Happy Pioneer Day

Dear Family and Friends,

It's been another fantastic week here in Norman, OK! Every week is a good week when you have the opportunity to be a missionary! (even if it's super hot and humid and you get to bike everywhere ;))

Last Monday was our first P-day without companionship study. The extra hour Pres. Mansell has given us definitely makes a huge difference :) In the evening we were able to go with a member to teach a less-active and had a really awesome lesson about Alma 5.

Tuesday was a long day of trying to visit people and having appointments cancel. But we witnessed an awesome miracle in the morning! After our plans fell through, we went to go do some finding on a street that I'd never been down before. We started with a prayer and asked to be led to someone who was being prepared. So we started walking down the street, knocking on some doors and talking to some people but no one was interested. Then we saw a house with the garage open but we couldn't see anyone inside. We felt impressed to go see if anyone was there and we started talking to a guy who was working on his car. Before too long, he started asking us some really good questions about what we do as missionaries and what we believe. Eventually he asked us if we could come back and teach him more. He said that the church he goes to now doesn't really do much for him, he doesn't learn much and isn't challenged spiritually. He admitted that he just goes because it's good for his kids.So we're super stoked to go back and teach him in a couple of weeks! #FindingMiracle

Wednesday we had exchanges with the zone leaders which was a blast. I got to be with Elder Norton who was actually one of the zone leaders in my last zone before I left Clinton. This exchange was different than the last one we had 4 months ago because instead of freezing to death we were dying of heat and sweating all day :) 

Thursday during planning we got to take a break a go visit one of our active members who recently had his less-active daughter and family move in with him temporarily. So we got to talk with them and get to know them better which was good. In the evening we had one of the youth come out teaching with us and we had an awesome word of wisdom lesson with Danny and his family. Haha before we started the lesson, Danny asked about something he saw on a movie he watched recently. The movie portrayed Mormons as not being able to eat fast food or drink soda. He said he didn't know if it was true but that he didn't care either way. He said he would do what it takes to be baptized. So cool to see how committed and excited he is for baptism!

Friday was my year mark which is super crazy to think about. I'm trying not to think about it because I don't want my mission to ever end... Anyways, President Mansell showed up randomly to our district meeting and we did a combined district meeting thingy with the other 2 districts that meet in our church building. So that was unexpected and slightly stressful but it worked out great in the end and I learned a ton :) After district meeting we did exchanges with the Elders in the 4th ward and had a great time. We had an awesome lesson with Carrie. She is doing lots of reading and praying and is working on coming up with a baptismal date :) So excited for her!

Saturday we were able to meet with tons of members, both active and less-active which was super great. For the active members, we've started doing short 10 minute visits in which we share a miracle and missionary principle with them and then leave them with a simple commitment. The members here are so awesome! 

Sunday we had Elizabeth, McKayla, and Raven at church :) (Danny hurt his foot but it's getting better and Carrie was out of town) In the afternoon we went and taught some awesome lessons with a member and after dinner we got to go teach Danny and family about tithing and chastity which went great. Our other appointment fell through but we were able to find a new investigator instead #TheLordProvides

One of my favorite scriptures is 1 Nephi 3:6

"Therefore go, my son, and thou shalt be favored of the Lord, because thou hast not murmured."

One of the key differences between Nephi and Laman or Lemuel is that Nephi never murmured or complained. He obeyed God's commands with a willing heart. Something we sometimes forget though, is that Laman and Lemuel kept a lot of the commandments. They, like Nephi, left their home in Jerusalem, went back for the plates, traveled in the wilderness for 8 years, built a ship, and sailed across the ocean. They made it through the whole journey and reached the promised land. We don't like to admit it, but sometimes we're a lot more like Laman or Lemuel than we realize. The reason we sometimes complain and murmur while keeping God's commandments is because our heart is not in it. We haven't yielded our hearts unto God and we haven't truly repented. Repentance is more than changing our actions and aligning them with God's will. Repentance by definition is a change of heart. A change of desires. Let us pray for the divine help we need in changing our actions AND our desires. Let us yield our hearts unto God so that they can be purified and sanctified. The journey will be so much better and we will be so much happier if we are able to truly love the Lord and doing his will, not our will. Attitude is so powerful!

"Nevertheless they did fast and pray oft, and did wax stronger and stronger in their humility, and firmer and firmer in the faith of Christ, unto the filling their souls with joy and consolation, yea, even to the purifying and the sanctification of their hearts, which sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God." Helamen 3:35

Thank yall for all your love and support over the past year. I couldn't have made it this far without you. I miss yall so much but I know I'm where the Lord wants me to be. Have a wonderful week!

Love, Elder Larsen

1 Nephi 4:31

P.S. Thanks for the package fam, y'all are the best! :)

Miracles have not ceased!

Dear Family and Friends,

I've had another totally awesome week here in Norman and I'm so excited for this next week!

Monday afternoon our zone leaders asked us if we had any appointments later in the evening. We had one scheduled at 7 with one of our recent converts so we let them know. Turns out President Mansell was looking for someone to go out teaching with after he got done with some baptismal interviews. So we got to go teaching with President and it was such a cool experience! He loves teaching and we were able to learn a lot from his example and from the feedback he gave us.  After the lesson, he wanted to take us out to eat so we locked up our bikes by the recent convert's house and went and got some food. It was really fun to get to hang out and chill with President. By the time we got done eating it was past 9:30, our regular curfew, so we went back to the recent converts house and tried to fit our bikes in the back of his Ford Explorer. The rear hatch wasn't able to close so we drove back to our apartment with it hanging open. It was pretty great :)

Tuesday after Elder Vincent was done packing, we did some biking and then got fed by some members which was good.

Wednesday was transfers. I got to see a lot of my past companions and other missionary friends so that was definitely a blast! My new companion is Elder Kilmer. He's from Orange County, California and he's a Marshallese Missionary. He been out for about 5 months now. I love him already and we're having a lot fun together :) 

Thursday we had planning and language study that took up the first half of the day. In the evening our appointment fell through so we did lots of biking and talking to people :)

Friday was great! After district meeting we taught one of our recent converts about temples and families. Then we had a lesson with one of our newer investigators named Carrie. She's a single mom who has a 10 year old and a 1 year old. She's pretty interested and has some really good questions. After that we went and taught Danny and his family. His wife is named Elizabeth and the kids are named McKayla and Raven. We read the story of Ammon with them and the spirit was really strong. Danny and McKayla want to be baptized on August 6th and Elizabeth and Raven will likely follow soon after. So excited for them, teaching prepared people is simply the best :) After that we met one of our recent converts at the institute building on campus. We met with the sister missionaries from the YSA ward as well and kind of passed our recent convert over to them since she's graduated from high school now. We didn't know, but there was a stake/regional dance going on that night for the youth so seeing that brought back some memories and made me feel really out of place. Some of the youth were pretty excited to see missionaries at a dance though so that was funny ;)

Saturday was a good day. We got lots of biking and talking to people done even if no one was really interested. 

Sunday we had Danny and his family, and Carrie and her son at church!! It was so amazing and definitely an answer to prayer. By far the most investigators I've had a church since I've been here in Norman. Obedience brings blessings and exact obedience brings miracles!

Something I really liked this past week as I was reading 1 Nephi 2 is the comparison between Nephi, and Laman and Lemuel.

Laman and Lemuel:

11 Now this he spake because of the stiffneckedness of Laman and Lemuel; for behold they did murmur in many things against their father, because he was a visionary man, and had led them out of the land of Jerusalem, to leave the land of their inheritance, and their gold, and their silver, and their precious things, to perish in the wilderness. And this they said he had done because of the foolish imaginations of his heart.
 12 And thus Laman and Lemuel, being the eldest, did murmur against their father. And they did murmur because they knew not the dealings of that God who had created them.
 13 Neither did they believe that Jerusalem, that great city, could be destroyed according to the words of the prophets. And they were like unto the Jews who were at Jerusalem, who sought to take away the life of my father.

Nephi:

 16 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, being exceedingly young, nevertheless being large in stature, and also having great desires to know of the mysteries of God, wherefore, I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did visit me, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words which had been spoken by my father; wherefore, I did not rebel against him like unto my brothers.

19 And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto me, saying: Blessed art thou, Nephi, because of thy faith, for thou hast sought me diligently, with lowliness of heart.

Laman and Lemuel were doubters. They were lazy, unbelieving, and murmurers, and as a result they received no answers.

Nephi was a seeker of truth. He exercised faith and diligently and humbly sought light from God. As a result, he received an answer.

I really love Sheri Dew's devotional titled, "Will you engage in the Wrestle?" Questions are good and a vital part of gospel learning. There's a difference between being doubtful and seeking for answers. So when we have doubts and questions in the gospel, let us follow the example of Nephi and be humble seekers of truth!

Well, I hope y'all have a wonderful week. Thanks for your love and support!

Love, Elder Larsen

D&C 6:23

1. Me, Elder Davis (my mission brother), and Elder Yamane. I meant to take more pictures but didn't get around to it.. sorry mom...

Staying in Norman

Dear Family and Friends,

First off, we got transfer doctrine last night and I'm staying in Norman for another transfer and my new companion is Elder Kilmer! Don't know anything about him but I'm excited to meet him!

Second off, this past week has been miraculous! Good things definitely come to those who wait :)

Tuesday after emailing we went to the stake center for "Meet the Mansells". We got to meet them individually for a couple of minutes each. After they formally met everyone, Sister Mansell and some of their sons bore their testimonies. Then President Mansell spoke to us and he gave an amazing talk. He talked about the process that is used to select mission presidents which was pretty cool. He bore testimony and the spirit was really powerful. He said that he was going to push us and help us all become better missionaries. So pumped to work with him! He's really nice and fun to be around but very down to earth. After dinner we were able to have a quick lesson with one of our investigators we've had for a while so that was good.

Wednesday we did a lot of planning for going to the temple on Thursday and for the ward party on Saturday. In the evening we were able to teach a part-member less-active family so that was fun :)

Thursday we went with some of our recent converts to go do baptisms for the dead at the Oklahoma City Temple!! It was so much fun to do baptisms, it's the first time I've had the opportunity to go since I went on my mission. We had a great time and the spirit was really strong :) In the afternoon we did planning and in the evening we were able to teach 3 lessons which was awesome. We taught Danny and the rest of his family the restoration and committed them all to baptism on August 6th. So excited for them!

Friday we had exchanges with the zone leaders and so I was in the Norman 1st ward for the day which was fun. We managed to find a new investigator despite the random rain which was a miracle :)

Saturday morning we had a teaching appointment with the media referral we received about 3 months ago. We basically dropped him because he hasn't found time to read the Book of Mormon. But we bore testimony so hopefully he'll be able to find time to read it. At 11:30 we had a ward party at a local park. Us missionaries organized the whole thing and assigned some of the active members in the ward to visit the less-active members and invite them to the party. We had a pretty good turnout and a lady who hasn't been to church in 2 years showed up and said that she wants to come back to church which was a cool miracle :) In the evening we had a crazy random restoration lesson with a free mason named Abraham. Definitely one of the funniest lessons I've ever had on the my mission.

Sunday Danny and his daughter McKayla came to church and it was totally awesome!!! #Miracle The past 2 transfers we've been trying so hard to get investigators to come to church and we finally had someone solid come! Danny had a great time and in priesthood opening exercises he read an introduction and prayer he typed out last week. He talked about how he prayed for direction in his life and then a couple days later we showed up on his doorstep. He said that he had found his home and that he planned on coming to church every week from here on out. It was so cool to hear him read that, definitely on of my favorite mission experiences #TenderMercy

Danny is basically ready for baptism, we just need to get the rest of his family involved as well. His wife, daughter, and son aren't opposed to joining the church but also aren't super excited at the same time. Hopefully they'll be able to come to church as a whole family this next week.

This week I started reading the Book of Mormon over again and I pondered a lot over Lehi's great example of sacrifice. In 1 Nephi 2:2-4 it reads,

2 And it came to pass that the Lord commanded my father, even in a dream, that he should take his family and depart into the wilderness.

 3 And it came to pass that he was obedient unto the word of the Lord, wherefore he did as the Lord commanded him.

 4 And it came to pass that he departed into the wilderness. And he left his house, and the land of his inheritance, and his gold, and his silver, and his precious things, and took nothing with him, save it were his family, and provisions, and tents, and departed into the wilderness.

I found a cross-reference in 2 Nephi 10:20that says, "... we have been driven out of the land of our inheritance; but we have been led to a better land" I also love the quote by Elder Holland, "You can have what you want or you can have something better." I like to think that there's no "real" sacrifice in the gospel because in the long run we always get repaid 100 fold. Sacrificing all for the Lord is a great privilege and though it's not always easy, it's always the best thing to do. Let us all keep our covenants by being willing to sacrifice whatever the Lord asks of us.

"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." - D&C 97:8

I hope yall have a wonderful week!

Love, Elder Larsen

1 Nephi 2:10

1. Temple Trip

2. Temple Trip

3. Temple Trip

4. Driving home from temple trip

5. Exchanges with Elder Lindelof

6. Exchanges with Elder Lindelof

7. Grillin up a storm at the ward party ;)

8. Me with the Mansells

President and Sister Mansell

Just got this picture from Tyler's camera. He looks so happy! He loves being a missionary! 

Happy 4th of July!!

Dear Family and Friends,

I hope yall had an amazingly fun fourth of July this past week, I know that I sure did!

Last Monday after emailing we had the opportunity to go do some service real quick for a member in our ward. His daughter and her family are moving in with him temporarily and so we helped them move some boxes and furniture which was fun. The member is one of the golf instructors at the golf course right by our apartment and after we got done with the moving he said he would take us golfing sometime so I'm looking forward to that :) After dinner we did another family home evening with the Smith family and one of their visiting teaching families which was fun. We talked about the temple and how they can be sealed together as a family next spring :)

Tuesday morning we biked around and talked to people, had a quick lesson with a less-active. In the afternoon we had a member come out teaching with us and everything fell through so that was frustrating. Before dinner we were walking around trying to find someone to talk to and knocked on the door of a lady who recently moved to Oklahoma and said that she was really glad that we had stopped by so that was a cool miracle :) After dinner we went with a member to teach Kelsey and Cori. (The less-active and his wife) The lesson was interesting. She really likes the Book of Mormon and thinks that it's probably true but doesn't have any desire to join the church. She says that we know where we're going when we die and she knows where she's going and that's all that matters. Hopefully they'll make it to church this week and be able to feel the spirit there.

Wednesday we had a zone leadership meeting in the morning and in the afternoon we went with a member to teach Danny again. Danny was the referral we received the week before and we were able to teach him the Restoration last week. He read the introduction and the testimonies in the Book of Mormon by the time we visited him this week. So we read 1 Nephi 1 with him and recommitted him to praying about the BofM and coming to church. It was an awesome lesson and we found out that his whole family is interested in coming to church as well. He has a wife and 2 kids ages 10 and 16 which is exciting :) The rest of the day was kind of crazy. We did some service at the assisted living center, helped Sister Smith with printing off names to take to the temple, visited some members, and finally had dinner.

Thursday we had planning in the morning. In the afternoon we visited a less-active and arranged a ride for him to come to church on Sunday. Afterwards we stopped by Danny's house to follow up on his BoM reading and praying. He read 1 Nephi 2-3, prayed specifically to know if the BoM is true, and wrote up a prayer that he wants to share in Church sometime. He is so amazing! Definitely a miracle find! The evening was slower, our plans fell through so we visited some members and talked with them about family mission plans. 

Friday after district meeting we had exchanges with the Elders in the 4th ward which was good. I stayed in the 2nd ward and we did lots of biking around and talking to people. No one was interested and some guy started bashing us so that was fun ;) Went out teaching with one of the youth in the evening and everything fell through. But one of our former investigators is still reading the BoM so that's a cool miracle :)

Saturday was a long and crazy day. Got a call at 8 in the morning that some person in Chickasha was moving to Norman in the afternoon and needed help unloading the truck. So we got a member set to come help us. Spent the morning biking around trying really hard to find some new investigators and not having much luck. At 2:30 we got a call from the Elders in Chickasha that the lady would be there in about 30 minutes. So we tried to get a hold of the member who said he could help us with the move but he didn't answer his phone. So we biked for 20 minutes across town to get there on time. At 3:15 the lady still wasn't there so we called her and she said it would be another 30 minutes. So we were bored for a while since we can't proselyte while wearing service clothes. She finally showed up at 4:10and we realized that this supposedly "easy and quick" move was anything but easy and quick. Eventually we had to call some other missionaries to come help us out so we could try and not be too late for the stake fourth of July celebration in Purcell. We finally got the truck unloaded around 5:30 and headed to the party. The party was at a members ranch and it was SO much fun! Free food and games for kids. There was even a huge firework show that we weren't able to stay for but that we heard was really cool. Danny and his family came to the party and had a great time so that was an awesome miracle! He said that him and his wife were planning on coming to church the next day as well. Also, our new mission president, President Mansell, showed up randomly with his family. It was their 2nd day in Oklahoma so we were some of the first missionaries who got to meet him. Him and his wife are awesome, I love them so much!

Sunday was amazing! Danny didn't show up to church which was a huge disappointment but in the afternoon, by some miracle, we found 2 new investigators! I love being able to see the hand of the Lord in my life, he truly led us that afternoon as we exercised faith and followed the spirit. Missionary work is so much fun! When we got back to our apartment for dinner, the member family who invited us over later in the evening for a dessert night with their non member friends asked if someone was feeding us dinner. We said no and they, out of the goodness of their hearts, invited us and the sisters over for dinner. That was definitely a tender mercy :) 

Yesterday was probably the funnest P-day I've had on my mission thus far! In the morning we went shopping for groceries and then met the rest of the missionaries in the zone at the church for a cookout. The zone leaders borrowed a grill from a member in their ward, loaded it in their truck, and brought it to the church to grill up some hot dogs and corn. We did a potluck with the other missionaries and so we had plenty of delicious food to eat. When we weren't eating, we were running around in the gym playing all sorts of fun games and sports. In the evening we visited the Smith family and had some dinner. And then we went to another member's house and had dinner with them. Super fun and relaxing day! :)

In the spirit of the 4th of July, I'd like to share 2 Nephi 10:10-13

"10 But behold, this land, said God, shall be a land of thine inheritance, and the Gentiles shall be blessed upon the land.
 11 And this land shall be a land of liberty unto the Gentiles, and there shall be no kings upon the land, who shall raise up unto the Gentiles.
 12 And I will fortify this land against all other nations.
 13 And he that fighteth against Zion shall perish, saith God."

I feel so blessed to live in such a wonderful country where we get to enjoy so many freedoms. Let us enjoy the freedom to "worship how, where, or what [we] may" and continue to fight for religious freedom! Happy 4th of July and have a wonderful week!

Love, Elder Larsen

Moroni 9:6

1. At the stake 4th of July Party

2. At the Smith's for dinner last night

3. With some super awesome members in our ward, the Bittles

11 months

Dear Family and Friends,

It's been another awesome, hot, humid, miracle-filled week here in Norman, Oklahoma!

Monday we had our first lesson with one of our investigators at Panera Bread which was interesting. She's curious in learning more about what we believe but doesn't seem too interested in changing beliefs. The baptismal invitation through her off guard though so that was pretty funny :) Later in the evening we did a family home evening with the recent-convert Smith family so that was cool.

Tuesday morning we did some family history with one of our recent converts which was fun. In the afternoon we had exchanges with the Elders in the 4th ward so I went to their area for the rest of day. We did lots of biking since they're low on miles. We were also able to find a new investigator so that was an awesome miracle!

Wednesday we did some biking in the morning and did some service in the afternoon at the assisted living center. In the evening our appointments fell through but the Lord provided for us. We were biking by Alex's house (a new investigator we found a couple of weeks ago through a miracle but hadn't been able to talk to since) and a car was there. So we decided to go knock on the door and his wife, Stephanie, answered. She is super nice and chill just like he is. She told us that Alex was asleep so we talked with her briefly on the doorstep. As we were talking to her, Alex woke up and came to the door with his hair frazzled. He was excited to see us and invited us in! Apparently he's been working for 20 days straight and hasn't been home hardly ever. But he's still super interested and committed to coming to church next week! And their son is dating one of the youth in our ward! #InstantFellowship #Miracle

Thursday afternoon we had one of the youth in the ward come out teaching with us. The appointments we had fell through but we were able to contact a referral named Danny that we got from some other missionaries in Norman. We taught him the Restoration and he committed to baptism in August! He received the message well and expressed that he needs to be baptized again and get back to church. So exciting! #Miracle

Friday afternoon everything fell through but the Lord led us to Tia and we were able to teach her more about the Book of Mormon! #NewInvestigator We didn't have any members feeding us dinner so we decided to use a coupon we got for Jersey Mike's Subs. Turns out one of the guys who works there in a member and so he paid for our dinner. So nice of him! #Blessings

Saturday morning we had breakfast/correlation with our ward mission leader so we could finish planning the upcoming ward activity/party. We're going to try and invite everyone in the ward to come, active and less-active. Hopefully it will be a big success. The rest of day was slightly disappointing. All of our investigators flaked out on us and wouldn't commit to coming to church.

Sunday we had 0 investigators at sacrament meeting. Again. But we're not discouraged! This is the Lord's work and he knows what he's doing. More patience and more faith is all it takes to witness miracles! In the evening we went out teaching with a member and our appointment fell through. So we tried one of our newer investigators named Randy, and him and his wife, Lindsey, were home! Randy and the member bonded really well since they both used to work for the same carpet cleaning company. We had an awesome, slightly crazy and random restoration lesson and they both committed to baptism! Yay for miracles!

This past week during studies I was pondering a lot about faith. I realized that there are so many parallels between physical health and spiritual health. 

1. Our physical health rarely stays the same. We are either becoming stronger or getting weaker. It is the same way spiritually (2 Nephi 28:30). Our faith is either growing stronger or it is getting weaker. And if we aren't making a concerted effort to strengthen it, it is likely becoming weaker.

2. In order to increase our physical strength, we need increasing amounts of resistance. You can only get so strong with a pair of 10 pound weights. If your goal is to be able to lift 100 pounds, you have to work up to it, increasing the weight each time until you are finally able to lift that much weight. It is the same way spiritually. Without opposition, we cannot grow stronger. Weight, resistance, and opposition are a necessary part of life. (2 Nephi 2:11) It has been said that, "Salvation is not a cheap experience". But what is salvation? Salvation is all about eternal progression, continually growing stronger and acquiring more attributes of light. If life was easy, there would be no opposition, no weight on the weight bench so to speak. This is why finding joy in the journey is so important. Becoming stronger requires effort, exertion, and action. But in the end, it is all worth it. Let us all become stronger both physically, and more importantly, spiritually. The healthier you are, the happier you are! :)

Anyways, I hope y'all have a wonderful week! Thank you for your love, support, and examples! I couldn't ask for better friends and family.

Love, Elder Larsen

Ether 12:5-6

Farewell President

Dear Family and Friends,

Time flies when you're having fun and we've been having lots of it!

Monday for zone p-day we went bowling so that was fun :) In the evening we had an awesome zone meeting about chapter 8 of Preach My Gospel: Planning.

Tuesday morning we had a leadership meeting with the zone leaders and the other district leaders so that was good. In the afternoon we were able to teach a potential the restoration and pick up a new investigator! Yay for new investigators! All in all we found 9 new investigators this past week thanks to zone conference. #MiraclesForDays In the evening we had a member come out teaching with us and picked up another new investigator.

Wednesday we had our last zone conference with President Walkenhorst. We probably won't see him again before he leaves so it was weird to have to say goodbye. President Mansell will be here in about a week and half. One of the trainings we received was on finding new investigators. Our mission has decided to go back to the PMG definition of new investigators and so we are now able to find them on the street as long as we teach them a lesson and get a return appointment. It's definitely been helping us to be always teaching and not just saying the same rote things to everyone we meet. So after zone conference we went out and found 2 new investigators! Yay for biking in the heat!

Thursday afternoon we had a cool finding miracle! After trying a potential, we felt prompted to take the longer route to our next destination. As we were riding our bikes, a guy pulled up in his car and we started talking to him. He said that he met with the missionaries about a year ago and went to church a couple of times but never got baptized because he moved away unexpectedly and had problems with alcohol. He's super chill and hopefully we can start teaching him this next week :) After dinner we went out teaching with one of the youth in our ward and everything fell through unfortunately.

Friday we had exchanges with the zone leaders and I got to stay in my area. We did lots of biking the afternoon and got really sweaty but had some awesome lessons with a less-active and with Marelyn!

Saturday morning we got a referral from a member so that was really awesome. In the afternoon we taught a lesson to Vance about eternal marriage. He lives in an assisted living home and really misses his wife a lot. Hopefully we can get him a large print Book of Mormon this next week :) We also had a child of record baptism that we went to. During the baptism, a huge storm came in and we got some pretty heavy rain and wind which kept us in the apartment for a little bit.

Sunday we didn't have any investigators at sacrament meeting so that stunk. But after church we were able to have a lesson with one of our investigators and found a new investigator and committed him to baptism! Awesome Father's Day!

Just found out that one of the kids I taught in my first area got baptized this past week!! Wahoo! The whole ward fasted for him and Bishop was able to get permission from his Mom! #Miracle So exciting! Hopefully his younger sister will be able to follow him soon.

I heard a quote about Fathers yesterday that I really liked.

"Father is the noblest title a man can be given. It is more than a biological role. It signifies a patriarch, a leader, an exemplar, a confidant, a teacher, a hero, a friend, and ultimately, a perfect being." - Elder Robert L. Backman

I'm so grateful for fathers, both earthly and heavenly. Happy Father's Day Dad! You're the best!

Love, Elder Larsen

Ether 2:9-12