As White as Snow

Dear Family,

I hope you are all feeling well. It seems like the entire world is sick with the flu. I continue to pray for you and am so grateful for your prayers.

We had a wonderful week this week. The miracles and the hand of the Lord were frequent as we went about our work. Sister Nancy Buchanan was baptized on Saturday and confirmed yesterday in Sacrament meeting. It was a wonderful experience to participate in teaching her and understanding the incredible change which the Atonement has wrought in her life.

After she was baptized, she bore her testimony. It was pure and powerful. The Spirit was there and I was filled with hope to know that someone as new to the church as her could bear such a wonderful witness of the Atoning mission of the Savior and of the restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the Prophet Joseph Smith. What a blessing.

We found a bunch of people to teach this week. Many were found in miraculous ways that were the result of following that still, small voice. Sadly, we have been visiting and beginning to teach many families where everyone but the father is a member. It is great to begin to teach them and help them feel the Spirit, but it is sad to see how many people are in this situation. I want to start a support group for LDS women who have non-members husbands and help them find ways to share the Gospel in their home.

A side note that I meant to include last week but forgot is mainly intended for dad. In my first lesson serving English, the one with the Confederate flags, there was a 25 year-old lady there wearing a shirt that said, "I hear voices, they don't like you." Talk about having a prayer in your heart!

We had a mission leadership training that consumed all of Wednesday. There were two people from the missionary department here one of which is in charge of all the international MTCs. He is about 30 years old. That has to be an interesting job. During lunch no one was sitting with them, so I took advantage and had a fun conversation with them. I learned how they filmed "The District" (the missionary training videos) and I learned about the troubles they are having with the new surge of missionaries coming into the field. Really interesting to talk with them and understand missionary work from the global perspective.

The training was pretty much that we are bad missionaries and need to change and do things like Preach My Gospel says and we did about 3 hours of role play. That was a joy. I actually really did learn from it though and have already seen the fruits of following the counsel received from Priesthood leaders.

Things are going well. I love this work. The Sacrament continues to take on more and more meaning in my life. As I listened to everyone bear their testimony and welcome Sister Buchanan and say that she is the cleanest and purest, I realized that we all have that opportunity each week. It made me wonder if I prepare for the Sacrament in the same way that I try to have my investigators prepare for baptism.

I love you,

Elder Case