First of all, some housekeeping.



I would just like to announce that my space bar is a bit sticky. Any 

errors in this letter (including spelling and grammar errors) will be 

blamed on it.



The reason I didn't write last week is because the Jones Center was 

closed. I don't know what for, but we don't have library cards, so we 

couldn't go to the Springdale public library. I hope Cindy is getting 

my letters. I've been writing her on a weekly basis (although I did 

miss writing her three weeks ago when we went caving). Perhaps I'm 

sending them to the wrong address now? Becky and Jeff - yes, I am 

getting your letters. Dad - still getting the boxes where apostrophes 

are supposed to occur. Also, please note that Fayetteville is out of 

my area, and I can't actually go there with a really good reason, 

pending permission from the Zone Leaders.... My Trek has lasted me a 

whole month now. All I need is a guard to prevent the gears from 

eating my pants again (for now I just throw it in my sock). I don't 

know anything about a "Road to Emmaus" video.



The Marshallese work is going slow, but Sandra Casso, who I began 

teaching nearly three months ago, will be getting baptized next 

Saturday. It looks like we'll all be here for another six weeks, 

which puts me in Springdale for six months, ¼ of my mission! Add 

another six weeks, and it's ½ my mission! They say the time just 

flies by. I keep expecting to wake up on the floor at home, but I 

keep waking up in my mattress on the floor.



Today we watched Best Two Years. It's quite different watching it on 

your mission. It is approved by Sister Seal, so I didn't break any 

rules. I hear there's a big fire in Southern Utah. I did hear about 

the Harry Potter 5 movie, and there are advertisements for Harry 

Potter 7 at Wal-mart. I'm pretty irritated that I won't be able to 

read it for another year-and-a-half, but I'm sure that will pass in a 

couple of weeks. I hear the new Transformers movie is way good, 

though. Mixed reviews on Spiderman 3, nothing about Pirates 3.



Yes, Elder Smith from Price is here. Currently he's my zone leader. 

He knew Janelle at CHS. On Friday, he will become the new Assistant. 

The weather has been pretty nice, actually. Mid to high 80s, usually, 

but it's been raining a lot, so it's keeping the temperature down, as 

well as the humidity (still higher than Utah, but bearable). Luckily 

the summer is ¼ over.



Elder Albert is doing well. I need to teach him more about the 

paperwork side of missionary work, which I've been a bit lax in 

lately. But I'll get it some how. I'm not exactly sure what will 

happen in the long run, but I do know at some point, the Marshallese 

elders will be sent elsewhere for 6 months (strictly English), and 

then back to Springdale for 6 months, and then elsewhere again, as 

far as I know. I don't know what will happen to Elder Jaynes and I, 

but if I do get pulled off of Marshallese early enough, I'm going to 

request being put on Spanish. I really need how to learn to cook some 

genuine Spanish food....



Oh, I gave a talk in the Marshallese sacrament meeting yesterday. I 

wrote it in pretty simple English, wrote my own translation in 

Marshallese, and then had Elder Albert and Elder Kaneko help me fix 

some of the errors. Luckily, there weren't very many. I think it 

helped me understand a bit more of the language. Haven't really 

taught more than one or two principles from the lessons in Preach My 

Gospel, but I do notice that I'm (slowly) getting better.



Regarding the Pope announcing that salvation only comes through the 

Catholic Church, I have this to say: the Bible and the Book of Mormon 

both declare that there is no other way nor name under heaven whereby 

salvation can come, only in and through the name of Jesus Christ. 

Salvation only comes through His great sacrifice, and His precious 

blood that was spilt will only cleanse us of our sins if we follow 

His gospel. It sounds like we both declare the same thing: that we 

inherit the authority to perform the sacred ordinances in the gospel 

of Jesus Christ from the original twelve apostles. If that authority 

was not lost, then there would be no need for the Restoration of that 

authority. Prayerful study of the Book of Mormon will lead one to an 

answer as to whose claim is correct, because they cannot both be 

correct. And I know that the Book of Mormon is true, so the authority 

must have had to be restored. Interestingly enough, the Bible 

declares that there would be a need of a restoration. 2nd 

Thessolonians 2:3 says: "Let no man deceive you by any means: for 

that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first." 

Interstingly enough, I learned that if we go back to the original 

Greek, Paul used the word "apostolos," which was translated to 

"falling away." The word in Greek also means "a change in 

government." Paul not only told us that the Primitive Church would 

fall, but he told us how it would fall: by a change in church 

government. There are no prophets or apostles in the Catholic church, 

the foundation of Christ's Church, according to Paul. We have the 

same organization, and we have that foundation of apostles and 

prophets. But it all comes down to this: is the Book of Mormon true? 

"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God." If you don't know if 

the Book of Mormon is absolutely true or absolutely false, and if 

that knowledge was not given to you directly from God himself through 

the power of the Holy Ghost, I urge you to prayerfully study the Book 

of Mormon, and ask God if it is true, and you will find out if it is 

true or not. I've done this, and I know that it is true. No man gave 

me this knowledge, God gave it to me. And thus, no man can take it 

away.



Time to go. Keep reading and praying!