Well, this will be my last email, pretty crazy.
We had an awesome
week!! On Wednesday we got to go to the
Sevierville building for our zone conference.
It was pretty surreal to be giving my departing testimony at the place I
started my mission, but I was extremely grateful for that experience and the
spirit that was at that conference.
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| Last Zone Conference |
Later that day we
had dinner with a family that has some members and some nonmembers, but a total
of 11 people living there. Over the last few weeks, I had kind of struck a
chord with a man named James, and we were able to start teaching him. Then this last meeting we were able to set
him on date to be baptized on Dec. 14th.
We are so excited for him.
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| With E. Haynes (top) and E. Everett. All 3 come home this week. |
We were also able to
do one more exchange with the Rockwood elders as well, which is always fun.
As my mission comes to a close, I’ve been thinking over and
over about the different trials, heartaches, happiness, and joy I have felt. I’ve been trying to make sense of how it all
ties together. I’ve had some of the best
and worst days of my life doing the same exact thing.
It is my belief that
our hard days, or trials, or addictions, or pains, are extremely sacred. Those are the moments that I have needed the
Lord the most, and those are the moments I grew closer to Him. So I’m grateful for my trials, because they
truly are a sacred experience, and they bring be closer to the Lord.
I’m so grateful the
Lord sent me to TN, GA, NC, and VA, to serve the people in the great Tennessee
Knoxville Mission.
I’m extremely
grateful for all of your hopes and prayers on my behalf. I have had some
experiences where there was no doubt that’s where the extra strength was coming
from.
I’m most of all
grateful to my Savior. I don’t think I
have enough words in my vocabulary to express it fully, but I want y’all to
know that He is the reason for everything that I do.
"And I was led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand
the things which I should do." - 1Nephi 4:6
Elder Derek Kenneth Roden
Tennessee Knoxville Mission
Nov 2017-2019
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