February 20, 2017

This week flew by super fast!!! I can't even believe it! I think I say that every week, it's true. Every week on my way home from church I think, "I feel like I just walked out of Church yesterday." It is a weird feeling for sure. But the highlight of the week was definitely having our interviews with President Donaldson. It was really good.

They are doing interviews differently now, so we go into Glasgow for our interviews and it doesn't take place during a zone conference. We aren't even doing zone conferences anymore. It will just be All-Scotland and All-Ireland conferences from now on. SO that is really cool! But the interview was really good! President Donaldson talks to you about your spiritual wellbeing and your investigators, and Sister Donaldson asks you if you are eating healthy and if you are mentally healthy. Haha! Just like real parents! President Donaldson is a great leader for us!

But anyway, this is my spiritual thought for this week. It is my hands down, all time, favorite hymn. It is #72, Praise to the Lord, The Almighty. It goes like this,

Praise to the Lord, The Almighty

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation!

O my soul, praise him, for he is thy health and salvation!

Join the great throng,

Psaltery, organ and song,

Sounding in glad adoration!

Praise to the Lord! Over all things he gloriously reigneth.

Borne as on eagle wings, safely his Saints he sustaineth.

Hast thou not seen

How all thou needest hath been

Granted in what he ordaineth?

Praise to the Lord, who doth prosper thy way and defend thee.

Surely his goodness and mercy shall ever attend thee.

Ponder anew

What the Almighty can do,

Who with his love doth befriend thee.

Praise to the Lord! Oh, let all that is in me adore him!

All that hath breath, join with Abraham's seed to adore him!

Let the "amen"

Sum all our praises again,

Now as we worship before him.

Love you all!

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Till the Work is Done

February 13, 2017

Well, this week was crazy fast as well! Elder Sheppard and I have been all over the place going by former investigators and doing some finding. We didn't get a chance to meet with our investigators this week, but that was all right. Things are starting to get busy around here again and sometimes you got to just work with it.

But I would like to share a principle that I learned from yesterday's Sunday School lesson. And it is this: We should constantly be cultivating an attitude of happiness and optimism. I really enjoyed yesterday's lesson on looking on the bright side of things, because that is something that I always try to do. And I really liked the scripture that was in the manual in Proverbs 17:22 and it says this:

22 A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.

I think this scripture is so true in all aspects of life. If we are happy, then it heals us, but if we are sad, then we will just be constantly wounding ourselves. I always like to think of a comparison I heard in Sacrament meeting a bit ago. Are we radiators? Helping others and trying to cheer people up and looking on the bright side always? Or are we drains? Only looking to rob others of their happiness. Maybe not on purpose, but President Monson said this, "The only thing more contagious than enthusiasm, is the lack thereof."

I hope we can all try to be radiators and warm the world!

I love you all!

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Till the Work is Done

- Elder Mickelsen

February 6, 2017

Walking on Water

Elder Sheppard in the forest

Who has the better ape face?

Holy cow! Another week has come and gone! It has really been great here this week! It is starting to get colder here, but the people seem to be a bit warmer! This week was actually really good!

So, the highlight was teaching this 17 year old guy named Harry. Harry is the co-worker of a member, and he is super solid. The member had already given him a Book of Mormon and he went online and started talking with the missionaries on mormon.org. Then sent the referral to us and we went and taught him! He loved the Restoration, and even though we taught him in a coffee shop, he felt that it was true. When we invited him to be baptized, we were like, "When you come to know that this message is true, would you be baptized?" and he was like, "Of course! I already know that it is true. I just need to learn about it now!" So he has got a baptismal date for the 4th of March. He will need parental permission, but I think he will be able to get there! So that was our highlight! It was so awesome! 

This week really strengthened my testimony in the sense that the Lord makes us wait. He likes to see if we can endure. And when we do, he richly rewards us for our faith and diligence. If we always got what we wanted, when we wanted it, then we really wouldn't learn anything, now would we? The Lord is the Gardener here, and He knows what is best for each and every one of us. All we gotta do is hold on, and press forward with steadfastness in Him. (2 Nephi 31:20-21) Love you all! By the way, Elder Sheppard is great. We laugh and so much fun all the time! I hope you enjoy our photos of walking through the woods.

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Till the Work is Done

- Elder Mickelsen

January 30, 2017

Well, this week was really good! We had moves call again this week! I feel like we just had it and now we got it again!

So, this week we met with Lisa and Neill. And that was good. We showed the 20 minute Restoration video and then had a discussion about prayer with them. So that was really solid. They had something come up, so they weren't able to make it to church, but we are seeing them again this week.

We also got a pretty solid referral from a member, and we will be meeting with him this Wednesday. Hopefully he will have a baptismal date this week! So that was really exciting! Everything is starting to come out of the woodworks now! And lemme tell you all, PERSISTENCE PAYS. It is really good to start seeing some fruit come from our labors. The light has finally appeared at the end of the tunnel!

So, moves! Elder Milburn moved to Paisley this morning, (which is why this email is so late) and I picked up Elder Sheppard about 2 hours ago. So I will be staying in Dumbarton for another transfer! Elder Sheppard is a good guy! He was in my group as well! So we went to the MTC together! He is from North London.  The future looks bright here in Dumbarton!

Love you all! 

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Till the Work is Done

- Elder Mickelsen