Life Goes On

This week was good. We had a pretty slow week. We found a lot of potentials though on Thursday--like 5 new people! Hopefully some of them are prepared, ha-ha! You know you are having a good day when you get some jerk trying to tell you that you are doing a great work but for the wrong people! That the Book of Mormon is a load of trash and we shouldn't believe in it.

Life goes on! Hopefully we have some more great experiences this week!

Love,
  Cooper

Servant of the Lord

This week was good. We had to had a zone conference on Thursday. It was a weird one because we were combined with another zone. Normally it was just one zone at a time but this time a representative from Salt Lake was there to look at the cars. They put a black box in so they can "help" us drive safe. ha-ha  Because it was a two-zone conference, I got to see Elder Oviatt again. I miss that guy. I would be his comp again any day! Other than that, I just got to work this week--like actual manual labor! We mowed lawns almost all day on Tuesday. I was so happy! I miss working!

We got a new investigator. She was taught by elders before us and is so ready to get dunked. She has a testimony of the Book of Mormon and of Joseph Smith. She said she considers herself a Mormon. She has some health problems--that's why the elders stopped seeing her. It's so good to actually find some one who is ready and prepared! Her name is Falisha Angel. Keep her in your prayers! Other than that not to much has been happening.

I thank Dad for teaching me how to be. Yesterday we got a phone call this lady in our ward. Her name is Sister Lavely. She is my adopted grandmother. She is as sweet as Verla and has been tested more than Marva. She is a saint! She doesn't have grandchildren and wants them, so I told her I'll be hers...so it's official! She called yesterday. We had some heavy rains come in and had flash flood warnings. Her yard was flooded and the rain was starting to get into the house. She called us in tears asking for help. I ended the lesson and we went to help her. Thank you for teaching me how to work hard! We did our best. I dug a huge hole in the yard and got some of the water to go down. Finally she told us to stop and said, "we will say a prayer and leave it." So we did.  I got to give that prayer. What an honor! It was such a blessing! I have never been so proud of blisters before! That is what being a servant of the Lord is all about right there! She just kept telling us how sorry she was that we were working on a Sunday. Dad and I put tarps on Marva's roof on a Sunday because she was getting rained on. You taught me how to drop everything to help people and love them. Thank you for that!

I hope that you have a great day! Know that I wear our name with pride!

Love,
   Cooper

Laughter is the Best Medicine

Laughter is the best medicine and also the fuel of missionary work. If you can't laugh, I suggest you get a sense of humor or go home. This week was one of those long ones but there was some good that came out of it.

In Michigan the girls haven't heard of the modesty commandment so they dress less.  ha-ha! We knocked on this lady's door--she was very attractive, wearing very short shorts and not much of a shirt. It was Elder Puente's turn to talk so I let him. He did super good--normally he falters on the door, especially if it's some one who's pretty but this time he didn't. He said, "Hey, can we talk to your parents?" What he didn't notice was that she was wearing a wedding ring and she had a small boy behind her. She smiled and told him that it was her home. He died! After I got control of myself (I was holding it in so well) I told her we were out talking about eternal families. She wasn't interested. ha-ha  It still kills me to think of the look on his face after she said that!

We got to walk through a car show on Saturday in New Boston. There were probably 80 cars or so. It was really cool. I felt like Moses parting the people though. I guess guys in shirts, ties and tags-- no matter how you smile--still scare people! A lady let me take a look at her brand new Chrysler 300. I decided that is the car for me!

This week we knocked a lot of doors and had almost zero lessons. Not a whole lot to report on the missionary work but hopefully next week is better!

Thank you for your letters. I hope you have a good week.

Love,
     Cooper

Detroit Temple Trip

My companion Elder Puente

 This week was busy--not too much missionary stuff, just other things. I'm staying with Elder Puente for another six weeks here. We got the call Saturday night after we went to the adult session of stake conference. I've decided that the Westland Michigan Stake is my home stake now. I love the stake president. I can feel how much he loves the people. He is funny and normal. His topic was ward council and he did a great job. He closed off the meeting and made it worth while! I want to stay in this stake until I end my mission. I don't want to move out! Hopefully God keeps me here!

This week I got to go to the temple for my year trip. It was good. There were nine missionaries plus President and Sister Gerber so it was great. The Detroit temple was so pretty but so small compared to the temples that I'm used to back in the holy land ha-ha. After the session we went to the mission home and ate lunch. Then President Gerber gave us some instruction and talked about what kind of impression we want to leave on the mission. It was really good. I could sit and talk to that man all day!

I just came from the hospital. Someone called for a blessing and we went. I prayed before so that I could have the spirit. I about broke down in the parking lot! I don't know why, I just felt all teary. I felt like something cool about to happen. Elder Puente anointed and I gave the man a blessing. I stood in the place of God today! I told that man he would be well because of the faith of his children. He was in ICU, on a ventilator, and covered in tubes. I felt like I said what I said  just because I've thought that it would be cool to say that with so much power, you know--just a cool thing to say. Well, the spirit let me know that I had said what I was suppose to say. Wow! Talk about awesome! That was the most spiritual experience that happened this week!

Thanks for keeping me in your prayers.  I hope that you have a good day!

Love, 

  Cooper