Transfer Knews...‏

My Dearest Family,

-the pictures-Gotta have the district picture for the last meeting of the transfer.Last P-Day we went to POPS. Its on Route 66 and has every soda you could imagine. Too bad I don't care about soda. The food wasn't that great either, but at least it had a really cool giant Soda figure thing land mark. Well, things are still moving along here in Edmond 3rd ward. Our baptism date, Yao Yu, is progressing great and is on the road to be baptized on the 8th of November and we haven't been able to meet with the Evans family for a while, but the father wants to be baptized. It will be awesome if he gets baptized the same day or the week after Yao Yu and then baptizes his family when he gets the priesthood and they have that desire. The area is progressing great!So, about transfers, which are tomorrow. Lucky for me, I get to stay and see the fruits of my labor. My greenie, on the other hand, is headed out and away to Chickasha. That means, by the end of this coming transfer, I'll be six months in Norman and another six in Edmond. Two areas in one year. That's weird. Oh, and I'm a District Leader now. This is no fun, no fun, planning for district meeting every week, but on the other hand, Elder Scott is going to be my companion. He came out with me, so it will be cool. I'll be a District Leader over five other Elders. It should be a great District.It sounds like things with the family are good. Natalie got a great haircut and Roger got a pink shirt...uh, I'm thinking San FranCisco is wearing in too much. haha! but seriously...a pink shirt...time to retire that bad boy and put on the biker jacket.

Love ya!-Elder Osness

Can I just get baptized?‏

Dear Family,

My week was awesome! Sorry to say some of the stuff happening in other places isn't so awesome such as the protests in San FranCisco. Keep your head up. This should be some cheery news for ya. All of the hard work in this area is begining to pay off. On Sunday we had five investigators to church. One of which, Yao Yu, has a baptismal date for the 8th of November. She's from China and married a member who lives here and she's been progressing great! We've been meeting with them for about two weeks and its been going very well. The other four is a family of five, the Evans. They would all be considered investigators except one of their daughters is only five years old. Franky, the father, is doing better than I could ever hope for with an investigator. We gave them all a soft baptismal commitment about two weeks ago, on the first lesson, which is "when they come to know these things are true would you be baptized?" They agreed. Well, yesterday Franky asked if he had to wait for the rest of his family to find out its true or if he could just get baptized. Amazing! I hope the rest of his family begins to get as exciting as he is. If things continue, next month we should have five or six baptisms. The sixth comes from another part-member family, the Manzer's, who is becoming more and more desirous to know if this is real and true. Sister Manzer knows what the church stands for is great, but has never been sure if there could really be one true church. We'll see where she goes.I always enjoy the mail and pictures. Thanks Malissa and Crystal for the package. The seat cushon is great! Thanks for the drawings Makinzie!The pictures are of me, my greenie elder Kleinman, Elder Remmington (DL) and his companion elder Miesner hanging out in the institute building, waiting for some other missionaries.

LOVE YA!

Dang false teachers

Hey fam! Well, first of all, thanks for the pile of mail in my inbox! Its always exciting to hear from ya'll. got a little Okey in me. Don't worry, it will wear off on the flight home, when that time rolls around.So, the pictures are of last P-day. We went bowling and its way expensive here. I remember paying like $6 at home. It was $11 here and I wasn't as good, crapy balls and crapy lanes, but its always fun to spend time with some other missionaries and I got a high score of 183.On Sunday we taught a great family, the Evans. We finally ran into a concern. Donna, the mom, doesn't fully understand how God gives authority/priesthood to his servants and when we taught about baptism and it being done by propper authority, up popped the concern. What's funny is, people here always seem to have a problem with us declaring God's authority lies in ONE church and they always know we are basically saying that nobody else has the right to do ordinances...or better yet, to preach the gospel. We don't even have to say anything and instantly something inside them tells them their preacher doesn't have authority, yet they want to defend that aspect. I have never told anyone their preacher doesn't have authority, but only how it is given and where it lies...they always know what that means, but for some reason don't want to accept that thought, even though we are right in front of them to offer the correct way. I wish it could be as simple as Acts 18 and 19, where someone with good intentions baptizes people, but not correctly so when Paul comes they accept the correct way. Their doing good though. Its a small stumbling block. Her husband is ready to jump in the font as soon as its filled, but we want his wife to be at a similar state so the family can be baptized. Great family, just taught by false teachers too much.Its been fairly good, someday I'll speak with enough power to penatrate the hearts of men...and women.It sounds like things at home are great! If this homosexuality stuff continues just shoot Romans 1:20something. Its a sin and completely against God!Well, love ya!

Progressing investigators

Well family,

This week was not full of teaching, but we got four great new investigators and one came to a conference session! Which was great. I've never been so excited to hear the prophet and general authorities speak until my mission...great weekend. Anyway, back to those investigators. The Evans family were taught last night...and already have come to church and have noticed the changes it has made in their lives. One of which is their marriage. As soon as Franky (father) came to church the first time with his daughter, things in the family started looking better. Then he came again...and bore his testimony in Sunday School of how he's felt about church and the Book of Mormon. Then he brought his whole family to church and we began teaching. They are a great family and hopefully I can see them get baptized before I leave this area...that gives me probably three weeks, depending on transfers, but at the rate we are going it will be accomplished. They are excited to learn and can't get enough of the gospel. That and conference was pretty much all that was real exciting this week. We have another investigator named June we've taught twice and she is enjoying the knowledge we give her, but I don't know how much "real intent" she has. God will give her some, if she keeps her commitments.So, what's new at home? Its probably started to cool down in the last few days. Oklahoma has been really nice to us the last month...weather wise. How's the house project? I bet its nice to have that tile in the kitchen. Well, thanks for all the motivation you give me! and thanks for the e-mails Malissa and Roger.

Love ya!-Elder Osness