Another good week in Thibodaux!

Another good week in Thibodaux! Well, I was actually in Harahan for five days on an exchange, but when I did get back it was really good!! It was nice getting to do another exchange in New Orleans, it really makes me miss the city and the culture and the people, hopefully I get to make it back over there to serve. I was actually on an exchange with a missionary that came out like 3 months ago and he graduated the same year as Peter which is kinda crazy, he is 25 and just barely got out. But he is solid and an awesome missionary.

 

When I did get back to Thibodaux we went and saw our investigators K, C, S, and J.  We just stopped by to set a time up to see them because my companion waited till I got back to stop by and I'm glad he did cause it was a sweet experience. C. told us that he got an answer that he needed to join and that he had been praying about it during sacrament at church last Sunday. He had been trying to find out if this is what he needed to do and he said when he got home he got on YouTube to look something up and a "I'm a Mormon" ad came up and it was the first time he had ever seen one and he feel really good about joining in that moment and knew it was right, so that was way sweet. His girlfriend is following right behind him, she said she felt really good at church, not quite as obvious of a sign but she was able to feel a sense of peace and belonging in church! So they are doing really good. We had another lesson with them about the word of wisdom and they both committed to live it. In the lesson, K. kinda was still a little confused about the restoration and didn't fully grasp it and then C. started to explain it and bore testimony about it and how it was essential to have the way back to God restored and how Joseph Smith was just like him, looking for a church, and then God and Jesus appeared to Josheph and told him that he was to join none of them and then he would restore the truth... the spirit came in the room really strong when he started to teach and the funny thing is we didn't teach him that in-depth about the restoration, so I know that when we did teach it he was learning from the spirit. We had some of the Yount Sing Adults there with us when we were teaching, two of the Nichol's students Hayden and Pa'a, and they said they felt the spirit when he started to teach.  We had left them Alma 32 to read and C. read it twice and said that the 21st verse stuck out to him and really helped him understand the definition of faith. Haha! It has been a fun week and I've just been blessed to even be a part of it!

 

Well I'm glad Nolan finally got to have a sort-of farewell, I'm excited for him to get out and start teaching cause it's the best!

 

I'm going to try and write Sullivan today, I'm finally in Thibodaux on a Monday so maybe I'll get something done... I've kinda been a slacker when it comes to writing people, I have a stack of letters that I gotta start responding to or no one will write me anymore.

 

Well, they're shutting off the computer cause of construction so I gotta get going, love ya'll!

 

love, elder ritchie

Amazingly Awesome with a Side of Outstanding

Well, it has been a terrible week for Louisiana.   LSU looses in the national championship game in New Orleans... ( I was like 10 miles from the game when it was going on haha! There was a gloomy feel in the air while we were driving back to Thibadaux) and then the saints loose to San Francisco. Just a terrible week in Louisiana.

But my week consisted of amazingly awesome with a side of outstanding!  Elder Bednar came and had a meeting with just our mission and he asked us questions for an hour and then he turned the time over to us to ask him questions for two and a half hours and it was awesome!!  I know he is and apostle and he is so humble about it, he is bold about his calling but knows it is not him that is great but that it is his calling that is great.  He was able to expound on the scriptures like I have never heard and bring the spirit like I've never felt. It was awesome and we all got to shake his hand afterwards. 

Then we were able to go to stake conference with him and I was able to see Tammy there! It was incredible to see her again and her little girl Kirsten! They said Chelsie was sick but she made it to the YM/YW meeting with Elder Bednar!  So that was awesome and I was able to see Jamie and that was really awesome too!! I miss them down in Challmette. Tammy told me I'll always be family to them and that made me miss teaching them but its awesome that they are doing well! 

Peter  wrote me an email haha! What is up with this weekend? Haha! It's just crazy awesome and I got to watch the Best Two Years with a recent convert from Holland that just recently got baptized in our area.  We get to teach people our age here cause there is that college Nichols State.  It's super weird being around people our age but its cool. Luke sent me a pretty sweet picture too, I was pretty stoked about that!!  So many blessings this weekend, we had an investigator named Chelsea tell us she really wanted to get married to the guy she is living with cause it's what she needs to do to get baptized and she would want to have a wedding and then a baptism on the same day!

So many awesome new and tender mercies, something bad was bound to happen though... I lost my camera... so all my pictures are gone.... hopefully it turns up cause I think I lost it at the stake center but I don't know. It's a good thing I sent most of my pictures home but I have taken a bunch since then :( oh well, memories are what counts.  But it was an awesome week so I'm not going to complain I'll loose a camera if I can have a week like that again.  You should send that SD card back to me so I can have those pictures when I buy a new camera.  But take the pictures off for yourselves of course.

 

Well, I know the church is true and I know we definitely have living apostles that are called of God. I was able to witness that this weekend and I was able to have so many other blessing it was awesome, the church is true down here in Louisiana as well! I know that the Lord lives and one thing I really took from Elder Bednar was the strengthening power of the atonement. I always focused on the cleansing part but it is there to give us strength as well.  Elder Bednar said himself, without it he wouldn't be able to do what he does and that he would spend all his time hiding in his room under his bed crying. But its because of the atonement we can do what we are called to do and I know the Lord will strengthen us and will be  looking out for us if we are trying to do what is right! I know this in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

 

Well, love y'all,

 

love elder ritchie