Training the breaker.


So HUGE changes have been made since I wrote you last. Today was the
transfer meeting and Elder Miller is officially out of here. President
had him go play Zone Leader up in Santa Cruz with a companion named
Elder Miller. President had told him it would be a zone that has been
struggling and we had been postulating Santa Cruz and we guessed
right. I learned a lot from Elder Miller. He taught me how to work and
how to really be a good missionary; how to lose myself and go to work.
I would tell you the name of my new companion, but I don't know it
yet. I will be training for these next two transfers. I won't meet my
new companion till Thursday, so I'm with another Elder who will be
training in Monterey. It is a little daunting training so young in the
mission, but I just need to keep working as I have and we'll be ok.

This week was rough for Gina. She was worried about Elder Miller
leaving. She was afraid since we have been such a rock for her, or
"pillars" as she calls us. That feeling was dissipated after the
outgoing fireside. Elder Curtis, the Elder I replaced in Salinas, and
the one that found Gina, was going home. We brought Gina up and she
was one of the recent converts that bore her testimony. She did a
great job and really felt the spirit. We taught her last night, and
she was still sad about Elder Miller leaving, but she wasn't afraid.
Sometimes in peoples' gospel progression, they take dips and slides.
If they are truly committed though, then they will always bounce back
and even higher than before.

Lastly, Elder Miller and I went out with a bang. We taught 33 lessons
this past week! We had two days where we taught 7 lessons. We can see
the hard work paying off. We have a baptism on the 25th and the 31st
of March. Both are the wives in part-member families, and both are
doing very well. We also have a more shaky date for the 31st, but he
came to church for the first time. The person getting baptized on the
25th is Tiffany. She has a son who is 8 who is getting baptized on
that day, and expressed a desire to be baptized on that day. This is
actually moving her date up from late March. She is very prepared and
is now very excited for her new baptismal date. She will be one of the
first lessons we get to teach on Thursday with the new Elder.

Hope all is well. And I totally forgot it was valentine's day today,
so Happy Valentine's Day.

-Elder Richards

Also check out the website about the pilot program in the mission, justserve.org

Playing Ninja.

The Salinas District.