Jeff had his 4-wheeler accident this week, so William's letters to Jeff and I were short. Here is a bit of what he wrote to Jeff:
My Dear Father,
Dad, I am so grateful that you are alright. I know you are dealing with a ton of physical pain and turmoil right now but you just hang in there. I send my faith your way. My gratitude turns to God that you weren't hurt even worse... I called President Maynes and explained the situation to him and asked if I could call and he was sad to hear about the accident and encouraged me to call. I'll call you tonight.
May God bless you for your goodness, faith, and righteous desires Dad, my heart is very tender right now as I think of you. I'm proud of you for being a man of God. Christ knows how to succor you right now with the physical pains you are going through. ... I love you Dad.
Forever your Son,
Elder William Marks
William called home that night, and it was good to be able to talk with him and reassure him that Jeff was going to be o.k.
William's letter to Erika held more about how his week went:
Erika!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm so proud of you Sis, I don't even know where to start! You're doing so well with your faith, your schooling, you are taking care of yourself, and you're just awesome! You'll always hold a special place in my heart. Thank you for being who you are.
Still nothing from Joseph IV., we called him last week and he told us he was busy and to call him on Tuesday night to try and set something up… we'll see!
I've been doing really great! I've felt so much influence from the Holy Ghost lately, more than ever before. I'm so grateful to be worthy to have his guidance. Yeah, I'm still a Zone Leader, and I love it! There is so much to do but I love being busy! And being able to help other missionaries in a special way.
Still too early for a baptismal date with Ellen but we taught her about the last half of the Plan of Salvation last week (where we go after we die and what determines that) and she LOVED IT! I can't remember if I've told you this in the past or not but she reminds me a lot of you. Her hair is a lot shorter but other than that she kinda looks like you, she carries herself almost the same, she is very kind and genuine… so for me, it's a lot of fun to teach her! It's like a non-member version of you - LOL! (obviously not exactly the same but still :o)
Hongye is doing great! She is starting to realize that God is really there! Two times ago that we met with her I felt prompted to promise her that if she read Enos and then got on her knees and asked God if He was there that she would feel His love for her. We had a lesson with her yesterday and she said she did re-read it (she had read it in the past with Joe, her fellowshipper and thought it was neat but didn't really feel much). When she read it on her own, and in English this time, she indeed felt God's love. It was incredible to see the light in her eyes as she described what she felt! Stuff like that makes my mission so worth it!
Way to go with the medals! [Acadeca competition: 3 gold, 1 silver] I can't believe you beat Tim Redford - hahaha! That's so awesome! That's my Sister!
Oh, totally laughed out loud with the Brian Regan quote...SUPER FUNNY! Alright Erika, I've got to go. I love you so much and miss you. Keep being awesome:)
Your Brother,
Elder W. Marks
P.S.- "Blasting Zone? Shouldn't that read 'road closed?" Remember, last time we lost Billy!?!
My Dear Father,
Dad, I am so grateful that you are alright. I know you are dealing with a ton of physical pain and turmoil right now but you just hang in there. I send my faith your way. My gratitude turns to God that you weren't hurt even worse... I called President Maynes and explained the situation to him and asked if I could call and he was sad to hear about the accident and encouraged me to call. I'll call you tonight.
May God bless you for your goodness, faith, and righteous desires Dad, my heart is very tender right now as I think of you. I'm proud of you for being a man of God. Christ knows how to succor you right now with the physical pains you are going through. ... I love you Dad.
Forever your Son,
Elder William Marks
William called home that night, and it was good to be able to talk with him and reassure him that Jeff was going to be o.k.
William's letter to Erika held more about how his week went:
Erika!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm so proud of you Sis, I don't even know where to start! You're doing so well with your faith, your schooling, you are taking care of yourself, and you're just awesome! You'll always hold a special place in my heart. Thank you for being who you are.
Still nothing from Joseph IV., we called him last week and he told us he was busy and to call him on Tuesday night to try and set something up… we'll see!
I've been doing really great! I've felt so much influence from the Holy Ghost lately, more than ever before. I'm so grateful to be worthy to have his guidance. Yeah, I'm still a Zone Leader, and I love it! There is so much to do but I love being busy! And being able to help other missionaries in a special way.
Still too early for a baptismal date with Ellen but we taught her about the last half of the Plan of Salvation last week (where we go after we die and what determines that) and she LOVED IT! I can't remember if I've told you this in the past or not but she reminds me a lot of you. Her hair is a lot shorter but other than that she kinda looks like you, she carries herself almost the same, she is very kind and genuine… so for me, it's a lot of fun to teach her! It's like a non-member version of you - LOL! (obviously not exactly the same but still :o)
Hongye is doing great! She is starting to realize that God is really there! Two times ago that we met with her I felt prompted to promise her that if she read Enos and then got on her knees and asked God if He was there that she would feel His love for her. We had a lesson with her yesterday and she said she did re-read it (she had read it in the past with Joe, her fellowshipper and thought it was neat but didn't really feel much). When she read it on her own, and in English this time, she indeed felt God's love. It was incredible to see the light in her eyes as she described what she felt! Stuff like that makes my mission so worth it!
Way to go with the medals! [Acadeca competition: 3 gold, 1 silver] I can't believe you beat Tim Redford - hahaha! That's so awesome! That's my Sister!
Oh, totally laughed out loud with the Brian Regan quote...SUPER FUNNY! Alright Erika, I've got to go. I love you so much and miss you. Keep being awesome:)
Your Brother,
Elder W. Marks
P.S.- "Blasting Zone? Shouldn't that read 'road closed?" Remember, last time we lost Billy!?!