Hey mommy and family!
Greetings from… GOLDSBORO NORTH CAROLINA!! My first area is amazing. I’m out in the country and it is great! People here are nice our ward is amazing! They are so missionary oriented. No I have not gotten a single letter since I have been here and I find it kinda sad, but oh well off to a good start workin hard. My companion Elder Butler is a great guy. I love working with him. We are always laughing a joking. We really hit it off from the beginning. He is from Canada (We don’t hold that against him) Letheridge Alberta. He is into theater too and there is so many things we have in common. Get this, the girl that is waiting for him is… Mindy from Rigby! Haha I laughed. She is a twenty four year old RM, and she spells it with a Y so I know it aint my girl. LOVE YOU MINDZ! Anyway it’s just really great working with him. He is a great Elder and I am grateful to be training under him.
We got into Goldsboro Tuesday and started working we got white washed which means me and my comp were new to the area. We were just walking and a guy pulled over and asked us what we were all about. We got his number, but when we called the number didn’t work I don’t know if he gave us a false number or if we took it down wrong. It’s kinda sad. After that we tried a members home and she needed a blessing. She sprained her ankle and she asked me to give it. I was SCARED it was my first blessing, but I did and I am grateful for the opportunity. Nothing much after that happened.
Next day we started tracting long and hard. I got my first door slam it was funny. The guy answered the door and I said “hello sir” and he just waved and said “Bye” and slammed the door. We just laughed about that. We talked to an old man very set in his ways about his religion, and had a very good conversation, but to no avail. We did find 3 people who said we could come back Kristin, Dawnice, and Hunter. When we went back to Hunters it turned out that no we can’t go back to talk to him he wasn’t there and his dad said he was just being nice. Bummer, But we get to go see Kristin and Dawnice tomorrow. Kristin is a young mother whose husband is in the airforce (BTW I am in air force country.) she has a cute little boy. She said she was religious, but she said we could come back. I am hopeful. Dawnice I dunno about she answered the door on the phone and told us to come back, and when we did she wasn’t there but we have another appointment so I dunno we will see. Oh and that day I almost placed my first BOM I was soooo close. We tract into the young black man and have a very good gospel discussion covering most of the first lesson, and when I gave him the BOM and asked him to pray he took it, but then gave it back and said he would research the church. Ugh!
Thursday was our busy day when. We planned to see Thomas Kartcher, a guy who the missionaries before us were teaching, but that fell through. Then we tried to go see members who lived close to us, but they weren’t there either. On our way back to lunch we see this woman working in her yard. So we stop and talk. Her name was Jessica she was super nice. She has a small family, and her husband works a lot. But we talked and covered the first lesson and I gave her a BOM and asked her to pray about it and she accepted!!!!! I was so excited we can’t get back to her until Aug 16 because she is going on vacation, but I am prayin for her. We were supposed to see Kristin, Dawnice, and Hunter, but they all stood us up, but it was for good reason I guess cause we got to go see a partmember family and teach her the first lesson. We gave her a BOM and asked her to pray she said she would too. We are going to check up on her soon. Later that evening we got to go give a blessing to a less active member and her non member sister. We went they told us what was going on and the member that we were with gave a comfort blessing, but we asked her sister if we could give her the lessons and she said YES!!! So the work goes good.
Friday we had zone conference and weekly planning so not a productive day. Zone conference was great. Saturday was a hard day. Nothing turned out to be in our favor people we went to see weren’t there and we didn’t really tract into anybody… except one man. We rode our bikes out to this area and this black man was sitting on his porch. We said hello and he said, “you don’t want to talk to me”
We says “well why is that
Hey says “im a heathen”
“Well why are you a Heathen?”
“Because I like to have fun”
We talked to him about it. Turns out he was kidding he just liked to see peoples reactions and what they would say. We talked for a while about prayer and feeling the spirit and made an appointment for this week. And I gave him a BOM so there is two for me and one from my comp. so Three between the two of us. This is so great I love this work.
Sunday was great we got to go to church to meet the members. This ward is amazing. We got a ride home with Brother Waters (Who I swear could be a Jacobson accent and looks geeze.) anywho he is an amazing man. I swear he is one of the most Christ-like men I know. He has amazing stories. Well he invited us over for lunch. Mmmm spaghetti I love it. We had a good time then he took us home and we tracted some. We ran into Lyle he is a young man who said we could call on wed. and maybe teach him. So I’m hoping.
The work is going great. We are working so hard. I can’t wait to see the fruits of my labors. It is amazing how much the spirit is working with me. Oh Saturday we tract into an old man who has lost all faith in anything. Said “I don’t get involved with politics or religion.” So naturally I started preachin religion to him. After I was done with my mini lesson 1 he looked at me and asked, “How old are you, son.”
I replied “19 years old sir”
“And what is your IQ?”
“I said well I dunno, but I had a 3.9 GPA in high school.” He told me that I had really impressed him. I bore testimony that that was the spirit speaking to him and had nothing to do with me, but he still said he felt nothing. Oh well but it was amazing to see exactly what I can do with the spirit. Maybe someday someone will touch him, but I am convinced that I planted a seed.
Well that’s how things are going here. What’s going on at home? Oh and this email is best don’t use dear elder I dunno, but I think that is only for the MTC. Still longing to hear from home. And tell Miss Mindi to e-mail me! Geeze all Y’all need to E-mail me or Ima get right upset. More letters from everyone its hard enough being out here without not hearing from home. So this is my formal rebuke to all you WRITE ME OR ELSE!!!!
I Love you all so very very much and never forget that you are member missionaries. Help the efforts it starts with the members preparing and giving referrals something that I wish we had more of them. So work hard fellowship and help the missionary efforts. Your part is very important. Never forget that. Thanks for all the love support and prayers.
Pray for these People specifically
Karen Smith Rodriquez: she needs to be touched by the spirit so that we can teach her and she needs strength in her trials.
Jessica: She needs to feel the spirit as she reads and prays about the BOM, and a desire to learn more. Pray for her family and pray for protection on her home as she goes on vacation.
Robert Gay: Pray for him that as we teach him he may feel the spirit and feel desire to follow the path before him
Kristin: pray for her family and pray that we may be able to get in to teach her. Pray that the spirit may touch her and that she may feel the love of her Father in Heaven.
Dawnice: Pray for her family and that we can also get in to teach her. Pray for her Physical well being as well as her spiritual
Marcus: Pray that he may somehow come into contact with us again
Kevin Holes: That as he reads the BOM that he may feel a desire to learn more that he may recognize the spirit in his life and as we teach he may feel that testimony that what we speak is true.
Continue to pray for the people here that their hearts may be softened. Pray for my strength and my will to carry on and work my hardest. Keep me and these people in your prayers. I love you all and miss you, but I also love these people and this work, and I only get this opportunity for two years. I love it and I will do my best to do you all proud I love you. Keep praying, and keep on being good. God be with you. Remember my love.
Love Elder Clinton Harold Jones.
PS I can have an ipod so please send me a doc and load it up with some good churchy music. get on my profile and put all my scripture mastery songs and at the end of them is a song by kory kunz called the sound of slicing put that on too. don't put anything with romantic lyrics. so i cant have "this is love" By Kory Kunz but do put the rest of his stuff on it. President changed the rule on ipods so ya please send me one. Oh i cut my own hair today! haha you will see the pics i didnt do too bad ok well i had to send this today because the internet was down tomorrow. love you again. Send that ipod fast i need my Kory Kunz.
