are Heavenly Father's children and He's on the edge of His seat hoping that His children can make it back to Him. He puts a lot of trust in us. Fortunately the member we brought with us go a long great and calmed him down so he still wants to continue.
I got to serve with Elder Dean!! It was amazing. He has changed so much. He is so confident and converted and still has so much fun. He is so much more of a man. I hope he can train soon. He's so ready. New missionaries need trainers like him.
Tuesday Elder Lawrence spake to the whole West Side of the Mission. That only happens once a year. It was amazing beyond words. I've never learned so much in my life. His wife taught us for 2 hours on the Gathering Israel starting with the premortal existence and ending with the Second Coming. It was so powerful and sacred. I had no idea how sacred and important and the magnitude of my calling as a missionary. Words cannot even begin to describe. I'd like to hear your thoughts on the Gathering of Israel. You said that the missionaries could have looked at you as a Gentile and I had no idea what that meant till now. But so many questions have been answered. I feel so much more love for people and confidence in my calling and importance of the Gospel. It feels like a missing piece to a circuit that when completed everything lights up! If I have any recommendations for missionaries preparing it's to study in depth the Gathering of Israel. It took 2 hours to teach us all of that. Which is still taking time to expound on for myself to understand more. You can understand why no words can do it justice. I feel so much more Spiritual Power to say the least.
I wish I could say the smallest part that I feel so members would understand the importance of Sharing the Gospel and non members would feel the importance of what I as a missionary represent. It's far more beyond anything any of us can imagine. It deserves our entire hearts, mights, minds and strengths. It deserves all our energy, all our focus, constant thinking about, constantly sacrificing for. I LOVE MY MISSION!!!!!!
I love you all so much! Hurrah for Israel!
-Elder Edgel
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