Week 51

Haha it finally looks like winter outside! Everybody tells me that i am so lucky to have this as my winter here in Iowa! Its usually 10 degrees below 0 this time of year with 100% humidity! Its only dropped below 0 for 1 or 2 days now!! I'm loving it tho! I missed the snow and its good to have some!

On Friday we got a HUGE storm! It was crazy.. 8 to 12 inches of snow in roughly 4 hours! While it was snowing we decided to go out and shovel people's driveways and try and clean people car's off and just help out where ever we could! It was so funny to see people's reactions when we said we just wanted to help! They would say things like "your going out in a blizzard just to help people? your crazy!" Haha i love it so much! Serving people is my favorite thing to do! Everybody was very appreciative tho! So that's good!

While we were out walking in the snow.. We came across a 29 year old guy who's face was all bruised and scraped up! We started talking to him and asked him if he could use any help! He asked us if we could help him find his glasses! We said of course! He seemed super depressed and very sad. We started walking down this little path and he began to tell us his story of how he lost his glasses. He was drunk, driving this mo-ped/scooter thing around and had crashed on this walking trail and his glasses were no where to be found. We tried to help him find his glasses but it was snowing like crazy.. And there was already 5 inches on the ground and he couldn't exactly remember where he had crashed!

We began to talk about God and he expressed how he had lost his faith in God when his grandfather died. He said as a 9 year old kid, he knelt down and put everything he had into a prayer and asked God if he would save his grandpa! 2 hours later his grandpa had passed away! It was very emotional for him and for us as well. I related to him and told him that I too had lost both of my Grandpa's at a young age and it was tough for me to deal with as well. We bore testimony that God needed his grandpa on the other side, and that his work on this earth was done, and that he could be with his grandpa again! Then i had a huge prompting, from the spirit, to ask him a question.. I asked him "would your grandfather be proud of the way that you have represented his name?" There was silence for about 2 minutes and he said "No, he would be ashamed."

So here we are in the middle of this crazy snowstorm, talking about God and his plan for us. This 29 year old, who had no faith in God began to say things like, "wow, i've got to start living better.. and i should start going to church.." It was such an awesome experience! And in the freezing weather, we were warm and filled with the spirit!

Its amazing the change that takes place inside you when you have amazing experiences like that one! Thats why i love my mission so much. I feel as if i am being changed into something better than i used to be, but most importantly i am slowly being changed into who my Heavenly Father wants me to be. Its hard sometimes, to accept the change, but i know that in the end, what He wants is all that matters!

Unfortunately the snowstorm was so bad that it pushed back our baptism!! Family coming in from out of town could not make it in the weather, and the earliest they can get here again is the weekend of Feb 18th.. So we are going to wait until then! Its always scary pushing a baptism back, but it had to be done! And i know that she will stay strong! She is awesome!

Thank you so much Family and friends for the letters and emails and support you give me! I'm so lucky!
You are all in my prayers and i love you! I love you all!!

Mom i found a super cheap suit so we're good! And a lady in the ward is going to tailor it! Thanks tho!

Diana W! Thanks for the update! I tried to send you a christmas card, but it got sent back cause you moved! Send me your new address! :)

Love Elder Russell