4/10/17


Dearest Family,

What a week! We actually had Transfers this week, and I am sticking
around here for another transfer. In fact, our entire zone is staying
the same... mainly because the Stake that our zone covers has been
selected to pilot a program from the area seventy, and the
missionaries are heavily involved, and have already received a lot of
training. Our zone is super tight and we are all very unified and
working on sacrificing and consecrating our all to the Lord. We have a
Zone Leadership Council once or twice a month where my companion and I
get together with our Sister Training Leaders and District Leaders in
our zone. We council together about our Vision, Goals, and Plans of
our zone. This week we had a pretty spiritual experience together in
receiving guidance for how we can inspire and uplift everyone in our
zone.

We are teaching a Presbyterian Korean Pastor. It is interesting. He
has a lot of questions, which make it quite difficult to teach. We
have come to the point that for each question he asks, we just give
him a list of scriptures to read, and we keep adding to the list as he
continues to ask questions throughout the lesson. It is going to help
us see how sincere he really is. Missionary work is the best. We get
to see miracles! Yesterday we had a pretty neat experience: about 5
months ago Elder B and I, as well as several other missionaries
decided to hike Piestawa Peak. When we got to the top, there was this
young Native American woman up there pondering. Elder B and I
approached her and started talking... eventually, we told her who we
were and about our message of Jesus Christ. It turned out that she
lived in central Phoenix, so we got her address and number and sent it
to some other missionaries down there, which were Elder L and Elder
Brn. The last thing that I heard about her was that they had taught
her, but then she moved to Georgia. I don't know how it happened, but
she came back and we got in contact with her again, and we met with
her Yesterday during church. When we met with her, she just poured out
her soul to us on the incredible things that she has been experiencing
in her life. She said that she had begun reading the Book of Mormon,
and then she got the Gospel Library App and started to listen to it.
She said that as she listened that the book really started to come
alive. When 1 Nephi 13 came around she was infatuated. She felt such
powerful feelings that she began to sob. She knew that this book was
from God and that it was powerful. She said from that day she has just
been different, and now the Book of Mormon and God and Jesus Christ
are becoming real to her. They have taken priority in her life. She
said that she feels like Nephi, she keeps trying to share all the joy
and happiness with her family, but they just won't listen. She is a
powerful woman who is converted to the Lord. She is looking forward to
being baptized and coming in full fellowship with the Saints of the
Latter-Days. It was pretty special to me to know and experience how
God has a plan for each individual person. It is amazing to think that
by just talking to a fellow hiker on a hike that she was able to
become converted and want to desperately learn more about Jesus Christ
and the Book of Mormon. It is a beautiful thing. God lives. Miracles
happen.

We had some roommates move in with us! Elder E and Elder Vn.
Elder Vn is from Norway, and he is completely deaf. I love that
guy. He is such a sweet soul. He can't speak... he can hardly read
English, all he speaks is sign Language. That would be quite a hard
life to live. But he is a ray of sunshine. He will be a Mission Leader
for sure. He is an amazing guy. He is 25 and he is a convert. We also
helped some YSA People propose this week. That is always fun... and
surprisingly spiritual. How have he missionary efforts of the Flake
Family been back home?

Elder Flake