First Zone Conference

Date: Wed, Oct 29, 2008 at 6:05 AM
Subject: I Love You!

Hello Again!

Two months of my Mission is GONE!! I miss it already. I just love being a Missionary and I never want to stop doing Missionary work. It's the best!

Well, the big news for the week is.... Elder Ayers is gone. He is going to be a Zone Leader in the Ashton Zone! I'm so excited for him. We got the phone call on Sunday night. My new companion will be Elder Woolsey from St. George. I'm going to miss Elder Ayers, but I'm really excited to serve with Elder Woolsey. He likes hunting and fishing and seems like an outdoors man so we already have a lot in common! It's going to be a great transfer! Speaking of transfers, they are every 6 weeks, the next one ends on December 10. You'll have to remind me to let you know when each transfer ends so you can send mail to the Mission Office!

Zone Conference was amazing! I just love getting to meet with President Bullock and other Missionaries. I was praying for greater Faith and an added measure of the Spirit before the Conference and my prayers were answered. President Robert C. Oaks came and spoke to us for a couple hours, and we also heard from President and Sister Bullock, Sister Oaks, and Elder Wiedmann. I learned so much! The spirit was so strong in those meetings, I know that sounds really cliche but it's really true. I absolutely love the Spirit of God.

Last Friday we went on an exchange and I got to go with Elder Davies from Arizona. He is going to be our new district leader by the way. Anyway, we got to do some finding and also had a lesson with a less-active man who is struggling. At the end of the lesson we got to give him a blessing of comfort and it felt amazing. I love the feeling that comes from using the Melchizedek Priesthood to bless others. It was a wonderful experience.

On Sunday we got to visit Newtown for church again and it was great. I got to give a talk about gratitude, it was fun! After the meetings we had a munch and mingle, it was great food and the people are so nice. We then got to go around with the Branch President, President Briggs, and visit some less-active members. Wales is gorgeous. I need our family history information. I'm really excited to learn about where exactly they were from because I have a feeling I'm serving really close to some of those areas. There is a great spirit in Wales that is unlike anything I've ever felt... it's absolutely amazing.

Well, the work is going amazingly well. My last two days with Elder Ayers were amazing. On the first we had 16 Quality Gospel Conversations (a new key indicator for our mission) and set up 3 or 4 appointments with potential investigators. The next day we had 3 more QGC's, and got into a man's home and taught him a lesson, all within an hour! We went from 1 investigator a few weeks ago, to 7! The last couple weeks have been really exciting!

The weather here is turning cold, very cold! Utah cold is dry, the cold here is wet and it sticks to you. I'm working on getting used to it. Yesterday afternoon we were doing service at Attingham Park and it actually snowed! It was really wet snow but it was still snow! It was beautiful. England is so beautiful, everything about it.

Well, I'd better wrap this up. Thanks again for all of your help and prayers and support, you've all done so much for me. I'm seeing the help you've given to me bless the lives of those I get to serve. Thank you so much for everything you've done for me. The church is true and nothing else matters. I wish I was more bold with love when I talk with people. I'm working on getting to know people better. I want to shatter my comfort zone. If you pray for anything for me this week, pray for that to happen and I'll let you know that it did in my e-mails next week. I'm excited for it. Anyway, Jesus is the Christ. I love Him so much. God lives and loves us so much. He really is our father and we know him better than we know anybody on this earth. He wants everything for us, all he needs to give us that is our will. He really does answer prayers, all throughout this transfer we were praying for new investigators and those prayers were answered. I see prayers answered daily here and I love to watch the hand of the Lord working in my life. Only the Gospel of Jesus Christ can bring us true, lasting happiness. Nothing else will do it. Salvation is not a cheap experience. It takes everything we've got to get to the Celestial Kingdom. I just love being a Missionary and teaching and testifying of these things. I've never done anything better in my life.

Well, I'll talk to you again next week. Keep the letters coming and thanks for those that have been sent! I love you all so much. Be good. Have daily Missionary experiences for me and for our Heavenly Father. There is extremely great potential in Member-Missionary work. Much love and big hugs right back to all of you!

Love,

Elder Rowley