Nacogdoches!

Dear Family,

So we had a pretty good week here in Nacogdoches. It is a lot of hard work and finding right now, but its going great.

So I just got an email from Elder Barney, he got to go back and baptize Vicky and Zuriel got baptized too. I'll send the picture. I couldn't make it since I'm now 3-1/2 hours out of Dallas but its still way awesome. I feel so glad that I was able to be a part of their conversion.

Well, the work is a little different out here, but its pretty much the same. Nacogdoches is a little town, the sign says 29,000, but there is a big university here that has like enrollment of 30,000. So now that school is in the town is twice as big. There is an English ward here and a spanish branch. The branch is great. There are some really good families and we should have lots of success. But there isn't tons of priesthood leadership and quite a few nonmember and less active fathers that need to get baptized. They just don't know they want to yet...

I'm still getting to know the members and the investigators. We are in a 'finding' stage right now and did lots of finding. With Hispanics it is easy to get in and teach a lesson but its harder to really find those who are ready and prepared. We are changing the way we teach a little bit to be bolder and to really testify powerfully and to challenge people to act on feeling the spirit. Its neat but I'm so far from being a good teacher. Sometimes the Lord doesn't just lead us to those who aren't members. We knocked into a lady who was baptized and raised in Mexico but came here and never came to church. Her husband passed away from cancer 2 years ago and she is raising her 3 kids on her own. She was really nice but you could tell how hard it is for her. We gave her a Book of Mormon and taught her a little. Before we left we helped her clean up a bit since her kids (oldest is nine) had been home alone and had made a mess. It was really neat to see the Lord lead us right to those who needed help.

Sounds like life is going well back in Bakersfield. I liked those pictures of Riley skiing. 10 new inches! Too bad JQ has to wear a cast to mormal. sad day. Keith is so right, I'm a true southerner now. I haven't eaten squirrel yet but it won't be long. I actually might get some armadillo sometime soon because apparently they eat them. Oh I did have a country-fried steak burger after district meeting out in Hemphill (hour further away from Nac). It was good. They just opened a branch in Hemphill and they meet in a house turned chapel. Way cool.

Take care, I love ya'll to death and hope you stay out of trouble.

Love,
Elder Wagner

P.S. Michael Shafer served out here... did you say he got married?? A picture to show people would be cool...