Week 95 - Long Live the Katy Zone

Hey, Apologize for getting this out a little late!

This week has been another great one! Christmas is always a great time. Even if you don't get to spend it with your family; though I will get to spend it with people that I have found a great love for. Eight Days Away! Woo!! Also, I apologize for my gifts for you all not coming until I get home. It costs way too much to ship things home, so I will just bring them in February! Thanks for understanding!

Anyhow though. Life is well. Miracles are happening. I love it.

Just know I love you, and am working hard. I apologize for not writing enough.

You all deserve more, but alas I still can't make any promises :) Don't take it personally!

Have a great week! Elder Whitney says hi!

Enjoy all these selfies that we took while preparing our report for Stake Correlation!

Long Live the Katy Zone Leaders


Love you guys!

Week 94 - Just prepping for Christmas

Let me just say, we've got an exciting couple weeks ahead of us. And ya'll are invited :

Sure hope you can make it! 

We as a zone are preparing a Christmas concert and devotional for the whole entire city of Katy. We are expecting alot of people, and it should be pretty incredible. Elder Whitney and I have been putting a lot of work in to preparing for this. 

We are planning to tell the story of the birth of christ from the viewpoint of the Bible and the viewpoint of the Book of Mormon, with lots of musical numbers in between. I'm super excited; and stressed too. Please pray for us!

The mission is incredible. I sure love you all.

I will be in Katy most likely for the rest of my mission, So feel free to write/send stuff here. Thank you for everything. You all mean the world to me. Sorry to not get much of a letter out, I've got so much stuff to plan for this devotional. Alot of it is on my shoulders.

Just know I love you! Have an incredible week!

The church is true. The book is Blue.

I'm a mormon and so if you're not you should be!

-Elder Leavitt

Week 93 - Happy Days!

Happy late Thanksgiving everyone! Sorry I didn't get some sort of letter or package to you all beforehand! Just know that I love you guys, and I miss you greatly!

This week has reminded me of how truly grateful I am for the many blessings I have in my life.

I am thankful that I will not ever be asked to give back what has been given to me, for truly I could never do that. Too much has been sacrificed on my behalf. Jesus Christ. Mormon Pioneers. Protestant Reformation. My own family.

I just want you all to know that I am giving the best I have to give back for the many sacrifices on my behalf. It will never be even comparative to the things done for me, but nontheless, I will push forward.

Thank you so much. I love you all! The Church is true.

Jesus is the Christ. God lives.

:)

Week 92 - IT IS COLD. BUT THE GOSPEL IS STILL TRUE

It's been a great week down here... and yes I realize I say that entirely too much :) but it's true

The miracles continue to roll in as I get closer and closer to the end of my mission. I simply cannot express the true joy that fills me as I see the Gospel change peoples' lives. I love it.

Chiefly among those changes is the testimony I have seen change within myself. Above all, I know that god lives, and that he loves us. And that alone gives me strength to continually push forward.

Especially when I have to go through WEATHER LIKE THIS:

Mind you, this video hardly does a justice on this storm. I honestly though for a while that it may or may not have been the second coming. Our power was off and on. The thunder and lightning was killer. I feared for my life like the disciples on the boat, "oh me of little faith". So alas. Call me a doubting thomas, but I was scared!! yet here I am, a few days later, alive and well, still out knocking door to door, just searching for those who are waiting for the gospel :)

Could you imagine a life any better than that?

I surely can't.

Anyways though. Check out this picture of this good looking zone:

Doesn't get much better than that. I love these guys. Long live the Katy Zone.

The church is true. I love my mission.

Pray for miracles. You will find them :)

Have an incredible week

Week 91 - Transfers comes again.

Hey sorry it's short, We have to run to Houston to pick up a brand new greenie missionary coming to join us as a TRIO COMPANIONSHIP. which I have mixed feelings about.. We'll see how it goes!

Love you guys! We're having a baby! (new missionary)

Expect pictures, videos, and letters soon!

It has been another week of miracles!

Have an incredible day and week!

Week 90 - Lots of Pics. It's been a GREAT week!

It's been another incredible week down here. Lots of pictures and videos to show :)

Elder Hunter has a thing for me. 

Elder WHITNEY And some classy guy having a good time.

The new guy Elder Satele, straight from Samoa, And some classy guy having a good time.

Elder Larsen the Great. And some classy guy having a good time.

My companion Elder Cloward. And some classy guy having a good time.

Elder Hilton. YUM. And some classy guy having a good time.

Elder Syme. The greatest of all basketball players in all of Houston Texas. PS I LOOK absolutely ripped in this picture. I approve.

Just Rolling in the Soccer Mom Van. Buckle up kids!

Sisters Koerner and Fletcher. Good times!

Me and the legendary Elder Stepp. I freaking love that guy! Don't we look angelic??

Me and Elder Whitney back together as Zone leader companions for the Katy Zone! Couldn't think of any other better way to end my mission than as ZL comps with my daddy!

Picture of us on our way to MLC with the sister training leaders and the other zone leaders. Of course, me is the driving seat of our sweet 2014 Black Dodge Caravan. aka Soccer Mom Van... Everyone just calls me Mom since I'm the driver.

Doing some service. JUST PULLING THOSE WEEDS!!!

The Church is true. I love my mission!

Also here are a few enjoyable videos from my experiences this week!

Hope you all had as good of a week as I did. I love you guys! Thank you so much for everything. Keep on the keeping on! Miracles will  come. Regardless of where, who, or what.

Have an incredible week!

Week 89 - Of this I testify

Well. I hate to do this to you mom, I know you hate when I only do a one paragrapher, but alas it just has to be :) I hope you'll forgive.

Just know that I am happy, that I love life. The Gospel is true. Miracles happen. People change. Blessings DO come, though almost always in time. Hearts heal, though it's the pain that makes that appreciated. Earnest prayer brings answers. Forgiveness is key. The atonement is real. Happiness is a choice, and one we have to remake every day. Families are forever. Sacrifice brings reward, though only when in harmony with true principles of the gospel. Sorrow is necessary, but is only godly when it leads to repentance. Jesus is the Christ. the Savior. The Redeemer of the world. "There is no other name by which we can be saved in the kingdom of God." The lost are found, but only when the found do their job. We have divine potential; and we begin to reach it, the more we realize it.

I love the gospel :)
It has made me the happiest.

Of this I testify.

-Elder Leavitt

I Love you all!

Week 88 - Charity. and Love Unfeigned

It's been another incredible week. I'm ceased to be amazed at the love Jesus offers me. But I love it.

I feel it most powerfully at times when I am given the chance to serve others. Nothing helps me understand the atonement than to act as a savior, even for just a moment to someone in need. It reminds me of the sacrifice made on my behalf, even though minute and uncomparable in size, feat, or significance. Through the service I have been able to give these past few months I have realized something.

Charity is the building block of love, and in vice versa, Love is the building block of charity. And like many principles of the gospel, the two qualities are intertwined so strongly to the point at which I truly believe they are in fact two sides of one coin.

Among many other things, charity is the dynamo behind missionary work. It is the driving force behind the "work and the glory" of god. And ultimately I believe it is the unlimited source upon which our savior drew the strength he needed to perform the atonement; of which I bare testimony of it's enabling power.

Charity is the fuel for miracles; for we know that miracles only happen, "after all that we can do", and of course, what would lead us to do "all that we can do", save charity alone?

"Charity is the greatest of all...and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him."

Why?.. because it is the driving force behind every other aspect of the gospel.



I am yet to understand fully the entirety of the gospel.
I probably never even will come close to grasping the full divinity of the savior. The love of the father. The power of the Atonement.

But all is well. For this I have come to know:

All that I have is enough.
And I am truly lucky, for that is all I have to give.

God lives. Jesus is the christ.
Of this I bare witness.

Miracles DO happen

when we place our faith in the right place.

Hearts can truly change

As he lives, and even as I live.

I love you. Have an incredible week

-Elder Leavitt


p.s. Apologize for no pictures. I'll have another big post next week. Just know that all is well, and I miss you all. There will be many more letters as I prepare to come home over the next few months. Please though continue to pray for me. There are people down here that need your prayers, me included on that list as much as any of them :) Thank you!

Week 87 - They moved me to Katy!

Apologize for not writing in a few weeks. Things have been hectic down here. Just know that life is well.

It has been the incredible down here in Texas. Biggest news as of today: I got moved to KATY!!!

 and it is WELL... It is a joke how nice this apartment is compared to the apartments I have been in before. It's about time I get moved to somewhere nice! :D 

My new companion is Elder Cloward. He is a pretty chill duck from Utah. He's been out a total of six weeks, so I will be finishing his training, which is always fun! 

also, the other zone leader in Katy is Elder Whitney. And yes that is my daddy. So it is well. I can't imagine a better way to die than as Zone leaders with my trainer! Life is good!

All i can say is that I love my mission! 

Enjoy some tasty pics!!

Barney, Moulton, Vought, and Leavitt before Vought gets transferred

The new district in Katy!

Goodbye mortimer!

Reunited with Griffiths before he goes home!

One last pic with Murphy before he goes home

Smith, Leavitt, Price, and Barney right after transfers

My chicken. Her name is cockadoodle

Another shot of my chicken

A video I took on my companions camera when he went to the bathroom this morning. It was a sweet surprise that he found

The new zone!

Katy Zone!!!

 TEMPLE TRIP!!!

 Mark Womack - Baptized October 18th!

Burgers and Temple before the baptism!

Mark Womack!

Yeah he makes violins

MMMM FEAR THE BEARD




The church is true. I love my mission. See ya'l in a few short weeks!

Week 86 - All is well. But alas transferred again.

Life is well. The mission is well. All things are well in Spring, Texas...
But alas, I have been informed that I will be getting transferred once more. So although Spring has been incredible, I will see where the lord needs me for these last few months of my mission.

Adios Spring Texas! I love you guys!

Vigils, Deavers, Kizerians, Rasmussens, Keelers, Johnsons, Tuck, Pouwers, Boyds, Wideman, Isom, Kendricks, Otas, Sabistons, Tua'ones, Garretts, Badonis, Williams, Ragsdales, Hardys, Barrows, Martinez, and everyone else that I missed, Thank you so much. You guys are incredible and very dear to me, and have helped teach me some of the greatest lessons during my stay in Klein Oak. Thank you so much! Your influence will be remembered by me for the rest of my life.

all I can say is..

Keep on the keeping on! This is the lord's work! 

Anyhow though...

I have found an incredible testimony of the miracles that await us as we do the lord's work. He truly is in the details of our lives, if we can but be prepared to listen to the spirit. It is so amazing. Anyone who isn't or hasn't been a missionary could never understand, but it is true :)

also, a SHOUTOUT to the family back home!!!

Ya'll are the best!

Again, I apologize for not writing individually or wholly as much as I should. :) and though I have no legitimate excuse, I am sorry. Just know that I love you, and that you are on my mind always :) I have many great plans for us when I get back: ie. A family picture that isn't 20 years old... haha!

I hope you all have an incredible week! Thank you all that you do. It means more than you know to me.

I love you all. 

-Elder Leavitt

Also. What an incredible conference....

The lord has truly blessed us this conference. Here was one of my favorite talks by elder Dube.

Also had the privilege of going to a filipino restaurant with a family down here that reminds me so much of Scott and Linda! They are hilarious! 

She was telling me what was cooked with blood and what wasn't

Never quite decided if I liked the food or not. It was interesting.

Cheezy smiles for the win

Life is good. 

The church is true. 

If you don't know it, find out.

If you know already, don't forget :)

Have an incredible week. I love you

Week 85 - A trip to the temple!

Well this week was another great one :)

We went with the Knox family for Betty's first time to the temple... The spirit that was there was truly incredible!

This is what happens after you come out of the temple, the spirit literally makes you shine with angelic light..
haha just kidding. but seriously though, look at us...

Knox family first trip to the temple as a family.

Elder Gonzales, Leavitt, and Vought

Life is incredible!

Also. It is sad to think about, but this next week will be the last General Conference that I watch on my mission... Though I am stoked more than ever to listen to the prophet and the apostles, I also do dread that it marks that the time I have left to spend on my mission is very short. But I can only enjoy the time I have left out here. I love my mission!

In this video, Elder Holland states a principle that I have found to be true:

General Conference is an incredible blessing. Tell the world about it! The messages shared are what the world needs.

The Church is true. God lives. Jesus is our savior.

Have an incredible week :) I love you all!

P.s. I have been buying some pretty awesome souvenirs for everyone, so be excited ;)

See you all in a few short weeks! Pray for me to squeeze a few more miracles out of this incredible experience I have been having down here! I am loving it!

Week 84 - I love this place!!!

Well. I feel like you probably get tired of me saying this, but it has been another incredible week down here! I honestly have the coolest job in the world. The church is true folks.

The district, with recent converts Taylor Baumbach and Diana Valbuena.

Just wanted to write real quick this week and let you know that I am doing the best I can to serve the lord down here. I am so incredibly thankful for the opportunity I have to be a missionary and for all the support I have and do receive. I love you guys! 

I have seen the gospel change many lives. Including mine own. I love it. :D

Oh btw, here is a nice little picture of the new apartments that we live in:

Anyways though. Gotta run. We are taking a trip to Old Town Spring, so we can get some souveneirs and such :) I love this place!

Hope you all have an incredible week. You deserve it. I love you guys, and will see you in a few short weeks!

Here are a few more delightful videos for your personal enjoyment:

P-day morning jams

Ramen. It's what's for dinner!

Week 83 - A handful of baptisms, all of them miracles! OH OH and a Dorrito Burrito!

It's been another incredible week in paradise! I love it here!

So many miracles happened this week. I witnessed three families get united through the gospel this week! This place has been given a huge boost of missionary work in the past few weeks  :) Enjoy the pictures from the 3 baptisms! :)

The Vigils

The Ragsdales

and the Groenings.

Three families I will not ever forget!

Karlamarie and Gia

Ragsdale Family!

Vigil family. Holding the scriptures Kristina bought for them. Thank you so much! They were crying when they saw them!

Groening Family and Sean Short!

Look at the happiness you can see on all their faces. I wish you could have seen them before the gospel was able to touch their lives. The gospel is incredible. It changes the willing hearted. That I have witnessed this week, three times in a row. I love the mission. There is no where else I would rather be. I found where I am supposed to be and what I am supposed to be doing.

If you don't know it's true, find out.

If you already know, don't forget!

God lives. Jesus is the Christ. The church is true.

Have an incredible week!

Also, here are a few videos for your tasty enjoyment!

Karlamarie vigil singing for her baptism.

My delicious Dorrito Burrito.

Until next week!