Writings from West Virginia: MLC and Zone Meetings!

Hello everyone! I totally kinda forgot what we did this week.... so this might be kinda short because I can't really remember anything haha! I need to start bringing my journal to the library on Mondays with me.... that would probably be a good idea. Eh, hindsight is 20/20!

Last Monday we took it easy and played some board games with the YSA Elders. We ate a delicious dinner with the T. family! (All my friends are coming back!) and taught J. on his porch about the Book of Mormon! We really need to get into a better teaching environment with him. We discussed on Monday the possibility of going to a members home to have a lesson, and he actually seemed really open to that! We have been texting him daily scriptures, and he seems to really enjoy them! I think he will start progressing really soon. He was almost at church this week!

Tuesday was MLC! That was a blast! Elder Wasden and I were up at 2:45 that morning and headed out the door around 3:30. We picked up the Roanoke Elders (I got to see Elder Brenchley!) and The Pembroke Elders and we were off! MLC was fantastic. For those who aren't aware, MLC means Mission Leadership Council, where we as leaders of the mission come together to council and discuss about the needs of the mission. There was some really good discussion and I got a lot out of it. A lot of it was about the difference between a goal and a vision, and how they are not the same thing. We ate a delicious lunch of West Virginia Style Hot Dogs and chips, and President Salisbury gave each elder there a tie! How nice of him. :) I got a cool black one that when it catches the light just right it looks like it has stripes on it. We finally rolled into BV again around 10:00 that night. What a long but awesome day! It really is a blessing to be able to get to be instructed - and to be part of the instruction - by such great people.

We had our first exchange on Wednesday! I was with Elder Curtis from Lexington here in BV. He is a really great Elder. I love him! He has been out for just around 2 months now, but I always get it mixed up because he just seems so much more mature than I was when I was at 2 months. We had a blast together. He is from Mesa, Arizona and wants to be an aerospace engineer. How cool is that? I'll tell you what, it's super cool. We got to teach G. and his wife T. that night! We picked T. up as a new investigator by teaching them the Word of Wisdom. I know, kind of a weird first lesson, but they had so many questions about it, I figured we would just go ahead and teach it to make things simple. They loved it! They, or specifically G., wasn't quite ready to live it yet, but I think someday they will be.

Thursday we exchanged back and then literally all of the rest of the day was spent planning for the next week and planning for Zone Meeting the next day! The guess the funnest thing we did that night was go to Lexington to set up everything. Nothing too crazy!

Friday we had Zone Meeting! It actually went super well I think. I was really happy with it, at least. There was a lot of good instruction given and I think the zone got a lot out of it. We talked mostly about helping our investigators attend church by inviting them in such a way that their excuses are gone and they will have a wonderful experience at church. After that, Elder Goold and Elder Norman, from Covington, came down to BV with me while Elder Wasden and Elder Higgins went up to the Clifton Forge/Covington area! We had a blast together. Triple Companionships are always a ton of fun because there is never a dull moment. I love both of those elders! They're both fairly new in the mission, but they know why they are here and love to work hard.

Saturday we were able to see B. and D.. B.'s arm was really hurting her, so Brother T. took us over there to give her a blessing with him. We had a little lesson about trials and being healed from the things we struggle with. B. continues to progress and be amazing! Sister H., our Relief Society President, told me yesterday that they have a calling in mind for her. Woo hoo!!!

Our Sabbath was wonderful. Elder Wasden and I studied Lehi's Dream a little bit. It was a great Comp Study. ;D We really did have a great day! Sister B. had us over for dinner along with our friends the H. family and some of her non-member friends that she knows. We played around with her (really mean) cat for a bit and had a really good conversation about the Word of Wisdom with everyone. Sister H. asked us, "What do I say when people ask why I can't drink tea?" We taught her the short answer, "The short answer is that in 1820 there was a young boy.... called as prophet.... translated the Book of Mormon.... received other revelations such as the Word of Wisdom..... you can know if the Word of Wisdom is from God by reading and praying about the Book of Mormon, for if the Book of Mormon is true, Joseph was a prophet, which means the Word of Wisdom really is from God."

That was my week! It's funny, whenever I say these are going to be short, they are always my longest ones. Oh well, I hope you enjoyed! Thank you all for your wonderful and amazing support of me! I love each one of you! Have a WONDERFUL WEEK!

Love,

Elder Brax Johnson