Helllooo home, Picture 1 A body of water in Dahlonega, GA. Picture 2 Me and Elder Carson Smith, he's from Utah. We had an exchange this past week and it was great! We taught a lady named Gail and invited her to be baptized, she accepted and knew it was true by the signs of an apostasy happening and the need for a restoration. In this picture it is HOT outside! Picture 3 Went on exchange with the Spanish elders. Elder Portillo (on my right) and Elder Wells (on my left) up in Gainesville, GA. and Elder Gottfredson the tall white guy holding the camera. I was with Elder Wells and we had a good lesson with Corey. Learned more about his past in Chicago and shared the Plan of Salvation. He was amazed and had questions about life and afterlife that he never knew how to answer and we were able get them answered. I'm so inpsired everytime we teach him, he's come a long journey from the citylife to now the peace in GA. God has definitely played a role in his life. Overall last week was great, we didn't do anything crazy on the 24th. It was Elder G's dad's birthday, but other than that, we really kinda forgot as well as no one really in the South even knows what a pioneer is much less knowing how to celebrate for one. I guess we really got to celebrate it last night with a movie night with the Wernli family and Kate and Daniel. We watched Joseph Smith the Prophet of the Restoration. It was great, so powerful because I remembered watching this movie when it was at the Joseph smith building in SLC and remembering that was really one of the first big spiritual witnesses to me that the restoration was true. Kate and Daniel loved it, and they're going to be baptized this Friday at 7. This coming week will be hectic! Zone Conference, Mission Leadership conference, baptisms, and exchanges. I'm gonna be sleeping all next Pday (I wish). Seems like me and my parents run on the same schedules lately, coincidence? I think not. To conclude and to say there's no denying this thought I've had a lot recently on what home will be like. Maybe notes too trunky, maybe just a helpless soul cry for direction. There's sarcasm in that sentence be careful. No I think about how real this life is and how real things will be upon arriving home. People have changed, people are different, I have changed and I am different. I see that, and I see in ways how I'm similar. If there's something that's definitely changed it is the deeper sense of the stupid and irrational things I did and have done before and on my mission, how now how I can best improve them through Christ. These notes again may be too trunky, so I'll stop there and just wish y'all the best this week. Again today and this week are going to be fun and probably stretching. Hope u get these photos. and have a great week! Thanks. Love always, elder adam black |
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Dear Friends and Family,
This past week we had lots of good things happen in the Level Creek. We definitely worked hard and diligent and had lots of success in the good work for others. We were able to have successful exchanges with the elders in the Suwannee Ward. I went to their area with Elder Thompson, from Layton, UT, serving now for 13 months. Being able to get to work with missionaries again is quite the experience. We had a good exchange and had lessons with many recent converts to the church. I really learned and was reminded for myself the importance of really giving your heart and might to the lord. It's amazing that when we do those things we grow from it and benefit others just the same. Last week was filled with many other good lessons, we are still teaching Corey from Chicago. He desires to be baptized and we are working for the fifth of September. He's such a great guy, and has a very humble and upbeat personality. Helping and serving them is going really good. Kate and her son Daniel are doing good too, they are so spot on for the gospel and really try to live it. We were over at their home on Saturday with the Wernli family for lunch. She had BBQ wings, corn, and shish kebab shrimp. Daniel is just the coolest, we connect really well which is funny cause in the past he had been very very shy with missionaries and new people. He now calls me "black bunny" because he is the "white bunny"🐰. Kids do say the darnedest things. Kate too is very giving and reminds me so much of Kayla Crawford from FB, and makes me really see that true followers are those who give. After church yesterday, Kate came up to us and said that Daniel and her had talked and he and her would like to be baptized on his birthday at the end of this month. They're now for sure for that date, and keep them in your prayers that all may will go well. As for Jose Cruz, his finger is slowly healing from the bite last week. He hasn't gone to the hospital but drilled a hole in his finger to try to relieve pressure, I think it kind of co-relates to how we are trying to drill the gospel into him to relieve him at the spiritual pressure that he's receiving. He was able to come to different members homes and experience the fullness of testimonies from members, which most of the time is lots stronger than those of the missionaries, as well as Mormon messages which we know once we watch one we can't help but watch another. Lots of good things continue to happen as we see gods hands really play the role in our lives. A scripture before parting: Luke 6: 47-49 47 Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like: 48 He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock. 49 But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great. I found when thinking of the steams as the fountain of living waters or to say the real pure love of Christ in his eternal realm of happiness, if we do not prepare and listen and do the actions Christ has demonstrated and taught us, those endlessly flowing steams of mercy unavoidably drown us at first touch. We will not be able to bear the passion and love of Christ if we do not know what it feels like now and our foundation will be a ruin and fallen one. I can remember as a child I hated the very thought of getting wet, but this I promise you is nothing but the greatest splash zone in the universe. Thanks for all you guys do and hope to continue to hear how life goes and the changes you see with gods hands working more in your life. Kind regards, elder black Hey Family and Friends, Another week gone by, last Monday was the transfer calls, I've now been transferred from Flowery Branch to Level Creek still in the Sugarhill Stake, it would seem this is the last level of the game, and by game I mean mission. The Level Creek Ward is so far really great. We've done some service for a couple families, and of course the whole teaching and preaching the gospel. The Watkins, a convert family who are just too awesome, had us over for dinner last Friday night with our investigator Jose, he's really investigating and the lesson we had with him was so spirit filled he asked what was that feeling he had inside his chest, it was the spirit we told him. He had never felt it so strong the way he did and he wanted to feel it more. He's been to church now a couple times, before I arrived, he's got good questions those dang anti-Mormon sites though. I already love the guy, but please pray that he doesn't get bitten by homeless people. Last night he told us that on Saturday a homeless drunk man bit his finger like Gollum from Lord of the Rings! He now needs to go to the hospital so it doesn't get infected and die. The things that happen in GA... Thursday, we knocked and miraculously found some new investigators, Corey and Shanna. They're really cool, Corey's got lots of potential, really cool background story and has traveled from Chicago to Florida to Sugarhill, GA. Check out "From Gangster to Good Man", it's kinda similar. http://www.mormonchannel.org/watch/series/his-grace/from-gang-member-to-good-man The new companion // Elder Nathan Gottfredson
The High// I think just the whole week, the new change of environment, calling, purpose, it's all been really fun. The low// I'm missing the Flowery Branch, like with all the other wards it feels like I just left family again. Kayla and Penny and Ricky, the members, all were apart of a great memory and story here in GA. But again, Level Creek is still great and I've already gotten to make good friends with these members. To finish, Saturday evening was good. We taught a lady named Kate Titus, she's been investigating for a couple of weeks and is really solid learner and will be getting baptized at the end of this month with her son, Daniel who will be turning 8. We had a lesson on the Temples with the Wornli Family. She's cool, and really sweet. Other than that that's about it, hope all is well with you this summer. Lemme know what's been going on! Stay classy. Love your friend, elder adam black PS Address for now: 5040 Top Cat Ct Sugarhill, GA 30518 Hey Utah, I remember when this whole trip started, the first twelve weeks. Now I'm at the last twelve weeks. It feels so unreal and so strange. It's been an amazing independence week though. The Fourth of July was everything - fireworks, BBQ's, and missionary work - it could be. We started off the day with some service projects with members, helped the MacPherson family with their new flooring, later followed by mowing a lawn for the family the Addisons we are meeting and teaching. After we mowed we had a nice BBQ with some good old southern fried chicken. Delicious! :) Afterwards, one more dinner at the Decooks home with their whole family. Ryan DeCook, their son who's going on a mission to Brazil also had his friends over. It felt so much like how home was right before the mission. We finished the day there and got to see their firework show right in their driveway. The ooohs and ahhhs, the anthems, the family and friends were all just a part of the whole magic of the night, so proud to be an American and to live and serve in this country. Hearing that home even had the missionaries over too for the Fourth of July shows me of the influence Christ can have in us if we but come to Him. It really makes me feel like I have on impact on others because of Christ, as well as just how important it is for members to support the missionaries with their purpose. Other than Fourth of July festivities, we also had a zone meeting last week where we got trained on how to now use the area book app on the iPads. If I didn't mention I love the iPads, I would rather have the new iPhone because it's faster and more portable, but still awesome to use such efficient tools. We've been doing lots of transferring paper work to the digital work, I hate it. But it's better than being out in the hot. It's rained almost everyday this July, tons cooler than June, the thunder and lighting is also epic. We also had several lessons with investigators, Susan Juarez, Catresse and Latresse Addison, and Jesse Robinson are all on date for baptism for the upcoming month. It's so exciting:) I love each one of these people so much it's like they're my kids even though they ain't. Transfers are this week as well. This morning our zone leaders called, Elder Gottfredson (seen Perhaps in past photos) called to tell me some news, I'm his new companion. And to back track, last night president called to let me know I'm going to be a Zone Leader again. Another, so strange moment! Yet so exciting! It's a mix of emotions, the change, all of it. Elder Sorenson is going to be getting elder Adona, not too sure who he is but he's excited too to run the area. That's kinda it for now, have a great week and stay cool. Love, Elder Adam black Sent from my iPad :) |
AuthorThe pretty chill and legit parentals of Elder Black, Tiffany and Henry Black. Archives
September 2015
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