Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Hey everyone I've got some transfer news for ya that I know you are dying to know! So we got our transfer calls yesterday which is why we have pday on a Wednesday this week. Some pretty crazy things are happening. So, the sad thing is that I'm going to be leaving Tulsa. That is a real bummer. I've loved it here so much and I'm going to miss a ton of people I've become super close with. I'm also not going to get to finish training Elder Olsen. He is getting a great new companion to do that for me. I'm actually getting transferred to the one and only Bentonville! I'm really excited to serve there cause I heard it's an awesome area to be in. I'm also going to be finishing up training a different missionary that came out with Elder Olsen. His name is Elder Maddox and I've heard he's a stud so it should be good. I was asked to serve as the new Zone leader there too. I'm going to be serving as the only zone leader there so I'm hoping all goes well with this new assignment!

Last week, we had a really great week and yesterday I got to start saying my goodbyes. I've already said goodbye to both Larry and David and his family. David actually said that they are planning on being sealed in the San Diego temple in a year from now and they invited me so I have that to look forward to! There have been a couple other people I've already said bye to and it's been pretty sad but I know I'll see them all again eventually.

We saw Susan a couple times this past week. We went over to her house last week and helped her lay some sod down which was a lot of fun. She also came to church again this Sunday and got to stay for all 3 hours and just loved it, but the greatest of all these meetings was the one we had last night with her. We answered a ton of questions that she had and she was very happy with the answers she received and she agreed with all of them. Just before we left, I broke the news to her that I was going to be leaving and she was pretty tore up about it. I got to bear my testimony to her one last time and I felt the spirit there in her home so powerfully. It was incredible! I'm going to miss her a lot but she is progressing well and she'll be fine.

I'm super excited about this upcoming transfer. Every transfer, I get a renewal of my testimony that God knows where we need to be and who we need to be with. I've seen this time and time again while serving my mission and I now I'll continue to see that. God knows you perfectly. He also knows those who need you perfectly. I love you all and hope all is well. Hold off on all the letters and packages I know you want to send to me until next Monday and I'll have the new address for y'all.

Love,
Elder Leavitt

We set up a traveling visitors center at a park. It was very successful!

Saying goodbye to David and his family. They are actually moving so we helped them out.

Monday, September, 21, 2016

Hey Everyone!

Pretty incredible week this week. As you know, I talk about Kamal (our Syrian convert) a lot. Well, this past week were able to go to the OKC temple with him for the first time! It was so cool to go and see him do baptisms for the first time. He told us afterwards that he hasn't felt so much peace before and he kept saying that it's still with him. We got to go with a couple of less active members that we have been working with also. It was cool to see them all there too.

We had David's baptism this past Saturday and it was seriously indescribable! He was so ready for this next step in his life. Yesterday, he was confirmed a member and the spirit was so strong. He is going to do amazing things in his life. He is going to church a lot with his wife who is becoming active again. They are preparing to be sealed together a year from now so that's going to be an amazing day also.

It's cool to see that even though we had a baptism this past week, there is still a whole lot more work to do in this area. The YSA missionaries found a couple that wants to be taught so we went over there last night and taught the Restoration and the spirit there was very powerful. They really are looking for truth in their lives so we are going to help them know how to find it. We are way excited for them now!

It was quite the eventful week and I'm super thankful for that. The Lord is progressing His work here in Tulsa. We have recognized the obvious blessings, but we need to be thankful for the little ones that we have to look for also. Hope y'all have a blessed week!

Love,
Elder Leavitt

At the Oklahoma City Temple with Kamal.

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Davids baptism day.

Monday, September 12, 2016

Hey y'all! It's been another great week! I got to go on a couple exchanges this past week with some other Elders. On Tuesday, Elder Bayles from the Spanish branch came over to New Haven to speak some English for a change. He just barely came out this transfer. It was cool to see all the progress he has made as a missionary. Then on Friday, I got to go on an exchange with Elder Strobel and he came to New Haven too so that was a good time.

We weren't able to have a lesson with Preston this past week cause work has kept him slammed! He told us that 3 life guards just randomly got up and left and quit right in the middle of their shifts. He is the head at that pool so he had to cover for all 3 of them. This kept him from meeting with us which was a bummer. He said he has tonight off so we will  hopefully be seeing him at dinner with the member that introduced him to us!

We were able to go and see Susan again this week and she is just the sweetest thing ever. She's been trying to do all these projects around her house by herself so we showed up in service clothes and told her to put us to work! While we were helping her with her yard, she came out with some lemonade for us and just kept saying how grateful she was. After our service, we went inside and had an awesome discussion with her. The spirit was so strong when we testified of baptism to her. She said she'll pray about it. She also came to church yesterday again and the members just love her! We are excited to see her again this next week. Our next project with her is ripping out some wood flooring. That should be exciting!

We are going to have a baptism this Saturday! It's a part member family that we have been teaching for awhile. The dad's name is David and he is so excited to get baptized! If everything goes well, it should be done this Saturday!

The Lord has been pouring out blessings all over Tulsa lately and it's so cool to be able to be a part of that. This truly is the Lord's work and it will be done His way. As soon as we submit our will to his, we can be an instrument in his hand to help accomplish His work. Much love to all of you and I hope this next week is real swell.

Love,
Elder Leavitt

Chef Kamal's special this week: Mjedra

We have 3 Elders in the district training this transfer. Heres a family photo

Straight Thuggin

With Elder Olsen

Monday, September 5, 2016

#EarthquakeSurvivor2k16

So pretty cool story this week! A couple days ago we were sitting in our apartment at 7am. We had just got done with our workout and all of a sudden, our whole apartment starts to shake and it was shaking for a solid 10 seconds! We live on the 3rd floor of our building so we were freaking out! After awhile, we started getting calls from all these members asking if we were alright. Turns out we survived the biggest earthquake in Oklahoma history! A 5.6 earthquake a couple miles away from Tulsa. So now I've experienced an earthquake and a tornado. All I'm needing is a hurricane sometime soon.

This past week, we had our first lesson with Preston and it was such an awesome lesson. He's a lifeguard and we had a member working with him over the summer. Right before she left to go back to school, she gave him a Book of Mormon and told him to go to church. He came to church and then we had our lesson on the Restoration and he just kept telling us how it made sense. He was telling us about his reading of the Book of Mormon and he said he is ONLY in Mosiah! We were impressed! That's pretty far into it! He came to church again yesterday and he's eager for our next lesson. We set a date for him at the end of this month and we are hoping everything goes well.

We are also teaching an elderly lady named Susan who is just the sweetest thing. We invited her to church yesterday and she came! Some members saw her in the parking lot and didn't recognize her so they invited her to sit with them and they showed her around. It was really cool to see her there and we are planning on teaching her again this week!

We had Zone Conference this past week and one of the biggest subjects they hit on was repentance and I want to add my testimony of that. It honestly is the sweetest feeling in the world to know that you have been forgiven of your past mistakes and I would highly recommend it for those who are questioning it. I love you all and hope everyone has a blessed week!

Love,

Elder Leavitt

#workers

Our recent convert, Kamal made us a Syrian dinner

Monday, August 29, 2016

Alright pretty stellar week this week! We had a ton of really cool experiences and blessing so I'm going to have to try and wrap it all up into one email for ya!

Larry Green was baptized this past Saturday and it was one of the most spiritual moments of my mission. He asked if I would baptize him just a couple days before the baptism. I've never met a man so ready for the commitment and cleansing of baptism. There were a ton of people that showed up for the baptism and there was even a surprise guest! Spencer Dye (known before hand as Elder Dye) showed up for the baptism because he heard about it and he was one of the first missionaries to teach Larry. It was really cool to get to see him again and talk for awhile. I'm really excited to see where Larry's life is going to take him as a new member of the Church. He's going to do amazing things!

So we have got a couple new investigators this past week that we are really excited. One that we are pumped about is Preston. He came to church last week and loved it so we invited him to play ultimate Frisbee with the Elders quorum and so he came and then he came to church again yesterday. He said that he made up his mind about being Mormon and that he would talk to us later. He texted us and said that he was ready to take the discussions. We are going to see him later this week with a ward member who got home from his mission last week. We are excited to see how it will go.

I'm so thankful to be where I am and to be here at this time. This past week has really been awesome and I know that this work is the Lord's. I love y'all and hope all is well back home.

Love,
Elder Leavitt

He did it! Larry's baptism

Majestic companion pic

Monday, August 22, 2016

Since you heard a lot from me this past Wednesday, I'll try to put in as much as I can into this email haha. So, I went and picked up Elder Olsen on Thursday and we've been doing great ever since! He's from Utah (Surprise there) and he's excited to serve so we have been able to get a lot done these past couple of days!

On Saturday, we had the baptism interview with Larry and everything went just perfectly! He is going to be baptized this coming Saturday if everything plays out like it should! Larry has overcome so many obstacles because of the sincere desire that he has to be baptized. I'm really excited for him! The Bishop is going to be baptizing him and he asked me to witness and give a talk so I've got some assignments to take care of now!

Yesterday at church, Kamal (our Syrian recent convert) received the Aaronic priesthood and we were able to stand in the circle for that. It was such an amazing experience. After church, we went over to a members for dinner and he was telling us how excited he was to fulfill his duties in the church as a man holding the priesthood. Hearing him say all of this in his broken English and Syrian accent really made it an incredible experience. He's preparing to get his Temple recommend here soon too so hopefully we will be going to the temple with him!

Pretty exciting couple of days if I do say so myself. Seeing the eagerness of others to come closer to Christ has really made me step back. I've had this truth with me my whole life so I don't know how it feels to be without it, but I know that this Gospel changes lives. I've seen it. I love y'all and hope all is well!

Love,
Elder Leavitt

Improving my bowling game for pday.

I actually got this bowling shirt for free. 

Elder Olsen is in the white shirt.

Wednesday, August 17, 2016

Another awesome week here and a crazy one cause we received our transfer calls last night! Which explains why I'm sending out my weekly on a Wednesday. Of course, Elder Porter will be leaving tomorrow and he will be on the next plane home. It turns out I'll be staying but they are splitting the wards again so I'm only going to be serving in New Haven now and no longer Riverside. I'm pretty bummed about it but I'm just glad I get to stay another one. 6 months in Tulsa! Also, Fun Fact for ya: I'm going to be training again this next transfer! Really pumped about that. I'm Going to be killing off an Elder and welcoming another into the life of missionary work all in one day. I'm going to be training Elder Olsen and I'll be picking him up tomorrow morning. More details about him to come once I figure them out. It's going to be another great transfer here.

We met up with Larry this past week and we set everything up for his baptism which should be next Saturday! If everything goes alright with the interview, we should be golden with him. Also, We were sitting in church looking for some of our investigators, and the Bryan's (the part member family I mentioned last week) come walking in and smile at us like they were so happy to be there. And we were happy to see them! He is still on track for his baptism coming up soon but he is in the Riverside ward so it's going to be sad turning them over but we will hopefully still see them every so often! 

Really excited about the new opportunities and experiences that are going to be available to me this upcoming transfer. I look forward to helping another missionary adjust to the life style that we get to live. I testify that this is the Lord's work. We are so blessed to be apart of it. Love y'all!

Love,

Elder Leavitt

P.S. I'm going to be moving back to the apartment I was in before so that address will be  5315 S. Harvard Ave. Apt. L Tulsa, OK 74135. Remember: Charity is the Pure love of Christ :)

Men at work! Digging out fence posts

We did some bowling today for Elder Porters Birthday