Russell's Email 1-22-09

Everyone at home,
This week has been the most amazing so far! The past weeks have really proved to be a refiners fire and now Elder Davis and I are reaping the blessings of diligence and endurance.
A few things I have learned, number 1, my hair CAN part. (mind boggling I know) 2, The Lord is bound when we do what he says. 3, Love. No one in this world has EVER changed without feeling loved first.
This week is awesome. On Sunday we had 1 potential investigator. Sunday evening we got two referrals, and by Monday afternoon we now have 8 potential baptisms in our ward. Here's the story.
Elder Davis and I taught the Welsh family (Brother Welsh is in the Bishopric). We had told them before that we wanted a name to go and visit so Elisa (15 year old daughter) gave us the name of one of her friends Dean. So the next day she is talking to her friend Carly at school and Elisa says, "I hope Dean doesn't get mad I sent the missionaries." Carly says, "I want the missionaries to come visit me." We will teach Carly with Elisa, and Dean with his really good friend Chris from the ward.
Then Bishop Brant called us and asked us to meet him at the Chapel 15 minutes before the Stake Priesthood meeting. We sat with him and one of the YW leaders in a room and he told us a story that happened during church. A woman and her husband walked in and someone brought them to the bishops office. They were dressed in jeans and t shirts and bishop said his first thought was "Awesome, another walfare case to handle." (apartently the people of vegas work the system hardcore.) but he told us, "I looked at them and then realized they were wearing nice clothes, and that was not the case. They then told me that they were really struggling with their daughter and they always remembered the Mormon kids from school being such great kids. They want her to get involved in the young womens program. Then they wanted to include their son also." Well, turns out that now every Sunday and Wednesday is now for Church activites and us. They are a family of four!!!!
THEN! A recent covert took her friend to church. This friend saw a picture of the first vision and just broke down crying. Cecil and her 2 kids are starting the lessons TONIGHT! All of these referrals are really serious and "golden opporunities." I'll keep ya posted.
I love this work. It's awesome. I have seen myself grow as I have gotten to teach those who need the gospel. I want to share my mission goals that I wrote down.
1 Become the missionary/man I want to be.
2 Be a missionary of change. Leave EVERYWHERE better than I found it.
3 Don't just know who Christ is, but Know Jesus Christ.
4 I want to be the missionary who understands the atonement because I myself will do things for others they couldn't do for themselves.
5 Become a missionary that when I come home no one will doubt how I served my mission.
6 (This is the personality of a member who helps us out that I want to be like.) Be a RM that could be home almost a year, thinking about engagement, but would be mistaken for a RM of a month. (haha, hope that makes sense.)
7 Don't loose my greenie fire. I want to be a missionary that could train at the year mark. (President said we have tons of missionaries who train in the last 6 months, and tons who train at 4.5-6 months, but no one really in the middle.) I want to keep my focus so I could be called on to train at any time.

I know this gospel is true. I see the stone cut without hands is picking up speed as it rolls down the mountain. This isn't a worldly work. This isn't a human work. This isn't a temporal work, this is the world of our Heavenly Father.
I heard it said, "Sometimes we believe our Fisher Price compass will lead better than the Lord's Liahona." Let the Spirit guide. "Faith is the power, obedience is the price, love is the motive, the Spirit is the Key, and Christ is the reason."
I love you. I pray for you.

Elder Russell Christian Hitchcock