I'm so excited that I have the chance to do this for the rest of my life.

Elder Petersen and I are staying together another transfer in Wake Forest. We might have to start sharing the car starting this transfer. We are not sure though. It would be really tough but we will see. Our area is huge. There has been a ton of snow this couple of weeks. Its has been really crazy. We are supposed to get another huge blizzard in the next couple of days so ya its crazy. Everything shuts down, including missionary work. I am really grateful to be serving here though. I am not sure how I would like being a missionary in a place that snows all the time. Things are going really great though. I am learning a lot more now than I have my entire mission. The Spirit is becoming stronger with me as I study harder and learn the gospel and change my mindset.

I had to give a talk this past Sunday. I found out on Thursday night so I had a couple of days to prepare it this time. Unlike last time where I only had 20 minutes. It went really well. It was on Spiritual Preparedness. I will send a copy home of it along with Journal entries this week. I have become a real slacker in my journal writing. I have been doing video journals every night but I have made it a goal to write every day again. This past transfer I only wrote in it like 5 times.

This week has definitely been a week that really has built my faith in the Savior. I had some really powerful spiritual experiences this week that have really helped me make some goals to become a better missionary and servant of the Lord. Some goals that I am continuing from last week are Reading the Book of Mormon for at least 30 minutes a day. I did pretty good with this goal this week but I can always do better. I have also been working out for the whole 30 minute period and it has made a real difference. I feel more invigorated about the work and feel more awake throughout the day. The Lord truly blesses us when we become exactly obedient. Some goals that I am going to do this week is read my Patriarchal Blessing every day, Pray more fervently and try and be positive in everything I say. I have noticed a real difference as I have wrote these goals in my LTP. I constantly think about how I am going to have to make a report at the end of the week and how I am also going to have to make a report to the Lord at the end of the day. So its really helped me focus more on my goals and on the work.

This week has been really great. Steve is doing really good. We have been meeting with him almost everyday. If were not meeting with him we are keeping daily contact. He passed his interview this past week which was really exciting for him and us. We know that he is ready to take the next step and be baptized. We were going to be having his baptism this week but he wants it to be next weekend. We tried to talk to him about the importance of being baptized as soon as he is ready but he is pretty set on the 22nd for a reason. I was not sure about the decision he made to be baptized on the 22nd. We did a special fast for him and the spirit really put my heart at ease. I am so grateful that this is the Lord's work and not mine. Sometime I want to do it my way and I think that my way is best but then learn that the Lord has a different plan. It is a very humbling experience but I am grateful for my Savior and Him always helping me out. Steve also came to the Fireside at Presidents. It was really great. I love being in this zone because we get to associate more with President and Sister Cotterell. We get all the recent converts and they have a Fireside where they just bear their testimonies. It's wonderful. Steve really had a great time. He really trusts us a lot. We are going to be helping him install some air bags on his motor home this week. Working at Get Hitched has paid off!!!!!!

We had a lesson at Bishop Despain's house with a young man named Ben Malone. His parents wont let him be baptized so we are just trying to keep in contact with him to get to know him. He is a really good kid. He knows that the Church is true and comes as often as he can. He associates with a lot of members of the Church. We hope his parents will soften their hearts to the idea and let him be baptized. His father came and enjoyed himself but we think that his mother is the one that has the real problem with it. We had a good discussion with him about the doctrine of Christ. We read out of 3rd Nephi 11 and the Spirit was very strong there. The Bishop told us after that Ben really enjoyed it so we are going to try and keep visiting him and not having a formal lesson but read out of the scriptures with him.

We also had a miracle at Church. The young women have befriended this girl, Maddie Brooks, for about 6 months now. She comes to Church pretty much every Sunday. Well this Sunday she brought her parents. They loved it. The whole ward was really great and welcomed them really well. It was really neat to hear that they were invited to dinner that Sunday night and they had a dinner and family home evening the next night lined up. It reminded me of the role play we did at Zone Conference. The members here are really wonderful. They said that they are going to come next Sunday as well for the whole 3 hours. They also told us that they wanted to start to meet with us as well. They said they would talk to us next Sunday about meeting up. We are really excited about that.

This area is really booming. I am so grateful that I have another transfer to be here. I really love this area with all I have. My prayers are more and more centered on the members and our investigators. I am learning how to lose myself in the work. They are all I think about. I had some really powerful experiences in my study this week that have really changed me. I am starting to feel the same way the Savior feels for the people. It takes real focus to feel that way all the time but it is so worth it.

I really love being a missionary. I am so excited that I have the chance to do this for the rest of my life. The Savior has been really good to me and this is the least that I could do. Know that I love y'all so much and am so grateful for y'all. Have a great week

Preach Loud, Preach Proud!!!

Love Elder Butler