Amazing Zone Conference

Hello Everyone! Yesterday we had an amazing zone conference! The spirit was extremely strong! It was great. President Kendrick talked about the culture of the California Carlsbad mission and he gave 8 things that define who we are and what are vision should be. It was amazing and probably mission changing (meaning the california carlsbad mission). It definatley will take the mission to a new level. So that we do more, and become more. It has been amazing to watch how he has changed things and taken the mission to a new level. He and Sister Kendrick really focus on forgetting about leadership and really loving each missionary individually and helping us to truly BECOME like the savior rather than just do missionary things. If you all could just see this mission. They really do love each missionary. Something President Kendirck said at the Zone Conference ( The #2 culture of the califronia calrsbad mission) was That "we are more than just exactly obedient, we are more than just dilligent, we are consecrated missionaries) Alot of the focus has just been on obedience, then the last few months implementing dilligence, and now he has taken it to a new level. I understand i am not even close to consecrated but it is cool to see that he has totally raised the expectaitions. More than just obedient, you cant just be obedient and dilligent, it is required that you give your all, not because of self discipline but because of a desire to help those in need and to follow our savior. That is the difference between dilligence and consecration, doing it not because of self discipline, although that is important, but because of desire. He also qouted alma for this example"O that I were an angel,...and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the atrump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people!that they should repent and acome unto our God, that there might not be more sorrow upon all the face of the earth." He also talked alot about our purpose as missionaries. Our purpose is to Find, Teach, and Baptize. Everything we do should be to that extent. He said missionaries who come on there mission to personally "grow" find that they do not grow at all and in the process find little whom to share the gospel with. However, missionaries who go on a mission to Find, Teach, baptize both find, teach, and baptize and in the process "find themselves" he quoted the scripture "whosoever shall find his life shall lose it, but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake shall find it" When we go to help other people ( that being our sole purpose) we in the process of time without realizing it, find ourselves. ( I am still working on everything- because i definatelty need to:) It is important that we be before we do though so that we have the correct motives for our actions. He also mentioned how we understand that converison comees only as investigators excerisce there faith. As they simply Pray, read, and go to church they will become converted. He qouted Elder Bednar who said that acting in faith breaks down barriers that block the spirit. Sister Kendrick also gave a training/talk on attitude. It was a great talk. we also recieved a training on Christlike atttributes. The entire trainings, besides a few, were focused on becoming so we can help our investigators do the same. We talk to everyone, share the light and do all we can. It was a pretty amazing day. It is extremely important that we give our ALL. that is the requirement and nothing else. Although we are not perfect myself especially we should strive. Also at the Zone Conference was Elder Bowman! Haha my last companion, he got transferred in from Carlsbad the night before unexpectdly with his same compmanion from Carlsbad so that was good. WE also are still teaching two girls form Arkansas tommorrow. They are AWESOME They also came to church last week again and loved it. We are also teaching a man named Robert who LOVED hearing about the Plan of Salvation at church. Last night we were able to give a blessing to two of our investigators who are struggling. As we gave the blessing I felt a little bit of how much heavenly Father truly loved this person as his son. These two, and all are sons and daughters of God. I could tell he was, in a loving way, very glad for the changes they had already made. I repented for judging them- they can make it. Anyways it was a GREAT week all around. Very grateful to be serving in such a great mission with such great people here. I am definatley not perfect and am continuing to work on improving. Love, Elder Thompson Haha i have seen some of that soup somewhere hahanice@! Elder Bowman, Elder Rupper, elder Thmopson, elder Bringhurst

Murrieta

Great week!! Sooo many miracles! We are teaching a girl from Arkansas (Pine bluff) who is a friend and nieghbor of one of our members and she and her daughter are good friends with alot of people in the ward. They both came to church yesterday!! Because there niegbor invited them because he was speaking and he gave a GREAT talk! He talked about "who we really are" sons and daughtersa of God. He shared the ugly duckling story in his talk and answered the three questions : Where did I come from? Why am I here? Where am I going? He did such a great job at explaining it and speaking from the heart, you could tell he had prepared and was sincere, the spirit was definatley there. He is a very awesome man. But they liked church. Right when they got there we went and sat them down and suddenly she saw her friend who is also LDS and her friend took her under her wing and everything else, took her to all of the classes, showed her around and everything else. We didnt even have to do anything! She sat by her, explained everything- it was great! Then her daughter also had a friend there and her mom came in the second hour to see if she would like to leave and her daughter said she didnt even want to! The ward did such a great job. We talked about it alot in Ward Council about how we would help them feel welcome and how we would get her daughter integrated. I should rephrase that though, it was more like they talked about it during ward council. The Bishop did sucha great joba t encouraging coniciling anad because of that each auxillary was coming up with ideas on there own. Our ward mission Leader is so good he barely said anything. We saw the importance of counseling yesterday in Ward Council. I think alot of Ward Councils know what to do but not how to do it. Similarly members know they should share to Gospel but they simply dont know how to do that. You can do it online, in a conversation, over dinnner, at an activity. Anyways, lots of miracles it has been a good week! It is amazing to see heavnenly Fathers hand in all of it. He puts you and someone else with you right where he needs you and when he needs you there. It is great. Last week we went to a Less Actives to Home teach with a recent convert in the ward named Bro. gilman. Anyways the guy we were hometeaching ended up almost having a heart attack right there in the middle of the blessing. Coincidence that Bro gilman, an EMT was assigned as his home teacher? Or that he just happened to be there at the moment that it happened doing his duty by home teaching? Or that there was just enough of us there to give him a priesthood blessing? I think not. Heavenly Father does ALL of this work. We also had a zone training meeting this week on prayer and scripture study. Yesterday while we were at a members house eating we shared 3 Nephi 27: 1-2 about the blessings of being unified in prayer and fasting ( the disciples came together inprayer and fasting and as a result Jesus Christ came to them and asked "what will you that i shall give unto you?") . We went on to share Joseph Smiths 1st vision. As we were wrapping up there son pointed out that Jesus Christ immediatlye asked what he should do to help. It remeinded him of the scripture in Docterine and Covenants "I the Lord am bound when ye do what i say, but when ye do not what i say, ye have no promise" Because the disciples were unified in doing what heavenly Father had asked Jesus Christ had to appear to them and help them. he had to do it because they did what he asked. Now i am definately not perfect, nor will i be anything close to it in the furture haha but it is a cool promise. They were obedient, so Jesus Christ helped them out as always. Anyways that was his inspiration i just thought i would share a little of that with you. Have a good week! Elder Thompson