Monday, September 16, 2013

Sept 16


All is well in Zion! I love the new companions, we have a blast, plus we got a bench in our apartment so we have been hooked on working out at 6 every morning and blending up a green juice smoothie after for our morning routine.  We get along great and there is never a dull moment between us. Our ward members are always willing to help us go and teach and get work done, the only problem however, is that we have the boonies of the ward and the sisters have Oak Ridge itself. So, we have like 9 active members in our area and like 25 less active. Makes missionary work a little more difficult. We are determined to make some things happen though!
Cody B is doing really awesome he reads the Book of Mormon every day and yesterday we watched “Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration” with him. He is getting excited and nervous about his date on October 6th to be baptized. He is still waiting for his confirmation on whether the Book of Mormon is true, which we and he are all confident that he can receive if he puts the work in in the scriptures at church and on his knees. I love teaching people that want to be taught.
Our ward mission leader has a really big heart and doesn't ever want us to drop anyone, so that means we are still teaching a lot of non-progressing people. We recently had an investigator get anti'd pretty bad by her preacher and I can't tell you how often that happens. The Baptisits here are more abundant than mini vans in an LDS church parking lot. Many of them literally have like a whole month out of the year where they give "introduction to Mormonism" nights and things like that where they just feed the south with more anti Mormon literature and ideas than you could even believe. They never bash on any other religion though, I wonder why... Why would there be so much opposition against only one church? hmm.... haha
Well I feel like I’ve changed a lot so far on my mission as my 1 year mark approaches. I’m not sure what or how, but I really do feel like a different person. I've been truly been changed by the Lord. I've got a lot of work left in me, and I plan to give it all I have left. I have strived to be exactly obedient and I have seen blessings from it. Opposition always comes but if the Lord commands it there is always a way to accomplish the task. (thanks Nephi...) I know that the Lord lives. I know that Joseph Smith was his tool to bring about everlasting restoration. The only way Home is through the Savior. The only way we can access the fullness of the blessings of the atonement is through the blessings of the restoration, specifically the Book of Mormon and saving ordinances. There is no greater place than where ever we are at as long as we are in the service of God. I love my mission and it moves way too fast.
love you.
Elder Bakker



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