The Spirit of God like a fire is burning.....

Hello All! 

The spirit truly is burning within Mark!  He was confirmed yesterday!  It was great!  He is very happy and he knows that he is doing what is right.  It gives him a great peace of mind.  That change in him has been miraculous to see.  Nancy and Dawn were able to see it, and so we are hoping and praying that they felt that spirit and desired, as did the Nephites, the gift of the Holy Ghost.  Kyle, one of our other investigators will be trying to quit smoking this week, so prayers for him would be helpful.  Claudette and Brian told us that they want to stay Catholic, but that they still want to be friends.  It sounds like a bad break-up, i know.  They are great people and I am sure they will come around in the future.  We also found a few new investigators (One if which is named Elvis - really good man from Albania).  We are excited for more blessings from the Lord.  

Oh Yeah - Transfers are happening tomorrow.  I am staying here.  My New Companion is Elder Harper.  He will get here tomorrow evening.  New transfer.  New Companion.  New adventures.  It's gonna be good.  Anyway - I love you all!  Have a great week!

Your Obedient Servant,
Elder Austin James Ashcraft 

When Jesus Christ Was baptized.....

Hello All! 

How's Life?  Things are going just swimmingly up here (Pun Very Much Intended).  MARK GOT  BAPTIZED!!!!  It was so great to have that happen.  Elder St. Pierre was able to perform that great ordinance.  I felt kind of bad for him because it was his first one and Mark is no small child of God.  He probably weighs about 400 lbs.  The font was not the deepest I have seen either, but Elder St. Pierre is a linebacker and he got him fully immersed in the first shot.  It was great!  I really enjoyed watching that.  Things are going really well.  Dawn Oullette came to the baptism and we are going to talk to her about that next time we are over there.  Hopefully hers will not be too far away.  It's amazing to see people make that sacred covenant of baptism.  I love it.  It truly is a gateway as Nephi said it is.  We are having a grand old time up here, and March is definitely going out like a lion.  The wind this morning walking to the library was almost blowing me over.  It was really fun.  I love the Gospel.  Baptism is probably one of the greatest things ever!  I love it.  I love you!  Have a great day!

Your Obedient Servant,
Elder Austin James Ashcraft 

Join in the joy of the Sabbath School Throng!

Hello All! 

How's it going?  I hope it's good.  It is up here!  It was pretty warm this past week.  It got up to 15 degrees on Wednesday, and then we got rain the past 3 days.  it was chilly with the rain and the wind, but it was better than snow.  

We had a good week!   Mark, Nancy, Dawn, and Odette all came to church.  It was great!  We were able to meet with them and they are progressing nicely.  Mark is preparing to be baptized next week, and the others are excited to see it.  We are hoping that it will be a motivator to each to prepare for her own baptism. It was really good.  

It was a solid week.  I got attacked by a dog (Just Kidding - He only jumped on me).  He completely cleared the fence that was SUPPOSED to hold him back and I thought he was going to eat me.  It was just like on the sandlot, when the Beast jumps over the fence.  I just caught him as he jumped and threw him off to the side.  He didn't get me at all, except for the part where he got muddy paw prints on my suit.  His owner came and took him away after that.   It was fun.  So yeah.  I hope that you are all doing well.  Keep your stick on the ice.  Keep strengthening your testimonies.  I love you!  Have a great Spring Break! 

Your Obedient Servant,
Elder Austin James Ashcraft 

Come, Follow Me....

Hello All!  

It sounds like a great week back home, and it was a great one here!  Mark is getting Baptized on the 21st of march.  We are very excited for him.  We also were able to have a special stake conference with Elder Ballard yesterday.  He and Elder Clayton were up here doing some leadership training and they held a special stake conference so that he could speak to us.  He talked a lot about missionary work, getting the members all exited for it.  It was really good.  We were able to find a few new investigators this week as well.  One of them, Aaron, was really almost grudgingly letting us in because we had an appointment, but as we shared the message of the restoration with him, his countenance completely changed and he was attentive and interested.  It was phenomenal to see that.  The Spirit truly can do great things.  I love it.  Things are doing well.  The Lord is truly blessing us.  And we know that it is only through him that we can do His work.  Have a beautiful day!  I love you!

Your Obedient servant,
Elder Austin James Ashcraft 

The Clouds of Error Disappear...

Hello All! 

The Canadians are happy!  They won the Gold Medal.  Life up here is good.  We had a good week.  Mark, one of our investigators, finally came to church.  He is a big, funny 60 year old man who used to be a truck driver.  He is great.  He has a testimony of the church but has not come yet.  Now that he has started to come, it is only a short time before he is baptized.  We are very excited for him.  We were able to find a few new investigators as well this week.  We are very excited for all that is started to happen.  It's great!  We will hopefully have much more to fill you in on next week.  Life is great!  The Mission is wonderful.  It is such a privilege to do the Lord's work.  I love it.  I love you and pray for you all!  Have a great day!

Your Obedient Servant,
Elder Austin James Ashcraft