Letter #80

Hey everyone!

It's been another really great week! Brother Frayer is doing well. We had an amazing lesson with him earlier this week. We were there for a good hour teaching him and answering his questions. When it came time to invite him to be baptized, he knew the question was coming and kind of chuckled. He said that part of him knew he should have been baptized yesterday. He wasn't sure exactly when, but he knows he wants it soon. He is progressing so well! We had a very interesting visit with Betty. She will be baptized I think, but it may be a long road for her. Which is fine. I want her ready for it, whether or not I'm here.

We had interesting news with Bobby. His baptism will most likely be postponed. I can't go into details, mostly because I don't know the details. It makes me a little sad because I was hoping to be able to be here for it, and now I'm not sure if I will. He's such an awesome kid, but he really wants to be ready for baptism. Which I suppose is good; he recognizes the level of commitment and the seriousness of the covenant he is preparing to make. It's setting him up well to serve a mission in a few years.

Well, this is where things really start getting interesting. I'm not sure if anyone can really say they know the meaning of bittersweet until they serve a mission and then get to the end of that mission. It's so surreal, and quite frankly incomprehensible. This has just been the best thing ever I've done in my life and for my life. I've just been so blessed with everything that I've experienced and the support I've had. It's just...yeah :)

Love you all, have a great week! 

Elder Petersen

Letter #79

Hey everyone!

Wow it's been an amazing week! Bobby went to EFY this week, which got
him even more pumped for his baptism next month. He's such an awesome
kid! Really, really glad I get to teach him.

So, you remember reading all those amazing articles in the Ensign
about people meeting the missionaries and getting baptized two weeks
later? And then thinking to yourself, "Wow, wouldn't it be amazing to
be a part of something like that?" Well, I might get the chance.
Sister Frayer and been coming to church and has been very active for
nearly 10 years now. Brother Frayer is not a member and wouldn't do
more than come to an occasional ward holiday dinner activity. Well, he
has, of his own volition, come to church the past two weeks and stayed
all three hours. He has enjoyed the Gospel Principles class so much
that he has already read the whole book and has been studying the
other scriptures. Yesterday, he asked Brother Veasey how he could get
someone over to his house during the week to teach him. Unbeknownst to
him, Brother Veasey is the ward mission leader, so he knew how to
answer that question :) We have an appointment with him tomorrow
morning. When setting up the appointment with him, he mentioned that
he wants someone to come have a discussion with him to make sure he
understands all the basic doctrine of the Church. Well, that just so
happens to be what we do. We haven't had a chance to talk with him yet
about baptism, but I feel confident that it is not at all very far
down the road. I have been so excited about this opportunity that it
makes me so giddy I can't sleep at night :D I feel the distinct
impression that Brother Frayer was someone the Lord was preparing for
me specifically to meet, teach the gospel to, and bring into His
Church.

And so it carries on! Love you all, have a great week!

Elder Petersen

Letter #78

Hello everyone!

Sorry I didn't write last week. We went to the Ringling Art Museum
down in Sarasota and didn't end up having much of any time to write.
But we had a great time! It's an awesome museum and a fun, relaxing
time.

Well, it's been a really good past couple of weeks. We've been working
hard and seeing miracles all over the place. I'm really having a hard
time today deciding on what to say. My mind is just so cluttered
with...everything. This is just a difficult situation to be in. We
have so much work going on so it's impossible to not be focused. Until
someone brings it up. And then I get excited and sad all at the same
time.

We received a referral from HQ. Betty requested a copy of the Bible,
and when we went to deliver it, we found out that she met with
missionaries about 10 years ago. She never went to church with them
but remembered what she felt with them. She felt it again with us and
accepted a return appointment. When we went back she accepted the
invitation to be baptized and wants to pray about when. I've never had
someone pray so sincerely and listen so earnestly for an answer in a
lesson. She's a wonderful woman. I hope to be able to see her baptized
before I go home.

Love you all! Have a great week

Elder Petersen

Letter #77

Hey everyone!

It's been such a great week! Probably the best week that Elder Coleman
and I have had together. We're developing a lot better relationships
with the members here and it's really paying off. We got so many
referrals this week, it's crazy! We haven't even had time to contact
them all on top of the teaching we've been doing.

Speaking of who we are teaching, well, it's been good. It can be
frustrating when people don't show up to church. It's really the most
important step in their conversion. They can learn with us. They can
read the Book of Mormon. They can pray to know the truth. But until
they come to church they will never really understand what makes this
Church different. And they can never have access to sacrament, which
is the most important ordinance in enduring to the end. And you can
tell them this, but until they experience it, they won't really ever
get it.

I don't know if I told you this last week, but we went to a state park
last week called Myakka River. It was a great pday get-away. And so
pretty! Fun hiking, awesome rivers and lakes, lots of alligators, and
a really tall tower that gets you way above the tree line and you can
see for MILES! Florida is such a beautiful place. Is it weird that I
want to live in central Florida some day? But I don't think I would
love it as much if it weren't for the people. At the most recent
transfer meeting, I was talking to a new missionary who had just
gotten here from Fiji. He said that Florida has the best people of all
the states! I kind of chuckled, thinking of all the not so great
people I've met here. But the more I thought about it, the more I
realized that I agree with him. And the closer I get to leaving them,
the more I love them and wish I could stay forever. I love President
Uchtdorf's talk from conference about being grateful in any
circumstance. Especially this part:
"In light of what we know about our eternal destiny, is it any wonder
that whenever we face the bitter endings of life, they seem
unacceptable to us? There seems to be something inside of us that
resists endings.
Why is this? Because we are made of the stuff of eternity. We are
eternal beings, children of the Almighty God, whose name is Endless
and who promises eternal blessings without number. Endings are not our
destiny.
The more we learn about the gospel of Jesus Christ, the more we
realize that endings here in mortality are not endings at all. They
are merely interruptions--temporary pauses that one day will seem
small compared to the eternal joy awaiting the faithful.
How grateful I am to my Heavenly Father that in His plan there are no
true endings, only everlasting beginnings."

Love you all! Have a great week

Elder Petersen