February 23, 2015

Mom, Dad, and Family,

I miss you all and think you're awesome.  This week sounds like it was great.  Preach My Gospel is probably my favorite book on earth, aside from the Hugly series.  I study that book (Preach My Gospel, not the Hugly series) every day, and it gets better and better.  I think as our understand of the Gospel increases, so does our desire to learn more about it and live it.  We're studying (focusing) on chapter 2 as a mission right now.  I've been thinking a lot about the Live What You Learn section at the end, and about how important it is to do what God tells us when we're learning.  We focus on one chapter of PMG each month starting in January and Chapter 1.  But we skip Chapter 7 (because it's language, and most of us are English missionaries, and so we can get to Chapter 13), it's a lot of fun.  Build those library.

This week, we taught Carlos on Monday and he rescheduled twice for our next appointment.  So we'll see him tomorrow.  But we also met with Jazmine and Athena twice this week.  Athena came to church, but Jazmine was at her dad's for the day.  So we visited them after church (when Jazmine got back) and we set a baptismal date with Athena.  Jazmine said she would pray about it, and if it felt good, she would be baptized.  She gets some flack from her dad's family.  Pray for them both.  They're awesome and they want to do what's right and they're so close to baptism.  Pray they will be okay and safe spiritually.

Things are great here in Hesperia.  Offroading is still crazy, but we don't get as lost anymore.  We know most of the dirt roads, where they are and where the 4-wheeling trails come in so we can avoid them.  But sometimes, our GPS takes us the weirdest ways.  I swear, Sally (our GPS) is better at locating lost things (or maybe just loosing things) than any missionary I know.  We get lost all the time.

I love you all and pray for you.  Keep doing the things God wants you to and life will always be great.  That's a promise (Mosiah 2:41).  I know the church is true and I'm thankful for the Gospel.  I love my Savior and I'm thankful for the Atonement.

ILYMTLI,

Elder Russell