Hey Family,

This past week was a stressful and good week. It started off last Monday as we helped a member in our ward build a new shed in his back yard because his last one was taken away in last year’s April tornado. Then we went to a sisters house to help her with her yard and also to burn ditches. It was exciting, but not as fun and exciting as doing it with Grandpa Nessen on the back of the 4 wheeler. We then had to burn a huge pile of sticks and leaves. Then we quickly went back and got cleaned up to go and teach a Preach My Gospel class at the church. Erin’s friend Amber came, which was really good.

Thursday might have been one of the best days of my mission so far. We worked on our weekly planning, then I interview 2 kids in Oak Mountain to be baptized. Then Amber's mom invited us to their house. We were so excited, but so nervous because we had not met her step dad yet and of course he is Baptist. When we got there, we just started talking for a bit. We then started teaching lesson 2 about the plan of salvation, then a little out of lesson 1 about the restoration. I felt like I was all over the place, and not meaning to say it out loud, but I said "man I am all over the place" and my companion quickly said, "ya you are", so I sat there for a few seconds, and felt the Holy Ghost just take over. I bore my testimony on how much I love my family and that I know that I can be with them forever because my Savoir Jesus Christ loves me along with my Heavenly Father. I then asked him if he wants to be with his family forever, and he said yes. I then felt the prompting not to talked about the gospel, but just be a friend. When it was time to go, he asked when he could see us again. We gave him a Book of Mormon and he asked us to come back and he would cook us a mean steak.. That was so Sweet!!.. He then walked us out to the car and told us that he supports Amber 100% to do what she wants to do. On Friday, we were having the big BBQ and Amber's family said they were not going to be able to make it because of work, but Heavenly Father is amazing and they came at the last minute.

The BBQ was a huge success. There were 14 missionaries there and we had a full house. We put up 28 tables with 9 chairs at each table and filled them all! It was so amazing!

Sunday came around and Amber and her brother came to church. We taught the Sunday School class and asked Amber if she was ready to be baptized and she said yes.. So March 24th we will baptize her. She has been reading the Book of Mormon that you sent me with Dad's testimony in it. I know that Heavenly Father is helping us here in Bessemer. We will baptize Lorenzo this Saturday, then Johndaris and Tawana on the 10th of March then Amber on the 24th.

Things are going so good, I am praying I will stay in this area for the next transfer coming up on March 14^th.

Thank you so much for all your love and support..

Love yall

Elder Anderson

Feb. 13, 2012

Hey ya'll

This week has been pretty busy. We have been doing a lot of tracting, we went into a no soliciting neighborhood, (we really weren't selling anything) and we went to 15 different houses and knocked on their doors. All of the people were Baptist, but were really nice to us, until the last house. This guys answered the door and started yelling at us and telling us that he was going to call the cops on us, so I nicely handed him a picture of Jesus and told him that Jesus loved him. Well that made him even madder and he ran into his house still yelling and screaming at us, so we quickly jumped in our car and drove to the street over where our mission leaders live. The guy was so mad he got into his truck and was trying to find us. It was kind of scary.

We did some service this week and helped out on a farm. It was pretty fun, we dug ditches for most of the day, then burned leaves and even got to feed the animals, so it was all good.

We are teaching a whole family that one of our members brought to church, so that is big. We are still teaching a girl name Tawana so hopefully things will go well.

We are having a Young men blitz on Saturday with 26 missionaries and all the youth in the stake here in Bessemer. I hope it goes well. We have been planning it for a while.

Thank you for all you do and I hope you have a good week.

Love

Elder Anderson

Hi ya'll

Wow, this week has been a handful. Last Saturday, President Holzapfel told me and Elder Sawyer we were going to be split up. He told me I would be staying in the Bessemer area and getting a new companion. On Tuesday I had a feeling that it may be more than just having a new companion. When we reported Wednesday for transfers, I was called to be a district leader and trainer. As a district leader, I am responsible for 10 missionaries. In my group are two sister missionaries, two senior couples and four elders (including me and my new companion). As a district leader, I am to hold weekly training meetings, (teaching from Preach My Gospel), interview new investigators regarding baptism, and lots of phone calls reporting to the zone leaders. I will be on my knees a lot asking Heavenly Father for help, but that is ok with me. President Holzapfel also assigned me to be a trainer. My new companion has only been in the mission field for six weeks. He is 21 years old and is from West Valley. His name is Elder Epperson. We don't have too much in common, he is a ballroom dancer. He does like to skateboard and wakeboard.

The weather here has been pretty warm, right now it is in the 70's. So I am keeping warm.

We have no new investigators that we are working with, but we are looking and working hard with the ward. We are trying to set up a BBQ open house on the 24th at the ward. It is harder than I thought it would be, but we are trying to have entertainment, food and cupcake wars. We are hoping for a good turnout.

Tell the Smarts that my thoughts and prayers are with their family.

Just know that I am working hard and things are good. I can do hard things.

Is there anything I can do for any of you?

Always love you and Roll Tide ;)

Elder Anderson

January 30, 2012

Hi ya'll,

Can you believe I have been out six month!!

Well, the dream is over. President Holzapfel told me and Elder Sawyer that we would be together for one more transfer. We were so pumped about that because that doesn't happen very often. Then he called Saturday and said he received some inspiration that I needed to be the senior companion to one of the missionaries out here. So Elder Sawyer will be leaving on Wednesday. L We are pretty sad about that, but there is a reason for it, and I certainly won't question the President. So on Wednesday I will be receiving a new companion and it will be great, it was just Elder Sawyer and I got really close. We have been reading Jesus the Christ and the Plan of Happiness. It is crazy how much I am learning, but some parts are really hard to understand. Things might get a little harder now, but I can do hard things..

Elder Sawyer would love to go to Prattsville because his grandma lives there and she is not a member. He would love to baptize her, but she won't talk about the church at all.

We had a service project of painting the Lorna Spanish Branch building as you can see in some of the pictures.

So guess what I ate Saturday? How about deep fried gator... Yep, one of the members in the Hoover ward went gator hunting and got a 8 foot 3 inch gator and invited us over for some. It was pretty good.

Thank you for all your support and your letters. They mean so much to me, so thank you..

Love to ya'll

Elder Anderson