August 23, 2010 Update

Hello,

Well, this week was much better than last week. We went finding a lot and we were very blessed for our diligence, and our faith. We started off the week by not finding anyone, until Thursday when we counted 2 part members. Then on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday we found 12 new investigators. We worked really hard and we talked to as many people as we could, considering our restrictions. And we had 3 of our new investigators come to church. It’s always really good when people come their first week. All together we had 6 investigators at sacrament meeting. The three that weren’t new have been coming for about 2-3 months (Kavitha, Romya, and Giri Babu).

One new investigator family lives opposite to our branch president, but he thought it wouldn’t be good to introduce us, and the daughter is also the team manager at the McDonald’s we visit each week. Her name is Priya and she has been letting us come behind the counter, take orders, make burgers, and do just about everything we want to at McDonalds. Her family is Pentecostal, and don’t care about being baptized twice, because they have been! We met them last night and they liked the message and were excited to pray about the message of the restoration. Their biggest concern, which is HUGE in their eyes, is the fact that we don’t say "Praise the Lord" and stotrum when we pray and when we meet. We talked about how we praise God in our actions, and not words. They seemed to accept that and be quiet. But, if they end up hating our guts it could be really bad because we might get some spit in our burger...lol.

Today, since my companion is being transferred, we are going to go bowling at India’s largest mall. That sounds fun. I don’t really think it’s necessary, or a great idea, but he really wants to go. I hear they have a Taco Bell...with unlimited refills. It’s the small stuff in life, when you are in India.

Kavitha and Romya are doing well. We have been teaching them and their family members English once a week and they are loving it. When they learned that they would be staying here for this big Hindu festival they were excited that they would be able to come to church. They have both, for a second time, told us that they believe in Jesus Christ and that they should follow him. They are very nice, and want to be baptized, but their older sister is not allowing it. I think that’s dumb because she has no say in this anyways. We are trying to help them understand what it really means to become Christian, and now it will be a different culture than that of the Hindu society. Their family members, who are members, are being very helpful. I love the Ramakrishna family.

That’s about it for this week. Next week I will tell you about an Australian family that we are teaching...stay tuned...and on the edge of your seats. I love you all. Hugs and kisses from India!

Love,
Elder Sorensen

August 16, 2010 Update

Namaste,

Well, nothing much has happened since Wednesday...and the email guy is trying to kick me out. lol.

This week I have been praying for more ways to serve the people of India. I have seen that as I have done this, Heavenly Father has been putting people who need a helping hand in my path. Just the other day while we were walking a little girl crashed her cycle into a ditch...not like y’all think but a small 18 inch deep ditch. She busted up her elbows and shins, but was ok. When she saw me she stopped crying, maybe out of fear. I helped her pick up the cycle and she was off without a word, except "Thank you." Another little girl was trying to put up her kick stand, but the bike kept falling, and I know that she had to get groceries, so I held her bike for her. When she came out she said thank you, and was off. I saw her later that night and she gave me a chocolate. I didn’t eat it, because I cannot have milk, but I did thank her when I took it. I have loved being in the service of my fellow man (Mosiah 2:17).

I have also been thinking a lot about Pres. Uchtdorf's talk "You are My Hands" as member of His true Church we shouldn’t be spectators in showing love, we should be doing it. Just as did Jesus Christ when He lived on the earth. I am grateful for the Restored Gospel and the opportunity which I have to preach the Gospel. I love my Savior and my family. Have a great week.

Elder Sorensen

August 4, 2010 Update

This is what Pavani SMS’d (txt'd) us on the morning after we had an amazing lesson with her family about temples and how are families can be together forever. Afterwards we all got on our knees and prayed to know if it’s true. Here it is:

"Hey Elders, I will be forever grateful to you for your example and for yesterday's experience. As I was pondering I had a deeper sense of gratitude for our Father in Heaven, temple, and for eternal life. Thank you! Thank you so much for everything. I am fortunate to have you both meet in this life. I wish my son grows up to be a grate missionary like you both, and my husband."

Now do you see why I love her so much?

Wanacum,

Cool starting story this week. Last night we met with one of our members from Ivory Coast, Africa. He said that he had some referrals for us. I have never taught black people, so I was way excited. The lesson was ok, nothing special. But in the end we asked Apo to pray. He asked if he could do it in French, and we both said ok. It was interesting to think about. I have heard people pray in Hindi, Sanskrit, Arabic, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kanada, Talangana, Bengali, English, and now French. Not many missions can say that.

A few weeks ago President Funk and the assistants came to our branch for church, and they came to a class that I was teaching. I put everyone into groups and had them teach about the lesson. P. Funk was on the back row and I put him, and his assistants, with 3 other members and I called it the power row. When I noticed what I did everyone laughed. I realized that no one in this group spoke English. It was so funny when they tried to teach. The assistants were good sports about it. Another funny thing, we had an investigator who was so stuck on the Trinity, usually people just leave it, but he was trying to convince us. He gave the example, after he had been proven wrong about 15 times, and after much thought, his brain somehow managed to say, "God and Jesus are like and egg, but only an egg that has been scrambled." Sounds like someone ran outta truth and began to make up crazy nonsense. I wanted to say, "You're talking gibberish."

This Saturday is Ashwini's baptism, and she is so excited for it. We have been seeing her and her family almost every day. We have even been doing family home evenings with them on Sunday nights, b/c they keep bringing investigators for us to teach. Her son, Rishi, is 5 years old and said the opening prayer. He said something profound, and will stick with me while I am raising my kids, "Bless the Elders. Help me to go on mission. Bless my family. Help me to go to temple." Pavani and Suresh are doing a great job. Suresh is in the Branch Presidency, and said, at the last PEC meeting, "I speak for the branch when I say that we haven’t had Elders as good as these since I have been a member. We have never felt more love from the Elders, as a branch. Thank you for your service." Then, on Sunday, he called his wife up to the stand and bore his testimony with her about missionary work. She recited the 10 commandments to him, after we had our movie night this week (we watched The Prince of Egypt) and he was amazed. "Where did you learn that?" Her response, "The elders." She recited them on the stand and did the hand motions that we taught her. I love their family so much. They have been a great help as we have taught Ashwini.

Another wonderful family that we are working with is Suriyha Kantharaj and his family. His wife Rozy has cancer, and when she saw us walking down the road she chased us down. We met them once in passing. They came to church for a baby blessing, but we didn’t remember them until we saw Suriyha...he has a skin pigment problem. We have been teaching them for one week and they are doing awesome. Suriyha read 3 Nephi 11 and when we asked how he felt about it he said, "I know you are gonna ask about baptism. I will be baptized, just let me know that this is the right church." He is Catholic and his family convertered to Pentecostal. He has 2 sons, and both are intelligent. One son came to church this Sunday with Suriyha. When I asked where was everyone else he said, "Rozy is really sick from chemo, and my younger son took her to the hospital. We remembered our promise to come to church." Wow. He told the branch president that he wouldn’t miss a Sunday, and that all four of his family members will come next week. We are meeting them tonight and we will be setting them for September 4th.

I love you all. Thank you so much for your support and love. I hope everyone is doing well. Stay true to the faith. Hugs and kisses.

Elder Sorensen

July 28, 2010 Update

Namaskaram,

Last Monday and Tuesday were very uneventful, and I feared that the rest of our week would turn out to be less than what we thought, but after Wednesday the whole week was amazing. On Wednesday night we visited with Ashwini and taught her about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She was very in tune with the Spirit and is very excited about her baptism next week. We then visited her on Friday and taught about Baptism and Confirmation, meaning the promises that happen when we are baptized and confirmed, and it was a phenomenal lesson. We taught about how we are cleaned from our sins and how that is the only way to live with our families after this life. Kavitha lost her father a year back and is really interested that she can see him again. But Kavitha hasn’t prayed to know what she should do to see her father again, or if it is true. Right before we went home that night we stopped by and told them that we wanted to share another small message. All we did was have Pavani bear AMAZING testimony about temples; she and her husband are sealed. After that we all got on our knees and asked Heavenly Father is it was possible to live without families after we die. One by one we all said a prayer, and the Spirit continued to grow. It was a great testimony strengthener for me, and I am forever grateful for the experience we had that night. Kavitha said that she did feel like it was possible, and that she wants it.

On Saturday we all went out to the Pioneer Day activity and Ashwini made me chipathis and jam b/c she knew that the tiffin, or breakfast, provided would have milk in it. She is way too nice. On Monday we taught them about the Restoration, and how everything we do in life needs to have power and authority. Pavani was doing the translation and asked, "How do you say 'power and authority' in Telugu?" Now, she is from Hyderabad, so this was a huge compliment for me. I said, as I pumped my left fist, "SHAKTI" and as I pumped my right fist, "ADIKADUM.", they got a real kick out of it and I was happy that I could speak some Telugu still. At the end we asked Kavitha to be baptized. She said that she wants to stay Hindu, but her family members said they will fix that. Hopefully she will overcome whatever fear and join the fold of God. Her uncle served a mission and he promised us that he will get to the bottom of it.

Another great lesson this week was when we taught Dean and Beth. I dunno if I have told y'all about them, but they are a young married couple who just moved into our area. Dean is a comic book artist, and he is one of 4 people in a country of 1.2 billion people who can do what he does. When we shared about the Restoration last week they were so excited to come to church and learn more about what a prophet, "not some man who says he understands the scriptures" has to say. We brought Pavani over yesterday and she did amazing. She asked them if they needed to have someone show them the church. They said they would be there and would like to sit with her. Dean and Beth both said that they believe the Book of Mormon is true, and are excited to know more about it. Beth even said, "The BofM is better than the Bible b/c it helps us apply things to our lives." I have never had a Catholic tell me that. lol. Dean said, "It never made sense to me that the Bible stopped; it shouldn’t have. The religion didn’t, so why should scripture?" They are wonderful. Dean has some legal issues that he needs to get straightened out and then everything will be well for their baptism.

I love you guys. I am excited to be a missionary. Never have I enjoyed my life so much, than I have in these last 2 years. It has been a great blessing to serve in the Lord's vineyard. I know the Church is true, and that the Book of Mormon was translated by Joseph Smith. I am grateful for my Heavenly Father and His love for me. I love the Savior. Hugs and kisses!

Love,
Elder Sorensen

October 4, 2010 Update

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LOGAN!!!



Namaste,

Well, I am probably the only person who HASN’T seen conference yet, but that is ok because I can learn patience. The only thing I can think about is the Deville family. For being an inactive Bishop, Brad has some of the deepest and most wonderful things to say. The other night while we were at the dinner table Brad went to get the ice cream and I said, "YES! There's always room for ice cream!" and then he made a sweet analogy about a jar, big rocks, little rocks, and sand. You can fill the whole jar with sand, but then that’s all you have. You can fill most of the jar with small rocks, and some sand, but the best thing to do is fill it with big rocks, then smaller ones, and then sand. The analogy he made was the big rocks are the important things in your life; family, Church, etc. The small rocks are friends, sports, etc. "And the sand", he said, "Is stuff that you can really do without, like Americans." Josh really liked the analogy.

The other day we found out that Aaron and his buddies bought a car, without telling their parents. This has been a big topic of discussion amongst the Ex-Pats. After Josh's baptism the family had to change because all the other parents were getting together to decide the fate of this car. Well, Marian comes out in a nice outfit and Brad comes out in shorts and a "Highway to Hell" T-shirt. All we could do was laugh. He said, "Well, it seemed like a good idea this morning."

While I was speaking to Marian at the baptism she was just in AWE! She couldn’t help but smile. She mentioned that it has been different than any of her other kids' baptisms. I have been pushing her to stop drinking and prepare to get a temple recommend, that way she can take her boys to the temple at Christmas time. Aaron looked like a Stripling Warrior while he got in the water and baptized Josh. The experience was unlike any I have had on my mission. I cannot describe how happy I was. I hugged them both when they got out, even though my suit got wet.

I love y'all. Thank you for your support an encouragement. Hugs and kisses from India!

Elder Sorensen

September 27, 2010 Update

Dear Everyone,

This week was a bit tough because we were still under restrictions because of Ganesh Festival. We were unable to do any finding, which has caused our teaching pool to become rather small. That's what happens when you cannot find for 2 consecutive weeks. However, we did manage to go over a Map to Baptism with Jay Kumar and his family. We set a date for October 16th, but they were unable to stay for all 3 hours at Church, so we will have to set them again. We think they want to be baptized on the 17th, and that’s why they left. If it is the 17th then I am fine with that; it will be my last Sunday. What a way to go out!

Saturday was Giri Babu's baptism with his wife Lalitha. Giri was baptized twice. Lalitha, the one who I baptized, basically threw herself in. She lifted her legs up and just went down like it was no big deal. Then, the following day, Giri was not properly confirmed, so they had to call him back up in front of everyone, and do the confirmation properly. If it was anyone other than Giri I think they would have been frustrated and would have left the Church. lol. Lalitha's was done correctly. I did not do either of the confirmations because I have been sick with the flu for the last week. After Church we went to our Branch President and asked him to sign in the spot that says he saw the confirmation. Well, he signed in the spot that was for the person doing the interview...on Giri's record! So now he needs another record! lol. How much more can he take?

The Deville's are excited for Josh's baptism. Sister Deville was devastated when she learned that her 2 daughters would not be able to attend because of visa problems. Josh is doing well and he is pumped for his interview. I told him that it was more to test his heart and not his knowledge and then he was perfectly comfortable with it. Brother Deville is becoming more and more active as the weeks go on. He is so helpful when we teach, and I can see the fire coming back into his eyes.

I love you all. Thank you so much for your support. I hope you all have a great week. Hugs and kisses from India!

Elder Sorensen

September 6, 2010 Update

Namaste,

Something happened that was of the most importance to me this week, but may seem a little less important in America. This was the first time in 14 months that I had pizza!!! Yah! And I went big and got a pork pepperoni pizza. I was happier than that fat kid in Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory! I was only gonna eat half and save the rest for later, but I couldn’t control myself. It was so yummy.

Another good thing was more of a mental boost. We got permission to set Giri and Lalitha for baptism! Well, that’s only half the battle. The other half was challenging them. lol. Challenge? Giri was the most accepting person of baptism ever. We challenged him and his wife for September 25th and both accepted! Giri was bursting with joy, and for all the right reasons. I was also very excited. It has been a while since we have had someone set for baptism and this was a family that Elder Gervais and I worked with since the beginning. It’s always good to have someone set for baptism, and this family was a good boost when they accepted.

After Giri's appointment we went to teach the Deville family. Last time we tried to set Josh for baptism, but he said he didn’t know enough. Well, the next morning I studied about baptism and wrote down every question I have ever heard about baptism, added scriptures to support the answers, gave a brief explanation, and showed it to Josh. When I did he said, "Ok, this is all I need to know." We challenged him for October 16th, but his dad will be in Melbourne Australia. So we somehow ended up on October 3rd -good thing we don’t have conference that week! lol. Josh was really excited, but I don’t think anyone was more excited than his mother. She has been feeling really bad for being inactive and not teaching her kids gospel standards. But she is in the process of making it all better. I love their family so much.

This week I was studying about the Atonement and all that it does for us. Then my companion turned on the iPod and a song called "All About You" from one of the EFYs...I think...and the song talks all about how sometimes we think we are great and awesome. But for everything that is awesome or goodt about us there is something that Jesus did which was more important. The song goes on to say, “It’s not about me its all about You." As I pondered about all the things that the Savior did for us I thought, "Should it really be all that hard to do what He asks?" I thought about my personal life, and why I would make mistakes. Then I thought about the Savior and how much love He has for each of us. If He didn’t love everyone, then He would have gotten angry or been disobedient, and that would have ruined our Heavenly Father's plan. There would be no salvation; there would be no Atonement. There would be no eternal life. Everything that the Savior did was not for Himself, but was for us. I stand all amazed that Jesus was able to do it. I don’t know how He had such love. It has given me an added desire to serve Him until the end and to focus everything I do on Him.

This upcoming week will prove to be difficult. It seems like SATAN doesn’t want anyone to work here in Bangalore. There is a 10-day festival, Ganesh Festival, that will shut down the city. People usually go pretty all out for this festival. So Friday night, all day Saturday, and all day Sunday we will be stuck inside cleaning our flat. lol. We don’t know how long it will last, but at least I will be able to catch up on some sleep.

Thank you all for your support. Have a great week.

Hugs and kisses from Bangalore!
Elder Sorensen

July 21, 2010 Update

Namaste,
This has been an eventful week! Last Thursday we found this Anglo-Indian couple named Dean and Beth. They immediately invited us in and were eager to learn more about the gospel, and what we thought about India. They thought we were pulling their leg when we told them we love India. They kind of wanna be American. They invited us back for the next day, and asked, "Are you affiliated with the Mormons?" I looked them in the eye and said, "We are the Mormons." They thought that was pretty cool. We pulled out a Book of Mormon and told them we would use scriptures from it and they got excited to see what it was about. When we finished the lesson they were in awe. They thought it was so wonderful that we have a living prophet today; they think it’s important that we don’t teach from our own knowledge, but God's. They were unable to come to church because Dean has some legal issues he wants to get sorted out first.

This has been a fun last 2 days with zone conference and interviews. President Funk just took a bunch of time to get to know us. I brought him all my photos and he got really excited. He asked me about what I am gonna do with my last 3 months and I basically told him all my goals and how I related them to football or to some sport. But the best part about zone conference is when all the other elders, from the rest of the mission, get to come and stay with you. Elder Chigurupati has been staying with us! He is awesome, and Chennai is doing really well. He gave me the phone last night, and said, "Talk." I was so happy to hear Donald and Pethal, 2 of the people who I worked so hard with to get baptized. Pethal said that they talk about me every day and in their prayers they always tell Heavenly Father thank you for sending us Chigurupati brother and Sorensen brother. Pethal is about to get a calling as YW teacher. Donald, like only he can do, said, "Brother, I am angry with you. Why didn’t you come to my baptism? I asked for you to baptized me. But instead I had to have Elder McKinley do it." I laughed at him, and he did too. Elder McKinley is one of the senior missionaries who helped us out a TON with getting him baptized.

Then, this morning, Leslie and Cheryl call!!!!! Oh how happy I have been! Leslie is doing wonderful. He hasn’t been hanging out with his old friends, and last night he did, and denied their request to drink with them. He still doesn’t have a job, but today and tomorrow he has interviews. Please pray for him! Even if you get this months later. Please pray for him. They were all so happy to be talking with me. Leslie is a teacher in Gospel Principles and in the YM. Cheryl is the YW first counselor. They are doing wonderful and are a great addition to the branch.

Time is less, and I gotta run. I love all of you. Thank you for your letters. I know that this is God's true Church. I know that the BofM is true. If you don’t believe it go read Jacob 5, or 2 Nephi 31. I love being a missionary. I know this is what He wants for all worthy young men. Hugs and kisses till next week.

Elder Sorensen

July 14, 2010 Update

Wanaste,
That is a mix on WANACUM (Tamil), and NAMASTE (Hindi). The biggest news of the week is the change in momentum. Last night we met with a sister name Ashwini. Ashwini went out of station in June, and she challenged herself to read the entire Book of Mormon while she was gone. Sadly, she only got to Moroni, but promised to read it today! Ashwini is a Hindu and her father is also Hindu. She talked to him about getting baptized while she was in her native place. He agreed to do whatever she wanted so that she could be baptized. We met with the 2 of them last night and set a date for Ashwini to be baptized. She will be baptized on August 7th!! It was such an uplifting moment. I have been wondering why nothing seemed to be working. We had people to teach, but it seemed like Satan was working harder than ever to keep them from progressing. It has been really difficult in Bangalore, and I have been really discouraged. Now, however, the ball is rolling. "Give me an inch and I’ll take an eel." Now that the wind is back in my sail Bangalore will never be the same. It just takes one set to give you that boost you need.

On Monday night we met with Daniel and Amita; this was not a good meeting. Daniel was searching the Church on the internet, and you guessed it, he found a bunch of anti-Mormon literature. It was nothing new to me; I have heard all the points before. He just had a really hard time with the fact that God told Abraham to lie, but he feels that it was necessary, so he may be ok. He was really concerned about other stuff pertaining to the nature of God, like D&C 130:21-22. He still wants to meet, but I don’t know how much farther it will be able to go. He is into some deep waters.

In more uplifting news, Giri Babu came to Church again!! He is still very excited. This week we taught him about the Word of Wisdom, and committed him to keep it. He promised that he would never drink tea again. He has such a strong testimony already. We committed him to practice English every day for one hour. We did this by telling him to read his BofM in Telugu, while a member, Mary (they work together), read in English. I have seen this to be the most effective way for someone to learn English. On Friday we are going to set Giri with a baptismal date, probably the end of August, that way he can learn English! I love Giri. He is a great example of what it means to become truly converted.

Thank you so much for all of your support. I love getting letters and emails from all of you. Remember "Every member a missionary". I love all of you. Remember, this is Jesus Christ's Church, and we are his disciples.

Love,
Elder Sorensen

June 30, 2010 Update

Namaste,

This was a very good week here in Bangalore. All of the really cool things happened on Monday, but that was also the day that we had to say good bye to President Nichols. It was a fun event filled with biryani and singing. Afterwards we had a lot of wonderful spiritual experiences. We first visited Daniel and Amitha; they are Jehovah Witness/Baptist background. We shared the gospel of Jesus Christ and answered some questions about the Book of Mormon. We were planning on setting them, but we ran out of time. When we were leaving Danny said, “You know what, instead of Monday, can you guys come on Thursday? I have lots of questions about which baptism is correct.” Sure enough, we are going over there on Thursday with plans to set him and his wife. While we were in the lift (elevator) I had the thought, “This family will be baptized.” It was so strong that I know he will accept the date on Thursday.

This just in, I finally got the photos from the baptisms of Donald and Pethal. They were the family that smoked and drank tea like no one else’s business. They are awesome! I am so excited. I got great news from my last area; Leslie Browne is getting a new job soon and he is going on lots of exchanges with the missionaries!!!!! Words cannot describe how happy I am!!!

Then, later on Monday went to visit a brother named Rajendran, his wife, Mary, and their son Jeevan. This was our second visit but our first time to teach. We taught about God and the Restoration. Raj said, “I thought they were all one. We believe in the Trinity, right dear?” lol. I am TIRED of people saying that. So we explained it and he said, “Huh, I never knew. What else don’t I know?” We then got to the apostasy and talked about how the people didn’t want to leave their traditions and they missed out on great blessings. When we shared about Joseph Smith his eyes got really big, excitement filled his body, and he said, “I really wanna know if this is true.” We invited them to pray and to come to Church. They committed to do both. He was hesitant about coming to Church because of his father at his church. I reminded him about what he said before about the apostasy and he said, “Alright, we will come. See you on Sunday.”

We really had a good week. Thank you for all of your prayers. I feel them, and appreciate them. Bangalore is a wonderful place; I am grateful to be serving here. I love the people, and He who sent me to teach them. Hugs and kisses from India!!

Love,
Logan
Happy Independence Day

July 7, 2010 Update

Dear One and All,

This was an interestingly good week. It began with all the Bangalore Elders meeting our new mission president President Funk and his wife. They were shell shocked like anything else. It’s hard for me to believe that I was ever like that. lol. The meeting was small; nothing too exciting happened. All we did was sit in a circle and tell about ourselves and what we liked about our companion. After the meeting was over we had lunch. I got a huge beef burger, while everyone else ate lasagna...I was jealous. lol. That night we got a call from our zone leaders. Apparently President Funk decided to press the big red button on his desk and we were all on lockdown this Monday. The BJP had a huge bandh (strike) and those are usually when people die. SO, we were all told to stay inside.

While we were inside we had lots of time to write letters and go crazy. I had too much energy. I began running routes in our living room while my companion would throw to me from his study table. we also set up our living room so that we could play soccer with these little inflatable balls that we have. Needless to say, my companion still hasn’t beaten me. lol. I feel like the Netherlands - nothing can stop me! While we were in the midst of our letter writing we got a call from one of the assistants, he said, "President Funk will be coming to your companionship study tomorrow." It was really cool, until we noticed our apartment was trashed. We spent a few minutes cleaning, and I easily became side tracked with letters and soccer and anything besides cleaning. lol. Well, he did come, and it was an awesome study. We talked about a new investigator name Sam and how we wanted to set him for the baptism. He gave us valuable insights and taught us about some qualifications for baptism. He is an awesome mission president. I think he is going to do amazing things here. He told us that our companionship study was "exactly what it is supposed to be. I am very pleased." We think he is going to make my companion a zone leader on Monday....we will see.

We have been blessed with great investigators. Heavenly Father led 2 bachelors to us this week, Christo and Abi. They are both searching for who God is, and what He can do for us. They are awesome. I shared a very personal experience with them about Brian and I and how we knew that God loves us. I have only shared that experience about 3 times on my mission. I think these 2 brothers are gonna feel the Spirit and join the Church. They are only free on Saturdays, so I will have to let you know how our next meeting goes. They both committed to pray and ask Heavenly Father if He loves them. We have followed up with both of them, and both have said they know God loves them. We will set them for baptism soon. I love being a missionary. Nothing is harder (especially with UPC) but nothing has been more rewarding. Thank you for all your prayers and encouragement. Hugs and kisses from Bengaluru.

Love,
Logan

June 23, 2010 Update

Hello,

Well, I just wanna start of with a funny story. We taught an investigator about the Plan of Salvation, and he said, “Well, what about hell? I cannot accept this message if there is no hell.” So, I pulled out my picture of Calvin burning his butt off in hell, and I explained it to him. I said, “Only a few people like Cain and Judas go here because they had a perfect knowledge.” He replied, “Why does Judas go there? He repented. That’s why he hung himself. That’s what they teach in our church.” Well, he doesn’t believe in his church anymore because 2 20 year-old boys came over and taught him something that his pretty pastor knows nothing about. It felt good. Daniel, the investigator, is going to become a member soon. He is excited to see what else he doesn’t know because his former church did not have all of the plain and precious parts of the gospel.

On Sunday night I had an awesome, eye-opening, experience. We had a bunch on members lined up to come with us and meet our investigators. Well, everything blew up in our face and we were unable to meet with anyone. We decided that since our week was pretty successful thus far we would go a visit some less actives and some recent converts. The less active family that we visited was amazing. They told us all about how they were treated poorly and how the district president thought that the daughter was going with a married man. But, they said that they would come back to church if they could speak with the district president and he would say sorry. So we set it up and hopefully everything will go well. The daughter Preetha is 23 and just needed to cry. She loves the Church and the gospel, but her mom won’t let her go to church because of this incident. The mom only speaks Telugu and I think she likes us so much because we can speak Telugu.

The recent convert that we visited was Timothy. I really wanted to watch the Finding Faith in Christ DVD, so we did. Timothy broke down and told us about all these problems he is facing. He got a new job and is sad because he cannot come on exchanges with the Elders. He talked about how it’s difficult being the only member in his family and how he needed the DVD to help him stay positive. It was a touching appointment. That night I realized, not that I hadn’t before, how much Heavenly Father’s plan is more important than mine. He needed those people to be taught, and He sent us. I was grateful that my attitude about the night changed when I prayed at night, “Not my will, but Thine be done.”

I love being a missionary. It’s been the greatest experience ever. I know that this is God’s true church, and that the Book of Mormon is true and that it was translated by the gift and power of God. Hugs and kisses from Bangalore!

Love,
Elder Sorensen

June 15, 2010 Update

Namaskaram,

Well, this was an eventful week. My companion and I were both sick at the beginning of the week and we were worried that we would be able to catch up in the missionary work. Luckily, we were able to do so. It's not about how you start; it's about how you finish. We worked really hard and did everything that we could. In 3 days we were able to find 7 new investigators and get 7 member presents. Heavenly Father led us to good people too. We are excited about the upcoming weeks and the new investigators that we are working with.

One is a family that we found while looking through the potentials one day. The husband's name is Chandu and the wife is Vanitha. They are a young married couple, and they have one small child named Juju. They were dropped because they had some issues with getting to church, but when we called them they were all onboard for church. They were more than excited to have us over. When we went over there, we learned that the husband did something to his knee (I couldn’t really understand), and he is in a brace for another 6 months. He asked, "Will I still be able to take baptism if I have this brace on?” I told him that we will teach him some more and then we will discuss about the brace. They are a very humble family and very energetic. The son is a little demon though. Maybe it’s just cause he's a little kid. He climbs all over his dad's knee and jumps on it too...maybe that’s how it got messed up. Juju also likes to rip things...and he usually goes for our Book of Mormon...lol. We are going back over there tonight to try and find out if they will be able to be baptized, and if they have that desire, then we will set them.

In a meeting we had with a recent convert she was telling us about how she used to go to the church of God. And she then called it the Church of Satan. I held my laughter because it made me grateful that we aren’t the only ones who are called devil worshippers. She also calls everything, except this church, Satan worship. "If they don’t worship the true God, then who are they following?"

This is about all I got. The week was short due to sickness and we need to go. I love being a missionary. I hope everyone has a great Father's Day. I love you Daddy. Take care of each other and always remember to never be ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ (Romans 1:16). Hugs and kisses from Bangalore.

Love,
Logan

June 9, 2010 Update

Namaste,

Well, this was a pretty uneventful week. My companion got sick on Monday, and he was asleep the whole day. Then on Tuesday, he was about 40% so we did very little. One of the few things that we were able to do was visit a less active family from Australia. The father was the youngest Bishop ever called in Aussie history. They have lived here for about 3 years and they have never been to church. But they came this Sunday after we visited them. The son Aaron has hair like Mike D., but bigger, and he has been coming to church for about one month. We decided to go see if the rest of his family was interested in coming back. Well, on Sunday his family of 4 came, all in suits, except the mom.

While we were there the father kept talking about how everything you find in Australia is better than anything you find anywhere in the world. He was joking, but it was fun. He knew we didn’t have much time, but he really wanted us eat some Beef Pie. It was so good, especially with ketchup. While we were there we talked with the family about how they liked church, and he said, “I never liked testimony meetings. People here also don’t know what it means to bear testimony.” I thought it was really funny. But he loved the rest of it and we will be going back over there on Tuesday and he is coming to church.

While I was there I learned something interesting about myself. Actually, I have had this suspicion for a while now. But, whoever I am around, Indian, Australian or Mexican, I always mimic the accent. lol I think it just comes from being a missionary in India, and you feel that no one will understand you unless you sound like them. So I had lots of fun talking like their family, with their family. But I only did it on a few words, and I don’t think that they really noticed.

This Saturday we had a baptism! Sisters Mary and Clara were baptized! They have been investigating for a few months. All I really did was teach tithing, do the paperwork and review the interview questions with them. I think my fun review really helped them to not be nervous. They are really awesome and are excited about their new membership in the Church. They have great fellowship, and hop a ride with Mary’s boss each week, so things are looking good.

I will write more when more interesting things happen. Sorry. I am grateful for the gospel, I know that it is the answer to any questions that we have. Heavenly Father loves all of his children, and He has a plan for all of us. We just have to accept it and not want our ways to be higher than his. I love you all. Hugs and kisses from India!

Love,
Logan

June 2, 2010 Update

May 26, 2010 Update

Dear Family and Friends,

This was a bittersweet week; Leslie’s family is all ready for their baptism this coming Sunday. I was getting ready for it as well; my companion and I were really excited. On Friday night, about 1 hour after we visited Leslie, the Assistants called and told me that I am being transferred to Bangalore. I was so sad. I called President because he has let a few people stay back before, but he said that they really need me in Bangalore and that it wouldn’t be a good idea for me to leave my companion alone for 2 days.
When I broke the news to Leslie’s family, they were very sad, but Leslie soon put me in my place with, “The Lord has blessed us; He sent you. I know that He wants you to baptize another family somewhere in Bangalore.” That made me feel really good. So, on Sunday we took some photos with them, and on Monday during their interviews, we played cricket with all the kids. After their interviews Cheryl, who is very fond of me, said, “I asked if you could baptized me. I thought if I said that they would let you stay.” I told her, “We need to pray for another cyclone.” Her response was funny, “I have made the person saying family prayer do that for the last 3 nights.” How about that?

Even though things will be hard, I feel good about Bangalore. It’s not the same as the rest of the mission...they cannot wear their tags or contact people. They can only knock Christian doors. I am tired of teaching Christians! But everyone needs the gospel. I will probably finish my mission there, which won’t be a bad thing. I am excited for what the future holds there. I love being a missionary, no matter where I am.

Sorry this one is so short, I cannot think of much else except for all the sad goodbyes I have had to say. I love you all and I hope this letter finds you in good spirits.

Love,
Elder Sorensen

May 19, 2010 Update

Dear Everyone,

This was a really good week! We had a lot of success with Leslie and his family. We taught a few of the commandments and they loved it. We went to their home and we helped them fetch their water from a pipe that comes out of the ground. We were afraid that this would keep them from being on time to church, but the water turned off at 8 a.m. and we weren’t really able to save them any time. All we did was relieve the daughter from her chores. While there we played with their cat and entertained the kids with stories. Then we all headed off to Church and they loved it! They got amazing fellowship from EVERYONE! Leslie would introduce himself, “Hello, my name is Leslie. This is my first time to the Church of Jesus Christ, and I hope to continue in this wonderful fellowship.” What a great thing for him to say?!?!? Then, another elder asked him, “Are the Elders teaching you nicely?” and Sheryl made me feel really good, “This Elder (pointing at me) is so sweet and kind. They are both doing really well.” Awesome! Tonight we are teaching them about tithing, and a few other small commandments, and then we are having lunch with them on Saturday. But, we are unsure about the lesson tonight because of the cyclone that is hitting Chennai. Usually we meet them outside in their front yard (no one else in our area has a yard), but their house will probably be flooded. This cyclone is really cool; I never thought that I would be able to experience something like this. The water is getting higher the longer I type.

That’s about all I got - nothing too exciting this week. I love you all. Thank you so much for your letters and support - it makes everything better. I hope y’all have a great week!

Love,
Logan

May 12, 2010 Update

Dear Everyone,

This was a really good week. Even though I was really sick, the missionary work has been awesome! We have begun to make preparations for our Missionary Fireside. We will be watching Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration…ooohh…goosebumps. We were waiting to see if I got transferred. Good news is transfers will be postponed for 3 more weeks! The thing that I am most excited about will be the baptisms I will get to see!

On Thursday we went to visit Leslie and his family. They were receptive to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and we set them for May 30, 2010. The happiest of them all was Sister Sheryl - she was all smiles. Then when I turned to her kids and challenged them to be baptized, she was even happier! She thought that they would have to wait a few more years. Lucky for us they are above the age of accountability. They had the funniest doubt. Anyone who was/is a missionary has had people ask about being rebaptized. It’s a really big concern and it’s understandable. Well, Sheryl is smart and she said, “If I need to be rebaptized then do I need to be reconfirmed? We were already confirmed.”…I let it be silent. Then she said, “Alright, we will do it. Reconfirm us.” YES! We were shouting for joy when we left. We had to celebrate that night with a big thing of Maaza! Heavenly Father has really prepared them. The second time we went we taught W.O.W. and afterwards they said, “We were talking this afternoon about how to quit our vices, and what things were bad for our body.” The 3rd time we taught the P.O.S. afterwards Sheryl said, “This afternoon we were wondering if we would ever see our loved ones again…” she trickled off and you could see tears in her eyes. Then, Leslie said something I’ll never forget, “Brother, we lost a cat a few years ago. She was very fond of this cat. It’s good to know that she will see it again.” ARE YOU SERIOUS???? YOUR CAT! WHAT ABOUT YOUR SON!! She mentioned seeing her son again as we left. It was cool. Then, the 4th time, when we set them, Sheryl said, “This afternoon we were talking about whether or not we should be baptized into your church. I think we should.” I love them so much. And that will probably be the last baptism that I see in Chennai.
We are still working with Donald and Pethal…still! They are coming along. Donald committed to quit smoking by Saturday, and he has only smoked one cigarette since then. He didn’t make his goal, but he is doing awesome. They fed us pork and beef last night. Donald is hilarious. He hates pork. All but a few Indians believe that all pigs have devils in them. It has to do with Jesus casting the demons into the swine. I have to tell people, “What happened to all those swine? Are they still living? NO, they ran off a cliff and died. EAT IT!” Donald was making jokes about it all night and Pethal kept on giving it. She loves pork also. I was joking with him, “Why would you let your wife cook pork in your home? Don’t you know that releases the devils?” he laughed and she said, “He didn’t know I was cooking it.” They are preparing to be baptized on the 30th, but Pethal still thinks she needs more time. I just want them to hurry up and get baptized.
Mother’s Day was good. I called home on Monday. My companion got good news that his brother got married. His brother was one of the members who loved to come on exchange with us in Gajuwaka. The funny thing about being on the other side of the world is the 3 week lag. Everything that we talked about on Mother’s Day came in letterform the day after we spoke! But I still love letters.
Thank you for all of your prayers and your support. I feel your prayers and your love. Sorensens who read this update: have fun at the family reunion. Someone needs to jazz that thing up without me there. Although, Cajuns know how to party with or without their team winning the Superbowl! I love you guys!

April 7, 2010 Update

Interesting story before I begin with the awesome spiritual experiences that we had. I was on an exchange with an elder in my district; his name is Elder Mehan. He was my follow-up trainer and luckily he is finishing his mission here with us. We were teaching someone about prophets and he kept throwing out names. I think he listed the most obscure Old Testament prophets he could. Well, his name is Joel, so I piped up, trying to be funny, and said, “Yeah, like Joel, he was also a prophet, he has one of the shortest books.” Then, under his voice he said, “It’s the best one. And,” he laughed to me, ”there’s also a prophet named ‘Reid.’” Afterwards we laughed about it and I asked, “Where is there a prophet named ‘Reid’?” he asked, “Don’t you read the Apocrypha? That’s where it is.” When I come home I will look for my name in the Apocrypha. It sounds cool.

This was a week unlike any other. We were really blessed by the Lord. It's not that He hasn’t blessed us any other weeks, but I felt more like I was aligned with His will and not my own will. In the beginning of the week, missionary work always seems to be a little slow, and this week was even slower. We faced lots of cancelled appointments, and we found a lot of people who had really hard hearts and didn’t want to hear about the gospel. So by the time that Thursday led around we were pretty worried. We only have one new investigator and 4 member-present lessons. These are VERY low numbers, especially for someone who is suppose to be an example. Well, after I murmured I decided that it was all part of His plan. Friday we found 7 new investigators. Saturday we found 3 new investigators. Sunday we found another family of 3! Heavenly Father blessed us for our hard work and perseverance. This week, we have been blessed for doing the small things, like talking with everyone, always finding and stuff like that. We have 13 new investigators already with 4 more families lined up for the weekend. I love how Heavenly Father tests you, and then gives the blessing. Often times as a missionary I think, “I am serving a mission. I should be rewarded for that.” I don’t realize that I am receiving blessings already (like my health…), and I need to do MORE to receive MORE.

More amazing than that is Donald and his progression. We visited him and his family on Sunday night. It was then that we challenged Donald to be baptized on May 2, 2010! He said, in his raspy voice, “Surely, brother, I will be baptized. Then, my family will see that change and they too will be baptized.” He is awesome. He is still smoking about 15 a day, but we have gone over some plans with him, and he is committed to quitting. “I don’t know when I will be able to quit, but I know it will be before May 2.” he said. I believe he will be able to quit. He choked up a little bit when he was telling his wife about his priesthood blessing. He is doing awesome; tonight we plan on setting the rest of his family. We committed his wife to go out on Saturday night, stare into space, think about all that God has done for her and then get on her knees and pray and ask Him if this Church and baptism are true. She would like to be baptized, but she wants to know if it’s true first. She has been in Ooty this week, so that’s why we told her to pray outside and look at the stars. Both of those are 2 things that she cannot do in Chennai. We have high hopes for their family.

I love you all. thanks for your support. Keep working hard to forward the work along. "No unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing." I love you!

Elder Sorensen

March 24, 2010 Update

Hello Everyone,
This was an awesome week for missionary work. We found 10 new investigators and got 10 member present lessons, which has been something that we wanted to focus on. The district is still struggling to get people to church; it seems to be a problem all over the mission. I had to give them a little bribe. I told them if we meet our goals that I will buy everyone a cake and we will play Jeopardy or something.

I love being a missionary. My testimony grows everyday. The other day we were on a bus, the wrong one, and we had to get off in 20 seconds. I saw this girl with a cross on her neck. I didn’t want to talk to her because we were about to get off. Then, she whispers to her friend, "Jesus Christ." It really helped me to realize whose service I was on and who I represent. I love it. I ended up talking to her and she invited us over. We will see how it goes!

I realized that the Gospel just makes sense. We were teaching someone about tithing and how it is used to bless the members, whether or not they pay their tithing. It makes sense that God doesn’t play favourites, like most pastors do. He doesn’t care if you pay 100/- or one crore, you are going to be blessed, and HE loves you the same. I am grateful to know about the true Gospel, and I am grateful for my opportunity to serve Heavenly Father. I am especially grateful that I can serve Him here in India. I love this country.

Last Thursday we set up an appointment with an alcoholic named Donald. We have been teaching him for a few weeks and he talked about wanting to be baptized. He is always sober when we come, and he loves our visits. He HATES pastors, and anyone who comes in the name of Jesus. He feels everyone just wants to rag on him and he feels they all want money. He is literally a wreck. But, we went this time with Elder McKinley, Donald calls him McKinzie brother. Elder McKinley helped him to realize that he is addicted, and then helped him know how to stop. He committed Donald to go 3 days without alcohol. If he could do that, then we would know that Donald is not addicted anymore. However, the cool part was when Donald asked for a blessing. Mckinzie brother gave, and it was amazing. Donald got up and said, “Oh, something tingly happened. I cannot describe my feelings.” Then, we asked Donald to say the closing prayer, which he did. By the time he ended he was crying. I was about to cry. Donald prayed for help, and he prayed for us and his family. He is awesome. We left immediately and he was left all alone to ponder about what had happened. His wife noticed a change, he didn’t drink for 3 days and all he could talk about was how amazing Mckinzie brother is. He has a strong desire to be baptized. We just have to help him quit smoking now. I truly love being a missionary. This was the first time on my mission that I have seen a grown man cry. The spirit was incredibly strong. I look forward to more great experiences on my mission!

I love you all. Thank you for your prayers. I hope all is well.

Love,
Elder Sorensen

December 30, 2009 Update

Dear Everyone,

This was an interesting week. I learned many things about myself, and I realized how much I have learned. It started by an interesting experience I had with an auntie. In prayers here, people like to mumble their own prayers and shout, especially the Pentecostal women. This one lady said her kids couldn’t come to church. So we talked for a while and they said they would come. My companion said the closing prayer, and immediately she began to mutter words and say things “in tongues.” I remembered a quote that went something like, “If you are on the Lord’s service, you are entitle to His Divine assistance.” So when I thought this, I wanted the auntie to shut up. I said in my mind, “God, silence this auntie.” And before I could even say Amen, she was quiet. It's nothing too special, or exciting, but I thought it was cool. It was something that I will be able to remember, and it will help me to rely on the Lord more.

I realized that you can’t know what our mission is really like. I have this culture of India book, and it describes the culture. I read it in the morning, and when we were going to our first appointment we turned a corner and realized that we were sharing our small lane with 7 HUGE buffaloes. One of them even charged us. That’s when I realized that a book cannot tell you how to avoid that, or what to do in the scenario.

I realized how much I have left behind. A lady was telling us that she was afraid to leave her church for a few reasons: she doesn’t know English, she was raised in that church, and her friends are there. I bore testimony and told her about how I left my home country, my language, my friends AND my family. She realized that our Church is correct, but she is afraid. I don’t know what else we can do. I love her family to death, but she fears the world more than the Savior.

We had a bit more luck with a new Roman Catholic family we are working with. They have met with us 3 times and we decided they needed to be set…mostly because we haven’t had anyone set for about 3 weeks. They accepted the date easily. Yesterday, before we came to meet them, the mother called and told us not to baptize them, but to come and do prayer. We went with a sister from the branch who was R.C. She was a huge asset; she helped so much. The father didn’t know his wife called, he said, “I still want to be baptized. Why are you talking about authority? I understand and I still want to be baptized on the 24th.” The wife said, “Absolutely no way.”, but her 2 sons are still excited. She is also afraid of what others will think about her if she leaves her church. Even though she was crying when she said that. We are pretty sure she knows the Church is true. I love you guys. Thank you so much for the letters and the support. I will see you all next Christmas.

Love,
Elder Sorensen

January 13, 2010 Update

Wanacum~
Well, I made it safe and sound in Chennai. It is a really hot place, but I love it. As I got off the plane I noticed some differences about Tamil Nadu and my beloved Andhra Pradesh. Tamil Nadu smells funny to me. Now that I have been here a few days it’s normal, but still it was weird. The language is shorter, choppier, words that I cannot understand. I am doing a little bit better; I am taking notes and asking people what things mean. The problem is that Tamil seems more “blah blah” to me. It’s kind of hard to describe.

I have found that Chennai is the real Indian experience. When I first got off the plane, it was raining and it continued the full day. My companion was sick so we didn’t go out my whole first day. We have crappy water pressure in our flat, so that means we have to shower with a bucket. I enjoy it. I feel more Indian. The only time I take a bus is when I go to the train station. All of our travel is done by trains. We have a monstrous area, and we can travel 45 minutes by train and still not leave our area. I love the trains. The last thing that makes Chennai Indian is the heat. It hasn’t been under 95 a day that I have been here. It's so hot, and it's so sticky, but I love Chennai. I am so excited to be here. Hopefully I will continue to see success as we get the people who we have set baptized, and the people we are finding progress towards baptism.

Other than that nothing great has happened. I am sorry this is short, but I have less time. I love y'all. Thanks for the letters and the love. I hope all is well.


Love,
Elder Sorensen

January 20, 2010 Update

Namaste!

Apparently there was an Elder Sorensen who served in this very same branch about 12 years ago. This week at church a bunch of the members asked me if I was his brother or some sort of relation. He baptized about half of the branch at that time. There are a lot of old time members - people who have been members for about 12-20 years. It reminds me a lot of Hyderabad, except there isn’t as many faithful members here. A lot of them have been inactive for 10 of those 20 years. But, now they are all doing fine and Chennai is getting a building - something that Hyderabad and Rajahmundry have had for years. The longer I stay in Chennai the more I come to realize that my mission will end. I am kind of sad, but excited at the same time. I know it has to end, but I’m kind of at that point where I can see the finish line. It is still far away, but something about being here makes me think I will actually have to leave.

One thing that I noticed about my area in Chennai is that it has over 2 million people. This is now my fourth area - out of five - to have more than 2 million people living in it. President Nichols said, on our first day in India, “Some of you may have times when you will be in an area that has more than 1.5 million people. That is the average size of a mission in the States. Then, some of you will be put in areas that have more than 2 million people living in them. That is bigger than any area of any mission in the states.” That is pretty neat to think about. It's very hard, considering the restrictions that come from the Hindus and the lack of English, but Heavenly Father seems to always have people prepared. The ways are not always the same, but He does prepare people. President Nichols also reminded us a few zone conferences ago that “No one who lives in your area can truly come unto Jesus Christ and follow the gospel of Jesus Christ, except through you! If anyone wants to live in the kingdom of God, if anyone wants to live with God, if anyone wants to be with God, then it has to be through you.” He usually does this to drive home the point that we need to remember our purpose and work hard.

We set a new mission goal for 600 convert baptisms. President Nichols said this is because he has such great faith in such great elders. We haven’t had 600 baptisms in this mission since the time when Bangalore and Delhi split into 2 missions. We haven’t had any American missionaries come for about 9 months and we only have 6 Indian missionaries who have come since that time. Remember what President Monson asked us to do, “Pray for areas in which our missionary efforts are limited, or restricted.”

I love you all! I am very grateful to be serving the Lord. I know He is a part of it. I know HE loves His children in every part of the world. I love the Gospel, and I am so grateful for it. Thank you for you letters, and all you support, and thank you for making fun of my Indian accent.

Love,
Elder Sorensen

Logan's Testimony

Keep your fingers crossed. Kaycee has been our dutiful blog updater until now. When she got a job (YEAH!!!) her blog time diminished greatly. She's still teaching piano and helps me with Algebra for Burke as well. So I'm giving it a go.

For those who don't know, Seminary is a religion class that our teens attend at 6 a.m. everyday they go to school.Each year they study a different text of scripture. This year it's been my blessing, along with my good friend, Staci Dansie, to teach these amazing young people from the Book of Mormon.

Prior to beginning the year, I asked each of the missionaries serving from our ward to write their testimony of the Book of Mormon along with their favorite scripture then send it to me. Our youth have been friends with each of the young men that are currently serving. I thought this would bring more meaning to the study this year.

Logan sent a dvd that had not only his testimony but also testimonies of people he has baptized, his companion and other members of his branch. I hope to be able to post them all over the next few weeks and catch up the blog.

It's interesting that he is so hard on himself. To hear him talk, he was some awful kid. I more than anyone know what a handful he was. But I also saw his potential since the day he was born. Now he's living up to that potential by loving and serving as the Savior wants him to do.

It was great to talk to him on Christmas day. We had the best Christmas we've had in a long time. Probably, because we're all excited he'll be home next year. He does sound just like an Indian now. It's pretty funny. He's still sick. But it's ok. We know he's in the Lord's hands.

He finally (after 9 months) was transferred. Pres. Nichols didn't want to move him from his doctors. Logan received word before Christmas to prepare himself and his doctor because he would be leaving. He hopped on a plane last week and is now serving in Chennai. The first thing he told me this week during email time was, "I LOVE being a missionary". Those are five of the best words a Mom could hear.

Hope you enjoy his video. Check back over the next while. I'll try to update. Leave a comment about his accent and testimony. I'll forward them onto him. He loves to hear the comments.

Cheree