Statements divide, questions unite.‏

Man oh man. What a week it has been in the old IDMM. It has been so busy this week. Seriously, life just went from one thing to the other to the other, and I loved it. And can I just ask, was General Conference not just amazing!? It was so great and I wish it lasted a lot longer than just two days.

Tuesday last week we had zone conference. It was phenomenal. I went with a lot of questions in my heart that I wanted answered for me. Needless to say, the Lord hears our prayers and answers our questions. It seemed as if everything that was spoken was what I needed to hear. Now I don't want to paint a dark picture, but I've been struggling lately. Not with the work, nor with companions or anything of that sort, but with myself. I just have felt as if I was not doing ALL that I should be for the Lord and for this work. I went to zone conference feeling that way and during zone conference I became very inspired to be better and to give more. When I left zone conference, I still felt as if I was on cloud 9 but while driving home I just got so frustrated with myself. I started to pick myself apart and realize how incapable and weak I was in this work. When we got home, it continued. I was so overwhelmed with who I needed to become because I thought it was me who had to do it all. I lay on my bed with what felt like battery acid rolling through my veins. I kept beating myself up all night until about 10 P.M. I started to go back over what I had taken notes on during zone conference and it hit me as pure as day. I relied on myself and no one else to help me. I had forgotten to apply what I was teaching to others and rely on the Lord. In the recent days, I have refocused all that I do, with a special interest in what it is the lord is helping me do, and things have been infinitely better. I am not perfect but I am progressing and the Lord is helping me do it.

This week we went to jail. Well ya - kinda. One of the families in our branch has a son who has gotten into some trouble. He stole a radiator from a semi and then sold it. Well, he got caught. One Class D felony and a 2 week stint in jail during his birthday is the county's cure. He seemed so miserable in there. Whoever it is that helped me avoid situations like that in my life, thank you so much. I am so glad that I never had to learn my lessons in that hard way.

This upcoming week is gonna be so busy. Today is p-day. Tomorrow is a normal work day. Wednesday I have leadership conference at which I have to train on the new training program since I was the first to do it. I get to train for 60 minutes and I get to partner it up with Elder Howard! I miss that eld so much! Love him. Anyway, then Thursday is normal. Friday is interviews with president and then exchanges in Indianola and Saturday is district meeting at which I will train for 2.5 hours on what we learned at leadership. Then, we will have district lunch and weekly planning for the upcoming week and try to work a little bit Saturday. Sunday is church and Monday I’m back here again. Nuts!!

We had a stupid car trade at zone conference. We had a 2011 Ford Fusion with 6,000 miles. We now have a 2008 Fusion that is a bad red color with 46,000 miles. When we got it, the CD player and audio system was shorted as well. Good thing I learned a bit about cars last year. Fixed her up and in all respects, she's a good car. Just not as nice as the last one. Haha. Oh, and I bought a gps last month. Scrimped and saved for that and I named it finally. Her name is Sadie.

We got lost Wednesday night regardless of the gps. It doesn't help when your dinner appointment doesn’t live on a real road. Class B highways that are unkept. Shoulda known that was gonna be a disaster. 30 minutes late but we found it tho. All is well that ends well. That’s what they say anyway.

Marie, my best friend from church, went back to Bountiful, Utah this week. She is such an amazing lady. She is about 75-80 years old and is the mom of one of the members in our area. She had been here for the summer just to live here because she's lonely in Utah. I sat by her every week in Sunday school and she helped teach me how to knit. When she said goodbye to me she said, "I love you Elder Excell" and started to weep. Ah man...I lost it. Love that woman! I will visit her soon!

We met with a woman who is a member but hasn't been to church in 2 years this week. She is amazing. Such a role model to me. Her husband is half paralyzed on his right side and cannot talk but they have the best relationship. She can’t leave him alone tho due to medical issues and so we are trying to accommodate her somehow. She misses church but just can't go. Really cool lady tho.

Conference was amazing! I had a very spiritual moment and witness during the Sunday morning session. It had nothing to do with the talks but all to do with those that were present. Saturday sessions, Elder Smith and I sat alone in the chapel, but on Sunday we had people there. We had a blind guy, a severely deaf guy, a mentally handicapped guy, a paraplegic woman and a little 6 year old girl belonging to the blind man. Being in charge of how things were set up, I wanted everyone to be accommodated. We got a projector so the practically blind guy could see - his screen was 120 inches. We got a small 12 inch TV with good sound for the nearly deaf guy and we had coloring books for the little girl. We made it work. And after much stress of getting it all together, after conference started, and the talks commenced, I looked around and realized what it was that I had missed. I started to cry. Why did I stress so much about everyone being accommodated?! Because-this-gospel-is-for-everyone. This gospel accommodates everyone because that is the very basis of its message. We leave no one behind. It was a very sacred special moment I will treasure forever.

Conference also was very special because I wrote down 5 questions that I have been wondering for some time now and expecting and praying for answers from conference. I was given the answers to all 5. Incredible how the Lord works. :)

Things I learned this week----

-Coke is cheaper than Pepsi. They won me over.
-Creme filled wafers make oatmeal so good when cooked with the oatmeal.
-People take oatmeal baths....weird.
-Statements divide, but optimistic questions unite.

I just want to reiterate what I previously said. This gospel is for everyone. It is for everyone because everyone is a child of God. There is no one person on this earth that doesn’t have that divine hereditary trait. I know that I am a spirit child of my Heavenly Father. I know he loves me. I know that I am where I need to be in his grand plan and that his plan brings happiness. It just makes sense and I am so grateful for that closure and for the peace and the answers the gospel brings to me. I know that it answers everyone's questions. I have zero doubt in that. Christ's atonement is for everyone and so is his gospel in which we may access that awesome power.

I love you all. Seriously.

Elder Excell