Hit the ground running!

Happy May 17 everyone! I really don't know how to start an email, and will apologize now for extreme repetitiveness in the past and probably in the future. We kicked off the first week of the transfer by exceeding the standard of excellence and teaching 13 lessons in a week. Lots of folks progressing and coming to church!  Lyle is still on track for baptism on the 28th of June and the family is coming along. We found 3 new people to teach as well. 

So I found out that the missionary I trained is serving with the Elder I replaced here in Slave Lake! So he will be in my zone and I'll see him again soon! He had a bit of a rough go of it for the last six weeks down in Rocky Mountain House. So now he's up in the City with a real good companion. Elder Hunsaker and I expect good things from them.

Our investigator Len, is 69 years old and from Plymouth England. He is such a wonderful fellow and is SO CLOSE to getting baptized. We were able to teach him with a recent convert present and he was such a great help to us. We taught about the importance of scripture study and prayer in receiving a confirmation about the truth of the church and Book of Mormon. We focused on asking inspired questions as the lesson progressed to try to find out his concern and we did. The Englishman still loves his tea! So we'll keep working on that. But the cool part of the lesson was when our recent convert asked him if he believed the Book of Mormon was true. He stopped for a moment and answered that he did believe it was true! He came to church the next day and He's moving right along. 

Things are going well here in Slave Lake. We ran into a young Filipino named Mark yesterday and he let us in to teach a lesson. We taught him the restoration in mostly Tagalog (though my poor companion couldn't say much haha) and invited him to pray about the Book of Mormon. He did and had a spiritual experience. I asked him if he would take it as a sign from God and be baptized on the 28th of June. He said yes. Of course, we'll have to talk to his parents and everybody, but It was cool that he got an answer right there. Thats only happened to me one other time on my mission. We just need to be fearless and invite people to follow Jesus Christ! Some aren't ready yet, but some are just waiting to hear the pleasing word of God. What a joy it is to play a part in the conversion of others. 

I hope you all have an enjoyable week! Congratulations to Dallin for downing the Magpie! 

Love,

Elder Higginson

Staying in Slave

Calls came, and it looks like I'm staying in Slave! No surprises there! I've had a wonderful week and I hope you all have too. 

First off, I was so glad I got to see all of you on Mother's Day! What a wonderful opportunity to touch base and see all your smiling faces.

Not too terribly much to report since I saw you last, so this one will probably be brief. 


     I so grateful for my family and for the Church! To be reared in a home with parents who loved and lived the Gospel of Jesus Christ, I will account to be one of the greatest marks of divine favor on my behalf. We live in a world of souls that have all but forgotten their identity and divine heritage. Many have strayed far from the path in an attempt to find fulfilment and purpose. Others have simply given up. 
     "Now, what do we hear in the gospel which we have received? A voice of gladness! A voice of mercy from heaven; and a voice of truth out of the earth; glad tidings for the dead; a voice of gladness for the living and the dead; glad tidings of great joy." (D&C 128:19) I am so grateful for this opportunity to labor for Zion. 

I hope you all have a wonderful week and I will continue to send updates on the work of the ministry. 

Love,

Elder Higginson

Good News!

We had a pretty good week here in Slave Lake! We taught 10 lessons, contacted four referrals and got four new investigators. Not a bad week! Also, we've begun meeting with the family again consistently and they are making good progress! 

Holy Smokes, the transfer is almost over! I've already been here for 6 weeks somehow! We probably wont experience a change here but who knows. The weather has been fairly hot lately. 

Perhaps I'll just begin by sharing a funny experience from Saturday. It was a long, eventful day and we were able to meet with three new people. All of them showed decent potential and we have return appointments with each. Here is one of the stranger happenings.

We were out contacting a potential investigator and a rather plump man emerged from the house across the street with a beer in his hand. He started talking to us and he was friendly but rather profane haha. He was an atheist but he was chill. He seemed to really like us, so then he was like "y'all wanna talk to the people in my house? my girlfriend might be interested." We were obliged to follow him into his home, where we met his girl - who was wearing not anywhere near enough apparel. We had actually met her 4 days prior in a barber shop and talked to her while we were waiting. She skipped over to us and handed us a couple transparent stones. "I only believe in lucky rocks, nothing else...you must keep it with you always unless you find another one: then you must give it away to someone in need." Next, the portly fellow introduced us to a guy named Sam. He was really smart, had about zero social skills and evidently had tried to dye his hair black a few days before, but he messed up bad and there were black stains across the sides of his head. He actually knew a lot about the Book of Mormon, but he was not interested in reading it. After this the portly fellow bid us a merry farewell and we returned to our vehicle, where we laughed heartily about the whole experience. 

And for the most exiting news: Mercedes sent me an email during the week and announced that she has decided to serve a mission!!!!!!!! AHHH!!! I have been totally overwhelmed by the whole thing. She says she decided a while ago and is almost done with her papers! What blessed news.

I look forward to seeing all of you this next Sunday! this will be my last Skype home, if you can believe it. I leave just prior to the Christmas call. What a wonderful time I've had up here! I've met so many people and made so many friendships. I've learned how to live the gospel! I've had the wonderful opportunity to share what I know with a great many people. May God bless you all as you strive to keep the commandments and enjoy the blessings God has given you.

Love,

Elder Higginson

 

 Found this in the little town of Kinuso. It sometimes surprises me how much Canadians care about U.S. Politics haha.

A view of lesser Slave Lake. What a beautiful world we live in eh?

  My companion and I found this Jamacan pillow sitting next to a dumpster outside our apartment and couldn't resist taking him inside. We named him Syka.

Hello from the other side!

Good afternoon everyone! We had a good week here in slave. actually it was fairly weird, but it worked out.

Monday, we tracted for like 5 hours.

Tuesday, we did service for a Filipino and all our appointments canceled.

Wednesday, we took our P-day.

Thursday we exchanged with the Athabasca elders, that was really stupid.

Friday we got back and did weekly planning in a somewhat delirious state, dude to have just got through a messed up week and from driving like 300 kilometers.

Saturday - taught 4 lessons and a got a new investigator. 

Sunday was great, we had 5 investigators at church and a number of less actives.

The records for a member randomly appeared out in a the little town of Faust, about 45 minutes west of Slave Lake. So we went on Saturday to check it out, and all the street names in this po-dunky little town are wrong on our map!! The guys address didn't even exist. But we put our heads together and using our directional skill and our ability to read extremely ghetto addresses and road signs -found the dudes house. His wife was there and she was really nice! not a member, and friendly to the church. Her husband will be out of town for a bit, but we gave him a call and he says he will seriously consider coming back to church, once he's back in town. We're hoping to teach him and his family and get them out. There are people all over the place that just need a little nudge in the right direction and they'll make changes. We just need to be in the right place at the right time!

(I found out that I can send the first names of people out here and it isn't a privacy violation.) 

Blake is the dad of the family we're teaching. He's been on fire watch for the last while, but the rains have come and so he's had time off. He came to church this Sunday and we'll be meeting with him and his family tonight! we're hoping for the best here. They just need to get a few things sorted out and they'll be baptized. We are pretty excited. 

I haven't got too much else to expound upon, but I have had a good week over all, and we'll be having a better one this week. And maybe we'll be able to go on a hike near some mountain! 

Have a good one! 

sincerely, 

Elder Higginson