Season 5, Episode 1, January 26, 2016 (Six months!!!)

This was a pretty good week. Yeah, my comp is Elder Johansen, (Kelsey swims at Riverton with his sister!). It is pretty sweet. We had a crazy good week.
Monday-
We went over to teach our family. We showed up and there was another guy there. They had invited him to be a part of the teaching.  That was awesome. They have seen the change in their lives and wanted him to be taught by us. We were happy.
Tuesday-
We got a call to go do some service for a lady. It was nice to serve, and afterward, we shared a Book of Mormon with her. It was a good way that we were able to get in and teach her. She didn't know we were coming to do the service. We got a call to come help her from another person. We were stoked.
Wednesday-
We had a world wide missionary broadcast. The focus was on working with members. It is definitely the best way. There hasn't been a broadcast like that for 20 years. Then we got our new comps. Later that day we helped move a guy. He was a hoarder. Everyone we help move seems to be a hoarder of some kind. The member with us invited him to take the lessons,  so we should be teaching him pretty soon.
Thursday-
We just had a pretty successful day. It wasn't too crazy or all that interesting. We are doing some finding.
Friday-
We had a solid lesson with the R family. They are doing great.
Saturday-
We had a crazy day. We were teaching this guy on the street. And this other guy was waiting to talk to us. We had people lining up! It was awesome. What a day.
Sunday-
We we had a non baptized child of record come and say, “I want to take
the lessons.”  We were way happy!

Love,
✌Elder Astle 👊

Season 4 episode 6. 1-18-16

We got our transfer letters. I am staying in this old shack and Elder Moore is going to Vancouver. My new comp is from Riverton. So crazy. I knew him before I came out and that is so sweet. This is another “God doesn't do Random” moment. That is a phrase we have in the mission. Glad to hear about the fam.  Update! Our mission president is doing well. The surgery went good. He is recovering from it nicely. We will have a temporary couple that will step in to be the mission president until he is up and well.

Man, did we have a good week!
Monday-
We had an interesting experience to say the least. We have a Spanish group that meets with the ward. We gave them a list of names that sounded or were Hispanic. They went over and stopped by and set up a time to meet with a lady. Then they gave the meeting to us. So we had no idea of what was coming. We talked with her for a little bit and found out that she had an issue with the policy change. We brought our ward mission leader with us so the numbers were right. He was bold in using scriptures to back him up. Then she turns to us and says, "I just wanted to talk to you both. I wanted you to come back and tell you that you should do anything you can to leave the church. You are still young and you can get out now". To which, we bore our testimonies. We told her that it is not policies that we base our testimony on, but our testimonies are on the Lord. She had no answer for that. Then after that we went to the family that we have been teaching. They have improved dramatically. They are doing what we commit them to do. He isn’t smoking much anymore.
Tuesday-
We had a meeting and we got stuck in traffic... that wasn't cool. We were in traffic for 2 hours!
Wednesday-
Ahmed had his baptism interview. He passed so we got the go launch.
Thursday-
Not much happened. We were on exchanges and I stayed. It was a hard working day but not that successful.
Friday-
Oh man, Friday! We taught Ahmed the last lesson. Or he taught us, we are still not sure. This guy understands the bible so well that the restoration makes sense. We gave this guy a teachings of the president’s book on Sunday.  On Monday, he had read the whole thing. He is the most enthusiastic man I have ever met. He is teaching me more than I can teach him.
We taught Michael R. He, up until this point didn't really have a desire to be baptized. We taught him mostly everything. He was still drinking a lot and doing everything we tell him not to. We prayed about his date and got an answer that he should be ready for the 6th. He asked us if he could pray about it first. We said lets do it now. After the prayer, he asked us when the answer will come. We had just barely finished explaining when it will come. And then the Holy Ghost came in for the rescue. The Spirit rushed in so hard. He sat there and was crying like a baby for a few minutes. Then he said was this the answer and we said yes. He then told us he felt like he was being selfish because he wanted to do this for his family. We told him that was the most unselfish reason. It is crazy how the Spirit works. We have worked hard for this guy countless prayers countless visits. And boom he gained the desire. (Alma 5:26-27)  “26 And now behold, I say unto you, my brethren, if ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?
 27 Have ye walked, keeping yourselves blameless before God? Could ye say, if ye were called to die at this time, within yourselves, that ye have been sufficiently humble? That your garments have been cleansed and made white through the blood of Christ, who will come to redeem his people from their sins?”   I just witnessed that!
Saturday-
Not much to be said but AHMED GOT BAPTIZED!! It was such a spiritual experience. Man that guy was ready and is a great man. He was waiting for this for the longest time. Pictures will be sent.
Sunday-
I was able to do the confirmation. That was pretty neat. I felt the spirit strong durning that. Great experience. This was a solid week. Sad to see Elder Moore go we have worked hard together and we finished with a bang. Or should I say splash!

✌Elder Astle 👊

Ahmed's baptism and confirmation

Ahmed's baptism

The church where the baptism was held, it looks like an old English manor.

Season 4 episode 5, 1-11-16

Dear Family and friends,

We had some crazy awesome beast of a week.  Our mission president had a heart attack. He is doing good.  He went under for a surgery. Doctors and the family are not even worried. (Mom note: President Taylor is going in for  triple bypass heart surgery tomorrow.  We fasted for him yesterday.  Prayers are appreciated!)
Tuesday-
We taught our way awesome miracle named Ahmed. He is possibly the most
prepared baptism ever in the world. He knows more than us. It is so sweet. He is a miracle and we know it. We have worked so hard this week. We taught a bunch of lessons in the morning street contacting. We also had a meeting with the bishop. Our Ward needs some help all the way around.  They didn't have a good mission plan at all,  it was kinda bad. So we made it better.
Wednesday-
We taught the word wisdom again to our family that we teach. He finally has humbled himself and is willing to change.
Thursday-
We were doing a bunch of finding and keep teaching a lot of lesson. I also was on an exchange with Elder Jones.  He is Chris and Nichole's nephew. It was a way fun day. We had some awesome stuff happen. It was just a fun day. It is a great day.

Friday-
We taught a lesson to this part member family. He was way nice guy but he wasn't all that interested. But, we just are going to take it slow. Apparently he has never let the missionaries in before. We made some progress.
Sunday-
We got our two solid gators at church. It was so awesome. Our district killed it this week. Sorry short email. It was a crazy week but we just taught a bunch of street lessons.

Love,

Elder Astle

That's Alex...posing for the camera!

Ice skating district

Season 4 episode 4, Alex's letter 1-4-16

We had an amazing week. The only down side is that as a mission we have a rule where missionaries can't drive in the snow, and we can't drive if it is below freezing. I am not a big fan of that rule. But, I know it will keep us safe from the other drivers. Both Elder Moore and I can handle the car in the snow. Because of that rule we have to stay in the apartment today. So our p-day is kinda ruined. We are not close to anyone or anywhere that we have been doing our work. So that is definitely not cool at all!

Tuesday-

We were on exchanges with the Spanish Elders. I got to go to the Spanish area. Man that was some fun stuff. We started the day with some service. It was a nasty service project. We moved trash from one side of the yard to another side of the yard. Then we went out and had a few lessons. I can understand the Spanish speaking well enough to get what they are saying but I can't  communicate with them well. We taught on that exchange 8 lessons and found a few new gators for them. It was a way sweet day. We chased down a Hispanic man. He was on the other side of the street and he passed us while we were talking to someone else. So we ran across the road to get to him. It was awesome. I love the Hispanic people! They are way nice to talk and all believe in Christ. If I could switch to Spanish speaking, I would. I asked my companion for the day how to bear my testimony and that was cool just a simple sentence of I know this is true.

Wednesday-

We taught the R. family. He still was not wanting to quit smoking so we bore our testimonies to him and assured him that we will help him to baptism. And to rely on the Lord.

Thursday-

We had an emergency exchange with some Elders in the district who were struggling. This was New Year's Eve. We had to go in early just like Halloween.

Friday-

We have been dropping investigators like crazy. They are not interested or we just can never get a hold of them after a bunch of tries. So we were lacking some good investigators. While we were finding, we prayed and asked specifically for new investigators. We went by and visited some potentials. They said to come by late in the week so that made them a new Gator. Then we found another guy who was interested in the aspect of prophets. We found him and then we were walking back to the car and a lady was taking down her Christmas lights. It was high up and  I went up and asked if I could help her get that. While I was doing that Elder Moore was teaching her about the BoM. She said she would love for us to come back. So in the span of 30 minutes we found 4 new gators. That is sweet.

Saturday-

This was probably one of the best things that has happened on my mission. We were doing a hand off lesson with the zone leaders. (Contact was made by another set of missionaries, but the people are in our area. The two missionary sets meet to introduce these people to us.) They found a less active member and were teaching her. Then this guy walks in and says, " Praise the Lord! I want to be baptized!" We were shocked and so pumped! This guy has read the Book of Mormon for years. He knows it inside and out. He is on date to be baptized for the 16th of January. He is so ready and so prepared. He is about as golden as the golden plates. This guy is from Africa and he wanted to know for sure before

he would be baptized. So, what a miracle!  I truly think that he was a blessing from heaven because of all of the hard work we have been doing. We have been going hard out here. We have been working so hard to help people receive the message, prepare for baptism, and trying to find some of the mountain of LA's (less actives). We had a lesson with him and we were so happy. He is ready now to be baptized. This man’s desire is crazy. He is the happiest, most enthusiastic man ever. I want to meet more people like this guy. He will help the ward because he has a strong testimony already.

Sunday-

Church was canceled, which sucked. Because we were about to have two people come to church for the first time ever. But it was cancelled due to snow. Not cool.

✌Elder Astle 👊

This is their 'BIG' snow......

We found these at the store, so it was a must get

The first one is a picture of some dude we met he signed it and gave
it to me haha