Season 12 Episode 6, December 26, 2016

We had a fantastic Skype session with Alex on Christmas! It was so much fun to laugh and visit with him.  He said to say thank you for all the packages and cards.

It has been a good week. Let's just start Tuesday. Tuesday was one of the best days we have had. In the morning we tried by a potential investigator, but they weren't there so we talked to a few more people outside. And they were interested. Then we had a lesson with this guy at a coffee shop. We called him on the phone and asked if we can meet and he said he was really excited to meet and then he's going to be bringing a couple of his buddies. So we were down to find out if this guy was really interested. It turned out to be a Bible Bash. Haha! This guy brought his friends for moral support. They were there to help him make his point. So we are teaching them and they are asking all these questions and we manage to teach them a little. One of the guys actually was pretty interested in the message. So we are meeting there again to talk to him and if it starts to be a bash, we will leave but if it’s good, then that would be sweet. Then after that we headed to pick up a member.  He was a recent convert and he wants to go on a mission so he wanted to go out with us. We had a good lesson with Jessica. She is so ready and we taught her the word of wisdom and she is all for it. Then we had a really spiritual lesson it was kinda a breakthrough lesson. She opened right up and told us all of her concerns that she was having. After we dropped off the member we felt like we needed to go to Baskin Robbins. It sounds weird, but we taught somebody there a couple weeks ago but we never heard from her.  We got some ice cream and gave her a Book of Mormon. It was awesome. 

Wednesday was weird. We had a bunch of plans fall through for us. So we stopped by a bunch of people. We ended up teaching a couple less actives. 

Thursday we finally had our zone meeting. It went really well. And after that we had some business stuff that we had to take care of. Then after all that we went to Peacock Lane. It is a street in Portland famous  for doing Christmas lights. We went Christmas caroling. We just sang the hymns and it was pretty fun. We had a good time. And some people stopped to listen for a long time. So it was something that I haven't done yet. (Mom note: never thought I would ever hear Alex say he had fun caroling!)

Friday we played Santa by picking up and delivering packages to our zone so we had to go up to Vancouver. But we had a last second lesson before we headed in. 

Saturday was pretty boring. Nobody was home. 

Sunday was fun!!

Season 12 episode 5 12-19-16

This week was crazy. We had our all day P-day extravaganza. It was a blast! Our video took top spot. (mom note: that was the video he shared last week.) Then Tuesday we had an exchange. I stayed in Springwater and it was a good day. We got a call to give a blessing in the hospital. While there, we felt prompted to share a message with her. She is an active member just having some health problems. We shared the new Christmas message. It was cool  and we could tell she needed a pick me up. We worked really hard, but just nothing really happened for us. 

Wednesday we planned everything for our zone meeting then had a good lesson with a guy. As we were coming from his house it started snowing a bit. We had another person to stop by. Then it started dumping snow. Like Utah status. So we called everyone who was driving in. We were only like a normal 10 minute drive home but it took upwards of 3 hours. Nobody has a clue what to do to drive in the snow. In a place that "never" gets snow, it has snowed twice in one week. It has been called by the locals “snowpocalipse” (probably spelled wrong) but you get the point. So, we played board games the rest of the day. And Thursday was just a solid sheet of ice so we were grounded.  Friday was looking good but later in the day we were sliding like crazy and had to park the car. 

Saturday we were on exchanges and they came and blitzed the area. It was a really good exchange. We had a stellar day. 

Sunday was odd but good. They cancelled church. There wasn't even ice... but they cancelled church. But we went out and killed it. So it was a crazy week. 

Love Elder Astle

Season 12 Episode 4 - Dec 12, 2016

This was a great week. There was a lot that happened. 

This week we had an exchange with Cherry Park. They are a walking area. It also was like 20 degrees. So we were biking and the bike I was using had broken handle bars so we had to go back to the apartment to drop the bikes off, because it is sketchy riding down the road with wobbly bars. This was a good day. It was strange and cold but good. 

Wednesday we did stake reports. That was the basically the whole day doing paperwork. Then we headed up to Vancouver because there was supposed to be a crazy storm and we were going to have a meeting up there anyways so we stayed the night with the assistants. 

Thursday we had a meeting. It went really well. Very spiritual meeting. But we got snowed in. So that wasn't good. We were in for a few days because of freezing rain. It wasn't very fun. 

Once we were able to get back to work Saturday it went really well. We had some of the coolest lessons. Our investigator told us a crazy story about how she read the Book of Mormon.  How she had no cell phone service in her house but she did outside. Then she read from the Book of Mormon, and right after she read the internet came back in her house. It was cool!  She is going to be baptized. 

Sunday was a crazy day  as we just went all over the place. Sorry it is really short letter. But today we had an all day meeting and it was a talent show and a devotional. So that is was why we have no time. But I will send some pics. 

The video is what we did in the talent show. 

Season 12 Episode 3

This was a killer of a week. I learned a bunch. And we just had a bunch of fun. 

It started of on Tuesday when we had a lesson with this lady. The appointment was all confirmed and good to go, but when we got down to her place, we found out that she lived in a locked apartment. We looked for the call box and....nothing. We went to the front desk...nothing. It turns out that the place was a center for drug rehab. And because it was a single lady, we had to bring somebody with us. So the member that brought us was leaving and heading down the road. But she called us and said we could still come up. So we quickly called the member and he went up with us to teach her. We started teaching her and found out she has a couple of kids. It was a rough lesson as far as distractions go. The three year old was tearing up everything. We taught her and she said she feels like something was missing in her life. We asked her if she feels like the gospel could be that missing thing and she said yes. So she is now working for  a baptism date!! 

Wednesday we were on exchanges with Elder Hall. He is a new missionary and he is just trying to get his footing. We had a really good day. We tried to help him find out why he is here. We talked to a few crazy people. Elder Hall is a big guy. Like 6’4” or 6’5”. We went to this door and there was a little weiner dog. And it was barking up a storm and it scared him so bad!! He freaked out!!  Oh my!!! I laughed about that for a little bit. Then we taught this guy named Nate. He is a less active who just wants to have some happiness. We bore some big time testimonies. It was awesome. 

The next day we were supposed to have a mission leadership meeting but President was sick. So  we had a couple of lessons. It was a bunch of driving. And it was kinda a rough day. It was one of those days that was hard and you crave ice cream. So we went through to the day and we stopped by one more person before the end. They weren't home so we decided we could get some ice cream. We went in and this girl asked us what church we go to. She told us that her grandparents are members and she goes to church with them every once in a while. She doesn't feel really welcome because she is the only person her age. So we talked to her for a bit and she said she would come to church this week. Do you think it was an inspired ice cream run ? I think yes. 

Friday we had a bunch going on. We went to the temple visitors center with a less active. He really enjoyed it. Then we got wrecked with traffic. And they took a few wrong turns so like 2 hours later we finally got back home. 

Saturday we  went nuts. We had appointments all day. It was sweet. The first one was with a referral from a member. She is solid. She has been to all the churches and feels they are all wrong. Then we taught her the restoration she said it makes sense. And when we invited her to be baptized on the 31st and she was all down for it!  She said that when she commits to something she gives her all. It was awesome. Just had a couple of lessons after that so nothing too crazy. 

Sunday was again way cool. We had some random non members at the church. They were here for a business approach so the stake president just happened to be there. We introduced them to the bishop and they were actually really interested. So that was awesome! 

It was a really good week. Learned a bunch and had a bunch of fun! 

Elder Astle

Season 12 Episode 2, November 28, 2016

Sorry it is late to write today.

   Monday: P-day was pretty good today! First one of the transfer. We did a lot of the usual stuff, nothing too exciting. But it was fun! After we were going to meet with Sebastian, a recent convert who moved in, but he cancelled. So we planned our zone Meeting out with what time we had and then went to FHE. It was a dinner and games night. Dinner was really good and then we played Uno Attack with a bunch of people. It was a really fun night! And we had 5 less-actives come and Maria as well. It was a good turn out.

   Tuesday: Today we finished planning our zone Meeting and also planned our training. I'm really excited for it, we're going to talk about having a vision and setting goals! It'll be good. We were supposed to meet with Regis this morning, but when we went by he wasn't home... figures. So we ate lunch down there and we went to an appointment with Gabrial. He was home, but he didn't have time to meet he said. So we went by another less active, Nate S, and he was home and let us in! We had an awesome lesson with him! He is so ready to come back to church, and he said he would if he wasn't working! Then we met with Antwan and had a good lesson with him reading out of the Book of Mormon. Then we had dinner with some members and headed out to institute. It was a good day!

   Wednesday: We were going to go on an exchange with Spanish Elders (Elder Grasinger & Elder Hall), but they wanted to do language Study and we had a lesson at 11 so we just decided to exchange after lunch. While we were driving to our lesson, one of the companionships in our zone got in car wreck and Spanish  Elders had to drive them to the mission office. So we weren't able to do our exchange. It sucked. Plus, our lesson that we set up just last night wasn't even home. What a great start... we had 3 more cancellations today and we got stuck in traffic for about an hour and a half. So it wasn't going very well! But then we had a lesson with Gen and it was an amazing lesson. She said it was just what she needed to hear and that she knows what she needs to do in her life now. It's those little lessons and moments that keep me going from day to day! She also gave us an early Christmas present because she's going to be in the Philippines for almost 2 months. Matching ties!!

   Thursday: Happy Thanksgiving! It was an awesome day! We had a Zone Meeting this morning that was awesome. It was cool being able to spend time with the zone on Thanksgiving. After that we went to Jamie Painter’s and had Thanksgiving with her. Not too many members were home for it, so we spent all day there. The food was amazing and very filling. We also played uno for a while and then apples-to-apples as we let the food settle! It was definitely a great Thanksgiving. Hope you all had a good one as well!

   Friday: Today we did our weekly planning! It was a pretty good one. We planned for 6 people we have on date for December and January so that's always fun! We left after lunch to help St. John's with some service - moving people. Then we went by a referral that we got and we caught him at home! He was way solid and had lots of really good questions for us, it was awesome. We're going back again tomorrow to teach him! Then our other lesson fell through... so we went to dinner out around there and tried by some people, but no one was really home. Then we tried by a less active and he didn't live there anymore, but the new guy was pretty interested in talking with us so we gave him a Book of Mormon and then referred him to the elders in that area. That was really cool!

   Saturday: We had a stake Breakfast today with all the missionaries! It was really good food and good time being with them. Then we helped Shayla out with some service this morning before we went to a lesson we had set with Regis. Surprise! He was home. We ate lunch and then went to Mt. Scott's baptism. We only stayed until the baptism happened because Antwan didn't show up and he said he would. Oh well! We went back to Mel, the referral from yesterday and had an even better, if possible, lesson. He felt the spirit pretty strong and said he would be baptized on December 24th! We're so pumped for him! Then we went to Shayla's for Friendsgiving. Basically just a late Thanksgiving! It was so much fun and we got stuffed once again! It was so fun.

   Sunday: Today we had one of our members, Brian Golding, bring a girl he's been dating to church. We talked with her for a little and she took a Book of Mormon and wants to meet with us sometime soon! It was so cool and we're excited for it. Then we had ribs for dinner and, man, were they good! We had a lesson later with one of our investigators who we've been trying to meet with for a while! It was a really good lesson. He is just trying to find peace in his life right now, so we are trying to help him find it. It was pretty good!

Well it was overall a really good week! Lots of cancellations yet again, but we saw so many miracles as well and if it takes cancellations to get miracles, I'll take it! I am so grateful for all of you and all that you do! I hope you had a great Thanksgiving week and I can't wait to hear from you all today! I love and miss you.

Elder Astle 

Season 12 Episode 1, November 21, 2016

This was one of the greatest weeks ever. So much happened so trying to write this out is a struggle. 

Monday we had solid Pday. We played a bunch of ball. It was really fun. Then we had a family home evening. 

Tuesday is when it gets really good. We had a bunch of things happen. First, we were supposed to help  this lady move some stuff in the morning but she asked if we could help her later. So we moved some plans around to help her. She’s a less active so we were trying to help out. Then, we found out that it was out of the mission. So we had to call and cancel. But we were able to help out a little bit somewhere else because we had some time and we were pretty far out to go back and change. So we helped move some wood. It was so muddy and swampy. We were prepared to move, but not to wade through a swamp. We helped there for a bit and had to head back and clean up. Then we were coming back and had a handoff lesson with some other missionaries. We were heading back and in the middle afternoon we hit traffic. So we called them and told them we didn’t think we could pick them up and make it to the lesson on time. So they said to just go and teach him. We taught him and he wants to change his life. He accepted a baptism date! Then later that day we had institute and another hand off lesson with some missionaries. We met Chris, who is a way cool guy. He has a desire to find out for himself if it is true. So after a spiritual lesson, he is on date for December 24. It was a crazy spiritual lesson. We just testified about how he can have a relationship with God. 

Then we had transfer day. We had to make sure everyone was all good to go. We were the transfer coordinators. We just ran the show down in Portland. Later we planned a bit for the next week and got everything lined up. 

Our Thursday was a pretty tough day. We had all our plans fall through but  we just went out and hit it. We worked hard -  just nothing really happened. 

Friday was about the same. We had some things set up and nothing was going on. We are cleaning up records that have been here forever. 

Saturday was a good day. We taught this guy named Regis. He is an awesome guy. He wants to change his life too. He is working for a date in December. We were all set up to go to the temple with another investigator. But he canceled on us because he was hungover. Got to love it!  After waiting there for a bit we went out and talked to a bunch of people. We had a lesson later with another guy named Chris. We taught him the restoration and he wants to know Christ in his life. So we invited him to find out. He is also working for a baptismal date for January!

Sunday we had stake conference. We had a couple people come but not to many. After we had a referral from another set of missionaries. We taught this guy David. He was a truth seeker. He is just wanting to know truth. So we told him how we can find it. And he now has a baptism date for January!

This week had some lows. But it also had the highest of highs. We found like 5 people this week who wants be Baptized! That never happens!!! Also, I saw a rainbow for the first time here. You usually don't see one because it doesn't stop raining! So it was icing on the cake. It was a stellar week. 

Elder Astle 

Season 11 episode 6 - November 14, 2016

So this was a crazy week. To start off, we are ok - none of the riots in Portland were near us. But the people here are super mad that a certain man won the election. Haha! And, the freaks are coming out today. There are a bunch of them. No one has been hurt, which is great. 

But this week didn’t give us much time spent proselyting. Tuesday we were on exchanges and  I stayed in the Springwater area. Man it was a day of teaching! It was going from one appointment to another.  It was pretty cool.

Wednesday was us doing paper work. We have a stake correlation meeting on Sunday. Then we blitzed an area. 

Thursday we had a 70 here. His name is Elder Kopechke. He is from Germany. He was a way cool guy. There was a bunch I learned. He taught us a bunch so it is really hard to put it into words. He got us out of our vision and to work. There was a bunch of other things that we learned also like faith and what that does. I included a diagram he drew which was a cycle picture. He was a super great guy. 

Friday we had our mission leadership meeting with him and he taught us the same sort of things 

Sorry there is not a lot of details. Saturday we went to the temple and took an investigator. We were definitely protected because he was a terrible driver. But we had a solid lesson with him there and put him on date. He said he could feel God there. 

Sorry it isn't a big email. We have a rush for time today. We had to go to Vancouver to take somebody to the mission office. So sorry this letter is short. I am doing good.  Elder Johansen and I are staying together for another transfer. 

Love,

Elder Astle

Season 11, Episode 5 - November 7, 2016

No pictures this week...

What a week. We had a bunch of things going on. This week was a great week it was so action packed. The week started with a crazy fun P-day. We had a pizza party and played a bunch of volley ball. It was so much fun. We played a little glow in the dark volleyball but the ball didn't work very well. 

The next day we had our interviews with the president. We made sure everything was going ok. We were supposed to stay there and make sure that president goes on time. He has a tendency to run a bit long. We were staying by the church and we found a sweet guy and taught him. Then we came back and president wanted to take us to lunch. So I got to eat with the president. That was a good time. Then we were cleaning up and a recent convert showed up with his friend. We were trying to get ahold of him to reschedule but they came. His name is Antoine. He said he wants to be baptized but he just doesn't know when. 

We were on exchanges with the Mount Tabor Elders. I went with Elder Brown. He is a good guy. We worked really hard and saw some cool miracles. We met this less active rocker and he still believes everything about the gospel, but he just likes doing other things on Sunday. He played us some of his tunes. Haha! He sounds like a 60 year old rocker. It was fun. He was really cool, and wants to come back!

Thursday was a bunch of fun. We just worked it pretty good. 

Friday we had our planning and after that we had dinner with a less active. That is one thing in the YSA ward, we go out to eat all the time. So we have been eating some spinach to help clean out our systems. Keep us regular you know!

Saturday we were on exchanges and I went back to the good old Alameda Ward. We had good day. It was a hard working day. It brought back good memories. We found a way cool miracle. We had a prompting to go for a walk. It was raining and dark so there was nobody out on the street. Then right before we were going in for the night, we saw an open door. So we went and talked to the people at the house with the door open. That was the positive of the whole day. It was a tough day. 

Sunday we had some good meetings. We had a lot of people come to church. That is always good. 

Elder Astle 

Season 11, episode 4 - October 31, 2016

We had a really bomb week. We are really excited today about Pday. We have an all day Pday. So we are doing a pizza party with glow in the dark volleyball. It is way cool. The president is awesome. Last week we had our Pday and it was really fun. Then for our family home evening we carved some pumpkins. 

Tuesday- 

We had a normal day. It wasn't too crazy. We just had a district meeting, it was a good one. 

Wednesday we were on an exchange. It actually was a great day. I was with someone who was struggling a little bit. I was on an exchange with him just a couple of weeks ago. It was a great day. We shredded it. We taught a bunch of people. He has changed, which is way cool.  

Thursday we had a crazy cool day. We taught this guy and we had a super spiritual lesson with him. He is a really spiritual guy. So we have put him almost on date for baptism. He just has to know for himself. He is an awesome guy. Then we helped a less active move. 

Friday we had an awesome Ward party. We played minute to win it games with the ward. It was really fun and we had a lot of people that showed up. The YSA is so much fun because we have a bunch of activities all the time for our investigators. So it gives them lots of opportunities to get fellowship into the ward. 

Saturday we were on another exchange. I was with Elder Jones. He is the cousin of Carlie. It was really fun and we had a crazy night. We were teaching a less active and as we were coming back out we taught this guy. He didn't know who God was. It was a cool experience and we shared a Book of Mormon with him. Then after that we gave a quick street lesson. It was great day. Then we went by to see this referral at 8:30. He told us a crazy story about how he had his bible signed by a band member. Then he left the Bible in the woods and when he was in prison he found it again. It was awesome. This guy looked like Aragon from the Lord of the Rings. He is way cool. He isn't YSA but he was a stellar contact!

Elder Astle

Season 11, Episode 3 10-24-16

This was a really good week it was crazy busy. This week started by going by some referrals. We do that so much out here. We get a bunch. We made contact with some really good people.
Tuesday we had a good day. We had a district meeting. Then we had a good meeting with some of our recent converts. Then we headed to the institute. That is an awesome class. We have so many people that go.
Wednesday we had an exchange. We were walking up some crazy huge hills. Then we found a path down because the road got really narrow so we didn't want to walk down. But it was a bunch of stairs. These stairs went down like a mile. But they had a rails on the way down. So we slid down the hill on the rails. Man, it was fun! It was a great day. Really tough, but  a good day.
Thursday we went to our service at the DI. We get to help go through some clothes. We then went to teach a lesson to a recent convert. It went well.
Friday-
We had a good day. We planned for the day and after we headed up to St. Johns. It is a really long drive to get to up there. Not in distance wise, but it is long in drive time. We don't have too many people clear up there. But, we felt like we should go up and go by a referral. On the way, we tried by a investigator up there. He wasn't home but there was a lady from the Tongan Ward and she was there. She wants us to teach her sister in the YSA. So it was a good thing we went up there.
Saturday
We were on exchanges with the assistants. We started the day with some moves. We moved a lady out of this little tiny apartment. We busted it out in an hour. The we went to this mansion that had four stories and a bunch of really heavy furniture. So that was a brutal move. Then I went with Elder Iler. He is a cool guy from Chicago. We went by a guy who was recently returning back from inactivity. He is a chill guy. Then we went and tried to find some people. We had a fun time in the afternoon. Talked to a bunch of people. Then later that day we went on more exchanges. I was with Elder King. He is a great guy and always enjoy his exchange. We felt like we should go to the Tiptons. This is a house where two brothers  live. One is YSA  and one is in his 30s. We went and talked to the older one. He was really having some problems but we shared a message of the atonement. He told us that he is also having health problems. It was a good thing to go by to visit him.
Sunday was also way good. We had some members bring their friends and they were interested. It is so awesome!
Elder Astle

Season 11, Episode 2, October 17, 2016

This week was a great one. So much stuff happened.  We have a couple people who were on date for this Saturday. So we met with one of them on Monday. It was good. We just went over a couple things. She is so solid. They only taught her like once before I came and we just finishing up teaching her this week.
Tuesday was a pretty tough day. We went by a bunch of referrals but nothing happened. It was a really fun day we went on exchanges that day.
Wednesday we were preparing for our zone meeting. And then later we took Gen to the temple. Gen is from the Philippines and she referred herself to us. She has a dad that is a member. She is one of the ones getting baptized on Saturday. The temple was really cool. They do a good job there. The spirit is really strong. That was a solid day. Gen told us after she wants to get baptized and then get married there.
Thursday the crazy stuff started happening. So zone meeting is little different on the other side of the spectrum. It went really good. It takes a bunch of preparation and planning to try to make everyone  feel like it was a good meeting. But it beats preparing one every week. The meeting went good. We taught them about being genuine with people. Then we did some service at the DI. We sorted some clothes. While we were heading back, we got a call that said one of the missionaries in the zone got hit by a car. By the way - he is fine and recovering very fast and nothing too serious happened, just some bumps and bruises. So we hauled to go to his companion. So he was with us for a couple of days. Friday we had appointments all day so it was nuts. We were just running to all the appointments. Saturday we had a few baptisms.
So we were actually supposed to have a mission  conference with Elder Neil L. Andersen and Elder Christiansen from the 70. So we were all stoked. But then there was some, sort of typhoon that was supposed to hit. So they cancelled the conference. Which was really frustrating at first. But the weather actually wasn't bad. We got a call Saturday morning that we need to stay in but then it never hit. So we were able to get a good weekend in.
The week has been good. Never thought I would get so many calls from the president though. We have been on the phone a bunch. But it was good week.

Season 11 Episode 1, October 10, 2016

This week is crazy. We finished up in the Prune Hill and Grass Valley Wards.

This  new area is popping. There are people wanting to get baptized everywhere, which is a dramatic change from the last area. The whole week we have been running around like crazy. Not much happened Monday and Tuesday.
Wednesday we had our transfers. So we spent most of the day making sure everybody was settled in and ready to go. Then the rest of the day we had appointments.
Thursday, we had our mission leadership meeting. It was a good meeting. I loved the talks. They were great.

Then we had a sports night and had our gators come.
Friday we did our stake reports. So, that basically means five hours of paper work. We just busted it out and they were brutal. So much paper work!!!!
Saturday, we got a way crazy phone call. It was for a lady who had a friend who she wanted to take to the temple. We had no idea what was going to happen. We met him there and talked to him and this guy is solid. He is solid. We put him on date as well. It was a miracle because we have been trying to get all the business stuff ready. So the Lord was blessing us.
It is a short one today but it was a great week.
See you later.
Elder Astle

Season 10 Episode 6

We had a very very good week. To start off, we are being transferred. Elder Brown is staying in Prune Hill and I am going to the Springwater YSA ward. This is where it gets weird, I am getting as my new companion… Elder Johansen. The same one I was companions with before. This transfer call brings a little more responsibility than what I am at right now. They called me as a zone leader.  But how crazy is that we are companions again?! I'm going to live in the same tiny apartment that I lived in when I was in Rocky Butte ward. So back to Portland I come.
As far as missionary work goes, this was kinda a crazy one. Monday after our Pday we went to the church for just a second to make a few phone calls. Then this less active shows up and they were looking for their kid’s car. It was perfect timing on our part to be there. Then we help their kid look for the car for a second and no luck. But I think we made a good impression on the less active. Shortly after that we felt like we should go and visit this potential investigator. She basically asked us for a Book of Mormon!  It was really cool. She just has a lot of things going on right now and the gospel just rings true. We were able to find two new investigators Monday night. That is a miracle in and of itself in the area that we are in.
Wednesday was a really great day as well. We were working hard and felt like we should go by the African family that we have been teaching. Turns out he was outside trying to put in a palm tree. He asked us questions about what we do all day and what happens when people turn us away. We were able to teach him about our purpose as missionaries. And what is the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is the first time that we both felt that we should invite him to be baptized. I think we established why we go over there now so hopefully in the future he knows that we don't just come to share a quick message but really our end goal is to share about Jesus Christ.
Friday was a pretty good day.  One of the elders that we live with is going home and we had to take him out to the mission office. So we did our planning out at the mission office. Then we both felt like we should go down to the river. Going down to the river takes a long time so when you go down it has to be for something really important. We don't make it down there very much. It doesn't have any direct roads to get down there as the only direct road is closed off. So we take a couple other winding roads that go down. The crazy roads add on about 10 minutes to get down there. We actually were able to make contact with some of the hardest people to make contact with. We went by this one guy named James and he was actually just thinking about us. He said he was really wanting to come to church so we were able to tell him where the church was and give them more information. He's a really faithful guy and just wanted to check us out. Which we will definitely take, because getting people to church is extremely hard and when they're willing to come it makes it so much easier.
Conference Saturday was great. We texted a few members and asked if we could come over and watch it with them and then they asked if we could eat breakfast with their family. And guess what?  They maaaaaadddddee... pull-a-parts!!!! It was heaven.

Alex got spoiled for both conference morning sessions...pull aparts at each one!  He adores pull aparts!

But the sessions of conference  were really really good. Definitely felt the spirit the whole time and especially the Saturday sessions just set a tone for the rest of the meetings. As far as the in between hours, not much happens on the in between hours. We went to the stake center to watch priesthood session. Basically conference took up most of Saturday. There were a couple hours in between that we did what we could in that time.  But for the most part, it was watching general conference. Same goes with Sunday. The sessions were really great as well and there were some very good speakers. We were a little bit bummed because we are supposed to watch it with an investigator but she flaked on us. I don't know if I have a favorite talk right now. There are a few of them that I liked a lot. One of which was Dallon H. Oaks talk about missionary work. He hit on some really big points that we've been trying to do to help get the members to do missionary work. The talk about service was awesome as well. We also found some really good news! We are having apostles come to the mission. We are having Elder Neal A. Andersen, and Elder Craig C. Christensen from the 70 and another presiding bishopric member.

Elder Astle

Fall

At the m

Season 10 Episode 5

I have had a good week. It was a very busy week. Started off with a really fun P-Day last week. I haven't done anything crazy fun this transfer. Last week we played some volleyball. Then later that night we were able to stop by a less active member. It was a quick visit, but it was a good visit.  We are. going to be going back. It's been hard to find less active members that are actually  willing to be taught. They are more stuck in their ways than the people that we meet.
Tuesday we had a district meeting. It went really well. I trained on promising blessings. That was an interesting thing to study. What I found out was that when we have the faith to promise people blessings, if we promised them with the spirit, those blessings will come true. And we practiced doing that in district meeting and it went really well.  We were able to talk about who we can have faith for and promise them blessings. Then later that day I got to give my first baptismal interview. That was a great experience, the girl that was getting baptized had a lot of faith. She was a 13-year-old girl. She didn't have much family support so it showed that she was really willing to be baptized. I forgot some of the questions so I actually had to read them but I think the interview went really well. It was really short but it was really easy too.  She just had no problems with any of the questions.
Wednesday we had a great day. We were out with a guy who was about to leave on his mission. We took him out for a couple of hours in the afternoon. As we were driving by we found our investigator walking down the street. She's the investigator that we put on date two weeks ago and she has been really hard to make contact with ever since. She also does have some really tough concerns. So we saw her waiting there and we pulled over and went to go talk to her. She had a lot of questions about Joseph Smith. We were able to answer those questions and set up a time to go back and answer more questions.
Thursday we were on exchanges. So it was a good day, not too much happened. Then we set up a few appointments for the next day.
Friday we would've had our lesson with Susanna. But she sent us a text and canceled and the way her text sounded like she was going to drop us. So it is always an up and down game with her. But we were able to have another lesson that we had set up the night before with another lady. It was a quick restoration lesson and we were able to invite her to be baptized on the first lesson. It went well.  There were no real problems or questions that she had. So that was a huge positive.
Saturday we attended a child of record baptism. That was awesome. We were invited by the members because they had non member and less active family attending the baptism.
Sunday that day was crazy. Church then more church. The last Sacrament meeting was the primary program. I still don't get the primary program, it is about the only Sunday were people actually invite people to church. We had 10 or 11 nonmembers at church that we didn't even invite or even know for that matter. If only every Sunday could be like this!

Elder Astle

Season 10 episode 4 - birthday week

So my boy turned 20 last week.  That blows my mind that he could be out of the teens.  We have been so spoiled by our cute  lovely friend Angie, with her pictures and updates.  She threw Alex a birthday party and went completely crazy spoiling him.  I completely love it, of course!  It is so nice to know he is loved and taken care of while he is away from home.  It is such a blessing to have people like Angie loving on my boy!  Super happy momma here!

click here to see video

Angie asked me what Alex liked, apparently she got the lot!

Garrett Snell and his fellow batmen.

The cute Snell batcave!

There was a text about a recipe for Alex's requested Turtle pie...it's really hard to make.  Marie Calendar's frozen pie...  He looks happy!

Now for the actual letter from Alex:

This was a really good week. We put in a lot of time this week. On Monday we had a good P-day. We went shopping then played sports.
Tuesday-
We had a really good zone conference. President talked about faith. They also talked about ways we can improve our teaching skills. It was a really good meeting especially when we talked about prayer. Something that stuck out to me was to pray to know how to pray. It was really good meeting. I learned a bunch. That was good day. The pizzas came nice.  (we sent pizza for his birthday). We had a bunch of cake, and partied a little bit.
Wednesday-
We had a zone service project. We went to this sketchy summer camp to help a lady out. We just moved branches from the middle of the camp into the forest. It was really easy. Not too much work. Then the miracle of the day- we have been inviting our investigators to come to scouts. There was a court of honor. So the Ward missionary invited them and we were just at the church for a minute and t we saw these investigators walk in. So we went to the court of honor with them. That was really cool ! We have been trying to get them to the building for the longest time. They finally came, and they are interested in scouting.
Thursday-
We had a really good day. We went down to the river to talk to a less active. She is really hard to contact. And  this day we made contact with her. Then we went out with the Ward mission leader.
Friday-
We planned for the week for the first part of the day. But the later part of the day was awesome. We took out this guy who is about to leave on his mission. We went to a couple places and had him pick where we go. We found some sweet potential people to teach. They were really busy, but they were positive. Then we were heading up the street and Elder Brown had a prompting to go by to visit a lady named Quintessa. She is usually home in the afternoons and this was around 8:30 pm. So I was like, we might as well try. We went over and scared her half to death, but found out she is a really nice lady. She told us to come back to visit after we shared a quick message with her. So that was awesome! Just another example of following the spirit.
Saturday was tough. It was pouring mist rain all day. So we were wet from the beginning. We had a good meeting with some people.
Sunday-
It was a really good day. Church mostly.

Elder Astle

Season 10 Episode 3, September 12, 2016

We had a really good week. It has been very busy. This honestly wasn't too exciting of a week. We worked hard and saw some miracles.
Monday-
We had a fun Pday. We have a boring zone so we have to make it fun.
Tuesday-
We tried by a bunch of people. It was good. Then we got a text from somebody we had on date saying that she just couldn't accept Joseph Smith’s teachings. So we prayed hard about her and felt like we should respond. We think that she just needs to make the change. We feel good about her.
Wednesday -
We had a zone meeting. It went really well. I had to train on being on the Lord’s errand. I was supposed to give it with another person but he was sick so I gave it solo. It was a pretty good meeting. Then later we had a meeting with the bishop. He is pumped to do work.
Thursday-
We did some moving for a member. They were moving out and we helped them
load the truck up. It was really fun. We had some big moves. We moved an eliptical machine. It was really heavy.
Friday-
We had a really good planning for the week. It was very successful. We should have a really good  week this upcoming week.
Saturday-
We had a service project. That took a while since we were helping remove bushes. Then we went to a BBQ with the youth and they had a testimony
meeting. It was really good. They were challenged to read the Book of
Mormon in 90 days. Then we were walking and some members saw us and
said come on we have food. We had just eaten for the BBQ so we weren't
Hungry, but went anyway. Turns out it was a luau. There were dancers
and everything. Kinda weird but members came up to us and told us that
they were doing missionary work. So the Lord has a plan even when things go weird.

1: Cool View from a lady's porch.
2: random fog that was in one spot.

Season 10 Episode 2 - September 5, 2016

This was an awesome week. We have had miracles for days. This last Tuesday we had a pretty miraculous lesson. We were just going by to see a potential investigator and talked to a lady outside. She was nice and listened to us. So that was awesome. That is miracle number one.
Wednesday-
We had a good district meeting. It went really well. This was my first time being with only sisters so that was weird. But our meeting went really well. Then later that night we have been trying to make progress with one of the people we are teaching. She has just not been moving forward. She is super nice,  just never was committed. We felt like we should invite her to take the lessons. She actually lives by a ton of members. So we
were going to go by and introduce her to her neighbors. The first members we went to are super solid but they were just heading out the door. They said we should try them next time. We thought we will just try by the investigator’s house. Then a new member that just moved in was outside so we talked with him and found out that he was a convert. We asked him if he would do us a favor and come with us and introduce himself. He said yes and they really hit it off. We invited her to take the lessons. She said yes. So that was miracle number two.
Thursday-
Nothing too crazy happened this day. Our appointments kept canceling again this week. We had members to come with us and everything, but the lesson just fell through.
Friday-
We had a really weird day. We had a DLC and then we had to take elders we live with the the doctor. That took forever. Then we planned for the week.
Saturday-
We did a lot of service. We helped this guy move. Then we had like a couple of hours to work then we did a zone service. We removed dead stuff from a camp site. We had a great idea to remove a giant tree. The tree probably weighed about 1000 pounds. We broke it and moved it away.
Sunday-
This is the most important miracle. We had a great fast Sunday. We set up a lesson with Susanna, the investigator I mentioned earlier. Wow! what a solid lesson. She loves to talk and doesn't have very many friends. So we brought over some friends and she loved it. We taught the restoration.  Then my boy, Elder Brown, invited her to be baptized. She said she would!! She is now on date for October 8th. It was amazing. Elder Brown did so well for not having a lot of teaching appointments since he has been out and he killed it! It was a huge relief. We have had a few tough months here and
this makes it all worth it. The Ward hasn't had a baptism for a year or more. So this will help them on so much!

Love Elder Astle

Season 10, Episode 1 - August 29, 2016

Happy Birthday Mom!

This has been a crazy week. I have learned a bunch.

I am going to write some of the things I have learned this week. I

have actually, for the first time out here, been discouraged for a

little bit. We have been putting the grind on.  We have a bunch of

people that we could teach, but, nobody is home. It has been really tough

stuff. Everyone has been gone. There have been some down days. It didn’t get

easier day after day. Is has been a little bit where it feels like nothing was happening. It was a low week for sure.  I read this verse of scripture.

Mosiah 4:27 " 27 And see that all these things are done in wisdom and

order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he

has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should be diligent,

that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be

done in order."  God doesn't expect us to sprint to the finish. We all

have our own bars to reach. It doesn't matter what anyone else's bar is. We

just have to run where we have strength. Later on in the week, we

saw some success. It was a great lesson to learn. It has been tough

but it has been tough for a reason. And I have finally learned. I know

it is a small email, but it is a really powerful  week with a really good lesson

Elder Astle

Season 9 Episode 6 - August 22, 2016

So as far as transfers go,I am staying here. And I am in the Vancouver East stake. So that is the zone. But  it seems like everyone in the zone is getting moved out. It is kinda weird. But I am going to serve by Jordan (his great friend from home).  It is way cool.

We had a really good week. Last week for Pday we played tennis. It was a cool day to play since it was only like 100 degrees.
Tuesday-
We had a pretty good day. We have been roasting. It has been hot! We taught a less active about baptism. He is 8 and is getting baptized but he really doesn't know a whole lot because his parents don't come very much. So we go and teach them by teaching him. We then had a meeting with the bishop. That was a good transfer in the making. He was a busy guy.
Wednesday-
We had a district meeting. It actually was one of the best. As I was going through the preparation for it, I felt really strongly that the whole district needed to work on patience. That was really good to get that impression. I actually trained the district on making our studies more effective. It went really well. Then we went on an exchange. I went to the zone leaders area. It went really well. We got there to the area and I needed a drink so I open their fridge and it is either drink skim milk or this Pepsi I found. It turns out that that was a twenty year old Pepsi haha!! It tasted about the same as normal. So pretty much it is gross in general. (Alex didn’t like soda before his mission.)

Thursday-
We had some early morning miracles. The member we had going to accompany us to a lesson replied like 5 minutes before we were supposed to go to the lesson. We are teaching a less active lady that wants to come back in the gospel but she doesn't want to push her non member husband away. So we went over to her house.  She is so nice - you can tell she has a testimony. She said she wants to be back but doesn't know how. We just invited her to read scriptures and pray everyday. She so far has, and it has been awesome. Then the rest of the day we were just trying to find some people. We went out with a member but nobody was home.
Friday-
We had a good day. We planned and then went out working and taught this lady right before we had to head in. It was a little miracle at the end of the day.
Saturday-
This was a day of shut doors - not in our face but literally no one was home. We then went and tried to make some phone calls to people to see if we could reach them.
Sunday-
We got a text from a returned missionary and he wanted to go out with us so we were
able to clean up the records of some of the people there.  We made contact with
some of the people we haven't been able to see. I really enjoyed this week. Just really figuring out the work here. During church I had a thought that said, “Who do you want a baptism for?” So I thought about that, and my mindset was wrong. I was kinda doing it
for me, rather then the Lord or the ward. So that was a humbling experience but a great one. It should be another stellar week.