Week 73 - Conference Was GREAT!

Alooooooooooha!

How are ya'll? Great to hear from you!! And thanks for the pictures - They're great! How did you move the entire drum set? But the pictures turned out great, so it looks like it was worth it!

So, I do have a Visa card, but it's been tucked away in my suitcase for about the past year (wow. That's a little bit of time.). I should be good with the money I have on my bank card (knock on wood - especially with what happened to Elder Black. I hope things get better for him! I've got to keep that in mind to ALWAYS know where my wallet is, and to keep careful track of it.).

As for the referrals from the Gladys Knight fireside: We received one, and she was the investigator that we brought. And then she moved the next day up to Dallas. She just called us at about 1:00 the next day, after we had delivered the gift bag, and said, "I'm moving up to Dallas! One of my relatives called and said that there is work up there, so now I'm just waiting for someone to come and pick me up." And now she's up there. Also, Cornelio just moved to the other side of the freeway (about a 10 minute bike ride), and so he's out of our area now. Hopefully, though, the other Elders will be able to find him and he'll be able to be baptized within the month!! That would be awesome!!

Conference was GREAT!! I loved it so much!! This was definitely the best Conference yet!! (And no matter how many times I say that, it's true, because we can receive at Conference the specific direction that we need at that time!) I really liked the talk by Carlos Cook, as well as the one by Tad McCallister. And, definitely, the talks by the 12 and the FIrst Presidency. There were a lot of things in their talks that I needed to hear, and a lot of personal direction that I needed. It's always great!

Wow, I'm already down to 12 minutes! Let's see, what else...
Overall, I think Conference was one of the greatest parts of the week. Oh! Two other experiences:

I think it was Thursday. It was a colder, Thursday night...We were riding along, and we were about to pass a complex where one of our investigators lived. At about the same time, both Elder Burbank and I thought, "Hmm...I wonder how Marino (the investigator) is doing." And then, he walked out of the complex! We hadn't seen him for three weeks, so the first thing he asked us was, "Where have you been?" He hadn't been progressing very well, so we hadn't really had any great drive to see him. But even with his vision problems, which before had stopped him from reading very well, he told us that he had read, "A little bit," of the Book of Mormon, and then proceeded to recount about half the book of Mosiah, and most of the book of Alma to us!! Wow!! He's been doing wonderful!! So we went over, talked to him a little bit about prophets (Oh, so we found him on Friday, and visited him on Saturday, between sessions of Conference), and then we all went over to conference together!! He had to leave a little early, just because he wasn't feeling well, but it was a great time, and we were super excited to see him again, and that he is finding his own testimony of the Church, for himself. He seems a lot more sure, a lot more confident and independant.

Then on Sunday, we were going to a complex to find someone to teach. We knocked on the door and he wasn't there. Soon after that, while we were still at the door, a man drove up in his car and said, "Hey! My friend Santos needs you to come by! He's sick, and so you should pray with him!" So we went by - he wasn't sick, but he accepted a baptismal date, and in the end, prayed that he might be able to go to Church on Sunday!!

Well, I've got to go!!

I love you all SOOO MUCH!! A infinidad, y mas alla!!

Elder Devin Collins