"even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you"

Dear family,

Happy Halloween! This week was busy and great. 

We met with Collin again, and he's doing well. He didn't come to church last week because he was sick. but he came this week! And he seemed to really like it. At fast and testimony meeting yesterday there were many young kids who came up to bear their testimonies. They were simple and sincere. And in sunday school we were talking about baptism, and Collin commented:

I liked that kid in sacrament: "Baptism is for a second chance." Bam! That's it.

It was funny and true. Collin is just funny. He has so much goodness in him. 

On Halloween we had to be in our apartments by 6 PM, so we had our weekly planning session for the rest of the night. And a really sweet sister in the ward made us a dessert she said she always makes for the missionaries. Brain! Very realistic and funny. (see below)

We're teaching a couple who are members of the church working to become active and eventually sealed in the temple. It's the same people we met in the far corner of our area a few weeks ago when we felt to go to that area. They are so great. They were gone last week because they took a trip to SLC to visit family they hadn't seen in a long time. They loved the tours on Temple square and recently began reading the Book of Mormon and listened to the audio version as the drove.  I'll call them Jane and Frank.

This week they told us about how they felt in SLC and at church last week. Jane told us that during one video at Temple square, she felt a big "whew" feeling of peace. She didn't know how to describe it fully, but she knew it was good and that it felt good. She felt at peace with everything. Everything was going to be okay.

Frank had a similar experience while in priesthood class at church. While he sat and listened in class, he felt the most powerful and good feeling that he had ever felt in his life. He does many things that make him happy, and been in places where he has felt fellowship and love, but nothing like this. 

I know that the feelings that Jane and Frank felt are from the Holy Ghost, which come to any humble seeker of truth. God speaks to us and comforts us by the Holy Ghost.

We also had interviews with President Van Cott this week. It was great, as always. He gave me direction that I know is inspired of God. Missions go by so fast. I only have 7 months left here. I want to use the time I have to the very fullest.

Love,

Elder Judd

"be the children of your Father who is in heaven"

Family!

Marty moved to another ward in the Stake this week, which was sad to us because we love him. But he is doing great so it's all okay. He is a solid missionary. He reads the Book of Mormon whenever he has down time throughout the day and shares scriptures with coworkers and prays for opportunities to share these things. He invited his boss to "Meet the Mormons" too. He has no fear!

On Tuesday afternoon to Wednesday afternoon I went on an exchange with Elder Weaver in his area. He's a great missionary and my district leader. There were so many miracles throughout the exchange. One cool moment was this: 

We went to see a less active family (meaning they don't always come to church). As we walked toward the home a voice from the semi-open garage called out to us. We walked closer and heard:

Youngster!

It was Collin! Sitting on the top step of a ladder with sawdust all over and a sander in one hand. The whole picture made me smile. He was doing work for the family. Just a funny moment cool to see Collin even though I wasn't serving in my ward.

We drove to Banning for a conference on Thursday with Elder David F. Evans, a special witness of Jesus Christ. He is the head of the missionary department of the church. He told us that our mission will be receiving iPads as proselyting tools in January or February. It is amazing to see the great things that are happening in the world. And one thing that impressed me from the conference was the principle of faithfulness. King Lamoni was astonished because Ammon did what he said he would do. I want the Lord to be able to trust me to do all the things I have said I will to do.

The Lord is keeping His promises! We prayed this week that we would be led to those who are prepared or that the Lord would lead them to us, and that we would be where we needed to be.

Well, yesterday afternoon we were in a Wendy's parking lot eating an early dinner that a member had given us to-go. We were planning on meeting a member there to give us a ride to a baptism at the Stake center. Just as we finished eating, a young man our age came up to us and asked:

Excuse me. Are you guys Mormons? ... One of my best friends are Mormon and I have a lot of questions. Would you come and talk with me?

Really surprised, we grabbed some copies of the Book of Mormon and followed him to his table in Wendy's. His name's CJ, he has a lot of great questions, and we'll be meeting with him again later this week. Miracle!

I know that Jesus lives. I know that Joseph Smith is a prophet. I know the Book of Mormon is true.

I love you!

Elder Judd

"Who can glory too much in the Lord?"

Dear family,

I love the people of Indio. 

Andrew2 is loving the gospel. He loved the whole experience last week of attending General Conference. The leaders of the Young Men who chaperoned the trip told us that when they asked what he liked about it, he said:

I really enjoyed the last guy. ... I felt a warmth in my heart when he spoke.

The last guy was the Prophet Thomas S. Monson. The leaders helped Andrew understand that what he felt was the Holy Ghost. 

Andrew2 also told us that they had front row seats at the Priesthood session of conference. Before the session started, a man came up to him and Andrew1 and asked them if they were future missionaries. He didn't know what to say at first, but thought about it, and answered Yes. The man gave them both a special card with golden dollar as a beginning to their personal missionary savings fund. They learned afterward that the man was David L. Beck, the General Young Mens' President of the church. 

It is really cool to have the opportunity to teach Andrew because it's teaching me that this is truly the Lord's work. He is speaking and teaching Andrew through the Holy Ghost, and I as a missionary get the privilege to help just a little bit as a tool and witness the whole miracle.

Collin is doing really well too. He told us that reason that he keeps meeting with us is because he says the things we teach make him feel good. He talks fast and jokes a lot and he's just funny. He calls Elder Fife "Santa Rosa" and he calls me "Youngster". We always come away full of love after teaching him.

On Saturday we stopped by a less active family but they weren't home. But the neighbors were outside. A middle-aged gentleman named Ernesto from Uruguay was working on a project in his garage. Almost immediately he told us that he knew we were Mormon and that he has 3 sisters who are Mormon now too. Each married a returned-missionary and consistently invite him to read the Book of Mormon. He playfully told us:

I'll never be baptized Mormon! I'm catholic and I'll always be Catholic.

This Thursday Elder David F. Evans is coming to tour the mission. We have been preparing for a long time to receive guidance from his visit, so I'm excited. President Van Cott often reminds us: "Puny Preparation = Puny Revelation". It's true. 

I love serving as a missionary. I love my Savior Jesus Christ. I know that He lives. I know that He loves me.

Love,

Elder Judd

video link to President Monson talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFxctRT54ag

"I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded"

Dear Family,

This week was incredible. Many mighty miracles. 

On Monday we had planned to be in an area we rarely go to. It takes a good drive to get there, but we had felt to be there. We went to the 3 member families that live there (we didn't know any of them). 

The first had a big gate that was locked, so we couldn't meet them.

The second had moved away about 14 years ago.

Then we went to the third. It was now dark, and their lights were out, and we almost didn't stop to meet them. But something told to go anyway. The wife heard us coming, called for her husband and invited us in. We talked, and learned that they had not been to church in a long while. They told us of some difficulties they have been having in their lives. The husband paused for a while, and told us that he felt that our visit was God giving them an answer. 

We set an appointment for them to meet the Bishop the next day. Their visit went great, they want to come back to church, and they accepted the invitation to meet with missionaries. Miracle!

On Wednesday we went to see this guy Jose (I've talked about a lot of Jose's, but this is a new one). He was busy, but we were able to schedule a return appointment with him. 

But while we were in Jose's area, we had a feeling to go see Collin. Collin came to church with a member family about a month ago, and we made an appointment to teach him, but it didn't work out and we lost contact with him. 

But we stopped by, Collin was home, and he let us in. We taught a little, set a return appointment, and it went great. The spirit was so strong, and I felt like Heavenly Father helped me to be able to focus on Collin and what he needs. He commit to read the Book of Mormon and pray to know if it's true. And then we asked:

Collin, when you come to know that the Book of Mormon is true, will you be baptized by someone who holds this priesthood?

He responded:

Yes. Definitely. I'm ready to go. We could do it next week. We could do it tonight. I'm ready!

Collin is funny. We set a date as a goal for him to be baptized, and our member friends have told us that he's really excited.

On Thursday we met Andrew2 for the first time this week and he is awesome. He is so prepared and wants the gospel in his life. He had already started reading the Book of Mormon before we even met him and he really likes it. And Andrew2 watched conference! Live!

The priests in the ward went together to Salt Lake City, UT to watch General Conference, and they invited him to come along. We are so excited to see how Andrew2 liked it. 

Last night we went to our appointment with Jose with our fearless ward mission leader, Bro. Verduzco. Turned out Jose intended for the appointment to be at 8:00am, not 8:00pm. We rescheduled. But as we were leaving, we saw a home with a moving truck outside. Some men were working to unload it. We offered to help. They only spoke spanish. They declined. But Bro. Verduzco speaks spanish. So he kept talking with them. While they spoke, Elder Fife and I just went ahead and started to help them unload. We tucked in our ties. We finished within the hour. And when they were done, we found out that one of the men had come to church before and recognized Bro. Verduzco. He allowed us to send spanish missionaries to his home.

Conference was great! Listen to the Holy Ghost, and go and do what it says. 

God will not lead us astray. I know He will not.

Love,

Elder Judd

Pictures:

My watch has been through a lot.

"for they are not lost unto the Father, for he knoweth whither he hath taken them"

Hey family!

This week is transfer week and I'm staying! I love Indio!

On Wednesday, we did more service at the food kitchen and it was great again. We cleaned tables, unloaded breads, peeled potatoes, and put away dishes. 

We are really looking for more service opportunities. So, on Friday, we borrowed our Ward Mission Leader's lawn mower, went to the Indian Reservation, and went door-to-door offering lawn service for free. It was warm and fun. 

We also helped a man clear away many many books from his bookshelf. Many were cookbooks of his late wife. We're going back this week to finish the job, but for now we have stacks of cookbooks in our apartment until we can take them to a donation center somewhere.

So we learned this week that a young man in the ward named Andrew 1, has a friend, Andrew 2, who has been coming to seminary with him. Andrew 2 had asked about seminary and asked if he could come.

On Tuesday, we learned that the door we knocked on last week--when we met Enrique--was the home of Andrew 2!

It is a miracle! And I could not stop smiling after we found out. There is a God and He is our Father and He knows every one of His children and He knows exactly what needs to be done to help them--His children--us. He loves us! He wants us to become happy and strong!

I'm so excited for General Conference too. Everyone should come listen to a prophets voice!

We also had the opportunity to see Meet the Mormons as an early showing. It will be in theaters on October 10th. It is great! everyone should see it. It is a great family movie. and funny. Go see it and invite everyone!

Love,

Elder Judd

pictures:

elder allred, me, and elder weaver - the district, minus elder fife

the desert

"if the salt shall lose its savor wherewith shall the earth be salted?"

My family,

These are some of the happiest days of my life. 

I forgot to write about this last week, but last Saturday Lea was baptized back in Rialto. In our mission, we have permission to go to baptismal services of people we were privileged to teach. We just have to find a member ride and arrange for another member to stay and work with our companion. But, Rialto is about 1.5 hours away, which meant it was going to be about 5-6 hour trip, total. I really wanted to be there, but after praying about it all, I felt I should continue working in Indio. Hopefully soon I will be able to write a letter to Lea and Jordan congratulating them.

I don't know if I have already mentioned this, but we did service a while ago for an older lady, Pat, who hasn't been to church in years and didn't want any contact from the church. Her daughter, Barbara, who is very active in the gospel and the church, just moved in and had asked help moving things. We believe the experience softened her heart. 

Pat and Barbara had us for dinner this week and we brought another brother from the ward, who was great company for them. Barbara talks about her mission in Canada when Elder Ballard was her mission president. She is amazing. She listens to Preach My Gospel on audio every day (which I didn't even know existed). She is awesome. 

On Friday there was a ward dessert social. We were asked to be the judges of the desserts. They had a get-to-know-the-members jeopardy game. It was a fun time.

This morning we went to seminary. One of the teachers asked for our help in teaching about the Holy Ghost and missionary work. The youth of the church are awesome. It made me think about Andrew, because I was in the Junior's class. 

Cool story: we were out trying to meet a less active family. They had moved, but the current resident referred us to a family she thought was Mormon. We pulled up to the house and before we even got out of the truck this man came up to Elder Fife's window, slapped his hands on the door, and said: 

Which cult are you from?

He told him that we were missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The man, Dave, said that he knew our church well. Dave went on to share claims and research and attacks about how our beliefs were false. We shared our testimony of how the boy Joseph Smith had seen Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and how we knew that the Book of Mormon and all these things are true by the power of the Holy Ghost. 

Dave brought up more claims against our faith and asked to see our bible. While he searched for a scripture that he knew would prove us wrong, we talked with him, and listened. We learned that Dave had a sincere desire to believe in the Savior. He eventually stopped bringing up claims, we shook hands and went on our way. and the Spirit was there. I felt love for Dave. And although I felt nervous at first when he approached us, I prayed for help, and I felt help come.

God is our Father! Jesus is the Savior! This work is true! 

Elder Judd

picture: driving with Elder Fife

"the Spirit ... speaketh of things as they really are, and of things as they really will be"

Hey my family,

Things are great in Indio. Every family out here is so solid. I love these people. I wish I could write everything about them that is coming to mind, but I don't have much time.

We visited a guy name Marty this week. Marty was raised in the church, but hasn't been in many years. About 2 months ago, missionaries stopped by his home hoping to meet Marty's parents. They met Marty and he told them that his parents had moved out, but he invited them in. Since then, he's started reading the Book of Mormon daily and praying daily, and coming to church. He is so sincere. Marty's whole life is changing because of the Savior.

On Tuesday we had dinner with Stephanie and Eddie. They are a couple a little past middle-aged, and they are not members of the church. They just love to feed missionaries. Stephanie lived in the same apartments as several pairs of missionaries many years ago in Washington, and she would make treats and dinners for them, and developed a love for missionaries. Then, out here, she met a woman in her sewing class who is a member of the church. She was excited and got in contact with the missionaries out here. They have questions about the purpose of life. They are so nice and I love them.

We also met Marcus, who was referred to us by some sister missionaries. He is awesome and we are about to meet with him after this.

Church was awesome. some youth taught about family history work. The Spirit was strong. Families are important to Heavenly Father.

I love you all!

Elder Judd

"could we have supposed when we started ... that God would have granted unto us such great blessings?"

Malo le soifua!

It is transfer week. And I am leaving Samoa. And I am going to the desert.

I can't express everything that is on my mind and in my heart. These people have a home in my heart. I am so grateful for Heavenly Father and the experiences He has given me.

I will be going to the Shadow Hills ward, and I think it is in Indio. But I don't know for sure, and I don't know how to spell my new companion's name because I learned it over the phone. Elder Faif. I hope this is the way it's spelled because "Faife'au tala'i" means "missionary". Elder Holcomb is leaving too, and both Samoan wards will now be covered by a pair of Sisters. 

Anyway, this week was great. Many, many miracles.

We started teaching Emo and Su. They just moved in from Alaska and they are living with Emo's aunt and uncle, who are members. We actually met Emo on her 21st birthday, so we brought her cookies the next day. Su is Emo's boyfriend. They are awesome and came to church on Sunday.

Also, a long time ago we met a guy named Joe (We've taught a lot of Joe's). This is Joe P. He has daughters that live in McKinney. Joe said we could come back, and we did, and tried many times, but could never catch him. We ended up meeting his wife, his neice, and his son over time, but they all said to come back later. But we finally caught Joe again this week. He is an older man. He invited us in and we mostly tried to get to know Joe. We learned that his wife passed away 3 months ago. He misses her very much. He loves his family and the Lord. We invited him to read a chapter from the Book of Mormon and set a return appointment. Really, it was a small experience. But I am so excited for Joe because I know the Book of Mormon can change his life. 

We also met with Lea and Jordan again. Lea insists that she be baptized in our ward, and then she will attend the English ward in Redlands. She is awesome. She quit drinking coffee before we even taught that God has commanded us not to drink coffee.

We also brought a young man named Keli out with us to teach Lea and Jordan and he spoke sincerely about how keeping the Sabbath Day Holy has blessed his family. He said this and I could feel it was true: 

God will bless the other six days when we keep His day holy.

On Saturday there was the monthly Samoa temple day, where the Temple service is offered in Samoan. Like always, we met up with the ward at the Temple after they had finished serving in the temple and they went out with us to visit people. I love these people.

I am really excited to serve in the Shadow Hills ward. I am excited for the future. I love my Father in Heaven and my Savior Jesus Christ!

Faith is always pointed toward the future!

Alofa atu,

Elder Judd

pictures: 

a bunch of people that I love. more description later.

Matapula family

Sai and Amy and their boys