Dear Family and Friends

The question that I am increasingly asked it this: Are you trunky? This is a common question for missionaries that have less weeks left than most have months. My answer to this question in an infatic NO. I am doing my best to stay as focused. Yesterday I had another experience which reminded me why I am here, as if I haven't had enough of those 'ah-hah' moments in the last 23 months. We taught a newer investigator named Roman the Restoration. He loved the message and he believes that The Book of Mormon is true. When we had the prayer at the end he broke into tears as he pleaded to have a stronger witness. I believed that all of us there received one. We set his baptism date for the 3rd of August which is the last weekend I have in the mission. We have another we hope will choose to be baptized on that day too. His name is Gabe. I talked a little about him last week. In closing I want to keep pushing to the end. I hope to see a few more miracles before all is said and done. Keep me in your prayers, though I may need them more on my transition home than I do here in the field. I have millions praying for me now. That number will drastically fall in a month. Thank you for your support, and have an amazing day. :)

This week we were able to have another baptism! It was for Susan Loftus. In one of our lessons she informed me that she has found this blog and that she was reading it, so Susan congrats again! :) Like I have said before it has been really neat to see how Susan has developed a faith in Jesus Christ from not having much of a religious background. I am certain this came from her many hours in the Book of Mormon. When we met her, she was in the beginning of first Nephi. She is now approaching the middle of Alma and it has just been over a month. The baptism was a sweet experience. Susan's friend spoke about baptism in tears about Susan's decision. She also spoke about how you can never underestimate your example to others around you; How true that is. Susan will be going to Salt Lake this weekend to visit some friends and we have been bugging her about making it to temple square. We told her to approach a missionary there and say "hey I was baptized last week can you show me around?" :) If you are reading this Susan you should go! I am grateful to see so much Success as I put the cap-stone on my mission experience. I look forward to the coming weeks for additional miracles. :) We have a few who we felt like we have been losing lately. We had one where the fellowshipper said that our investigator wouldn't talk to us again. He came to church and we will be teaching him on Tuesday! We were happily surprised. I hope all is well for you with everything. You should watch one of these videos on this site and bind yourself to act.( https://www.lds.org/training/wwlt/2013/hastening/members-and-missionaries?lang=eng) Do something to help the work of God go forward. If I am reading this down the road a ways, I have a message for myself: What have you done for the Lord lately? Hopefully I will be able to answer that question without hesitation. Have a great day.

Dear Everyone

I have so much to say and so little time

The Mission Split:

Excitement was high at the Woodruff Building in Rancho Cucamonga on that bright Tuesday morning. Transfers had come and no one knew their fate. We had all packed our bags and we were ready for whatever lay ahead of us in the next few hours. Where you stayed or where you went was determined by were you would end up; It could be in The Redlands or The Rancho Cucamonga missions. Before the main transfer meeting had begun a smaller meeting commenced. In attendance was every District and Zone Leader in the entire mission. It was quite an amazing group to look upon as I prepared mentally for a training I had been asked to give. Others training included a few others that go home in August like myself. Elder Graf and Elder Sevison, two of my former companions, were among those also training. It ended up that I was the last one to address the group. The topic I had chosen was Repentance and the Atonement. I told them of how the Atonement has had to carry me through my mission. I told them about Aaron and Cameron and how I had come to a place that I felt I was a missionary worthy to of them. I told them that a fulness of Joy is possible as missionary through continued repentance and the sustaining Grace of God. I won't lie, I cried. I had already felt the spirit very strong before the transfer meeting had begun. The entire mission, about to be two, was in their seats. we sang we prayed and President and Sister Godwin gave us their final words. President Began by saying "well it's Sister Godwin's time to go home, and since I am her eternal companion I guess I have to go with her." :) The Transfers were announced. We almost got an entirely new zone. I am staying here in Apple Valley for the rest of my mission. :) We closed the meeting by singing the EFY Medley to President and Sister Godwin. Tears rolled down their faces as looked across the missionaries and the last three years. The missionaries said goodbye and we left to our areas across new mission borders. I thought I wouldn't see president again until we got an unexpected call from him on Saturday Morning. He was done training the new mission presidents and he was passing Apple Valley. He called us and met us at the church. We gave Sister Godwin ties and we said goodbye. We were the last missionaries to see President Godwin before he drove out of the mission.

The Baptism

Right after we said goodbye to President Godwin we rushed inside to make sure the font had not overflown for the baptism of Anabell Hernandez. Two weeks ago Anabell didn't want to be baptized. We thought that maybe she would one day. The Saturday before her baptism she missed her appointment with us but we talked later that day and she said "you know.. I think I want to do it." on Sunday night we finished the Lessons. A fast and an interview later she was ready for baptism. This was a very surprising and happy chain of events. The baptism went very well. Anabell's mom who isn't a member said the prayer. Anabell's cousin who is a returning less active gave the talk on baptism. Jose who is her faithful brother who is preparing for a mission baptized her with tears in his eyes. This had been in his prayers for a very long time. I am grateful to know the Hernandez Family. This is the beginning of many more miracles in their lives.

The new President

When President Hobbs walked into the room full of the Rancho Cucamonga Mission Zone leaders I was in awe how he could answer every question with both power and wisdom. It is clear he has come to lead us to new heights. President Hobbs has worked at BYUI for years and he rubs shoulders with some of the quorum of the twelve on occasion. I am already impressed and sad that I won't be able to spend very long with him. Tomorrow I will have my first interview with him.

Sunday

On Sunday We spoke in Sacrament meeting. We talked about the broadcast! It was awesome.

Well as you can see my typing stamina has weakened, so I will have to say goodbye. Thank you for your support and your prayers.

The last couple of weeks have just flown on by! We are teaching more than I ever have in my entire mission! I think God just blesses you towards the end to give you an extra push. We also are getting ready for the new mission to open in a couple of weeks. We have a lot of paperwork for  to do to get everything ready. between  that and teaching every minute of every day has been booked. I love this ward. I'm not sure how much I have reported lately so let me tell you about some of the people we are teaching:

Roxie: Roxie is doing great. we have taught her for over a month and she is scheduled to be baptized this weekend! If all goes well that is. You would be surprised how temperamental these things can sometimes be. She has shown a lot of faith so far with some family opposition. She was almost going to wait a year to be baptized. We needed to be bold so we read these verses where Jesus addresses this issue:

 34 Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.
 35 For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.
 36 And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household.
 37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

She changed her whole mind set and she is on course to follow Jesus Christ. If not this weekend then the next.

Susan: Susan we met because her friend invited her to take the lessons. She has been doing great! we have only taught her for three weeks and she is in Jacob 5! She made it through the Isaiah wall. :) It has been neat teaching Susan because she didn't grow up with a christian background. We have started at square one teaching her about who God is and who Jesus Christ is. At first she was confused but now she is gaining real faith in Jesus Christ. She has decided to be baptized in the coming weeks. 

Jessica: Jessica is Jason's sister, a who is a recent convert. She has a rougher background but I can see her as she may become. :) We are working hard to help her to quit smoking. She has cut down immensely. You may want to keep her in your prayers. 

Anabell: Anabell is Jose's Sister. Jose is a member who I invited to the singles ward and he has flourished there. He is the only member in his family and he is a rock. We began teaching Anabell and now Anabell has been at every activity since! We have been having a hard time helping her feel the spirit. This is a common concern and we will keep working on it with her.

Jason: Jason is a new investigator we got this last week! Some other missionaries said we should contact him and he just came to basketball! we have only taught him once so far but he says he wants God in his life and he wants to learn more. I look forward to getting him involved in the ward.

 We have been blessed with a lot of people to teach in the last few weeks. I know most all of these people will be baptized, but the question is always when. :) I hope that gives you a quick update of some of the work we have been doing lately.

Now to a couple of other random stories.

The stake president here is a very intimidating man to say the least. He is tall and he has broad shoulders. He is a part owner in a fortune 500 company. When you walk into a room with him he has more of a presence than any one else I have met. I have been asking if we could have a private meeting with him for weeks and he took us to lunch a couple of p-days ago. In that meeting we gained his trust and he asked us to just attend a stake priesthood meeting that missionaries wouldn't normally attend. We walk in just as they are about to start and we are sitting clear in the back by the basketball hoops. after the prayer was said President Garrick leans over to his councilor and whispers something. President Faylor stands and says "Could we please have the Zone Leaders join us on the stand?"  With an apprehensive sigh we make the long awkward walk up the isle to join the stake president on the stand. I know what you are thinking: "why did he ask you to come up?" we were wondering the same thing. Luckily a couple of speakers took longer than they should have and the window that President Garrick had for us to speak came to a close. :) So we sat on the stand and then we left the stand. If nothing else it has helped me know that the Stake is on our side and we are hastening the work together. 

My Second story is very close to my heart. Because President Godwin is going home this transfer he wanted to take our group that came out of the MTC together to the temple and do one last interview with all of us. It was surreal being there in the Temple with missionaries whom I have  learned to love and respect. Before this experience I have thought a lot about my mission and many thoughts came to mind of the weaknesses that effected my mission greatly. I have prayed seeking to feel consolation for the mistakes I have made. I don't think there is a missionary on this planet who doesn't have these thoughts come to them from time to time. To find an answer to my prayers I went to the scriptures. I read about perfection. We are commanded to be perfect. In my studies I found that there were many translations to perfect through the scriptures and my heart was drawn to one translation of Perfect: the word "whole." I will let you figure out what my answer was. I could do a dissertation on this topic and other thoughts I had but I won't. Suffice it to say I felt a strong acceptance of my mission from the Lord in the Temple. It was accompanied by an hour long interview from President Godwin. I love that man. He has changed my life in many ways. It was weird doing things that would traditional be reserved for departing missionaries, but I am back in my area ready to give the first transfer of the Rancho Cucamonga mission, my best. 

This has been long. and I am sure I am missing other things I could write about. But it is time to go! I love you all and I hope My dad had a wonderful Fathers Day! I love you Dad!!

-Elder Roos

E-mail from one of our faculty members at Dixie State University.  He had earlier e-mailed me and told me that his brother was having Garrett and his companion over for dinner ....

From: Caldwell, Gary
Sent: Wednesday, June 05, 2013 11:01 PM
To: Roos, David
Subject: Re: Missionary

Dave:

My brother texted me back after your son left. Thought you might like to read what he had to say:

Wow! What a very, very impressive young man! Haven't seen a missionary that impressive in a long time.
Sounds like he's doing well. Congrats on such a fine missionary!

Gary

Dear Utah,

We have seen so many miracles here in the mission lately. Our mission is a testament that The Atonement of Jesus Christ is real. There has been such an amazing change in the missionaries since I first arrived in the mission. It is unreal to see the level of obedience and hard work in contrast to the struggles this mission had when I flew in to the Ontario airport. The most amazing thing about this transformation has been that as the mission has changed I have too. I have never pushed harder for goals in my life and it is making me a better servant of the Lord. We have seen so many miracles including a baptism last week. I had the awesome opportunity to baptize Jason Sanderson. He is just a year older than myself and when we met him he was ready to change his life. He has had a really rough background, but I have never seen anyone who accept the gospel with such incredible humility. He accepted every commandment and he readily changed his life. The baptism was a sweet experience. I haven't spent a lot of time in the water as a missionary (it is better to have a fellowshipper baptize than a missionary who will soon leave), but it felt as natural as if I baptized someone every day as I stood there in the water. Attending the baptism was Jason's family which included his sister. This leads me to my next miracle. On Monday I texted Jason saying "hey ask your sister if we can do a lesson with her tomorrow at 4:30." he texted back and said it was set up. We taught her the next day and set a baptism date with her. The blessings have been poured out heavily upon us. We have four people who are on track to be baptized this month and early July. I have said this before and I will say it again. It amazes me how little I do in this work. I am simply a witness of the Lord doing his work. In comparison to football, I feel like the water boy. :) (no pun intended) The zone of Apple Valley is strong and I hope it stays that way 'till my dying day. And for my last comment: HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! I love you so much. Oh, and Kellie your pretty cool too. :) My mother one of the primary reasons I have been able to be the missionary that I am today. My parents are where I first learned Discipleship. I followed them as they Followed the Savior. I owe so much to them and to Jesus Christ. I love this work.

Another week here in the middle east, I mean the High Desert! It is getting pretty hot and Ironically enough my Companion is from Canada! His name is Elder Bretzke and he is my only comp that hasn't been from either Utah or Idaho! He will be a great fixture to the zone. He has already done so much for the zone and he hasn't been here for more than a week. I'm glad to have a companion who is serious about the work. We will see a lot of miracles together. Speaking of miracles we have a couple coming right up. We have Jason  who will be baptized this Week and then we will have Roxie who will be baptized on the 1st of June! (happy birthday mom!) I love having success so close together. Hopefully this will keep the ward excited about missionary work. Jason and Roxie are both so prepared by the Lord. We even moved Roxie's date up closer than is was because of her spiritual progression. Even after six weeks I am still adjusting to the singles ward. Fortunately Elder Bretzke has served in two others so he knows how to work the ward and find success. I look forward to reporting on the baptism and our further successes next week. 

And as a side note. Congrats to Kaylee and Amanda for the exciting events this weekend.

April 22nd

Well another week has flown by and I have a few things I would like to share. A little over a year ago I had the chance to to teach Aj Lundgren and he was baptized on April sixth. Many miracle have happened in their lives since then and we had the chance to see another this last Saturday. We got up got ready and started our drive down to the Redlands Temple to see the Sealing of the Lundgren family. This has is towards the top of favorite mission memories. Showing up to the temple is always a great experience. You wait with anticipation to see Angel Moroni towering above the orange orchards and homes of Redlands. Once we were inside we started seeing many familiar faces from the Running Springs Branch. Some of my favorite families were there. It was surreal telling them where I have been and how much longer I have left. The first of the ordinances to take place was the sealing of Cathy Lundgren to her parents. And then the moment we were waiting for came. Aj and Cathy were at the alter as they were married for eternity. As spiritual and emotional as all of this was, it didn't prepare me or Aj for the final part. A temple worker led their sons Trevor and Cody into the room all dressed in white. As they all were there at the Alter The family was in tears, as were most in the room. The Lundgrens are now a forever family. try telling that to a three month out Elder Roos telling Aj that "no we don't have the gold plates now they were taken by angel Moroni." I didn't see this miracle coming. I hope they are able to stay strong like they have for the last year.

In other news we were able to pick up two solid investigators and set baptism dates with them this week! 

Kayla's family was just baptized in another ward in Apple Valley. She doesn't live with them but she has seen the transformation that has occurred in their lives. She says that "if this is something that can change even her family then I should look into it." We taught her and she was at church on Sunday! She fits into the ward so well! and she has a lot of friends in the ward now! 

We met Skye on Saturday night after a baptism. She is dating a perspective missionary in the Spring Valley Lake ward. Her parents are very opposed to her getting baptized. At first this brought some fear to me knowing how many I have lost due to parental constraint, but after she described verse after verse of the Book of Mormon where she felt and recognized the spirit I knew that all would be well. We had prayerfully thought about what baptism date we should extend to her and we decided on the 25th of May not knowing that it was her birthday. We had her pray to know if that was the day she should be baptized. after the prayer and the meditation she said that she felt like a switch turned on in here head and she knew that is was God wanted. Her ability to recognize the spirit is incredible, and in some ways surpasses it my own sensitivity. 

And for my last little story we had a meeting with all of the bishoprics, mission leaders, and auxiliary presidencies. We were able to give a training on using their missionaries as full time resources. We taught about how the age of missionaries our by themselves thrusting in their sickles is passed and we need to use the large machine called a combine instead. We compared a combine to the ward mission process, as opposed to missionaries just out tracting without much success. It felt strange being very bold to a group of men and women who I would normally look up to. After we were finished the stake president and the mission president congratulated us after we were finished. Those are two men I have found it is hard to impress. Well I think I am finished rambling for now. Thank you for your prayers!

Another week has come and gone! There are four things that I want to tell you about so here we go!

Zone Conference was a great time for us. We were able to get together with the entire high desert for one big meeting. President and Sister Godwin gave trainings. As a side note I have grown to love our mission president and his wife immensely. We also had some trainings from the assistants which is to include an old companion Elder Sevison. We learned a lot about repentance, using our area book, and reaching our mission goals. Elder Hargraves and I gave an awesome training on making nightly planning more effective! We began by tying our ankles together as if we were ready to start a three legged race, We had signs to show what we represented. I had a sign that said daily planning and Elder Hargraves had a sign that said Weekly planning. We acted our parts very well. We ran towards our baptismal goal not unified and trying to go different directions to prove the point that we often are very faithful and excited in our weekly plans but we don't use those goals and we don't have the same faith in our nightly plans. We then ran together in unity to reach our goal. It went very well and everyone thanked us for the training when we were through. 

We have been able to pick up two new investigators this recently and set dates with them! One is Jason. He has family who are members and he has had a rough background. I can't wait to see how the gospel helps him. The other we set was yesterday with a girl named Roxie. She is very quiet but she is so humble and ready to get close to God. She too has had a rough past and is trying to change. We taught the Doctrine of Christ and it went wonderfully. She didn't want to pray at the end of the lesson, but after about ten minutes more of teaching about prayer she was ready. She said a sweet prayer and the spirit was strong. I am glad to see that I will be able to finish off my mission these last few months with some success. 

hello!

This is one of those messages where I will try to fit a lot of information into a couple of paragraphs. I was transferred! I am now serving as a zone leader in the Apple Valley Zone in the high desert. My new area will be a new challenge for me. This will be different than any area I have ever served in. I am now serving in the Ridgecrest young single adult ward! We cover every single adult from ages 18-30 in the entire High Desert. That means we cover three stakes! My companion is one of the more respected missionaries in this mission: Elder Hargraves from Pocatello Idaho. We have been around each other at many meetings over the last year so we already get along great. I'll be honest one of the things that has scared me about being a zone leader was the possibility of serving in one of the mission's ysa wards. It will be interesting that my missionary work will shift from talking to people on the street to going to activities like FHE, basketball, volley-ball, and other random gatherings of singles from ages 18-30. :) It should be great, but it will take a little time to get used to. Maybe God is trying to ease me back into life at home in the next four months. :) The primary reason I have been afraid is simply the work in ysa can be a lot slower and it rests a lot on the members in the ward. My fears have been eased in the last few days because we received three referrals that seem to be golden. I will report on those next week. The greatest work I hope to be involved in this transfer will be keeping ten other areas baptizing.  Brother Thorn, Our high councilman over missionary work here in Apple Valley, will be a huge assets in that quest. He has several master degrees and a doctorate, all of which are business focused. He owns a firm where he consults huge companies on how to improve or in some cases save their company. In other words he is one of the smartest people I have met. He gave a leadership training to all of the zone leaders a couple of months back. It was focused on leadership skills. I learned much that I have been able to apply here and I will also apply what I learned when I am home. It will be an honor to work with him for the duration of my mission. This transfer decided that I will be in THE RANCHO CUCAMONGA MISSION for my last transfer. I will have a chance to see a new mission be organized. It is only one of three new missions opening in California. There are a lot of exciting things happening, a lot of change. Leaving The Summit Ward after being there for so long was hard. Saying goodbye to those who were taught and baptized was especially difficult. Saying goodbye to the Carrolls stands out to me the most in my mind. The spirit was so strong as I shared my last message with them after dinner on the Monday. I told them that I new they were one of the reasons I stayed in the summit ward for as long as I did. I told them that I knew they were one of the reasons I was sent to this mission. There were tears in all of our eyes and Casey was especially emotional. I gave them hugs goodbye, and Stephen said, with a lot of feeling, "if you ever need anything we will do it for you." I ended that night saying goodbye to Keith, who has been a good friend. Looking back on this message reminds me why serving has been the best decision I have ever made. Conference also confirmed that. I can't see me sitting on the sideline of salvation for the rest of my life. I echo the testimonies of the prophets we heard about this work. I started this journey in Hesperia and now I will end my mission covering Hesperia again. The scripture rings true that the work of the Lord is one Eternal round.

love,

-Elder Roos

Hey!

This is going to be short and to the point, but there are a few things that I would like to share. Yesterday we had ward conference in the Summit Ward. Bishop Dow and President Sears spoke. Prior to them speaking I was asked to sing the song that I prepared for the baptism. I sang I stand all amazed. After i was done I stood all amazed that I didn't mess up and that the spirit was so strong. Sometimes I feel as though I have been a member of the Summit ward for years. President Sears spoke with a lot of power as he normally does. It amazes me how he can take such simple doctrines and teach them with power as if he was revealing them for the first time. It wouldn't surpise me if he went on to be a mission president. Later that same sunday we had a lesson with a less active man named Robert who hadn't been active for many years yet his family is. We had the big guns with us. We had President sears on our left and Bishop Dow on our right. It was such a spiritual lesson. Robert spoke of how he hadn't recognized the spirit before. We all testified and eventually prayed to recognize the spirit. When we had finished our prayer President Sears asked him "how do you feel?" He responded "good, I feel like this is right" Presidemt Sears told him boldly that what he was feeling was the spirit. He replied again  with tears in his eyes saying "It feels good." I hope to see this family in the holy temple in the near future. I wish we could have the stake president and the bishop at every lesson we teach.:) Well in a weeks time I will find out what my fate is going to be for this next transfer. I will keep you posted.

Dear Fam and Friends

It is weeks like this one that have made my mission worth it. Wednesday we got a text from Casey Carroll saying "they are here can you come now? I don't think I can keep my secret any longer." We knocked on there door and Stephen (a returning less active) answers the door. As a part of our plan he acted like he did not know us as he reluctantly let us inside. We pretended to introduce ourselves to Stephen, Casey, and their daughter Abby. We also introduced ourselves to Stephens Parents, who are the unsuspecting victims for whom we have planned all of this. We asked "may we share a short message?" They agreed and we began to teach about the Book of Mormon as if we were at square one with the Carroll Family. The older Carrolls sat waiting for us to finish, not even imagining what we were about to unveil. After explaining the role of the Book of Mormon and how Jesus visited the Americas we explained how you can pray to know if the Book of Mormon is true. With a more somber voice my dear companion Elder Paget said "we are grateful that Casey has come to the knowledge that Jesus Christ lives, that the Book of Mormon is true and she is getting baptized this Saturday at 4:00." An Infatic silence followed. The parents who have prayed for years for their son and daughter in-law to be a part of the gospel found out just days before the baptism that their prayers were answered. Stephen's mother was the first display emotion saying "What!" and embracing Casey. It still had not sunk in for Stephen's father as he sat staring at the floor trying to comprehend what we had said. The tears were flowing at this point as they asked how this had happened and when. Casey explained that the they felt that something was missing in their lives and they didn't know what it was. They felt they needed something more. They had that conversation on Friday and Saturday. It was the Sunday, the very next day that we knocked on their door. Simply a miracle. Stephens Father embraced us and said thank you. It was one of the sweetest experiences of my mission. The only memory to top it was the baptism of Casey Carroll. A small fortune was spent in flying out Stephens whole family for the event. The program was beautiful with talks from Stephen's mother and brother. Right before the actuall baptism, I sang an arrangement of I Stand All Amazed. It was hard to keep from crying as I sang a song about my savior. It wasn't the best performance of my life but I felt that I had sufficiently shared my testimony of what was about to take place. They stepped in the water and Stephens father got chocked up as he said the prayer. more than a third of those present were non-members and it was clear that they felt the magnitude of the event with the rest of us. Most of Casey's family came to the baptism including her father who was more that apprehensive about her joining the church. A lot more good was done that day than just a baptism. On Sunday she was confirmed and her family sat on the front row to witness it. Casey was in tears after the ordinance was completed. Another miracle was we had an investigator family come to church who we have struggled with for awhile. Success felt really good. The sacrament meeting was even more spiritual because the bishopric was changed. Brother Dean was made the 2nd Councilor. Brother Dean has been a ward missionary since I have been here. There is are few men in this world I respect more than brother Dean. He was planning on moving within the next two weeks. When President Sears (another hero of mine) came to his door and said The Lord wants you to stay. He is staying. I love my mission. I don't want it to end. Thank you for all of your support.

Elder Roos

p.s We can email anyone now, so drop me a line.  

Dear World,

It has been a few weeks! It was a Thursday like any other. We had just got out of Missionary Leadership Council and we were picking up supplies to bring to missionaries. President Godwin entered the office with unusual speed. He asked if we would all step into the chapel. Perplexed, we all sat in the first few rows awaiting what he had to say. I was expecting a speech on how we need to find more investigators. Oh, how I was wrong. He said that he had received a message that morning that the mission boundaries were changing. Effective July 1st The California San Bernardino Mission will be split into two missions. In the West there will be The California Rancho Cucamonga Mission, and in the East there will be the California Redlands Mission. We are in some of the last months of the existence of the mission I was called to more than a year and a half ago. The Rancho mission will comprise the stakes of Rancho Cucamonga, Upland, Ontario, Chino, Hesperia, Victorville, and Apple Valley. The Redlands mission will also take some stakes from the Riverside Mission. It will have the stakes of Fontana, Rialto, San Bernardino, Redlands, Palm Desert, yucaipa, and a couple of others that I can't remember. My last transfer in the mission will won't be in the mission I came to. When President Godwin goes home the California San Bernidino mission gets to rest as well. This has motivated us as much as ever to acheive our goals. This is the last stand of this mission. Transfers have brought many changes to the Fontana Zone. We have more missionaries than ever. We even have a sister missionary from Germany! The zone is working hard and we are focusing on Discipleship to be our motivation. I made the zone a promise that Letting their faith in Jesus Christ and Discipleship sink deep into their heart will motivate them in this work more than anything else will. I also said that if keep it that way we will baptize more than the Fontana Zone ever has. I pray that we will be worthy for these blessings. Another bit of news that is worth mentioning was that a family I taught a year ago went through The Redlands Temple to be sealed. I had permission to go and see that event. It is amazing how the blessings of going on my mission seem to be perpetually coming even long after I leave an area. I'm sure I will keep seeing them long after I am home. I taught the Rogersons when I was in Running Springs. I hope I won't forget what Jason said to me when I said goodbye outside of the temple. He said "you changed this life." It is humbling to know that his statement was false. I have been a witness of what The Lord has done. I am grateful he has given me a ticket to sit on the front row and watch.

Love,

Elder Roos

No I did not watch the superbowl, but we got an update from everyone we tried to see. Not very many people want to meet with the missionaries when the superbowl is on. :) When I heard about the final score, the the thought of Aaron yelling at the tv came to my mind. I'm sure it wasn't a happy night for him.   I don't have much time left to write so I will keep it brief.  Yesterday had the honor of meeting with the high council. We presented how we were helping members do missionary work in the summit ward. President Sears showered us with undeserved praise. I have been here seven months and I have created quite a repor throughout the stake.

I was extremely happy with the twenty new investigators we had last week, but I thought "no, we couldn't possibly maintain that number when our average has been ten." I am happy to be proven wrong. We ended this week with twenty two new investigators! A new record since I have been here. The zone is working really hard. We had the chance this week to go on exchanges with all of our District Leaders. It is a great experience to see how their areas are doing and how we can help each other improve. It has also been an interesting experience going to the Spanish wards on exchanges. I feel pretty useless in most of the lessons we teach, but the food is really good. :) It seems that we are always trying to come up with ways to help the zone. One of the ways we have come up with has been a zone competition titled "FONTIKI." As a zone we are setting goals each week and when we accomplish them we move one more step up the Island of FONTIKI. We also have a companionship competition. The companionship who invites investigators to be baptized on a specific date at the most first appointments gets to hold on to the sought after tiki mask for the week. The companionship who wins at the end gets to keep the mask and they will be the guests of honor at THE ZONE LUAH WE WILL HAVE! (assuming we make it to the top of the island by the end.) We have talked to the Palmetto Tongan Ward and we will have entertainment and some Bwaka (a pig). Our zone is pumped for it. In other news we had a great miracle happen in our area this last week when we went to an appointment to see the Carrols. They are a part member family that we started teaching. Casey, our investigator, is a lot more solid than I thought. We asked "how has the Book of Mormon reading been coming." She said "really good! i'm in 2 Nephi chapter 10. I am doing a program where I will finish it in thirty days." As you can imagine that doesn't happen to often among the people we teach. Towards the end of teaching the restoration I asked "Casey have you felt the spirit before?" She explained that she has never felt anything that she could call the spirit until sunday. She has been to church many times in other places that they have lived but she said that this experience was different than all the rest. She said that during one of the talks at church an overwhelming feeling came over her. She said that everything that was happening became clear and she new this was the right thing to do. I asked do you feel like this was your confirmation to be baptized. She said "yes." Unfortunetly they will be out of town quite a bit and she has requested more time than most do before her baptism, so we set her date for March 16th. I am confident she will be baptized on that day. As a side note we had a breakfast with the zone this morning where we had Brother Miller of the stake presidency speak to us and get us ready for a great week. This next week we will have zone confernence and a few other things. AMANDA CONGRATS ON THE MISSION CALL! That mission sounds perfect for you. (well I know it is:) Spanish sisters are rare. In fact our mission has never had one. We are getting our first spanish sister this next transfer. If your mission is similar to ours in that respect your trainer will be a speaker of spanish already (maybe even foreign.) I would love to have you as a sister in our zone, but I guess your my sister wherever you are. :) Thank you all for reading.

Another transfer has raced on by and we are on to the next. I am afraid to blink thinking I may wind up on a plane the next time I do. :) I have under seven months left and if I could buy more time I would. I know what your thinking seven months is still a good chunk of time. You see good friend, a mission is like a roll of toilet paper the closer you get to the end the faster it goes. That means that my six and a half months is going to feel like a few weeks around the corner. Elder Cox's five weeks will probably feel like days. For me to do all that I have been asked to do I need to go the extra mile for these last six months. The signs that scatter our area saying "no stopping at any time" will be a good reminder for me of this commission. :) Let's see there is so much to report. Well one big thing worth mentioning is that we had a mission goal to get 500 baptisms by years end. We ended at 520! The mission has never broken the 500 barrier so this was an exciting feat for all of the missionaries to be a part of. Our mission president never ceases to remind us that it is not the number but the people following Jesus Christ that we are after. It brings fulfilment for me knowing that I had the chance to be a part of one of the highest baptising zones in the mission during this fruitful time. I pray that our zone stays up to speed to accomplish much more in the Lord's service. For our area we have seen much good happen. This last transfer we found many new investigators, which also means we lost many investigators. I am happy to say that we have a teaching pool and we are hopeful to see some baptisms this next transfer. I will keep you posted. Elder Paget and I have more time together and I am excited to see what we can do with it. I love this work and it will be hard to give it up. This week we will have six new missionaries come into our zone. I hope they are ready to get to work. :) On Sunday we had stake conference. Elder Nelson D. Cordova, an area seventy, was in attendance. He was so funny! Him combined with a talk from the Fontana Stake President, Michael Sears, made it a meeting one I will not forget. One of the greatest things I have been able to learn here in Fontana has been leadership skills in the church. President Sears is someone I look up to so much. I could go on but I will not. Well until next week (hopefully). 

December 17th, 2012

Hello! Christmas is getting so close. Time has been flying on by. We have been working at a very high pace for our area and our zone. It has been a bit stressful lately. :( there is a lot of pressure on us for our zone to succeed. our area has been doing well we have been finding people like crazy! we set seven baptism dates this week! (only a couple of them are solid) I will tell you more about it when we have a chance to talk face to face! as far as a time goes I am not sure we will text you the day before to confirm a time. :) Sorry about running my other account down I made a couple of dumb purchases.. like shoes.. my old ones were dead.. I didn't have money in missionary account to afford them so I did use t-shirt money... :( I will be more frugal.. thank you guys for thinking about my return.. though i don't want to be babied.. I need to fend for myself one of these days ... :) I love you both so much I can't wait to update you more in a week.

 

Dear Family and friends

There is so much to say today, so here we go. Last Tuesday I got a new companion. His name Is Elder Joshua Paget. He has been on his mission for 17 months and he has spent most of his mission serving in San Bernardino. An irony of us being comps is that he was comps with Elder Sevison at one point as well. :) Things have been very different since Elder Sevison and I split up. There have been many good things that have come from it. including Me stepping up to be the senior zone leader, It has given me a new boost of motivation, and Elder Paget has taught me an amazing way to find new investigators! I was a little skeptical at first when Elder Paget told me that we were going to pray, a random street name would pop up in our heads, and we would proceed to put it in the gps to see if it was in our area. Every time we have done this a street that neither of us new existed in the area has come to our minds. Every time we have done this we go to the street and we find the reason that the Lord has lead us there. It has been miraculous. So far we have three new investigators from doing this and a building list of potentials. In this area that is a feat that requires divine intervention. One example of this was when we prayed and the street "Martingale" popped up in my mind. We put it in the gps and it was just around the corner. when we arrived there we had no clue what we what to do or rather what door to knock on. We saw a man parked in his car and we went up and offered him a dvd. He responded with "wait, are you guys missionaries?" We said "yes." He then asked "so do you guys knock on doors?" We again responded "yes we do." What he did next I did not expect. He flipped around a badge and said that he was under cover looking for a fugitive on the run. He asked if we would go and knock on the fugitives mothers door and do our missionary thing, and if we see him or signs of him to let him know. We agreed and we went to the door not knowing what to expect. The woman who answered began talking with us and she has studied with the missionaries before! She lets us in and we teach her the restoration! We stayed for awhile. When we left the agent wasn't there. Keep in mind that we were led to that street through prayer and in our time of need it seemed that God had a way to lead us to the very door that we needed to knock on. This was a more dramatic case of being guided, but we have been seeing miracles like this for days. I pray that they do not stop. Another great strength for me lately has been to go the Redlands temple twice in the last week. we first went on Saturday where Elder Sevison and I were able to temporarily be comps again to go and see a couple of our recent converts go do baptisms for the first time.  I had the chance to do some of the confirmations. It was another one of those experiences I hope never to forget. Keith was especially wowed by the wonder and the spirit of the temple. Today we went to the temple as a zone. and of course we went to Cafe Rio afterwards. I have been wondering a lot lately if I will be remembered in past areas I have served. I have thought a lot about if I am remembered and appreciated in the Running Springs Branch. In answer to my concerns The Branch President Craig Davis and his Brother Brian Davis were there at Cafe Rio! In our conversation he told me that I was still remembered and appreciated. I told him I would be by to see him in about eight and a half months :) Well it is about time I draw this letter to a close. I love the Zone. They are working so hard. I love the Summit ward. We have a lot of work yet to do here. and I love my mission. I can't believe It has been sixteen months since I left home. Most of all I love my family and my friends.

Thanks for reading,

-Elder Roos

Dear friends

It was a Saturday like any other. We were at a baptism for the Spanish ward because Elder Sevison was called upon to play the piano. We were in the hall before it started where we received a call from President Godwin. The second I saw his name on the caller ID I knew what was happening. President Called to ask Elder Sevison if he would be his assistant. My Comp is the new AP! After the baptism and dinner we were rushed to our apartment to pack his stuff. We had it done in about fifteen minutes. (which is quite the feet considering he has been there for six months) In a whirlwind my companion was gone and I am currently with a couple of Elders in the Baseline Ward. Despite the craziness I still had the chance to go to sacrament meeting in our ward. During the testimonies Elder Sevison sends a text asking if I would stand and bear my testimony in his place. It was difficult to hold back the tears as I told the ward that he had gone. I expressed the love he had for them and I proceeded to bear one of the strongest testimonies I have ever given about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. I haven't been that emotional speaking at the pulpit since my farewell. :) The spirit in that meeting was so strong. Keith, one of our recent converts, arose and bore his  testimony in sacrament meeting for the first time. After the meeting, many visitors in our ward came to him in awe asking for his email to ask him more questions about his conversion. It reminded me how much of a miracle his life is. A memorable line in his testimony was "It takes me about 12 minutes to get to church, but the first time I came here it took 40 years." In Priesthood meeting we laid hands on his head and gave him the Aaronic Priesthood. Brother Walker his new home teacher had the chance to do the ordinance. I look forward to this coming week. I will get a new companion tomorrow morning and I have six more weeks of working hard in the Summit Ward in Fontana. Until next week,

-Elder Roos 

Hello people, Among many other things, I am thankful for the week I just had. On Wednesday we helped for a big event called "Eat and Be Well" hosted by the city of Fontana and a lot of different churches. The event was to help homeless and needy people get a thanksgiving meal. Though there were many volunteers involved, The guys in the white shirts and the name tags stood out. :)We had our entire zone come to volunteer serving food. It was an awesome opportunity for missionary work. It was funny to see 'higher ups' from other churches staring at us like we had come from a distant planet. :) Though a few tried to razz us a bit, we didn't have any problems. :) On thanksgiving day we had two full blown meals! Luckily they were spaced out a bit. The first was at one and the other was at six. One O' clock was with the Taylor family. Sister Taylor was just made the head of the School board here. She was the one who gave us the idea to help with the event. The second dinner was with Keith and his awesome family. That was one of my favorite dinners I have had. During dinner we were laughing so hard at different stories everyone had to tell. After dinner we got our Keith's nice telescope and did some star gazing. We were also able to watch a mormon message with the family, which is the closest Keith's family have allowed us to teach them so far. I am thankful for so many things. My mission hasn't had the grandeur that Ammon's did, nor has it been enjoyable all of the time, But there is no way I would give up the experiences I have had. They have shaped my perspective in astronomical ways. I do not see through the same eyes.(alma 32:40) I hope you gave thanks to God this week as I was able to. Until next week. Elder Roos

Drum roll please.............................................................. This week the San Bernardino Mission broke our record for the most baptisms in a week! we ended at about 28 baptisms! (eight of those coming from the Fontana Zone) For us Saturday felt like a baptism marathon. At eleven a family of five got baptized in the Palmetto Tongan ward! I loved that baptism. Elder Sevison and I taught Koko and her family the first two lessons. and then when Elder Allen came to be Elder Pauga's Companion we stepped out of the picture. I have never been to a baptism where more tears where shed. The Tongan people are so loving and so sensitive to the spirit. Towards the end of the baptism Bishop Tu'itupou got up and brought a young girl with him. He told us that she was the one who invited Koko's family to the Luau, which put them on a fast track to baptism. Think again if you were under the impression that a single invitation to a seemingly uninterested family will not make a difference. Of course we had to stay and eat a lot of food after the baptism as well. :) Towards the evening there were three others baptized in the Randall Spanish ward in the Baseline Ward. It is great to see how well our zone is doing in taking those with baptismal dates all the way to the font. We had a fast a few weeks back that we would be able to do so. I feel like our faith was a factor in this successful weekend. On somewhat of a side note Keith told us something that he hadn't before that almost grounded me. He told us that one night before he met us he was reading and pondering the Book of Mormon. He told us that he thought to himself and to God "well how do I know if this is true." As he thought that he opened the Book of Mormon to a random page. He turned to precisely Moroni Chapter 10 verses 3-5, where he read Moroni's promise. He prayed and now knows it is true. He is currently having some financial problems with his law firm, so please pray for him. We are teaching him a lesson tonight with a future missionary who was called to the Omaha Nebraska mission. We were able to be at the Wildons while Daniel opened his call. That brought back the funny memory of me opening my call. Anyway I will have more to report on next week. I am still loving my mission. I am where I need to be for me and others. Thanks for reading. -Elder Roos