The Last Full Week!

New Year's Partay in Blackfoot. Boom!

The final week. Haha I can't believe it. It's been quite the adventure. The mission is something you prepare for all of your life...2 years and then BOOM. it's over...and you have the rest of your life and eternity to look back at it. And luckily for me, it's been a great one. I remember something that Brother, now President, Stroud told me. "You have two years to work hard, and the rest of your life to look back at it." That always stuck with me...so it will be pretty cool to have him release me.

New Year's Eve was awesome. We went to some member's homes as a Zone and played games...we also watched Frozen. I think I'm going to have to watch again though because all the sister missionaries were singing the songs and quoting the whole movie...so it kind of ruined it for me.

In other news, Kayla Scott is preparing for baptism on Jan 17th. Of course I won't be here for that, but I'm so excited for her baptism. Her husband is a less active and he's trying to get the priesthood. The whole family has come to church the past 3 weeks. We've been teaching them for a while and it's been cool to see their progression. I think it's a tender mercy that Heavenly Father is blessing me with this opportunity. The whole ward is supportive and doing a great job on fellow shipping them. In fact, we had a ton of investigators attend church this past Sunday! It was in the 10th ward (Our Stake President nick-named that ward the Black Hole of Blackfoot because it was a dead ward lol). And holy cow, all of our hard work is paying off =).

Well just to share a few thoughts with you, I copy and pasted a letter that I sent to Sister Jorgensen. She was just asking about my mission and thought I would share it with you. 

"But yes, as I am coming to a close on my mission I have been doing a lot of pondering. This was probably the craziest 2 years of my life hahaha. I never would have imagined that I would be in Idaho, trying to learn Spanish, and sharing the restored gospel. But..this mission, and especially my mission president...was all tailored to my learning. Here's just a few things that I have learned:

• The Church is true. And the Book of Mormon? Also true. If people would just read the book and pray...it's a guarantee that you're going to find your answer. I've read it over and over on my mission. I actually went through the whole Book of Mormon and highlighted every reference to Jesus Christ, a doctrine or a principle of the Gospel, attributes of Christ, and the words that He spoke. Needless to say...my BoM turned into a giant rainbow coloring book after that. It mentions the Savior on about every page. And if anybody honestly believes the Bible to be the word of God...there's no way that this book isn't true. 
• We have a Prophet today, and the 12 Apostles have true authority. We've had General Authorities and Apostles visit this mission...every time they speak they answer questions that I have been yearning to seek answers for. coincidence?? I think not. They are geniuses!! The church truly is in good hands. My mission president has put me in some unusual areas...but later I realized that Heavenly Father was in that process during transfers. People have been placed in my path in each area, good and bad, so that I can learn. I will forever be grateful to the members, missionaries, and investigators that have had an impact on me. 
• I can do hard things. I never thought I could be a leader. I never thought I could learn Spanish. It took a while for me to get it down...but I can speak it haha. I never thought I could lead missionaries...I thought you had to be born to do that stuff. But, the Lord places you in uncomfortable positions so you can stretch and grow. God doesn't give us callings because of what we have done, but because of what we can become.
• The importance of not comparing. Comparison is the thief of joy. For the longest time I struggled with that. I haven't seen as much "success" as other missionaries. I'm ending my 2 year mission with 4 baptisms. I see other missionaries baptize once a month. I have friends who are serving in far away lands baptizing and experiencing the joy of baptism on a regular basis. Why not me? I don't really know, but it really doesn't matter. I've learned that God is responsible for the conversion. Not me. I am to do the will of the Father. Be obedient. Testify. Follow-up. God measures success in a very different way that what man does. My companion, Elder Cook, often says, "I'm tempted to feel like a failure...But I won't."
• God is in the details in our lives. Miracles happen literally every day. We just need to have the spiritual eyes to see them. 
• I learned how to be an effective member missionary! It's so easy to be a member missionary! I literally can't wait to share it with all of my friends =) As Elder Bednar states, "Missionaries are full-time teachers, members are full time finders." 

I could go on and on...but my time is limited. I wish I could express more in this letter, but there's just a nugget of my thoughts and feelings. I love my Heavenly Father for this incredible journey he has given me."

Well there you have it. You will get to hear more stories when I come home...but yes, we can figure out the details of what we can do the day I get back...but having a nice dinner sounds lovely to me =)

I love you all and thank you for your faith in me and the prayers on my behalf. I've felt your prayers and faith carry me through the mission. See y'all in a week!

Elder Petitt