July 13, 2010 - Logansport, Indiana

July 13, 2010


Alright Dad and Mom,

So last week I was going to pull just a little joke on you guys about getting shot at....Well we did get shot at but it was by someone driving past us in the middle of the day, but it was just a cap gun. Ha ha, how immature huh? I was supposed to put just kidding at the end of the email last week but I totally spaced it, my bad. But everything else is going good. It sounds awesome that dad met that one guy that knows Elder Banner’s family. I’m sure you could actually go find his family mom. They don't live to far away from home, just in Riverdale. He is a great guy totally a great example of being a missionary. He is way dedicated and always is on time and makes time for everything. So, I’m sure you’re wondering about how I have been getting up in the morning right?? Well I've been doing awesome. Right when the alarm clock goes off I’m out of bed saying my prayers and exercising. I will for sure send you guys some pictures. I should pick some up today and I will send them off today or tomorrow. They will be pretty funny. YOU GUYS NEED TO SEE THE LAST AIRBENDER ALREADY. Geez nobody has told me about it at all. We go over to houses and I see commercials for it all the time. So it catches my eye, I’m not addicted, don't worry.

I went on splits with the assistants to the pres. on Saturday. Man did I learn a lot. These guys were just awesome. We had some pretty crazy lessons and people we taught. We ran into a lot of mean people when I was with them though. People just yelling at us and slamming their doors. Usually when people slam their doors they lock it right behind them. I think its way funny. It’s like they think we are going to just bust into their house and share our message with them no matter what they say.

I gotta share with you guys who we are meeting with. That Nathan kid I told you about is still doing way awesome, loves church, and loves us coming over. We try to play games while teaching the lessons to him cause since he is only 12 it’s easier for him to remember things if we have a game to it. Well, at least it is working for him right now.

Michael is a new guy we just tracted into. He is like a scriptorian. Knows everything way well in the Bible, way more than me at least. He knows stories and scriptures all that jazz, so does his wife. They went thru a heavy patch in their life they had a son born that lived his whole life in the hospital till he died when he was 1 years old. It was so sad when they talked about him because you could just tell how much they cared about him. He was born just under 2 pounds they said, and was on an incubator his whole life and went brain dead. It was crazy how they took that part in their life to get closer to God when most people just use problems in their life to get farther away from God, like they want someone to blame which is why they are so awesome. Their testimonies of Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father are so strong they just don't have the fullness of the gospel yet, which we are working on. Michael is a huge Lord of the Rings fan, so I’m going to try and use that to work it into our lessons. I sure hope it will work out. They love us over there.

Steve is this 50 year old guy. He is married, but his wife is one of those Seventh Day Adventist people. He hasn't picked a church himself but he started going to Church with the missionaries before I came but he stopped right before, because he goes across the street to the church that is closer to him and he likes the preacher and they do sing a longs which I guess he loves. He totally knows that the LDS church is true. It’s just his wife that has stopped his progression. He was so on top of things and feeling the spirit but his wife started getting in the way ‘cause she is relying on her preacher giving her all her information which you know can't be a good thing, so she is kinda corrupting Steve. We had a lesson with him on the Restoration on Saturday and we were being way bold. He was taking it way well and you could see the Spirit working on him. He was understanding, asking questions, and wanting to know more. All the sudden before we finished, his wife walks in and she says some anti remark, and he just goes 180 degrees on us and says yea, you guys shouldn't come over as much, I like going to the church across the street, but thank you for starting to get me to come to church. I know he has a testimony of what we taught him deep down but it’s just his wife, I think that makes him not see it for himself. I mean I don't like to point fingers or anything, but I wanted to get out of my seat and just punch her in the face when she walked in on Saturday. Haha, oh my, that doesn't sound very missionary like does it. Well I guess I just want to see him keep progressing and I can't give up on him. Elder Banner has taught me a lot about not giving up on people, which is way good. I don't intend to ever, but sometimes you forget things, and all just doesn't run smoothly in your head.

This last week I've been trying to increase my testimony and work on studying like a hard core study, where I remember everything I've been reading and praying every day that I can know as much as I can know out of the Book of Mormon and Preach My Gospel.

My Testimony of the Book of Mormon has increased so much from being out here. A lot of people just reject it because they have the Bible, or that Satan wrote the Book of Mormon thru Joseph Smith, so many negative things. We listened to a talk by Jeffery R. Holland in the car the other day. It was the one he gave about the Book of Mormon last October. Man, when I listened to that you could just feel the spirit. The Book of Mormon is the word of God. I know it for myself, I have read in the Bible, not a whole lot, but enough to know that The Book of Mormon complements it. It’s by the Book of Mormon that we know of everything in our religion. Anyone who reads will know for themselves that it is true. Only, if they ask with real intent and a sincere heart. A lot of people say that they prayed about it and it’s still false. But, I know that you can pray for something with the answer your looking for already set in your heart, and you won't get another answer. That’s what it will be if you believe that the BOM is false and you pray to know it’s false. That’s the answer you will get ‘cause God won't change a set heart. You have to ask with real intent. It’s so vital and it’s so unselfish. You can't take anyone else's word for what the BOM is. Not mine, not anybody's, not even your own point of view until you ask God and when he does tell you that its true, which he will, then your point of view will go with others because it has been told to you by the Holy Ghost that it is true and you will see that in others eyes. It’s so vital, I can't even say it in words. But I know that Joseph Smith would not die for something that was false, something that was made up. An evil man could not have written a book so full of the gospel of Christ and a good man couldn't have unless he was called by God to do so. I know this for myself. I will do anything for other people to get them to realize for themselves that it is true. For if it’s true, then Joseph Smith was a prophet and called of God, and if that’s true then God still talks to prophets today, because he loves us. Man, I don't know why I went on that huge tangent but it’s important to know for every person because the worth of every soul is great in the eyes of God.

Well everything else is going good. I’m working on my football skills on P-days so I can get better. I’m still stickin’ with my dreams.

Elder John Moore