Happy then Sad, and still moving forward with hope

Dear Family and friends

       This has been a great week of working and having fun, and simply serving. There were some disappointments but that is all part of the work, and to be expected. So with the conclusion of Monday we went had a very brief correlation meeting with our Branch Mission leader, then we flew off to our dinner appointment. The children were crazy, and that was to be expected, and the food was good, roast beef and mashed potatoes and gravy and green beans eating like kings. (I don't know why but the kids ate it with ketchup) Eric sadly cancelled on us that night, and so we had trouble trying to get with him. 

          Well Tuesday we had a good day of studies, service, and work. We had to explain to a member something he was preaching was wrong and we had to show him in the scriptures where he was wrong, and he didn't want to believe it but I felt the Spirit start guiding me and I was able to give him an answer to his concern as to why the verse was written the way it was and how he could come to understand it more fully, so that was fantastic. He thanked us afterwords and told us he wanted us to come back OFTEN. So we ended on really good terms as Usual. Well then we went home and Elder Kummerman cooked up some pork bacon sausage and gave me a huge patty.

            Well the rest of the week went by without much craziness, until the end. We found a new investigator named Cristian. We started talking to him and we thought he was in his twenties, Elder Kummerman thought he was 27, I thought he was 22 and well really he was only 18, just barely that month WOW ya I was like dang I look young and we were just kind of shocked. We had a good lesson with him about the Restoration and he invited us to come back this coming Thursday. Then we met with an investigator named Manuel, he was really pleased to see us and he is reading and studying what we gave him from Alma 32 and he is really taking a liking to The Book of Mormon.

             We finally got in with Eric. It was great to see him and talk to him. He wanted to be baptized the day before, which we didn't know since he didn't tell us but he now is grateful he wasn't because he is taking the commitment to be baptized more seriously and he has only one concern and I believe it is the most genuine concern that anyone can have, "Can I endure to the End, what if I make a mistake or mess up?" So we both shared a bit about our conversion and how we have endured to the end and how he can do the same as well. So he is going to do some more reading of The Book of Mormon, and truly ponder and pray about how he can do this thing.

             Saturday morning before service we went and taught our neighbors, and we were going to teach a bit about the Plan of Salvation but we got sidetracked and we were like "How can we get this back on track?" But we didn't but what we did do is testify at the end saying, "With your concerns in mind we know that is why God has called a prophet and restored his church to the earth and given us the Book of Mormon, so that we can be guided and directed in these last days of confusion."

         Well that is all I really have for this week, but I want to add my Testimony: that the Gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored to bless us and our families and to help lead and guide us in these last days so that we can find our way through the maze of life. People said we needed a prophet of God during World War 2, well now I say how much greater is our need now, and we have been blessed to have a prophet on the earth since the restoration of the Gospel through Joseph Smith. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

WEEKLY LETTER and 2 Baptismal dates!

Dear Family and Friends.

     I am so happy, I mean super ecstatic to write all of you and share the happenings of the little quite town of Crete, but I err. The train is pretty loud and obnoxious at 4:00 in the morning.

      Well this week in the concern of individual days, I will not share much but I will share the awesomeness of three investigators. So I will start with a woman named Mary.

       Mary is a nice older lady who is Catholic by birth but has never gone to church. When the Elders found her she was, as she said, "looking for something" and so after a bit we got her to a member's house. She doesn't know her directly, but almost everyone in town does know of her, her kindness and awesomeness. Well we got in to a lesson with her and we decided to make it a little more conversation-like. We taught her about the cool principles of the Gospel Faith, Jesus Christ and His Atonement. It was so powerful and we all shared heartfelt testimony, and thoughts. She was able to open up a little and have a good time with us. She was smiling and making jokes occasionally. When we finished the lesson she said, "Now don't you forget to come visit with me boys, because I have been looking for something and tonight I feel like I have found it." Well when we visited with her the next day she again told us, " I feel lighter and happier and like everything will be okay. When I saw my doctor/psychiatrist this morning he said I seemed to be lighter and happier too." She is starting to find her way to the rod, as described in Lehi's dream, and soon she will be at the fruit.

         Next is Dustin. We met with Dustin once during the week. The other Elders had gone to his church and so now he was going to come to ours. As we talked he expressed general concerns about churches and their view on the gifts of the spirit and receiving the gift of tongues. He also raised a question in which I loved the way Elder Kummerman answered it, it was: I don't think I can believe a golden book and only he could see it and some more stuff like that, that only one man had these revelations. Well I love the response: well Moses talked to God in a burning bush and only one man received revelations and the whole nation was to believe what he said.

So Dustin was like, "good point" and I was like, "ya". Well then he came to church on Sunday, and he loved the services. He was like, "I love how everything is so family focused and oriented; How you teach, and I loved the classes. The last one I was kind of zoning out but it was still great." We then had a lesson later that day at his house and we are beginning the missionary lessons again, focusing on families as that is his main concern and he loved it. We haven't quite set a return appointment but he said, "I want to bring my wife and kids." So I am super excited for them to come and to learn, and to feel of the Spirit.

           Last but not least Eric. He is a cross country runner and track runner at our Doane College in Crete. He is a super cool guy. I have only taught him once, but it was fun. He is very open to learning and sharing different ideas. I asked him if he was still pondering baptism, and he said, "Yep, I still have a few things I need to thin about." I was like, "Okay, sweet." That was Friday, and well last night he texts us out of the blue, "I want to be baptized and I have a date. Can we meet tommorow night?" Well It was super cool and exciting. I can't wait to talk to him tonight and help him get to that final point. I love you all and I know this gospel is true, and it truly is worth it to give up two years of your life.

Love Logan Joseph Draper

A move out of the big city

Dear Family and friends.

        I am happy to be writing you all, and to say that I am doing well. I am now in the little wayside town of Crete. Crete is a small town, south west of Lincoln and south east of Seward. Seward has a branch and we are responsible for all the English people in Crete, to help them get taught baptized and reactivated and going to the Seward branch. We are also in charge of getting all of the Hispanics to the Lincoln Pioneer ward. So I can now go to a different church every other week.

         So a little about the week. Elder Wilson left and it wasn't a sad day, but at the same time it was. We had some great trio time, me and the "greenies". It was fun and I really liked working with them because they are both so sincere. Both Elder Cox and Elder Barton have some very fun personalities, and it was great. If I did not mention, our apartment had a problem with a leaking water heater above and then wet carpet. Well they fixed that and it smelled really nice. We got antsy in the days before transfers and we found out that they were going to close Omaha Spanish South!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!     NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well if you have not guessed my emotion with that please pay attention to the exclamation marks, but it is all going to go well. Elder Barton is now in Storm Lake, Iowa with Elder Johnson, my TRAINER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

and I am in Crete with Elder Kummerman. He is a convert of about a year and a half, he is a really laid back guy and really caring and kind. I am so excited to work with him, I am his greenie buster, as it is called.

We had some good lessons this week in Omaha. I said some farewells and did not get as many pictures as I would have liked. I will hopefully find a way to send you a picture of the baptism of the lady we were teaching, I know she will be getting baptized. I am really excited to be in Crete, we have some great investigators from the sound of it and some really nice members. We are really trying to work with the less active Spanish members to help them come to church. Well I don't know what more to tell you, but here is a little more about Elder Kummerman

Elder Kummerman is 21 years old, he is a convert of about a year and a half. He is from Eugene, Oregon. He is a Political Science major at the University of Oregon (Go Ducks!). So that is cool for him. He is hoping to transfer down to BYU, and that is about it for now. I love you all and next week I will load you up with pictures and stories.

Love Elder Draper

Christmas has come and now gone the cat is not fat but maybe I am ie. easter candy!!!!!!!

Dear family and friends and other loved ones

        I hope you are amused by the title of this letter and if you are not you obviously did not look at your calendar and do either one of two things: 1. eat Easter candy and 2. eat Easter candy while watching or to listening to General Conference. Now, if you did not do one of these things I invite you to at least do part two of part two. If you are not confused enough I will explain, and have fun doing so.

         So this was a super hard, weird week and I will return to the previous paragraph eventually. I went ice skating on Monday and did not hurt myself, or anything silly like that. So that was fantastic, but right after we went and did service for a family that was leaving. When we did that it was good, but we got back to the other elders place late so we stayed the night. We then got up and went to the families house early to go help  and finish packing. Sadly it was the actually packing and not simply moving boxes. We were given some delicious breakfast and we also had lunch with them. Well putting it mildly, because the job was so big, I literally spent the entire day at their house. So I was exhausted from being in one place for to long. I am not that patient anymore. I have been bouncing from house to house for so long I have no patience for one house, but it was super fun and we got the truck loaded!!!!!

          Well Wednesday we had district meeting and then went to lunch with the Zone leaders and the Hermanas because it is Hermana Kenion's last week along with Elder Wilson's. So it was fun and sad. We went to Chipotle, and it was delicious. We then went to teach, which was super cool because I had not done that for a little bit due to service and people disappearing on me. We had some interesting experiences with all of the stuff that happened. We are working on the Because He Lives initiative, and I must say these two things all with social media must abide by these two hash tags because they are cool at least the first one:

#Becausehelives

#LDSconf

So ya if only I could bother you all with stuff, but I love you. So I ask you to bother all those you love with funny hashtags or whatever they are.

             Thursday we had a miracle. We visited with an investigator who had wanted to learn more but was hesitant to and did not like talking about baptism, but we were talking we told her we have something for you and we watched #Graciasaqueelvive. Then she said "I have something for you too." She opened The Gospel of Jesus Christ pamphlet and looked at the picture of Christ's baptism and said, with tears in her eyes, "I know what I want now, I want to be baptized." It will be a long road, but I know I have gotten her onto the path. I am sad to report I will most likely be transferred and I will not be here to see it happen, but I want to lay down my undeniable witness.

           My name is Elder Draper (Logan Joseph Draper), I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. He is my Savior and REDEEMER. He has atoned for the blood of all mankind, and He arose on the third day. He has once again established his church and kingdom on the earth today and invites all men, women, and children everywhere to come unto Him and be saved, and to be baptized. He has given us The Book of Mormon as an additional witness to His divinity and mission as our Lord and Savior. The Bible, both Old and New Testaments, and the other testament, The Book of Mormon, stand in unity and declare solemnly that Jesus is the Christ. Today He has called a prophet and twelve apostles. They lead and guide this His church under his direction.

            YOU may ask how can you say this, for no man can know of such things for all men are different and it is impossible to know. I declare unto all people and especially my Spanish brethren that YOU can know of a surety. For there is gravity ,and it is unseen. There is light, yet it is unseen we only see the reflection of light. I declare that you all can know of a surety of my words through the promises made by ancient prophets. 1) Read the words written in both The Bible and The Book of Mormon; 2) Meditate, ponder, and apply the words teachings and counsel received; and 3) Ask God, the Eternal Father, if these things are not true. If you live them you will find for a witness that they are true. I love and care about you all and I desire the happiness of all of you reading my words. You can know of a surety of things to come and I say this in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Redeemer. AMEN.

       

Friday I had four lessons. We were given a challenge to pass out some letters, from our bishop, to the less active members of our ward. We found four and taught four lessons, and we tried eight people in total. We had many miracles in that time. We found people miraculously at home and it was a great joy and we all were edified

Saturday and Sunday we had the privilege to watch General Conference and hear the prophets and apostles speak. I was edified by the talks, though I found so much I needed and do need to do better, I want to share my one, simple thought: when we have questions and we ask in faith, and we go looking for answers we will find them. James1:5 "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him." I found answers to my prayers and I hope you all found answers to your prays and questions as well.

Love Elder Logan J. Draper

the B.O.S.S. missionary

Bold

Open

Simple

Spiritual

Pictures

My district helping with a Primary activity

My district at a Baptism for Brian, done by the north Elders.

Ice Skating before some missionaries go home