Monday, August 25, 2014

We baptized Crystal!

Family and Friends, 
The Lord has been blessing Elder Brooks and I immensely these days. Ever since I have been here in Fairfield the Spirit has just been so strong. I'm not exactly sure what the difference is. Maybe it's that I knew coming in to this transfer I wold be called to a wonderful area and have a great companion to serve with. And Elder Brooks really has been great. We are just doing our best to serve the Lord each and every day. We were out of area for a good chunk of the week due to some exchanges that we had to go on to train other missionaries. We drove out Tuesday morning to Muscatine which is about 2 hours away. And then on Tuesday we went on exchanges with the Muscatine Spanish Elders. We were able to find two new investigators with them which was great. And then on Wednesday morning we had lunch with the Muscatine English Elders and were able to go out and work them as well. Elder MacDonald went with Elder Brooks so that they could get to know each other a little better and then I went with Elder Manning. He is so great. And it was great to be able to find two new investigators with him as well. We had a wonderful exchange. We slept over Wednesday night and then we had District meeting on Thursday and then we finally got back home around 5 or 6. So it was a long couple of days. Plus we had to sleep on the ground because they did not have extra beds or couches. But it was awesome to be able to go out there! 
On Friday night we were so excited because we normally don't get to bed on time because we have to make phone calls to other missionaries and gather information or encourage them etc. So it was 10:30 and we were just finishing up our dinner. And we aren't supposed to use the phones after 10:30 but got a call from a set of Sisters in our zone. They said that it was an emergency and that they both just felt really awful and they thought someone was outside of their apartment window. So we said a prayer over the phone and they still didn't feel good about things. Anyways, long story short, we called President and he told us to drive out there and check up in them and see if there was anyone around the house. So we drove there which took about a half hour and then met the sisters in a safe place around there apartment. And we got the keys and went and raided their apartment like we were police officers. They thought someone was in there so we kicked open the door and just went as fast as we could to the kitchen drawers looking for knives and we grabbed some and then we started checking all of the closets and under the beds and it was nuts!!!! I felt like a CIA agent! No one was there luckily and so we just blessed the home and it was really cool in the end. But we didn't get home until 1:00 and then we had to be up and at em by 6:30 again. Whooo. That was the roughest morning I have ever had. 
On Saturday we got to attend the beautiful baptism of Crystal. Everything went so smoothly and I really felt the spirit when she was baptized. Elder Brooks did the actual baptizing and that was so cool for him. I had the opportunity to confirm Crystal on Sunday and the Spirit that was felt there was so strong as well. She has changed so much. We used to barely be able to hold a conversation with her and now she calls us everyday and tells us how she is doing. It's amazing. At her baptism some of her extended family that are members came and they sang her a song called walk tall you're a daughter. And the family cried and Crystal cried and then I started to cry and it was just so amazing. Crystal now has a family that will support her. And she just joined a family of about 100 people who all care for her. How cool is that? She is so great and I know that her Father in Heaven loves her so much. 
The reason I brought up the exchange that we had and the night that we had to go raid the Sisters apartment is because if I wasn't a missionary I probably wouldn't have had the energy to last through the rest of the day. But the enabling power of the Atonement was able to get us through. And for some reason we had such insane amounts of energy even though we hardly got any sleep. And if I wasn't a missionary I don't think I would have the spiritual awareness to rely on the atonement as I did. What an amazing testimony. I'm grateful to be a part of the true church of Jesus Christ and be able to be understand the revealed truths that have come forth because of the Restoration. What a remarkable thing. I love you all. Thanks for all that you do for me and for the endless love you show! 
Love,
Elder Caleb James Wardle

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