Well this has been one crazy week, it has just flown by! Tuesday we had our zone training on teaching and planning. I never thought that learning about planning could be so awesome. But we had a great training and the spirit was really strong. After that we went on exchanges and I was there for two days! So I can't tell you too much about what happened in my area, but the Washington area is doing great haha. Thursday was definitely the highlight of the week. That was the day that we got our iPads, but that wasn't even that big of a deal for me. The best part of it was having the whole mission get together able
to see all of my friends that I came out with from the MTC. I was so happy to see all of them again! That was the highlight of the day! At the end of the meeting all of the missionaries stood and sang Now Let Us Rejoice. The spirit was so strong as all the missionaries stood and sang together. I am so grateful to be apart of this mission. In the training learned how iPads are just another tool in helping others come unto Christ. They didn't even really talk about what we were going to do with them which I liked. Everything we do is centered on
bringing others closer to Christ . So I did something that is probably no surprise to all of you. So after we got our iPads, I set mine down to take a picture with someone. After, I was talking to people and I realized that I had no idea where my iPad was. I looked all over the
place and couldn't find it. So I had to get up in front of everyone with a Mic and announce that I had lost my iPad and that if anyone found it to please bring it to me. That was pretty embarrassing, especially since we had only had them for about 5 min. Someone else
accidentally took mine so they had to get me a different one. But I was he only one out of two hundred missionaries to lose mine. If anyone was going to do it, it would be me haha
Well I am so grateful for all of the support from all of you. I KNOW the savior lives. I am so grateful for the love he has not only for me but for all. I am grateful that I can have hope because of him. Have a good one!
Elder May

Mission Picture

Hey everyone! This has been another great week! I have some great news, I caught a fish last p-day!! Finally after like a month of trying I finally got it. It wasn't the biggest, but that is okay. I am just trying to save the big fish for other people to catch.

On Tuesday I was able to go on Exchanges with Elder Miller. He is one of the coolest guys ever (even though he is from Canada). We were able to talk to so many people on the streets, it was great. We had a lesson with our investigator Reggie and at the end when he said he prayer, he started to cry. He said that he knew that Heavenly Father heard his prayer. I know that Heavenly Father did and it is amazing when others can truly recognize that love He has for them.

Friday we picked up a new investigator on the way up to check the mail. She is our neighbor and is Super awesome. We talked about what we do as missionaries and she couldn't believe that we would do that. She then asked us what we believed in anyway. Well that was like the best question ever! We were more then happy to fill her in. We taught her the restoration and she is SO excited to read the Book of Mormon. She kept saying she felt something the whole time we were there. The spirit is so important in everything we do. If they can just feel that, that is when conversion WILL take place!

Friday we had a dinner apointment and there were a bunch of kids there. We got to play tag and Duck, Duck Goose. I was pretty rusty on those skills for sure. But it was a blast. On Saturday we had a ward party at Brother and Sister Lawsons house. We had an awesome turn out, the only problem was it poured rain the whole entire time! Their house wasn't big enough for everyone there and they only had a couple of canopy's up outside. So Elder Hoyt and I stood outside eating our soggy chips in the rain! It was awesome. There wasn't one dry spot on me! Sunday on the Less active people we have been working with came to church for the first time in years!! That was awesome. His name is Carl White and one of our lessons with him that week he even shined my shoes for me! He was in the military so he got them looking pretty nice.

Well I hope everyone has a great week. This church is true, I know it! It is so important that we hold onto the faith we have and never let it go. And because we have faith, what are we going to do to show our faith. Love you all.

Elder May

Elder May and his fish named Buck

This has been such an amazing week!! We were able to be apart of so many miracles!! April was a harder month for both us and the sister missionaries (which is okay, hard times are when we get to rely on the Lord more then we ever have before) so our ward decided to do a 40 day fast for missionary work! It has been crazy, as soon as the fast has started we have been able to find 3 new investigators, and we found two of them yesterday! I love being able to see the Lord's hand blessing this ward and this area. I know that just showing the faith that we have and the going out and acting on that faith brings miracles! Faith is a real power and when we put our faith in the Savior we have no need to fear! Everything will work out the way he wants. And hey, I don't know about you, but that is good enough for me!

On Wednesday I got a call from President Johnson asking me if I would come to MLC the next day in Pittsburgh. That was a random call but I was super excited. Elder Baker and I went on a companion exchange that day so we could go up to Pittsburgh for the meeting. It was one of the best days ever! President Donaldson for The District 2 was the one giving the training a long with Brother Gonzalez. It went all day long but I learned so much. I learned that I have sooooo much I need to work on as a missionary. I was a little overwhelmed at first but I know that Heavenly Father doesn't expect me to be perfect right away. All he asks for is progress. I love going up to Pittsburgh because I get to be in my first area the whole time. It was so awesome.

Also on Wednesday we got a text from our Investigator Paloma saying that she was in the Hospital. She is the one who speaks mostly all spanish. We had thought she had moved to Nebraska but apparently she moved back because she needed to be in the Hospital. We were able to go up there and talk to her for a while and then give her a blessing. I love the spirit that comes as we are able to use the Priesthood. I have been able to give lots of blessings out here and it is really humbling to be able to help these people with the power that Heavenly Father has given us.

Sunday was amazing. We were able to give another blessing to a member of our ward. After the blessing we asked if there was anything else we could do for them. As we asked she looked in the corner and she yelled BEE! Apparently she is really scared of them so I took my shoe off and was chasing it down trying to kill it. It was a pretty agile bee though and it took a while, but eventually I was able to kill it. We told her that if she ever found another Bee in her apartment to let us know and we would come kill it as fast as we could.

We also we able to have an amazing lesson with Dorothy. We talked to her on the street and she said that we could come back sometime. We went back yesterday and we were able to talk to her on her porch. The spirit was really strong as we testified of Christ. One of the best parts was she was the one sharing her testimony most of the time. She is such an amazing good hearted person. I know that as she reads and prays about the Book of Mormon she will receive her answer. I know she will. I am so grateful to be here in Wheeling WV, at this time. It is such a beautiful place. I love being a missionary. I have learned so much and I would never trade these experiences for anything else in the world. Jesus Christ lives and he is our Savior. If you ever are going through anything, have faith, it will all be okay. I hope you all have a great week.

Elder May

Hey everyone!! This week was a great one! Well I don't know if it was too good of one for Elder Hoyt. He sprained his ankle about a week ago and we took him in to get it checked out. They said he got a 3 degree sprain and that he tore all of the ligaments in his ankle. So yeah he got it pretty good. The really funny part is that he injured it trying to do some flying Irish heel click thing! I keep telling him it is hard to feel bad for him when he injured it like that, it was just too funny! Just kidding I do feel bad for him but he isn't letting him slow him down which is great! He is a great missionary and I am grateful for his example.

So on Monday we went fishing... and I almost caught a lot of fish! They got lucky this time. We were out there fishing when out of nowhere it started POURING!! But we had a great week. We have been struggling to find people this month but that is okay because I know that we are doing all we can and the Lord will bless us. We have appointments set up for next week so it will all be good. Hopefully I can learn how to use a computer next week and figure out how to email. Have a great week.

Elder May

The highlight of this week was definitely General Conference! Ahh man I loved it so much. All of the talks were amazing and I was able to feel the Spirit very strongly for the last two days. I loved how a lot of the talks seem to be centred on us having our foundation in Christ. Hardships and trials are going to come in our lives, I can promise you that. But I can also promise you that when those storms of life come, if our foundation is built upon Christ, we will not fall. That is a guarantee . He is there for us at all times and I am so grateful for the Strength that comes because of him. On our own we might not be able to make it, but he hasn't asked us to do it on our own. We have Him every step of the way.

This week has some awesome things happen as well. On Thursday I was on exchanges with Elder Miller. I loved serving with him for the day. We are really similar and he wants to work hard so that was awesome serving with him. The funny part was that this awesome family in the ward planned and Easter Egg hunt for us that day and Elder Hoyt was in a different area haha. So he missed out on that one. He was pretty Jealous which I had to remind him is against the commandments haha. Later on we were able to teach Josh. He is doing awesome still. He said he has felt the presence of the Holy Ghost with him throughout the whole week! He has noticed it's preasence in his life already which is super awesome. He even volunteered to go on splits with us the next day. He was excited every time we saw some one and was ready to talk to them and give them Book of Mormons and everything! And he has only been baptized a week. Man what a great example.

Thank you everyone for the examples that you are. I hope that you were all able to have an awesome Easter. Have a good one.

Elder May

Cutest little dog ever

Elder May's new mission car! (I seriously doubt it)

Looking cool

This has been the greatest week ever!! I can't even express my gratitude for our Heavenly Father! Thomas and Josh both got baptized on Saturday! I was able to baptize Thomas and Elder Hoyt baptized Josh. I still can't believe it. They are both so awesome! Josh kept saying over and over how he had never felt anything like this before and when he walks into the church it is like nothing else in the whole world matters. By teaching Thomas I have really come to recognize the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. It is a real power and only through it can we be cleansed from sin. The only thing is that it cleanses us from anything! The power of the Atonement is so real and being able to be out here and experience that first hand has been the biggest blessing of my life so far.

On Sunday Josh and Thomas were able to be confirmed. I was able to confirm Josh and Brother Orum confirmed Thomas. It has been so cool being able to use the Priesthood so much in this area. After church Fernando was given the Aaronic Priesthood. While we were sitting at church and I looked over at our row and I saw Fernando, Josh, Thomas, and a Less Active we have been working with named Kevin. It was so humbling to see all of these people that have changed their lives through Christ and that Elder Hoyt and I are lucky enough that we have a loving Heavenly Father that gracious enough to let us be a part of it. These people have been so prepared by the Lord. Elder Hoyt and I didn't do anything, I am just so grateful that Heavenly Father has let me be a part of the work here in Wheeling WV. I can testify that he loves us so much. More then we can ever know. It is a perfect love that is always there no matter our choices, which I am so grateful for.

On Friday we were able to go see a LA family named the Grows. She said that she used to have missionaries over all the time and that she even had a special "missionary" cabinet. I looked inside and it was just full of cereal, twinkies, chips, granola bars,cookies, and the best part, fruit snacks! I was in heaven. I decided that I really like missionary cabinets haha. Between 

all the pie and now this family we visit now, who knows what I am going to look like when I leave this area! We were able to show them the Because He Lives video and she said that she had to start thinking about baseballs in the middle of it so she wouldn't cry. That wasn't the response I was expecting but hey, at least she felt the spirit. Hopefully we can go see them again this week.

I hope you all have an amazing week, especially with conference coming up. Something that has been really cool that I have been able to do is to bring a question into conference and faith, and that question will be answered. You should all definitely try it! I know with all sincerity of heart that this is Christ's church. We are so blessed to be a part of it. We can all play a part in helping it progress in the little things that we do. Thank you for all of the support.

Elder May

This has been another great week! The best part is that Josh and Thomas both passed their baptism interviews and they are going to be baptized this Saturday! I am so excited. Elder Hoyt and I have been blessed so much out here these last couple of months. I know that it is out of the goodness and love of our Heavenly Father and we are going to keep working our hardest so we can always be ready for those blessings.

We met with Thomas this week and we really wanted to make sure that he was ready for Baptism and that he was aware of the Commitment he was going to make. We talked with him and we said that we wanted to really make that he thought that he was ready. The next time we met with him he said that he had prayed about it and that he knew  he was ready. But then he said that he wanted to do better on his scripture study. We have been talking to him and he is doing great with his studies and I know that he is ready to be baptized. He has been doing amazing with the Word of Wisdom and he has a very strong testimony of the Atonement. One of the best parts about being out here has just been being able to see people completley change their lives through the Atonement of Christ. And Thomas is definitely one of those people. He is so much happier now and he has hope. That makes everything worth it.

The work is going great out here and we are able to meet with lots of people. The ward is especially awesome. I know that is the biggest reason the work has been progressing the way it has. Members make the biggest difference in missionary work. Always look for ways to be a member missionary! One of the members took us to play tennis in indoor courts today!! It was so fun! He had all the rackets that I used and I got to play this pretty good player and we had an intense match. That was awesome and we are about to go get some pie so this day probably couldn't get any better!

I am so grateful to be out here and for all of your support. This church is true and I am so excited for Easter. Because of Christ we have EVERYTHING. Always remember that and let that be your motivation. He has done so much for you, so what can you do for others. have a great week.