In Front of Me

It’s going down! lol... I mean, it went down! WOOT

Congrats to Keaun, he was baptized yesterday, by elder Lim!!! Ha-ha. I gave a talk on the Holy Ghost and Elder Larson on baptism. Brother Meldrom welcomed him to the branch, and we sang a bunch of hymns. Luckily the water heater has been fixed so the font was warm! When we were filling it there was actually steam on the glass and the big mirror! Ha-ha. The spirit it was very nice, and to top everything off Keaun’s whole family was there! And since they do the confirmations here in sacrament the next week that means his family will be here two weeks in a row! They will see the priesthood in action, and it will be hard not to get a testimony of it! :)

So, Narilee and Robbie our family that was going to be baptized on the 28th fell off the face of the earth! :( :S we cant get a hold of them, they wont answer there door and they have not come to church! :( So we really don't know what the deal is... because, they were great! I don't know what we did wrong.

So, Thursday night we had a list of new medias to go and visit. As Elder Lim read off the list of medias I felt prompted to go to "Wilma Quita", so we did. When we got the house we knocked the door and asked for Wilma, the man looked very confused and then told us to go around to the side door. So we went through the ally to the side door and knocked it. Suddenly from the back came a big guy with a huge beanie yelling at us! We told him we were missionaries looking for Wilma Quita to give her the book that she ordered and he got really frustrated and pulled out his wallet and showed us his last name on his drivers license. "Oolda, see Oolda!" after a while of that I think Lim understood and said "They must have spelled it wrong" as he pulled out our cell phone and looked at the referral. The man looked down at the cell phone and his angry face switched to a happy face and he said in a much higher calmer voice then before "OH! You preach the word of God?! Come on, come on" as he started walking back toward the back and waving us to follow, "come back with me". We followed but I was a little concerned. He got to the back door and opened it up and started to go in and then he told us "I'm Steve" and that he has been trying to find peace. We told him we could help.

He finally told us that Wilma was his wife. then a lady started yelling at Steve from inside he kinda just yelled a few things back to tell the lady he didn't care what she was saying. Then Steve invited us in. we went into his basement and started to teach him, he would interrupt and get off track a lot, but we were happy to answer his questions. Then his wife came down and their daughter, right when we began talking about Joseph Smith. We had to back track so they could understand us. Wilma told us what Steve had told us minutes before, that he was an alcoholic. Steve and she just wanted an answer on how he could get over his addiction, so we told him. The wife Wilma said something about "the other missionaries" and started talking about the word of wisdom! LOL She started listing things "no, coffee, tea, drugs..." and her husband cut her off and said "SEX." we all looked at him and after a second of awkward silence, I explained how sex is a beautiful thing as long as it is in the bounds of marriage, then he interrupted me "wait! So you have never had sex!?!?" we told him no. then he asked us how old we were. We told him and then he re-asked "so you have never had sex and your 19 and 21!?" "Yeah....", then he responded "so you are virgins!?", "um.... yeah". Then he laughed and stood up and looked sad and touched his chest and said "so you have never been touched?..." Lim and I looked at each other and I looked at the guy and said "what do you mean!? Cause I've held hands and hugged and kissed...", Steve interjected "so, you have never held hands or kissed?". I laughed and said "of course we have! We have held hands and kissed a lot! We just haven't had sexual relationships!" He looked blown away and fell to his feet.

Then somehow he started talking about Jah Man, and how he was part Apache! He talked about how there are really only 9 commandments because the number 0 means nothing so that must mean 10 means 1, which means there are only 9 numbers in existence. I told him that was crazy talk. I told him, we could get off on a tangent and talk about base 10 number systems and how 0 is simply a place holder, "but that’s completely off topic", Lim brought things back around as he started talking about Christ. That’s when Steve talked about Rastafarian stuff and haile selassie. I had no Idea what he was talking about but luckily Lim did because he spent 6 months in Bermuda with a bunch of Rastafarians! :D

So we ended on a good not and then he had us listen to a couple reggae songs before we left. He told us he would burn us copies. Then he showed a reggae remake of I Believe in Miracles.... you know the one that says "Touch me!" and "you sexy thing you" and he tried to tell us it was a spiritual song because the guy was saying that he believed in miracles! LOL It was great. We are going back over this week I think, so that will be fun. :) Before I left he pulled off his beanie and exposed his dreads! LOL I told him how when I was little I loved dreads and wanted some, he told me to touch them. I did. It was awesome! Then he told me if I came back next time with dreads he would say "Now here is a prophet". Then he showed us his Bob Marley poster. Then we went home and used hand sanitizer on the way. :)

I love you all! The church is true, it really is. It’s so simple and beautiful and living by its standards will bless your life and make life so much better! So much easier! If you don't believe me, put the standards to the test and then tell me what you think. :)

I love you family and friends!! Have a wonderful week! Happy B-day Kitty! :) Happy b-day Todd! and Happy late b-day Josh! I hope I’m not missing any one.

Love Elder Sam

Drowning In Slush

I'M DROWNING IN SLUSH! Well I guess many of you have heard about the INSANE EASTERN SNOW STORMS lately. Just know they are all media hype. The snow we got was not quite a foot. A normal snow for Utah, but of course it shut everything down over here. lol. Silly New Yorkers, I love them. :) Well all that snow melted, so we have been walking through huge slush pools! HUGE! Gigantic dirty slush pools.... I would like to take this moment to thank Mr. Mac, the shoes are amazing, I don't get wet feet, and my suit is actually quite water resistant. Mr. Mac, you are amazing. I don't think I'll ever need boots.

So, Keaun is amazing. He really understands everything and he is excited for his baptism next week. He still has a habit of taking the lords name in vain every now and then, but we are helping him. After the big snow storm we built snowmen with him and his little sister and had a snow ball fight! Then the next day we built a sweet ramiumptum out of snow and taught Keaun about that story in the B of M while we did it. It was cool cause our snow structure got a lot of attention. A guy came over and said "Let me guess... Utah?" we said yes. Then he said "OK, OK, OK, let me make another guess, Mormons?" we said "Wow, yeah good guess! How did you know?" (as if it wasn't obvious from our tags and suits! lol) he said, "Only people from Utah know how to make snow men like that!" then we started teaching him. He had concerns with the J-dubs and their 144,000, but when I went to explain the 12 tribes of Israel he already knew! LOL, he told us his view on religion (the same views a lot have) that all religion will get you to heaven. That’s when I started to testify about the one true church. Then...he had to go and left. But at least it was good practice and the guy has a good view of Mormons. :)

Well, I only have 2 min left, so I got to go; but just know I love you all. Thanks for your prayers and support and love. YOU ALL ROCK!

-Elder Morris

Chicken and Rice

Chicken and rice..... so much chicken and rice...... no more! no more! NO MORE! ............... No more chicken and rice mommy, please, no more. :(

So.... guess what’s weird. Like... every 2 or 3 weeks I get the question, "Are you from England?" I tell them no and they say they asked because of my accent! LOL. So I guess I have a bit of a British accent accidentally.

So, this month is family history month in Richmond Hill... Now I ask, Has everyone signed up for the new family search web sight? I hope so! Mom have you signed me up? Family history rocks! Let’s baptize the dead! Wo-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-t! :D

Well, none of the investigators we have that told us they were coming Sunday came. But one came that we really didn't expect, Gordon and my old commit Dason Phaul. So that was cool. We also have suspicions that one of our new investigators robbed one of our recent converts. :( Sad day. We saw the investigator on Jamaica ave last night and she completely ignored us. Poor soul, she doesn't know what she's missing.

On the Up-Side, Keaun is getting baptized on the 21st, and Narilee and Robbie are committed for the 28th! WOOT! The baptismal font is clean and the water heater has been fixed and the ZL's cleaned all the jump suits for us, so now there's a fresh start! Lim and I have been on fire lately and the spirit has been really strong in our lessons. It will be even better if I can follow the mission schedule closer; including working out even though I hate it.

Also, Zorina keeps telling us and the other members that she wants to go do baptisms for the dead for her son! So that’s really cool. Zorina is very active and hasn't missed church for 4 weeks or so before her baptism!

Well I’m gonna set up my new email account! So I will let you all know about my new address soon. If you don't hear from me, just know you can continue sending mail to samorris@myldsmail.net for a while longer.

I LOVE YOU ALL! Keep being amazing. Work hard, it’s worth it.
Love, Elder Morris
PS
last p day me and Elder Larson (from Utah), invented a new language! Its sweet! It only has a 13 letter alphabet! Ha-ha!
OK, peace out!

Ship Up and Shape Out‏

The Subject really has nothing to do with the email; I just thought it was a funny play on the old and familiar shape up or ship out. Te-he-he.

I don't really remember much of what happened to me this week before Wednesday.... basically I think we looked up a lot of church media referrals and referrals from other missionaries. We also looked up referrals we got from our street sweep a while back where I sung for like an hour strait on the corner of Woodhaven and Jamaica. If you look at that on Google you will know how much of a miracle it was if anyone heard "my good words and came unto Christ". lol. I hope so.

Tuesday Elder Larsen got sick. We thought it was food poisoning because Elder Torres got sick just that night and was sick Wednesday morning. Elder Lim and I thought that we just had Iron stomachs or something... but there is no was it was food poisoning because like you found out Thursday I got sick. What you don't know is how bad it was. Probably one of the most intense 24 hr type viruses I’ve had. For some reason it made me hiccup and burp a lot which was uncomfortable when I was so nauseous. It got to the point where I just called for the elders and told them to "heal me". After the blessing things improved but I had to take Thursday to recover, I didn't want a relapse or anything. I will spare you the details on my poop, but just know things are solid now. LOL.

Hears the crazy part, Saturday afternoon Lim caught my bug. It must have mutated before it got to him because this is how things went down. 1. Started with a feeling like he got punched in the stomach really hard (symptom that Larsen had) 2. Then when we got home from our missionary efforts he wondered around the house looking confused, sad, and mad (he remembers none of this) He got in warm cloths and went and lay in bed with a space heater and started to writhe. 3. Not long after that he began to barf more than I ever did. 4. His whole body went numb (like when your leg or arm falls asleep) he couldn't feel it when the other elder was touching him. 5. He started crying and talking in Korean (his childhood language). So, we gave him a blessing. All he had running through his mind was "heal me" but he never told me that until later. He asked me to give him the blessing... when I did I kept having the words faith and heal come to my mind. I had no other thoughts so I fumbled until I basically said, according to the faith the Lord knows you have you can be healed....... um.... Now.

Well, he was up and talking to me later that night although he still felt a little sick. Crazy huh! The priesthood is real! Who knows how bad that would have been for Lim if we hadn't have used Gods priesthood power. His whole body was numb! That sounds really bad! But now I’m looking at him and he is totally normal. :)

Anyway, I don't have much time left so I got to go. but I will wrap up with a few more things.

Thank you so-o much sissy for your special testimony and love, your letters and emails mean so much to me, you strengthen me from afar. I know that I have received strength and faith from Eden. I know that she truly is the amazing missionary you say, in our own family, in families all over, and even specifically here in NY. I love you so much.

There is a new email service for missionaries now supported by GOOGLE! FINALLY! So I will send you all my new address probably next week or something? Until I do, just continue to mail me hear. They will forward everything to my new account.

Keaun has a date! Right now we are looking for him to be baptized on the 21st. His parents told him that it was his choice and they would support him.

We were supposed to have 5 investigators at church, :( only one came. But that one is going to get baptized! YEA!

That girl I was telling you about last time. We taught her again she is great. I know she will accept the message. I'll fill you in on that later.

-Love Elder Morris Samuels lol. jk. Elder Sam Morris