Relax and trust in God

This week has been a good week. This week I came to the conclusion that:

1. I need to stop being so hard on myself because I'm already naturally good at pushing myself and 

2. that I need to trust the Lord and just be myself while staying in tune with the Spirit.

So I'm just trying to relax and trust haha. It's been going good. I'm just trying to stop worrying about everything and just trust.

It has been way nice here! The weather randomly cooled down and it has been so so so nice.

We've had a great week, a week that I needed. We had multiple lessons where the Spirit was felt strongly. Where as I spoke I could feel affirmation from Heavenly Father. Where I learned as I spoke. And some where things just came to mind that fit perfectly for that person that couldn't be attributed to anything else other than the Spirit. Two in particular experiences stick out:

1. We were at a woman's home and taught her the Restoration. She is actually a preacher and was against some of the church’s teachings when we first started talking to her. As we continued, we addressed her concerns and helped her understand as we taught the restoration of the gospel. She loved it and at the end we asked her what she's thought and felt. She said she's always liked us coming over and that she feels the Spirit from being around us. 

2. Telika: Telika was baptized Saturday afternoon in Tahlequah, OK and we got to attend. It was super cool and the Spirit was strong. The day before I got to interview her for her baptism.  We talked a lot, got to know each other and we were able to weave the questions into the conversation. She has got one cool story! At the end, she said the prayer. It was a very sincere yet simple prayer. She thanked Heavenly Father for being able to be baptized, for all the changes in her life and then said something along the lines of "and thanks for helping me meet a new friend today". You know that's not anything big but that stuck with me. In less than an hour she felt loved and felt she made friends with a complete stranger.

These two experiences describe my week. I am glad
 I've been an instrument in His hands, that He trusts me and that He's made me the way I am for reasons that i'm just starting to discover. I've got a firm testimony in God being our loving Heavenly Father. I also have a firm testimony in the fact that sometimes we don't realize how much good we do. Sometimes we won't ever realize it and sometimes we need to just look around.

Elder Wold

The blower picture was in Tahlequah, OK on exchanges doing service with the Johnson family.

Heart, might, mind and strength

This last week, we had Elder Pearson of the Seventy come and speak to us. Man was that intense. We got some chastisement and were given things to work on. We're not bad, in fact, he said he's proud of us and we're doing good work. He's just trying to push us and have us push ourselves. It was cool.

He talked a lot about heart, might, mind, and strength. How we need to give our all to God right now. How we only have two years to be full time and to learn.

I've been making a lot of changes so far, sacrificing little things that I like to hold on to.

Anyway I'm doing good, feeling great! We had a good day Saturday where I was just completely focused on the work, on the Savior, and on Wagoner. It was cool to see how much more powerful and spiritual I was.

Elder Wold

Heyo

Hello! Sounds like everything is fine and dandy in AZ, except for the heat.

I just bought a strawberry plant today. Wish me luck with that! haha!

We're having fun here, same ol same ol hard working, door knocking, member loving stuff in Wagoner. We are working our tails off, I know that much. We've seen some cool stuff, little cool stuff, but cool stuff none the less. 

This week I've learned that as I rely on the Spirit and trust God, I just need to be myself and be prepared to share the gospel with people. If they're ready, they're ready, if they aren't they aren't. I trust God will find them when they're ready.

Some miracles I've seen this week have been that certain people in Wagoner have become more interested, like Samantha, a former investigator who we're meeting with again, to Jennifer, an investigator who we met with yesterday. After she read the restoration pamphlet, she asked us for a Book of Mormon before we went over it verbally with her. Cool stuff!

The branch here is doing well. We have a couple of our powerhouse members out of town or sick so the others have to step up, which is actually good.

I've been grateful this week for Heavenly Father trusting me enough to push me until I almost break. Then I become not only better, but I recognize the best things. I'm also grateful for a person I can always turn to no matter what in prayer. Prayer has been huge for me recently. Very grateful for prayer, for a Heavenly Father who listens to me.

I'm having fun and love y'all! Here are some pics I forgot to attach last week! 

Elder Wold
 

PDay at Cherokee Landing State Park in Park Hill, OK

With Bro. Hughes

 
Elder Kushner in someone’s front yard.

A better week!

We have a couple of new investigators, one of them going to church every week!

We went on splits with members and they went awesome! The members are getting more involved!

We have one investigator reading the Book of Mormon a ton!

We have been struggling with finding super solid people. 

We have made better relationships with the members and they are coming out with us to lessons.

Did I mention the members? Well they're awesome!

We do our best and are diligent. We talk to EVERYONE. WE may not have any super solid people but that doesn't bother me. I have two things that I know:

1. That as I'm diligent and shoot high for goals, it doesn't necessarily matter if I reach them, all that matters is what happens because I was striving for it.

2. This is the Lord's plan. And I trust He is in control.

So really I'm fueled on diligence and trust. I'm struggling, I'm working hard, I'm tired, I'm frustrated sometimes. But in the eternal perspective of what I'm becoming all those things are totally worth it. Plus we're having tons of fun! 

Elder Wold

Elder Wold & Elder Kestner helping a member in Wagoner do yard work.

 
The Hunts who served with Grandma & Grandpa Wold in Africa and who are from Gore, Oklahoma, took Elder Wold & Elder Krestner out to lunch.