3-8-10

Hey Mom,

Thanks for the info. Sounds like a pretty busy week. That's weird that Dad isn't the Bishop anymore. It seems like a good time to be released though. That will be a good Bishopric. Who's the new Young Men's presidency? Oh, and do you know who Keaton Bale married? Maybe I know her. Are Josh and Cody already gone? That's crazy and way cool. We really are blessed to be a part of this special work. How's Eric doing? I hope he's happy. He's a really good kid.

Hey, Shnorhavor! Congratulations! Today is kind of like mother's day. I actually think it is just women's day, though. They actually cellebrate it for a month as far as I know. It should be like that in America, right?

That's too bad no one has come to look at the house. I'll keep praying for you. That's awesome you got a fund for our missions. I wish so badly I could have contributed more. I hate being a burden. Money is such a stressful part of this life, it's really kind of sad. I know God doesn't want us to focus on that, but he did tell us to earn our food by the sweat of our brows. I hope that I can always be a hard worker like Dad and like I should be. I really enjoy working hard, and like I said to Brandon, I think, that is really the secret to this work. It says in Preach My Gospel that we know how successful we are by the level of our commitment. Brother Schroeder from the MTC told us to never draw any lines in our lives and to be willing to do whatever the Lord asks us to do. I feel like you and Dad understand that concept and I hope that I can learn to be able to have that kind of confidence in the Lord. That was actually what the Assistants to the President talked about in our last Zone Conference; Confidence in the Lord. I feel like that's how we can overcome pride and the pride cycle, is by putting our confidence in the Lord and not in ourselves.

The house should look good with the tile, you'll have to send me a picture. If you put pictures on your picasa, I should be able to see them. I'll try to put on a few of my apartment that I took this week if I have time. It sounds like soon they might not let us even do things like that on the internet, but I hope not. I like being able to show you a little bit of what it's like here, although it doesn't do it justice and I can't take nearly as many pictures as I would like.

We've been riding the train to Artik lately, which is pretty fun. It's about a 45 min ride. I think they converted the coal train into electric. All the cars here are basically bio fuel and use natural gas. It's a lot cheaper for them too.

I have also always been amazed at both Abraham and Isaac and don't fully understand how that worked. I'm glad your finding some good things from the Old Testament. I think it would have been hard for them to have strong faith in Christ's sacrifice when it hadn't even happened yet. Maybe that's why they needed a more physical sacrifice, so they could relate better or something.

I hope you're doing well. I also hope you know how much I love you, dad, and the rest of our family. I love so much reading from your letters. They give me strength. It's helped me realize how precious you all are and how blessed I am. I love my God and Savior as well, and am blessed to have this opportunity to not only help others recognize them, but my relationship with them is also growing a lot. I love my companions, district, and this branch and city. I hope you have a good week, Mom.

Love,
Elder Wainwright