November 4, 2013 - Indianola, IA

Dear Family:

Well it has been quite a week in Indianola.  We had Beggars night and Halloween night and for both we came in at six for the day.  And plus we went to Oskaloosa for 2 days this week for exchanges and interviews with President Jensen.  But with the lessons we did have we did miracles.  We helped a less active lady come to church again and gained trust with many more people.  It was a different week.

Not much to add about investigators.  One of ours is in a very deep hole financially and will need a lot of help with that.  The first step she will need to take is to stop smoking.  This will be hard since she uses it for stress.  But the Lord will help us with that.  Our other investigator we may be dropping because she has no desire to change or get baptized but we will see what the Lord can do about that.  We will be working hard with the investigators that we have now to get them progressing. 

So this should be a fun week.  Keep us in all of your prayers!  The Gospel is true and God loves all of his children!

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti

October 28, 2013 - Indianola, IA

Dear Family:

Well it has been another week in Indianola Iowa.  It has been a good week.  Hard but the end was good.  We had 3 less active families come to church tomorrow and that was just awesome to see them come and renew there covenants with the Lord.  One in particular really surprised us because she has not been planning on coming at all but she woke up and said I will go to church today.  Sadly we were not able to get a part member family to come because they were all exhausted from the night before.  But we did get them to come to the branch Halloween party on Friday and that was really good for them.  Especially with all the kids in the family, they were able to talk with the majority of the youth in the branch. 

Well as I am sure many have heard or seen mom got a picture and a text last night from a member in Indianola that we had done some service with.  It was funny because my companion asked what I think my mom would say to the text.  I thought about it and guessed she would say something about how happy I looked.  Well it came true.  I am now imagining everyone laughing as they read this email.

Well this next week is Halloween and we will be going in early for two nights and will also be going to a different area for exchanges.  It will be nice going to a different area for a few nights.  It gets to you when you have been working in an area for 3 months consecutively and have not been able to go to a different area for a few days.  It will be good.  Besides that it will be raining a lot and getting cooler as we go into November.

Well I love you all and the gospel is true!

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti

October 21, 2013 - Indianola, IA

Dear Family:

Well it has been another week in Indianola Iowa.  Kind of hard because we had a lot of people cancel there appointments on us.  But good because in place of those cancellations we had miracles happen.  On Friday we had an old investigator tell us that she would like to have us come over again because she is having a hard time with life right now.  An investigator is going through some rough times again but she is coming to us for some advice so that is good for her to do.  We found a long lost member that never knew there was a church in Indianola.  We got in contact with a less active family that members have been trying for about a year to talk to.  And some members are beginning to trust us with there referrals and that has been just awesome.  So the Lord has been good to us the past few days.

We unfortunately have no progressing investigators still but we are working with what we have and will hopefully be getting a lot more this next week.  Like I said it has been hard with people canceling appointments but it has really helped that we are finding things to do in place of them.  I have a good feeling about this week though. 

Well I love you all and know that the Gospel is true!  

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti

October 14, 2013 - Indianola, IA

Dear Family:

Well it has been another week in Indianola Iowa.  Yep I have not moved this past transfer so I will be here for another 6 weeks.  And it is crazy to note that today marks the 4 months I have left in the mission field.  It is crazy how fast it has all gone by.  Hopefully the last few will go by slow so that I can enjoy them.  And the weather will really start to cool down this next week.  We will be having rain for the next few days and that will bring a lot of cool air with it.  Still cant believe how fast this year has gone.

Our investigators are doing the same as usual.  Slowly progressing but we are still working on them.  No new ones yet but we do have a lot of potentials to work with.  Now if they will just answer the door when we try to visit with them. 

Well I love you all and want to let you all know that I pray for you daily in my prayers.  The Gospel is true.

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti

October 7, 2013 - Indianola, IN

Dear Family:

Well it has been another week in Indianola and there has been another general conference weekend.  It was all definitely inspired and there was a lot of revelation received by all.  Me and Elder Huxford watched all sessions at our branch building.  The first session we had the building all to our selves and then the other sessions we had members with us.  And for the last session yesterday we had our investigator come and watch it with us.  That was great to see her there and I hope she enjoyed it.  Hopefully she had questions answered. 

Well this is transfer week and we will actually get our transfer calls today.  We have not had our calls yet but we are sure that me and Elder Huxford are staying for another transfer.  So I will let you all know next week if I am still in Indianola or in some other area.

Well it sounds like the weather will be great for this next week.  Probably the last time we will have it too before it gets cold.  The mission has gone by way to fast.  I am almost to the four month mark.  Hopefully they go by slow.  Love you all and the Gospel is true!

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

September 30, 2013 - Indianola, IN

Dear Family:

Well it has been a long and very tiring week in Indianola.  We have been working our hardest and there have been many people rejecting us and our message.  But it was a good week in that we have learned much and visited with many members.  We have been sharing with them that there are blessings that enter into our life and that have yet to enter into our life as we share the Gospel.  No matter if they accept or reject it we are promised this.

It has been very nice weather here.  It is getting cooler and the leaves are changing a little bit and there is a lot more rain storms.  And then October is around the corner, this year is going by way to fast for me.  And another transfer will be ending next week!  This will mean that I have 3 more transfers left!  Hopefully it doesnt all pass by so fast.

Well I love you all!  Look forward to conference.  It is a great time to recieve revelation.

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti

September 23, 2013 - Indianola, IN

Dear Family:

Well it has been a great week in Indianola.  We were able to visit a lot of people this week and help them.  We meet with an old investigator that we have been trying to reach for a while and meet her boyfriend that is also interested.  They have a long ways to go but they have definitely been prepared for us to teach and visit.  Our other investigator is at a hold up and we will just be working very slowly with her to solve her problems.  So the work is going slow but it is going.

This week will be another good one since we have a lot of appointments already scheduled which is a first for this area.  We have a lot of member appointments and we will be talking to them about sharing the gospel with people.  This is something that people struggle with but Elder Gay told us to focus on the members to get to 550 baptisms for this year.  So we will work our hardest and see the fruits come.

This truly is Gods work here on earth!  The Gospel does bless lives and there are people that have been prepared for all of us to touch and bring joy.  Love you all!

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

Sept 16, 2013 - Indianola, IA

Dear Family:

Well it was a great week in Indianola. We did a lot of knocking on doors but the weather improved a lot by the end of the week.  The past two days it has been just perfect.  It even rained a little bit.  It has been very dry lately so I am sure the crops loved it.  It is very cloudy right now so we may be getting some more soon.  So the weather is doing great!

We had the opportunity to go and hear Elder Gay from the seventy and he gave us some great advice for working with the members and asking inspired questions to people.  He also helped us by talking about how hard missionary work really is and gave us a lot of comfort.  We truly do have the greatest leaders in the church and they are all here to help us in all ways.

Well our investigators are doing alright.  Almost lost one this last week.  But we talked to her and it is all good now.  We are meeting with one investigator tonight and that will be a great lesson.  Keep our investigators in your prayers.  Love you all!

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

Sept 9, 2013 - Indianola, IA

Dear Family:

Well it has been a long and tiring week in Indianola.  We did a lot of knocking on doors and talking with people so it was fun.  But it was very exhausting.  We did meet with a lot of people and planted many seeds.  It was great meeting all of those people.  For this week we will continue doing it and following up with all of those people that we talked with.

We have a great meeting to look forward to with a member of the seventy.  It will be a very spiritual meeting and one that I will look forward to.  I enjoy the spiritual recharge that I get from meetings that are like this.  They help me press forward and get past the hardships of the mission.

My companion is called to one of the San Paulo missions and he is really ready to go.  Hopefully he gets his visa here soon.  That would just make his day.  Well I love you all and the Gospel is true!

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti

Sept 3, 2013 - Indianola, IA

Dear Family:

Well it has been another transfer meeting.  My new companion is Elder Huxford.  He is from Boulder city Nevada.  He is a visa waiter of 6 months going to Brazil and he is ready to go.  We have been working hard these past few days knocking on doors and spreading the good word of God.  It was hot last week but then since Sunday it has been cooler and that is a great blessing.  Hopefully the Lord keeps on blessing us with new people to teach.

Well next week we will be having a visit with Elder Gay of the seventy for our mission tour.  So that should be exciting.  Other then that we will just be working hard and doing the best that we can.  The Gospel is true!

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti

August 26, 2013 - Indianola, IA

Dear Family:

Well it has been another week in Indianola.  We got our transfer calls this week and I will be staying and my companion will be going somewhere else.  It has been a fast transfer and who knows what the future holds for me and my new companion.

Well this past weekend we had a great lesson with a part member family that Elder Ashworth has been working with.  They were able to ask a lot of questions and we were able to respond to them with the spirit.  This family had not been contacted by the missionaries a lot and it was a great miracle to see them progress like they have in the gospel.

Well I will let you all know who my new companion is.  Love you all!

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

August 19, 2013 - Indianola, IA

Dear Family:

Well it has been a great week in Indianola.  Not a lot happened with investigators but we did meet with a lot of people.  We got a phone call from some members and they had a friend that needed some help moving out of her house because she got evicted.  We got there and had a lot of work to do.  But we did on the plus side get two members to show up with there big trucks that really saved the day.  Its moments like that that really show you Gods love for all of us.

I also noticed that this week marked the six months I have left of a mission.  That really freaked me out.  It has all gone by so fast and I dont want it to go like that.  And this transfer is coming to an end as well next week.  We will find out on Saturday what will be happening.  My companion is sure that he will be leaving the area since he has been here for a long six months.  Everything is really starting to speed up.  It is a little scary.

Well that is all that I have to report on.  Love you all so much!

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti

August 12, 2013 - Indianola, IA

Dear Family:

Well it has been another week in Indianola.  It has been a very great week.  We found two new investigators this week and that is what has made it so special.  Both are having a hard time with life and could really benefit from the Gospel in there lives.  It was really nice to have that happen for us.  It was just another sign saying that the Lord is preparing people for us.  It was just awesome.

Other then that we had a Zone meeting and we heard of some big changes for us missionaries.  We are now switching to shoulder bags only.  We are also allowed to wear brighter colored suits.  And a few meeting have been shortened.  So I am going to need to find me a shoulder bag by the end of this month.  Big changes coming for us missionaries.

Well that is about it.  I wounder what is in store for us this week.  Love you all!  Gospel is true!

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti

August 5, 2013 - Indianola, IA

Well it has been another week in Indianola.  It has been a good week.  We meet with a lot of people and got to know the members a little bit more and set up a lot of appointments with people.  We had a little tragedy that happened to a member family on Monday.  They had several parts of there house burn from a fire and have been told that the need to find a new place to live.  Sadly this has happened to them a few times.  But because of this the members were able to share there love and go to help this family.  It was very good to see that most of the members that bore testimony yesterday talked about there love for the family.

Well this week we will be meeting up with our zone for a meeting.  Other then that we just have appointments to look forward to and meeting with some members.  The weather has been great here for the past week.  Not hot at all for the most part.  Today it will be raining so we will probably be getting some humidity for this next week.  Should be fun.....

Well I love you all and I know this Gospel is true!

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

July 29, 2013 - Indianola, IA

Dear Family:

Well it has been a great week in Indianola.  We had a very productive week and visited a lot of members.  It has also been very cool as far as the weather goes for the past few days.  It has just been heaven with this weather.  Not too hot and not to cool.  We were able to go to the town fair this week with an investigator of ours and had a interesting time there.  Got to watch my very first truck pull which was very interesting.

We were also able to have our first interviews with our mission president on Wednesday which was good to do.  He is a very interesting man and has many good ideas that will help the mission.  This week we were also able to see a lot of hot air balloons fly by.  Apparently it is a big thing to do in Indianola.

Well that is about it.  I love you guys and I know that the Gospel is true and does bless peoples lives so much.

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

July 22 mission photo

Good luck trying to find me!  I am in the back row.  You can only see above the nose of my face.  To my left is a tall blond Elder.  Hope you guys can find me!

July 22, 2013 - Indianola, IA

Dear Family:

Well greeting from Indianola Iowa!  Indianola is south of Des Moines about twenty or thirty miles.  My new companion is Elder Ashworth who has been out for 20 months now.  We are both serving as senior companion in our companionship which is very confusing.  But oh well.

The work is going good here in Indianola.  We have two people that show promise in getting baptized.  We just need to meet with them and give them a specific date that we feel they could be baptized on.  We also have a lot of potential investigators to contact here so we have a lot of potential.  The members here are awesome as well.  Oh and one of the Zone Leaders in our area is one of the Elders that I came out with so that is exciting. 

Well that is all that I have to share.  I will find out a little bit more about the area for next week.  Love you all!

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti

July 15, 2013 - Fairfield, IA

Dear Family:

Well it has been another great week in Fairfield.  Unfortunately I have heard some interesting news concerning my stay in Fairfield.  I will be transferred this week from Fairfield.  Yep I have only spent six weeks here and the Lord has called me to somewhere else.  Fairfield will actually be changing to a Zone Leader area and Elder Beck will be staying to assist with that.  It was sad yesterday at church when everyone heard I was going away.  This is not something that usually happens to missionaries.  But I am sure there is something I am suppose to do in some other place.

Well this past week, besides getting that phone call, was good.  Nothing very special but it was just a good week.  We meet with a bunch of people and had good times with them.  On Saturday morning we got to help the branch members with a service project.  We painted the side of a less active members home and that was good to do something different.  Well as many of you may have noticed today marks the 7 months until I come home.  It has all really gone by fast.  It is kind of sad but time does that sometimes.

Well I have got a lot of packing to do for this Thursday and a lot of people to say goodbye to.  Hopefully I will only have to do this a few more times.  It is always really hard to do this to people that I have grown close to.  Love you all and this Gospel is true!

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

July 8, 2013 - Fairfield, IA

Dear Family:

Well it has been a great fourth of July week in Fairfield.  The fourth of July was a great day.  We had a branch breakfast that morning so we spent time helping and talking with everyone during that.  Then later in the day we were invited by the branch president son to have dinner with them and some other members of the branch.  It was a very fun day.  Then the other days of the week were kinda hard.  A lot of people were gone because of the holiday and that was hard but we tried to make them as productive as possible.

We had a great time meeting with our new mission president and wife on Wednesday.  They will be great as the leaders of the mission.  I hope everyone had a great week themselves.  It has not been as hot as you guys may have had.  It started to warm up a little bit near the end but it didnt get above 90 very much.  It was a little humid but not to bad so it was very mild.  I remember that last year at this time it was very hot.  It has certainly been a very different summer for me being a missionary.

Well I am glad all is well.  I love you all and I know this Gospel is true!

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

July 1, 2013 - Fairfield

Dear Family:

Well it has been another week in Fairfield.  It has not been as hot as you guys have been getting.  It has been staying around 80 degrees and it is not very humid so it is not as bad as you guys have it. Well this weekend we had the official switch over for the mission president.  We will be meeting President and Sister Jensen on Wednesday for a zone conference so that is exciting.  We will also be having a breakfast with branch members and also other people on the fourth so that will also be very fun for us.  We have been passing out invites like crazy to people so we are hoping that we will get a lot of missionary opportunities with this.

This past week has been a very interesting one.  We had to drive a lot and we also have been giving a lot of blessings to people.  I think I have just doubled the amount of blessing I have been a part of in my entire life with this past week.  But I was able to feel Gods love for people and be able to help them.

Well other then that not much else to say.  We are working our hardest and hoping that we will get some new investigators this week.  Love you all and I know that this Gospel is true!

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

June 24, 2013 - Fairfield, IA

Dear Family:

Well it has been another week in Fairfield.  It has been getting very warm here and humid as well.  Hasn't rained much but last night it was poring and we will be expecting some more today from the looks of it.  It has been very eventful as far as meeting go.  We meet with for the last time President and Sister Jergensen for a goodbye Zone conference.  They spent most of the time giving us advice on questions that we asked.  Then we watched a talk from Elder Holland which was very inspiring.  Then came the difficult part.  We were able to give a hug and say goodbye to them individually.  It was a very hard time for most of the missionaries.  They have helped so many people out here and you could just feel the love in the room.

Well then the next big meeting was last night with the worldwide broadcast.  That was a very special meeting.  We may never get the chance to have something like that happen ever again.  I was very surprised about the announcement for missionaries using the internet more as a missionary tool.  This is something that may be hard for many missionaries to do.  I really enjoyed all of the talks and I am hoping that many people will use the advice given to further the work.  

Well not much else beside that happened.  We are still teaching a lady that wants to meet with us but will not be baptized.  It is frustrating to teach her since she will not progress but she has agreed that she will not argue with us about our beliefs as long as we dont do so with hers.  Other then that we are trying to meet with people that have potential and always looking for new people to teach.  

Well all is well here.  Love you all!  The Gospel is true and the Book of Mormon is the most correct book on the earth.

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

June 17, 2013 - Fairfield, IA

Dear Family:

 

Well it has been another week in Fairfield.  Not much special happened.  No new investigators.  One lady we are trying to meet that shows a lot of promise but we are having a hard time getting a hold of her.  She told us that she wants us to teach her sons and she wants to be baptized.  Well I guess I will give you some info of the area.  Fairfield is mostly famous for the Mahirishi (I killed that one).  They are also known as meditators.  They are way into that and some of the members are way into doing it as well.  They also have a business university that they have.  We have a few members that are going there.  They are very interesting people. 

 

Well this week we have a last zone conference with President and Sister Jergensen.  We will be saying goodbye to them and then in two weeks we will meet again to invite our new president and his wife.  It will be sad to see them go.  But I am looking forward to it.  Well in other news we have been cut down 200 miles for all mission vehicles so we may be walking a lot more this month.  It has all been thanks to the weather that has been happening and the service that has been offered.  We had our own share of the weather this week.  Saturday we had big winds and a lot of rain that hit us.  We helped with a Italian festival in town and were making canolies for everyone while it was storming around us.  We did not get too wet. 

 

Well that is about it for this week.  Hopefully this next week we will have some great stories to tell you all.  Loving the area, my companion, our district, and life as a missionary.  This truly is Gods work on earth.

 

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

June 10, 2013 - Fairfield, IA

Dear Family:

 

Well it has been a very stressfull week of packing and then unpacking.  I am now serving in the Fairfield Branch in Iowa.  Fairfield is south of Iowa City.  It has been interesting serving in a branch so far.  The work for the area is slow for now.  We have maybe two investigators but one of them we are having a hard time contacting.  The branch members are great here.  My companion is a Elder that I served around and was actually once my district leader.  His name is Elder Beck and he is from Alpine, Utah (I think).  It has been great being able to serve with him so far.

 

In our district we have a senior couple that is serving in our area.  And the other members of our district are Hermanas.  I can finally say that I know how the sisters felt during district meeting when they were one of the only two sisters in the meeting.  But the Hermanas we have are great.  We have 3 in one area and two in the other.  This is because of the increase of sisters coming out.  After district meeting me and Elder Beck had the great opportunity to give all of the sisters blessings in the district.  It has been hard for all of them because all of them have not been out in the field for very long.  It was a very good experience.

 

Well other then that I guess the only other thing that is going on is that President and Sister Jergensen are preparing to leave the mission.  It will be sad to see them go but I am excited to have President and Sister Jensen come into the field to lead and guide us.  We will be having a fairwell meeting in a week or so to say goodbye.  Then a few weeks later we will be meeting to invite the new ones in.  I will let you know how that goes when they happen.  Well I love you all and I know this Gospel is true!

 

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

June 3, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

Well it has been a very good week in Davenport.  Our golden investigator Harold Briceland was baptized on the 31st of May and confirmed on the 2nd of June.  It was very fun to see that happen for us.  It was a little bit scary at first because we got to the church a little late so we were behind on filling up the font.  The font normally takes about 7 hours so we need to us a hose which takes it down to 2 and a half hours.  Well we were behind on getting there so we had to haul buckets of water in between the font and the kitchen to get it filled on time.  We did so for about an hour.  Me and Elder Bankhead were very exhausted by the time the baptism started and we were grateful to get it done.  After the baptism Harold said he felt 100%.  This is what it feels like to be baptized.

Other then that we had a normal week.  On Thursday I was in Rock Island doing exchanges and we heard the tornado sirens.  Aparently there was a tornado in Illinois close by.  There was also some strong winds and rain and we were walking in it for about 2 minuits and we were soaked.  There were power lines that fell down in Davenport and it caused a lot of the down town area to be without power.  So that was exciting.

Well we got the calls and I will be transfered.  Elder Bankhead was playing with me for a little bit and made me think that he was leaving.  But transfers are on Thursday and all I know is that I am being transfered.  I will really miss this area.  There are a lot of good people here in this area.  But it is time for me to move on.

Love you all!

Elder Spencer Ariotti

May 28, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

Well it has been a wet week in Iowa.  We have been receiving a lot of rain here and the creek that we are close by has risen quite a bit.  During the weekend it was really raining.  In some parts of town where there is a slope down there was up to 1 foot of water.  In front of our apartment yesterday morning there was a pool of water that they had to close the road off so it could drain.  Sadly we did not have the car when it was raining this weekend so as a result Elder Bankhead has a little bit of a cold that he is getting over. 

Well I had a great birthday doing missionary work.  And to finish off the day we got a phone call for someone that is interested in being baptized.  That was quite the gift to receive.  Well this is a big week.  We have the baptism of our golden investigator.  We had a little problem figuring out the time for the baptism but got it finalized for 5 on friday.  I am still a little bit worried because most people are still at work at that time or are getting out of school.  I am keeping my fingers crossed for people to be there.  We are also still figuring out who will do what for the program.  Elder Bankhead will be baptizing him (thanks to a coin flip).  But I just have a feeling that everything will be alright and that it will all fall into place.

This weekend we will also be getting transfer calls.  I am a little anxious to find out where I go.  I am sure that I will be transfered but there is always a small chance that I will stay and Elder Bankhead will go.  I always did hate waiting for these calls.  Well everything else is going well.  Love you all and I love sharing the Gospel!

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti

May 20, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

Well it has been another week in Iowa.  It has been very warm lately and we also had some good rain storms last few nights.  We were even on tornado warning all last night.  Elder Bankhead was really hoping that we would get a tornado.  Sometimes he worries me with what he wishes for.  Our investigators are doing well.  Our investigator that will be baptized on the 31st has his interview thursday so we are hoping that he passes.Which he should.  He is so solid.  He has not gone back to his coffee or tea or any of that.  He truly has been prepared by the Lord for us.  We found another investigator that is the grandson of a less active member.  He is 13 so he will be easy to teach as long as he doesnt have any word of wisdom problems and I would be surprised if he did.

Our other investigators are doing well.  We will need to push one date back because of the ward trek but we think she will be fine with that.  Our other investigator is still waiting to get married but he is so ready for it.  Well these are the last three weeks of my time training.  It is also the last 6 weeks of President Jergensen as our mission president which is sad.  He has been a great man to me and to the mission.  But President Jensen will be a great man as well.  Who knows what lies in store with me as a missionary.  But I know that the Lord knows what he is doing.  Love you all and the church is true!

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

May 14, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

Well it was great talking to everyone yesterday!  Yes it is true I did have a smile on the whole time and my face did hurt by the end of the phone call.  There are few things that compare in a mission to calling home and talking with people.  I would like to do the skype idea for christmas time.  I was actually thinking about asking for that.  We will just have to organize it so that I can be at a members home that does that.

Well I dont have much else to say.  I already said everything that needed to be.  Life is going good and it will keep on getting better.  It is suppose to get up to 85 today so it will be hard.  Oh and there was one thing that happened.  We had a less active member die last wednesday that I had grown very close to.  She was in very poor health and life was just very hard for her and her husband.  But she is in a better place now.  We will be going to the funeral today so it should be good.

Love you all!

Elder Spencer Ariotti

May 7, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

Well it has been another week in Davenport Iowa.  We did have a lot of clouds over our head and some rain but we got no snow.  We did hear that a lot of areas in the northern part of the mission got hit really hard.  Up to a foot in some areas we hear.  But all is well with Davenport.  We should be warming up a lot more this next week.  We had the great opportunity to hear from Elder Neal Anderson of the quorum of the 12.  We also had Elders Reall, Dube and Clayton.  We had great revelation given to us and we felt the spirit greatly during that meeting.  I was also able to find out that one of my good friends from Bountiful is in the mission now.  She is being trained now by a missionary sister that I have served around a lot in my mission.

Well in other news we had to drop two of our investigators because they were not interested in what we had to share.  It is always sad to have to drop investigators but they have there agency.  Sometimes I want to say goodbye to agency but I think then of what a blessing it really is and how it has helped me in so many ways.  We are still doing good with our golden investigator.  We are seeing if we can move his baptism date to a sooner day so that we can have him count for the month of May.  President Jergensen has set for the month of May the goal of 100 baptisms and we need to make sure that it is accomplished.  On the other hand we have a teenager investigator that is having a hard time.  We feel that it is because she has no people that she knows in the Ward.  This is the same investigator that failed her baptism interview.  Her Grandma told us that she is thinking of stopping meeting with us and not even getting baptized.  We talked with the young women and they said they will try to fellowship her into going to church.  We are hoping that it will help her.

Other then that we are just working on trying to contact potential investigators.  We are always trying to work hard and leave our area better then when we had found it.  One of the Elders that had served in Davenport before stayed with us for a night before saturday and said that he liked how we were improving the area.  However we were just told that the Bishop wants us to get up to 40 lessons a week.  The highest a missionary has ever gotten in the mission is 31.  This will be fun.  Love you all!

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

April 29, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

Well it has been another week in Davenport.  It is starting to get warm here.  We were actually able to take off our suit jackets today.  This summer should be a real fun one since I am this close to the river.  They say it is very humid here and there are a lot of thunder storms so that should be fun.  And the last time they had a tornado was years ago so I should be safe from all of that.

Well this week was good for meeting with investigators.  One of our dates came to church and he told all the members that he was getting baptized in June.  Man this guy is so golden.  Our other investigators are doing fine.  We are working well with the members and they are always happy to help us out with rides.  This last week was transfers and we got a new set of missionaries in one of the neighboring wards.  We will be sharing the car with them now.  Unfortunately that puts us without a car for two weeks straight but that will not stop the Lords work.

Well I love you all and I know this Gospel is true!

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

April 22, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

Well it has been a very interesting week in Davenport.  For about 3 days it was raining and there was thunder and the result being the flood of the mississippi river.  It went up about 2 or 3 streets from the river front.  On the last day it rained we drove past all the parks in the area and all of them that had lakes were buried in water.  Creeks were also flooded and because of that many basements were flooded.  But the rain has stopped and it has warmed up a little bit.  But it sounds like we will be getting some more rain and wind and all that stuff.  They say that in Iowa every time you blink the weather changes.  That is totally true.  I think I may have seen it gone through all for seasons in the past few weeks.  It was warm, then it got cold, then it snowed a little bit, then it warmed up and there was rain, now it will be humid for a little while.  I am not in Utah anymore.

Well the work is going great.  Our baptism that was going to happen this weekend failed her baptism interview.  It is a little sad but we are not giving up on her.  She didnt fail the worthiness part just the lessons learned part.  So we will set a date with her to be baptized in June.  We did get a new investigator met this past week.  He was being taught by first ward elders but they found out he was in our area so they handed him over.  He is a way solid guy and wants to get baptized.  The sisters in Bettendorf found someone in our area that they taught once.  And this morning we talked to a lady that is not happy with her church so we said that we can help her.  The work is truly speeding a long in Davenport Iowa.  We will be getting another set of missionaries in our district this week so that is good.  We will be getting around 38 new missionaries this week.  about 11 or 12 will be missionaries waiting to go to San Paulo and one to I think Australia.  Oh and yesterday morning before going to church we went to visit a Baptist church to see how they worship.  We were the only white people in the building and there was a lot of praising.  It was a good experience thought.

Well that is all I have to report on.  Love you all and I love sharing this Gospel.  This is the true church!

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti

April 15, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

 

Well it has been another week in Davenport.  This past week it has been very wet and windy.  Then for saturday and sunday it has been warming up.  But now for this next week we will be getting mor rain and some thunder storms.  Out here the thunderstorms are loud and happen a lot during the summer time.  I am honestly not looking forward to when it will be getting warmer.  The humidity here is also suppose to be the worst close to the river.  The work is doing good.  We are preparing our investigator for her baptism on the 27 of this month.  She is way excited and so are we.  This will be the first baptism that I have taught the whole time.  This thursday we will find out if she is ready with the interview.  Hopefully she will pass and I am confident that she will.  But if she doesnt pass we will work throught it and she will be baptized. 

 

This past week we got 3 new investigators to teach.  One of the investigators I am not really sure if we will continue to teach.  He likes to listen to us but I think he is just looking to us for information and not for the truth.  The other two seem like they could progress well.  We also were able to get a less active and her little family to church.  The kids are 8 and two 6.  The 8 year old says that she is wanting to get baptized but we are not really sure if we can teach her since she is not yet nine years old.  The Less active has not been to church since she was a teenager but she said that she really liked the meetings.

 

Well here is an interesting story for the week.  Me and Elder Bankhead were knocking on doors and we went to this one door and this older guy walks out.  "I could walk circles around you guys with the bible and you would not even change.  You guys have changed the bible so much and you should be ashamed of yourself.  I will not see you guys later."  Well with that we were speechless but Elder Bankhead said: "Well we love you!  See you later!"  Then the guy opened the door once more and replied: "I dont think so."  With that me and Elder Bankhead walked away and we laughed at the whole situation.  We honestly think he thought we were someone else because we have not at all changed the Bible.  We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly.  I honestly believe that.  The Bible has been changed around a lot but we have the most correct version of it along with a book that is another testament of Christ.  I know it.

 

I love you all!

 

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

April 8, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

 

Well it has been another hard working week in Davenport Iowa.  This past week we had a lot of meetings to go to.  Wednesday we meet as a zone to recieve some trainings by the zone leaders.  Thursday we meet as trainers to talk with President Jergensen.  And friday we meet as a district to talk with President Jergensen in interviews.  Then we had General Conference this past weekend.  So it has been a very long and spiritual filled week.  The work is going very well and is speeding up.  One of our investigators is preparing for Baptism on the 27 of this month.  She is very excited and so are we.  We may need to push the day back a little bit because we do need to get permission from her parents to get her baptized and that may take some time to do.  But she seems like she is ready.

 

Well Conference was very good.  A lot of talks about member missionary work which is good for the members out here to listen to.  They have many friends they are just a little hesitant about sharing the Gospel with people.  There where other talks that really stuck out to me about talking with people and helping those that we notice are a little sad.  All the talks were very good though.  We were able to have our two main investiagtors at a session of conference and they both liked it.  It is so great to be able to have inspired leaders that listen to the councils of God.

 

Well this week we should be warming up a lot with the weather.  I think spring is finally here.  We will be working alot this week with investigators and preparing them for baptism so keep them in your prayers.  Love you all!

 

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

April 1, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

 

Well it has been another big week in Davenport Iowa.  The biggest news is that on May fourth we will have a member of the 12 and a president of the 70 in town and they want to have a visit with all the missionaries in the IDMM.  We just found out about this not to long ago so it is very big news.  We also have general conference to look foreward to which is going to be great.  Me and Elder Bankhead this week were able to teach 21 lessons with people which is the most we have ever done together and the most I have ever done in one week as a missionary so far.

 

This past week we set up a date for an investigator to be baptized on April 27.  As long as everything goes well with teaching her she will be baptized on that day.  Her mom is a less active that wants nothing to do with the church so we are hoping that she will not say no.  Other then that we are just trying to find new investigators.  We have a lot of potentials but we are just not able to meet with any of them.  The good news is that we will be getting the car back on wednesday which will be nice.  Riding on the bus is fun but it is so time consuming.  Well spring looks like it may be hear for good.  It is starting to warm up and that is good.

 

Well I had dinner with a member this past week that many of you may recognize.  The last name is Roderick and he says that he lived down the street from us when we lived by Dicks.  When he said that I about died.  He seems like a very nice guy and he is on the high council for the stake.  Anyway I just thought that that was cool.

 

Love you all!

 

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

March 25, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

 

Well it has been another good week in Davenport.  Me and Elder Bankhead have been working our hardest this past week to get the work moving in this area.  We got a new investigator this week.  She is the granddaughter of a member and has expressed interest in learning.  She was unable to come to church yesterday and neither was our golden investigator but it is all good.  We did have two of the Zone leaders Investigators in our church meetings but that does not really count since they are not in our area.  This past week me and Elder Bankhead have been getting really familiar with the bus system in town.  I dont like the bus but my companion loves it.  It is a big headache to do planning at night since we need to figure out which bus we need to take but it is better then walking everywhere, especially in the more darker parts of town.  We have also had more funny experiences with the bus then with the car.  So on our way back home on the bus Elder Bankhead talks to this old black lady and she asks for $5 from him.  He pulls out a $10 and he says that is all that he has and he gives it to her.  Well we got off and Elder Bankhead wanted to eat out so we went to A and W.  After he ordered the manager comes up to the cash register and gives him a discount.  She then looks at him and says:  I heard what happened on the bus.  She had heard from a guy that came in what he did and he got blessed for it!  It was very awesome that it happened to him.

 

Well we will be moving back to riding on the bus this Thursday.  We are hoping that we can work as hard as we did this past week.  It will be hard but with the Lords help I know we can do it.  Everything is just going great.  Love you all and I hope you all take some time this weekend to thank God for the atonement that his son went through.  It is a great and very beautiful thing in this world.

 

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

March 18, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

Well I am doing fine out here in Davenport.  Elder Bankhead is the name of my new companion and he is one of the great 18 year olds that you all have been hearing about.  He is from Malan Idaho and he is the most friendly person you can meet.  He keeps on telling me how shy he was before but he wants to put all that aside and work his hardest.  For the past few days we have been forced to walk because of the car share we are in now but we have been making up for it with knocking on a lot of doors.  The people usually dont answer but that will not stop elder Bankhead.  If someone even closes the door he just goes on to the next house.  In my opinion he is an unstopable missionary machine.

The work is going a little slow.  We were not able to meet with any of our investigators this past week.  With two of our investigators working hard hours it is hard to meet with them.  And our golden investigator is going through a lot of homework right now.  But it is all good.  We will be working very hard to get more investigators and speed up the work in this place.  We will be getting some snow today mixed with some rain and I hear it will be like that for the next few days.  Looks like spring is getting closer though.

Well I love you all and I know this Gospel is true!

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

March 11, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

 

Well there is big news: I will be training a new missionary!  Elder Wilson will be transfered to a different area and I will be going senior companion and will be training a newbie!  We will be getting 30 missionaries this next week and about 3 of them will be waiting for there visas.  This will be a big step for me to take as a missionary but I am confident that I will be able to handle it with the help of the Lord and a lot of prayer.  Other then that the work is still moving on.  We had no investigators at church because of some events that had happened.  We will be visiting with one of our investigators tonight and he said that he would like to talk to us about some things.  We are hoping that he does not want us to stop coming because that means I will have one less investigator to work with of the 2 we are meeting with a lot.

 

The weather is finally warming up.  It has been raining all weekend so most of the snow is gone.  It is however snowing right now but it is probably not going to stick to the ground.  I made it through another time of springing forward.  The only other time change I get to have on the mission will be falling back.  My knee is still doing good and with the snow going away I will probably soon be able to go outside without the brace on. 

 

Well that is about all for this week.  I am getting very nervous for this Thursday.  I hope I get an awesome missionary to train.  It is hard to think that a year ago I was worried about who I was going to be trained by.  It is always weird to think how life was and how it will yet become.  Love you all and I will tell you the details of what has happened next week.

 

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

March 4, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

Well it has been another week in Davenport.  This last Tuesday we had a zone conference at the stake center and were able to be instructed by our great mission leaders.  While this was happening we had a snow storm going on outside around us.  During the meeting we had to make calls to members to see if they could house some missionaries for the night.  It was a little crazy but we were able to get every missionary a place to stay for the night while the storm ended.  Me and my companion had four missionaries in our apartment.  It was nice to be able to get to know them and we were able to play a few rounds of ninja to get out all that energy that we had.  The rest of the week was used walking around because we will now be in a car share with some missionaries in our district.  Two pairs of missionaries got in a car accident and their car will be gone for a few months so we need to share our car until then.  It will be hard because we are suppose to get a few inches of snow today and that means we will be getting more ice.  I am sure that I will be fine thought.

We also had stake conference yesterday and this time it was broadcasted from salt lake and we heard from Elder Oaks of the twelve.  We heard from Elder Christensen and Hawk of the seventy and Sister Reese from the relief society presidency.  The broadcast was to multiple stakes that are in the mid-west.  This was especially good because we had multiple investigators there yesterday.  We had one that usually comes and another brought his family with him.  We were not able to talk with both of them afterwords but we are sure that everyone that was there had a great time and felt the spirit.  The main highlight of the talk from the talks was about missionary work.  The members need to be ready to help the missionaries that will be coming out.  Many wards will be getting two sets of missionaries and they need to make sure that all the wards have work for them to do.

So that is basically the highlight of this whole past week.  This coming Saturday we will be getting calls from President about who will be getting transferred and who will be staying in the area.  I honestly think I will be staying in the area but who knows.  The Lord plays tricks on missionaries sometimes and throws a curve ball at them.  I may even be training this next transfer.  We will be getting around 30 missionaries this next time and that is a lot.  I am not sure if I told everyone this but when president was announcing that we will be receiving a lot more missionaries and many people will be training he looked right at me.  When that happened I was screaming no in my head.  But a lot has happened in the past few months and I think I will be ready for whatever happens next.

Well that is about it for this week.  I will let everyone know if I am getting transferred or if I am staying in the area.  Love you all and stay safe.

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti

February 25, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

 

Well it has been another ice filled week in Davenport.  It has rained and snowed a few times this past week and because of how cold it gets at night it has all been turing into ice.  I have of course been slipping around but catching myself before I kill my knees again.  It has been a hard week with missionary work as well.  We could not meet with any of our investigators this week because of school and other things happening in life.  But no worries, life is still good!

 

This coming week we will be visiting with people a lot more.  We have an appointment with an investigator tonight and we will be sharing a movie about Joseph Smith.  He has been struggling with gaining his own testimony of the Book of Mormon and we are hoping that tonight or soon that will change.  The bad news about this coming week is that we will be getting more snow.  I am not looking foreward to the ice that will be coming a long with that.  We will also be spending a lot more time this week finding new investigators and visiting some less actives that the members have given to us.  There are so many less actives in the mid west. 

 

Well I am almost out of things to talk about.  It feels very weird to think that I have been out for about a year in the mission.  A year ago I was in the MTC learning about all these things and now I am teaching it to complete strangers.  I have come a long way in a year.  It will be great to see what changes this next year of my life as I will be turning senior companion and training some 18 year old and maybe going into leadership.

 

Well I love you all and this church is the most true church that we have available to us on this earth.

 

sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

February 18, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

 

Sorry but today is going to have to be a short one.  We have a survice opportunity this morning and I dont have a lot of time.  Work is going well and it is very cold here.  Just last night we got a little bit of snow and slush and it decided to turn to ice.  Very nervous about my knee but I am doing my best to have faith that nothing will happen.  One of our dates that we have is a college student that is getting married to a member.  He has to wait to get baptized in the summer after they get married.  We are trying to make it happen sooner but he is jsut waiting for some prayers.  He is a way awesome guy.

 

Good luck to laura with her surgery on Wednesday.  Keeping her in my prayers as I am with all of you.  Love you all and I love this Gospel and sharing it.

 

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

February 11, 2013 - Davenport

Dear Family:

 

Well to start off there has been a little bit of confusion as to my new area.  If you have not guessed already I will not be going to Canton to reopen it.  There are Elders in Canton now but I am not one of them.  My new area is (drum rolllllllllllllllll, crash!):  Davenport 2nd ward!  Yep I have moved down the street from Clinton.  I am in the same zone just in a ward now!  I am still a little surprised that I am in the same Zone as before.  My new companion is Elder Wilson.  He has been out for 17 months and is from Lehi, Utah.  It has been a great few days meeting the people of Davenport.  Yesterday we had two investigators in church.  For one of those investigators it was his first time in church.  He seemed to enjoy it and he has been befriended well by the members of the Ward.  He recieved help from one of the stake leaders on getting a job for himself.  We had Ward conference as well yesterday and we recieved some great advice from the president for spending time with our families.

 

Well a little bit about the area:  it is another college area.  We have a school called Palmer in the city that is a chiropractice university.  So we have a lot of young couples in the ward that are students at Palmer.  The area that we cover is as big as my other areas which is nice because now I can walk a little bit more and work off this extra weight I have gained.  The weather is trying to warm up.  We hear that it may be getting down to the single digits this weekend but no reports on snow.  We have been getting a lot of wind and rain recently so it is very wet outside.  The district that I am in is great.  One of the Elders that I came out with is in our district so it was fun getting to visit with him.  Elder Barson (my last companion in Clinton)  is not training his best friend from his home town but his friend is in his district that he is now in charge of.  It is still very weird to think that I am still in the same zone as my last area.  Saturday night me and my companion and the Zone leaders helped with a stake valentines dance by serving food.  I saw a lot of the members from clinton there and that was a little weird.  After serving food we sat there as people danced on the dance floor that we had just cleared out.  We got a few funny pictures of four missionaries just sitting there looking bumbed out while everyone around us is dancing.

 

Well there is nothing much else to report on besides that.  I have been enjoying the new area and getting to know people.  The work has been going well and this Ward has a good ward mission leader that has come up with some good ideas to help get the missionary work going.  Love you all and I know that this gospel is true and does change lives!

 

Sincerely;

Elder Spencer Ariotti

February 4, 2013 - Clinton

Dear Family:

Well it has been another week in Clinton.  Big news: I am getting transferred back to Canton!  I don't know if I will be turning senior companion yet all I know is that I am opening up that area to missionary work again.  Elder Barson is staying in Clinton and will be district leader and he will be training a visa waiter.  He has been told that one of the visa waiters is his old friend from back home.  He has been told that he may be training him for however long he is going to be in Iowa.  We have been told that visa waiters can be waiting for either 2 weeks or for longer.  So Elder Barson is very excited about that.

Other then that we have just been packing and saying goodbye to the members in Clinton.  The members here are so great and so very supportive.  I was talking to one of the members last night and saying goodbye and he told me that I was an inspiration to him and his wife and that he will always look to me as a grandson.  I almost broke out into tears at that comment.  It will be hard to say goodbye to all the members here but I must move one and do the lords work in Canton.  I have been told that I should not be there any longer then a transfer.  And this next transfer will be shortened one week because we have new missionaries coming out.  This week we will be getting around 20 missionaries and 9 visa waiters.  There will be more coming especially in the summer with school ending.  I am just glad that I am not yet training.  But my time will come soon.

Well that is about all that I have to report on.  Love you all and I know that this Gospel is true and that this is Gods true church on earth.

Sincerely;
Elder Spencer Ariotti