Wednesday, February 8, 2017

I am grateful for the challenges I have had


Caught a mole in our apartment!


Emails from January 30, 2017

hi Dad, it has been a good week. first off, thank you so much for the note about Dukie, i got it Saturday night, and i was pretty sad for a bit, but luckily i had just got back from an exchange. it was already time to come in and get ready for bed, so i was able to not have to think about anything for a while hahaha. Dukie is probably following me around in spirit like a creep as he used to do hahahaha.

we had a world wide meeting brodcast as missionaries where they pretty much got live video footage of the missionary council's board meeting. it was sweet, and i learned a lot about the Doctrine of Christ. they changed the missionary daily schedule and key indicators! we only count the number of baptisms, people on date, at church, and new investigators. i love it, it takes away the stress of everything else. now we have more freedom to change the order of how we do things in the morning, so we could excercise last if we wanted. i don't want to exercise last cause i am so used to the old schedule and it makes me feel jack hahaha.  we now plan our days the morning of, so if we wanted we could go to bed right at 9 pm when we get home, i love that hahahaha! and now our p-days are two hours longer and start at 8 am instead of 10 am.

we got a whole lot of referrals this week, and some new potential investigators to teach. i went on an exchange with Elder Nielsen's "son," {the Elder Nielsen i was with in Cincy}, so i  got to be a trainer for the day in our area. that was fun. i don't want to train at all anymore though hahaha. we started teaching a recent convert's dad, and he is doing awesome. he read a few chapters out of the Book of Mormon by the second lesson, and we have a chapel tour set up with him. i am so stoked. while i was on another exchange after a zone conf, in my zone leader's area, Miamisburg, we taught a few really cool people in that area, and i learned a lot. plus that zone leader is elder Schott, he is one of my favorite elders in the mission. we served in the same ward in Englewood, so that was fun.

we are doing really good now with referrals, we suddenly have started getting a bunch from members. the Lord is placing people in our path! it is amazing. and we are about to start teaching another part member family, that will invite us over as soon as his work slows down. he could be baptized any day now, things are looking up.

my blood sugars have been so much better this week, i know your prayers have helped me so much, thank you! that is good you got to see that promotion come, and that you were able to see Duke one last time, i bet that was a good tender mercy. hahaha i wish i could eat like Mia, she is an empty hole hahahaha. 

that is one of my fave talks from conf. faith really is a principle of power. in missionary work, we just have to rely on faith and "get out the way!" hahaha as they say in the hood. i have really learned that this transfer, we literally have nothing to worry about, God is in charge, and He knows where the his children are. if we just rely on what the spirit is telling us to do in faith then he will provide the miracles. Pres Welch was talking to us on Friday, and he said that success is given. if you notice in the scriptures, it always says, "i will give... you success". we literally just do our best and He will give us success. He will give us the grace to work miracles and to see miracles. i am so grateful for the time i have to be on a mission, to learn what the Spirit feels like and to really learn how to talk to God. i love this gospel so much, and i am so grateful for the ability to repent and become better. i know all of you can feel the same way, embrace the gospel. thank you Dad for all you do, i always thank you, and i won't not do it hahaha it means so much the work you put in for our family and to have me be out here. i hope you have a great day Dad, i love you! talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

hey Mom! i have had a great week, even with Dukie's death.  i still can't believe it though, when i read your letter, i was like "OH MY GOSH! are you kidding me?!?"  Dukie was so healthy, he is like one of those sprinters that just dies cause they had too much energy or something. he sure was a great dog, and very disobedient at times haha, but he was still my best friend when I didn't have one. he will be missed, but that is ok, we will see him again along with Lady and the other dogs.

well that aside, i had a great week. the members here are awesome, they love to send pics, so i hope you enjoyed them. can you send me that one? Elder Nieman is Elder Nielsen's trainee, so that was fun, he is going to be a great missionary. he is definitely further along then i was when i was at his point. i wrote about all the people we are teaching to Dad. i went on another exchange with Elder Schott, he is an old mission buddy, and is my zone leader. i went to his area, we got a lot of cool teaching in, and man he has changed a lot. we went on an exchange a year ago, and he says i have changed a lot too, so that was nice to hear.

we did get a lot of referrals this week, and that is so nice, we may not find them oursleves, but that is not to say that God isn't working on it for us, which He is! as soon as we get more available miles on our car, we will drive out to see them all. it is so exciting. it is a real testimony to me that God is in the details of everything. me and Elder Neimann found a bunch of people on Tuesday and set up some appointments with them. i found that the people we planned to see that day, we did shift around a bit to fit our travel, but it was really cool, cause two of the people we planned to see, we found them out walking the streets! it showed me that God will always place people in our path, as long as we get out of the way and follow the spirit. it's not about us.

i have definitely felt everyone's prayers, thank you so much! my blood sugars have been a lot better lately, prayer works! i will look at my insulin to carb ratios, i think that would help with some of my meals, thanks for reminding me Mom! Elder Payne gave me a blessing of counsel, and it said to pretty much be patient, they will get back under control in the Lord's timing, which was interesting hahaha.

that is good about Mia's surgery going well, that sounds like a video i will have to see hahaha. i am glad Dukie passed quickly, and not painfully. if he had gotten much older, it would have been painful to watch, more so then just hearing about it in a letter so i am grateful for that.  that is cool that Anna is going out, she will make a great missionary with having an understanding like that already, it will push her through learning a language.

i have heard that song {One by One}, it is very good. it is true that we do stand in the Savior's place, helping people one by one, and it works the best that way. we are all God's children and we all have a hierarchy of needs and wants, and the most basic is to be loved, and to feel God's love. that is the most basic doctrine the restored gospel teaches, that first and foremost we are all beloved children of heavenly parents, who love and care for us, and are waiting for our return.

i am grateful for the challenges that i have had, that teach me that if nothing else, i have a Heavenly Father. He will not do anything that will harm me spiritually. he will only allow things to happen that will help me learn what I need to learn. i am so grateful to be able to declare the restored gospel and to help others repent. everyone needs the joy of repentance and change. i am here to help them feel that, and that is made possible through faith in the Jesus Christ--it is only through Him.

thank you Mom for the package you sent, and all that you do!

well i have to go now, thank you Mom for everything! i love you all so much! have a great week! tatlk you later!

-Elder Sedlacek
 
LONG LIVE DUKIE!
 

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