I think I´ll start by talking about yesterday. It made me come out of my shell a little bit. In reality the mission has already done that to me but yesterday was a little different. Elder Cranford and I had to teach all of the adults in the ward about missionary work and how they can help us. We gave examples and did little practices with them. It was a ton of fun and I think they enjoyed it. They are a great ward and really trying to get missionary work going. Really the missionary work is theres and we are here as their servants. They know A LOT more people than we do so it really helps to have them looking for people. After we taught the class, my companion was playing the prelude music for sacrament meeting and I was in the back of the congregation sitting by a family. The ward secretary came up to me and asked where my companion was and so I told him, ¨He´s up front playing the piano.¨ So then he asked me if I was prepared to give an 8 minute talk on missionary work for sacrament meeting. Haha of course I couldn´t say no so I went up and sat on the stand and prepared my talk. It was a little nerve racking but I think I did alright. I tried to make a joke in spanish and they understood it so hey, it went pretty good. Needless to say I was sweating like crazy and my knees were shaking but oh well. I got a lot of encouragement after which was really nice. I think they could tell I was scared. Anyway, this week was a little different. Elder Cranford and I taught 3 new investigators. We taught the family from English class but only the mom and boy were there. They really liked it though and after we extended the baptismal invitation they said they would think about it and they want to learn a little more. We also taught a man named Vicente that was actually taught by another missionary in the Canary Islands. He said he knows he needs to be baptized but he wants to be prepared. We can help him there! So all in all we had quite a bit of success this week. We are still working with the investigators we´ve had and trying to find more. Unfortunately the Peruvian family is either losing interest or doesn´t have any time at all because they won´t let us come over. Its too bad because I was really excited to teach a whole family. Thats about it for the week so I´ll end it here. I love you all a ton and thanks for the support I always feel. Have a great week. Love, Elder Langston

Guess where I am now????

Transfer calls were Sunday night and...(drumroll)...Elder Cranford and I are staying together in this area for at least six more weeks. Pretty good eh? I was excited because we have been finding new investigators like crazy lately! We also have a lot of work to do with ones we have found in the past. I just love keeping busy and I love my ward here! The members are really willing to help and have emphasized the importance of missionary work in the last few meetings. The bishop has actually asked that me and Elder Cranford give a lesson on missionary work to the whole ward in gospel doctrine class here in a few weeks. We´ll see how that goes! Unfortunately, we haven´t been able to meet with the Peruvian family this week. We have called them quite a few times but they are busy dealing with residency issues. I hope things start to pick up. We met with Sonia this week the day before her birthday. Truthfully, it didn´t go too well. We tried to watch the restoration movie but her tv didn´t work and her computer didn´t have volume. It was a little bit of a bummer. She had us stay to eat with her though and she really enjoyed our company. She actually told me that she is moving to Idaho where her family lives in about a year. I couldn´t help but think that would be perfect because there is no way you are going to escape the church in Idaho! :) I guess we need to worry about baptizing her first. I think Elder Cranford and I have found something good though. As you know, we teach english classes every Saturday evening and afterwards we share a small spiritual thought. This last Saturday we did something a little different and shared the whole first lesson which is the restoration. It went really well and everybody filed out after we had finished. Elder Cranford was having a conversation with a man that was thanking him for all his help. After everybody had left I saw a family that had just left in the door. They told me they wanted us to come over this week! I was so excited. They have a boy that is about 12 that loves me for some reason. I think its because I´m kind of goofy and he gets a kick out of it. I´m so excited to go over to their house! I hope they are really interested. I would love to see a whole family baptized. Well thats my report for the week. Time is flying and I´m loving my mission. This church is true. There is no possible way I could doubt it. I love you all.Elder Langston

Slowly but Surely

Well well well. All of you that are wondering about Sonia...she hasn´t agreed to be baptized yet because she still wants to know for herself that everything is true. That really does make me happier than her being baptized just to be baptized. She wants to know why she is doing what she is doing and I really am happy about that. I read her the baptismal questions this week so she could see what was required of her. She said she had a testimony of everything except she doesn´t know for sure if Joseph Smith saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and that he was called as a prophet. She said she isn´t going to deny that it happened, but she just doesn´t know for sure yet. We are planning on watching the a video about the restoration with her this week and she wants us to come over and eat! She really is so nice and i know she will be ready soon. The family from Peru isn´t progressing anymore so that makes me kind of sad. They didn´t come to church this week and the father doesn´t think he needs to be baptized since he was already baptized in the catholic church. We are really trying to help him see that only our church has the priesthood authority. The good news is Elder Cranford found 3 new investigators this week with quite a bit of potential. One is the mother of the second counselor in the bishopric and she is READY. She has been coming to church for quite awhile now and I didn´t really know she wasn´t a member. Whoops! But yesterday Elder Cranford and I taught about the restoration in Gospel Principles class and she told us she didn´t have any questions and that she knew everything we said was true! That made me extremely excited! We are going to set a date with her this week. Well thats pretty much it for my report on the week. I hope you are all doing well. I pray for each of you every single day. I know the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the one true church and I´ve never wanted to share the knowledge I have like I do now. I just wish everyone would listen. I love you all and I´ll talk to you next week! Love, Elder Langston

Loving this work!

Sorry no baptisms this week haha. But I read everyones emails and they all made me so happy. I have more support than any other missionary in the world by far! Thank you all. Well, this week we found some new investigators! A whole family from Peru! They came to church with us and we are very close to setting a baptismal date with them. They said they have a testimony of everything. Joseph Smith, The Book of Mormon, you know everything. We are going to meet with them again on Wednesday to try and set the date. I also asked Sonia to be baptized on the 22 of August. The response she gave me wasn´t a yes or no but it was just as good as a yes. She said she is going to pray, and if Heavenly Father wants her to be baptized on the 22nd, she will do it. It made me really happy! She really loves the church and the Book of Mormon and I´m so excited for her. Elder Cranford and I have really been blessed with investigators that are truly interested and seeking the truth. Yesterday was zone conference and President Hinckley is amazing! So is his wife. She actually contacted the Peruvian family and she hardly speaks a word of Spanish. She really wants to be part of the work. President Hinckley has a great sense of humor too. Right in the middle of the conference, he turned on some spanish music and started singing and dancing around the room! Haha it was hilarious. I can really feel his love for the missionaries in this mission and I´m grateful to have him. He bore such a powerful testimony yesterday at the end of the conference and part of it really stuck with me. He said "I wish you knew how amazing and special each of you are. I wish you had the tiniest idea. You are doing an amazing work." Something like that anyway haha. It really motivated me to try even harder. I have so much room to grow. I really love how much I´m learning out here. I love hearing your testimonies in your emails and letters. And I love how you spoil me Grandma! Holy Cow! Haha but thanks again for all of your support and know you are all in my prayers. I love you Love, Elder Langston

First Baptism!

Wow what a fun week! I´ll start from the beginning. 3 days before the baptism we made the program with Gina. We asked her who wanted to baptize her and she chose my companion Elder Cranford. Then she chose me to confirm her...in front of the whole ward in sacrament meeting! Whew were my knees shaking! It went really well though. I asked my companion if I messed up afterwards and he said I didn´t so thats good! Anyway, the baptism was on Saturday at 2:30 and it will be such a special memory for me the rest of my life. After she was baptized she shared her testimony and I´ve never been hit so hard with such a simple short testimony. When I heard her say she knew Joseph Smith saw God the Father and The Son, I was overcome with the spirit. I´ve never felt so happy for someone else. I feel so grateful to be able to be an instrument in the Lords hands. Now Gina has taken the first step to living with her family and her Heavenly Father for eternity and I was blessed enough to be part of it. Yesterday after church, Elder Cranford and I went to Gina´s house and ate with her family. We asked her if she had any questions for us, and she did. She had some questions about feeling the spirit. She said "You have explained that the spirit is a really soft feeling that is hard to feel, but I think I felt something different yesterday. How do you feel the spirit Elder Langston?" It caught me a little off guard but she had already asked me that question in the past so I had some time to think about it. I explained how I felt at her baptism the day before. I explained at times I feel like crying because I´m so happy and sometimes its a rushing sensation that runs down my whole body. After I said that, she said "That! That is what I felt yesterday!" That gave me the best feeling ever because earlier that day when I confirmed her, I remembered blessing her with the ability to recognize the feelings of the spirit and to understand them. Clearly Heavenly Father knew what I needed to say and He told me through the spirit. This week got me thinking a lot. I thought about how my life was just a few months ago. I could walk down the street without being yelled at, called names, or having hands put in my face. And then I thought about the baptism and how I get to share the most beautiful message with people here and help them get back to Heavenly Father. Its so worth it and I´m so happy to be here. I want to close this email with a quote I heard from Gordon B Hinckley. I thought it was really neat. " These are the two questions I should like to leave you with. It´s true isn´t it? Then what else matters?" I love you all.Love Elder Langston