PICTURES!!!

Today's email was a big deal since we don't get too many of these-pictures.
Doesn't he look great?
This picture is so Josh-holding a cow!!!!
Halle was so confused at how he performed this cool trick.



King of the Rock!


He has the whole world at his feet!
I loved all the pictures but this last one really made me smile. He has the biggest grin on his face-what else could make a mom happier.
In his email he told us this cool story:
"Elder Carver and I had kind of a cool experience at the beginning of the week. We were walking up a road in the mountains one night and there was no power so it was pitch black. Suddenly we both had a feeling we should go the other way. We decided to follow the prompting even though it would add about five minutes to the walk home. As we started going down this other street after a couple minutes we saw a woman praying in a dark corner-as soon as she saw us she got up and ran over to us. It turns out she was an inactive member that we met awhile ago and she had been praying for Heavenly Father to send someone to help her. We were able to give her some advice and help her out. It was really cool. It is amazing how Heavenly Father lines everything up. We were on that side of town, received the prompting, and we were there in the exact moment she was praying for help. If there had been power she would have been in her house praying so we wouldn't have seen her anyways. It was awesome-truly Heavenly Father does hear and answer our prayers. It was really cool."

Christmas Phone Call

We were able to talk to Josh today from 10:00-12:00 - two whole hours!
Talking with him truly made Christmas for us all. To know that he is still really out there and doing well was such a blessing for us. It is so weird but since I haven't heard his voice in so long I was so relieved for just that simple blessing. He was so upbeat and funny. I am sure today was hard for him but hopefully our prayers were heard and he was able to enjoy the day and not think about home too much.
Our Christmas package for him arrived a couple days ago on the bus. I was getting a little nervous about him receiving it. However, it doesn't really matter how he got it or when he got it -- just that he did get it.
So happy he has the opportunity to serve and teach the DR people.
Endure to the End Elder Flake!!!!!

fellowship of the unashamed

I have been meaning to get this in the blog. Josh send us an email explaining to us about a quote he had found and how much he loved it. "It is awesome and it has become my new favorite quote, my goal as a missionary is to become a member of this fellowship of the unashamed." He quoted a bit of it for us but not the whole thing. We found it later and so I wanted to share it.

"I am part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have the Holy Spirit power. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made-I am a disciple of His. I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future is secure. I'm finished and done with low living, sight walking, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tame visions, worldly-talking, cheap giving, and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need pre-eminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean in His presence, walk by patience, am uplifted by prayer and I labor with power.

My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions are few, my Guide is reliable, my mission is clear. I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, hired away, turned back, diluted, or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the enemy, pander at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I won't give up, shut up, let up, until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, give up till I drop, preach till all know, and work till He stops me. And when He comes my banner will be clear!"

-From Words Aptly Spoken by Dr. Bob Moorehead

What power in these words. Hopefully we will all be members of this elite group!!!!

420

Our email from Elder Flake was very short but so amazing. We have been praying as a family all week that Josh would achieve his goal of 400 contacts. They received 420 contacts-more than any other in their whole zone. We all cried knowing how our Heavenly Father had blessed him and his companion. No doubt he worked hard and said there were a couple who were really close to baptism. I continue to be in awe at the work that is being done out there by these young men.
Good job!!!!!!!
I had asked Josh what he wanted in his Christmas package. Sister Naumann from our Desert Vista ward is traveling to the DR in a few days and is taking his package to him-so we needed his requests. He responded, "I can't really think of anything in particular to put in the Christmas package, thanks for asking though, maybe some skittles or something." Easy to please right. Skittles it is then . . . !!!!!!!

BARAHONA

We received an email finally today around 3:00. Josh is alive and surviving.

Like you see his first area is Barahona right by the beach. It is located 3 hours west of Santo Domingo. He just kept saying over and over how beautiful it was. They are surrounded by mountains and everything is green.
His new companion is Elder Carver from Texas-he has only two months left. Josh said that he isn't wanting to work too hard so he let Josh make the goal for week. The weekly goal for the zone is 200 contacts-Josh set a goal for 400!!!! Prayer will get him there. He is so excited to work hard-that would make any parent proud.
Wilky, a man they met, helped them push a guys truck out of the street. As they talked to him they realized what a cool guy he was and they even got him to go to church with them yesterday. So great!!!!!
I called my friend Annie from our Desert Vista ward who is from the DR and she couldn't say enough good about Barahona. This is where her mom was born. Annie said they spend a lot of summers there because it is so beautiful and there are a lot of cool little towns to enjoy.
His feet hurt but said it was awesome. Pain never felt soooo good?!!!!!!!!
We love you!!!!

In the past few emails Josh has talked about going to a university that is real close to them. They seem to be giving out a lot of Book of Mormons and getting a lot of referrals. A band of missionaries-who can stop them?
New room-mates came in this week: 22 Dominicans, 1 Mexican and 1 from Argentina.

Our first email from Josh in the DR was awesome.
Some of the fun things he mentioned were:

1. It is so beautiful here and also very humid.
2. Everything here is so green and tropical.
3. It rains a couple times every day and the power has gone out 4 or 5 times.
4. MTC is called the CCM in the DR.
5. 32 missionaries from the U.S. and 13 from Haiti in the CCM.
   
6. Teachers speak very little English which makes it interesting.
7. Sister Perkins, President Perkins wife, challenged us all to memorize the First Vision, D&C 4, and our purpose as missionaries all in Spanish. She said that the record for anybody doing it in the year and a half that she has been here had been 2 weeks-I got it done in 4 days!!! (That's my boy!)

As you can see he is doing great. What a guy!!!!!