Baptisms! Well...soon!!

This week was a great week that just flew by! We met with some people that made us really excited but also ones that really disappointed us...The lady that I talked about that had attended church a long time ago that I thought was really prepared is kinda struggling... We went over and taught her the restoration and at the end she is just like "I know what you're sharing is true and I know that this book (The Book of Mormon) is true but your church asks a lot and I don't know if I'm ready for that.) So I was just like Jeepers Creepers lady! I was so upset! She basically described the curse of the world we live in! "I know I should do this, but it is hard..." Well flip! Of course it is! This life is a test! And if you don't change you will fail! My goodness! I was so upset! We are going to see her tonight and I think I will break out Hank's "Armour of God". Because our standards aren't convenient or comfortable! That's the way it is! They're not there to make us comfy! They're there to protect us! And the sooner we realize that the better offf we will be! Anyway on a more positive note! Paul, our one-legged man is getting baptized on Saturday! I am so excited for him! He is so solid and is just doing so well! Also O'Brian, the one who we almost dropped, is getting baptized! He is a crazy and odd man but I love him! He is so excited for his baptism and in his own words, "to give my life to da fada!" Ha that's how he says it! He also has a brother who is getting baptized on early april! So we are going over to do a family night with them and their mom and their kids! They have come so far! Their Mom's name is Dorothy and she is old and kinda losing it and she has a smoking problem. So we invite her to quit and she says "Yeah I'll do it!" but then she forgets that she was going to try and quit! Ha so I'm not exactly sure how to handle that situation... Ha so we'll see! Also Granny still makes me sing but I love it! I have Savior, Redeemer of My Soul memorized now! Ha so I sing that a lot!

One of my favorite things that happened this week is we went to a new area called "Entrepot". We had never been there so we just started going house to house and calling in! We met some super cool people and taught like 7 lessons in like 2 and a half hours! It was great! I can't wait to go back! But probably one of my favorite lessons was with a slighltly mentally handicapped middle aged lady. We started talking with her and she told us that her mom just died. And you could just see the hurt that she had. Now she wasn't all there so I kinda taught a simplified a Plan of Salvation lesson real quick but my favorite part was the end! I got to promise her that she would see her Mom again! I told her about how Grandpa died and how I really miss him but I know I will see him again! And that I know that she will be able to see her Mom again! I asked her how that would make her feel and she just smiled and said really softly, "Happy". That lesson has changed my life! I testify that we will see our loved ones again! I know that families can be together forever! I find a lot of peace from that! I am so grateful that my family now will be a forever family as well as my future family! It just has to be! Because it wouldn't be heaven without them! I am so grateful for that! I love you all and I am so grateful for each of you! Continue to find peace from the restored gospel of Jesus Christ! You won't find it anywhere else! I know that!

-Elder Smith

" I testify of the holy Resurrection, that unspeakable cornerstone gift in the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ! With the Apostle Paul, I testify that that which was sown in corruption will one day be raised in incorruption and that which was sown in weakness will ultimately be raised in power. 11 I bear witness of that day when loved ones whom we knew to have disabilities in mortality will stand before us glorified and grand, breathtakingly perfect in body and mind. What a thrilling moment that will be! I do not know whether we will be happier for ourselves that we have witnessed such a miracle or happier for them that they are fully perfect and finally “free at last.” 

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland

This is Granny who Elder Smith sings for all of the time!

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

So this week was amazing but super disappointing at the same time! So In St lucia the way that people work is if it rains, they don't go anywhere! So when it rains on sunday morning it really messes with our sacrament meeting numbers... Jeepers creepers I was so disappointed when I saw it was raining yesterday morning! But anyway we were supposed to have 2 baptisms this saturday but since they didn't come to church we have to move it back. One of them is named Paul. Now Paul actually got sick on saturday so that's why he didn't come, but let me tell you about Paul. He is a Boss! He only has one leg becuase it ended up getting amputated about 2 months ago. He loves the Lord though! He is super excited to become a member of the church! It is so amazing! I love his faith because he doesn't go out unless it's for church. Because like he said, "It's for God so it's what's important!" The next is O'Brian. He is the one that we started to drop last weekend and then started to make arrangements for church. He is so excited for Baptism! It really has been super inspiring! There is a light in there home that just was not there before! We found out on wednesday that he has a slight smoking problem and so we invited him to quit. So he did! We went by on friday and he was so excited to tell us that he hasn't even thought about smoking! It is so great to see these people progress! I love it! 

So the word has been spreading that I sing, so i now sing ALL the time! Ha it is crazy! Granny doesn't let Elder Pierson sing for her anymore! Ha she says that he ruins it! Ha but she makes me sing her like 3 songs before I can leave! Ha I love granny! She is super funny! I also told her about Kaitlyn and showed her a picture of us and she told me, "Tell Kaitlyn that I love her!" Ha oh granny....I like her!

The work is really progressing so that is neat! I am also picking up some great slang that I can use when I get home! Like Iry, pronounce eye-ree! Ha that means alright! And then we are teahing a super cool guy who always says, "Which is right" Ha so we'll just be like, "I know that if you read this book you will get closer to Heavenly Father" and then he'll just be like "Which is right, which is right!" Ha I love it! I am totally using that when I get back! 

This week was a good week though! We worked super hard and have seen a lot of progress. I know that our Heavenly Father blesses us according to our faith! Something we learn in Moroni 7:33 is if we have faith in Christ we will have the power to do whatsoever thing is expedient in him. I know that is true! I have seen that so much this week! He loves us! Have faith, and act on it! That's the thing! Also like President Uchtdorf said, "Doubt your doubt, before you doubt your faith!" So keep the faith! This church is true! I know it! Love you! 

-Elder Smith

These are Pics of the Pitons!

1. With Elder Bechan

2. With Elder Glade`

3. With Elder Pierson

1 Month

Jeepers Creepers it is just crazy to think that I left a month ago! It is unbelievable! This week was full of miracles and many blessings! I just hope that I can fit them all into one email! So I guess first off remember how I talked about Granny last week? The crazy bedridden lady? Ha well we go by her every wednesday and sunday and on wednesday I told her that I would sing her a special song on sunday. So yesterday was the day! I decided to break out Dallyn Vail Bayles version of "Savior, Redeemer of My Soul" but I had to do it acapella! So I was obviously very nervous because I had never really sang it before and I was having to do it acapella! But I did it! And when I finished it I looked up and Granny was crying! I have never seen her cry before but she just had tears running down her cheeks! It really showed the power of music! I now have to sing for her everytime so I am taking recommendations! Ha but it was just so neat!

Also yesterday we fasted to meet more prepared people! We were just struggling because we had met a lot of people but no one was really acting on our message. But we broke our fast and went out yesterday and then we met some amazing people! We met a family who like offered to cook for us whenever and was super receptive! I am not sure which one I liked better! Ha but then we also met a lady who had been meeting with missionaries several times a week and coming to church but then got a job that caused her to work on sundays so she stopped coming and was eventually dropped... But she has a different job now and wants to start coming again! Can you say prepared?!? She will be baptized just now! Ha then we have been teaching a family who had been meeting with missionaries for like 4 and a half months but had only come to church once! Why haven't they been dropped? I do not know! But we decided we needed to drop them so we go in and talk for a while and then I start on the whole "When people don't keep commitments we can't help them thing" and they just start organizing plans to come to church! I couldn't even finish dropping them! Ha and they were all there on sunday and loved it! So they should be baptized just now too! IT is a great time to be a Castries missionary!

The thing I have been thinking a lot about is how the Lord always knows what we need! Last week I was kinda homesick and it was tough! But then on tuesday I got to go on a tradeoff with Elder Fiame! I love Elder Fiame! We just talked about everything! Things like family, friends, high school, life after the mission, you name it! We talked about it! It helped me so much to just tell him about things and have him boost my confidence! One thing he said was, "You could never get these experiences anywhere else!" That is so true! I have been so blessed to be able to come back out! I know that people are placed in our lives for a reason! It isn't an accident! I am so grateful for all of you that I have in my life and I wouldn't replace any of you! I love you!

-Elder Smith

You Are Good Enough

So this week has been a good one! It has been really hard as home sickness sets in again and things are just hard at times but all in all it's been good! This week me and Elder Pierson's teaching just improved a ton! It has been getting really fun to teach again! As we have worked at teaching together we have just seen so many blessings! We went from 3 progressing investigators to 9! It was so cool! We are really hoping to have a huge baptism day on the 29th of March! We have several people praying about that day and I think it will be good! 

We also have a recent convert named Sylvia and she is doing super well! She is our favorite! She got baptized about a month ago and now she is teaching the institute class here! She is super smart! Another awesome person is a lady named Sister Marius, or Granny. She tells us that she is all of the Elder's Granny. Ha she is old and bed-ridden so we go see her every week to take her the sacrament! She is kinda crazy but she is also pretty great! But yeah in our area we have three solid members. Sylvia, Granny and Brother Anthony! So we have a recent convert, a bed-ridden lady and a crazy old man! Ha so member lessons are kind of hard to come by. Ha but we sure try! 

As a missionary the hardest thing is discouragement. Many times you feel discouraged for different reasons. But probably the best advice I received came at the perfect time in a letter. It said, "Always remember that you're Heavenly Father loves you! Never forget that! Now go and teach other people about how much he loves them!" That helped so much! It is important that we always remember that we are Children of God! HE loves us! That truth and that advice has brought me so much peace when at times I haven't felt like I was good enough. But we are good enough! We all are! Like Hank Smith said, '"You are good enough! You were good enough when He walked into the Garden of Gethsemane!" I like that! Never lose hope! Never give up! He is always with you! I know that!

I love and miss you all so much but I am grateful that I get to be serving here in St. LUcia!

-Elder Smith

*I worried a lot about him being homesick again and going through this again, I know it will get better though.  Let's keep him in our prayers!--Mom

Week 2

Well this week has been kinda crazy! We had transfer day on Wednesday so me and Elder Pierson have been all over the place since then! I am losing weight like crazy! Ha six pack here I come! We had a ten year old girl name Krashona get baptized on sauturday so that was cool! Even though I didn't even meet her until the day of her baptism... Ha but anyway the church is really growing here but there is a lot of pressure on missionaries. We teach a ton of the classes in church and such because there are hardly any men in the church here! But we are working on it! 

We have our apartment in the basement of the church and it is falling apart! It also smells pretty bad... Ha plus there is termite damage like crazy! The life of a west indies missionary... Ha it isn't as warm as Trinidad here but it is more humid so I still sweat like Kevin Garnett! I am drinking lots (of water) though! Elder Pierson keeps expecting me to get sick because I drink so much but I am to tough for that! Ha Elder Pierson is pretty cool, not robotic and I don't have to be super dignified when i am with him so I guess you could say that life is pretty good! Ha

This week wasn't super eventful but I guess for a spiritual thought I would like to share something that Elder Bechan said in Zone Meeting. He said, "Our HEavenly Father doesn't give us blessings so we can experience joy, he gives them so we can experience change." I loved that! I thought a lot about the last couple months and as much as I hate to admit it, I changed a lot! So I got thinking about the blessings that came and the change that came because of those blessings and then how I received so much joy! I know that is kind of a complicated chain but I know that Heavenly Father does send blessings so we can change for the better and I am so grateful for that! I have been so blessed the last little bit and I think I am going to keep those things that changed in my life! I love you all! Life is great!

-Elder Smith

I AM HERE!

My new address:
Elder Randon Smith
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
CP 5608
Castries, St. Lucia
West Indies

LOOK AT THIS BEAUTIFUL ISLAND!!!

So I love it here! It has been so much fun serving with Elder Regis and Elder Bingham! I found out on saturday that I will be serving in Castries with Elder Pearson! He is super cool and from Canada so you will have to tell Elder Kuczak that I am serving with a Canadian! Ha but anyway I have been in Vieux Fort and it has been great! It is a walking area so I just got thrust right into it and my knee is holding up! It gets sore but it never really gets to bad! The weather isn't quite as hot and is only about 85 degrees but it is getting a lot warmer! I am excited to start losing my surgery weight! Ha I am super excited to just get to work in an area that is mine though! I am getting my teaching back a lot quicker than I thought I was going to also! I am pretty happy about it! I obviously miss people but I am doing well and I'm just happy to be back out here!

So yesterday I got asked to talk in sacrament meeting! So I just spoke for a couple minutes on the last three months and blessings that came from it! I talked about how the Lord knows what we need and will bring people into our lives to help us! It was really a pretty neat experience! I had lots of people crying as I was talking about different "Angels" in my life! I really have been so blessed the last little while!

Probably my favorite thing is when we taught a lady about how families can be together forever! It was so neat to see someones desire to have that and it made me really thankful that the family I have now will be a forever family as well as the one that I will have later on! It really is such a blessing and a gift that our heavenly Father has given to us!

I love you and miss you but I am so grateful that I am back enjoying the best two years FOR my life! I know that it will bless me now and for many years to come! LUVS!

-Elder Smith

HE IS SO EXCITED TO BE BACK, LOOKIN' A LITTLE SUNBURNED!

IN ST. LUCIA WITH ELDER REGIS AND ELDER BINGHAM!

HE'S HEADING BACK...HERE'S THE SCOOP!

SO, HERE IS A QUICK SUMMARY OF THE LAST 3 1/2 MONTHS:
October 21st, 2013:  We found out Randon was coming home for knee problems.
October 24th, 2013:  Picked Randon up from the airport.
October 25th, 2013:  Randon had an MRI to find out what was wrong with his knee.
October 28th, 2013:  Dr. appt. with Dr. Higgenbotham, found out that Randon needed surgery to remove a "plica band from his knee".
October 30th, 2013:  Surgery date.  Removed plica band and checked ALL ligaments and joints to make sure everything else was ok.  It was.  Estimated recovery 4-6 weeks. Best case scenario. YAY!
November 1st, 2013:  Started physical therapy, continued every week 3 times a week, for the next several weeks.
Fast forward:
We thought he'd be gone around Thanksgiving, but not meant to be, knee still healing.  So, he was home for his birthday on the 26th, and Thanksgiving on the 28th.  There was still a lot of pain and swelling starting into December and no one knew quite why.  He just couldn't get over the hump. The physical therapist was stumped.  They tried many things, stem, rest, ice, rest, anti-inflammatory meds etc.  Dr.  Higgenbotham put him on mobic once a day for inflammation and we just kept waiting.....and waiting..... learning valuable lessons as we waited.....even though we felt frustration and questioned many things.....we finally realized WE WERE NOT IN CHARGE!  Neither was the physical therapist or the doctor.  Heavenly Father was in charge and we had to surrender our will to His.  It was Christmas time and things were still slow.  Dr. Higgenbotham finally determined it to be irritation of the patellar tendon, so he gave him some anti-inflammatory patches to put right on that tendon and.....it helped.  The pain and swelling went away.  He also met a good friend about the end of December that I believed helped him to heal as well.  He would be up and active and it would swell, but the swelling would go down on its own.  Yay, progress.  So throughout January this process continued. FINALLY in the middle of January the physical therapist AND the Dr. cleared him to go back on his mission!  We thought we had made it.  President Ferry, our Stake President got the Dr.'s report and called Salt Lake.  But then came another hurdle.  The mission dept. in Salt Lake said that Randon had to walk 5 miles a day for 4 consecutive days in order to be cleared to go back out. We found this out on Thurs. January 16th, 2014.  We thought he could walk the 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th, and be cleared on Monday the 20th. He had been mostly working on keeping swelling down and strength training so he was not in the best of shape, but was determined to get those 4 days done immediately.  He jumped on the treadmill as I was leaving to run some errands.  I got a call from him after he had done 2 1/2 miles and he was in tears.  He said, "it's not ready, it hurts."  I came home and we talked and decided he should work up to the 5 miles and not take the chance of hurting anything.  So, on Sat. January 25th he had completed his 4 consecutive days of walking 5 miles!  He told the Stk. Pres. on Sunday the 26th.  He called Salt Lake on Monday the 27th.  On Tues. the 28th we found out he was going back to his same mission and then we were just waiting for travel plans.  On Wed. the 29th, we found out he would be leaving at 7:17 am on Friday January 31st to go back to Trinidad and Tobago in the West Indies!  Hallelujah!!!!!  We were so excited and so extremely grateful!!!!!!!  What an amazing journey full of so many blessings, hard times, blessings, hard times, and blessings!  
He's going back!
We all got up at 3:30 a.m. to take him to the airport.  We all said our goodbyes and cried....AGAIN!  I felt like it was worse than the first time we had to say goodbye.  I felt a weird feeling inside, couldn't quite explain it.  That night we received a call from Trinidad and we were so excited that they let him call to tell us he made it safely.  
He was there but...
We put the phone on speaker and this is what we heard, "Mom, this is Randon, I am here in the airport in Trinidad, but they won't let me in the country, so they are sending me back home."  We all thought he was joking.  A senior missionary got on the phone and explained that immigration wouldn't let him in because he didn't have a missionary permit, which the church gets for them.  The church thought he could get in on a 40 day tourist visa while they were getting his permit.  Not so, the police even interrogated him.  The senior missionary said they had to put him on the next flight out and asked us to pick him up the next day at the Salt Lake airport at 4:00 p.m.  He said it should be a quick turn around as soon as they could talk to immigration, but it was Friday and that couldn't happen until Monday.  His MTC comp. was the one that was there in Trinidad to pick him up and as Randon was walking away to fly back home he turned to Elder Beck and said, "I'll tell you who wins the superbowl!"  :)  He's such a goof!  So in 36 hours, he flew from Salt Lake to Houston, to Trinidad, then back to New Jersey, Chicago, and Salt Lake.  He was literally flying or in airports for over 36 hours.
He's back.....home?  
So, we dropped him off, as a family, Friday morning the 31st and then Will and I picked him up Saturday afternoon Feb. 1st.  CRAZY!  As Will and I were standing there waiting to greet him at the airport we couldn't stop laughing (we'd done our share of crying before this trust me) but we had to do something this time as he walked out of the terminal.  So when we saw him we acted like he was coming home after 2 years.  We hugged him and told him how great he looked and said things like, "It's been so long since we saw you." etc.  We had quite an audience and we were all laughing so hard!  Randon thought we were crazy!  He didn't want to go back home and go through the goodbye thing and put people through that again, especially because it was only supposed to be a couple of days.  My oldest sister's son is leaving on his mission in a couple of weeks, so we took him to her house in Layton to stay, and Justin could be his comp.  He stayed there Sunday (the superbowl) and that was difficult!  :)  Then Monday I went down and we went on a long walk to keep his knee in shape.  As we started our walk the feeling was a little "down".  I had called Trinidad on my way down to see Randon and they really didn't have any new news, so we were a little discouraged.  We walked for about an hour and then my phone rang. :)  It was someone from the missionary dept. in Salt Lake and he said, "I understand you have a missionary you can't seem to get rid of."  We laughed and I said, "we are really trying!"  He said that he had received a call from Pres. Mehr (Randon's mission pres.) and he wanted Randon to fly into an island called St. Lucia.  It is easier to get into that island than Trinidad I guess.  He said, "how soon can he travel?"  I said, we are only 20 minutes from the airport!:)  And he called about 30 minutes later with Randon's travel plans!
He's going back.....AGAIN!!!!
This all happened Monday, Feb. 3rd and we found out he was to fly out the next day, Tues. Feb. 4th at 3:55 p.m.  So Will and I took him to the airport and said our 3rd goodbye.  This one was different, I felt a great sense of peace and Will cried more than he ever had!:)  We watched him as far as we could see him and then we left the airport and came home.  He had a long flight going from Salt Lake to Denver where he had a 4 hour layover, then Denver to Miami where he had a 5 hour layover, then Miami to St. Lucia.  So I had to wait 24 hours to find out if he would actually make into the country this time.  At approx. 2:00 p.m. on Wed. Feb 5th I got a call from the same Senior missionary and I was honestly scared to answer the phone! :)  He said Elder Smith was in St. Lucia and was with 2 other elders until transfers, which would be Tues. Feb. 11th.  I think I finally breathed for the first time in a long time!  At first, when he was going through his knee surgery process with the ups and downs, I said I wouldn't breathe until he was actually on the plane going back.  HA!  But that didn't even work, :) so then I said that i would breathe when he was actually in the country! :)    So, check out the next post because it is his first letter from the West Indies after being gone for 3 1/2 months!  What an adventure!  We owe such thanks to the local missionaries for taking him on splits so much and keeping him involved in missionary work and taking him to work out with them to get his knee in shape, for the seminary teachers who invited him to come and sit in on their classes several times a week and even to teach a full lesson one of the days!  And for the many prayers that were offered in Randon's behalf!  We had some amazing experiences while he was home and I truly am grateful for EVERY ONE, good and bad!  We have an amazing Heavenly Father who knows us, and loves us.  He knows what we need and where we need to be, and what we need to learn!  I need to thank all of Randon's great friends too for their continued support of him!  You helped him in so many ways!!!  We love you and consider you part of our family!
So, now.....the West Indies mission experiences continue!  I will post his letters each week, as well as pics!   THE CHURCH IS TRUE!!!!  LUVS TO ALL OF YOU!--Shanna (Randon's mom)  :)
Here is his new address:
Elder Randon Smith
CP3608
Castries, Saint Lucia