Lewisburg 2/23/09

Dear Family and FriendsI want to express the love i have for each one of you. I am grateful for the wonderful influences that have helped me be who I am today. Being out here helps me realize how truly blessed I am. The previous week was not very fruitful in terms of finding people. But it was wonderful in the sense that some great things happened. First off B has been coming around and has matured alot. He has done so well lately that we decided to reset him with a date. His new baptismal date is March 14th so pray that he will stay strong and continue to learn and grow. S has said that we could come back and see her which is wonderful but I think she has lost some of her fire and determination. Pray that she will see the need for the gospel and that it is what will bring her the most happiness. With all her trials she wonders if what we teach her is even helping. It made me pretty upset when I found out her doctor told her to stop meeting with us so that might be partially why she isn't as gun ho. The R family came to church and they once again had a good experience. It was a wonderful block of meetings on Sunday. It was our ward conference and the President Hoffman and Bishop Clark addressed us. Bishop talked about being prepared and getting ourselves ready for the 2nd coming. He had many great comments he is very bright I wish I would've written them down. President Hoffman gave a great talk on service and how we as a people needed to be unified. In fact that is our stake theme. "That we will be of one heart, and one mind." He refered to Elder Eyrings talk on Unity whe he said a great day of unity is coming. I learned that we all need to band together and rise above the sinking values of the world. Gods standards never change he acknowledges that these times are difficult but he has given us a voice of a prophet to follow. It is my testimony that we do have a prophet and we cannot withstand satan unless we follow him and the counsel that is directed to him through the LORD. Alot is required of us as members. I need to go but be strong I am doing great and am being blessed.With LOve Elder Powell

Lewisburg 2/17/09

Hello Family and Friends. I'm sorry I was unable to E-Mail yesterday the Library was closed due to Presidents Day. It was a good week, time really goes fast out here. Me and Elder Norton have really tried to step up and talk to everyone we see. It still takes guts to talk to strangers on the streets but its amazing when you do all within your power the Lord blesses us. Case in point; we had a wonderful family show up to church whom we had never met. They had such a wonderful time at church and the ward really stepped up and fellowshipped them. The Dad used to be an assistant pastor and at first I was a little apprehensive how their experience would go just because of his background. When I talked to him he was a humble very kind man who really is searching for the truth. Hes reading the B.O.M and he's watched alot of the Church videos and him and his family is really soaking it up. Thanks to a member who was willing to share the gospel a family has been touched. I'm really excited for the opportunity that we will have to teach them soon. We are always seeking to find families because retention is so much better when people are not alone when they join the church. What a wonderful blessing. It just goes to show that members play a huge role in missionary work. It is so much better if the members do the finding and missionaries do the teaching. Do your very best to share the gospel. It takes guts I know but think of how wonderful you will feel if you can bring somebody in and change there life for the better and invite the fullness of the gospel into their lives. We haven't heard from S but we are really going to try and contact her this week. B is doing better we will hopefully set him with a date soon. Also there are some promising people coming up. I really feel this area could really explode. We just need to give our best effort and let the Lord work in his own way and in his own timing. I can promise the greatest happiness we will feel is by living the gospel. I know when I have slacked I am not as happy. Don't let Satan decieve you. He would have you think that the gopsel is restrictive and it won't make us happy when in fact it gives us so much feedom and happiness. I have been reading from the B.O.M lately and I am learning so much. Before I would've just read pretty quickly through it but now I am taking the time and letting the spirit teach me. My scripture study has really improved. 2 reasons why #1 I'm willing to pay the price to gain more knowledge and #2 I'm writing things down which invites the spirit to give us more personal revelation because it truly shows that we really treasure learning by the spirit therefore we will be more apt to recieving more guidance. Don't take the scriptures for granted; I am starting to realize that any question we have can be answered in the scriptures if we diligently search and we live worthy of the spirits guidance. What a great gift that we all should seek after. I still am far from perfect but I want to be led more by the spirit. We will be led more often as we are obedient to lords will and if we truly want it. But I hope you all had a great week and a great Valentines. Mine was just another day with choclates as an added bonus haha. I love you all take care let me know if there is anything I can do for you. Elder Powell

Hello everyone!!
I guess ill start off with the major news. So we had a setback with S. She
has asked us not to stop by for awhile. I guess just the trials and things shes
gone through has finally caught up with her. She didn't really mourn during this
time and she tried to be the strong one in the family. Now she just wants some
time to herself to figure things out. It was dissapointing news granted but all
is not lost. She knows the things we taught were true and thats its helped her
in her life but I think she is just overwhelmed right now. I believe that in a
short while we will be teaching her again and getting her back on the road to
baptism. Ya know you never know what will happen in life especially in
missionary work. But you need to accept what comes you way and be grateful. I
feel like I can work on that. B is also not really progressing like we
would like him too but has made progress. It is hard for him to commit to things. We have had an increase in finding
which for that I am grateful. We found an unmarried couple and had a very
spiritual lesson on the Restoration. I felt it I pray that they felt it as well.
One thing that has been impressed on my mind is the need for us to fortify our
testimonies. There are so many people who fall away once adversity strikes and a
cloud of opposition comes. THere is SO much out there that is against the church
and if you havent read the B.O.M and prayed about it how can you expect to
stand. If its true which I testify it is then this church is true. If you doubt
me just look at the marvelous good that has come forth because of it. You cant
tell me that a false book and a false prophet can bring forth this much good.
THe Savior taught about this that by their fruits ye shall know them. You can
sucked up in the opposition of the church or you can ask GOd to tell you the
truth of the matter. There will be no fence sitters in the coming days we need
to make sure that we are seeking after the Lords will. There are wonderful
people of many different faiths but appreciate that we have been given more
light and understanding and do something about it. If youve recieved a spiritual
witness of a particular truth then that is enough you dont need to prove it
intelectually. Stand tall and be as the Savior would be. I just got rolling and
I dont know why I said all those things but I want you all to stay strong. It
makes me so sad to see people fall away. But I am doing good we are working
hard. THankfully we have had beautiful weather lately its supposed to be like 60
on thursday so it definetly feels like spring here. I pray that you can all be
happy. I love you all. This gospel is true

Elder POwell

Lewisburg 2/2/09

Hello family and friends this last week is just a blur it went so fast. It is now the start of a new transfer and me and Elder Norton are staying together for which im glad. We've had a good time together and we have got some good things to look forward to this transfer. I can see two possibly three baptisms coming up this transfer. Weve got a great ward that fellowships pretty well and has a good ammount of referals. A lot of the baptisms that have happened this year have resulted from the members. S wasn't able to come to church this week so we will have to push her baptism back. She strained her back and had to go to the emergency room. But i do have great news. Thank you so much for the prayers on her behalf. Truly a miracle took place this week. So as I told you before her neice was hit by a drunk driver. She flew like a hundred feet and I guess the guy was going pretty fast. They rushed her to the hospital and things didn't look good, she was in a coma, and doctors said her chances looked poor. Her father was especially struggling and S was worried that he might hurt himself. She was there as a constant support and she encouraged him to pray. He had never prayed before and he had no concept of a God. S was reading in the Book Of Mormon during this time in the hospital and she came to the story of the Alma the younger she just flipped open to it. She got to the part where it talked about how he was in a deep sleep and there was much fasting and prayer and show after three days he arose. This was an answer to her prayer and it give her peace and assurance that her niece would live again despite the bleak outlook. She had marvelous faith and me and Elder Norton fasted and all the prayers that were offered. What ensued later was a miracle so Serenas niece was hit on friday amd on monday she arose from her coma. 3 DAYS AFTER THE ACCIDENT!!!! It happened to be right before we broke our fast. Doctors were amazed to add to that she has no brain damage the only thing is a couple bruised ribs and headaches that will go away with time. WHAT A MIRACLE!!!! As a result of this her dad now has a belief in God and this event has brought him and his wife together on the verge of a divorce. Now God didnt cause that drunk driver to hit that little girl but he was able to show his power and provide a tremedous growing expierence. I learned two valuable lessons from that expierence. 1) God can accomplish any miracle she shouldnt have lived. 2) The Book Of Mormon does provide answers to our prayers. You cant tell me that it was just coincidence that she flipped open to that passage at that particular time. And that she arose after three days just like Alma is evidence that God was speaking to Serena that things would be ok. Thank you so much for your prayers I love you all; I'm doing well. Remember to keep Heavenly Father, and the Savior close in your lives. If we have faith anything can happen. Just look at the miracle of my dad. I love you all take care. Elder Powell

Lewisburg 1/26/09

Greetings from Lewisburg,PA. I am doing well; we didnt have a very successful week but S has remained strong. She had another big trial. Her neice was hit by a drunk a driver and is in critical condition. It seems as if Satan is working very hard on her but she hasn't faltered. Her family is devasted, this comes after her brothers death a week ago. She is a rock and has turned to the Lord. Her example has influenced the lives of family and friends and they are becoming better people as a result. I am so proud of her but she is in need of our prayers. I hope we can all be brave and face our challenges head on. The Church is true and through Jesus Christ we can recieve strength. I love you all take care. Elder Powell

Lewisburg 1/20/09

So Im writing on a Tuesday because yesterday was Martin Luther King Day and the Libraries were closed. Thank you so much for the cards and kind words that you sent for my Birthday. I can't believe that I am no longer a teenager...haha, it is so weird. But thanks again. This past week was wonderful. I really enjoyed my exchange with a brand new Elder. It was crazy he reminded me so much of myself at the begining of his mission. It was a different expierence for me to basically pull all the weight but I really appreciated his humility. It was fun, we worked hard and we were able to find a new investigator. The greatest part of the week was what transpired with our investigator S. Me and Elder Jensen the newbie went over to her house on Tuesday and we had a wonderful visit. She said she would be baptized on Valentines Day and agreed to pay tithing. Now to the hard part we knew she smoked but we proceeded to teach the Word Of Wisdom and she committed to give up smoking and stop drinking tea. We asked her to give us the cigarettes that night to remove the temptation but she couldn't. We asked her if the next time we came if she would give them to us she said yes. The following day her brother passed away due partly to drugs. I talked on the phone with her and offered counsel. She didn't question her faith in God but she questioned how he could let this happen. I went on to talk about agency and how Heavenly Father would love to step in sometimes but he can't because that would destroy the plan. He gives us the opportunity to make our own choices to allow us to grow and then we must accept the consequences. I told her that Satan tries very hard to have us question our faith in God and his son Jesus Christ. He wants to isolate us from the only lasting help that we can have especially in times of tragedy. I told her to turn to God and not push him away to ask for understanding and peace. On Friday we went back and just talked with her awhile about her brother and about the Savior and the healing aspects of his Atonement. I wasn't sure if she would still stay true to her commitment because alot of times people turn to addictive behaviors to numb the pain. I was so proud of her as she handed us her last two cigarettes. She said that her brothers death really opened her eyes to the fact that if she smoked it could be her last breath. The next couple days were very hard on her and Satan was working doubletime on her. She was very unstable emotionally and she almost gave in to smoking and drinking but she turned to God instead. She said she has never prayed so much in her life. God gave her strength to overcome. I am so proud of her she stood strong even when she faced terrible temptations when it would've been very easy to give in. She feels so good that she didn't give in. Her influence not only has spread to us but also to members of her family and associates she has. They have noticed a change in her and also the great strength she possessed because God was on her side. Many are taking a greater interest in religion and S has already her family to the baptism. I think much good will come out of her great example. Pray for her continued strength. I pray that we will all turn to God in our afflictions and that we will be strong enough to degeat Satan and his temptations. If we choose to overcome then we choose to invite Gods spirit in our lives. Greater self worth and greater strength will follow. We will be able to feel Gods love more and be able to see clearly. I love you all take care Love Elder Powell

LEWISBURG/1-12-09‏

Hello family and friends cross your fingers that this E-Mail doesnt get deleted. I am doing really well here in Lewisburg. Although we arent finding as many investigators as we would like we are being blessed with the investigators that we do have. S is doing well and is really excited about learning. She came to church and loved it. She also came to a baptism that the other Elders had and it was a positive experience. We are going to be setting her with a date on Tuesday as well as teach the Word Of Wisdom. That day I actually will be on exchange with a brand new missionary. He's only been out three weeks. This will be the first time that i will be the old one in a companionship, haha weird. It will be awesome because new missionaries are so teachable and just have a great spirit. Although I suspect I will probably be doing most of the teaching. Instead of teaching it maybe I should just go and grab her cigarettes and say no more and then be done with it haha jk. But ya, I'm excited. B is doing well also he is improving with the things he's struggled with and he just seems to be maturing and more light has come into his life. Those are the main two all the others we either struggle contacting or they aren't too solid. We are tracting over ten hours every week but we cant seem to build our teaching pool. I think when the college kids come back this week we might have more success. But we had Zone Conference two weeks ago it was great. It focused alot on the proclamation to the family. We need to protect our families and not support things that would degrade the family unit that God established. President Pugh is actually out of the mission right now for surgery. Pray for him that his surgery goes well and that he has a speedy recovery. We are going to fast for him as a mission on Tuesday.I have no idea what kind of surgery it is but we want him back as soon as we can as well as Sister Pugh. I am doing great I hope you are too. I have testimony that if you go to work for the Lord he will go to work for you. He waits at the door and we must open the door. We must accept him and his will for us. Be humble, don't question Gods commands just do them. I love my Savior, and my loving Heavenly Father. I love you as well take care. Elder Powell