10.19.2015 (pictures)

We reactivated sister S this week. She is an older Indian lady and had been gone from church for a while, but when her daughter was reactivated a few months ago it helped sister S to want to come back to church. My favorite lesson with her was about the plan of salvation. My companion and I thought that focusing on the bigger picture would help her in her resolve to be active in church again. It's exciting to see people coming back to church. There is another lady that we are teaching who is doing good. Her mother and her daughter were just baptized a little before I got to the area. We made a special effort to follow up with her about reading in the Book of Mormon and when she didn't read, we read what she was supposed to read with her. I think she understood that we actually expected her to read what we left her. She has been consistently reading the Book of Mormon since. She hasn't been to church in a while though. She was supposed to come to church on Sunday but I think she and her daughter had an argument that morning so neither of them came to church. But today she is supposed to go do some paper work to get a divorce so that she can get remarried. I am excited for that because it usually takes a good bit of encouragement to help people to go and take care of that. There are a couple other people that we started teaching, but nobody that is progressing very fast. I have been able to see the Lord's hand in His work more this week. I hope Sarah runs well on Wednesday. I might take piano lessons when I get back. I think that I could be disciplined enough to practice every day now. Sarah, Gabby and Ben are going to be so much older when I get home. Does Sarah have friends that work at Roxberrry. I have one thought for the new house. There should be a library section with a nice comfy chair in the middle. Anyways, it was good to hear from you. Love you.  Elder Parker

Canadian Thanksgiving

10.12.2015 (pictures)

W

It must be fun to be able to have the family over whenever for football games and things like that. Sarah and Gabby have had some good running seasons. Will they be going to Arizona for NXR? This week there were 2 baptisms in our zone. One was in one of the only places in the mission where baptisms are still done in the ocean. It's a place called Point Fortin. It was really cool to be able to go to the baptisms. The other baptism was for a lady that is from the Cominican Republic and speaks very little english. Most of her baptismal service was in spanish, but I could still feel the spirit even though I couldn't understand everything that was being said. Our investigator pool is still low. We did find some potentially progressive people this week near where the last 3 baptisms in the area were. President Egbert is his name. I am celebrating Canadian thanksgiving with the Senior couple here in San Fernando. Have a great week! Love, Elder Parker

10.5.2015

This week, I learned some good things. We have been doing a lot of part member family work. There is a young woman who was baptized just before I got here and we have been teaching her mom Stacey. Last night we got the paperwork from Stacey to our ward mission leader Brother Simmons so that the work can commence for her divorce so that she can get married to the person she is currently living with. We have been able to have some spiritual lessons with her and she has been showing some good signs of growth, like reading the Book of Mormon on a consistent basis, and deciding not to go lime with her friends (limeing with friends=riotous living). She needs to come to church again, so there are certainly several mountains to help her climb over, but the beginning steps have begun. Unfortunately the teaching pool has remained low this week. Conference was awesome! There is a noticeable difference that comes during the conference season. I noticed a big theme from conference is the need to be more prepared to defend the faith, and being more centered on Christ. I liked that counsel, especially because I am working on being more courageous. Being more willing to stand for the truth. I am down at the knuckle on the ring finger if you make a map of Trinidad with your fist keeping the pinky and thumb extended parallel to the rest of the fingers. I thought of you during Elder Holland’s talk. You really are a great example. I think of your strength from you telling about during your high school years how you would stay away from parties and other activities because of the standards you held. It has been helping me. It must have been fun to see some of your old missionary friends. I have been better about taking pictures. I love you mom.

-Love, Elder Parker

9.28.2015

I played basketball this morning and I realized that I am not in the best shape of my life. I weighed myself today and I was 160.4 lbs. I was transferred to San Fernando on Wednesday, so I am not training, but am a zone leader with Elder Dorrance who was in my MTC group. There were some paper work problems that would have prevented me from driving so there was a last minute call. I hope that the investigators in Arima continue to progress with the new missionaries. In my new ward the Bishop is from Idaho, and has attendance in the 95-105 range. That is the most that I have had my entire mission. Unfortunately we did not have any investigators at church. Earlier this month there were 3 baptisms, but now we don't have any progressing investigators. We are going to need to find some more investigators soon. Elder Dorrance reminds me a lot of Geoffrey. Since I haven't been very good about writing in my journal lately I decided that I would make a video journal of the highlights of my day. I have been able to video everyday this transfer, so at the end I will have a video journal for every day of transfer 15. Who did Sarah go to homecoming with? I am excited for conference to be coming up, especially to find out who the new 3 apostles will be. Maybe I'll see you on conference!

Love, Elder Parker

9.21.2015

I love the Book of Mormon too. I have been thinking about how to help one of our investigators develop greater faith to be absolutely committed to getting married soon, and I was reminded while reading in chapter 5 of Preach My Gospel that one of the primary purposes that we invite investigators to read the Book of Mormon is so that they can increase their faith in Christ. I will be training again and they have split the Zone leaders so that the other Zone leader will be in another area. It's going to be a lot of responsibility but I think that that spurs growth and reliance upon the Lord. I always think of you guys when I watch conference. I remember that you are also listening to the words of the Lord at the same time I am. Sure do love you and mom and the whole family! 

Love, Elder Parker

9.14.2015

The family that we are teaching are doing well. We taught them about the law of chastity and committed the parents to marriage. C readily accepted, but D wanted to wait longer. After talking to him about it, and also inviting him to pray and ask Heavenly Father what His will is, D also decided that a sooner marriage would be the best thing to do. We will be calling the stake president (who has a license to marry) this week, and hopefully they will be married before the end of the month. We set a date with them for September 26 to be married. That was exciting. However, C had some KFC that didn't agree with her Saturday night into Sunday morning so they didn't come to church, but they have come the 3 week prior to this Sunday. They also love watching the Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration movie. They found it on their own and watched it at least 3 or 4 times last week. So they are doing well. A baptismal date should be forthcoming this week. I got Grandma's email and was glad to have it. We had 10 new investigators this week. The coolest one is named Ch, but there is also another family (with married parents!) that also seem to have good potential. There is an older sister in the ward named sister J who we have been taking teaching a lot. She is like a grandma to everyone she meets, and is also the new seminary teacher. We have been teaching one of her friends named Je. With the help of sister J, Je has been progressing well and is planning on attending church this Sunday. I have been praying for things to work out with the move, maybe I'll pray more specifically for the house to sell. Glad to hear that sports are going well and that everyone is adjusting to the move well. Elder Grimm goes home next Wednesday, so I will find out who my new companion will be Saturday. I have been learning how leaders do the most teaching through their own example. Elder Martinez of the second quorum of the seventy taught that if I want to help my zone to work better with members, I should be able to bring them to my area and show them how I work with members. It's been a good week. 

Love, Elder Parker  

9.7.2015

This week had its ups and its downs, but overall it was good. My birthday was good. I happened to be at the mission home for a mission leadership council so it was a good way to start of my 20's. The council was about leadership and developing some of the skills that a leader needs, like giving correction and counselling with other leaders. There was a lot that I learned from Elder Hugo Martinez of the 2nd quorum of the Seventy about counselling. He taught from D&C 107:27,29-31 and how the purpose of counselling together is to find out the will of the Lord. When church leaders, husbands and wives, or companionships are unified in their decision, that decision has great power. The key, he said while quoting from the late President Packer, is to have the spirit. So that was what I did on my birthday. While meeting with the Branch President this Sunday after stake conference, I also got a birthday cake. Tell grandma thanks for me please. We had 2 investigators come to church this week. They have come 3 weeks in a row and have come more on time each time! They also are doing great on reading in the Book of Mormon and the tracts that we leave with them. They even read together as a family at night! We are going to teach them about the law of chastity this week to help them get married and then baptised. Our branch President and his wife are planning on coming with us, so hopefully that will be a powerful lesson. Our other investigators understand a little about the sacrament, but we had to drop a few investigators this last week. They had stopped progressing. Tell Grandpa and Dad, happy birthday.

Love, Elder Parker