Transferred to Mescalero!

So I have a lot to tell you this week. First of all, we finally got a new investigator! She was actually an investigator in the past, but she's insanely busy and the missionaries lost contact with her. She's really cool and has investigated a ton of churches in the past and has developed a lot of similar beliefs as us from that.

Unfortunately, we got transfer calls this weekend and we're getting white-washed out of this area. I'm really excited, but I hope the new elders don't lose track of her. I'm sure they'll do great, though. I'm going to Mescalero, New Mexico. It's an Indian reservation and I'll be in a trio with elders Darby and Murray(who's being trained). Apparently they've been having a lot of success, so I'm really excited to go there, but I'm kind of sad to be leaving. I feel like I just got to know this area and the people here.

We had a "mission trip" this last Thursday where Elder Pino of the Quorum of the Seventy came and talked to us. It was really neat. He talked a lot about working with members because that's really the best way to do missionary work. Street contacting and tracting are not very effective. Elder and sister Pino were awesome, but they don't speak very good English, so they had to have some missionaries translate for them, which wasn't too great sometimes, haha. It was still really great.

Also, I had a great time at the temple Saturday! It was so great to feel that spirit in the temple again. There were a lot of missionaries there. I guess everyone was just trying to cram in a temple trip before the transfer's over. We were in the same session as some other missionaries here in Midland and even ran into some sisters that were in my last district. I also ran into the ward mission leader in Seminole (he works in the temple) and a ton of exciting things are happening in Seminole. The kids in that part-member family are getting baptized soon and a couple inactive families we were trying to work with when I was there are finally active!!

I think that's about it, but it's been a pretty eventful week. I'll end by saying I love the temple! I know it is the house of the Lord and we are so lucky to be able to have a temple in our mission. I think we take temples for granted a lot of time in Utah because there's so many so close. I hope you all go as much as you can and partake of those tremendous blessings that come from the temple! I can't express my gratitude for temples enough! I love y'all and hope all is well.

- Elder Carlson