Elder Anderson is doing great. He is a great missionary and has a really strong desire to do the work. Him and I get along great and have a lot of the same interests. He really respects and looks up to me as his trainer. He is a funny kid and pretty goofy. I am very happy to have him as a companion. I feel so blessed to have had such great companions throughout my mission. I remember when getting set apart as a missionary that my Stake President blessed me that I would always have good companions, and I truly believe that promise to me has been kept. Now I have had some unusual situations with my companions, but I have never ever felt like they were bad companions. I've never gotten in a serious quarrel with any of my companions, not even as much as an argument. I've gotten along with all of my companions, and I feel that it is because I've had faith that the blessing that my Stake President gave me was truly inspired and true. I've learned so much from each one of my companions, and they've all been very different. I am grateful for my experiences with all of my companions and the preparation they've given me to find and get along with an eternal companion. I am grateful to have Elder Anderson as a companion, and I know that once again I've been blessed with a great companion.
The ward is doing incredible. I just can't express this enough, I love this ward. The respect that we've gained as missionaries in this ward is phenomenal. We have a rock solid foundation of trust in this ward. It is something that I don't want to lose, and will always strive to maintain. I am convinced that the best way to help people do missionary work is to lead by example. Be a light unto the ward and let them fall in love with you and missionary work. I mentioned Austin Varney in my last email. He is the young man that we go out with occasionally. This kid is awesome and has been a great example to the ward. Austin gave a talk in Church this Sunday and told of his many awesome missionary experiences that he's had with us. He told of the awesome experience that we had teaching a less active youth and teaching him the Plan of Salvation. He told of how I've invited him to talk with his friends and recognize the missionary opportunities that God gives to him, and how he made an appointment with his High School counselor that expressed interest in the Church before. His talk was great and really showed people how easy it is to get involved in missionary work.
Bishop Clay is an incredible Bishop and is so helpful and really loves us. He is a great leader and has really gotten the whole Ward council very involved in missionary work. All of the ward council members really trust Elder Anderson and I, they want us to succeed. President Roberts the EQP is one of my favorite members. Talk about a great example, this guy is astounding. He is such a fan of Elder Anderson and I and does so much to help us out.
Alright, time to tell you of the awesome missionary experiences that we've had this week. To start out I will tell you of the lesson that we had last Monday night with a guy named Idris. He is the boyfriend of one of the members of the ward. He was raised in a muslim home, but is not a practicing muslim. He is very logical, open-minded, and smart. We taught him in a member's home, the Greene Family. I could go on a large tangent about how much I love the Greene family, but just know that they are awesome. So we taught Idris the restoration in the Greene's home Monday night and it was one of the best lesson's I've ever been part of. It was just so clear, and understanding was there. Idris just got it. I love watching people understand and comprehend the Restoration of the Gospel. It just shows how true it is. It makes sense!
Next, we got to teach Bro Ellsworth again this week with President Roberts. My goodness is this man intelligent. He asked questions that I've never heard before, but are sincere and really made me think. I LOVE teaching intelligent people, because they truly push you and make you reach and study to find the answers. Bro Ellsworth has never read The Book of Mormon, and has refused to read it for quite awhile. His reason didn't seem very valid on why he wouldn't read. So during the lesson we tried to explain as clearly as we could why The Book of Mormon is really the key to understanding everything that we have to say. And if you don't read The Book of Mormon, then there really is no way to know whether or not we are right, or we are wrong. It is the evidence. He must've understood, because he is currently tearing through The Book of Mormon. During sacrament meeting this Sunday he wasn't even aware of the speakers, because he had his nose in The Book of Mormon the whole time. A member of the ward came up to me and said, "How did you do it?" and I said, "Do what?" And she said, "Get Brother Ellsworth to read the Book of Mormon! You don't even understand how incredible this is, do you?" I guess I didn't, but it is pretty great that he is reading!
This Sunday we had eight of our investigators come to church. We had Yolanda's kids Isaac, DeAngelo, and Dallas come to church. Then of course Regina and her family also attended. There isn't too many other things that make me as happy as seeing my investigators come to church. Seeing Yolanda's kids come to church was awesome. She said that she has been trying forever to get them to come, and now they've come! This was huge.
Last experiences that I want to write about is our dinner with Olga and Dexter. I wrote about Olga awhile ago and how I showed her my drivers license and BYUID to show her that I don't want to be a stranger. So we haven't had a chance to see her for a little while, she works a lot. However we have had the chance to see her husband Dexter quite often. Olga is from Russia, and Dexter is from Guyana. They've got a very interesting story. Dexter is a really funny guy. He is a chemical engineer and races BMW's that he buys and fixes up. He is awesome. So on Saturday we had an appointment to see them at four o clock. Luckily I've taken the time to get to know the members and their lives, so I was able to bring the PERFECT team up. Our team ups name was Brother Barthelus. This member is one of my favorites, he is so cool and also restores BMW's and is from Haiti. Brother Bathelus + Dexter = BFF's. Haha, they hit it off so well. Unfortunately we were unable to share a lesson with them right then because they had to get a form to one of their employees. When Olga came out I said to her, "Olga! When are we going to feed us?" and she laughed and said, "Well I can put something together for later tonight, so how about you come over in about two hours!" And we said that sounded great. Two hours later we went over with Austin and had an incredible night. We really got to know them, and they really got to know us. They really love Mormons now and are very interested in the Church! They were very interested in the Book of Mormon. This was one of my favorite nights of my mission.
Well, this was a great week. I can't believe that February is almost over. That is just so crazy. My mission has flown by, before I know it I will be back in Utah. I have learned so much on this incredible story. I love this Church so much, and I really have come to know that it is true. I just have no doubt in my mind or heart. I love you all so much and miss you all so much.
-Elder Ryan Romero
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