April 22, 2013

Hello All,
Today is my last day in Townsville. I am flying back down to Brisbane this evening and I will be finding out my new area tomorrow. I am going to miss Townsville a lot. I have worked hard and the fruits of my labor are starting to pay off. I am leaving after setting 6 baptismal dates for people to be baptized in May. 2 of them are still Bryan and Tyler, but this time I am certain that they will be baptized. We worked with them a bit more and they really are excited to be baptized. the other four are from a family where the mother is a member, but her husband and children are not members. Joeseph Sagigi who I talked a little bit about last week is getting baptized on the 11th of May and receive the priesthood and then he will be baptizing his 3 kids on the 18th of May. It is really exciting to see that family grow. They are already planning their temple sealing as a family for next May. I will still be on the mission and I will be able to see them be sealed as a family in the temple. That will be really exciting!
I have worked with a lot of people in the 6 months I have been here. I baptized 1 person in Townsville and brought many less active members back into the gospel. This work is truly great! I am going to miss these people and families very much. I really am grateful for my chance to be a missionary. It has been a great experience, and it is something that I encourage everyone else to do. I will let you all know how my new area is next week. A mission is worth it. The mission field is growing. When I first became a missionary here there were less than 150 missionaries in the ABM and now there is over 200 and there is estimated to be over 250 within the next 6-9 months. Sister Missionaries are coming in at bigger numbers than Elders. Missionary Work is moving forward all over the world. It is really cool to see the increase in people willing to serve and the increase in Sister Missionaries. It is cool to be a missionary during this change and to see everything that is happening. The Church is growing a lot here, and it is most likely growing all over the world! 

My week was good and I am looking forward to new challenges that I will be receiving these next couple days. I miss you all and I hope you have a great week!

Love
Elder Kyler Powelson