A baptism......

I am happy to say, that even after the water randomly shutting off and then only having about a foot and a half of water in the font, Adriano was baptized! The whole conversion experience was, once again, incredible to watch. Anziano Atanasio and I both came into this area at the same time and have been together for three transfers, which isn't the most common. So we were both able to see the whole process of his conversion, from beginning to baptism. Those are the moments that make the mission an incredible experience. 

Besides the baptism, we were also able to meet a really cool kid at the english course and gave him a Book of Mormon. He has been reading and seems really interested. Hopefully well see that go somewhere. 

Well Christs church has been restored on the earth and his work is moving forward. What a blessing it is to be apart of it! 

P-Day

Love you all! 
Anziano Andersen 🚀

Romans 1: 15&16    🌍

Well a lot has transpired over this past week. We've had some really awesome and some not so awesome experiences, it's made for an interesting week, thats for sure! The coolest thing is Adriano, our investigator,  is successfully moving towards his baptism this Saturday. When Anziano Atanasio and I first met Adriano we found him showing the Christmas video, and it has been so cool to watch how much he has changed. He is such a stud! The not so cool thing is that one day as we headed to the church to teach a lesson and our english course, we were pick pocketed we think. Somewhere between the 7 minute tram ride from our house to the church, our phone went missing. We literally have no clue what happened. We are like 90% sure we were pick pocketed. Whoever did it though was good....but the success with Adriano far outweighs the loss of our phone. 

The work here in Palermo is going really good and we are able to stay really busy. We both love to stay busy, so it makes for good times! We have set a goal to get another baptism. We have some other investigators who are ready to make the necessary changes in their lives and seem pretty promising.  Which is going to require us to extend a baptismal date, so keep us in your prayers! 

As a missionary we run into a lot of people who have different beliefs. Sadly, some believe that God has forgoten us or that we aren't as important anymore. Nephi said something that I love. He said "For behold, I am God; and I am a God of miracles; and I will show unto the world that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and I work not among the children of men save it be according to their faith." (2 Nephi 27:23).  God is still there and He still loves us. Today is still a day of miracles, sometimes you just have to open your eyes to see them. I hope all of you feel the love of your Heavenly Father and see the miracles of the gospel today. Love you guys! Have a good week! 

Anziano Andersen 🚀
Romans 1: 15&16    🌍

It's Been A Long time Coming.....

Well its been a busy couple of weeks here in Palermo.

We have a simp (investigator) who is preparing for baptism in two weeks. He is such a stud! We have been working with him like crazy lately. We met him one of our first weeks here in Palermo. Hopefully everything goes as planned. We have been staying super busy with all of our investigators. We still find time to do a solid amount of finding, which is good. The ward here is awesome and I love them so much. They are so willing to help us out. I have really been able to  learn here how to work with the members, which has been a huge help. 

Besides that all is good and fun. I am still alive here in Italy and still preaching the Gospel! For I am not ashamed of the gospel! (Romans 1:15-16)

Much love guys! ✌

Anziano Andersen 🚀

Romans 1: 15&16    🌍

Well it was a good couple of weeks here in Palermo!

To fill you in, we had transfers last week. Anziano Atanasio and I are doing a third together here in Palermo. Just wait.... to add the icing on top of the cake, Anziano Smith, an old friend from Napoli, was transfered to Palermo. So it will be fun! All of us are excited to work hard as well, which is such a blessing. I have continued to grow to love the city and the people here. Ecpescially our investigators. Some are moving forward a little bit faster then others, but when you watch one's desire to follow Christ grow, nothing really compares. Hopefully they continue on this path! For P day we wanted to go play basketball, but unfortunatly we got rained out. It has been like this for the past 2 weeks, so finding has been difficult, but what can you do but keep working. 

In Proverbs 3: 5-6 it says "5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths". Its important to remember that the Lord is always there, willing to guide us on this path of life. Don't forget to ask for his direction. You will not be disappointed. Much love everyone! 

Anziano Andersen 🚀
Romans 1: 15&16    🌍

Rain....It sure does put DAMPer on missionary work. Yep, it rained all week. Despite it, we went out and tried to find people. Now let me tell you why, here in Italy we do street contacting. Alot. Like that is what we do all day. Why? Because it works! House to house and door knocking doesn't work as well here. However, street contacting is even less effective in the rain, so we resorted to door knocking.  Luckily, we were able to meet with some old investigators we found last transfer who have kind of lost interest. Hopefully we can get stuff going with them. It was great to meet with them again! Then for pday we played zone calcio. And you know, even though we get to see things like the Amalfi Coast, Positano, Polignano Amare, etc etc, some of the best p days are when you get to play some soccer. 

The other day it hit me how fast my mission is going. Although, I still have a lot of time left, it feels like just yesterday I was at the mtc, or even at home still going to school, hanging out with friends. Time moves quick, and if were not careful we'll miss many percious moments. 

Elder Joseph B. Worthlin said "All too soon, our time is finished. While we can—while we have the time to complete our work—let us walk in the right direction, taking one step after another." 

While we are still here it is so important that we use our time wisely, because before you know it, it will all be gone. Well, I hope you all have a great week! Much love! 

Anziano Andersen 🚀
Romans 1: 15&16    🌍

This week was a good one!

We've had line up of zone conference and a returned missionary's homecoming has kept us pretty busy. Zone conference was a great. President talked a lot about the restoration of the church. Thanks to Joseph Smith we now have the restored church of Jesus Christ once again on this earth. For those who are not members of our church you might ask, "Well how in the world do you know?!" The answer is quite simple. The Book of Mormon, Another testament of Jesus Christ, just like the bible. All of it leans on that book, if the book is true then Joseph Smith really is a Prophet of God, but if its not, then he isn't. My testimony to you all is that the book is true! Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. If any of you would like to know for yourselves, read the Book of Mormon. I promise the blessing that you see from this book will be amazing! 

 I guess well get the bad news out of the way....yes, I know the Patriots lost. The good thing though is that the church is still true. Our simp who had a baptismal date is going to need a little bit more time to prepare. He is a great guy and we are excited to keep working with him. Saturday night a member, who is a cook, fed us probably one of my favorite pasta I have had while I have been here. It was spaghetti with muscles and olive oil. Seasoned just perfectly. I kind of imagine this will be among one of the foods that is eaten in Heaven. 

Well it's busy today, so i Have to run. Thank you all for your love and support! Have a good week everyone!

Anziano Andersen 🚀
Romans 1: 15&16    🌍

Palermo. Is. Cool. Thats all I have to say ladies and gents!

A Festivale for a Saint.

I am absolutley loving this city... A couple cool things happened this week. First, we were able to meet the family of our most promising investigator who has a baptismal date. They were way cool and could be interested in the gospel as well. We should have a appointment set up for this upcoming week. Second, Bagheria (a city in my district) had a baptism this last Saturday! We were all pretty excited. He was confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Sunday morning. It was a really incredible experience. Seeing someone make the commitment to be a disciple of Christ never gets old. He is a cool kid and will do some pretty cool things. 

We also went to bishop Pulvirenti's for lunch today. They are honestly one of the funnest families I know. They remind me a ton of my family. They have a 6 year old boy who is a carbon copy of Raife. Its awesome! 

I have been able to study a the life and attributes of Christ this week. The more we are able to study His life and His actions, the more capable we will be to become like Him. Christ's invite to His apostles "follow me, and I will make you fishers of men" (Matthew 4:19) is extended to all of us. I encourage you to look for ways that you can follow Him and become more like Him. 

Love you guys! Hope you guys have a great week!

Anziano Andersen 🚀
Romans 1: 15&16    🌍