What an amazing week

Hey guys! Thank you so much for the emails that you have sent me. It was a joy reading them! It is so nice to hear about the things happening at home. The weather has been going wonderful. I am loving how perfect it is. What a great week to be a missionary in the Utah Ogden mission!!!! 

So BIG NEWS!! I have been called to be a DISTRICT LEADER! I'm staying in Clinton West while my current companion, Elder Kelley, is going to Brigham City to serve as a ZONE LEADER for the Brigham North Zone! The Brigham North Zone is my old zone! How crazy is that! haha. 

I will be greenie busting. A greenie is someone who is being trained. After a missionary has been trained for three months, he gets a new companion. That new companion is a greenie buster. A greenie buster breaks out the greenie part of a missionary and makes him a regular missionary. My new companion is Elder Simbeck and he has been out for only 3 months! So I will be greenie busting! And the craziest thing is that my district will consist of 3 elders (including my comp. and ELDER ZARSE!!!! He was my first companion in the field. Also two elders, including Elder Zarse, are from Germany. How crazy is that?!) and 4 sisters! This will be a very interesting transfer. haha. I am very excited to be able to serve as a District Leader but I am really nervous as well. I want to do a really good job. Guess what, the other DL in my zone and I, we live in the same apartment now. How crazy is that?! And we both are first time DLs. It will be a blast! :D

Anyways, the work in the Clinton West stake is going super well! Elder Kelley and I have been working super hard and we have been seeing results! :D

Heather Butler is doing SO well. She is reading the Book of Mormon and she really wants to be baptized. We taught her the Gospel of Jesus Christ and she said, "My husband is a less active but if I get baptized and still have faith in God, then my husband will too. It will be good.". It was so amazing hearing that from her. She is still on for the 17th! :) 

The Cefalos are an amazing family! They are incredible! We got to teach them the Plan of Salvation last week and wow, they were amazing. Gage and Ethan are doing so good. They are understanding everything and it will be amazing! They are still on for the 24th! 

Also, a really funny story!! Last Sunday, a hour before dinner (we usually have dinner at 5pm so this is at 4pm), we realized that we have a dinner appointment and the Cefalo (who is from ALABAMA!) family is feeding us a full Southern breakfast for dinner at 7pm. Elder Kelley and I were freaking out. We had no idea what to do because here in Clinton, the members feed the missionaries so much food. Before we went to dinner appointment, we made a plan. That was to eat the food and then go to the nearby church and throw up all of the food in the toilet then go to the Cefalo's for another meal! That worked out quite well. Elder Kelley was barfing so much after the dinner appointment. After the experience, he told me that he has a super sensitive stomach so he can throw up easily if he wants to. I didn't throw up BUT I was able to eat the entire Southern meal and it was amazing. Who knew Southern food is amazing?!

Elder Kelley and I are also teaching this less active woman named Shauna King and she struggles with smoking. She really wants to go to church and become active again but smoking is what's holding her back. I am planning on going over tomorrow and teach the Stop Smoking program to her with Elder Simbeck. Shauna is doing really well. We followed up on her Book of Mormon reading and she is doing well! It's amazing! 

Elder Kelley and I have found a new family to teach. The parents are nonmembers and the father just returned from a tour in Korea. They have a couple kids but they are not old enough to be baptized. Elder Simbeck and I are going to start teaching them and hopefully, baptize the parents and get them sealed in the temple! :) Also, Elder Kelley and I have found this nonmember man named Jared Humphries. He has a LA wife. Elder Simbeck and I are also going to start teaching them. 

Elder Simbeck and I will be inviting the Wolfmeyers (the nonmember family) and Jared Humphries to be baptized in the end of May or beginning of June! Things are exploding here in Clinton and I'm loving it! 

Elder Kelley is an amazing missionary and I am so grateful for the opportunity to serve with him for the past three months. He has helped me grow so much and become a lot more confident missionary. He has taught me so much and I can't wait to teach Elder Simbeck everything that Elder Kelley has taught me. Elder Kelley is my favorite companion and I am so happy for his new calling as a Zone Leader. 

Thank you guys for everything you have done for me. I really appreciate all of the letters and emails. I love you all. Love, Elder McGrath

The district

Elder Kelley and me

Elder Zarse and me

The two Germans

Wow, what an eventful week

Hey guys! Thank you so much for the emails that you have sent me. It was a joy reading them! It is so nice to hear about the things happening at home. The weather has been going wonderful. I am loving how perfect it is. What a great week to be a missionary in the Utah Ogden mission!!!! 

Easter was absolutely amazing! We were able to attend three different sacrament meetings. All missionaries in the Utah Ogden covers 1 or more stakes. All of the speakers spoke on the Atonement and everyone except one did an amazing job. That one spoke unaccountable things, like Mary being super annoyed and irritated when Jesus Christ said, "Why weepest thou?". He also mentioned that if he could change the Bible, he would. My companion was so mad at him for doing that. I had to calm him down. But, all of the other speakers did amazing. I learned so much about the Atonement. 

During this week, Anthony texted us and told us that he is going to get divorced from his wife and is moving to SLC. We are trying to get his address so we can contact the missionaries in his area. I hope he texts back about that. He is super solid and I don't want this whole thing to hold him back from being baptized. He is a great man.

Last Wednesday, I was able to do exchanges with Elder Freitag and it was amazing. Elder Freitag is from Erfurt, Germany. And guess what?! His companion is Elder Zarse (my trainer). If you remember him, you would know that Elder Zarse is from Germany too! They get along so well. Haha. He has been out for 6 months. For this exchange, I was able to come to his area. He is assigned to the Clinton North stake. His area is doing pretty well. They have two on date. 

Elder Freitag is an amazing missionary. I have learned a lot from him, with patience being one of them. Last Wednesday night, we contacted this ~75 years old man who is on the Part-Member list. We started off well, then I bridged in the gospel and from that point, everything went sour. He went off claiming that we were not Christians because we don't display the cross in our homes, and church buildings. After he made that claim, I began to explain why we don't use the cross. I started to talk about the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and then he interrupted me by saying, "Look son, you don't know what you are talking about!". That started to make me so mad. 

But we had some amazing lessons. We taught this Navajo family that is from Yuma, Arizona. They are AWESOME! We talked a lot about Arizona and how hot it is. The funniest thing is that Elder Freitag said that he never wants to go to Arizona. Everybody just started laughing. Anyways, we taught them the plan of salvation and since they are a less active family, we committed them to make a goal of going to the temple to get sealed. After they said yes, the Spirit got so strong and the mother started crying and she said, "Yes.. I know this is true. We need to go to the temple." That whole experience really strengthened my testimony of temples and its sacred ordinances. Being sealed to my family has brought numerous blessings. When I was reading, Our Search for Happiness (can be found in Gospel Library 3), it was talking about temples and how being sealed to our families changed our perspective on families. When we know that we will be together for eternity, there is a special bond between family members. I testify that the statement is true! 

The Cefalo family is doing amazing. I really love teaching them. The kids are so exciting! Ethan (the 9 years old) is super solid and really wants to be baptized. His step-brother, Gage (the 12 years old boy), is struggling. He really wants to be baptized but his mother (whom his father divorced and she is anti) is telling him how disappointed she would be if he got baptized. But Gage is doing really well. He is understanding all of the principles that was taught. Overall, the family is doing amazing. They are beginning to come back to church and become an active family. The mother loves us, she makes us food every time we come over. She is amazing at cooking. Last time we went over, she made us these huge tacos that is seriously the best taco I had on my mission. 

Alright, I have to get going. I love you all. Have a great week! When you guys get a chance, read Our Search for Happiness, Jesus the Christ, Our Heritage and True to the Faith!! I promise you, it's worth it. I finished three of them and I am working on Jesus the Christ. I learned SO much and it is amazing. This gospel is amazing. Jesus Christ did so much for us and He is truly the Savior and Redeemer of the world. #BecauseofHim, we all can have eternal life (2 Nephi 31:19-20). 

I love you all! Love, Elder McGrath

Kelley and me eating at the Cefalos. They feed us real southern cooking.

View from Malon's Peak in Ogden

Unbelievable week

Hey guys! Thank you so much for the emails that you have sent me. It was a joy reading them! It is so nice to hear about the things happening at home. The weather has been going wonderful. I am loving how perfect it is. What a great day to be a missionary in the Utah Ogden mission!!!! Last week, I hit my eight month mark. I can't believe that I already completed a third of my mission. It's crazy how fast time flies. haha.

So today, Elder Kelley and I moved to a different house in the stake. We moved in with the Spanish elders and it is an awesome house. We live in their basement! It is so huge and so comfy. I love being a missionary in Utah. The members here spoil us hahaha.

This week in the Clinton West stake was absolutely UNBELIEVABLE! Elder Kelley and I have been working SO hard this week and we definitely have seen some blessings come out of it! 

Elder Kelley and I were teaching Heather Butler and we taught the first lesson. Heather has five kids ranging from 3 months old to 7 years olds. Everyone except the 3 months old baby is a boy. They were being crazy during the lesson but the coolest thing is that when Elder Kelley described the First Vision in Joseph Smith's own words, the kids were absolutely quiet. It seemed something has gotten a hold of them. After that, I invited Heather to be baptized. She said that she wants to but she can't. It turns out that she is deathly afraid of water. We were able to resolve that by talking a little more about Jesus Christ and how we can overcome obstacles because of Him. She said YES! She is on date for May 17th! :)

Anthony Adams is one potential investigator that we have been trying to get into his house with. We had a lesson of the Restoration with him. (Anthony Adams' wife is a less actve RM who went to Venezuela. She has a doctrinal issue. Anthony Adam's father in law has a doctrinal issue too and he stopped going to the temple and church altogether). After we recited the First Vision with him, he exclaimed that he knew that it was true. He said that he felt the Holy Ghost testify to him that what we are teaching him is true!  He is on date for MAY 3rd! 

So Sister Cefalo texted us earlier this past week asking us to move the baptism to May 24th because Ethan (who is 8 yrs old right now) wants to get baptized on his 9th birthday. Btw, anyone who is above the age of 9 is a convert. That means we will get TWO baptisms on May 24th! 

So yep, Elder Kelley and I have been able to pick up 4 dates. 4 baptisms in MAY! How awesome is that!!!

Elder Kelley and I also picked up a couple other people that we are going to start teaching this week. We should be picking up some extra dates this week. I am so excited! I love being a missionary, especially in the Utah Ogden mission! Utah missions are the BEST!!!

Guess what, this Sunday is EASTER! It is the day of Jesus Christ's resurrection. BECAUSE OF HIM, we can all live again. Because of Him, nothing is impossible. Because of Him, regret becomes relief. Watch this VIDEO! It is INCREDIBLE! I know that Jesus Christ LIVES and that He did it for us. He suffered for us. He died for us. He lived again for us. He is the PERFECT example. He doesn't say, "Do as I say.". He says, "Do as I do.". He is telling us to follow His example!  I love the Lord, I love the gospel, and I love the blessings that comes from following our Savior! I also love being a missionary. I love serving Him full-time. The past 8 months has been the best 8 months of my life. I'm so looking forward to the next 16 months of serving Him! 

I love you guys! You are awesome! Love, Elder McGrath

What a wonderful week

Hey guys! Thank you so much for the emails that you have sent me. It was a joy reading them! It is so nice to hear about the things happening at home. I enjoyed reading about how you enjoyed my little April Fools Joke. Elder Kelley couldn't believe the fact that you guys thought it was true! hahaha!

Elder Kelley and I had a wonderful week in Clinton! We have been getting so many TTI's (Teach, Testify, Invite. Basically a quality gospel conversation!). I think we got about 54 in the past week and that was awesome. We have seen so many blessings happen as a result. We have been approaching a lot of members, especially auxiliaries, asking for referrals because we are running low on investigators. We are teaching plenty of less actives and we want more nonmembers to teach and baptize! We got a ton of them and that was awesome. We are in the midst of contacting them and setting up our first appointment with them. We might be able to pick up a lot of dates with them! I'm excited for that! 

 The Cefalo family (2 unbaptized kids - 8 and 12 yrs old boy) is an awesome family. We taught our first lesson last Saturday night and it was an amazing lesson. The Spirit was super strong. After I did the Spirit Sandwich (talk about the Holy Ghost before and after a portion, like the First Vision) and reciting the First Vision, Gage and the rest of the family was crying. It was a very spiritual moment. As a result, I felt I needed to invite the two kids to be baptized so I invited both Ethan (8 yrs old boy) and Gage (12 yrs old boy) to be baptized on APRIL 19TH!! They both accepted. It was an awesome lesson. Elder Kelley said that it was my best lesson yet and he is super impressed! 

Last Saturday, Elder Kelley and I took the Cefalo family to the Saturday morning session of GENERAL CONFERENCE! It was a super awesome session! I felt that the talks were absolutely perfect for that family. I think it helped with the conversion a little bit. It was an amazing General Conference! My spiritual side was nourished very well and I am on a high right now! It is an amazing feeling being able to listen to the Prophet and the Apostles of the Lord. Every single talk was just amazing! I hope y'all (see, I'm converting to the Southern slang now because of the Cefalo family. They are from Alabama. haha) would read the talks when they get released. You can learn so much from them all! :) The General Conference experience further solidified the baptismal date! :D

Everyone else is doing super well. Morgan is getting the Priesthood when he turns 12 (which is in a few months). James got the Priesthood and is trying to get a recommend to do baptisms for the dead. James also went down to SLC for General Conference but it was on a Sunday. All of my recent converts in Clinton is doing amazing and they all are still active! :D

Last week, I saw Lori Larsen's (Robert Hall's wife. I taught them in Tremonton) status and they did baptisms for the dead! Robert is getting ordained to the office of a Priest this Sunday and will bless the sacrament. They both are planning on getting sealed in a temple next February! I will get to be there! How wonderful the gospel is! How wonderful that we can be sealed to our spouse for all time and eternity! Heavenly Father truly does love us.

Watch this VIDEO! It talks about Jesus Christ and it is an Easter video. Remember what Easter is all about! I love you guys! Have a great week and I love you guys! Stay strong and have fun. The Church is true! I know it! Love, Elder McGrath

A crazy week

Hey guys! Thank you so much for the emails that you have sent me. It was a joy reading them! It is so nice to hear about the things happening at home. I want to make another big SHOUT OUT to my little sister, Maddie, for FOURTEENTH birthday! Wow, you're getting old! haha. just kidding.

I do have unfortunate news. My companion, Elder Kelley decided to do some terrible things that I shouldn't speak of and he got sent home. I am now transferred to the city of Ogden as an APB (AP buddy. Meaning that I am companions with an AP). Haha, it's been a blast and so much fun! Well, I do have to tell you one thing, APRIL FOOLS!!!!!!! Elder Kelley is a super obedient missionary and would never do a thing like that. I hope I could see your first reaction upon reading my joke.

Haha, anyways, this week has been a fantastic week in the Utah Ogden mission. Clinton is just awesome! The weather was super crazy! One day this past week, it was super sunny in the morning and then as the day progressively went on, the weather went from sunny to rain to hail to snow to rain to sunny. All in a span of one hour! haha. You gotta love Utah weather. In fact, Elder Kelley and I were visiting this old LA man named Avery and we got to talking about the weather. He said that if you want the weather to change in Utah, just wait five minutes and it will change. Haha, how true is that statement! 

The work this week has been pretty slow. We have been getting burned out again. 10 lessons cancelled. If all of our lessons went through, our numbers would have been amazing! 16 lessons with a member, 4 inv with a date. But our numbers are 6 lessons with a member and 0 inv with a date. :( The majority of the 10 lessons are with an investigator that we would be inviting to be baptized.). But we were able to do a bunch of contacting. Elder Kelley and I made a goal to talk to EVERYONE we see and we have seen so many blessings come out of it. It seems like Heavenly Father has been placing people in our paths. We have met so many Less Active (LA) and potential investigators this past week! It's so crazy awesome!

So this weekend is General Conference and pH (a nickname that President Hiers has) announced that we have to go GC with our investigators or we have to stay in our areas. That came from a General Authority. So Elder Kelley and I have been trying super hard to find an investigator to bring and we found one. We are bringing the CEFALO familia. Both parents are less active. The father is a returned missionary from Alabama. Sister Cefalo is from Alabama and guess what?! They both met on Brother Cefalo's mission! Anyways, they fed us twice and we found out that they have two unbaptized kids so in our first lesson with them which is tonight, we will be inviting them both to be baptized. Then General Conference will definitely solidify the baptismal date!! :D

A couple days ago, Elder Kelley and I were able to go see Heather Butler (an investigator who is terrified of water because she had a near death experience with it about 20 years ago). It turned out that they just got back from the hospital because their baby got a RSV virus and is now on oxygen. They requested for a blessing and they wanted me to seal the anointing. I never gave a blessing to a 8 months old baby. It was nerve wracking but when I put my hands on her tiny head, I felt instant peace that swept my body. The Spirit was able to help me what to say and I don't remember a single thing I said. My comp said I did a pretty good job with it. So I'm happy! :) 

Oh, before I finish, I want to add something really cool! Last FHE, I gave some training on setting S.M.A.R.T...E.R. goals (S - specific, M - measurable, A - Achievable, R - Realistic, T - Time Frame... E - Evaluate, R - Re-set) and it was really good. The Zone Leaders used my training for their training for Zone Study (where we set goals for baptisms as a zone) and they gave me credit. Also, because of that, Elder Kelley recommended me to pH that I should go District Leader next transfer. I hope that happens. It would be so awesome to train some awesome missionaries. It might not happen. It depends on what Heavenly Father wants for me. 

I love you guys! Have a great week and I love you guys! Stay strong and have fun. The Church is true! I know it! Love, Elder McGrath