The sticks

We talked with a lot of people this week. We had a lot more people come to church this Sunday, including a usually less active family! That was awesome. The branch has a lot of people, just everyone is inactive.

I'm going fishing today so that'll be fun. We're going for crappie so we'll see what happens!

Love,

Elder Wold

Wagoner

Wagoner is going so good! Here are some of the many highlights from this week!

- We had MLC (our leadership meeting and training) it was really good!

- We went on exchanges with the zone leaders right after, our Zone Leaders here are the best. They are hard working and just really cool and down to earth.

- Got a bunch of work done on exchanges with elder Leavitt here in our area. We set up appointments and made for a great next day full of appointments

- Got some sweet light up bike tire things from some Recent converts. They're sweet.

- Got to do a baptismal interview. Those are always so cool to hear their stories and everything. 

-  Had 2 members on 2 different days give us rides to far parts of our area to go talk to some less active and part member families. We have appointments with all and some should be coming to church! The branch is so very helpful. Members are literally everything!!!

There are loads of other stuff Im grateful for but I can't take so much time to talk about them.

Elder Wells is awesome, we're having loads of fun! And we're working hard and doing so much good.

 I've been pushing here and we've got some cool plans on how to strengthen this branch. Our Branch President is a stud too, he gets stuff done

And this week was better with getting to know the district better. I feel very close to them now. They are all very cool and hard working. 

Love you!

Elder Wold

On Sun, Apr 22, 2018 at 11:06 PM, Emily <woldfam@yahoo.com> wrote:

Wagoner, OK

So Wagoner is straight out there! Totally boondocks. Everybody just laughs when they hear I was serving in the city for so long. But the people are way nice and cool. The branch is tiny, we had like 25 people at church on Sunday! But those members are just awesome and are so active. I'm already close to two of the families who are just so loving and fun!

I'm with Elder Wells, he's from Gilbert as well, he went to Corona Del Sol (small world) and we have a lot of fun together. 

Not much to report on, the sun is bright and the days are fun. We don't have nearly as much work/resources as we had in the city to turn to. But it's alive! We have met so many people and I’m so positive and confident that we can strengthen this branch all together. It's cool, the missionaries truly are part of the branch here and we all have to work in close unison. 

The apartment is nice and everyone in Wagoner loves the missionaries. I really have nothing to complain about. God is with us here and we're going to rock it. We just really got to push ourselves, that's the difference.

There are 8 of us in our district, so 4 companionships. We have Elders and Sisters on the campus of Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, us in Wagoner and then some in Pryor. They are great people. 

Love, 

Elder Wold

Transfers!

So transfers came in and I'm going to Wagoner!It’s part of the Tulsa Ok East Stake. Wagoner has 8,000 people and is an hour from the Arkansas border.  It'll be cool, I'm a bit sad with leaving the 3rd ward, it's like my family here! But this is just how it goes and Wagoner will be awesome. The 3rd ward members were asking me where I was going and none of them have heard of it, so Boonie town here I come!!

I'm excited for some Booney town stuff. I've been in the city my whole mission, this'll be quite the change. Elder Vogt will be staying, I'll miss him a lot. I've grown

super close to the guy.

This week was good. My highlights were all on Sunday, first Brandon Whitfield getting the priesthood, teaching our new investigator, Enna with our recent convert Brother Ward and having Amanda and her family come to church!

Amanda has probably never been talked about in emails before so I'll give you a quick run down. She's a member, been living in the ward with her family and non member husband for like 2-3 years and she has never been to church. Her parents and extended family are all very active but she just isn't. We as missionaries have been going over there for a while, I went through our planners this morning and we've visited them every week of my 6 months in the area and missionaries have been going over a lot even before I was there.

Our visits are pretty short, usually just quick on the doorstep talks and invitations to church and stuff not very pushy at all. We have a lot of work in the trailer park she lives in so we always pass by and

feel good about stopping by. But nothing has ever happened. We can never set up appointments because he works in the oil field and the rest of the family is super busy so it's hard to set up appointments. We thought nothing of it, just a family who we wanted to come to church and never would. But she finally came yesterday for all 3 hours and even talked with Bishop after. They plan on coming again next week.

I love how it's all God's plan, I remember getting frustrated with them because they just didn't seem like they were willing to do anything. But it's all in the Lord's time and I'm sure we made a difference.

A small difference, just a stop by every now and then to check in, but one of greater importance than we probably know for that family. We are instruments in the Lord's hands. We all, missionaries and any members alike make a greater diffenrece in others lives than we think. It all comes back to Elder Oak's talk for me. Simple things are the most meaningful. They make a big diffenrece. "By small and simple things, great things come to pass...

and bringeth about the salvation of many souls".

I'm excited to continue to serve in Wagoner and to do 
whatever the Lord would have me do there. I think one of my favorite things I've learned out here is that it's not about you. It's about the people who are blessed by what we do. I got frustrated when I didn't see immediate results with Amanda. I felt like our visits were almost a waste of time. I wanted to see her come to church now!!! But it's not about me. They were blessed by what we did. What did we do? Not quite sure. Maybe they liked the attention,

maybe we were reminders of the church and something they could turn to in hard times or maybe they just felt our love. I don't know. But God does in His great plans for each of us. I'm just grateful I was able to be an instrument in that.

It's funny, this shouldn't be a big deal, this is just a member reactivation. But it means the world to me. And I know God cares just as much about His Less active kids as He does His non members.

I'm having tons of fun out here. Lot's to learn, but I can say that I think I've got a hold on this now. I trust God, so I've got this!

Love Elder Wold

M

 Transfer day toWagoner, OK on April 11, 2018

Easter and Conference Weekend

What a great conference! Great changes too, they are really going to  and strengthen the church as a whole.

I'm doing good, Not a whole lot to report on. Easter was good, we spent it with Bishop for breakfast, and at an inactive part member’s home.  Cool stuff!

If there is anything I've learned this week, it's been Doctrine and Covenants chapter 64 verse 33.  “Wherefore, be not weary in well-doing, for ye are laying the foundation of a great work. And out of small things proceedeth that which is great.” 

I’ve learned, don't be weary in well doing, we're laying the foundation of a great work, small and simple things make the difference. We need to keep loving, helping, caring and sharing. Just keep going. Elder Oak's talk nailed that down for me.

Elder Wold

Zone conference