The Master is Calling! : THIS TRANSFER HAS BEEN SO WEIRD.

Dear Family and Friends,

Once again, thank you for all the love that has been sent my way these
last few weeks! You've made my holidays away from home very bright and
joyful!

Last Monday we played an epic game of ultimate frisbee in snow that
came halfway up our shins. It was very cold, but so much fun! That
night we had two other elder's staying with us because we had
interviews with our mission president early the next morning and we
didn't want them having to drive while tired. One Elder came with me
and the other went with Elder we went with Elder Fleming. Elder
Whiting and I decided to do some tracting. It was a cool night because
we were having a hard time finding much success or really feeling like
we had any idea where we were supposed to be that night. After a
little prayer, we both a very distinct prompting to go to a house down
the street. As we approached the house we saw some people inside, and
then the woman came out and greeted us... she was excited to see us!
This never happens haha. She was a less-active member who has been
wanting to get back in the church. She had actually seen us at the
store earlier that day but chose not to talk to us, so God sent us to
them! Here is the cool part, they don't even live in that house, they
were just tending their grandkids at their daughters house! God always
puts us where we need to be if we're trying! We won't be the ones to
teach them because their real house isn't in our area, but it was
still cool to be an instrument in God's hands and their effort to come
back to church! Elder Fleming and Gutierrez had a great lesson with
the Barrows family that same night. We love this investigator family,
they have many trials and many challenges to overcome, but we know
they can do it! It just takes a little prayer and a little scripture
study every day.

It was a great day, everyone went to sleep and slept peacefully, till
early the next morning when Elder Fleming started throwing up. He
threw up six times that morning! We rushed through interviews with
President so we could get him home. He was sick for the rest of the
day and spent the next half of the day getting better. He had lost 10
pounds by the time he was better. We left the apartment to eat dinner
and go to missionary correlation meeting, and then my stomach started
hurting. I was awake all night throwing up. I missed my mom and dad
who were always so helpful and comforting when I was sick all night. I
slept the entire next day trying to feel better. It was rough. We
spent half the week being sick!

The next day we had a lesson with a recent convert named Tiffani.
Tiffani is an amazing missionary! Last week she had her cousin over
for the lesson and next week she plans on having her other cousin. The
gospel has touched her, and now she will help it touch those she
loves. We're excited to keep working with this amazing woman.

In the evening we had our second lesson that week with the Barrows.
The Barrows make such rapid progress when they put their minds to it!
It was such a spiritual lesson on the atonement. They have a
less-active friend staying with them right now and the spirit really
touched her heart during the lesson. That's one of the coolest things
to watch as a missionary, when the spirit touches someone's heart.

The next night was New Year's Eve! So we went to a member's house with
a bunch of other members and played walleyball in their racquetball
court all night! It was SO much fun.

That last lesson this week was with a less-active family, the Davis'
They always expect missionaries to eat tons of food, and I ate WAY too
much. I was in pain for the whole lesson. The issue is that the last
missionary to serve here left quite a reputation of eating a TON of
food and my belly just ISN'T big enough to live up to that. Goodness.
The lesson was super cool because they are coming to church more and
now they're trying to get their less-active parents, who were
visiting, to come back. It was an amazing lesson and our personal
stories and scriptures were helpful in resolving their concerns, they
have now decided to go back to church next week! I do want to talk
about their concern for a second though. It is hard for them to want
to go to church because the people in their ward are mean and separate
into cliques. Don't be mean! Look outside yourself and pick up the
hanging hands. Don't let your ward have the reputation of being
unaccepting, let's leave that in high school. Anyways, that's my rant!

I love you all very much!

Love,
Elder Thomas

Walleyball on New Years!