This is definitely the slowest area that I have been in

This is definitely the slowest area that I have been in but I know that that just means that there is lots of work here for us to do. I don't know how long it will take to start having people to teach but I have strong faith that it will happen before too long, as long as we continue to do our part to gain the Lord's trust in us for this area. We continue to do our best to find people to teach and yesterday we went by somebody who apparently we talked to before and we were able to teach him the restoration on his door step and then set up an appointment for next week to teach him and his family the plan of salvation.  Its been a little harder to get around in the last week since we have been on foot for most of it. Last week during my exchange with Elder Benton he accidentally blew the tire on Elder Tree's bike and after that everything that we tried to do to fix it seemed to just cause us more problems so we didn't have the bikes until Thursday when we were finally able to repair them and we were super excited to get back on them and get more done. When we got to our dinner that night we parked our bikes in front of the sister's car in the parking garage of the apartment complex and assumed that they would be safe there and much to our dismay when we left dinner we discovered that they were no longer there. Even though walking is arduous it gives Elder Tree and I a chance to talk a lot more  and get to know one another better so it has its plus sides, and hopefully soon the Truck Elders will bring us some bikes from my last area but until they arrive our feet are our vehicles. This morning we had a pretty awesome experience with some potential investigators. Apparently right before I came into the area Elders Tree and Koffi-Washington were able to give blessings to a husband and wife going through some medical crisis; this couple is neighbors of a member in our ward and so they were also able to have a member there to support them. We have kept in touch with them and have attempted to teach them and then this morning the member called us right before personal study and asked if we would be able to give the wife, Marsha, a blessing because she was struggling. When we got there we learned that she was feeling as though she was under some sort of demonic torment and that she just needed strength and support from people who are close to God. When Elder Tree gave the blessing he cast out whatever might have been bothering her and then proceeded to bless her with comfort and patience to get through the stresses of going through cancer. After the blessing we watched the Mormon Message "Lift" with them and talked about it for a little while and then Elder Tree read a few verses from 3rd Nephi when Christ was giving the sermon on the mount to the Nephites and from there we were able to teach them more about the Book of Mormon and why it is so important. We will continue to visit with them and hopefully as we teach them more and more they will feel the Spirit in their home and in their lives and they will be able to recognize His prompting them to follow what we share with them and ultimately join the church.

On Saturday and Sunday we had a stake conference with two general authorities, Elder J. Scott Dorius who is one of the new seventies called in April and Elder Christoffel Golden of the 70. They both gave amazing talks and mentioned some very important things and taught us a lot. Elder Golden began his talk by saying that it is totally okay to fall asleep in meetings and that it is even natural and beneficial so basically he is now one of my favorite general authorities, but he was such a great speaker that falling asleep this time wasn't an option. He is from South Africa so he talked a lot about Africa and told a story of how one time in the Congo they were baptizing too many people so he pulled the missionaries out of those areas and surprisingly the baptisms just continued to go up so he put them back in to slow down the work. All us missionaries laughed at that and it showed that it is possible to see baptisms simply through the work of the members. Hearing these two men bear testimony of the Savior was the coolest part, they truly know Him and recognize the role He has played for all of us and they can powerfully tell others of that knowledge and bring the Spirit into a crowded chapel with ease.

Each day out here is a new adventure and a new opportunity to learn how to truly live the gospel and help others see how important that is in their own lives. I love it and I wouldn't trade it for the world. I can't wait to continue seeing miracles among the people of Laguna Hills.

Love

Elder Cheever