Grenada

New address:

Elder Randon Smith

Po box 3804 Lagoon Road

St. Georges

Grenada

West Indies

Wow this place is great! So I must say that I love it here! I miss the bados an awful lot and it was certainly hard leaving but I am really enjoying it here! I love serving with Elder Leany and I am learning a lot from him. He only has 3 months left so I am probably going to be with him until he finishes. He's what they call a straight-shooter and he teaches the gospel well. It has been kind of hard picking up where the other missionaries left off but we are getting it down. I must say though, the field here is real white! It is amazing! I am just loving the branch and the members here. It is nice to have so many recent converts that are still just pumped about the gospel! It is a huge blessing. There is one whose name is Ricky and yesterday he asked one of our investigators at church, "So when are you getting baptized?" Then bore his testimony to her about how making that step has blessed his life. It was wonderful!

I don't have much to say this week seeing that we are just kinda trying to figure out the area but something I've been thinking about a lot is the love that the Lord has for us and His tender mercies. I got thinking about this because it was about a year ago that I had to go home. I was just thinking about how the Lord was always there through all of that. I'll be honest, there were times where I struggled and where I wondered why these things were happening and what I did to deserve this. I sometimes even wondered if He was still there. But I know that He was. I saw so many tender mercies and through those it was like He was telling me, "Hey, I'm still here." I just want you all to know that whatever it may be that we are going through, the Lord is always there. He loves you! Put your trust in Him and I know that He will always lead you to where you need to be! I love you all! Make yourselves a great week!

Love,

Elder Smith

"If we have faith in Jesus Christ, the hardest as well as the easiest times in life can be a blessing. In all conditions, we can choose the right with the guidance of the Spirit. We have the gospel of Jesus Christ to shape and guide our lives if we choose it. And with prophets revealing to us our place in the plan of salvation, we can live with perfect hope and a feeling of peace. We never need to feel that we are alone or unloved in the Lord’s service because we never are. We can feel the love of God. The Savior has promised angels on our left and our right to bear us up. And He always keeps His word."

Henry B Eyring

It's Been Real

Wow so this week we got our transfer calls and I found out that I am
going to be heading to Grenada to be a Zone Leader with Elder Leaney!
I am really excited yet really sad as well. I am going to miss
Barbados a lot and I have just really grown to love the people. They
are so great! I am going to miss them dearly. I have just been saying
goodbye to people and stuff and that's what my next couple of days is
going to be filled with before I fly out on wednesday morning.
So Everet did get baptized and it went so well! I am so proud of that
guy and how far he's come. He was so prepared and ready and I am just
glad that we were able to find him! We met Everet when we were walking
home one night to our old apartment, we saw Everet and Elder Barlow
just started talking to him. We found out that he lived next to a
member and he had a copy of the Book of Mormon. We set up a time to
meet with him and when we went over we found that the Book of Mormon
had been really used and studied and that he had a pretty good
understanding of it. We talked to him about baptism and church and
after some persuasion he agreed to set a date for the 19th of October.
He told us he couldn't come to church the first sunday after meeting
with him but that he would come to conference. We kept teaching him
and answering questions and then when conference came about 20 minutes
into it Everet comes walking in. I'm not going to lie, I was kinda
shocked! He ended up staying for both Sunday sessions and loved it!
Elder Bednar's talk answered a lot of questions he had as well. After
that everything just fell into place. Probably my favorite thing he
told us though is that "I've met with other missionaries and I
wouldn't commit to do anything. But there is something about you guys,
you are my earth Angels." It was really cool to see how his testimony
grew and how that all came because we just opened our mouths.
Well that's about it for this week! I love you all and continue to
share the gospel!
With Love,
Elder Smith

 Everette's Baptism

 Sister Lovell

 Brother Mayers

 Sister Cadet

 Crazy Elders

 I love this picture!

Yes, Baptism!

So this week we will be having Everett's Baptism! I am so excited for
that! Everett is just really excited and he told the members yesterday
that me and Elder Barlow just reeled him in like a fish! Ha he is a
funny guy!
Grantley and Roger didn't make it to church so theirs are going to be
postponed unfortunately but at least the Lord has blessed us with
Everett! He has truly been a tender mercy here!
So this week we had interviews with President and that always is a
spiritual experience and I really enjoyed that! I love and look up to
him a lot!
In all honesty I don't have much else to put in here but I am just
really glad that I have the opportunity to serve here! I love the work
here in the Bados and I really love the members! They are great! We
had a lesson in Elders Quorum yesterday that Brother Mayers taught and
it was so powerful to just here him bear pure testimony. I love that
man! He has had a tough past but he loves the gospel and it has
changed him! Something he said really hit me! He said, "This church
shows you how good you can be!" I loved that! I might've shared that
quote from him before but it's ok! I'll share it again! It shows you
how good you can be and your real potential! No matter what! I have
seen that in my life and I wish people would be more willing to see it
in theirs! Share the gospel and let your light shine! I love you! 

Love,
Elder Smith 

"Come and see if the restored gospel of Jesus Christ enlarges and enriches that which you already believe." David A Bednar

Unfortunately Elder Smith did not give me any info. about these pics, so.....use your imagination!:)

#LDSConference

Wow conference was wonderful! I loved it dearly! What a wonderful
opportunity that was to listen to a Prophet's voice. I also loved how
that was a big theme for this conference! We must follow the Prophet,
don't go astray. Follow the Prophet, He knows the way! :) But anyway I
loved Elder Robbins talk on saturday morning! That was so powerful! I
liked how he said, "Pilate was merciful until it got risky." It got me
thinking about how sometimes we are like that! We live the gospel
until it gets risky or threatens our social status or something like
that! As Heavenly Father watches that He is probably just like
"Serious?" We can all do better with that!
Also Grantley had a set back so his baptism is getting moved back but
we will work to get over that!
This transfer I have been really focusing on using scriptures more and
have seen many blessings come from it. I remember hearing Elder Hatch
say "When we use the scriptures we don't have to say, 'Now don't take
my word for it'. Because we are not using our words but we are using
the Lord's." That stuck with me and has helped me a lot. The other day
we were teaching a first lesson and got talking about baptism and the
lady at first felt like she didn't need to be baptized. I then quoted
some scriptures and talked about those and she asked, "So what you're
saying is i need to be baptized to enter heaven." Then this was my
favorite part! I was able to tell her that because I quoted Christ, I
wasn't the one telling her. The Lord was. So that just really opened
my eyes to see the power of scriptures and it was a really neat
experience.
Oh I also loved Elder Bednar's talk to finish it off! Wow! That was so
powerful! Now I am going to ask are we sharing our "band-aids and
neosporin"? (I hope that's spelled right) We have something that
brings so much comfort and peace but we don't share it with others!
There are people out their that are spiritually wounded yet we keep
our medicine to ourselves! That cannot happen. We can do better!
Something that President Mehr says is "I love it when people get up in
testimony meeting and say, 'The Gospel blesses me so much' He said his
response to this is, 'That's great! When's the last time you shared it
with someone?' " We can do better at sharing it! So please share your
band aids! We all need them! I love you all! Let us all have the
attitude of Khalil. He says in every one of his prayers, "Help
everyone to get to the Celestial Kingdom together." I love you! Share
your band aids! :)
With Love,
Elder Smith

ps. President Mehr shared this quote by Gordon B Hinckley and I loved it!
"The Church has a host of critics and an army of enemies. They mock
that which is sacred. They demean and belittle that which has come
from God. They pander to the desires of others who evidently enjoy
seeing that which is sacred made to look funny. I cannot think of
anything less in harmony with the spirit of Christ than this kind of
activity.
"We are pained by the desecration of that which to us is holy. But we
need not fear. This cause is greater than any man. It will outlast all
its enemies. We need only go forward, without fear, by the power of
faith. Said the Lord in an early season of this work: 'Therefore, fear
not, little flock; do good; let earth and hell combine against you,
for if ye are built upon my rock, they cannot prevail. . . . Look unto
me in every thought; doubt not, fear not. Behold the wounds which
pierced my side, and also the prints of the nails in my hands and
feet; be faithful, keep my commandments, and ye shall inherit the
kingdom of heaven.' (D&C 6:34, 36-37.)" (Faith, The Essence of True
Religion, p. 16)

Here is a pic of the Zone at our activity!