Hola

Hey guys, Thank you for all of the emails that you have sent. It was so good reading about the things that is going on back at home. I can't believe that Jake and Maddie are in Dhahran High School. It is so crazy. I remember asking Jake and Maddie if they wanted to attend DHS but they said that they will never go there. It is crazy how life changes. 

This week in North Ogden was a little crazy awesome! :D Elder Reinhart and I have been doing a lot of service for the potential investigators as well as less-actives. I am becoming pretty good at weeding. haha. some people here just let their weeds grow super tall and it becomes crazy difficult to pull out the big ones and the small ones that intertwines with the flowers/garden. It is a good challenge that will help me in the future. :) 

I got to see the Cefalo family this last Friday! Elder Reinhart and I were able to go to the Ogden Temple open house with them. Elder Simbeck was there too! It was SO cool to see some of my previous companions at the Ogden temple open house. The Cefalo family is doing really good. They are still planning on being sealed in the SLC temple in February. They want me to go. I AM SO PUMPED! The sad news is that they are moving south, closer to SLC. They won't be in the mission anymore but I know I will see them eventually. They even made some of their mac and cheese and brought it to North Ogden. I know.. They are so awesome!

Elder Reinhart and I were able to take the Bowden family (was a PM family and Liz (the NM) was baptized right before I came into the area) to the temple yesterday morning and it was awesome. They are moving in the right direction. They are doing family history and making plans to get sealed in the temple. They are doing very well, which makes me happy!

Elder Reinhart and I also took a solid potential investigator named Cassie Fessler and her NM friend, Abby to the Open House yesterday afternoon. Yes, I went to the open house TWICE yesterday. It was so awesome! Cassie and Abby were stunned by how beautiful the temple was yesterday. They kept saying, "oh my gosh.." in every room. It was getting really funny. I think that the open house really helped them a lot and I am hoping to be able to get into the house and start teaching them. haha. It will be amazing!

I have a crazy funny story that happened a few days ago. We were knocking on a potential investigator's door and a six years old kid answered the door. He saw us and immediately turned around to start walking up the stairs. He shouted, "Daaaaaaaad.. The probation officers are here..". Elder Reinhart and I were laughing so hard. The potential, Anthony, didn't come out for like two minutes. When we first saw him, he had a really scared look on his face but when he realized who we really were, he started making a very nervous laugh. It was funny!

So, a miracle happened this past Sunday. A little background first, Elder Reinhart and I knocked on this one super small log cabin that is secluded (I have no idea how we found it) and this big, fat guy answered. He wasn't wearing a shirt. He had a bunch of tattoos all over. We started talking to him and it turned out that he served in the Military. He has been all over the Middle East and he has been in Saudi Arabia. I was able to connect with him on that and it was really good. It turns out that he is a less active and he has a brother in the bishopric. We then talked about how church really helps us deal with hard times. I was able to invite him to church and guess what?! Two weeks later, he came. We were greeting everyone at the door to the chapel and this same exact guy came up to us and asked us if we remembered him. We didn't, we were getting really confused and then he started to describe his house. We quickly realized and man, it was awesome seeing him. We are planning to stop by the house today and see how church went for him. 

I want to share something with you all. Matthew (my eldest cousin) wrote this part in his email to me and I thought I would include it. He served in the Denmark Copenhagen mission. He said: "It really is cool to go back and see people you met earlier, and realize that you had an eternal impact on their lives.  I would certainly say that that’s part of what got me through the hard times in Denmark – knowing that even if we dropped them, we’d hopefully impacted the lives of our investigators in a positive manner forever. " 

That part is SO true and fitting. No matter who we talk to, it will always impact them in one way or another. The same thing goes for members too. David O. McKay said that every member a missionary. All of the members, including you, ARE missionaries! You can invite your friend to meet with the missionaries or other various church activities. If they turn it down, don't be sad. Inviting is success and that is what is important. It is important that you take that first step and invite. The Lord will see that you are doing your part as a member missionary and will put prepared people to hear the gospel in your path. I have seen this happen countless times on my mission and I am forever grateful for that. Don't be afraid. Be bold for the fold! Remember D&C 100:5-6!

I know that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God. I know that Jesus Christ restored his church through Joseph Smith and we are all part of the one true church of Christ today. I know that Jesus Christ lives and that He loves each one of us. I know that God is our loving Heavenly Father. I know that Heavenly Father knows each one of us personally. Jeremiah 1:5. We are all his children and He desires that each one of us is to be happy. That is why He sent his own begotten son. John 3:16. I know that by following God and Jesus Christ, we can find that pure happiness that all of us are seeking. The more effort we make in following the gospel, the more happiness the gospel brings into our lives. I know this to be true because of the confirmation from the Holy Ghost. Moroni 10:4-5. Galatians 5:22-23. I love the Gospel with all of my heart. It is the biggest source of my happiness. I know it can be yours. If you have any question, ask the missionaries! ;) 

I love you all so much and have an awesome week! Stay strong and close to the Gospel! Love, Elder McGrath

Panorama view of Central Ogden and North Ogden. It was taken on the overpass on the mountain to get to Huntsville. I was going on exchanges with one of the Huntsville elders.

Elder Simbeck and me

Cefalo family, Elder Simbeck and I

A week full of tender mercies

Hey guys, Thank you all for the emails. It was really awesome being able to read them all and to see what is happening back at home. I can't believe that Caitlin has finished her mission. She is a fantastic missionary, probably the best Spanish speaking Hermana to ever serve in the NY NY South mission. I want to give a shout out to my awesome brother, Jake McGrath for his sweet sixteenth birthday! I can't believe how old he is getting. He is OLD! 

So, this week has been a tough week but it was awesome though! We got to see a lot of miracles happen! 

Last Saturday, I was able to go back down to Clinton to see a baptism. Erika and Renae Detar GOT BAPTIZED! They wanted me to speak at their baptism and I was able to do it. It was absolutely amazing. It was a joy to see the two girls, Erika and Renae, to be baptized and to see them progress after months of teaching them. The coolest thing that happened at the baptism was that the girls were SO happy to be baptized. They were crying tears of joy and it was so awesome. It was one of my FAVORITE baptismal services I have ever had a part in. What a blessing! 

I also got to see the Cefalo family on the same day and they are doing so awesome! The craziest thing is going to happen to them: they are moving to LEHI!!!! Crazy! They are moving down to Lehi because of the father's job. It seems like I was there at the right time and knocked their door at the right time. This whole experience strengthened my testimony that the Lord does prepare people just for us. I also know that the Lord prepares people for members too. It's not just for missionaries but also for members alike. I would have never found Robert Hall (from the good ol' Tremonton days) if it wasn't for Brother Skinner (who is the WML of that ward) who stepped up and spoke to Robert. That changed Robert and his family's life forever and for the better. 

D&C 100: 5-6 - Read it, learn it, live it, love it! :)

Also, last night, we had a small miracle. The two missionaries in Huntsville needed me to go over to Huntsville and help them out with some lessons. It was so much fun! Huntsville is absolutely gorgeous and when we were driving back to North Ogden that night (the Huntsville elders usually sleep over at our place in North Ogden so they can come to Zone Sports in the morning), was so awesome! At our view on top of the pass, we can see most of Ogden and man, Ogden is beautiful! How lucky I am to be able to serve in the Utah Ogden mission! I love being a missionary. It's a great day to be a missionary in the Utah Ogden mission!

So about that miracle, I took one of the Huntsville elders (the other 2 missionaries stayed back at the house) and we went to McDonalds. We all were starving and we wanted to get some food. My companion, Elder Reinhart, and the other Huntsville elder wanted the candy, Starburst so we stopped by 7/11 on the way to McDonalds. In that store, we had a huge miracle! It was absolutely amazing! We bought the Starburst and then the lady (who was working) came up to us and told us that she wants to buy us drinks. The Huntsville elder and I grabbed some gatorade and we started talking to her. It turns out that she has a kid on a mission in Kentucky. After talking for a little bit, I asked if there was anyone that we could stop by. She referred us to her coworker. Her coworker, Alivia, is a nonmember and she wants to go to the Ogden Utah Temple open house and we were able to get her number and we will be calling her tonight. Hopefully, everything will work out. I left the store so happy. By doing service for others (buying candy for other people), we got to witness a miracle unfold before us. This experience also strengthened my testimony of the scripture, Mosiah 2:17. When we are serving our friends, family, co-workers, other people, we are also serving Heavenly Father. :) 

Also, we had two families who were LA but now, they are re-activated, that wants to do Family History!! We found a guy who is serving a mission as a Family History missionary and he is willing to help teach those two families and us to do Family History. I am excited about that. Through Family History and temples, the saving ordinances can be done for those people who have passed on to the Spirit World. It is amazing. Family History and doing temple work IS missionary work. Missionary work is not just proselyting but doing all you can to bring others closer to Jesus Christ. Family History does that. Temple work does that. Everyone can do missionary work, regardless of circumstances. Guess what, the work is hastening (D&C 88:73)!! I can see that in ALL aspects of missionary work. We can do Family History at home. There are numerous temples being built so everyone can do temple work! It is amazing to see how the work is hastening.

I love the gospel so much. I love The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints so much. I know that the Church is the same church that Jesus Christ had here on Earth. I know that the Priesthood was brought back (restored) to Earth so that we can have those saving ordinances we need in order to have eternal life. What a great time to be alive! 

I love you all and stay strong. You can do hard things. I also want to share a quote from my most amazing mother, "some of the best things in life are the things we have to work the hardest for". Have an awesome week!!! Love, Elder McGrath

Erika and Renae's baptism!

North Ogden logo

My apartment. It is the nicest apartment in the entire mission! I am super lucky! :D

Sister Cefalo calls me her adoptive son.. haha

A crazy week in North Ogden

Hey everyone, It was great to read all of your emails. I am glad to hear how everything is going on back at home. 

So quick thing I need to tell you before I forget:

I will be going to the Ogden, Utah open house with the CEFALOS from Clinton!!!! We will be going with them on August 22nd at 7pm. Sister Cefalo messaged me on Facebook asking me to come with them. They really miss me and having me over to eat their mac and cheese which consists of FOUR POUNDS of cheese. I know cheese is horrible for you but man, that mac and cheese is so delicious. 

What a week. This week consisted of frustrating moments, exciting moments, happy moments, disappointing moments, and overall, it was a great week to be a missionary in the Utah Ogden mission. 

Last Wednesday, I was able to go on exchanges with one of the Zone Leaders, Elder Folkman. He is from Baltimore, Maryland and he has been out 20 months. He is a super sick missionary and we worked HARD during the exchanges. We literally talked to so many people. It was amazing. We were also able to take the Bowden family to the Ogden Utah Temple open house and the Bowden family LOVED it. Sister Bowden was telling me about the Celestial Room and how peaceful it was. Brother Bowden also made a comment while we were talking about the Celestial Room. A little background before I go into the comment: The Ogden Utah temple open house tour is like a long line. You're constantly walking but again, you can see everything in the temple. Brother Bowden remarked that in the Celestial Room, you can hear talking when people are on the stairs to approach the Celestial Room but once they step into the Celestial Room, they are immediately quiet. It's like that moment when the Prophet walks into Conference Center, everyone quiets and stands up. It is amazing. The Spirit is so strong in the temple. What a great opportunity we all have to have temples. To perform saving ordinances for those who have passed on without knowledge of the restored gospel. Because of temples, families can be together forever. I love temples so much. I highly urge you all to take advantage of the opportunity we have and do family history. We can find people in our families that needs those saving ordinances to enter the Kingdom of God (John 3:5). 

So a few days ago, Elder Reinhart and I ate dinner with this awesome family and they gave us a referral for this hispanic family who is from California. The mother is a single mother due to divorce and the Catholic church kinda "damned" her for getting divorced. She is lonely because she lost his husband and the Church turned its back on her. :( Heavenly Father would never turn His back on us because He loves us! John 3:16! 

So we we went over and knocked on her door. We started to talk to her and her name is Ester Duran. She is really cool. She has a daughter with Downs Syndrome who turns two in October. I was able to bear my testimony about Jesus Christ and how He knows EXACTLY what we go through because He went through it Himself (Alma 7:11-12). As some of you may not know, Elder Reinhart grew up Catholic and was baptized into the LDS church at age 11. He was able to relate experiences to Ester and talk about how meeting with the missionaries will change her life as it did to him. Ester also commented that she really connects with both of us and she wants us to come back and teach her! :D What a MIRACLE! 

Heavenly Father always has His hand in everything we do. Sometimes, we may not notice it and think that Heavenly Father isn't real but He is real. He is our Father in Heaven. He is always there for us. He gives us trials for a reason (Hebrews 12) and it is to help us grow to become the person He knows we can become. 

I want to give a shout out to my most amazing older sister, Hermana Caitlin McGrath. She is on her last week on her mission in New York New York South, Spanish speaking. She will be going home on August 19. She served a honorable mission and she has brought many souls unto Christ. She is and always will be an amazing missionary and friend to all. She is a great example of her desire to serve the Lord. Congratulations, Hermana McGrath, you have done an amazing job on your mission. 

I hope all is well and I love you all. Stay strong and YOU can do HARD things! Love, Elder McGrath

My new socks. Super comfortable too. :)

This was after Zone Study. We were doing a zone blitz in one of the Sister's area which was struggling. I was with Elder Folkman and he left his iPad on the top of the car and he sped off while it was still on. He later realized that he doesn't have his iPad so we went around looking for it. We found it after a half hour and the funny thing is that the case is perfectly fine but the iPad was folded in half. hahaha. President Hiers said it was the most bizarre damaged iPad he has ever seen on his mission. it was hilarious! Since Elder Folkman is a ZL, he got a new iPad 2 days later. haha

Hello all

Hey guys, Sorry about the late response. I was super busy for the past couple days and this was the first actual chance I was able to sit down for a few minutes and type this out.

The past week has been absolutely crazy. The people in North Ogden are pretty cool and Elder Reinhart and I were able to talk to a lot of people in the past week. We had seen some miracles happen this past week and I am super grateful for everything the Lord has done for me.

The Ogden Utah temple open house started last FRIDAY! The temple is so beautiful inside. The details inside are remarkable. I highly urge you all to take advantage of the wonderful opportunities we have with temples to do baptisms for the dead and other saving ordinances.

Elder Reinhart and I were able to take THREE families through the open house. We took Sabrina Young (who got baptized before I got here) last Friday, Nyman family (Less Active family we are teaching) on last Monday, and we were also able to take the Bowden family (RC wife, LA husband. They were the one who supported John and Ashley but had to kick them out due to stupid stuff) through yesterday! I love being able to go to the Open House and every single time I walk through it, my testimony strengthens because the Spirit is SO powerful there. I know that families can be together forever. I know that the temple is the House of the Lord! It is an amazing blessing we all have.

This last Sunday, Elder Reinhart were able to witness a miracle unfold! We went to three different sacrament meetings and bore our testimonies and then after that, we went out and started to contact our referral. Our very first house we were going to, we got stopped by a car. They asked us for a flyer for the Ogden Utah Open House and we were able to give him one. We were talking and all of the sudden, they had to get going. At this very moment, a 15 years old boy named Jose walked past us in church clothes. I shouted out, "Hey" to him. He turned around and we started talking. It turns out that he lives in the very same house that we were about to knock on. He grew up Catholic and he loves the LDS church. He was coming back from church and he told us that he goes to church every single week, goes to YM mutual/encampments, scouts and other various church activities. It was crazy how he is so receptive. We set up a return appointment so we can start teaching him. 

The next night, it was about 9pm and we were walking back to our house. We passed by this house where there was this family with two boys playing basketball outside. We passed it because we were trying to get home before curfew. The family's father called out and asked us to come talk to him. 

It turns out that Jose wants to have lessons at that member's home. The father's son was best friends with Jose so they would be perfect friendshippers! It was absolutely amazing. The father went on a mission to the most southern mission in Argentina 25 years ago and he is super chill! It was awesome! 

The day after that amazing night, we had our first lesson with Jose. We were able to talk about why we were teaching him, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost. I started to talk about baptism because I love inviting people to follow the Savior through baptism! I found out that he has never told his parents about meeting with missionaries. He cannot be baptized without parental consent. I invited him to be baptized and he accepted. I told him that he has to ask his parents first before we set a date to be baptized. It was really disappointing, having to say that but man, he is SOLID! Jose is a super chill kid and it's awesome!

I had a miracle happen yesterday but that will be in next week's letter.. :) 

One year ago today, I made the decision to embark on the greatest journey of my life. From doors being slammed in my face to amazing, inspired lessons. From being able to testify to others about the Savior. I was able to witness many investigators that I have taught follow the example of Jesus Christ by entering the waters of baptism. I was able to witness a family become sealed for all time and eternity. Some of my Recent Converts were able to progress in the Gospel. For the past year, I was able to represent Jesus Christ with all of my heart, mind, might. The journey will always be the one to cherish. I love my Savior. I love being a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I love my mission. I love the gospel. I am looking forward to experiencing what the next year will bring.

I love you all and stay strong! You can do hard things! :) Love, Elder McGrath

View from the top part of my stake. It includes all of Ogden, Riverdale, Roy, Clinton, Clearfield, Syracuse.. There is a little ridge and after that ridge is Salt Lake City!!