Surprise Monday Email

So I know that it's monday, and I usually email on Tuesdays, but we have training meetings and exchanges all week, so they put our PDay on Monday this week. Next week I'll be emailing on Tuesday once again.

Anyways, life in Phoenix goes great!! We had a baptism on Saturday!! I'll see if I can attach a picture. I baptized her and Elder Shupe confirmed her. It was a really neat experience. We also have another baptism on Saturday as well! Well, hopefully. She has to meet with the mission president for her interview today, and hopefully we get the go ahead for Saturday.

So how are you guys doing with your reading every night? I haven't heard back from some of you in a while. Also, I have an article here by a guy named Cleon Skousen. He wasn't a general authority or anything, but his knowledge of the gospel just baffles me. The article is called "Building Blocks of The Universe". Basically, it has changed my entire outlook on the gospel, on what he explains as "The Mysteries of The Scriptures", and so much more!!! Holy cow, it has some really really really really deep stuff about the atonement, about the pre-mortal existance, and about the true nature of Heavenly Father. It is intense. I have a copy of it so I am going to mail it to you, dad, and then you need to make copies of it and send one copy back to me. The rest you should disperse amongst the family. Like I said, it is really intense.

Also, one last thing that someone could do if they really wanted to help me out, if anyone has some Peter Breinholdt CDs, it would be really cool if you could send me a copy. But if not, don't worry about it. Love you guys!!!

Elder Denison

Christmas and New Years Weeks

Hey guys. How are you all doing on my challenge? I hope it is going good. Anyways, just to let you know whats going on for The Work in East Phoenix:

Zach's baptism on Saturday didn't go through. The bum (I say that kidding around. Zach reminds me of myself before I left, so it's all good) didn't show up for church, so we we're going to push his baptism back until this saturday. But the bum didn't show up again!!! His mom came, but he slept in!! haha. So we're going to push his baptism back to the 22nd, just to see if he is really committed.

Also an investigator that we've had for a while, Patricia, made some radical changes the week after Christmas. It totally took Elder Shupe and I back, because she just wanted to get baptized. But just to let you know, shes a little out there, but thats ok. She had to have her baptismal interview with P. Ells (President Ellsworthe). She was really sad because P Ells wanted her to wait another couple of weeks and then meet with her again. We taught her then next day, and resolved a lot of her questions. One of the reasons why we needed to wait was becuase we needed her to get a stronger testimony about the restoration. When we talked about it the next day, it was like a light bulb just turned on! It was cool to see. And then she asked us if the only way for a baptism to count for anything was if it was done in our church. We told her yes, and then shes like "okay, I'll call and cancel my appointment to be baptised with the baptists then". We're like, yeah!!!

Also the Sunday after Christmas we had a miracle happen. After sacrament meeting, Bishop walked up to me and introduced me to a woman named Denise. He said, "Elder Denison, this is Denise, and she would like to be baptized." I'm sure the look on my face was priceless, because we we're having a hard day because none of our other investigators came to church. Anyways, we've taught her three times already, and she has a date, is already looking forward to going to the temple, and she was already living most of the commandments! At least the hard ones. Shes not living the law of tithing yet! ha ha. Yeah but when we asked her to follow all the commandments she says "Yeah! I've already been doing all this so I guess I've been a Mormon all my life without knowing it!!" Shes one of those really spunky crazy fun black ladies. It is awesome.

Anyways, there's the report for the last week. I hope you guys are doing great!! and I love you so much!!!

Elder Denison

New Years Week

Hey guys. Sorry but I don't have much to write this week. Nothing has really happened. The baptism that I was talking about, Zach, is going to have to be pushed back a week. The little punk didn't show up to sacrament meeting! And you have to go to church so many times before you can be baptized!! Oh well, we caught up with him and he said that he had lost his bus pass. ha ha. Right.

Hmm, interesting. A guy just walked up to us missionaries and asked us if we really had seen Jesus Christ in Texas. ha ha, you get all sorts of stuff like that here. It's awesome.

So here is the main point that I have for all of you. I just finished the Book of Mormon yesterday, and am supposed to be starting up again, but I am going to wait until New Years day. I think it would be all cool if everyone started reading the Book of Mormon then as well. Read it with whoever is staying with you every night, and tell me about what you read in your weekly emails to me. Lets see who can get the most out of it! (It shouldn't be a race because then you miss a lot because you're just trying to read through it) This time through I am going to be looking for principles (things that you can put into "if...then..." statements). You don't have to do that, but I have found that it is easier to stay focused while reading if you are actually searching for things like that.

Anyways, I love you all and miss you so much!! I will talk to you later!

Elder Denison