Week # 76 SNOW..COLD...SNOW & FREEZING COLD!

Hi Family,

So most of this week was just normal until two days ago.  When it began to snow & snow & snow.   Our cars were grounded the whole day.  Then the temperatures dropped quickly to -25 degrees.  This was so cold so fast and so much snow that the plows could not keep up with the snow that had fallen. 

Saturday it warmed up enough to started to snow again.   Then more snow & more snow and it did that for the rest of the day and all the next day.  Since they could not keep up with the snow removal our cars were still grounded again.  We had the opportunity to go around for most of the day and shoveled peoples driveways and porches. We didn't go to church either because it was canceled due to snowfall being so great!!  It was a very long Sunday, but it was worth it because of all of the secret service that we did the whole day.  I am sore but so happy to have helped out so many people. 

The wallet guy, he is coming to church every week now but only to gospel principles.  We are not complaining, he has some great questions and is very interested.  I will keep you informed on how he is doing. 

I am happy and healthy, being fed by members every day and teaching a few lessons and knocking on a lot of doors.  Life is Good!

I love you all, time is up.

Love Elder Vance

Week # 75 Normal NOM week!

Hello Family,

So this week was kind of interesting.  Elder Wilson and I had a couple of interesting experiences this week.  One of them was on a Friday.  We knocked on a door of a less active house and no one answered, so we walked away and got in our car and started to drive away.   Then a lady opened her door and yelled at us to stop.  So we stopped and she and we talked while we were in our car. It was about a 5 minute talk and she didn't really want to come out on her lawn.  So we were kind of yelling back and forth to each other and it was kind of awkward but funny at the same time.  We had a good talk and answered some real questions for her.  It was great!

I am finding out that a lot of missionaries are going to or going back to Utah State including Elder Wilson.  So I will know a lot of people there if we go there and I will introduce them to Preston and Makenzie when I see them. 

 Sorry time is short today.  I got your package and I love everything in it.  The movie is awesome and really cool. Thanks for that! 

Love you, Elder Vance

Week # 74 Happy birthday dad!!

Happy Birthday Dad!  
Sorry for the late happy birthday but yesterday was a holiday so we couldn't email.

A quote from President Weston’s files.

"The capacity for hope is the most significant fact of life. It provides human beings with a sense of destination and the energy to GET STARTED." (Norman Cousins)

So on Monday we had the party for myself and elder McMurry and it was awesome.  There were 8 elders in an apartment and we ate food and played a game and then went back to doing missionary work.  It was very fun!!

So the wallet guy.  He came to church and is coming every week now.   We also got another investigator to come to church with us!!  Two investigators with us to church!!  I was very excited and happy for the rest of the day!. 

Another investigator, SF is coming to church now it is very good.  We are working hard to get more people to actually come out to church and get to know how the church really works and meet the members.  I am trying to work out every day and I got some weights to help.  I am not sure if it is working very much but I am doing it.

My time is up and I have to go.  Love you all a ton!!

Love Elder Vance

Oh and we now have a full time car, for some reason?!   Having a car now and not having to  to walk around in the cold is very nice!! wooo!

Week # 73 ~AHHH.....my wallet!

Hello Family,

This week has been great.  We are still teaching Brandon and Josh.  They are investigators that live next door to us.  They are coming along great. 

The temperature has been very cold, in the negatives.  I am staying warm enough; there are a lot of people home to answer doors when it is -31 degrees. 

I am reading in Jacob now and really enjoying it.  Later today we are having a birthday party for another elder and I.  I cannot wait.  I do not know exactly what we are doing but I a sure it will be fun. 

So a few days ago the Lake View elders found a wallet on the side of the road.   It had personal information in to, so they found the address in the wallet and his name is Yaping Tu.  He is from China.  They found out that he lives in our area and got us the wallet.   We went to try to give him his wallet back, but he was not home.   So we decided that we should just take it to the police department in our area. They were closed at 4 p.m.  Who closes at 4?  So we wasted a lot of time trying to get the wallet back.   So we decided to try again the next day.  We went and tried to find him around lunchtime and he answered and he said now is not a good time.   I am just sitting down to eat lunch (in a very thick Chinese accent).  So we asked if his name is Yaping Tu and he said yes!  We told him that we have his wallet and we gave it to him.   He looked at it with surprise and started yelling"aaaaa oooo!!" He was very excited and he invited us in.  We ended up teaching him all about the restoration and he told us that he is going to come to church that Sunday, and he did!!  He told us that he likes our church and is going to come by again next week.  I am very excited for next Sunday.

There were a lot of things that led up to that moment.  The day he lost his wallet he said a prayer to find it.   He was calm about it and the next day we showed up and gave it to him.   He knew we were the answer to his prayers.

I have to go,

Love, Elder Vance

I love you tons more!!

Week # 72 ~ COLD OUTSIDE ~ WARM HEART INSIDE!

Hello Family, 

To start with a quote from my Mission President Weston,

."People usually fail when they are on the verge of success. So give as much care to the end as to the beginning." (Lao-Tzu)

So this week was full of things.  New years eve, some one was sick in the hall way by  our door.   It was really stinky.  and smelled really bad for over a week.  So it is really cold now.  It is 12 degrees without the wind chill.  On Wednesday the high is supposed to be 0 and the low is going to be -12 without the wind chill.   We get to walk in it.  BuRRRrrRRRRR,  we are very(not) excited about that.

Good news is….We now have two people with a baptismal date!!  We are also teaching three new investigators that really want to come to church and be baptized.  They can’t because of their work schedules.  But we are working on them and I feel verygood about their progress.

Today I learned that Elder Hammonds companion Elder Levitt is going home.  He cant take it out on the mission anymore.  He is actually excited about it.  That made my heart sink. To be excited about leaving the lords service!?!  I couldn't just leave and be excited about it.  I don't know what to say about that or what to say to him.  Any ideas??

I am feeling better but I still am coughing.  We are out and about teaching.  We are listening to the talks that you have sent me in the past and they are really helpful for the situations that we are in right now.

I would love to have some more talks sent to me, would be great.

This is the smoothy that I made for dinner yesterday, it has mangos in it and pineapple, raspberry's, blueberry's, and cranberry juice.  It was very good and I needed the Vitamin C.

Tell Grandma thank you for sending me the blender, I  love it!

Let Preston know what a great job he did 5 & 0 that is amazing!  Wow!!! Nice job Preston!!!

I love you all very much,

Elder Vance

Week # 71 ~ COugh, cOUgh, couGHHHH

Elder Vance  12/29/14

Week #  -Still imagining your faces!

Family,

This computer is being dumb and won’t let me attach any pictures.  I will try later to send them.

I am currently sick.  I have been coughing like crazy and my throat is very soar.  I am doing better though.  I am still thinking of our chat on Skype.  It was so great to see every ones faces again!!

As far as counting the word heart in the BoM but I think I am in the 2 dozen something now.  I am going to rest now and hopefully get some medicine today to help me sleep and feel better.

I love you,

Elder Vance

Another Picture from Christmas Party Zone Conference.

Week # 70 ~Almost Christmas....

Hello everyone,

I am so excited about this week,

  

Here is what President Weston sent us this week. 

"Consider the postage stamp: its usefulness consists in the ability to stick to one thing until it gets there."
(Josh Billings)

So we are planning on going to a members home at 3 on Christmas day. T here name is the burks.  They are really cool and we are having dinner there also.   I will be Skye-ing anywhere from 3 till about 6 ish.  Are you going to be at the family Christmas party at around 3 on Christmas day? Or are you going to be at home?

So we finally found a Christmas tree at Good Will and it is really small, so we had to put it on a chair.   We could actually put presents under it and it looks kind of like a Charlie brown Christmas tree.  We don't have any ornaments or lights for it yet so it looks weird.  But it is a tree!

Other than that it is really great here.  It it is really cold and windy but no snow yet.  We do have two people want to get baptized though!!  They are two brothers about 25-27 years old and we have been teaching them a lot and they are soaking it in really fast. I can tell they are moving fast and understanding what we are teaching them, because they are asking a lot of questions and they are questions full of thought.  It is very exciting!

Thank you for all the packages, They are great!!  I think I have gotten the them all and they are great! Thanks!

I cannot wait to see you!

Love,

Elder Vance