And I Think to Myself

Hello all!

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you all gorge yourselves on Turkey and pie! I'm going to try to make a pumpkin pie this Wednesday for our district meeting. I think I'll be all right since I'm using a pre-made crust. (It was conveniently in the freezer when I got here. Libby's Pumpkin Pie Filling, too! But that was in the cupboard, not the freezer.)

Since I'm a big fan of lists AND I've been trying to find ways to liven up these weekly emails, I thought I'd give you a TOP 5 OCCURRENCES OF THE PAST WEEK IN OSCODA AS PRESENTED BY ELDER JOSEPH CLOWARD!

5. We're getting better at talking to people. Elder Valentine and I are two new missionaries who have not been doing a great job of talking to everyone like we should. BUT we've been getting better! We're still not having as many "Quality Gospel Conversations" as Elder Maynes challenged us to have while he was touring the mission but we're working on it. Improvement is always encouraging.

4. It's been a little warmer the past couple of days!

3. We committed a long-time investigator to once again work toward baptism. He wanted to be baptized last year but every time he set a date it fell through for one reason or another. We'll see if he will really make this a goal he will work toward but if he does I am excited to see him make the necessary changes in his life. He has a two-year old daughter who would be greatly blessed by his becoming a more responsible father.

2. We have been working with a man who was baptized several years ago but who had stopped being active in the church. After joining the church his health and the health of several of his family members rapidly declined and he told us that he was angry at God for punishing him when he was doing the right things. Two weeks ago, both of his kidneys failed and the experience has definitely humbled him. Now, I had been praying throughout the day yesterday that I might be able to be the answer to someone's prayer. When we stopped by his home last night he told us he had been praying all day that we would stop by. He seemed entirely different from when I had talked with him before. He told us he needed to make a change in his life and that we would see him at church this next Sunday. Fantastic!

1. Our three new investigators (the three younger sisters of a recent convert) are golden! We taught them the Plan of Salvation this last week, which they really enjoyed. They've read out of the Book of Mormon and came to church yesterday with their oldest sister.

Being a missionary is so much fun! I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving week!

Love,
Elder Cloward