Hello from Indiana

Hello Family,

 

Sorry last week that I didn't have enough time to email everyone, with it being my first P-Day, I didn't really have much time to email. We were super busy. And so my email probably didn't make much sense either, I was trying to hurry super fast.

 

Anyway, this week has been incredible! At the beginning of the week I went on exchanges with one of the Zone Leaders, Elder Cannon. We went onto the IUPUI campus, and that was really cool. I hope I get to serve on a campus sometime during my mission, because it's way exciting. We did a whole bunch of personal contact with people walking around on the campus. It really helped me open up and be more comfortable talking with people I'd never met. We also taught some really solid lessons to some of the college students.

 

The rest of this week in Avon has been really cool too. It's been filled with ups and downs, but the ups definitely beat the downs. We got 7 new investigators this week (last week we only had 4), so that was pretty huge. We met a lady on Wednesday named Eileen and her two kids who are 9 and 11. At first they weren't super open when we met them on their porch, but Elder Ernest really connected with them because they had a bearded dragon, and he had one back home. Once she opened up and we told her that we had a prophet upon the earth and a few other things, she agreed to meet with us the next day. So we went and taught her and her kids on Thursday. She told us that she'd been praying for 20 years that her husband would become religious and that they just moved into Avon so she'd been praying that they'd find a good church to go to. I've always heard of mission stories like that, but it's cool to be part of one. Her two kids agreed to be baptized. She hasn't yet, but it's because we didn't fully explain proper authority and she was already baptized baptist. But I feel like this will go really well.

 

Yesterday at church, a guy named Ben showed up with his girlfriend that is a member. So during sunday school and priesthood we taught him and answered some of his questions and he just kept saying: "That's so cool. That makes sense." We teach him this evening and I can't wait. It just really showed the difference between an investigator that a member finds and one that we tract into. He was super open and receptive. It was super exciting.

 

Well enough about mission work, I'll tell you a little about the area and my companion. Avon is beautiful. I love it here. Imagine West Point, without the mountains in the distance, and plus a lot more green, and random forests, and you've pretty much got it. There's a lot of people here, but it's a farm town that has recently had a lot of development. So, some places there's a lot of corn fields and soy bean fields, and other places just houses. We cover one ward, the Avon ward with Sisters. The ward is awesome, I can really tell I'm going to come to love the members here, especially since I'll probably be here at least 4 more months.

 

Elder Ernest is a great guy. I've learned a lot from him. He's a goofball (as you'll see in some of the pictures I'll send home in just a bit), but a hard worker and knows how to teach and connect with people really well. We get along well and really compliment each other.

 

Anyway, have a great week back home!!

 

Love,

Elder Hill