We have to do our best, and then the Savior will give us the power to accomplish the tasks at hand

hey Dad, so i had a good week. my new comp's name is Elder Erickson, and he is a boss! he is a great missionary and it is really nice to have a hard working comp. the sisters' area was shut down, so now our district is combined with the Liberty elders and sisters and my comp was made DL, because he has been out one transfer longer than me. so now we have the sisters' old car and we cover the whole ward, it is pretty huge. the area is shaped like a u. we used to cover half, but now we know the full, so i pretty much just got doubled in twice. i have to know the old boundaries and the new ones, so that has been fun. we also got a mini-missionary on Saturday morning, he will be with us til Saturday morning. it has been fun, he is a good kid and just graduated. he is going to start his own mission papers soon. we are still trying to work with Mrs. J. she is being a little hard to work with though, i think she does not like me at all--i think i offended her when i asked her to be baptized a few weeks ago. so yeah haha. i think she is trying to spite me or something--i don't know, all i can do is try my best to love her! her son B is awesome though haha. 

we pretty much spent the week using the car half the time to go meet the sisters' investigators, and then we biked the other half to see ours. we don't have a lot of miles to use on the car, so we still have to bike a lot. i am glad you liked the father's day card, i hope you had a nice father's day. that must have been fun to visit grandpa H. it is way cool you got out the row boat and went fishing! that is fun. hahaha but it's too bad you didn't catch any fish! i am glad that work went pretty well this week. 

what you said about true greatness is so true--we all want that perfection and greatness at something. we won't ever achieve perfection in this life, but we can achieve it in the next life eventually, with the help of the Savior. because of Him we have that opportunity to achieve that greatness we so desire. I know that because of the atonement and the Savior, we can accomplish everything. we have to do our best and then He will give us the power to accomplish the tasks at hand. thanks so much for all the support you give to me Dad! i love you Dad! have a great week and keep up the good work. talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

hey Mom, so this was a good week. i wrote Dad about the investigators. i will tell you about transfers: so my comp's name is Elder Erickson, he is from West Jordan and is an awesome guy. he is 23 and an electrician. he has been out a year, so one transfer longer than me. that makes him DL. we took over the sisters' area because they got moved out. we got their car too, which is nice, although we can't really use it too much with the mileage limit. we still have to bike a ton. so we pretty much got doubled in again, that is twice in a row. hahaha the other half of the ward (the area the sisters had) is like another world! there are tons of Micronesians. they are great people and it is so fun to talk to them haha. i wrote pretty much all the other new stuff that has happened in Dad's email. 

we were able to see a bunch of grace this week. we found a few new investigators, but even Elder E says this is a tough area hahaha. we actually both served in Englewood, so we like to talk about that. he served there a few months before i did, just on the other side of the ward. i like having a bigger district now. one of my old STLs is in Liberty, so that is fun. one of the Liberty elders is one of my old ZLs so that is super fun too. we get along great. last p-day he roped me with his lariat. hahaha

those are funny pics of Brigham's hair haha. he is a cutie!  that must have been an awesome youth conference, it sounds like it went well. so i am guessing you enjoyed the Manti pageant, that must have been fun. did you go to the Palisades camp ground? that is fun one.  that is crazy that the B** brothers have already spoken together, seems like yesterday that Jake and i spoke! hahaha 

Mom, remember to go and record President Porter's talk for me please! that is such a cool story that Jeremy told in his mission talk. in this mission we have been promised we could all baptize in June. we are waiting for our miracle because right now it doesn't look like it will happen, but we are trying our very hardest and trying to exercise our faith. so keep praying for us! we will use that story, thanks so much for that Mom! that is awesome! well, that is mostly it for the week. i am hoping to send a package home this week, so if it comes don't scatter around all the stuff [Mom's note: worrying about his stuff being "scattered" is so Jared haha!] it should have some old planners in it, as well as the fitness watch.

i don't need anything sent with my strips, thanks Mom! i will watch for the package.

oh, Elder Hueman is in my district, so that is fun. i heard from one of the sisters who got doubled in to Englewood after i left that they are baptizing a few people i taught, so that was way nice to hear!

well, i have to go now Mom. thanks for emailing me. i love getting to email every week. thanks so much for all you do Mom! have a great week! i love you! talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

There you have it--cutting lawns pre-mission DID help prepare me for my mission.

It's no trick of the eye.....Elder B IS shorter than Elder Sed! 

hey dad! so this was a good week. i told you a lot about the investigators yesterday, and that was really fun to Skype! i have grown since I came out hahaha! i have to be careful when i wear my long sleeve shirts, or i could rip them. they are small around my shoulders now. 

just some fun info about the apartment complex where we live: we have a small pond in the middle and we can fish in it without a license, since it is private property. Elder Bosworth and I and the other Liberty Zone Elders (one is my old zone leader, Elder Barrett. he is a cowboy so he loves that stuff hahaha) will be doing some fishing! Literally a crap ton of geese and ducks live in West Chester, so constantly these geese fly over at perfect shooting height. It drives me up the wall hahahaha. All the roads we bike on are very skinny two-lane roads, and there are no sidewalks so it is fun to hold up traffic when we go anywhere! hahaha 

that is good you got to go the cemetery to visit Grandpa and Grandma's graves. The three-way call for Skype worked out pretty slick. That was a great idea, I am glad ya'll got it worked out. I am glad you got to go to Jeff's graduation. Thanks for the updates Dad, as usual. I bet that was fun to move A & J into their new place. I'm really glad they found a nice place to move into. I got a great workout as well digging out some stumps, one was about half the size of our pine tree stump, it was hard work hahaha. They call me and Elder Bosworth the dynamite duo sometimes (hahaha) because "dynamite comes in small packages" and we work hard! hahaaha. {Note: Elder Sedlacek's new companion is actually shorter than Elder Sedlacek is. This probably won't happen very often!}

That is so very true from Elder Renlund, it all starts with faith. The first step in the Doctrine of Christ,  is that as we increase faith, we increase everything else as well. Faith is the substance of it all, that is the most basic simple step you can work on--increasing your faith. We have to give people commitments to help them increase their faith and prepare for covenants--no commitments, no covenants, no exaltation. It is all simply said, but harder to do. Thanks for all the support you give me Dad! I love following your example, you have taught me well. Thanks for that Dad! Well, it was great being able to hear from you twice in 24 hours. Keep up the hard work, you're the best.  I love you Dad. Have a great week, I will talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

hey Mom, so this was a good week, but a tough week. It is hard being doubled in to a new area right after being doubled out of another (hahahaha) who woulda thought?! 

Elder Bosworth is a great missionary. He is pretty mature, but still loves to joke around some, so that is good. He is great. He is the District Leader. We are in a district with the West Chester Sisters. We cover the ward and split it between the two companionships. Elder B and I cover the west half. The members are very helpful from what I can tell so far. That guy I told you about yesterday, Brother F, is awesome. We mow his lawn every week and he loves us. He told us we made a really good first impression with how I cut his lawn, so there you have it--cutting lawns pre-mission did help with preparing me for my mission hahaha. 

It was pretty hard leaving Englewood. I love a lot of those members so much!  They are so cool. The S family I will have to keep in contact with--they are awesome. That is good Libby is feeling better. I forgot it was Cinco de Mayo and ate a samwich hahahaha. Not that i would have cooked something anyway! hahaha 

That is cool Jake has a summer job and apartment, good for him. I bet that was a fun Saturday up in Logan hahaha. I am glad Jake gets to go visit his mission. That would be way cool to do a trip like that with you guys when I get back. I hope it is fun, that will be awesome. Hopefully little Baby T comes soon! hahaha 

It sounds like you had some good talks in church for Mother's Day. It is cool you got to go to the Care Center, I love the people there. Thanks for telling me the cool story about the Western Red Cedar boat wood, that is cool, thanks Mom. I know that as we use the Doctrine of Christ and the atonement to change us, we can become better and come closer to Christ and be ready to meet him at the last day. I know that as we do what He has asked us, we will be blessed as well.

One thing for my birthday--I could use some more of those Nike socks, size 6-8, the mediums. That would be sick! The ones I have are wearing out soon.

I have to go now Mom, it was great to hear from you! I love you Mom, have a great day! and week! Talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

I know that as we continually strive to be better that we will become better, despite what the adversary tells us.

hey dad! this was a good week. but before we start, we are getting "white-washed"--doubled out! it kinda stinks, but i know the Lord has His reasons and it is what the area needs. we had a ton of grace this week, we had members out with us almost every day! it was sick! V and his daughter and brother came to church yesterday! they were late, so we thought no one was going to show, but then just when we had given up, he walked through the door! it was awesome! M's boyfriend (G) started in on the lessons as well, he is the most prepared person ever! he committed to live the Word of Wisdom the first lesson, and also the law of chastity. he went from smoking 9 cigarettes a day to 2 within 3-4 days! he said that they will either separate or get married asap! it was a huge miracle. they are for sure getting baptized! 

a few less actives have promised to come to church this Sunday, this area is rocking it! i am so sad to go, but i know it will pull through. we just have to trust in the Lord and get all the records spic-and-span today. we have a lot to do! hahaha not so much with records, but packing and such! hahaha 

yep, we had to officially ''drop'' a few people this week, but as you said they will have their chance to accept the gospel, whether that be in a few weeks or years or even later, they will thank us for doing our best. that is good you had a good Fast Sunday, ours was good as well. it was not as good as the last one, but it was still very good, especially to have a few investigators there! 

hahaha so you're not so tech savvy there, huh Grandpa?! hahahaha just kidding Dad, that is good you got it figured out in time for your lesson. i probably would have struggled as well. 

that was crazy, you had another wind storm! last night we had the biggest rainstorm i have ever beheld! i woke up to the thunder, it literally sounded like it was echoing from about 15 miles in each direction, it was so loud! think of the largest sea storm you can imagine and take the thunder from that and imagine that, it sounded like that! no kidding, it was insane. i was too tired to get out of bed, so i just listened to it before i passed out asleep hahaha. 

wow, A&J are moving! good luck to them! that is way cool USU players are going to the NFL, and that is too bad the Reds lost. thanks for the awesome update! 

i love that talk you shared. none of us are perfect, but we are working towards it. we may not always feel like it, but as long as we are utilizing the Doctrine of Christ in our lives, we are moving towards Christ, that is the goal don't ya know. i know that as we continually strive to be better that we will become better, despite what the adversary tells us and tries to convince us that we can't. well, we are short on time today, i will write more to mom. i love you Dad, have a great week! talk to you on Sunday!

hey Mom, so this was a good week. we had a few investigators at church this week, i wrote about that in Dad's email. Today i am short on time, so you will have to refer to that one for investigator news, I'm sorry. 

well, Elder Sutton and I are both being transferred out, it sucks, but i will trust in the Lord and it will all work out. i love this ward and area so much, it will be hard to leave. 

my week has gone by crazy fast as well. on Thursday we had a Zone meeting, and it was super awesome. i got some awesome revelation for myself. I was told to stop beating myself up for things i mess up, stuff like that, and to focus on how the Lord qualifies who He calls and how much He loves us. 

i did get the strips and batteries, thanks! so much! my favorite person was G. i wrote to Dad about him. the hardest thing was probably one day, can't remember which, we were not able to get any members out with us and all our appointments fell through, but it worked out at the last minute because a member suddenly decided to come with us. so we were able to see some people in the far reaches where the bus doesn't cover. it was awesome! 

when the baby is born, you could probably just call the mission office, they will probably let me know. thanks for thinking of that! well, i hope it all goes well, wish them luck for me! 

that is good the windstorm wasn't bad enough to cause any real damage. For Skype just plan on about 4-5 pm your time, but i have no idea since i am getting transferred. i think we can call to set it up the day before, but we will see. just keep an eye out, maybe i will get a member to text you. we will figure it out. 

i love that thought from D&C 11:20, that is awesome and a great scripture, thanks mom! it is true, when you think about it, as a missionary, we just have to keep the rules and do what we are supposed to and we will still see miracles, at least that. it is awesome, our life is simple when you think about it, easier said than done, but simple all the same. well, that is it for this week, how you doin? oh yeah, this week, that day when we had no members to come with us we spent in the 'hood where we could access, and by the end of the day, when i called a member, i literally without even meaning to said "How you goin'?"​ hahaha! 

Mom: Hey son, good to hear that you had a great week. I’m happy about all the success you had!

Transferred eh? I suppose you don’t know where?

When the baby is born, I’ll call or text Sister Porter. I have her number.

I wish you the best of luck tomorrow for transfer day!! I’ll be praying for you!! I Love you!!

nope, i don't know where I'm going yet, i will know tonight. even though i'll really miss the people and area here, i do feel very good about this transfer. i pray about every transfer and i feel like we did accomplish what Heavenly Father wants us to accomplish to the best of our ability. thanks for texting Sister Porter when you do, Mom!

i have to go now mom, sorry we could not talk more. i love you Mom! expect a card in the next few days, and have a great week! you're the best! talk to you on Sunday!

-Elder Sedlacek

I have learned to avoid contention at all costs. I know that is the opposite of how I used to be haha

hey dad, so this has been a great week. we beat about half of our goals and we had a lot of grace to help us do it. we went on exchanges twice, so i stayed here both times and took over the area. that was fun, especially since it was for two days in a row hahaha. elder sutton came back and said, "I haven't slept here since Tuesday," and it was now Friday night! 

as you probably know we have about three investigators who could be baptized at any time; however, because of difficult family circumstances, it seems pretty bleak that they will be baptized this transfer. we have been fasting and praying to hit our goal of baptisms for this transfer, but we have no idea how we will hit it. I do know that if we trust in the Lord things will happen. all of our other investigators did not come to church this week, so the ones that did accept the date of May 7th cannot be baptized then. so we have been fasting a little bit hahaha. 

we had a pretty trying week--we even met an anti Christ. that is the fourth person this transfer who has tried to anti us in some way; two of them just this week. we are doing well though. we are working with a few less actives: DB, the B family, and a few others. they are all pretty tough nuts to crack, but they are good people. they are the ones who have been offended in the past in some way, so they just need to feel loved and listened to. 

What you said is true about reactivations--they are just as good as baptisms. i have had two or three reactivations so far. 

hey, that is cool you got a new computer, i bet it runs pretty sweet. that is awesome. so you still have the old computer running? 

hahahaha you finally had to mow the lawn then? we have been mowing lawns here for weeks! hahaha since like early March and late Feb hahaha. Utah folk are the ones with dormant lawns in the winter hahah. just kidding Dad haha. 

I bet that was fun to go fishing with Jake, and dang that is a lot of fish you caught. you bet your boosh hog {Mom: No idea what "boosh hog" means!} i will be goin there when I get back. that is way cool. it's fish fry time haha. 

that is too bad that the Jazz lost, darn it. that is crazy, so many earth quakes, i haven't heard about a single one of them. being on a mission is like being in a special bubble where you only see the bad stuff immediately around you, but you don't know anything about anywhere 50 miles away! hahaha you are also surrounded by the spirit all the time to add to it hahaha. 

the stake pres. has asked all the members to join a service site called Just Serve, look it up, justserve.org. it would make for some good FHE's.  Elder Holland's talk was one of my favorites from conference, it was really good. We can really rely on the Lord, we cannot allow our selves to get discouraged when things seem rough and when we don't experience what we want. we have to remember that the Lord is in charge and He is watching out for us. the Lord has his own timing and we have to be grateful for the blessings we receive. i know this church is true, we are coming into the last days and this gospel will  guide us along as we follow the Savior's teachings and as we live the gospel. I know that we can be examples to the world and as we let our lights shine others will see it and will follow along. thanks for emailing me dad, your support means so much to me, it means a lot! i love hearing from you dad. i love you! have a great week, i will talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

hey mom, so this was a pretty good week. it has been in the 80's all week long, and very humid hahaha, it never dries out here, just gets more and more humid and then dumps a butt load of water on us and repeats itself hahaha. 

sadly, we didn't get to meet with all of our most promising investigators, just due to people not keeping appointments. we did not have the car, so we had to have members take us to some places we can't access without one, but they had to bail on us too due to getting stuck at work and such, it was a tough week for that. we even got kicked out of a trailer park when we were 225-ing L because she bailed on our appointment. this guy just walked up and told us to "hit the road" over and over again, so we could not even explain that we were visiting someone and just asking the neighbors about when she might be back hahahaha. 

on Saturday we rode the bus to the church that morning, and on the way i saw this lady sitting there reading out of the Bible. she was reading James 1:5 out loud to herself, just loud enough that i could hear it, and i was like "no way!" i had just sat down on the bus, so i gave her a card and started talking to her, and she was very interested in learning more. sadly, she doesn't live in our area, so we sent out a referral for her to our STLs {Sister Training Leaders} and they contacted her that day and got her committed to church that night.  she is super solid. it was a pretty cool tender mercy to find her. 

at the church that Saturday there was a child's baptism going on, so while we waited for the other elders we went in and sat down. the spirit was super strong and this particular family, the mom was just baptized and the dad recently reactivated. i realized that as 18 year-old boys, the Lord allows us to be able to strengthen families just like this one and bring them together. it is a huge blessing to be a part of things like that, and i started crying too hahahaha. 

we had interviews with president this week, he told me i am an excellent missionary and a great finder, but i am not bold enough with moving people to their next steps. so he wants me to learn to do that. i really focused on that this week with the exchanges we did and it helped a lot. since {an earlier companion} i have learned to avoid contention at all costs. i know that is the opposite of how i used to be haha. i HATE contention, so i have to just be fearless and loving when i am bold with people. 

that is good that you are getting some nice weather in Utah. that is cool you are helping out at the school, i bet that is fun. hahaha funny Dukey, that crazy dog. that is good he has been being a good boy. 

i am sorry about your cousin's boy {recently diagnosed with T1D}. Diabetes is tough at times, but definitely he will learn a lot from it. he will come closer to his Savior and will learn about his Heavenly Father in a way that only diabetes and trials can teach him. diabetes is a curse and blessing, but Heavenly Father knows he and his parents can handle it. it will make them grow to who God wants them to be, just as he has done with me. 

well i hope the Young Women fundraiser goes well, good luck. that sounds like good church meetings this week. ours was good too, they had me bear my testimony of service in sunday school, and i got to wear my freshly fitting suit. it looks nice, i have grown big enough again that my shoulders are as big if not bigger than they were, so the jacket fits pretty well now. 

In answer to your question, the Book of Mormon became important to me when i was reading it one night back when i was going through those "challenges" in high school and I read Helaman 5:12 and it hit me like a train, that i could read the Book of Mormon and actually get a lot of comfort from it. it was no longer just a book we read to learn about God. it was something that i could turn to for peace and comfort. that is one of the times that changed my view of the Book of Mormon. i know that it is true and that we can come closer to the Savior than by any other book if we read it with an open mind and focus on the message it shares. I love reading it! 

The pictures show my sunburn, and a member took us out in his 1969 AMC Javelin, sick! that car ain't no BOOSH HAWG hahaha! it was pretty fun to ride in. and it turns out humidity makes me burn easier haha. oh, and I am up to 275 pull ups a day. 

mom, in my next package can you send some lithium AA batteries for my pump? i am almost out and they are more expensive here--about 10 bucks for 2! that would be much appreciated, thanks!

okay, i have to go now. thanks for emailing me mom! thanks for all you do. i love you mom, and i love you all, have a great day, and week. talk to you later and remember that deli meat is awesome! Skype you in a few weeks! bye! 

-Elder Sedlacek

The family is a huge gift from God.

hey dad! this was a good week. i loved conference, it was awesome. there were some really good talks. we did get to watch it at the church building, and my favorite session was the priesthood session. it is true--we did the same thing at the same time hahaha. we found a few more people this week. since we didn't have the car, we had to use the bus, which doesn't cover all of our area, so we had to walk a lot and rely on the members for transportation a lot too. on Saturday morning, we had an awesome lesson with the guy (K***) who elder parker and i had found when we had the prompting to give him a pass-along card. we with our ward mission leader before conference and had a super powerful lesson with him. we pointed out the spirit he was feeling after the story of the first vision and he felt it but could not describe it. it was cool. as we were leaving,  he was feeling kind of under the weather with a cold and wanted to go back to sleep, so we left and as we walked out, the JWs walked up to the porch. we just said, "Hey guys, catch you later" and they did not look happy at all hahaha. they meet with him on Saturday mornings, so we just started laughing because he was going back to bed. that was my favorite part of the week other than conference. right now, we are teaching about 25+ lessons a week. it was really sad because our most progressing investigators didn't make it to conference because of work and stuff, so we were pretty bummed out haha. i will write about the two  most solid new we got this week in mom's email. we also had another anti come and talk to us. that is two of them in the last two weeks, we must be doing something right! haha it is starting to amaze me just how much we know about God and His true nature.  I am glad you guys had fun in Moab. I love Libby finding lizards and stuff all the time hahaha. i am glad you had a good time. i bet it was pretty cool to see that Rocky Mountain sheep. the most animals i see around here is a dead raccoon or possum every 100 feet on the side of the road hahaha.  in conference, there was definitely a focus on temples and Lehi's dream a little bit too, and a lot on families. i really liked the talk in priesthood session, i forget who it was, but he talked about being men and standing up to those expectations. i loved Elder Holland's talk too, it was really good, you best believe that his talk is going to end up in one of my mission's pump up videos hahaha. all those new temples will be way cool, thanks for the info! thanks for all the sports stats as well. as usual, thanks for all you do dad! it is nice to be able to hear from you each week, thanks for being such an awesome example to me in showing me how to be a "real man!" thanks for always being there for me as well. I love you dad, have a great week, talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

hey mom! so we had a good week. I loved conference, i wrote a little about it in dad's email. we did get to stay out a little late for the priesthood session, and the ward provided ice cream before it, so i did get my priesthood session treat fix hahahaha.

me and elder sutton get along great, which with my record probably means we won't be together after this transfer, sadly. my favorite part of the week was conference. one of my favorite people was a new investigator we found from a referral--L***. oh my gosh! she is a fun lady who likes to talk about history and tell us stories from her life hahaha. we met her on Friday night.

i have to go back through my notes, but right now it was probably Elder Holland's talk for my fave, but there were some really good ones. i just have to look back through to really decide. i did find a few things i felt like were for me, but i was really focusing on investigators. we also had another referral for some investigators who moved from another ward to ours. supposedly they are infamous eternigators who are young and live together. they are both pretty interesting people hahaha so they were pretty fun to meet. we tried to get them to church, we tried our hardest, but things just didn't work out.

that is super cool that the cincy reds are starting up, sick! that is good you got to avoid all the bad weather when you went to moab. that is cool you got to get all the way up to Delicate arch, i am glad your knee worked out, good job mom! i bet that was fun to be able to go with everyone. i am glad you had a good trip. i will have to try that pizza, it sounds good. i am looking forward to those burgers hahaha.

that is good you had the baby showers, that must really help Jeff & Nicole out. have they named him yet? that is cool everyone was able to come over for conference, i bet that was fun. it was a really good conference for sure, i like all those quotes you liked, thanks mom! i like the Elder Rasband one, that is a good one. that is definitely true, the family is a huge gift from God. i look around, and the family is not always important to everyone out here. it is sad. i am glad i was raised by you and dad to be able to know and learn of such a great family. thanks for raising me right! well, that is pretty much it for this week. 

oh, suit season is over now, and my black suit is done after wearing it every single day for 6 months haha it is down to threads. so i either need to find another suit or tailor that gray one so it'll fit me again. hahaha

well, i have to go now mom. thanks for emailing me as usual. I love you mom, love you all! have a great week! talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

God has His own timing--He will work things out the best way

hey dad! so this was a good week. my new comp is elder Sutton. he is a good missionary, and has been out about 6 months, so one less transfer than me. i had a good Easter, it was a good day. we have not been able to teach Hannah yet this week, or the new family i found with elder horne. they have been busy so we have not been able to teach them yet, sadly. we are teaching another lady who has a few little kids. she had been under the radar for a while but surfaced this week and we were able to extend a baptism date for april 16th. she is technically not on date yet, but she agreed to work towards that date and pray about it. we found a few new people this week, and it was pretty awesome. now that elder parker is gone elder Sutton and i have to find out how to use the bus system so we can get to the top and bottom of our area. (we will be switching the car every week). last night we were running through our numbers for the week during dinner and we saw that in order to hit leadership goals we needed another member-present lesson, so we called every member we could think of but no one was able to come out. we decided to visit a less-active and suddenly we got a text from a member asking to come out with us, so we spent half the evening trying to set up a lesson for him to go with us on. no one answered, so we tried the neighbors and found a new investigator from it! it was a cool miracle to hit our goals and find that new person, in spite of  so much opposition. i did not have to speak on Easter sunday luckily. it is good that work is going well, and oh boy that is funny about the mazda needing the new light cover. i forgot about causing that hahaha, sorry! haha. i bet it looks awesome now hahaha. well, dang! the family brackets are destroyed! hahaha i am glad that your Easter went well, i hope you had fun. we had a member have us over for lunch yesterday and it was super good food, it was funny because the last time i had a lunch like that after church was my farewell hahaha. that sounds like you had a good church too. the spirit is definitely stronger on Easter, any time you testify of the Savior the spirit will always be there or come in stronger. i noticed that yesterday, that is cool. that is too bad that Bro. A fell, i hope he is okay. i like those thoughts you shared, they are really good for Easter. i, too, can add my testimony that the Savior has risen, He is our Savior and King, He suffered for us and He loves us. He did it all out of love. He truly is there for us and knows us perfectly and He has given us the greatest gift, the atonement. Because of Him, we are saved and we can live forever as families for eternity, that truly is the greatest blessing we have, i know it is true. well, that is all for this week, thank you dad! i love you so much, have a great week and day! i hope FHE is going well too hahaha. talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

hi mom! it has been a great week. elder Sutton is from Laverkin. he as been out for 6 months and just got done training. he is awesome. i had a good Easter, there were some members who did feed us a really good lunch, it was pretty great.

i did get the Easter package, it was great! thanks so much for that, the treats are just awesome! yeah, save my new strips there at home. i am still very good on insulin right now, i will let you know when i need more.

my favorite part of the week was Friday, that was a really good day, and the package made my day! my fave  investigator was probably the new one we found last week. we were in some sketchy apartments and the guy was a total Golden. he is pretty cool haha. the first part of the week was pretty challenging, with me having to take  over the area this week, but it went well, we hit leadership goals and president texted us specifically to tell us we had a good week. so that was really cool to get. i just tried to rely on the spirit as much as i could, and when things got stressful and it didn't seem like our plans would work out, they always did. HF was truly watching out for us this week.

that is super funny about dad and politics! hahaha i hope Sarah's concert went well. i am glad you got to see the Women's meeting, that is too bad president Monson is not looking so well, poor guy. i like that thought about how much we can affect others and not even know it. it is definitely true, Heavenly Father is there all along the way. gosh dang it mom, you had me crying! thanks for that thought, I try my best and work my hardest, but things just don't work out sometimes and it can be hard to feel successful. i just have to remember that God has his own timing and we can't be ingrates and complain, he will work things the best way. thanks for the reminder mom.

oh yeah, the hardest part of the week was L***, she is no longer on date. Also, look on FB and Instagram for #OCM or #ohiocincinnatimission because we had a #socialmediasplit. there are a bunch of pics of me doing service. that is all for the week.

well, i have to go now, Madre, thanks so much for emailing me! i love you so much! and i love you all so much! have a great FHE (i know you read my emails for FHE hahaha) behave little children! have a great week! talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

Families really are one of the most important things about this life.

hey dad! so this has been a pretty good week. as you know, it was the last week of the transfer. elder parker is leaving and i am staying. i hope i get another good comp! elder parker and neilsen have been the best ones yet! we didn't really find a lot of new people this week, we are just trying to stay in contact with the new we found last week. this week we were going to contact V*****, but we walked down the wrong road. i got a prompting to give a card to these guys we saw sitting on their porch. we gave them one and we were able make an appointment with both of them. we were going to have a lesson with them yesterday, but we missed them so we were bummed out hahaha. we had a good lesson with H***** and she is awesome. it is weird though because she has no religious knowledge at all, so it is different than teaching most everyone else, because it is practically Bible Belt here. L*** is still progressing towards baptism really well, she is still on date for the 1st of April. that is mostly it for this week, other than we had Elder Neil Anderson come to speak to the mission as a surprise. it was super awesome! he told us some super awesome things and I was able to receive a lot of personal revelation. He truly is an apostle of the Lord. i heard about the upsets in sports this past week, and i already figured my bracket was busted hahahaha this is not my year for brackets apparently hahaha. i did get your letter, thanks so much for sending one! that was really nice to get that after a long day. that is really cool you got to see the dedication, you will have to head down there soon and let me know how it is. i can't wait to go there myself. temple dedications are so awesome. i love the temple so much, we will be able to go in a few weeks, and i am excited. that is a weird situation with the family history, hopefully you can get it all solved soon, good luck. that is crazy all the girls' brackets are in 1st place and second, hahaha who woulda thought? 

families really are one of the most important things about this life. i am so grateful for the family that you have raised me in. thank you so much! temples are all over the world now, the Second Coming really is getting closer, the hastening is happening now. I also know that it really is a blessing to be out here on a mission to help bring people to Christ and to help strengthen families. i can't do this work without the help of the Savior, with His help i can do anything. i am so happy to be out here serving the Lord. thanks so much for all you do to help keep me out here! it was great to hear from you dad! thanks for all your support, i love you so much. have a great week dad and i will talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

hi mom so this was a good week. i wrote about all the investigators in dad's email. i am staying in Englewood and elder parker is leaving, so no more full time car and stuff. hahaha i just hope to get a good comp again. i did get all the diabetes supplies okay, thanks for sending them! 

the thing that brought me the most happiness this week was just being able to be guided by the spirit. that sounds cliche, but it is true. I love being able to follow promptings and being able to see the fruits from that. the most fun thing that happened was being able to go to hear Elder Anderson speak, and then the workshop training on wednesday, that was awesome. the most challenging was having lessons and stuff fall through--that always sucks, although just like dad says it means we are getting satan's attention and so we must be doing a good job hahaha :)  

i learned a lot from that mission conference. president wants us all to be more bold so he chastised the whole mission. hahahaha the mission as a whole needs to be more bold. also, one of the funnest things was a dinner appointment that we had yesterday with the Scott family, the ones with the huge dog. we also did a fun service project for a member, my childhood favorite (cough *Dad* cough cough) picking up sticks hahaha! 

that is good libby's play ran well, and i bet that was super fun to have everyone come down for the weekend. i hope the baby shower was fun too, although i am with all the guys, i want to go fishing instead hahaha. there is a less active who we see periodically who loves to go hunting every weekend, so he tells me about hunting and stuff hahaha. 

i'm sorry you missed the dedication, that is too bad, but i am glad you and libby are both feeling better. we are given boundaries out of love so we can stay safe. literally every single commandment we have is given out of love. 

i sent some pictures from the air museum we went to last Monday, that is the big one that Brother Allred told me about. it was so cool!

well, i have to go now. thanks so much for emailing me mom! i love you and the fam so much! talk to you later! have a great week!

-Elder Sedlacek

Once you realize it is not about you, your whole perspective changes

Jared decided these shoes were pretty worn out.....

...only Jared would then tear off the leather so he can make something with it.

hey dad, so this was  a good week. it was tough, but good. we had a lot of grace and miracles at the start of the week, but by the end we experienced lots of opposition. at the beginning of the week we were working the bottom of our area. we were 225-ing a lot of people and working really hard, but no one was interested. we even had a guy tell us we were in the 'hood and that we needed to carry some weapons like nun chucks and guns. that was pretty funny. then he took a card with Jesus on it and was like, "oh i like that! i will keep it." on our way back to the bus stop (we ride it here occasionally) this guy came running out of his house calling, "hey elders!" he brought us some pepsi and told us how he had met with missionaries before but did not have the time with working two jobs to pursue it then, so he invited us back to teach him and his family! it was awesome! his name is V*****, so we will follow up on him soon. i will write about some more miracles in mom's email. as for R******, we are no longer able to teach her because her dad (who is a non-member) is not liking us there and is giving his wife heck about it. it is causing some family issues that the Bishop and ward mission leader don't want us to be involved in, so they are pulling us out for now. it was really sad news to hear. she is so excited to be baptized, but unfortunately, other people's agency can get in the way sometimes. L*** is still doing well and progressing towards baptism. that is good you are still doing well at work. i am glad the weather is good over there, here is awesome too! it is weird--since it is so rainy, the moss grows on the trees before the leaves do, so literally every tree is green on the trunk but not the tops hahahaha. that is too bad the garage door opener quit on you, hopefully you get it all resolved. always remember the saying you used to tell to me about Lowe's/Home Depot hahaha. "measure twice cut once--buy once in this place." hahahaha. i love the D&C, it is such a good book of scripture and you learn so much about the church history and how the church works from reading it. i am reading it for the second time now, i'm at the beginning currently. i love learning about Joseph Smith too. one cool thing is that where they were living was the equivalent to the Yukon homesteads these days--the middle of no where. a young man in the middle of nowhere can influence the whole world by asking one simple question, "which church is right?" that is so amazing to me. Joseph Smith, a young farm boy, can influence the rest of time and eternity. that is super cool to think about. that is way cool Casey B got his call!  you will have to tell him congrats for me. he will do great, he is way prepared already. your new {teenage} home teaching companion sounds a little like how i was hahaha. just keep helping him keep those commitments and he will see why you do those things and he will learn a lot from you. i am so grateful for how you made me do those home teaching things. now i understand the importance of it, thanks dad! that is true, about that quote--once you realize it is not about you at all, your whole perspective changes and you are a lot more willing to be humble and do what is necessary.  that second one is very good as well, it is not about the numbers you achieve, it is about helping others to come closer to Jesus Christ, whether that be a wave or just a smile or a baptism, all are at different levels in their lives. they may be ready for baptism or the temple or not, but eventually they will have a full understanding of the gospel in this life or the next and have an opportunity to accept it or not. it is our job to help find those people who are ready, we have to be grateful for who the Lord puts in our path and do our best to help them, i definitely know that is true. well thanks for emailing me dad, it was great to hear how you are doing! have a great week and i will talk to you later! love you dad!

-Elder Sedlacek

hey mom, so interesting thing is i was actually going to mention that we received a lot of grace and miracles this week as well hahaha. i will write about what i mean later. 

i wrote about V***** in dad's email so i will tell you about N*****. on thursday, we went on a day exchange, so i took over the area with my Zone Leader and we 225'd a lot in west Milton, a small town at the top of my area. BTW, did you know i am way close to Brookville right now? Sister Hyer is close to me. i think she is in the Eaton ward. anyway, it was tough and it rained all day, so we knew blessings were coming (hahaha) so we knocked on a door and this lady with kids came out. we immediately saw her need (what she is struggling with)--she is worried about her kids being raised well in this world, so we taught to her need and so she invited us back. we found a family! heck yeah! her schedule is tough so she tentatively invited us back for Tuesday. 

my package did come,  thank you! the hardest thing this week was with R******, i wrote about that in dad's email. the funniest thing that happened was just elder anderson's shenanigans hahahaha. that guy is crazy--he is the energizer bunny and makes really funny jokes that we laugh pretty hard at hahaha. 

that is good Jake got to come home, i bet that was fun. i am glad Mia's play went well. i hope Libby's goes well too. that is so crazy that the little dude is almost here! have they named him yet? tell them i have some really good names for them--like Omega and Styles hahaha. i can't believe i have been in Englewood 6 weeks either, the mission is literally going so fast these days! this was the last 7 week transfer, so we have one more week. next week we will know by the time i email if i will leave or stay. 

that is crazy Casey has his call! can you believe i got mine almost a year ago? holy crap! well, tell him congrats for me. he is way more prepared then i was hahaha! he will do awesome. 

to answer your question, to me grace is the power to do things beyond our own capability, with help from God. that help comes when things "work out" and the impossible happens. you can also refer to those times as miracles. now this is gospel according to elder sedlacek, so don't quote me on it, but i think of grace and miracles as going hand in hand a lot of the time. grace can help us to work miracles in the savior's name. it enables us to do things we otherwise could not do on our own. President Porter does talk a lot about how if we are obedient, diligent, and have faith, that we can receive grace to do things. that is also when power comes in to your teaching, as long as you have the spirit with you and you love the people you teach. i definitely know that to be true. we cannot do any of this work on our own, we need the savior's help. because of the power of the atonement we can receive heaven's help. well, that is all for this week. hahaha

there was a black lady who we talked to in the hood this week who told us that Donald Trump is the beast himself (the devil hahahaha) and that he is going to take away all the poor people's rights. that was an interesting conversation haha. 

okay, i gotta go mom, we have to go to a zone fun day in Dayton. it was great to hear from you mom! i love you all so much! talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

It is amazing how the Spirit works through us to touch other people's lives

hey dad! so this week was pretty good. well for this week we did have a lot of success. we put  L*** on date for April 1st (no joke hahaha). we also put R******* on date for the 26th of March! we are working on getting more support from her family. her mom loves the church, but has a lack of motivation to actually come, so we are working with R's aunt, who lives in the ward, plus all her cousins to help us. we found a few new investigators and had to drop some others, but overall we are doing well and hit our leadership standards this week. we are still working with lots of LA's. the zone conference this past week was sick! president porter talked about Joseph Smith, and some anti-theories for about an hour of it, and he totally disproved each theory and taught us a lot about his life so we could get a better understanding of him. it was an awesome meeting!  that is good you are getting so much finished up at work and that the weather is starting to turn around. the weather here is going to be in the 60's all week. like is said of Ohio (and Utah) we have all four seasons and if you don't like the weather stick around for a minute hahaha. so Manning is finally retiring then? i saw that race going in a few windows yesterday hahaha i bet it was a good one. that is good the jazz won again, it sounds like they are doing pretty decent. that is super cool that the utes are playing good basketball again. hopefully they do well this year, i REALLY hope Louisville does well, also Xavier, they are both local as you know. i don't  care much about Xavier but they were just outside of my area in Cincy. that sounds like you had a good church yesterday. R came to church yesterday, and so did her sister who had a baby--we got to help bless the baby. it was a good meeting for them, it really focused on families and stuff which is what they need. in sacrament meeting, i like to focus on the temple and the covenants i have made and how much of a blessing it is, and of course I like to focus on the savior as well, and all that he has done for me and all of us. the sacrament is an awesome blessing, you can receive so much personal revelation. i have really come to love sacrament meeting as i have been out here. well, it was great to hear from you dad! i love reading your emails and all the stuff you are doing. thanks for being such an awesome dad! i love you dad! have a great week!

-Elder Sedlacek

hi mom! so this week was pretty good, we did have a lot of grace and miracles! i am glad your week was the same! You asked if my comp is a lot taller than me--elder parker is about 6'3" so he is pretty tall. that is way funny about Dallin having a comp way shorter than him. 

you can probably send the strips but keep the pump stuff if you can, if not just send it. thanks for sending that stuff! 

the best lesson i taught this week was probably with R when we put her on date, i wrote about her in dad's email. she is literally the spitting image of Mia hahaha. we also put L*** on date and i was so proud of her! she has trouble memorizing stuff, but she has memorized that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that he translated the Book of Mormon. i was so happy hahaha. it truly is an  awesome experience getting to teach her! also, in testimony meeting, a little kid who had been taught by some sister missionaries a few months back got up to bear his testimony, it was so simple and sweet. he is only 9 but he also thanked all the missionaries for teaching him the gospel. it was the cutest thing i have seen on my whole entire mission hahaha. 

that is cool that Mia's play is starting up. that is funny that now Libby needs glasses, so 3 of us kids are down for the count and the other 3 are still standing. i hope to never have to have glasses! hahaha. that definitely is a blessing that the insurance is good enough to pay for everything. 

that must have been nice to go the temple the other night. can you believe it has almost been six months since my last visit? we get to go in the next few weeks, i am excited! that must have been fun to have Jake at home for the weekend. Hopefully his spring break goes well. i am glad you had a good time at church as well, and i am glad you were able to use what i said last week. it is amazing how the spirit works through us to touch other people's lives. I really mean what i said, too. that sounds like a good lesson, it sounds like you are really trying to follow the spirit when you prepare your lessons. if nothing else you will be able be a tool in the Lord's hands as you do that, that is awesome! thanks for all you do mom! 

I sent a picture of me with one of the member's dog--he is huge and stands up to my shoulders. The members are always telling me how young i look too. They like to tease me that i was just in the womb a few days ago! haha I've gained a few pounds so most people think i am 14 or 15 now. 

Mom: Well, that means you have aged to a Teacher instead of a Deacon, so that is good. ;) 

Elder Sedlacek: Yep! haha Is there anything else mom? I have about 10 minutes left.

Mom: Yes, did you find out what your A1C was?

Elder Sedlacek: Yes, it was 7.8, so not very good, but that is what happens when you go from walking everywhere to driving in a car. i've been adjusting my basals so hopefully it is lower next time. my averages recently have been 150 and below, so i think it is helping.

well, i am out of time. thanks for emailing me mom! i love hearing from you! i love ya'll! have a great week!

Elder Sedlacek

I am so thankful you and Mom raised me the way you did.

hey dad! so this was a awesome week! we had several member-present lessons, and found a few new investigators that seem pretty promising. we went to see an investigator that elder anderson (my disctrict leader) and I found on exchanges. he was not there, so we looked around and in the parking lot of the complex there was a man who had just pulled in. i went to offer him a pass-along card (that is my usual approach) and then we started talking to him, and he invited us back for another discussion this week. then on friday, that girl (who reminds me of Mia) who we are working with in a less-active family, had a powerful lesson with us. she told us that every time we come over,  it feels like HF and Jesus Christ are in her house. we told her that was the spirit, and she said she wants to be baptized! so we will start teaching her regularly now and put her on date. they invited us back for dinner tonight! heck yeah! (that is what the Bishop wants in this ward, to have meals at LA's homes). we had an awesome week, we even made contact with the guy we were trying to see when we found the new guy in the parking lot. we were trying to see a guy named ED, and he is promising as well. the girl's name is R____. she even made it to church with her mom and sister, who are less-active. i am glad you had a good week at work, that is awesome. it sounds like you had a good leadership meeting. that is what being a leader is all about, providing counseling and helping to change patterns and help others through loving them. it is good you are getting some exercise in, i have gotten a little more lax with my jump rope routine and so i am now working out hard again! hahaha it is almost all i can do to just jump rope in the mornings, because i am so tired! i have more motivation now that it is getting warm. that is way cool you saw a bald eagle, i see ducks and geese all the time and elder parker is like "wait, where are they?" hahaha  it sounds like it was a good concert and fun date with mom. i love the sports updates--those are all great, thanks dad! i bet that was a good ward conf. i had no idea that sarah was on the stake youth council, that is cool. Family Home Evening is important, that is for sure! i am so thankful you and mom raised me the way you did, with regular FHE. i may have given you crap for it and been a little snot {May have?--Mom (wink, wink)}, but now i am so grateful you stuck to it. thank you!! i see all these broken homes and stuff, and i just want to help them be happy, because that is how our family is, happy and centered on Jesus Christs' teachings, thank you! boy dad, you are really going ham on all that family history, nice job! i saw that the Fiji temple was dedicated, that is cale's temple right now--he went through that hurricane, crazy huh? i love that talk with elder bennett, that is a awesome talk, and that is definitely something president porter wants us to learn for sure, he always tells us to go to the edge where miracles happen, which requires lots of faith. i just love this gospel so much, it makes me so happy, i can't wait to have my own gospel centered home, just like i was raised in!  thank you so much for the example you are to me dad! i think about you and your mission a lot, it gives me lots of motivation to be better and to try harder. i love reading your emails every week, thanks for always sending them, i love you dad! have a great week and day, i will talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

hi mom! so this was one of the best weeks on the mission so far, as far as lessons and finding new gators and being led by the spirit goes. i still had some challenges but they are always there in every step. i wrote about some of the miracles from this week in dad's email, but the best part of my week was probably yesterday--or a dinner at my favorite members' house on friday. 

sunday afternoon the weather was awesome! i got to take my suit coat off and i had my brown loafers on and a brown belt so i looked pretty hipster with my black and rose tie hahaha. 

my favorite 'gator is not mine but the other elders, a 19 year old lady who already has a daughter. she is a way funny black lady who loves to give the missionaries heck, and she is getting baptized! i have taught her a few times on exchanges, and did again this week at the members' house. my own favorite is probably C___, who we found this week. he is a cool guy. 

it is also good you are finally getting your porcelain crown. how bout my porcelain vase, is it still on display? hahaha 

these days it is even hard to wake up in the morning, harder than you would believe, it is literally like i lay down and then the alarm goes off half a second later!  hahaha that sounds like another fun date night, that is good. i bet that was a fun concert, i like that guy's music, it is really good. if there is one thing that i have learned to love, it's conferences, they are always so inspired and awesome, you can get so much inspiration from them. i will have to keep up trying to help others even after the mission, missions are not two years, you get to be a missionary for two years strait, but you get to be a member missionary for the rest of your life!  we really don't have a choice to set an example or not, and for me that is amplified, i am constantly being watched when i am outside of the apartment--i have to represent christ well, and the church too. it is a miracle they let 18-20 year olds do it hahaha because we are not always the best at being good examples, but we have to do our best. 

i wrote Bro & Sister Black a letter this morning and sent it so they should be getting that this week. i might write you one hahaha just kidding i will soon, i just have to find the time hahah i am either sleeping, working, studying or eating hahaha. i will get you one though. well how is everything else going?

Mom: Sounds like you had an awesome week, that is great to hear!

Everything is good here. I just need to know: WHAT IS YOUR A1C? and how many sites do you have? How many strips?

Elder J: i still have plenty of everything, like 4 boxes of strips left and 2 boxes of sites and i don't know what my A1C was. sister w never called back, and i keep forgetting to call her so idk. hahahaha i will find out asap. that is good everything is going good!

hey, watch out for pics on the facebook page this week. we are having a zone conference, and i am in the dayton zone.

okay mom, i have to go now, but it was great to hear from you! i always love to read your emails, I love you all so much, have a great week as usual, talk to you later! ps i am thinking of getting that grey suit refitted soon--within a month or two--what do you think?

-Elder Sedlacek

We really can't even comprehend how much Heavenly Father is involved in our lives.

hey dad, so this was a good week. we found a few new investigators and we saw a lot of grace, it was awesome! as of now we have been 225'ing a lot to find some new people. half of our teaching pool is hard to meet with because of busy schedules, so we are trying to find some new investigators to add to the pool. the new people we found this week will be meeting with us this week for their first lessons, so we will see how it goes. the weeks are really starting to fly by! it really seems like i was just emailing you! the days are blurring together all the time now hahaha. good thing i keep a journal. we had interviews with president porter this past week, and it was really good. i talked with president and he told me how much he has seen me grow and he said he is proud of me, and that i am becoming a leader. he helped me find my next step to work on, he is the bomb! that is awesome you are getting so much done at work, good job on the numbers and having the stock so good! has sarah been helping with the yard? it has been really nice weather this week, it hit 75 on saturday! it was awesome! it has been in the 40-50 degree range for the most part though, but i think it will be a nice spring as well (hopefully). it feels so good outside after having the teens for weeks hahaha. that is way cool about the car race, i was wondering about that. that is a cool pic! it is way cool the jazz won. cincy has the flyers hockey team, but I don't know if they are pro. that is cool about getting to go to jake's ward and logan on Sunday. i bet that was fun to see him and jeff and nicole. i like that thought about HF. i feel the same way, He is so involved in our lives we don't even know. just today when we were shopping, we stopped by goodwill to see if they had some shoes, cause my pros shoes are worn out (it's a pair i have worn every day that Ralph senior gave me for free) and i got a good pair of loafers that fit perfectly for $4! it was a huge blessing--now i have some meeting shoes. we really can't even comprehend how much He is involved with our lives, working to make it possible to have the blessings we receive. funny thing--so that air museum you told me about is out of our mission by a few miles, so we have asked president if we could go and he will let us go if we go with a member. so us and the other elders in our ward are setting something up for a district fun day for next week. i have heard awesome stuff about that museum! i like the thought from conference as well. that is something i have been working on, to never ignore an impression, and i have received so many more promptings than before, it has been awesome. this transfer i have felt way more guided than i have ever been. as of now, i am just trying to find those elect, and help them be baptized so they can follow the Savior. sharing this gospel makes me so happy, it is truly the greatest work and experience. thanks for all you do to keep me out here, it means so much! i love you dad! have a great day and week, it was great to hear from you as usual, talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek

hi mom! so this was a good week, it went by so fast! we did find a few new investigators and stuff that i wrote about in dad's email. as for the other people we work with, they are not progressing as fast as we would like. it is kinda hard to meet with half of them, and one i have not even met yet! they are super busy so we are trying to find some more by doing a lot of 225-ing and working with less actives. we have a really good referral lined up from a less- active lady, for a family. the mom is interested in learning more, so she is going to meet with us. 

the best part of the week was interviews with president, and the most challenging was being sick for half the week with a cold that is just getting over. luckily it is not as bad as elder parker's haha. there is a part member family we saw last night, who has an unbaptized daughter who is a lot like mia, but a lot more sass and drama--she is funny hahaha. 

my pump supplies are doing good, i will definitely let you know when i need more. that is too bad that you didn't get to go into the temple open house, but hopefully you will get too soon. thanks for the pics, it looks super great! 

it is crazy about [some ward missionaries] already getting home soon, although it does not surprise me, the mission flies by! it is incredible how fast. the weeks are really seeming like days, it is crazy. it seems like i wake up and go to bed a few times and then bam! i am emailing again hahaha. i keep having these really vivid dreams. one was about my future wife i think, and the other was about when i get home and how fast it went by, it is weird. i am glad you guys got to visit to logan, i bet that was fun! 

it really is truly amazing that joseph smith really did do what he did as a 14 year old boy. i know that he truly was a prophet and that he did restore god's true church, and that the Book of Mormon really is the true word of god. by reading it and studying its words we truly can come closer to our Savior Jesus Christ. i have done this over the course of my mission and my love for Him has increased dramatically! i was looking back at my journal in the mtc and man, i didn't really have a testimony it seems like hahaha, it was so simple and now it has grown so much, it truly is my greatest possession. thanks for all you do to support me and keep me out here, it means a lot, this would not be possible without out you and dad! thanks!

Mom: I'm sorry you got sick! Did you have any trouble with your blood sugars? I have seen how much you have grown in 6 months--think how much more you will grow by the end of your mission. 

yep, i got sick but my BGs have been good still. it was kinda high last night, but other than that i have been good. yep, my testimony will grow a lot more hahaha that is funny that jake & jeff think i am emotional. hahaha what a funny joke! hahaha just kidding, i know. funny jake and jeff! although i meant that i cry more with spiritual stuff hahaha. 

Mom: So what is your favorite thing you have learned from President Porter?

it is hard to pick my favorite thing, but he is very knowledgeable about a lot of things. probably how to find our next step to progress towards so we can become who God wants us to be.

Mom: What does he have you working on next?

we are doing a purification challenge, and we each picked out a few things to get better at. mine was not having unapproved songs in my head haha, and just a few things like that. also I want to never ignore a prompting, but the most latest one is that i am going to study the atonement to understand it better.

well i have to go now mom, it was great to hear from you. I love you and all the fam so much, have a great week y'all!

-Elder Sedlacek

I knew growing up with diabetes that I was protected

"Dern Tooten I'm a Rebel"--Elder Sed sees these a lot.

hey dad! 

so this was a good week, and it flew by. this week we really focused on listening to the spirit--even all the generous thoughts we get. it was a great experience, i felt the spirit guiding us a lot more than usual. thursday was especially good, i was on like cloud 9 that day, for some reason, and i was just so happy! it made me realize just how awesome this work really is, all the struggles that you go through, getting doors slammed in your face, called rude names, exhausted half the time; all of it is worth it for those days like Thursday and seeing the gospel bless others. we had a really good zone meeting this past thursday, and they taught us a new way to 2-2-5, and to ask the people at the door why they think we are there? we know we were led to go there at that specific time.  we tried it out and got a return appointment with this guy who works at mcdonald's. it is a very inspired way to knock on doors, it was awesome. 

 

sadly, not too many investigators showed at church yesterday. last night elder parker got sick and had a high fever, so we had to stay in from like 6:30 on. so he went to bed and i did all the usual collecting numbers and stuff. then i called some people to set up some lessons and then i started to go through the area book and call some formers and potentials, and literally almost no one was answering--or they were just not interested at all. i was ready to give up at this point and study some more before bed (it was like 8:30 by now), but i decided to call just one more. i called this lady and she answered and was like "who is this?" so i explained why i was calling and she said, "oh sorry!"  i asked if we could come share a message about jesus christ with her and she already had a day in mind. that was a huge testimony builder to me of sticking it out and just to keep trying. it was a huge miracle for me. 

 

diabetes has definitely helped me to grow closer to heavenly father and jesus. i knew growing up when i was able to wake up during those times when i would wake up at {a blood sugar of} 40 in the middle of the night and not know what or why i had woken up so suddenly, i knew that i was protected. i am alive today because i have a loving heavenly father who loves and cares for me and wants me to succeed. hahaha my eyes are watering saying that! i am such a baby now hahaha. 

 

that is cool you have been working so hard at family history lately, you have got a lot of work done! good job dad! i bet that truck show was way cool, did ford come out with anything new, a new raptor maybe? that is way cool too bad i couldn't see it hahaha. at least the cav's are doing well, i will have to be a cavs fan from now on since ohio. that sucks the jazz are back to the old slump, they need a new coach or something. that thought you shared was one of my favorite conference talks from last october. i really like that thought about the sharks and everything, it applies so well to missionary work, you just have to keep pushing on through the opposition because it will come and then the miracles after that. luckily the snow hasn't been too bad, when i say it really doesn't snow here, i mean it---we get like 1 inch on average and that is a bad storm hahaha so it is not bad, there is too much water in the air for the snow to stick around long too, it melts within a few days even though it won't get above 25 degrees. thermals are handy out here! hahaha. well anyway, it was great to hear from you dad! i love reading your emails and stuff, i will talk to you later, love you so much dad! have a great week and day!

-Elder Sedlacek

 

 

hey mom, so this was a good week! so are you ALL home then? cool. i suppose you have probably read dad's email then. i have had a great week, i love englewood, other missionaries call it englehood but it is not a hood compared to what i have experienced. now that i am no longer in Cincy look up "over the rhine"--it is a sketchy part of town and not even the worst! haha i went there a lot. we always got referrals from there.  but yeah, i love englewood (angle wood) it is great. elder parker is a great missionary and loves to work hard and do what is necessary. he is a funny guy too.  he has helped me  a lot already. 

 

i did get your package, thank you so much for it! and i did get the insulin and i did get my A1C done, so i will get you those results next week probably. or you might be able to call the mission nurse for them yourself. my favorite part  of the week was probably thursday. it was such a good day, we received  a lot of promptings that day and i feel like we were really guided the whole day long. that is something i have gotten better at, following the spirit and listening to it.  friday was much the same too and the package really made my day as well. tell libby thanks for the valentine! haha 

 

that is way funny about those little kids you work with hahaha they really look up to you!  that is good every thing is going well with nicole. i saw that the new provo temple was almost done, i am so excited to see it. i got to watch the time lapse when it was built.

 

 i like that story about the man on the cruise ship who didn't know that everything is included in the price of the ticket. it is true, all we are trying to do is share the happiness that this gospel brings us and it makes me sad when people won't even try to listen. all we ask is that they pray about it and see if it is for them or not, but that is easier said than done sometimes. that is funny about Bro. G,  because i have experienced the same thing. in batesville i did get hit by a car--hahahaha--i wasn't planning on telling you till after i got home. luckily it was not bad at all, i really just got tapped by the car.  i jumped around the hood as it rolled through a stop sign because the old man driving "didn't see us"-- so don't worry it is a funny story hahaha. well how are the heck are ya!?

 

Mom: hey!! I am good! We are all here (except Jeff & Nicole), because school is out for President’s day and Dad has the day off too. Dad and Jake are outside at the moment changing the oil in the car Jake drives.

 

Yep, I read Dad’s email. It’s a good one. Sounds like you had a really great week. I’m glad!

 

Last week, I did look up those Cincy areas you were in, as well as “over the rhine” and the “Price hill” area. Good thing I didn’t do it until you weren’t there anymore! haha. Grandma H is seriously so relieved that you are out of there! I also looked up your new area, the street where your apartment is. It looks pretty decent.

 

So do you not know what your A1C was? I’m glad you got it done though, that’s good.

 

YOU GOT HIT BY A CAR WAY BACK IN BATESVILLE?? haha! Well, I’m glad it’s just “a funny story!”

 

Elder Sedlacek: that is good you are all home today. that is funny you already looked up those areas. hahaha yep, cincy is a fun place. hahaha price hill is the worst of it! i didn't get to get out there much, it was a long bus ride, like 2 hours and a 30 min walk, so we didn't get out there much. yep, this area is very nice compared to cincy, i love it! nope, i have no idea what my a1c is yet. and yep got hit by a car. hahaha i have lots of hilarious stories! hahaha

ok, i have to go now mom, we are going to steak n' shake. hahaha it was great to hear from you! have a good day seeing the provo temple--let me know how it is. i love you guys so much! i will talk to you later, have a great week! 

-Elder Sedlacek

 

Transferred to Englewood, Ohio.

Email didn't work well for chatting back and forth again....my emails weren't getting through to him for some reason--dang system. :)  Oh well. Hopefully next week!

hi dad! i am doing great, i am in englewood ohio, it's just outside of dayton, so we have a mix between small town and some "ghetto" inner city. it is not really ghetto to me at all since i have been living in the real ghetto for the last 3 months hahaha. it is a lot like batesville, mixed with cincinnati's size. i love it! my new comp is elder parker, he came out with me as well and we sat on the plane together, crazy huh?  i heard the broncos won, so i am wearing my orange and blue striped tie today.  i was so happy to hear that! i finally won a prize in your scoring grid when i was gone hahaha, i knew it haha! update me on anything like b-ball or stuff like that, whatever you want, i like to hear about it all hahaha. a summer job at cabela's would be way cool for jake. i would love that--outdoors here is putting on a flannel shirt and hunting deer in your backyard hahaha. enjoy the mountains for me! that is awesome that you were able to get so much work done on family history! that is crazy the ward is growing so much, i don't even think i would remember anyone's names now hahahaha So what is the church's new Easter campaign dealing with, like pamphlets and stuff or is it electronic?  i will look forward to it. i know it to be true, through the Book Of Mormon we can come to know jesus christ on a more personal level, if we read from it with an open mind and if we focus on the over-arching message of hope in Jesus Christ.  i also know that God really does know each and every one of us personally, and that he loves us all more than we can even comprehend. i know for a fact He knows who each and everyone of us is, and he knows how to help us the best way possible to return to Him. through Christ it is made possible, with the atonement--the best gift we have ever been given. well, it was great to hear from you! i love you so much, thank you so much for all you do for me to keep me out here. i love my mission and i love sharing the gospel, it brings me a lot of happiness and joy. i will talk to you later dad! have a great week!

love you!

-Elder Sedlacek

hi mom! so my new address is in Vandalia, Ohio. thank you so much in advance for the packages! so my area is Englewood Ohio, we are just northwest of Dayton. Dayton is awesome, it is like Salt Lake City, but with taller buildings. it is cool, i love it. although i am not in Dayton, my area is the suburbs of Dayton and and we live in Vandalia. my whole area is like Batesville mixed with the size of Cincy, it is awesome.  i am seeing a lot more rebel flags, just like in Batesville, i love it hahaha! 

My new comp is Elder Logan Parker, he came out with me from the MTC. he is a good guy, it is nice to have an obedient comp! we have a car full time, but we do use the buses occasionally.  we drive a ford focus, and  it is nice to have a car, although i am going to get fat in this area with the way the members feed us hahaha, every night (almost) and they really give us tons of food. the ward is awesome! so we have a few people we teach, and we just picked up a miracle 'gator on Saturday. H is her name, she is 19 and just moved from Indiana. she grew up going to church every week, but her family are not members so she never got baptized. amazingly enough, she contacted the ward through their Facebook page, and had us sent over to meet with her. she came to church yesterday and bore her testimony about the church and everything! she is going to be our next baptism! she just is waiting for her uncle to come out here to do her baptism. he is always busy with work so we don't know when that will happen. 

we are also teaching a girl who is autistic. her parents adopted her and they now believe that she is fully accountable and able to understand everything, so we are teaching her the lessons. we have a few other "eternigators" we are teaching who could be baptized any day, so yeah, we have a pretty decent teaching pool. our goal is three baptisms for this transfer, and we will make it happen! 

that is good you are enjoying your job, hopefully jake can get a summer job, then he can help me get one when i get home haha!. It is so awesome that J Hale left on his mission, he will be blessed so much for it. 

thanks for putting my name on the Superbowl scoring sheet, i totally forgot about that haha. thanks for the treat! that sounds like you had an awesome Sunday. mine was good too. in my district, we have just us and another set of elders.  my DL came back from medical leave just a week ago, and man, he is hilarious! he is so funny, he is a riot hahaha. we have meal appointments together with the members so they are always a lot of fun. so did you get the pics from sister connelly? i saw them at transfers and they are doing great, frank seems to be more solid than ever! i love them so much, they are literally my grandparents away from home!  that is a cool promise from the family history work, i am glad you are getting so much done, that is awesome! 

i am glad you didn't get driven insane not knowing where I was for a week hahahahaha.  so what is new?

by the way, i can now hold the flag postion for twice as long at least, in my coat! and my church clothes! so yeah the pullups are working, and i am getting stockier. i don't know how much weight i have gained, but i know i have gained muscle 'cause my shoulders are fuller.

okay, i have to go now mom, it was great to hear from you! sorry the email didn't work that great this week, again. i love you all so much! have a great week, i love you  guys, talk to you later!

-Elder Sedlacek