Dear family and friends,
This week has been crazy!! It took forever but we got our bikes fixed. Then we rode them once and Elder Cook got a flat. So yeah walking everywhere again. Thursday to Saturday we had like 7 appointments each day and they all got cancelled!!! We went finding people in our list of members and new move ins, less actives, and possible investigators but got nothing! People couldn't or wouldn't listen to us and we just prayed and prayed and nothing! There's this struggling investigator named Robbie Gomez who was in such a bad situation spiritually and temporally that he was going to end his life but our visits quite literally kept him going and our message gave him hope. But we try to meet with him again all throughout this week and he keeps putting it off and it's frustrating because I know the gospel will help him but it can't if he won't let us in. Ahhhh! And none of our people who said they'd come to church came. Everything fell through. I'm doing my best not to complain and to just patiently do my best but it's tough when you think you're giving your all. I just had to sit down and think at what I was doing and pray for forgiveness of anything that might not have been in harmony with my calling. Then I remembered late Saturday night that I was speaking the next morning in the Cambodian Branch. So I start pulling up things I feel would be of benefit for the members, and I find this interesting scripture on enduring to the end, it's D&C 58:2-4,
2 For verily I say unto you, blessed is he that keepeth my commandments, whether in life or in death; and he that is faithful in tribulation, the reward of the same is greater in the kingdom of heaven.
3 Ye cannot behold with your natural eyes, for the present time, the design of your God concerning those things which shall come hereafter, and the glory which shall follow after much tribulation.
4 For after much tribulation come the blessings. Wherefore the day cometh that ye shall be crowned with much glory; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand.
And as I read this and prepared the rest of my talk using a general conference talk, approaching the throne of God with confidence, from this last conference. I began to see an immediate reply to my prayer and as I read more and more of these scriptures I felt at peace and was comforted in knowing that I need to just keep going. So I did and I survived the week! Ha ha it was a humbling week to say the least. I wrote a little poem about my favourite scriptures to top it all off. I learned through those bad days at how serving others even when all I want to do is go home and drown my sorrows in a big bowl of ice cream, is the best. When we had nothing to do for the evening we asked our dinner appointment if they needed help with anything which they turned out they did. So I shovelled dirt for like 2 hours from a dirt pile, we drove it over and added more material to their horse stables. The blessings in this was that their father, who is not a member, went from not talking to us to being willing to give us rides and have us come over more often. That wouldn't have happened if we just ate and left. I am so thankful for a loving Heavenly Father who knows everything because I sure don't. It's hard to believe how much I've grown just being out for the short time I have been. I've met some wonderful people, and done some awesome things. For instance I have something to tell you that might make you a little jealous. So this elder right here has John Bytheway's number in his phone and keeps in contact with him every so often. Yeah he's my new bud! If you don't believe me I could give it to you and you could call him up. Ha ha it's so weird! But a crazy answer to prayer again. So that investigator Robbie Gomez, was at rock bottom, I don't want to go into details but he's done a lot of bad things and has and continues to have a lot of bad things happen to him. He was walking one day and saw a clip board on the ground and papers that had flown off into the busy street. He felt prompted to pick up every single paper, stopping traffic as he did so, and collected them all up. It looked to be a class attendance role from Brigham Young University, and there was no number on any of the papers. He looked at the clipboard which had a name on it... John Bytheway. Yeah so he called BYU and said I have Johns papers. So they met and John said he'd find someone in his area to help Robbie. At this point we had already came over once and gave Robbie a blessing when he didn't want to go on. But we got a text from our mission president with John Bytheway's number saying call him. So I did and I talked with John and now I keep in contact with him after every lesson we have with Robbie so he knows how he's doing. Yeah crazy! When Robbie progresses more I'm going to invite Brother Bytheway to on of our lessons.
I don't have much time as you know, but I'll send another email with pictures and my talk. I love you all, and my siblings, I know I don't get enough time to write you individual emails all the time, but I read every word and honestly tear up all the time. My companion is weirded out every Monday because of that. Haha I love you all so much and thank for you emails. I will find time to write a more personal email to you. Just give me some time! :)
Love Elder Patterson
Ps you can send packages to my address its 2532 S Lake Park Circle #3 west valley city UT
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