Elder Thomas: One GREAT Week!

Well this week has been one of the greatest weeks of my mission! I can only see it getting better from here on out!

Elder Hadley and I have been working really hard to rebuild this area, we have made a goal to split the area before he goes home! In order to split the area we have to show our mission president that there is too much work for us to do. This is very possible and we are determined to make it happen! The way we are going to get more work is by talking with every single person that we see. This means that we are no longer just riding by everyone! (Before I got to this area they were talking to 40 people a week on the street, this past week we talked to 265 people!) We found a hispanic family that prefers english and we were able to set 1 baptismal date (with the son, Deon, while the mother said she isnt ready) and that is for the 11th of Decemeber! I am so excited that we are finding new people to teach!

I was able to go on exchanges with one of our zone leaders (Elder Tingey) and he taught me so much! He also told me that my job is to make sure that Elder Hadley has a lasting conversion in the gospel! I didnt know that I was supposed to be helping with this, but now I see how important it is that I help him strengthen his testimony. I dont want him to go home and fall away from the church. This is something that our new mission president has put high on the priorities list. I agree with him - it is super important that we are all solid in what we believe because we will be future leaders in the world.

Here's Elder Hadley and I...

This morning I was able to go hiking! We started at 7am and by the time we made it down the mountain it was noon. The hike was called "Flat Iron" and it is part of the superstition mountains. I think it gets its name because of its shape. When you get to the top it is really flat and in the shape of an iron, but I could be wrong! I went with 5 other missionaries and 2 members of our ward. Elder Bickmore and his new companion were there. We made it up in 1 hour and 40 minutes and I dont really know how long we stayed up there for, but the way down was more painful and seemed steeper. If you have time you all should look this mountain up, it is really cool looking.

Just before the hike

On the way up...

Reaching the Top! We're the first three to the summit...

All of Us on the Summit

I am looking forward to this coming week, because during the day (Wednesday - Friday) Elder Hadley will be at a Leadership training meeting, which means I will be with a different missionary going back and forth between our areas. I am excited because it will be the first time that I will get to run the area the way I want to. I really hope that I can set a pace for this area that we get us both excited for what is happening. Keep us in your prayers!

I hope you all have a super week! I am having a blast here and am excited for the week to come. Thank you for all of the support and things that you do for my family! Please let me know what I can do for you!

Here's a funny bumper sticker I saw...