Sunday, November 20, 2011

State College Week 5

I am doing well! Thanks for asking! I am in good health and happy. Actually I got a scale this week from the sister missionaries, because they had an extra one, so I was pretty excited to check my weight! And guess what? I'm at 155!! I was pretty excited because if you remember when I left Johnstown I was at 175, and when I left Avalon I was at 160 and throughout Harrisburg I didn't have a scale but i did gain weight, and now I'm down to 155! I've been working out pretty hard in the mornings and making sure I don't eat too much (which usually fails when I go to member's houses for meals because they expect us to eat like hippos.) and I'm pretty happy with the results.

I will be coming home Wednesday, February 8th, 2012, as for what time, I don't know. We'll have to find out when travel itineraries are made. But it will be that day for sure!

So things that happened this week. We helped the sisters move to a new apartment. I don't think I told you, did I, that my district is made up of 2 sets of sisters, which his cool! They're awesome missionaries. It was kinda weird at first because I didn't really know, and forgot, how to have proper (and by proper I mean, regular/professional) relationships with girls especially as a missionary. But it's cool now! We met with Rashid and Heather. They are both doing incredibly!! Heather is dead set on getting baptized in January. When she introduced herself in gospel Principles class she said, "...and I'm going to convert, or, um, get baptized in January..." She's the best! She has a spiritual testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith now, and she's just great! Rashid is doing well too! We had a great lesson with him, and he basically said that he'll get baptized sometime before he goes back to Sierra Leone, which is next summer. He's a great guy and he taught us some phrases in Pidgin English, which is what they speak in Sierra Leone. " 'ow da bahdee?" (how the body?) is a greeting meaning, "How's your health?" and to respond: "Ah tehl Gah tenki" (I tell God tenki [tenki=thank you]). Anyway both of the investigators we are working with are doing awesome! We're on the look out for more! I love teaching them, and seeing how the Lord prepares His children to receive the Gospel.

So what I'm going to be doing for the final 2 transfers of my mission, I'm setting a goal to read the entire Book of Mormon one more time by the time Feb. 8th comes along. That means at least 6.5-7 pages a day! And I would like to extend that challenge to you, my family! Wuddya say? It'll be tough but it'll be great! I'm going to do it. I love the Book of Mormon. It's one of the greatest books  I've ever read. Probably the greatest in the World! It's true! It brought and brings me closer to God as I read it. Just as the Prophet Joseph Smith said it would.

Love,
Benjamin




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Sunday, November 13, 2011

State College Week 4


So lots of things to talk about today! This past week sounds like a great one! Happy Birthday to Steve Today!! Wow, he's 19! CARAZZY!

So my investigators:
Dee-the lady who was going to get baptized this past weekend pretty much stopped contact with us a couple weeks ago. We don't really know what happened, she just stopped returning our calls and setting up appointments. So that was a real bummer. We're having the sisters keep trying to get into touch with her.
Fei: he went to the student brach this week and he loved it there! There are about 6 Chinese members there and from the report he fit right in and joined their little clique. So he's going to probably stay going there, and we're going to hand him off to the sisters to teach. It's a bummer losing him as an investigator, but I know he'll grow so much quicker in the Student Branch than here in the family wards.
Rashid: Came to church again this week! He's doing great! We took a picture with him so that he can send it to his cousin who is a member of the church. He also wants his cousin to e-mail us and talk to us. He's great and he's still considering the joining this church! Rashid is great!
HEATHER H.........H!!!: GOLDEN! She's married to a member and came to church for the third time yesterday. We met with them for the first time on Friday and were blown away by how absolutely gilded she is! She looks and talks like a member. Her and her husband have a goal of getting sealed in the temple, to help re-activate Bro. H.......hs parents that are endowed, and less-active. She's not even baptized and she wants to go to the temple!!!!!!! :D She even bought her very own Quad-set of the scriptures. She wants to take it a little slower and get baptized in Mid to late December-early January. Oh, and she baked us cookies. She is so awesome!!!!

Halloween was pretty fun. I carved the batman pumpkin, and this computer is being stupid and won't let me connect my camera to it!! Dang! I'll have to try another computer after this session is over. Anyway, this week was a great week, and the Lord really blessed us here with people to teach. It fulfilled the teachings in Preach My Gospel: He will lead you to them, or He will lead them to you. In this case He led the H......hs to us. The church is definitely true, there's no doubt about it. I love the opportunity I have to be here serving a mission and thank the Lord everyday!

Love,
Elder Benjamin Serrano


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Saturday, November 5, 2011

State College Week 3

I am glad that dad was able to recover well from the surgery. It really is amazing what modern-day medicine can do. It really is a blessing! A couple scriptures come to mind. It seems that the Lord is fulfilling his promises he makes to missionaries in D&C 31:5, 100:1 with the quick and good recovery of Dad, and Mel's, surgery and any other sicknesses or things that the fam goes through.

Those pumpkins that you all carved are incredible! We're doing ours today so you'll get pictures of them next week. I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do, but I'm sure I'll think of something by the time it rolls around. I'm pretty excited! Thank you so much for the box of goodies!!!!!! Those pumpkin chocolate chip bars were amazing!! My #1 favorite! and the cookies and the goodies! Elder Mason and I are going to rock those mustaches today when we go and carve pumpkins. I love you!!

That's so crazy to think that Mike is home from his mission! My how time flies! I'm glad that you were able to go and hear his talk. He's such a great guy, and I'm positive he's many notches higher than what I remember him to be 2 years ago. Missions change lives. It's changed mine incredibly! I can't wait to have the opportunity to tell you everything that I can't put in e-mails.

Elder Mason is doing great! I'm doing the best I can to teach him about missionary work, and I've found that my example is the biggest thing I can do for him, because he literally will copy things I say and do. Which puts a huge responsibility on me to be the best missionary I can be. He's great though.

So our investigators are doing great! We had an awesome lesson with Fei last night! We brought a member along who spoke Chinese and he was able to explain so many things so that Fei could understand. He served his mission in Taiwan so he knows the lingo of the gospel. It was soooooo cool to watch that. They got along great too! I bet Fei was impressed because an American could speak his language so fluently. Rashid came to church! He's back in town and we're going to continue to meet with him. He's great! The H.....hs (the couple that randomly came to church last week) came again, and we're going to meet with them on Friday. It turns out Bro. H......h works with a member in the ward so they know each other, and Sis. H......h who is not a member, is so awesome! She's going to bake us cookies to bring to the lesson on Friday. All in all things are going really really great here! I love this place!

Thank you for all the love and support you show me Mom. It really means so much to me! When I think about and pray for the family at night, I can't help but thing what a wonderful blessing it is to have the incredible family I do. The family truly is ordained of God, and is the most important social unit in time and eternity. Thank you for being such a great example of the gospel in the home. I love you and miss you!!

Love,
Benjamin


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