January 6th, 2009 (Email)

Hey!
William Peters was baptized January 1st 2009! Elder Rodriguez baptized him and I confirmed him. That was a great experience. I felt the Spirit so strong when we were in the circle giving him his confimation blessing. William moved to Victorville a couple days later but he was so happy to finally be baptized. He wanted us to be involved with it so everything worked out great. And that was definitely the highlight of New Years. I think I heard fireworks in my dreams at midnight but I'm not entirely positive. Apparently I slept through a bunch of phone calls that night from some Spanish investigators. I'm a deep sleeper now but I still manage to wake up at 6:30.
So Mom it's interesting that you'd bring up David and Dixie's son George because I have an amazing story for you. I have a few good stories this time so I hope I have time to write them all. We visited David and Dixie about a week ago and we started teaching them about the Gift of the Holy Ghost. We'd planned this particular lesson out a little while ago so we knew what we needed to do and we just went through with it. We told them what a blessing it is to have the Gift of the Holy Ghost and the Priesthood in the home. The wheels started turning in David and Dixie's heads ("I am able to do mine own work" -2Nephi 27:20) and before we knew it George commited to be baptized January 17th!
Friday I went on splits with another Greenie named Elder Mckinney. I know the area pretty well now that I've driven a few times. Elder McKinney and I visited Mayra and I decided to commit her to be baptized on the 11th since she's moving soon and she thought it sounded like a great idea. But after we left she talked with her mom and changed her mind. We're still meeting with her though. The mom asked us a bunch of questions yesterday and now we're going to visit with her too. That day we also visited this new lady from Tahiti named Jenny. Jenny is having difficulties with life but she likes meeting with us. She's going back to Tahiti in less than a month and she's interested in getting baptized before she returns. I took Elder McKinney to visit Jason Patterson later Friday night. We walked in to see that Jason was watching the new Emma Smith movie on BluRay on his giant flatscreen TV. Oh Jason. He's so cool. Elder McKinney was blown away at how Mormon Jason is. He just needs to be baptized.
Saturday I went on splits with Elder Esterholdt. I was really tired after 2 straight days of splits. Elder Esterholdt and I took a member named Scott to visit Sam Sakely. It was probably the most spiritually intense lesson I've ever been involved in. We talked about Mosiah 24 and likened it to her situation. Elder Esterholdt was bold like always and it was great. The Holy Ghost was telling us what to say. Sam cried. I cried a little. Scott cried a little. It was great. The Holy Ghost truly has a still small voice and on Saturday I had the rare priviledge to have him speak to me with actual words. He told me to challenge Sam to bear her testimony to her Mom again. She'd tried this before so I wasn't sure, but then I was prompted again so I went through with it. The Spirit was really really strong and we knew that Heavenly Father was giving Sam a promise. Sam went through with it and talked to her Mom that night. We called her later and Sam said her mom wants to bring friends and family to the baptism. It should happen soon.
Bro. Stelly just got released from prison! Have I told you about the Stellys? They're a really cool family. They've been less-active since Bro. Stelly went to prison but on Sunday they were all at church. Bro. Stelly read all the standard scriptures in prison. He read the Book of Mormon twice. He has a testimony and he wants to be baptized too. And to top it all off he loves Jimi Hendrix and he plays the guitar left-handed. We're going to start teaching him this week.
We haven't seen Roxy for a while but we're seeing her tonight. I hope she'll go through with her baptism. We've been preparing this lesson for a while. She's had some doubts because she thinks she's too young to be baptized (doubts courtesy of her mother. Mom & Dad, thank you for letting me make my own decisions with my life.) but we're going to tell her otherwise! She's so ready! Hopefully some Alma 19:6 will happen.
I'm almost done with Isaiah now. I'm on chapter fifty something. It's been great. My testimony of the Book of Mormon has strengthened a lot from it. After I finish I'm going to pick up where I left off toward the end of Alma with my Book of Mormon reading. Above all things its essential for a missionary to study the BoM.
Things are still great in Buena Park! I'm going to send some pictures home today so look forward to some Christmas pics and etc.!
I love you!
-Elder Tyler Lewis
P.S.- I'm starting a missionary binder now so could you send me a couple pictures- 1 of Nicoles' baptism and 1 of David Ramos' baptism? Thanks!