Hiding and Finding

This week has been pretty good in the fact that we are doing a lot better at teaching on the spot. This makes me really happy because then it will allow us to find more people and get new investigators!

We went to Chateau Rainier this week. It is just a apartment complex in the bottom most part of area, which means we have to drive a quite a few miles. I hate wasting miles! Anyways we got there and were going through the potentials we had down there, when a miracle happened! We knocked on this potentials door whose name was Remi, but suddenly the person transformed before our eyes into this lady name Nita! We taught her about prayer, prayed with her, and we got a return appointment! We totally were blessed with a new investigator!

We also did a thing that President Rasmussen has called the Frigid Fabulous Federal Way Festival of Finding. It was really good! We went finding/contacting/tracting from 10am to 5pm! My first shift I went with Elder Mortenson to Jovita Creek. We went finding and got 4 potentials for the Jovita Creek Elders! Afterward I went to Dash Point alongside Elder Jolley and we lived it up, but sadly didn't find anyone. Then my last shift I went with Elder Jones! He and I had some great adventures while we were together and Elder Jones was laughing the whole time. Low and behold we were able to find a new investigator for the Dolloff Lake Elders! It was a great success. The only downside was nobody was found for our area so that was a little disappointing. Oh well though, we just need to be patient!

Well that was the jest of our week. I love you all and know this church is true. Study and read the scriptures because they are what brings us to a knowledge of the truth.

See ya later!

Elder R.K. Northrup

Elder Jackson and I on exchanges last week.... Sorry, I look a bit... preoccupied!

Christmas Caroling with most of the district.  Top to bottom, left to right...
Elders Jackson, Mortensen, Delp and Northrup.  Hermanas Jorgensen and Yost

Temples

This week has been totally bunk. We did work hard but we weren't able to get very many teaching appointments. 

We did teach a lot of members though and that was a blast, and kinda of weird. Let me tell you about the weird lesson we had. 

So we had dinner with a member family. The Brother is a complete Savage! He is super funny. I am not sure what to think of his wife though. Anyways we had dinner with them and I was eating dessert. Meanwhile, Elder Delp was teaching them about the Temples and how Bishop Odom has invited everyone in the ward to be a Temple going people. Well, we challenged them to do that. The sister then told us (and I quote) "I don't really like the Temple." At that moment I just about spit the ice cream in my mouth all over the table, I was so astonished!!! My eyes were as wide as they could possibly go! We quickly bust out the blessings associated with going to the Temple. We re-extended the invitation to go to the Temple a little more this year. He accepted and she told us she would considerate it!

Alrighty then!

Sadly we weren't able to meet with Ember because she has been busy working. We are praying and hoping we will be able to catch her next week.

We did get to teach Brother Irby. He is so awesome!  He basically just talks and teaches himself when we are over with him. I love listening to him because he is a great guy that just wants to have a good life.

I also did an exchange with the Dolloff Lake Elders. I went with Elder Jackson. He is a studdly missionary. Love him to death. We got along really great! I laughed basically the entire exchange, plus we were able to teach two Less Actives. It was awesome. What I learned from him though is I need to do a lot better when I am saying my prayers.  When Elder Jackson was praying, it was with so much faith that it felt like we were going to be teaching people the rest of the day and all we had to do was step outside. So I have made it a goal to work on my prayers.

I also was able to do my first baptismal interview. It was really cool.

I've been reading Mosiah and I just finished the record of the people of Zeniff and their are so many interesting teachings in those chapters. I challenge you all to read them. 

Well, I love you all and to all a good night!

Elder R.K. Northrup

P.S.  Today my Grandpa and Grandma Thayne went into the MTC.  We now have 5 missionaries serving right now in our family.

Progression

Well this week has been super good. I am a little annoyed with the wet cold feeling right now, but that can't be helped.

Anyways, we were able to teach Ember twice this week. It was great!  We taught her the Book of Mormon (the first lesson) with Brother Clark and we challenged to read it everyday. She accepted and is currently reading it with her daughter as well. So Hooray!!!  We might be able to bring them both to the waters of baptism!

The second lesson we had was on Sunday, well we started running into some problems because we couldn't find anybody to come out with us........until like the last second we were able to recruit Thomas Perry to come with us. We were shouting for joy!!!! We had the lesson on the Plan of Salvation.  She ask a lot of questions and we answered them to the best we could and invited her to read the pamphlet that we gave her and asked her if she would come to church. She told us she would like to but, she works nights and doesn't even get home until around 7:30 in the morning. We did our best to tell her of the blessings associated with coming to church. However, we think it is going to be a lot easier when the times switch in January. We are currently working on inviting her to be baptized.  Pray for her and that invitation.

Other than that it has just been a week of us really working with the members. We had some council from Brother Angelo that maybe if we focused harder on the messages we give to members and custimize them to what they need.  We then might see more fruit in the future.

Well I love all of you, pray that we will be able to find more investigators!

Elder R.K. Northrup

Ahhh Nards!

Well, this week is going to a super short email. Why you might ask because literally nothing was accomplished this week. We reported complete ZERO's!! Holiday's man!

We did have a great Thanksgiving Day, we had the activity with the Mission and that was a blast. I had been looking forward to that like all year. Then we ate dinner at the Jordan's they are super awesome, plus Brother Jordan is an awesome cook. 

The next day I was so sore that I could barely move without hurting. That pretty much stunk. 

The next few days we worked real hard but just nothing was happening. So we decided to just start making a real effort to make appointments with people members and non-members. We now have full week this week. It should be really good.

Transfer calls happened and Elder Delp and I will be staying in Hylebos. However the thing I really didn't appreciate was that I got a call from the Assistant calling me to be a District Leader...........well crap! I really don't like this idea at all. However on the down and up sides we are losing Elder Mitton, but we are gaining Elder Perkins and Elder Jolley!

Well, love you all and to all a great December.

Elder R.K. Northrup

Sooooo Savage!

This week has been real good. Super meeting filled week which was kinda a bummer because it limited our proselyting time.

Well we had district meeting and for the 4th time Elder Steiner and Elder Jones weren't able to make it. So we had to go to Elder Sirrine's district. I am really done with going to other peoples district meetings. 

On the good side though we were able to go have lunch with the Korean Elders. We got some Korean food. That stuff is so good!

After lunch we went and taught a potential that scheduled an appointment with us. We were able to teach her the restoration, and we invited her to read the pamphlet and truly pray about the message that it contains and the truth of it within. She then said she would. She also talked about her concern about church. She told us that she didn't really feel comfortable about coming to church because she had nothing to wear and no friends to sit with. We did our best to reassure her that nobody will judge her and that next time we meet would bring someone she could make friends with. She told us that she would call us the next time she wants to meet. Her name is Lisa. Be keeping her in your prayers.

Wednesday we had follow up new missionary training. I have learned that meetings make me really antsy when it nears the end of them. Especially because meetings for us never seem to end. After that we went to the DI with the Lakota Creek Elders they are so awesome, love them to death.

That was basically all that happen that day.

On Thursday we had you guessed another meeting, Ugh. On the bright side it was with Elder Gaye of the Seventy. He address us with so many cool stories and insights. I got so many great things that I can use when teaching. It will be legendary. Plus it was good to see Elder Perkins again. 

Then we went on Exchanges and this exchange was probably the funnest exchange I have been on in a long time. I went to Lakota Creek with Elder Jones. He is so SAVAGE! We were literally busting a gut our entire exchange.

It started with my bike jumping and attacking with its handle bars while I was trying to flip it upside down. Then we got back and tried to teach their apartment complex security guard. Then we laughed and joked around and went to bed for the night. In the morning, Elder Jones made me the best pancakes I have ever had! We then went down to the beach front of their area and we started hitting some rocks with some sticks and Elder Jones tossed one in the area and it hit me right in the teeth. We both lost it again at that point. We then did a ton of biking around, which....I can't believe I am saying this but I actually enjoyed it.

We came back for lunch and I freaking destroyed their kitchen, on accident. BBQ sauce was everywhere. It looked like a murder seen. Then Elder Jones died laughing again. Then later that night about 8:50 so we were going back to the apartment so we took a shortcut through the playground and Elder Jones jokingly told me to go get on the duck teeter totter so of course I did and I rocked all the way back so he comes behind me gives me a push and I fly forward and face plant onto the wood chips and the duck came back and smacked him in the knee so we both ended up on the ground next to each other moaning in pain and laughing... HAHAHA it was so funny! 

On Sunday we got a new Stake Presidency and or just release Bishop of one week was called as the New Stake President. He will be awesome!

Well thats all that happened this week, I love you all!

Elder R.K. Northrup

The Enlightenment of this area is come to pass

The week has been so good, I have plenty to say! Wish I could just tell you about it in person.

Anyways we had a great start to week! We were able to regain our connections with our recent convert Bro. Irby. He is awesome and really open. Just a really solid dude. He told us what he had been struggling with the past few weeks and finally took a step back, and wanted to get back on the straight and narrow path. We were able to talk to him about repentance. He told us about an analogy that he had heard once. That Satan is a rubber band and we are with in that rubber band. Then he told us that as we try to get out of Satan's hold it gets harder and harder to leave. However there are other people within the rubber band with are also pushing behind you as well and that is God supporting our efforts to escape the clutches of Satan. It was really cool to see him again trying his best to follow the teachings that Christ has layed before us.

Then on Tuesday we were able to go teach a non-member that we had dinner with. Her name is Billy. She is basically a Dry Mormon. Nobody knows what her hold up is? Which is weird because she helped most of her family join the Church. Oh well I hope she will make the steps towards Baptism and the path towards eternal life. 

On Wednesday we were able to meet with our new investigator Ember. She is so awesome. She is already interested in reading the Book of Mormon. Teaching the Restoration was so cool, she was listening to what we said so well. We even asked her to pray afterward and she did it was so good. She even asked Heavenly Father that if he sent us to her to help her recognize that and to help her truly understand what we teach her. It was such an awesome prayer. Totally one of the best missionary moments ever. I have high faith that she will read the book of mormon and pray about the truth it contains. Pray everyone that she will, so that Satan doesn't get his grimy hand on her.

We were able to teach brother Irby again and this time we talked to him about doing the right and how God will guide us if we let him back to the correct path, even when we do something wrong he is already doing his best to prepare us to return. It was truly an amazing discussion. 

On Sunday we had one of the weirdest talks that I have ever heard before in my life, but that is a better story in person. The rest of the sunday went great. Always nice to partake of the sacrament and renew our covenants. 

Anyways it has been a really great week. I love all of you!

Elder R.K. Northrup

Operation Antioch

My "Tag" in Hylebos Ward

Well I bet you are wondering why I have titled the email this way. Well, Elder Delp and I have been struggling just finding people to teach, so we came up with this operation. It is to go through every potential we have in our area book and annihilate the un-interested investigators. We are currently only doing this with this place called Park 16 because that place isn't the most promising when it comes to New investigators. We have been doing really well with this and have gotten some information for possible return appointment times. Which is freaking incredible so now we have the opportunity to start teaching people again.

We were also able to regain ties with our recent convert, Bro. Irby. He had been struggling the last couple months and was prompted by the spirit to call us. He told us that he had really faltered but that he wanted to come back and get started again. We taught him a ton about the blessings of the Atonement and he really understands the importance of Christ's Sacrifice for us and that these trials that we go through is a way to refine us and help us to become like Christ! He is awesome, we are going over today to teach him again!

An amazing blessing happened this week. We got a super solid referral from the Spanish Sisters! Her name is Ember Bailey and she seems so golden. The Sister's told us that they were tracting and she just let them in and they talked about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon. She even knew about the Angel Moroni! I was so jumping up and down like a crazy person!! We went and saw her yesterday and we have an appointment with her on Wednesday at 4PM. Everyone pray that she will remember and meet with us that day and at that time. Thanks!!

Also we have been doing a lot of walking. I have discovered that Elder Delp loves the rain! Which makes absolutely no sense at all. I honestly can't even fathom liking the rain!! So it was really weird to hear someone say as we were getting completely drenched that they love it when this happens. Which gave me the exact opportunity I needed for a face-palm!!

Anyways that was are week. We are very thankful for all of your prayers! Love you all!

Elder R.K. Northrup