October 27 & 28, 2012

Dear Family and friends,

                Elder and Sister Andrus are reporting in again from Charlotte, North Carolina.  We have had a splendid week.  We pray each of you have likewise had a wonderful and successful week.  We love and pray for you all each day and think of you often.  Thanks to all of you for your love and support and prayers in our behalf.  We need them and we feel the Lord’s blessing on us each day as we strive to be obedient servants in the kingdom.

                Monday morning began with a detailed staff meeting with President and Sister Craven.  We have one each Monday morning when the President is in town which is about 80 % of the Mondays.  He challenged us to put our seat belts on because we can expect an increase in missionaries very soon.  He and Sister Craven have been at a mission president seminar with Elder Gonzales, our 70’s quorum file leader, since Thursday.  We will be anxious to hear what they have learned tomorrow in our staff meeting.  We are reading what you all are of the increase in applications for missionary service—many from young women.  It will be great to have more sister missionaries.  They have a wonderful spirit about them and we can use more of it everywhere.  With our President out of the area Sister Andrus and I have had to fill in some of the blanks that normally would be filled by the President.  We had an elder involved in a serious bike accident that placed him in the hospital overnight.  Sister Andrus and I have been in the hospital and took the Elder and his companion home.  Helped them get situated with pain medication and food.  He will need some major dental work as many of his teeth were broken.  His mouth and face had to be stitched back together.  Fortunately it was not any more serious than it was.  We met with a Bishop in Kannapolis regarding one of our Church Service missionaries who works in the office.  He is a handicapped Elder who so desires to be just like all the Elders but really can’t—and he doesn’t see why not.  The President asked me to work out a solution between the Bishop and the Elder.  We have a workable plan in motion that should help.  Regardless, all of these thinks takes us away from our duties that normally are performed in the office.  It also cuts in on our proselyting time.  We were able to meet with the Hill family.  Sister Hill is a member, however Joe is not.  He is a Deacon in the Baptist Church and doesn’t see how the Baptists can survive without him being there.  He is a good man.  We are working to always have a message to share with him regarding the unique doctrines the restored church has to offer.  We had a good meeting with him last Monday evening.  We hope to keep moving forward with this in the coming weeks.  We met with the husband of the family of three who were baptized last Saturday.  It was a good meeting also.  We are meeting again on Monday (Tomorrow) We hope to be able to use the influence of the spirit that his family has to help him.  He also is a good man who does many good things.  We met also on Friday evening with the Perez family.  The mother is a member and her 10 year old daughter has expressed interest to join the church.  They recently moved here from Las Vegas.  The mother wants to let her daughter make her own choice so Sister Andrus and I have the privilege to present the restored message to her and hope to do it in such a way so the Holy Ghost can bear witness to her of its truthfulness. 

                On Wednesday we took another Sr. Couple, the Bushman’s from American Fork (They used to be neighbors to Uncle Rick and Bev in Payson) to High Point, North Carolina to a new missionary training meeting.  President Craven desires all the missionaries, after about a month in the field, to gather together with their companions to have a day of training to help answer questions and demonstrate teaching techniques via role plays etc.  It was a great experience.  We learned the what is called the READY approach.  R—We are to establish what is their religious background.  E—Establish common ground.  A—Share something about our Unique Message—preferably the 1^st vision being able to recite from memory Joseph Smith’s account of his visit with the Father and the Son.  D—Describe roles.  What we as missionaries are going to do and what will be required of them as investigators.  It was emphasized that during this time we should share with them that we are going to be asking them to commit to baptism which will require them read the Book of Mormon and to pray about our message and attend church.  Y—You do it.  Commit to both do what you have agreed to do.  The whole process should not take more than 5 minutes.  There demonstrations were excellent and then we role played doing it.  It was difficult, however very inspiring.  Our roles as Sr. Couple are a little different; however the message is the same.  We must do things that allow them to make and keep commitments.  It was emphasized that people who cannot keep commitments will not be able to make and keep covenants.  So it weeds out those who are not willing to move forward.  We as Sr. Couples, however usually are left with those who need more time so we move a little slower.

                Sister Andrus and I spent most of Saturday with another Sr. Couple, Elder and Sister Tarbet from Midvale, Utah.  President Craven desires Sister Andrus and I to go to each of our Sr. Couples and spend time with them on Saturdays.  It is nice to share some common experiences and be together.  We visited Morrow Mountain State Park near Albamarle, NC.  It was a pleasant day with them.  This is there second mission.  The have 8 children with many grandchildren.  Sister Tarbet suffered a stroke a couple of years ago, however she functions pretty good.  Elder Tarbet is a great stalwart priesthood leader.  A retired Dentist.  He and Dr. Robert Jenson served as missionaries in Norway together.  They were not companions, however knew each other.  It was good to be with them.

                We were taught in our new missionary seminar that our families are our most important investigators.  We were instructed to share our testimonies as fervently with them as with anyone.  I hope we are not guilty of not sharing our testimonies with you are dear children, grandchildren and friends.  We never tire sharing the message of the restoration with anyone.  Each time we share the 1^st vision experience with anyone, we still have warm feelings in our bosoms of the truthfulness of its message.  Joseph Smith and all his predecessors are prophets of God. We sustain President Thomas S. Monson as the prophet of our day.  We are led by prophets and apostles called and set apart as especial witnesses of the Master Jesus Christ who atoned for our sins.  How blessed we are to know of the plan of happiness that allows us to be together as eternal families.  Please know of our prayers of gratitude for the potential of our family to be eternally together.  We know we must all do our very best to be present in those eternal realms.  It is not too far away.  Make sure we stand steadfast and immovable in a changing world.  Shun evil in all its wicked ways.  Say prayers and study the scriptures daily.  Have family home evening weekly and pray for strength to serve in every capacity you can to prepare the world for the 2^nd coming of the Savior.  We know this message is one of hope and is of utmost importance.  Again we love you all and so appreciate your support and love. 

Sincerely with love

Elder and Sister Andrus, Grandpa and grandma, Don and Ruth.

Grandma Andrus sewed the dress the mom is wearing.  This is a baptism.  This is a mom and her daughters.

This is Ruth and Don with another senior missionary couple.  They get to visit the other seniors on Saturdays.