The Book of Mormon has so much power!

Hey everyone!!

So, this week was pretty sweet. Tuesday, we were walking along looking for a less active members house, and couldn't find it so we stopped to ask this guy working in his yard if he knew her, and he was a little hard of hearing, so i don't really think he understood what i was saying at first, but he invited us in, and called his wife in, and asked us what we are all about haha... so we taught them the restoration and ya, it was pretty cool, people don't usually just invite us in and call their families in without us saying anything haha.. if thats how it always was, missionarywork would be cake! Wednesday we had Zone Conference, and it was amazing!! President Hendricks is the coolest guy and everytime he teaches I leave convinced that I can be the best missionary ever... He is really inspiring and I'm committed to work just a little harder than i think i can every day. On the way to Kingston for the Zone conference i learned a very good lesson too. We caught a bus there, and there were so many people on there that we all were standing in the isles packed like sardines with everyone else haha.. it was pretty funny, cuz usually when you are standing on a normal bus, you have to like hold on to something so you don't fall over when the bus takes corners fast, but on this bus, there were so many people you didn't have to hold on to anything... nobody could move at all, so tipping over was out of the question haha.. but anyway... this bus had a very nice speaker system (i came out with very muffled hearing... kinda like coming out of a concert) and was blasting super loud dancehall.... at first when i was on the island, i couldn't understand what they were saying in the songs, but now i can understand just about every word... and what was being said made it impossible to keep good thoughts in my head.. It really wasn't possible to think of Christ with that music blasting... it taught me that music really is a very powerful influence in our lives.. and if we always listen to music in which it is still possible to think about Christ without being embarressed, we really will be blessed with the abilitly to receive more revelation more often.. just a thought I had.. Oh, and this week, I saw something that I hadn't seen before in my life. We have been teaching a lady named Queenie, and at first she just seemed really depressed all the time, and she wasn't really understanding what we were teaching.. (we taught the restoration like 3 times)... she was starting to get frustrated with herself, because she just wasn't grasping it.. especially what the Book of Mormon was. then we decided to take a different route and just have her start reading the Book of Mormon from the front instead of leaving her chapters out of the middle to read... so we left her 1 Nephi 1 to read, and when we came back two days later, she had a massive smile on her face, and was stoked out of her mind to see us.. we asked her if she had read 1 Nephi 1, and she exclaimed, "I read chapters 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9, and 10!!.. This Book is Amazing!!!!!"... Her countenance was completely changed, and she really is like a different person now.. I wouldn't have even recognized her... she practically glows she's so happy.. The Book of Mormon has so much power! I have seen it in my life, and now in others. I know that when I consistently read out of it, I am always happier and more converted to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know with all my heart that it is true, and if anyone reading this hasn't read or heard of the Book of Mormon, get a copy, and read it!! It really will change your life. I promise. :) ..................... On Sunday, since it was the fifth Sunday, the Branch President decided that he would give all of the missionaries a chance to speak in church. My topic was Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration. It amazes me that i can teach this every single day... and still get nervous to speak about it in church haha... some things never change. But I think I did an ok job... I only had ten minutes to speak.. and only got through about a third of my talk.. that is something that has changed.. I never thought i'd be able to give a 15 minute talk haha.. now, if i have any less, i struggle to figure out what not to say.. After church, we had lunch with the Sterlings and dinner with the Weirs.. they are both amazing families.. I love them so much!.. haha, last week i can't remember if i wrote this, but we had cowfoot at the sterlings for lunch.. it was quite the adventure.. it literally is cow foot, the hoof haha.. ... oh, and we celebrated haloween by making chocolate chip cookies at night.. really though, haloween here was lame! cuz it isn't a holiday.. but we celebrated kinda.. nothing like the States, but it wasn't too bad... SO.... HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!! :) I guess they don't celebrate thanksgiving here either :(.. but maybe we can get some people to feed us haha.. but life is going good here... doin our thing.... til next week!

Love

Elder Kraus...

ps... keep writing me!! I love the letters even though we only get mail like once a month . :)