(NTo: mlflake@hotmail.com

Dearest Family,                                                                                                                          2/22/16

What an AMAZING WEEK! LIFE IS SO GOOD! I feel GGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGRRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!!!!! You guys gotta try this mission thing! Words can not describe the experience of a mission. It is exciting! It is hard! It pushes you! You laugh. You cry! Tears of pain. Tears of JOY! Tears just because sometimes the spirit moves you so powerfully to say something or do something or go somewhere or talk to someone! It is adventurous. It is dangerous. Not a single day is the same. It is never boring! It is heartbreaking! It is Fun! Way Fun! And it is about 50000000000000000000000000 million other things. OH HOW I LOVE IT! So you'll need to try it! And you can! Right now! Today! Be a missionary! Share the Gospel!!! Why does a name tag seem to make such a big difference? I promise that you will lose no friends! But you will gain many! But only try it if you are one who likes Adventure and Timeless memories! Because that is what you'll get! Oh, and ask dad about his experiences! I had no idea what I was getting myself into! The mission was so unexpected. But now that I've tasted a little bit of it I have some questions about Dad's mission. Ask him about his recent converts! Or his miracles! Or how he met people that were prepared. Or some funny or awkward or awesome stories about the people he talked to! Ask him how frustrating it was to learn a foreign language and how he relied on the Lord to do it. Ask him about his mission president and his companions. Some weird foods he ate or what he did for Christmas or what members just adored him. Those are just a few starters. The stories and experiences that come from a mission are endless and priceless and I am not even halfway finished with mine... I dread that day. But I am super excited to see you all again! This week we taught A TON of lessons again. We have one investigator that really wants to be baptized, but is on probation so we are going to start working with the first presidency to get him approved for baptism. He is cool. The guy on america's got talent! We also met this awesome French man from the Congo. His name is F and when we started teaching him that there are REAL LIFE prophets on the earth again, his eyes lit up and he said: " I have never heard that before." It is so EXCITING TO BRING THE GLAD TIDINGS OF THE RESTORATION TO THoSE THAT hAvE NEVER HEARD IT BEFORE! Oh it is wonderful. We have been having a lot of success with the youth down here! Because they actually listen! They are humble and teachable and not set in their ways! Because of this, they actually hear the message that we tell them! And those who hear this message... After they put forth a little effort... Inevitably come to the conclusion that our message is true! After they figure that out they are like DUH WE HAVE PROPHETS ON THE EARTH! It is so obvious for those who are sincere. I interviewed two youth for baptism Saturday, I was impressed at how simple and powerful the testimonies of these young ladies. They both had undeniable feelings that the church is true, and they are 11 and 13 years old. No wonder we are supposed to be like little children! With that being said, I want to invite each of you to do something, and report back to me by next Monday. I want each of you to ask Heavenly Father if Joseph Smith really did see Jesus Christ and our Heavenly Father. Pray specifically for that, and see what happens. God will answer. It may take a little while, but he will answer. For one of the young ladies, she said that she got her answer in the middle of school while she was sitting in her desk. She said she felt it. The other said that she was thinking about it one day and

 she felt a warm and fuzzy feeling in her heart. Let me know how each of you feel! I expect a report next week! And don't think I'll forget! I am excited to see what happens! And don't expect to get the same answer as someone else. God talks to each of us a little differently, in our own special way!

This week we also had zone conference which was lovely! Several hours with the President S! We also spent several hours lost in a hospital, but I think we were supposed to be lost or that God made us lost, because we ran into a man that I truly believe we were supposed to meet. And we wouldn't have met him if we wouldn't have gotten lost in this MASSIVE hospital. He was a good guy. We taught him a lesson right then and there, and he was very interested. He is going to start reading the Book of Mormon ASAP. So that was pretty cool! But things like that happen ALL the time. That is why the mission is so much fun and easy because we are not really the ones making it happen. We just smile wherever he leads us and talk to everyone! He is the one guiding our path! It is so cool to watch days and events unfold in a divinely directed way! We just do our best to be ready for every person, lesson, and opportunity that Heavenly Father miraculously puts in our path. I love you all. You are the best!

Dearest Family,                                                                                                      2/11/16

This past week and half has been wonderful! I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY! It will forever be a highlight if not THE highlight of my life. It is so exciting! With all the miracles and crazy things happening it really does feel as if we are in a fairytale. It is indescribably joyful work. The passion I feel for this work cannot be contained. I am so excited for each of my brothers and sisters who will decide to make that life changing and best Decision to serve the Lord in such a powerful and dedicated way! OH, IT IS GOING TO BE AMAZING FOR YOU! It is already devastating that it is a third over. Oye! Where has the time gone?!? I feel as if I just arrived! But then I look at all your pictures and see how much is changing and how much ya'll are growing! It is crazy. I miss you all more than ever! I just want to hang out with you all and talk! But, that day will come soon enough. This tiny portion of my life in the service of our God is way too short. We owe Him so much more. I know that the church is true. I KNOW IT. I will defend it and share that good news with every last breathe that I breathe. Until I cannot open my lips one last time. I regret the 18 or so years of silence that I did not do all I could To declare this Wonderful Message! I am changed. I am different, and I am never going to stop. Not in 16 months not ever. This has changed my future. It has changed my destiny. The course of eternity has been changed for me! And it will NEVER BE OVER FOR ME. I will not go back to who I was!  I am a new man! God Lives! Christ is His Son! He Rescued Us! We Can Be Happy Forever! HE DID IT! CHRIST WON!   How wonderful. And I am so exhausted. And it feels so good. It is so great to wear yourself out in the service of the Lord. This week we had so many lessons and miracles. Numbers wise we lead the mission. Spiritually, we helped a lot of souls get closer to Christ. And that is the one that truly matters! It doesn't matter the numbers!!! There are people behind them! There is this one 19 year old girl we are teaching who wants nothing more than to be baptized, but her family is COMPLETELY against her. She doesn't care! She is going to do it! She moved out and has her own place. But it isn't the nicest place. She got beat up walking home one day by 5 ladies... For no good reason. And then she got jumped and robbed in jack in the box the next day. The day after that, she saw the guy that punched her in the face and took her money. She walked up to him and said: " excuse me, you are the man that hit me." And he started calling her not very nice things, so Che decided to punch him in the face with all her strength. And knocked him out. So we had to discuss that... She said she won't do it again! And that about some up are area! We also started teaching some gang members. And we are teaching at a halfway house, and we have a big group that gets together when we come to teach. We get to like stand on boxes and preach the gospel Brigham Young style! It is pretty cool, a lot of folks are coming around. I hope all is well. I love each of you, and think of you daily!

Elder Flake

Dear Family,                                                                         2/1/2016

Life is awesome. Always is as a missionary. Right now I am sitting at
our kitchen table and boiling a massive pot of potatoes. Because I
love potatoes! And people here do not eat very many potatoes. Just so
you know.

I also got a knew companion! His name is Elder B.  He has been out about 18 months, but has
served in the mountains his whole mission, so down in the city it was
a little bit of a shock to him. He is learning Spanish, and likes to
have a lot of fun! We are going to get things done! He likes to fish,
and he played football in college  before he came out
on his mission. He is pretty cool. Other than that, I am still down
here in central Phoenix working as hard as I know how. We went to the
Gilbert Temple with W. It was good. We have been continually
been working with the French sisters, so that is good. I am steadily
learning French. I an not learning french, Mother, so that I can marry
a French sister. NICE TRY THOUGH! Spanish is good. It fortunately
comes really easy for me!

It was very interesting to see Greg and Noni at church yesterday.
There was one point after we taught primary, that I actually had to go
on splits with Greg, and we taught pat parts of a lesson. It was
pretty awesome. It sounds like he interviewed one of the recent
converts as well. Interesting experience.

We got to go to the Gilbert temple this week with W. We are
working our very best to talk to everyone we see, and basically be
balls of sunshine in a very depressed and dark area by shouting glad
tidings from the rooftops, on the street corners and EVERYWHERE. It is
so important to not forget how overwhelmingly important the message
that we bring is! THE MESSAGE THAT GOD LIVES! AND HE STILL LOVES US!
AND PROPHETS ARE ON THE EARTH AGAIN TODAY! Can you feel the joy in
that message?!?!? IT IS WONDERFUL! We have actual prophets who
actually communicate with God. We can know exactly what he wants us to
know! This is His church! IT IS WONDERFUL! Nothing else matters!
NOTHING. One of the Spanish investigators we taught yesterday said it
best. We asked her what it would mean to her if she knew a REAL-LIFE
prophet, like Moses or Abraham or Elijah or ANYONE, was on the earth
today. And she put her hand over her heart and exclaimed with joy: " I
would give anything to know if that was true. I would give up all I
had to just follow him!" I AM SO HAPPY! I love you all so very much.

President S also wanted me to help my new companion to
see some miracles. So he sent him to our area, because we
have been having an endless supply of miracles! So, on Saturday, we
went to this half way house full of lots of good and humble gentlemen
that have committed some sort of crime. We were teaching one guy
there, and then this other guy came out, so we started teaching him,
and then another guy came out, and then another! And they kept coming.
And then there was a jogger running by, and he came up and said some
things about how he has been searching for religion in his life, and
that he wants to learn more. One of the soon-to-be managers wants us
to come back and teach everyone that stays at those houses! He said
that he would make it a requirement! My new companion was floored. It
was pretty cool, but, honestly, if you are being obedient and working
as hard as you can, those things happen more often then you'd expect.

I love you. Please don't forget it! Have a great week my friends.

Love Elder Logan Spencer Flake