Road Trips!

Hello! This week was the first week of training visits for Elder Bennett and I. It was quite the adventure! I have never been so tired in my life but I have seen the Lord's hand in each day. He is looking out for me and strengthening me! 

Tuesday: We had Mission Leadership Council. My last MLC of my mission. I shed a tear or two when we sang the mission song at the end. Words can't express how much I love my mission. Elder Bennett and I gave a training and it went really well. We are witnessing a huge culture change in this mission and it is a great sight to see. The Lord has raised the bar and He is going to bless us like crazy. We just need to step up. After MLC all the training specialists and President and Sister Stratford went to the temple. That was a great experience and exactly what I needed to begin this assignment. 

Wednesday: We were in Canal Winchester with Elder Schreiter and Elder Hammond. I went with Elder Hammond for the day! We spent most of the day in Circleville and went finding. We got let in by this awesome couple named Sue and Jim. It was cool to be in their home and teach them. Elder Hammond is a great young missionary and I am excited for him to continue to grow. 

Thursday: We were in Reynoldsburg with Elder Miskin and Elder Whitcomb. I was with Elder Miskin for the day! He is a stud. It was such a great day. We found some awesome people to teach including this man named Lee. He was on the phone when we talked to him but as soon as we told him what we were doing he hung up the phone and listened. He has been struggling with his faith and it wasn't a coincidence that we talked with him! He was so excited to hear about the Book of Mormon and how it can help him grow closer to Christ! It was such a great experience. 

Friday: We were with the Reynoldsburg Nepali speaking Elders. They are a trio, Elder Garner, Elder Nye and Elder Pakwal. I was with Elder Nye and Elder Pakwal for the day. I don't speak any Nepali but it was a great day! It was so cool to hear them speak and testify of Christ and even though I couldn't understand what they were saying the Spirit still testified that it was true. They are great missionaries. 

Saturday: We were in New Albany with Elder Michels and Elder Vaughn! I was with Elder Michels for the day. It was good to be back with him. I have served around him when I was in Youngstown. This day was one of the best of my whole mission. We talked to lots of Swahili speaking people. Elder Michels knows a little bit of Swahili but we needed to use translators a lot of the time. We ended up finding 10 new people to teach including 2 families! It was amazing. The Lord led us to the right people. It was a really great day. It felt like I was serving in a different country but it was so cool. 

I love my new assignment. I love my mission. I love my Savior Jesus Christ. I am exhausted but He is lifting me on His shoulders. 

WOW!!

That is the only word I can think of when I think about this week. 

When you serve on a college campus you don't get too much variety. But this week we had some of that! 

We got to do two service projects which was great. We helped these people move on Thursday and we got to do some yard work on Saturday. The move was something else. The home hadn't been cleaned in 30 years... so you can imagine how that went. 

But the best part of the week was meeting with Niki after church on Sunday. That was the most powerful experience of my mission. She is taking amazing leaps of faith to join the church. She is sacrificing so much because she knows this is true. She told us the first time she met with us that she would never feel the feelings that we described to her. But she has completely changed, the Lord has manifested the truth to her through the power of the Holy Ghost. She has felt the Spirit so powerfully. I have seen first hand the Lord performing His work. I am so thankful for this experience. Words can't describe this experience. I lived the scriptures yesterday. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is true. No doubt about it. 

Have a great week!

Elder Collier