The Fang

With the kids who were baptized.

On Monday, October 26, 2015 12:33 PM, Dustin Thelander <dustin.thelander@myldsmail.net> wrote:

So Monday was transfer day, and it felt like yesterday. We really didn't know what to do the next day, so we got to work. It turned out to be the best day of the week, and maybe the best day in a couple of weeks. We had the chance to visit three recent converts: Bill, Tony, and now Pam. All of them are doing very well, and yet they all each have their own needs. Pam still needs some questions of hers answered, but now that she has the gift of the Holy Ghost she will have the chance to propel her learning. Tony is super solid, but now he needs to decide when he wants to go to the temple. He is nearing his year mark when recent converts become eligible to enter the temple. Then there is Bill. He has been attending church much more often now, but has the tendency to mingle his own thoughts with actual scriptural information. We also had a miracle this day. We were biking up one mother of a hill when we came across this girl walking home from school. We got to talking with her, and, of course, we talked about the gospel. It ended up that we taught to her the whole restoration lesson and set up with her to meet again. Her knowledge of God is almost non-existent, but that is what we are here for- to teach people. She lives in foster care, and for the rest of this week has been hard to get a hold of, but we will keep trying. There is a lot of potential in this daughter of God.

After the three kids missed their date of the 17th, we needed to push back their baptism a week. They did come to church last Sunday, so they were ready to go. All that needed to happen was to have them interviewed by our District Leader, Elder Lee. That was set to happen Wednesday night. We were there waiting when we got a call that Elder Lee had gotten caught up in a lesson, and it would get to be too late by the time he got there. So, that was a bummer. We got all set up for the next night. So everyone was there on time this time.... except for the kids. Their grandma had taken them out for food and to help her clean an office. They ended up being about 45 min late. So after they all got interviewed it ended up being about 9:15 at night, so the other elders had to book it home. The great news is that they all passed and were set to go for Saturday. The stress level during the week was very high. Being in the area the longest I know much more about the ward than does Elder Infanger. So it was up to me to plan the whole baptismal service. That was a bit stressful to say the least. The rest of the week heading up to the baptism just consisted of trying to find people and visiting people. Then Saturday finally came, and it was time for the baptism. Everyone who was supposed to show up did which was a relief. The kids came all dressed up nice (a miracle), and they were super excited. Maybe the coolest part of the whole thing is that Jheri Davis, their uncle, got to baptize all three of them. He is just a recent convert of a little under a year. So the service ended with no hiccups, and we had some great refreshments afterward. The next day was the kids confirmation. That was an amazing experience to have three people confirmed in one sacrament meeting. I was honored to be able to confirm Paul and Micaela, and Elder Infanger confirmed Devon. The ward has been so supportive to all of them which has made their transition much easier.

In other news, our new bishop, Bishop Stokes, is awesome and totally committed to missionary work. And I guess a little about Elder Infanger, my new companion. He is from a small town in northern Idaho called Salmon. He loves to hunt and be outdoors. He is super funny with a total laid back and subtle scene of humor. He loves to work hard and talk to everyone. That is an amazing trait because if we talk to everyone, we are one of the seven contacts it takes for someone to take the lessons with the missionaries. It is all about planting those seeds. And, his nickname is the Fang (from his last name, Infanger)- thus the title of the email. I pray all of you back home have had a great week. I love you all so much.

Love,

Elder Thelander

With the new companion, Elder Infanger