Elder Pope is His Name (from April 23, 2012)

hey family it's a great day outside is this place called Des Moines Iowa .................. not much of anything to do here but hey it's a good day!1

 

Dear President Jergensen

 I'm so thankful to be serving with Elder Pope. He is a great missionary and has a true and simple testimony of this great work. I love having his insight as he is a recent convert and our Real Plays are much more realistic and we are both learning so much from each other. 

 

...

 

   Elder Pope and I had a great spiritual experience on Friday during our Weekly Planning Session. We were going over some potentials and we both wrote down the name Eric and Heather at the same time and we both just got this feeling that we needed to go see them. We got up and went to their door and she said that we could come back at anytime in the afternoon and teach and that Eric's stepmom (who is in the spanish branch) needed a blessing. So we said that we would be back the next day at the same time and we didn't catch them but Elder Pope and I both knew that we had acted on a spiritual prompting. 

  We are both having our studies focused on the Doctrine of Christ this week and it's been great to see new insights that I've missed before. 

  The 12 week program is great although this is my 3rd time going through it I'm still learning new things and improving on my teaching skills as I help Elder Pope through the ropes. 

  The District is doing well Elder Knight seems to have had a positive impact already on Elder Mckeon. Sister Neville and Thompson are doing well and I'm going to keep their spirits up as much as possible.
                                              Elder Gonzalez

 

 

So about Elder S.  He was from Atlanta Georgia and he wanted to become a navy seal which is never going to happen and he liked to play drums and play rugby back home. He is a good missionary just had a low drive to get out and work which is always tough.

 

 Elder Pope on the other hand has only been a  member for about a year and 3 months now. He is a great missionary and has an awesome drive to be doing what's right and to get working. I think that I started him off on the right foot this time and he is doing just great.  He is from a place called Belt Montana but was living in Arlington Virgina before he came out on his mission he was there for about 4 years till now. He's the only member of his family and his parents are divorced. He's about a month older then I am and had some great friends in school and in the homelife that helped him find the church and get moving towards Christ. He's about 5' 10" and sitting at about 165. He is athletic and played High School football and has a love for the outdoors just as any Montana boy would.

 

 As you  can see from the letter above we did have sheri to church on sunday as well as several less actives who we have been working with for the past few weeks. Mom and Dad Mulhern were there and they have a 12 and 14 year old son who aren't baptized and we want to start working with them, but Mom Mulhern says that she doesn't want to force them to do anything and so we have to be very careful in how we handle this one. Because Elder Pope is a new member to the church I think that it would be really helpful in getting him into the home to see the boys who would be in teh same situation way back when.

 

Mom I hope that you are getting better I know that it is hard to be going though what you are and I want you to know that I have a box with a few sweet books that hopefully you will like and my memory chip which I will need back asap because I'm taking pictures like crazy right now. Did I mention last email that I used a Chainsaw last week and was like rambo with it on a tree! it was so much fun.

 

  So it's time to go and play ball and get super tired for tonight so that we can actually get some sleep. Our matresses are crap and the springs are so bad in them.. I might just start sleeping on the floor.

 

Tony just sent his email and fyi I'm not trying to get him trunky he's the one sending me letters that have all these golf pictures and quotes from all my favorite movies and stuff in them. The only advantage I have on him is that I have the ladies in Des Moines checking out the handsome half breed that I am!

 

 Well I love you all and I wish the best to you mom you are in my prayers as well as  Dad and Jared and yes even that THING with a tail!!!!!

 

                   A wize man once said...... Live Long and Prosper.............. Elder Gonzalez           Des Moines 2nd Ward