Tender Mercies and a Gold Star!

June 4, 2012

Dear Family and Friends,

This week was an awesome week and my boy Elder T is tearing it up. We had another great week and he’s giving it all he’s got as this is his last full week in the mission! We saw many miracles and I have a lot to talk about. Thanks for your awesome letter Dad it was really inspiring. I’m so glad to hear that my cousin M is going on his mission! I’m willing to give that kid everything I have if he needs it. He can have my suitcases, ties, I have a ton of shoes that are in good condition, books, and the only thing he won’t be able to use are my suits and shirts as they are pretty much done for. Just let me know what he needs and I’ve got his back!  I have sandals, a couple pairs of tennis shoes and basically everything a new missionary needs. I’ve collected a ton of things out here and I’m pretty sure he would like some of this stuff as it looks new. Basically, what I can give him is some shoes, ties, pants if he wears a 34-30, books, pens, etc. Just let me know cause I’m down to hook my primo up! I’m so excited that he’s going on a mission and I love to see the fire that new missionaries have.

My boy G is on fire and he bore his testimony yesterday in Church and made me tear up. His whole family got up and bore their testimonies as well as they have caught fire as well. He is having a huge impact on the Rama and his family that lives around here. Many of his less active cousins are coming back to church and it’s awesome to see how the faith of one person can help others around them. Church was amazing yesterday and the spirit was so strong during the testimony meeting! We had a lot of our investigators come to church and they told me that they felt something special while there. B was set apart as our new branch mission leader and he is going to tear things up. Back in the day B baptized 26 people in a week so we are hoping that he will be able to top his record here in Molalla! Chyeah! Anyway, we received another branch missionary which is a sister missionary  that just got back from her mission in New México. She is going to be able to help us out a ton as we usually don’t have that much time to find and teach over in Canby which is 15 minutes away from Molalla. She brought a friend to church with her yesterday that had been investigating the church some 4 years ago and was going to get baptized but then ran into some Anti-Mormon trash and stopped coming to church. We testified to her yesterday that this was the true gospel of Jesus Christ and that she could know for herself. We asked her to pray about it and as she did and she felt the spirit. She said she would give it another chance and we invited her to be baptized but we have not set a date yet. I know this is a tender mercy form the Lord and now she is ready to be baptized. Give her a couple of weeks and she will know that it is time! After church we had a birthday dinner for my boy M G who is coming back to church and trying to change his life and follow the Savior. He is a good kid and really wants to be better and we will help him out the best we can.

I still haven’t gotten the Chilean soccer jerseys but I’ll keep an eye out for them. That’s good to hear that H and B got home safely from Egypt! By the way, Happy Birthday to you, Mom and N, sorry I didn’t do anything for you guys but it’s hard to with so little time out here. I love you guys and hope that you all had great birthdays and I will make it up to you later.

Well, things are going great and the Lord is truly blessing this area and we are so privileged to just be here at this time. Many miracles are happening and many people are being prepared to be baptized and follow their Savior Jesus Christ. Next week I will be writing you and letting you know all that happened with transfers and who is my new companion. I’ve been told I’m going to get a greenie and train but who knows as it’s all up to the Lord and things can change. Whatever happens I am just pumped and excited as I know that the Lord will do what’s best for me at this point on my mission. I know that every companion and every area I have had until this moment has helped make me who I am. I am grateful for all the things I’ve learned so I openly welcome whoever the Lord has for me. I don’t have much time left, and like you said Dad, you have got to leave it all on the mat. That’s what my boy Elder T is doing and I will follow his great example and go out on fire!

Finally I got my first gold star on my mission which means that our apartment was pretty clean and everyone that has a nice apartment gets a gold star! They are highly prized here in the mission, CHYEAH!  Now that’s a good feeling, I put that star in my journal!

Love,

Elder Payne

Miracles in Canby and Molalla!

May 29, 2012

Dear Family and Friends,

Oh man this week was great!!! We’re seeing so many blessings from the Lord and the missionary work is exploding here in Molalla! The members are on fire and we are truly seeing the changes that come through real conversion. My companion Elder T is a beast and he’s not going down easy. Elder T only has a few more days on his mission and is a great example to me as he isn’t getting trunky but getting even more exited. He didn’t even want to take a P-day and he just wanted to work and I’m down with that!!!!! Everything is going well and I’m so thankful for the things that I am learning through the spirit and my companion’s great example. The other day after we got done studying Spanish I began to eat a little lunch and he said something like, “What are you doing Buddy, there’s no time to eat, we’ve got to work! So since that day we haven’t taken lunch and we have just been blessed to have people give us food along the way, like the old days of missionary work without purse or script. It’s pretty cool because we don’t have to buy lunch now and if we end up not eating lunch, we can just fast ha-ha. I like his fire and he’s definitely helped me to step up my game. No lunch from now on, time to trust in the Lord and that He will provide los alimentos.

Things are going great and we are seeing a big change in the mission. I went to the OPM Leadership meeting last week and basically the entire meeting was about, Amino (excitement) faith and goals. The Assistants to the President were getting everyone pumped up and waking people up from their spiritual naps ha-ha. It was a sweet meeting and it was a cool sight to see President Morby dropping the hammer and getting everybody pumped up. CHYEAH! This week was amazing and we had the opportunity to see the Lords hand and many miracles! Sacrament meeting was great as we saw many investigators and less active members there!!!!! Many less actives that haven’t been to church for years were there and being fellowshipped by family and friends. We had 80 people in Sacrament meeting and that’s the most we have ever had and I know it is because of the Lords divine help. The members are on fire and so excited about the gospel as we are encouraging everyone to read in the Book of Mormon. We have to start setting some more baptismal dates and I know that they will come as we continue to strengthen the Saints. We are teaching many member referrals and I have seen that this is helping the members to become more focused on the gospel. This week we were blessed to teach many people and this week I taught the most people I have ever taught on my mission. This week we will try to teach 50 people as it’s not impossible with the Lords help. It’s like what Preach My Gospel says, “teach where you find, find where you teach”! My boy G is helping us out a ton as he gets ready for his mission and he is inviting people to be baptized and come to church, he’s such a G!

Thanks for the great letter and the details about my boys speaking in Sacrament meeting.  That really pumped me up as I am starting to come to grips with the fact that I have a very short time to share the best message in the world and I want to leave it all on the mat with no regrets. I haven’t gotten the soccer jerseys you sent yet, but I hope they get here today because we are having a Branch activity and we are playing soccer in the new home of one of the members. She bought a home and a large bit of farmland but she has to remodel the whole house and all the grass had to be cut since it was like 5 feet high.  Well los hermano’s cut the grass in her farmland into a futbol field and everyone’s getting excited to play some futbol.  We hope to have a good turn out!  

I could go on forever about how much I love this area and the people but I have work to do and need to get going.  Things are going great and I feel like the Spirit of the Lord is truly blessing this area as the members are exercising great faith. I love you guys so much and I am so glad to be out here on my mission. I know this church is true and that the Savior lives.

Thanks for your support and prayers!

Love,

Elder Payne

Loving Life in Molalla!

May 21, 2012

Dear Family,

Hey what’s going on everyone! Thanks for the great letter G, it got me pumped up! Sorry, but I don’t have too much time to write today as we have been pretty busy! We have a lesson in just a couple of minutes so I will try to knock out something real quick and let you guys know the scoop. Last week was great and we saw a ton of success and many blessings from the Lord. You know my boy B, the one who just started coming back to church. He was just called as the new branch mission leader, CHYEAH!!! That just makes me super happy and pumped to see how in the Lords kingdom, somebody can change their life as soon as they are willing too. Like it says in Lucas chapter 14 I think, the Lord is happy when we are ready to come back to him!!

Last week I got some sweet boots and a cowboy suit at a member’s garage sale. It is like a $500.00 Mexican cowboy suit and I got it for $5.00. I’m pumped as I’m ready to go and I’ve got my style on now. I haven’t gotten the birthday package from Heather yet but I did get a card in the mail from Alex with some dinero. I will thank her with a nice card once I get some time. We went to Winco with G and his mom today and I got the essentials, fruit, pickles, protein and cereal. G is like my brother and I’m so excited to see where he gets called to serve on his mission. I’m glad to hear that Heather and Ben are okay on their trip over in Egypt and Israel and are doing well. I hope they don’t get stuck in a riot over there.

Things are going great out here and the work is growing. We have been focusing on Sacrament meeting and yesterday went great. Now we are consistently getting about 60 people every week, up from 25 and we are working hard to reach our goal of 100 this transfer. We are seeing so many miracles as the less active members are coming back and getting callings and becoming more involved. I just realized that my companion goes home in a few weeks but he is working so hard we hardly talk about it. He is a good example to me and is truly helping me out to be a better missionary. We are still trying to reach our goal of baptizing 46 people more and I know the Lord will bless us with that desire as we try with all our might to find the Lords elect.

We had a Zone conference last week and I was asked to give a spiritual thought about excitement and truly loving the missionary work. For my spiritual thought I dressed up in my new Mexican cowboy clothes and I roll played as one of our investigators. Then some missionaries taught me a lesson without excitement and then they taught with excitement and there was a night and day difference between the first and second examples. When we share the gospel with excitement and a smile, more people want to listen and can see that the gospel truly means something to you. Like we say in our District, “If you can’t get excited about the Lord’s work, you might as well go home”.  Ensenar con Animo! Everybody loves that and laughs but it is so true, sometimes we get bogged down in all the little things and forget what a privilege it is to represent the Lord Jesus Christ and how important our message really is.  We got the missionaries pumped up and they are doing great work. McMinnville, one of the areas in our district is now teaching 20 lessons a week and doing a great job. Less hour’s tracting and more teaching lessons, now that’s what I like to see.

Well family, I have got to get going but I love you guys and I am loving being in the service of the Lord!!

Love,

Elder Payne

Happy Mother's Day!

May 14, 2012

Dear Family,

It was awesome getting to talk to you guys yesterday for Mother's day and it seems like everything is going great back at home.  I don't have to much time to write but I just wanted to tell you guys how much I love you.

Things are going great and I love this area. The missionary work is exploding and the members are working pretty hard. We are seeing more people in the Tuesday activities than we have ever seen and each week lots of the less actives are coming back! We have put all of our focus on church attendance and reaching our baptismal goals and as we center our prayers and work on these two things we are seeing miracles. We have had 70 plus in Sacrament meeting for four weeks in a row and our goal is for 100 in this transfer.

Last Sunday many of our investigators came to church and my companion and I had the opportunity to talk about our mothers. It was a great experience and I will never forget it. This week we have a Zone conference with the Spanish mission and I have been asked to give a spiritual thought about desire and excitement. I truly believe that one of the biggest parts to being an effective  missionary is showing your excitement to serve the Lord and urgency to get things done. I will try to give a good thought that will help the missionaries get pumped up about being in the service of the Lord.

Today for P-day we played the mission soccer game with the North vs. the South Zones and we won. We have most of the Latinos in the south Zone we also had the P family come so we kind of had the upper hand over los gabachos jajaj. I talked to my best friend Elder W and he told me that yesterday he talked to his parents and it’s a done deal, we are hitting up BYUI together after we get home.  He gets back in October and we will both plan on Winter Semester. His parents want to talk to you guys to get everything set up or something so we can be ready when we get back so I’ll be giving Elder W your cell number so we can ponernos de acuerdo.

I’m pretty pumped as every week in the mission is flying by and we are seeing miracles as we are leaving it all up to the Lord. I love it out here and I love the people! It sounds like my boys that are coming home from their missions are also having a great time and are ready to start things up when they get back. Life just goes way to fast and I’m just so glad we have the gospel.

 

I haven’t gotten any of the birthday packages from Heather or Alex yet and I don’t know if they got lost in the mail but who knows. I got your package and thanks for the beef jerky G! I love you guys and everything is going great. I love the Lord and I will pray for all of you as I know the Lord answers prayers. Chyeah!

 

Love,

Elder Payne

Pictures from Molalla and Canby Oregon!

Molalla, "La Tierra Prometida" The Promised Land!

Mayo 7, 2012

Dear Familia y Amigos,

Things are going great and this week was awesome. A ton of miracles happened and the Lord is answering our prayers. This Sunday the whole branch fasted for more unity and I could definitely feel the difference in church as there was a stronger presence of the spirit. There were a lot of people in church yesterday and we have set new goals to get the church attendance to 100 this transfer. I know we can do it through faith and hard work. The Lord has helped us out so much to this point and I know we are going to see some amazing miracles this transfer.

 

Thanks a lot for the letter, its sounds like everyone is doing great!!!!! As you know, the family is the most important unit that the Lord has given us. That is so awesome that my cousin Manuel is going on his mission, I love that kid!!!!!! Can you give me his address so I can hit him up and see how he is doing?

That makes me so happy that Alex graduated from the University of Utah with honors and I will definitely follow in her footsteps. She is a great example to me and the whole family. Thanks for the birthday package and I really liked the pen you sent. It lights up and I have been using it in a couple of lessons as a visual. I liked the beef jerky and mangos, protein bars and journal. The journal is pretty small but just what I need, thanks!!!!!! I got your package on Thursday and I was pretty pumped to open it up. About my birthday, it was awesome!!! All the members remembered and the R family gave me this sweet tie. At the Tuesday night activity where we study the scriptures, everyone sang happy birthday and I felt like a million bucks. The P family from Woodburn (my second family) called me and sang happy birthday to me over the phone ha-ha. All and all it was a great day and I will never forget it.

Well I’m super pumped as usual to be out here and everything is going great on the mission. Today I get to watch a Disney movie for the first time with the Zone because we reached out baptismal goal last month, CHYEAH!!!!!!! We are watching Tarzan and everyone in the district is super excited to watch the first non-church related movie on their missions! I’m not saying that church movies aren’t cool, just saying that this is something super new and we are ready to embrace it. G also told me that he added me on Facebook but you haven’t accepted the friend request, when you get some time could you accept that. I think that’s really cool how I will be able to maintain better contact with all the people that I love and have met on my mission.

Well, I don’t have too much time to write as I have got to write a couple other people but things are going great. I don’t know if I told you but we have a gym in our apartment complex so we are getting swollen every morning at 6am. It’s my goal to come back home like a rock and weighing 170lbs of pure muscle and tortillas, Chyeah!!!!!!! Right now I weigh 155 and I’m not too fat so I’m on my way, Chyeah. Well, I love you guys so much and I’m so glad to hear that everyone is doing well. I love the Lord and I love the mission!!!!!

 

Love,

Elder Payne

Happy Birthday in Molalla!

May 1, 2012

Dear Family and Friends,

It’s my birthday and I’m 21 years old and I’m pretty excited about that. My day has so far consisted of helping out my sick companion porque el tiene los chorros, Chyeah!!! He has been recovering from some bad carne asada that we ate a while ago ha-ha. I guess eating too much carne asada can take a toll on someone, even the Lords anointed. Well, yesterday my birthday dream was fulfilled as G and his mom took us to go eat at my favorite restaurant, “COSTCO”!!!!!!!!!!! CHYEAH. You know I got a piece of pizza and a very berry sundae. Right after we chowed down my companion started feeling pretty sick so we rolled back to the apartment and stayed there for the rest of the day. I spent the whole time cleaning the apartment, ordering things on my desk, so that’s why I didn’t right back yesterday! Then this morning he started feeling better through the healing power of the Priesthood and now we are rolling again.

I haven’t gotten anything in the mail yet but it’s all good, I’ll keep looking for the packages you sent me. Well I don’t have too much time to write this week because I have to respond to some other emails and thank people for the birthday wishes. You should send me a list next week of the people that wished me a happy birthday so I can be sure that people still remember that I’m still alive ha-ha. Just playing, but it would be cool to see that and write some people some hand written letters.

This week was so awesome I can’t explain it with words!!!!!! Every week is awesome and I’m just so glad to be in this area. Transfers came up and no one in the Spanish mission was transferred so next transfer we will see a ton of changes. Well I’m glad that no one in the district got switched out because we are like a brotherhood!!! For our district activity, instead of going bowling, playing basketball or something lame like that, we are going to the fields to pick fruit. Here in the branch one of the members told us that he would take us out with him to go picking strawberries and it’s time to show my boys how some of the Hispanics out here work. I heard picking strawberries is super hard and I want to have a competition to see who can pick the most fruit. I heard its super messy too so we might try to pick la Cherry or la Blueberry. It’s time to immerse ourselves in the Culture G. Some of the Hermanas have been teaching me how to wash dishes without using the dish washer. One of the Hermanas can wash like 50 dishes in less than a minute! I’m working my way up there and I’ll never use a dishwasher again, dishwashers are for the weak. Anyway, I am developing this talent so that my future wife will never have to wash the dishes.  But let’s be real, I don’t know how committed I am to this goal. We will see how good I get at it.

Yeah, I don’t need that ADD medicine anyway but it did help me to read more but I know with the help of the Lord I can reach my goal of reading the whole missionary library. I finished the Book of Mormon and now it’s time to get cracking on La Biblia! I’ll write mom a letter with some good testimonies about how moms rule, I’ll even make it a district meeting activity and I’ll send the Elder’s thoughts to her. Dang, I just thought of that but I think it will turn out pretty good! It will help us appreciate our Mom’s and help Mom with her talk on Mother’s Day too!

Well I have got to get going but I love you guys and I’m loving life. I see miracles daily and I’m sending home my latest journal soon because it’s about full. I love being out here and my companion is the man. I love the feeling of testifying of the truthfulness of the Gospel and knowing that what I’m saying is the truth and the way that Christ intends for us to come closer to him.

Love,

Elder Payne

Summer in Oregon!

April 23, 2012

 

Dear Family,

We have had another amazing week in the promised land of Molalla. Finally the summer has come and the weather is awesome. It’s like 84 degrees outside and I’m pretty pumped for this summer. I got some good news that will help me for the rest of my future to man up and trust in the Lord more. I stopped taking my ADD medicine as I went for a check up to see how it was affecting my heart and the Doctor told me I needed to stop immediately. I asked him if there was any other medicine or alternatives that I could use to help me focus better and he just told me to except the fact that it was going to be harder in life for me to concentrate. Almost all of the ADD medicines are stimulants and they seem to be messing my heart up so I stopped taking them. It’s all good because I prayed about it and I know with the Lords help he will help me to achieve my goals and do what I need to do in the future. I liked it because the Doctor I saw was a guy from Argentina and he spoke to me in Castellano. Anyway I thought it was a pretty cool experience and I was only on the medicine for like 2 months. It helped me out but it’s not worth jacking my heart up or getting a heart attack.

 
Well, other than that this week has been awesome!!!! The members are doing a great job of being missionaries and they are all inviting their friends and families to the activities. We went to the temple with a group of members and went to go see the new visitor’s center that they just built. That is a great missionary tool and the spirit was so strong there. I love this place as the members are so Christ-like and willing to help out in any way they can. One of the Hermanas bought a new house that needs a ton of remodeling done. All the Hermanos got together on Saturday and we replaced her roof. It was awesome as everyone had some experience working with construction or carpentry or you name it so it all came together pretty well. At first I was a little scared up on the roof there because I didn’t want to fall but after a little while I got the hang out it!!!!!

We had a great Sunday as well and the lord is truly blessing this area. It’s like a big family here and because the Branch is in the beginning stages of growth, everyone is willing to do extra work. We had the baptism of M R, G's brother, yesterday and it was awesome. A ton of people showed up and it was a great experience. Everything ran really smooth and after the baptism everyone went to the R’s house to eat Carne asada, my favorite!!!!!!! It was a great time for us to meet all of their family and friends and we were able to teach a lesson to some of the youth there about building their foundation upon the rock which is Jesus Christ, Heleman 5:12. After that lesson, I went outside to the backyard to talk to some of the adults that were platicando (chatting). I sat down next to this one guy that was the father of the kids we just shared a message with. We ended up talking about the church and how we could follow our savior Jesus Christ. In the middle of our conversation he stopped and said, hey I talked to you a long time ago in Megafoods in Woodburn didn’t I, pero en Castellano. I sat back for a minute and then realized that I had talked to him in Megafoods, our supermarket in my last area  like 3 months ago while I was serving with Elder B. I remembered that we had just started talking in the fruit aisle and then I invited him to learn more but he told me he lived in another town so I just gave him our card. Then 3 months later I was chilling with him in G's backyard talking to him about the gospel. I didn’t notice until then but the guy was G’s uncle and was pretty close with their family. I knew this wasn’t coincidence so I invited him to be baptized when he knew what we taught was true. He accepted the invitation and said we could come by later in the week to share a message about Jesus Christ. It was pretty interesting to see how the Lord works in mysterious ways and I’m just glad to be serving in a place not to far from Woodburn so I could have this experience ha-ha. I know that the Lord prepares people to hear the gospel and we will help this guy and his family the best we can to come unto Christ.

Well, I love being a missionary and it kind of stinks to think that it’s almost over. I don’t think about it to much to be honest so it’s all good. I know my birthday is coming up on May 1st and I don’t really need anything. I need another journal but I can buy that here at Deseret book. I need some more ink for my Bill Blass pens so if you could buy me some more that would be cool. I also need some more razors as I ran out of the Gillette Fusion Cadillac of all razors you got me. Other than that I’m all good, you can think of other things if you want but I think that’s all, thanks for asking!!!!!! Chyeah!!!! I really just want Carne Asada for my birthday and I have already dropped the hint about that to some of the Hermanas so I hope my wish comes true!

Well guys the missionary work is on fire here. We haven’t reached our goal of baptizing 50 people but through heavenly fathers blessings we have been able to have a baptismal service every week this month. Yesterday, little M R was baptized and it was a great experience for the whole family. A lot of investigators showed up and D, a mother of 5 boys was there. After the baptism, the kids ran up to me and asked if they could be baptized as well. I was pretty pumped about it and we will have to work with the mom a little bit more before we can baptize her kids. We are seeing miracles as people are inviting their friends and family to church and the church attendance is growing every week. I am so grateful for heavenly father answering our prayers and even though we weren’t able to baptize 50 this month, I know that it is still an achievable goal. We will continue with this goal and I know through a lot of hard work, prayer, fasting and faith in the Savior Jesus Christ, we will be able to bring those that have been prepared into the fold of Jesus Christ. I am so grateful to witness the many miracles that happen every day and more importantly to have gained a complete knowledge that Christ lives, that he is my Savior, that this is his work and I have been called to bring this message to others.

My companionship is going awesome. Elder T is a great missionary and I know he is a hard worker. He helps me when I need to get pumped when I get down and we have the exact same goals in mind, to invite others unto Christ through baptism. We aren’t perfect and I know I need to work on a lot of things but we are doing great.

I have a great Mission President and am  grateful for his example. We just had one of the best Zone conferences I have been to on my mission. We got so pumped up to work harder and get the area book into good shape. We learned about  the importance of a name from Heleman 5. That’s helped me to further think about who I represent and how it is a great privilege to wear the Lords nametag for 2 years!

Well I love you guys so much and I hope you have a great week. I love being a missionary and I’m so grateful to be here in Oregon serving the Master. I know this church is true and that Jose Smith fue un profeta. I’m grateful to be a Latter-day Saint! Chyeah!

Love,

Elder Payne

Mas Milagros en Molalla!

April 16, 2012

Dear Family and friends,

I am eternally grateful for all the wonderful blessings that are happening here in the little branch and area I have been called to serve in. Like last week, countless miracles have happened and again I will not have enough time to share them but I’m keeping them all in my journal so I won’t forget!! I’ll be sending that home soon as I am almost out of pages to write in it. I thought it would be my last journal of the mission but with all the amazing blessings and miracles that I am seeing I think I’m going to need a couple more. Thanks for all of your prayers and I know that the Lord is there listening to our countless suplicas. It’s also good to hear that the family is doing fine and well!! I want to write everyone a little but as you know on P-days, you don’t have that much time to rest.

I like how you’re listening to General Conferences in the car back and forth to work each day. That’s what we do out here as we ride in the car or study at home. I love General Conference and I wish we had them more often ha-ha. I’m so glad to hear about the success that you are having in the Cherokee Rama there. It makes me happy to know that the Lords work is the same everywhere you go and everyone has the same common goal, eternal life and returning to live with our Heavenly Father. Time is flying by super fast out here and my first transfer in Canby is almost over. We only have one district meeting left and we have all had a blast. The District is on fire as they all have had or will have a baptism in the month of April. The Lord is truly blessing the mission and the people of Oregon and it is the best time to be a missionary and servant in His vineyard. Well, I’ll give you the highlights of what happened this week so you kind of get the feel about what’s going on in the small town of Molalla. Let’s just say the Lord is helping us to reach our goals that we have set with faith!!!!!

One night we received a referral for a guy who has been less active for about 5 years but all of a sudden has felt the desire to come back to church. We went to go see him and he was really a sincere guy. B is the man and he used to be a Branch President in Washington back in the day! He is going to be a huge help to the Branch and helping it grow as he has a lot of friends that are interested in hearing about the gospel! He came to the activity we have every Tuesday night and was fellowshipped there. At the activity we had 30 people there and that’s the most we have ever had before. The members are catching on fire and are really missionary minded. The activity was awesome and all the Hermanos went crazy as we decided to play basketball but most of them had never played before. It was a pretty dangerous game as there were fouls left and right but the important thing is that Los hermanos had a great time.

Los Jovenes (The Youth) of the Church are catching fire as their mind set about doing missionary work has been changing too. We have had to convince these kids that being a missionary is awesome but they just told us that it was boring. At first they didn’t want to come out with us but after finally convincing a couple of them and getting them to check it out, they think it’s pretty cool. We are getting a lot of the youth pumped up about serving and its pretty sweet. I wish I had gone out more with the missionaries before my mission but I honestly thought the same thing they did. Once we get these kids out and seeing what the service of the Lord is all about, they will have a greater desire to prepare and eventually serve. G is a work horse and goes out with us almost every day. He studies with us sometimes in the morning and he will be way ahead when he enters the MTC soon.

We went to the temple this week and it was an awesome experience. The Portland Temple now has a visitor’s center there and I hear its 1 of only 15 in the world. You already know that we are trying to get everyone in the Branch to go to the temple so they can feel the spirit there in the house of the Lord. I also got a chance to see my best friend Elder Weyburn who is the Zone Leader in the North. We reminisced about old times on the coast while we served together. We talked about going to BYU Idaho and how it was where we needed to be. I’m thinking about going in after Christmas, I think that’s the winter semester but I’m not sure. I could come back home and go to Chile for a while, work and get everything together so I can rock out at school. Those are my thoughts right now but I will still have to give it some good thought and see what the Lord wants. Who knows, maybe I need to go right to school and get married and start my family and kids and complete my priesthood duty lo mas pronto posible. Ill pray about it, but up to this point that’s what I’m thinking.

This Sunday was amazing!!!!!! It was probably one of the best Sundays I have had on my mission but I’m not going to discriminate against the other Sundays because they have all been good but I’m just trying to express that it was an amazing Sabbath day. When we walked into the church for our early meetings, I saw my boy B just chillin on the coach in the foyer reading his scriptures. He was reading the scriptures and was suited up in a nice 3 piece (it might have been 2). Let’s just say B looked fresh and that he was ready for Church.  Sacrament meeting was awesome as we blessed the baby and kids of one of the less active members in the branch. It was awesome to stand in the circle with all my Hispanic brethren that hold the holy priesthood. G's younger brother blessed the sacrament for the first time and did an awesome job. We had many of our investigators come to church and the place was packed!!! I have never seen so many people in church since I got here and during sacrament one of the trays ran out of water. David (one of the deacons) later told me that he was shocked as that has never happened before. It was a great sacrament meeting and there were 75 people that showed up to church. The Lord has truly been blessing us with these miracles as when I got here we had 25 in church but yesterday we reached 75. Our goal to double the attendance in Sacrament meeting has been met by the Lord and actually tripled.  I know that through the faith of all in the Branch and the hard work a lot of new faces and old ones are coming back. Presidente E was super pumped as he said that 75 is the most they have ever had. It was great and everyone was super excited to see the fruits of our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and hard work.

I really can see the Lords hand 100 percent in this part of his vineyard. Also another miracle happened as one of our investigators named T acted upon her faith and was baptized right after church! T lives with some members and made the decision to be baptized to follow her Savior. It was an awesome baptismal service and our mission President and Sister M also showed up. The relief society room was so packed that people had to stand outside in the hall. It was truly a beautiful sight to see Hermano G baptize T and I know that the Lord is truly blessing this family.

I am so grateful to my Heavenly Father for the amazing things that are happening and I know that all these things are only possible through the power of God. I think a lot about ether 12:14 as it talks about through the faith of his servants and his saints, miracles can come to pass. In the beginning of my mission I did not understand how my faith in Jesus Christ could help someone change as we all have free agency. Now I have come to understand that through faith, prayer, invitation, love, support, and work, we can help our brothers and sisters understand that this is the path they must take to return to their Heavenly Father. We are not taking away their agency but teaching them correct principles and then the spirit testifies to them that these things are true. I have also learned that in order to be baptized, it doesn’t take months or years of preparation but simply a desire to keep Gods commandments and follow Jesus Christ. I love the scripture in Alma 32:16 and I know it is true. I know God lives and through our faith in Jesus Christ we can accomplish miracles and do the Fathers will. I am grateful to be a missionary and a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints. I love you guys and thanks for your support and love. Keep on keepin on and I’ll talk to you next week.

Love,

Elder Payne

Milagros in Molalla!

April 9, 2012

Dear Family,
 

Wow family, I’m so pumped, I don’t think I have ever had a week more packed with spiritual experiences, opportunities to serve, miracles and seeing the Lords hand revealed. I know the Lord is answering our prayers as we are trying to work as hard as we can and we are seeing the fruits of our labor. I won’t be able to tell you about all the things that happened this week but I will try. Well you all know about the goals we set for the month of April, we want to double the church attendance and help 50 people enter the waters of baptism. Well the whole branch is pumped and ready to help us achieve our goals! First miracle, E G and her son I were baptized on Tuesday and it is an amazing story. I’ll give you a quick scoop as I have a lot to talk about. Elisa has been investigating the church for almost two years and every time she has gotten close to being baptized something bad always happened to her so she canceled the date. We stopped by the Branch Presidents house Monday night and she was there talking with the family. I had never taught her before but we asked her if we could share a spiritual thought. We shared a scripture and ended up talking about baptism. She explained to us that her life was rough and every time she got close to being baptized, something happened. We felt the impression to exercise our Priesthood and offered to give her a blessing. After the blessing she left as she had to go do something. Later that night we got a call from our Branch President saying that E came back to  his home and she wanted to get baptized the very next day. We gave her the interview and she was baptized Tuesday night with her 8 year old son and since her baptism she has never looked happier.

Another miracle is that I went on exchanges with one of the companionships in our district. We went to teach a girl that has been investigating the church for about a year but hasn’t been able to be baptized because her dad won’t give her permission (she is 12). We testified to her that if she prays before talking to her Dad and if she bares her testimony, he will give her permission. We left that appointment and later that night she called us telling us that her father finally gave her permission and she can be baptized. She was baptized on Saturday and the Elders in Mactown are pretty pumped. There are a lot more tender mercies that happened with this experience but I will have to tell you in the future. I know that the Lord is hearing our prayers and answering us through our faith in Jesus Christ. The District scripture for this transfer is Ether 12:14 “Behold, it was the faith of Nephi and Lehi that wrought the change upon the Lamanites, that they were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost” and I feel like this is coming to pass all around us.

Another amazing miracle that is happening is that Los Hermanos are pumped to come out with us. We had a member with us every day and almost all of our lessons are with a member present whether it’s with the youth of the Church like G, his brothers J or D, or Los Elderes de Israel. Los Hermanos are getting pumped up and they let us present our goals in Elders Quorum this Sunday. They are excited to come out with us as we explained to them that it will help us double the work we can do. Every Thursday and Friday night we have what’s called la noche misional. That’s where they meet with us and with Los Hermanos we do splits, Chyeah!! I know that all these amazing things are happening due to the Lords help and we are just his instruments. It’s like Alma says in Ch. 29, he is just grateful to be able to preach the gospel and so am I. By setting these big goals, we have been able to focus on our mission and we understand that we can’t waste any time. I know that it is my duty to share the gospel of the Lord and invite all to be baptized so they can follow the example of the Savior and be saved.

Now even though we have seen so many blessings this week, something tragic happened as well. There was the death of one of the members in the Branch. B S, she was only 14 years old and it was really tragic and sad. Everyone from the community came together to support the S family as it has been a hard thing for them at this time. She passed away on Wednesday and we were there to help out in any way we could. Having the knowledge of the atonement of Jesus Christ helps us to know that we will live after this life. We know that this life is just a time to prepare to meet God and learn from our choices and decisions. Yesterday they had the viewing and they had a Misa tambien because some of the families are Catholic. The family owns a huge business in town and has a huge barn where they held the viewing. About 500 family and friends showed up for the viewing from Washington, Mexico, California and locally. As we showed up to the viewing, we were asked to stand next to the casket while people walked by to make sure no one touched the body or threw holy water on her.

Her Tio G told me that she would have wanted the Elders to be right next to her and said that we meant a lot to her. At that time I was able to further understand the importance of my calling as a representative of Jesus Christ. We stood there for almost the whole night as people walked by to see her. Then today she was buried and it was done by the Catholic Priest. There were so many people there and it was good to see how many people were there to support the family. When the Priest was finished with his service we all gathered around the coffin with the people that were there and through the power of the Melchezidek Priesthood, we dedicated the grave that it would be a peaceful place and protected until the resurrection. It was a truly powerful experience as the Spirit testified to me again that this was real, that life will go on after death and the Savior will come again.

Well family, I’ve talked a lot but I haven’t even been able to explain half of the things that have happened this week. I have come to know that through true faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, working hard, being willing to do whatever is necessary, miracles can happen. Please pray for the S family. I love you guys so much and I hope you have a good week. I know that this is the Church of Jesus Christ and if we want to follow him we must keep his commandments and live his gospel.

The atonement is real and can heal anything as our Savior has already paid the price. I’m grateful for the things I have learned this week as it has helped me to appreciate everyday and everything the Lord has blessed me with. Thanks for your prayers and know that I’m praying for you guys too.

 

Love,

 

Elder Payne

On Fire in Canby!

April 2, 2012

Dear Family,

I don’t think I’ll be able to explain to you guys in this letter about all the amazing experiences that I am having in this area but I’ll try to give you a good recap. I have been so busy in the mornings recording all of the miracles that are happening in my journal so I’ll probably be sending you a another journal pretty soon ha-ha. This week has been amazing and my boy Elder T and I were able to reach many of our goals. We are like one as we think the same and are willing to do anything to do the Lords will. We have set some pretty high goals for the month of April but we have faith that the Lord will help us to complete them and more than that we will have to work harder than ever. I’ll talk more about the goals, district and plan of action on how to achieve these things in my letter to President M but I know this is going to require some major trabajo (work).

General Conference was sweet and I learned so much. I received the prompting that I will need to write my testimony to a lot of my friends and family and really let them know how I feel about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and all that I desire is there happiness and salvation. I loved the message from Elder Holland as he is a G and also the talk by President Thomas S. Monson in the morning session on Sunday. Priesthood session was great and it’s time to get the members out to save the lost sheep. We are so pumped out here in my area to work with the members and get these people back, Chyeah!!!!!! This weekend we were running around everywhere as we wanted to watch the conference with all of our investigators and families that are progressing. Saturday morning we watched conference at the R house and made waffles for everyone before the session started. We basically invited all of the youth over to watch the first session and made them breakfast to get everyone excited about it. Our investigator T showed up and the G family. It was awesome to see the youth all gathered around to hear a prophets voice. We had a lot of people there and it was really fun. The second session we watched with the S family and there we tried to help the little kids to pay attention ha-ha. On Sunday we went around in the morning reminding people of conference before and that was pretty successful ha-ha. The last session on Sunday we had our investigator D show up with his brother to watch it at the Presidents house. We then talked about baptism and D’s little brother committed to being baptized too. The Branch President then went to the visitor’s center with them and we went to make some more visits! All in all it was a super good conference but I do have to admit I didn’t get too much out of a lot of talks as I was trying to make sure everyone else was listening and paying attention ha-ha.

You heard about my boy G and how he just decided to go on a mission last week? This kid is on fire!!!! He has come out with us every day this week and went to all 5 sessions of conference with us. He has helped us out a ton and he is definitely going to be a big contributor to changing the missionary work here and getting a lot of his less active relatives to come back to the fold. He is the man and I’m glad he is so willing to help us out.

Well district meetings are going awesome and everyone is coming out of their shells. Like I said, my goal for the District is that everyone is just pumped and excited to be a missionary and through that conviction they will be able to share their testimonies and feelings with more sincerity letting the Holy Ghost work through them. One of my boys Elder A had the training and practice assignment about how we can teach even though there are distractions during lessons. To prove his point and help us to improve, we went to the gym in the church and while I tried to teach a principle, one of the missionaries had to hit a piñata in the background while wearing a blind fold. Now that’s what I’m talking about, let’s think outside the box, Chyeah. Things are going great and I’ll send the rest of what’s going on here in my letter to the President! I know this church is true and I will testify of the truthfulness of the restoration until the day I die, and then afterward as well.

Love,

Elder Payne

Dear President M,

Well this week has been amazing and we have seen miracles due to our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and our willingness to find the elect. My boy Elder T and I were able to reach many of our goals. We are like one as we think the same way  and we are willing to do anything to do the Lords will. We have set some very high goals for the month of April but we have faith that the Lord will help us to complete them.

We also understand and know that we will have to work harder than ever. It is our goal this transfer to double the church attendance of the branch by reactivating all the less active members. We have also set the goal this month to baptize 50 people!!!! I know that this is a pretty high goal but I KNOW, that we can do it. The Lord has been preparing this area for some great things and there is no reason why we cannot reach this goal.

We have already set 6 baptismal dates in the last three days with part member families and people that the Lord has put in our path!! I know this is a big goal but with all goals it requires greater faith, more planning, and more hard work. We are completely willing to do whatever it takes to find 25 new investigators this week and invite them to be baptized on the 29th of April. We have 6 that have committed already and I know that they will make it and be baptized. We have 2 Sundays to find these people and get them to go to church. We have expressed these desires to our Heavenly Father and have received inspiration and revelation on how we can reach these goals. We have decided that our P-days should be spent with the members, less actives and investigators so we can further develop relationships with them. We will take them to the temple or do wholesome recreational activities so they can feel the fire we have for growing the Branch!

We know that it is nearly impossible to teach 50 lessons a week just with two missionaries so we have set apart two nights a week with the branch where we will go on splits with the members so we can double our work. We know that service is super important and that instead of just doing it by ourselves we should involve the youth. We have already seen the fruits of working with the youth and members to get them pumped up and excited about the gospel. From setting these high goals this month I have come to realize that the only true way to baptize more or reach higher goals is to use all the assets that we have around us and work smarter. Two missionaries can be powerful but if they do not use their ward or branch, they won’t be able to achieve the full potential that they can in the area. That is what I have realized at this time in my mission and now it is time to get crackin.

We have been telling all the members about our goals to double the church attendance and baptize 50 people. They are responding with great enthusiasm and have a greater desire to help us achieve our goals; they thank us for working hard and want to know what they can do to help out. I think we have started something exciting here and know it’s just time to carry it out. We will pray and fast to have the guidance of the Lord but I am certain that there will be some major grow in this Branch this month and the Lord has and will bless the Saints. Well President M, this is my goal and my vision, the District is doing great and everyone is 100% obedient and willing to serve the Lord. I love being a missionary, keep us in your prayers and I just hope and pray that we can achieve these goals we have set!

Love,

Elder Payne

Teach With Enthusiasm!

March 26, 2012

Dear family and friends,

I'm so pumped right now I can’t even explain it. My new companion is the man and we are just living every second on fire and ready to approach everyone we see about the gospel of Jesus Christ. We both have the mentality that it’s time to go all out and if people think we are making them a little uncomfortable, well it’s all good because that’s our calling. It’s really cool as we are being bold, loving, and saying what needs to be said and having a companion that has the same thought process and excitement you do makes it so much fun to do missionary work. I’ve loved every second of my mission so far, but I can tell that this transfer is going to be super sweet. Sometimes when I get down, my boy Elder T says, “Hey man, what are you doing, you can’t lose your animo (enthusiasm) we got this!!" Then I just get pumped up again. We have set some pretty awesome and high goals this transfer and we know that the lord is going to help us reach them. The theme of this transfer is “Ensenar con Animo” or “Teach with Enthusiasm”!

Basically what I have seen on my mission is that there are a lot of great missionaries but when they teach or tract or do whatever, they don’t show their excitement for the work and that is one of the key parts to helping people understand the importance of the gospel. If they can see that you’re not excited about the gospel, the chances are that they’re not going to get to excited about it either. The theme of this transfer is "if you’re not excited about serving the Lord, you might as well.....GO HOME". You can really add in any sentence in the beginning like, if you’re not going to be obedient and wake up on time, you might as well go home. We get all excited in District meetings when we say that to each other ha-ha. I’m personally waking up every day ready to rock (Spiritually).

We have set the goal to double the church attendance this transfer as there are a lot of less active members that are not coming to church right now that we want to reactive. We have already had some really awesome tender mercies that I will let you know about after I answer all of your questions. I’m just feeling it and it’s my goal to help every missionary in our area get catch fire and get excited about the service of the Lord. Let’s be real here, being a missionary is the coolest thing ever, there’s no better two years a young man can have and I know that. I have an experience about how sharing that testimony really can touch people but I’ll save that for later on in the letter. Let me answer your questions first G!!!!!!

A few questions for you my boy!  How is your goal to read the entire missionary library in your last six months going? I’m about done with the Book of Mormon, almost half way through Jesus the Christ, and once I get done with the Book of Mormon, I’m going to get started on the New Testament.  The Old Testament is super long and I might be able to use my time reading other things ha-ha. I will finish the D&C and Pearl of Great Price before I'll try the Old Testament.  Do you still exercise every day?  I exercise every day and I’m in pretty good shape, I still weigh about 150 pounds and I don’t have too much fat. We have a gym in our apartment complex so we bought some protein and we are going to get swollen this transfer. Did you get to show little R the fireman’s carry and some other cool wrestling moves before leaving Woodburn? Yeah, one Saturday morning we went over to teach his family a short lesson and then afterward we talked wrestling. I showed him a couple of tilts, breakdowns and the fireman. He is the man and if he sticks with wrestling he will be a state champ one day!  What areas are in your Zone?  We are in the Spanish South Zone or “Los Soldados Del Sur” (Soldiers of the South).  Our zone goes all the way up to Tigard and all the way down to Salem. The District Leader lives in Molalla and the Zone Leaders live in Tigard.  How big is your area as it seems you will have to cover more than just Canby as it looks small, do you have Molalla, Newberg, Oregon City or Wilsonville? We have to cover Canby, Oregon City and Molalla so basically we cover the whole English Stake area. It’s a huge area and there is a ton of work to be done.   Were you able to listen to the talk “Profile of a Prophet” by Hugh B. Brown I sent you in an mps file? Yeah, I was able to listen to that talk and it was awesome. It got me so pumped up. It’s funny how people try to disprove the Book of Mormon and the alternatives that they come up with are so absurd.  Often they haven’t even read the book or been honest enough to seek an answer about its truthfulness from the Lord.  I am so grateful for the Prophet Joseph Smith and for the Book of Mormon.  The Book of Mormon is the key!  Anyway, I love the talk and thanks for sending it to me. 

Okay,  so I’ll give you the quick scoop about one of the tender mercies I have seen in my short time here in Canby. My second day here we went over to visit a member family and they have a son that is 19 years old but hasn’t decided to go on a mission yet. We have stopped by almost every day this week to read the scriptures with him and try to explain to him the blessings that come from serving a mission. Most importantly we told him he needed to ask God about it and that he would receive an answer. We received a text from my boy after church on Sunday telling us that he talked to the Branch President and he’s going on a mission! CHYEAH! We didn’t really do anything but it was through the power of the Holy Ghost and the faith of this young man that he made the decision to serve. It was pretty awesome and Sunday night we baked him a cake and some Mexican soup called Pasoli at his house for a Noche de Hogar (FHE). Life is great and I love every minute that I have in the service of the Lord. I know this church is true and all I have to do is share the gospel with all the people I can. Be safe and keep it real.

Love,

Elder Payne

Moving to Canby, Oregon!

March 20, 2012

Hey family and friends,

You’re premonition was right Pops, I got transferred and now I’m in my new area, Canby, Oregon!  And guess what, it’s only like 20 minutes away from Woodburn!  Chyeah!  I got sent to the area right next to Woodburn and it’s a little branch. I’m pretty pumped as I have heard the members are great and this place has a lot of potential. My new companions name is Elder T and he is from New Mexico. He has about two transfers left on his mission so I will most likely kill him and send him home when his time is up. I’m thinking that this is going to be my last area in the mission as well and I’m so happy to be here. I know that I am here for a reason and that I need to learn something and need to find some people that are ready to accept the gospel of Jesus Christ  and be baptized.  Well, Elder T is the man and we are excited to work together and we have common goals and we both have the same mindset. We are here to work and we are going to tear things up. There is a ton of farmland in Canby and it’s pretty rural. There are a ton of fields and most of the Hispanics that live here in Canby work in the fields. One day I would like to go out there and pick some fruit!  Anyway, everything is going good out here and from what I’ve seen, I love this place. It’s hit me that this is probably going to be my last area so it’s time to pick it up and leave it all on the mat.

It’s pretty cool because Woodburn’s so close so I will be able to visit the members and keep in contact with the investigators over there. Saying goodbye to everyone in the branch on Sunday was a really spiritual experience as I was able to thank them for the love they have shown me and for their examples. I will never forget Woodburn as I have learned so much there and I love all those people. I really learned how to love from the many experiences as I served there and I’m grateful for the companions I had as well. Yesterday the Branch President from Canby picked us up from the transfer meeting and I got a good chance to talk to him and get to know him pretty well. He is a really nice guy and he is involved with the missionary work in this area. Something that made me feel really good is that while I was talking to him he asked me where I was from and when I said Georgia he asked if I spoke Spanish in the home before the mission. I told him I learned it out here and he said I spoke pretty well. I felt like that was a tender mercy as I’ve been trying my best to learn the language and know after serving with a Peruvian companion for a transfer and not speaking English for 5 months straight I have finally achieved the goal of speaking Spanish like a native. I’m going to keep with the goal of only speaking Spanish for the rest of my mission but I felt like that was a pretty cool experience.

At transfer meetings, I said goodbye to my main man Elder W as he is going home. I told the big guy that I loved him and that he helped change my mission. It’s interesting to see how some missionaries feel like they didn’t do too much on their mission when they really impacted more people than they can ever comprehend. Elder W was my follow up trainer after Elder H and I know the Lord sent him to me specifically as he taught me so much. I’ll never forget Elder W and we will be lifelong friends. At transfer meeting I also got to see all of my boys like Elders B, W, Y, P, F, R, and the list goes on. It’s pretty tight how the mission is like a brotherhood and we are all trying to accomplish the same goal.

Well you wanted to hear more about tender mercies and last week was full of them. We saw so many amazing things happen that I was busy writing in my journal for hours. I know that everything I have learned up to this moment on my mission has come line upon line, little by little and now in this final area and time of my mission, it’s time to sharpen the sword, polish the stone and basically learn what the lord has prepared for me this whole mission of molding and sculpting. I know that where I am right now and who I am with is what is going to help me to be the best me. It’s crazy to recognize that all the things that have happened on my mission, the good and the bad, have only been for my benefit and now I am reaping the benefits as I am becoming more confident and sure of what the Lord desires.

Well, as I told you about my last Sunday in Woodburn, I was able to say goodbye to all of the people I have been able to work with while I have been in Woodburn

As we visited the families in the Branch, I told them how much I appreciated them and I have learned that a really big part of letting people know that you love them is by showing it and expressing it. There has been a lot of growth in the branch from our focusing on working with members and less actives and strengthening their testimonies. I have come to realize that the way to do missionary work is to work with members, truly show them your gratitude and love, working to strengthen the less actives and asking for referrals. As we  teach the friends of the members and their friends are there we see so much more success than if we went tracting for 40 hours a week. This is where my testimony and thoughts on missionary work are now. How can you bring new converts to a place where there is not a firm foundation? Now I’m not against tracting, I’m down with inviting or knocking on a million doors if that’s what the Lord wants but I have come to know that there is a better way. It’s not always an easier way and maybe that’s why a lot of missionaries don’t do it but I have seen the fruits and I’m glad I have learned these things with a lot of time left to use what I have learned. I will also share these thoughts with the missionaries around me so we can really see some changes. The current thought on missionary work here is that we are supposed to tract, contact, find, teach and baptize. There’s nothing wrong with that approach but I believe that there is a better way. I have learned from my last six months in Woodburn that strengthening the members and less actives is so much more effective. I don’t know if this is how things are in your branch but here in Oregon, most of the Hispanic members are still relatively new in the gospel.  Some do not have family prayer every day or read in the scriptures. Some have not even read the whole book of Mormon all the way through even though they have been members for more than 5 years. I think once we get the foundation solid through daily prayer, daily scripture study and FHE every week, then we are going to see some major growth. If we focus on this then the members will have a stronger foundation and have the desire to share the gospel with all those they meet. If we don’t do this and continue to tract and find new people, we will help others come unto Christ through baptism but we will just be putting more people in the church that will not have this strong foundation that is needed to withstand temptations and challenges that will inevitably come.

It’s sad to see people go and leave the church because they did not have strong enough faith or maybe didn’t have a solid testimony but it is my goal to leave this area when my mission is over stronger and with a firmer foundation. Sorry for the rant but if I want to preach this message to the Elders in my new area I have got to back it up right G? I believe once we implement this as a mission and as missionaries in general we will truly see true growth. My companion Elder T feels the same way and so did my last comp Elder H and we are going to do something about it here in Canby. I’m pretty pumped and I can tell you with all the conviction of my heart that I love the Lord, I love being a missionary and right now I have no greater desire other than to help others come unto Christ by understanding who he is, what he did for us, and what we must to do follow him. I love you guys and I hope you feel my flow.

Love,

Elder Payne