This past week has been super awesome! Our investigators are progressing and we're hoping to set some really solid baptismal dates this week.
Last Monday for P-day we went with the Elk City Elders to Weatherford to get a luxury item that we don't have in Clinton or Elk City... Little Caesars Pizza! It's funny how you start to appreciate stuff like that when you live in the middle of no where ;) Anyways, that night all of our appointments fell through but God still placed people in our path to talk to so that was a tender mercy :)
Tuesday we had a really cool lesson with our new investigator Spanish couple. They have totally been prepared to receive the message and excited to learn more. We took a member with us who doesn't speak Spanish but my companion was able to translate for him and I was able to bear a simple testimony in Spanish. The spirit was so strong and they're thinking about baptism now :)
Wednesday we got to do some service for the old couple who feeds the missionaries every Sunday which was fun :) That night we had a choir practice for the Christmas program on Sunday and then we pilled into the van to head to the city for Christmas Conference.
Thursday was Christmas Conference and it was a blast! Half of the mission was there and I got to spend time with the Elders from my MTC district which was so fun! President Walkenhorst and the local Stake Presidents each gave us some awesome trainings. The mission as a whole has been struggling recently because of the lack of experience. All of the missionaries who came out with the age change boom are home now and so more than half of the missionaries in the mission have been out for about 6 months or less. But things are picking up and I'm excited for the future!
Friday we had an awesome lesson with the part-member family and they expressed the desire to be baptized! They made it to church this week for the third time and so hopefully they'll be baptized pretty soon :)
Saturday we had a lesson with a Spanish lady who is catholic. She started talking about the bible and how we don't need the Book of Mormon so we read 2 Nephi 29 with her and it helped resolve her concern #ScripturePower That night we had the ward Christmas party and it was a blast! The Spanish group made some delicious tamales and we had quite a few people show up.
Sunday was the ward Christmas Program and I got to play piano for it :) It was a beautiful program and the spirit was so strong. Recently I've been struggling with being able to accompany songs with such little time to practice but the Lord definitely helped me to be able to do it. Bessie wasn't able to make it to church because she has been pretty sick this week. Hopefully she'll get feeling better soon.
This next week will probably be kind of slow for missionary work because of Christmas and all but it will be good to relax a little and celebrate and rejoice in the birth of our Savior. My companion and I have been striving for 100% Obedience and Diligence and we've definitely been able to see the blessings that come from it. In gospel principles on Sunday we had a lesson about Sacrifice. One of the scriptures that stood out to me is D&C 97:8
"Verily I say unto you, all among them who know their hearts are honest, and are broken, and their spirits contrite, and are willing to observe their covenants by sacrifice—yea, every sacrifice which I, the Lord, shall command—they are accepted of me."
I testify that "Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of Heaven" (Hymn 27). One of the greatest blessings we can have is the knowledge that Heavenly Father is pleased with us. As we sacrifice everything for him and his cause we can rest assured that he accepts our sacrifice. I testify that our Savior's love is real and that we will find true happiness as we observe our covenants through sacrifice.
Merry Christmas from Clinton, Oklahoma! :)
Love, Elder Larsen
Alma 17:2-4
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