Week #36

Well, this week was awesome! Something really special happened this
week that I'll talk about a little later in my email. It started out
on Wednesday when we had a lesson with one of our new investigators.
In our first lesson with him we invited him to be baptized and he said
he would once he came to know that it is true. So we taught him the
second lesson on Wednesday and we asked him if he would prepare
himself to be baptized on March 12 and he said he would! It was
awesome and the spirit was really strong. He also came to stake
conference with us yesterday and loved it! He said he wants to come
back next week for the normal sacrament meeting. I'm super excited to
keep working with him!

On Thursday, our mission had a goal to have every companionship had
out a copy of the Book of Mormon and then report it to the zone
leaders how many people handed out Copies and how many copies were
handed out. So elder Merrill and I decided to fill my backpack with
copies of the Book of Mormon and head over to Geroge Mason University
which is in our ward boundaries and see how many we could hand out. We
brought 10 copies with us thinking that we could only hand out 2 or 3
but as we got going I swear we couldn't hold on to them long enough.
Yes, there were some people who rejected it but most of the kids were
super interested in what we had to say. We ended up handing all 10 of
the copies by 8pm. We still had an hour of proselyting left and we had
no materials because we had handed them all out. I wish we would have
brought more to give to people. I'm so glad we were able to hand them
all out and bear our testimonies with each one. We decided to split up
in the quad area (don't worry, we were still within sight and sound)
and we decided we were going to talk to ask many people as we possibly
could. We probably talked to 35 people that night. It was such an
amazing experience to be able to share the love of the gospel with
people my age!

So I want to tell you about this experience that happened on Friday.
So Friday is usually the day we do our weekly planning session which
can take anywhere from 1-3 hours. And so in the morning after studies
we decided to pick up our apartment because we have inspections
tomorrow and the we would just eat lunch and do our weekly planning.
Well, weekly planning rolls around at about 1pm and we get going and
it doesn't end till around 4ish. We hadn't left the apartment all day
because of our planning and cleaning and I was starting to get really
tired and a head ache from staying inside so long. So I was excited to
get to our dinner appointment so I can get out of the house, but when
we called our dinner to confirm with them, they said they had to
cancel because of "scouts". And so I was like, "great, just another
hour to sit in the apartment." At this point I'm going nuts. So during
dinner we decide to watch the testaments movie (literally the only
approved movie for missionaries to watch during meals) and during the
movie I swear I lost all my motivation to do anything. I didn't want
to get off the couch, I didn't want to study, let alone leave the
apartment and go out and work. We had no lessons for that night and we
were just going to be tracting or street contacting all night. So I
was sitting there thinking, trying to justify anything in my head. I
kept saying to myself, "well we could just stay inside and call people
in the Areabook, or we could clean our apartment, or we could do some
extra study". But then I got thinking about how you always hear those
stories of missionaries praying about where to go and then they go
there and find that one person. And I've always heard those stories
and it never really hit home with me. But for some reason, I went in
front of our area map while elder Merrill was in the bathroom and
knelt down and said a prayer and asked Heavenly Father to give me the
strength and motivation to go out and work and then I asked him where
he wants us to go and I'm not usually one to do something like that. I
think I let my pride get in the way a lot but for some reason I
decided too this time. And as soon and I was done asking him where we
should go, Fairview Dr. popped right into my mind. We'd never worked
there before but for some reason I couldn't get that street off my
mind. So I finally told elder Merrill to get dressed (because it's
super cold) because we are going to work. And so we get to Fairview
Dr. and we start knocking on some doors and we'd knocked all the way
down one side of the street and we were starting to head back the
other way, we'd had no luck and I kept thinking to myself, there has
got to be a reason Heavenly Father sent us to this street. And sure
enough, we knock on this one door and a woman answers and we gave her
our little door approach and she invited us right in (probably because
she could see we were freezing) and she had us sit down on her couch
and we were able to teach her about the Book of Mormon and testify to
her of its truthfulness. She was really intrigued on what we had to
say and we asked her if we could come back on Tuesday and she agreed.
We gave her a copy of the Book of Mormon and invited her to read it
and she said she would. As we were walking home, I kept thinking to
myself, "I almost stayed in tonight, I was super close to just calling
it a night. If I would have done that, we wouldn't have found
Jeanette". Satan was putting it in my mind and trying to get me to
justify going out and working because he knew that if we went out we
would find Jeanette. I'm so grateful I followed the prompting of the
Holy Ghost to go to Fairview that night. I would have never known what
I missed if I hadn't gone out, but Heavenly Father would have known.
He had prepared Jeanette for us to come and visit her and all we
needed to do was ask where to go. Satan tried all he could to get me
to stay home but he lost. I like to think of satans temptations as a
competition. Who are you going to let win? Him or you? It's a battle
of good and evil. I'm just glad that I kicked his butt on that one.
I'm sure there will be many more of those instances to come to all of
us and I pray that we can always take heed to the promptings of the
Holy Ghost!

I love and miss you guys.

Elder Leishman

Aunt Jearlene had a conference in DC this week so Tanner got permission for her to take him and his companion to lunch.  It was snowy and icy and they weren't allowed to drive, so they walked 1/2 mile to meet her - thus his pants were rolled up.

Week #35 - Another day another dollar

Well, another week has passed on my mission. This upcoming week is my
8 month mark. On Wednesday I will hit 8 months of being in the mission
field. It's so crazy to think I've been out that long. It really goes
by so fast. I feel like it was just yesterday I entered the MTC. I
feel like I'm still learning how to be a missionary. I feel like I
still make rookie mistakes but I guess we all do during all phases of
our lives.

This week we were able to find 2 new investigators and we taught them
both the first lesson and invited them both to be baptized and they
said yes!! It was awesome! One of them is a 16 year old girl that goes
to the local high school. The other is a guy who is about 28 and works
at the local movie theater. They both have had contact with
missionaries in the past and we find them just going through our area
book. We had a second lesson with both of them this week and we are
going to try and put them on date for baptism. Im super excited about
the work we are doing. Elder Merrill and I have been working out tails
off in this area for a transfer and a half and haven't really seen
much success from it and we are now seeing some fruits from our labors
and its all because of Heavenly Father. We showed him for the past 10
weeks that we want to work hard and he's finally bringing those people
into our path that need the gospel in our lives. This is one of those
moments in life when you have to give all the glory to Heavenly Father
and recognize his hand in every part of your life.

Last night, I was able to have an interview with President Huntsman.
It was probably the highlight of my week. I had asked him earlier in
the week if we could sit down and have a meeting and he said yes. It's
such a blessing to have priesthood leaders that we can turn too for
guidance and direction. I don't know what I would do if I wasn't able
to sit down with someone who hold to keys of the priesthood and
discussed the triumphs and trials of life. I feel like it's great
therapy for the soul. Well, my soul at least, I don't know how others
feel. But I feel like it's just a huge burden that we have to carry
when we go through trials and when you talk with someone about it,
it's almost like they help carry that burden with you. They are like a
support beam in you spiritual house. It's such an amazing blessing.
I'm so grateful for it. I hope everyone has an awesome week! I love
and miss you all! Keep up the good work!
Elder Leishman

With Elder Finlayson from Lone Peak HS

Week #34

This week was a lot more active than the last week haha. The snow is
starting to melt at a rapid pace. It's crazy, it been around 60-65
degrees the past few days just melting all the snow. Talk about
bipolar weather. It went from blizzard to warm in a matter of days.
Mother Nature can't really make up her mind can she?

But, this week was actually really awesome. We did a lot of personal
contacting and checking on some potential investigators. There is a
big push to ask for referrals from everyone and it's been kind of
tough remembering to ask from everyone but it really pays off. Even
when you're out tracting, if some one isn't interested, you can ask
them who they know that would be interested in the message. We got
probably 5 referrals from that this week which was awesome. Not all of
them panned out but it was nice to talk with people that are semi
prepared to hear the message of the restored gospel.

This week we had a lesson with one of our investigators who is married
to a less active member. It went really good. We discussed Jacob 5.
The allegory of the olive tree. A lot of people are super intimidated
by this chapter but personal, I really enjoy reading it. I understand
it really well and it touches my heart. I just want to share it with
everyone (hence why I made a Facebook post about it this week haha). I
can honestly find so much strength and encouragement from the allegory
of the olive tree. If anyone has any questions about it, feel free to
ask me. I'll do my best to answer them. I love being able to study
things like that. I wish I would have studied more of the scriptures
when I was at home. I wish I would have grown to gain a testimony of
the scriptures before I came on a mission because then I would have
shared it a lot more. But, I'm glad I now have a testimony for myself
about the scriptures. The scriptures really are the guides we should
follow to live a happy life. I love the Book of Mormon and feel like
it is so descriptive on how we need to live our lives. And if I could
leave you all with an invitation, it would be this. To read the Book
of Mormon and then to kneel down and ask God with a broken heart and a
contrite spirit and ask him if the book is true. Even if you already
have a testimony that it is true, you can use the extra strength. Our
testimonies aren't something that is stagnant. They are either growing
or they are diminishing. Let's try to make sure ours are always
growing bigger and stronger.

I love you guys. Have a good week!

Love,
Elder Leishman

Week #33 - Blizzard 2K16

Well, this week has been interesting to say the least. I honestly
can't even remember what happened before Friday at 12 noon. Once it
hit that time on Friday, we weren't allowed to drive because of the
massive winter storm that hit, then a little while after that we were
allowed to go out. We had to stay in our apartment complex. Holy cow
it's been a long weekend. It sure gave me a lot of time to sit down
and think about my mission and where I want to go and some of the
things I want to do. This weekend was good for personal growth and
cleaning the apartment haha. My apartment is spotless. But, I have
been able to study a lot this past weekend and also clean up our area
book and phone contacts. I called a whole bunch of people and most of
them didn't answer. But the few people I talked too, I was able to
have a good conversation with. I remember before the storm hit I was
working on trying to reach my 1000 door goal. The couple days before
the storm hit I was right on track but now that we haven't been able
to proselytize as much, I'm in a little hole. I'll have to do a little
extra tracking this week to make up for it! I'm pretty excited.

Oh and I guess we had a transfer since the last time I emailed home.
I'm staying in the Wakefield ward with elder Merrill again. I love the
Wakefield ward and all the members. The members really love the
missionaries here and give us a lot of support. I'm excited to serve
along side them for another transfer.

Last week, during the storm, I finished the Book of Mormon. I love the
ending of the Book of Mormon. It really hits home with me every time I
read the last few chapters. I love moron is promise at the end and I
find myself takin that promise everyday I study. I ask Heavenly Father
to strengthen my testimony of the book and help me continue to have to
power to share it with everyone. I'm so grateful for the Book of
Mormon and its second witness of the Lord, Jesus Christ.

I hope everyone has a good week!

Much love,
Elder Leishman

During the blizzard

30+ inches of snow

Elder Simpson and I during the Blizzard

Since we were confined to our apartment complex we worked out twice a day.

Transfer Meeting with my district

Transfer Meeting

Week #32 - Transfer week baby!!

Well, this week is transfer week! I'm pretty sure I am staying here in
the Wakefield ward. I'm not sure what's going to happen with my
companion though. He's been here for 3 transfers so we will have to
see. I'm pretty excited for this upcoming transfer. I set a goal for
this next transfer to knock on 1000 doors in 6 weeks. I did the math
and it comes down to about 24 doors a day, which is pretty manageable.
I'm sure excited to start and I can't wait to see all the people I'll
meet from it!

This past week has been a really good one. On Saturday, I went on an
exchange with one of the Assistants to the President, Elder Jones. It
was awesome. We worked our butts off that day and got a ton done and
met a ton of great people. Elder Jones and I were able to have some
great cov ersatz one throughout the day while we were walking around
and what not. We have been really good friends for most of my mission
and it was nice to get to spend the day working with him. I really
learned a lot!

On Sunday night, we had our New and Returning Member Fireside. My
recent convert, Mike, spoke at this one. It was AWESOME! It was the
first time I'd seen Mike since his confirmation back at the end of
October! Mike went up there and told a sincere story and bore a
powerful testimony. He talked about how much change the gospel has
wrought inside of him. He bore a simple, sincere testimony about the
gospel and the cleansing power of the Atonement. I'm really glad I got
to hear him speak and to see him again. I'm happy that he is still
going strong in the church and trying his best to share the gospel
with his friends and his family! In his talk he talked about how we
are like family now and we have a bond that will last a life time. I'm
really glad I have a friend like Mike!

This week I've been able to do a lot of personal growth as well as try
and grow our area. Our area doesn't have a ton of investigators but we
have a lot of less active members that we are working with. I've been
able to really study the scriptures hard and further my knowledge of
God and the Savior more than I ever have in my life. I've been able to
truly access the power of the atonement and share its goodness with
everyone. I'm really happy for what this next week and next transfer
have in store! I hope you guys have a good week! I love and miss you
guys!

Peace and Blessings,
Elder Leishman

Elder Leishman with his good friend Mike that he refers to in his letter.  Lifelong friends.

Week #31

This week has been pretty good! It was a great week key indicator wise
and we taught a lot of lessons. Not many to our investigators but we
taught a lot to some less actives in our ward. We have been working
hard on trying to activate some of the families that haven't been
going to church. Most of the ones we are working with are super
excited about meeting with us and express sincere desires to come back
to church. It's such a blessing seeing people so happy about the
gospel.

In my study this week I finished 3 and 4 Nephi and Christ's ministry
to the people in the Americas. It was so great to read about all the
miracles he performed and how established his church and gave them
authority to baptized just like the disciples in ancient Jerusalem.
That was hands down one of my favorite parts of the Book of Mormon. I
feel like I could study those chapters of the Book of Mormon for the
rest of my life and I would be set.

I'm really excited for the upcoming week. We have a lot of good stuff
going on and we are going to be meeting with a lot of people. I don't
really have time to write a lot today as we are going into DC but I
will write more next week! Have a great day and a great week! God
Bless!

Elder Leishman

Week #30 - Happy New Year!

This week has been good! It was really nice to ring in the New Year as
a missionary. Being a missionary at the new year provides you with a
chance to set some sweet goals. The goals I have set for myself I feel
will push me but are also very achievable. I'm really excited for what
2016 has to bring.

On New Year's Eve, we got together as a zone and were able to watch
The Best Two Years and Ephriams Rescue. It was really nice to relax
for a little bit and just watch a movie. I hadn't watched a movie in
what felt like forever. The zone I'm in right now has a lot of really
fun missionaries in it, so it was fun to hang out with them.

In my study recently I have been reading about Jesus Christ and his
appearance to the people in the Book of Mormon. It just makes so much
sense that Jesus wouldn't forsake his other people around the world. I
love how he instituted all the things he did in Jerusalem, in the
Americas! I've been able to really strengthen my testimony of the Book
of Mormon lately with the study of Joseph Smith and also the savior,
Jesus Christ. I know for sure that the Book of Mormon is true and all
I want to do is share it.

Sorry I haven't written or replied a lot lately, I've been super busy
and not had a lot of time and had a lot on my mind. I appreciate every
single one of you though and everything you do for me. I love you
guys!

Keep on keepin on!

Elder Leishman