may 21

Good Morning!!!

 

This has been a really good week!!!

 

1) Ok so on Sunday night we got a referral from our District Leader of someone who had gone to their ward two weeks in a row and them came up to them after church and asked if they were who he needed to talk with to learn more about the Church. Well he lives in Mac (McMinnville) and they live in Newburg so they talked with him about the YSA and he was super interested in that so I gave him a call on Sunday and he didn't answer so I left a message. Monday he calls back and I told him that we had heard that he was interested in learning more about our church. He said yes also about the singles branch and I want to learn how I can get baptized!!! SWEET!!!!!!! I assured him that I could help with that. So we have an appointment with him and we are hoping to set a date with him:)

 

2) Our Eternal Investigator (the Jehovah Witness, Catholic, Jew, Mormon guy) called us on Saturday night and let us know that he had been in the Hospital and that was why we hadn't been able to contact him. He got out of the Hospital yesterday so we went over. His blood sugar dropped down to 29 which I guess is really low and put him into a coma for two or three days and then he had to be on a respirator because he couldn't breath on his own anymore. He was at the Providence Hospital in Corvallis which is a Catholic hospital. He really wanted a blessing though and not from the Priests there. He actually kicked him out of the room and told him that he didn't have authority from God to bless him or anyone for that matter.  Anyway long story short he almost died twice in ten days. He now is no longer questioning the Mormon faith because he sough out the only Mormon that worked at the Hospital and made him give him a blessing (quite literally forced him because working in a Catholic hospital he is not allowed to use his priesthood). Right after the blessing he was able to breath on his own again and the MRI showed no signs of brain damage even though he went several minutes without oxygen. So last night he said I have gone seven days without a cigarette and I am not craving them so he gave me his pack and said take them. I was more than willing. He then asked when he could get baptized which the Branch President and he decided that if he could be smoke free for thirty days he could get baptized so he is planning on getting baptized on June 15th. He also asked if I could confirm him. Um.... Yes!

 

So we are really starting to see things move in the right direction.

pictures

Wow!  Look at the ants!

Looks like the allergy season is affecting Dustin's eyes!

May 14

Hello once again!

 

This will probably be a shorter letter because I just talked to you two days ago. So some interesting high lights....

 

1) We got a new investigator on Sunday!!! He is the roommate of a less-active in the singles branch. The branch president asked us to go by and visit the LA and we got a new investigator out of it. That is really the most effective finding tool that we have. He is from Boston and doesn't really know what he believes but he did quote Bob Marley to us. Erik gave me some advice that might help us to be effective in our visits.

 

2) During church on Sunday we got a call from some other Elders in our District in Newburg. There was a girl that just showed up at church. She is from China and has no Christian background. She is currently attending George Fox University which is a Quaker school so she had to write a paper on Christianity. Because she had no background she just googled it and choose to write about our church because it had the name of Jesus Christ in it (fulfilment of prophecy). So she was on mormon.org chatting with missionaries and they invited her to church yesterday and set up an appointment for Saturday.  The Newburg Elders are being very nice and letting us have the opportunity to teach her.

 

All I can say is that prayer really works!!! There is no way that we would have been able to find these people without the help of the Lord.

 

Yesterday we played disk golf in Newburg. I think that it is going to be something that our District picks up because we played again for exercise this morning. It isn't the most vigorous excersie but it is a lot of fun. We played at two courses yesterday. The first one was really nice and reminded me of the one down at the greenbelt. The second one was a marsh land swamp and we were all covered in welts and hives from alergies by the time we left.

 

The pictures are of me and my lovely red eyes and then of the stupid ants that are everywhere. Oh how I hate them!!!

 

Love you lots!!

picture

Pink Flamingo in a huge pine tree! 

The tree reminds Dustin of the one at Grandpa & Grandma Hatch's

I bet you can hear Dustin with a big belly laugh with that one!

Dustin and Elder Osgood his new companion!

May 1 - 7

Hello Again!

 

Well as you can guess I am starting to get really excited for this weekend. I remember when Erik and Mikael got to call home and how it was always exciting but I think  that I get more excited on this end. A little bit selfish maybe but such is life.

Things with Elder Osgood are going really well. I really can feel the insparation in our companionship. President Morby sent me an e-mail and told me that I was going to be a blessing in Elder Osgoods life because I have a very positive attitude and a great love for people. It is constantly blowing my mind how much President and Sister Morby know each of us and what we struggle with. They are such wonderful people! In their e-mail this week he asked us to tell you how much he is grateful for all that you do to support us and for allowing us to come out and be so dedicated to the work here in the OPM (Oregon Portlan Mission). I really have to add my gratitude to President Morby's. You are really the best earthly suport that I could ask for. I am still able to have my independance and am able to focus on the work but I know that if I need anything that all I have to do is ask and you will come through. So thanks for being who you are and thanks for all the prayers and love
This week was a good week. Sister Smith got us tickets to the play Suessical. Their daughter Shane (yes that is a girls name) is in it. It was really funny. It is based on several Dr Suess books. They did a great job!  We also are finding more success!! I am so happy that we are starting to see the work pick up. It is interesting how when we follow the council of our leaders that we are successful.  When Elder Osgood and I got put together we started to go out and contact less actives that the Dayton Ward had asked us to visit several times but we hadn't. We now have people that have invited us back and we have work to do!
As a goal for the mission President Morby set a goal of 600 baptisms for the year of 2012. This is up about 60 from last year. We are currently behind on our goal (at least a month ago we were) so they started a new and temparary program to give a little extra motivation. The Zone that has the highest percentage of increse in baptisms for the month gets to go to the mission home and watch a Disney move and have root beer floats with President and Sister Morby. And all Zones that have an increase get to get together and watch a movie at the church. Well yesterday we got to drive to Silverton and watch Tarzan as a zone. This is the first of three possible chances to watch a movie. It was a really fun p-day.

So the pictures this week are first Elder Osgood and I after our walk this morning. The other is a pink flamingo on top of a tree that I think is bigger than the one in front of Carolines house by Grandpa & Grandma Hatch's. It made me laugh so hard.

 

I love you all very much and know that I pray for you everyday.

 

Love Dustin

 

pictures

Transfer Day

P-day the week before the transfer

 Relaxing P-day

Very Hot sandwich after a long day of service - Didn't sit well :)

Apr 23-28

Hello!!

 

This week has been very interesting. We had several appointments that fell through. Such is life though. We are still pushing forward and are becoming rededicated to the work. Yesterday Elder Henrie got transferred so we spent the day in Lake Oswego. For transfers we all meet at the stake center there and get our new companion and then leave. It is nice having a small enough geological mission that we can do that. It is fun because it is a little bit of a mission reunion every six weeks.

 

My new companion is Elder Osgood. He is from Central California. I have had four companions now none of which are from Utah. Isn't that crazy.?!? I think that we will have a good companionship.  He really wants to work which is just what this area needs, a lot of prayers, faith and hard work. I think that the best part of this transfer is that I am now the driver. You know how much I love not being in control while I am in the car. Elder Henrie was not the best driver and made me car sick almost everyday. So I am WAY happy to be driving! I did have to take a "defensive" driving test because of my tickets, but I passed without any problem. The worst part is that the video was 45 minutes long and the test questions are all common sense questions. I didn't pay too much attention.

 

So because transfers were yesterday we are taking p-day today so I don't have any cool pictures to share but this is the picture of my district for this past transfer. I have a really good District and we all really help each other out. We are kind of out on our own so we are left alone for the most part.

 

That is too bad about Dacko's. They have been taking care of her for a really long time. It was probably time for her to move on. I am glad to hear that they have that faith in the after life. The Plan of Salvation is so important to know. It really blesses us in so many different ways.