May 21, 2012

Hello my family!

Well we had an incredible week here in Ft. Myers.  I can't believe the miracles that we've seen over the last few days.  We finally got everything in line for Jobiana, and on Tuesday she was baptized!  Wow, what a spiritual meeting that was.  She has been waiting so faithfully and patiently over the last couple of moths for this day.  President Pritt, our stake president here, spoke on baptism and shared some pretty neat information.  Jobiana was baptized on the 183rd anniversary of Joseph Smith.  I had the opportunity to baptize her, and it was incredible.  The Spirit was so strong as she was washed of all past mistakes, and came back up out of the water.  On Sunday she was confirmed a member of the Church by President Pritt.  The whole ward was so excited and really supportive of her.  It was the perfect last week of my mission.  I really couldn't have asked for anything more.  It's so hard for me to actually think that my time here in Florida is coming to an end.  I'd always heard about the priceless memories and lasting friendships that I would make on my mission, and suddenly I understand all of that now.  I would never replace my time here and am just so grateful the Lord has allowed me to experience all of it.  My testimony has been strengthened and I know that the church is true.  I've never been so sure.  Christ lives and I know that He is my Savior and Redeemer.  I love you all and can't wait to see you!  

Love,

Elder Kade Bartschi  

May 21, 2012

21 May 2012

Dear Sisters and Elders,

I am so grateful for the tender mercies of our Father in Heaven as he blessed me with the opportunity to have close and personal spiritual, missionary experiences with many of you this week. I was also shown spiritual insights about you as we prepared the transfer board. I pray again that you will see His hand in the transfers. It is always a miracle to me to see it unfold amidst many valid distractions.

The prayerful intent of the Transfer Board outcome is to improve the Mission’s opportunity to fulfill our divine purpose to find, teach, baptize and retain and to place each missionary in the best possible environment for their spiritual growth. At the start of each Transfer effort, I feel inadequate to accomplish the required task. At the same time I know that He will give me the required insight as He has always done in the past. The Assistants, Sister Summerhays and I  fast, pray and talk together. As  we kneel in prayer before, during and after our work, almost always I am unsettled about some of the proposed changes.  I feel such a sacred responsibility  to see that these changes meet His approval. I always find a time to spend  alone looking at each of you on the board asking in prayer if this move will bless the work and your growth. I always pray for the ability to feel His love for each missionary and to see every individual in the way He desires me to see you. Such a bright view of everyone allows my heart and mind to receive inspiration that will help bring out the best gifts that you can possess. On occasion that will require Him to give you experiences that will reveal your weaknesses that through Him can become your greatest strengths. I always pray that His purposes will be accomplished. I believe that He has orchestrated the transfer. He believes in every companionships ability to find, teach baptize and retain and that each individual missionary can experience divinely orchestrated growth and progress.  Once again, It does not mean that any companionship is perfect, but it is the Lord’s way. We can have perfect mornings. We can be diligent, productive, and happy in these companionships through humility, love and deep devotion to the daily responsibilities of our service. Remember This. We do not always live up to the privileges He provides for us because we fail to see His orchestration in our circumstance and therefore we fail to move forward with faith, hope and an optimistic spirit.

Again, I pray for your ability to see His hand and the virtue in all things including transfers. Again I pray for your ability to follow the counsel to “come what may and love it.”. And once again I am grateful that this day I saw you in the best of Light and that I sensed this day your best potential and once again today I had hope in your beautiful future.

I love you and I believe in you.

President Summerhays

May 14, 2012

Hey family!

It was so much fun getting to talk to you all yesterday.  Happy Mother's Day, Ma!  It was good to hear that everyone is doing well.  

Well we had a pretty hectic week.  Throughout the start of the week we were preparing for Jobiana's wedding, and then I ended up going on exchanged to Cape Coral on Wednesday.  I was working with Elder Sugrue and we had a good time together.  He and his companion are really good missionary, they just don't have a whole lot going on in their area right now.  We ended up tracting quite a bit, and following up with less active members in their area.  They have had some testimony building experiences though, and the work is picking up there.

We got to play the role of wedding planners, which was pretty entertaining.  I have decided that it probably isn't a fit for me as far as a future profession goes though.  We had Zone Conference on Thursday morning, and that was a lot of fun.  President is always encouraging us to be better and he shows us that it's possible to do our best each and everyday.  Part of the reason why we can do that is because of the Atonement.  He told us that we all need to be repenting, but that's not something to hang our heads over.  We should be so happy that we even have that opportunity to progress because of repentance.  I helped give a training with Elder Stegall on the steps of nightly planning.  When Elder Allen came to our mission from the Missionary Department, he taught us that we were using our planners like calendars.  We don't have them to just record what we have going on during the week, but they're to be used as a tool to help us be as effective as possible.  Immediately following the conference we ended up changing and getting things ready to go back to the church and set up.  Jobiana and France had gotten things to wear throughout the week and had ordered a bunch of Brazilian food.  It was delicious.  The Relief Society really pulled together as well, and set up a beautiful room for the reception to take place.  I played the piano, and Bishop Hoskisson performed the ceremony.  Wow, I couldn't believe how strong the Spirit felt.  I didn't think there would be too many times that could compare with a baptism, but this certainly did.  After Bishop had declared them husband and wife, Jobiana started to cry and it hit everyone in the room.  I almost couldn't believe that it had happened.  We took tons of pictures, and really enjoyed each other's company as we ate and were able to talk afterward.  Quite a few people came to the wedding, and Jobiana and Frace were so grateful for what the ward had done.  Unfortunately because of some legal complications with the marriage, she had to wait for three days for it to go through legally.  That meant that we had to push her date back again.  Now, Tuesday (tomorrow) at 6 Jobiana will be baptized, and then she will be confirmed this coming Sunday during sacrament meeting!  I'm so excited for her.

Other than that, we'll be working hard with the people in our area this week.  We've had some people out of town and others that have been sick recently, but hopefully that'll all pass this week.  

I love you all and hope you have a great week!

Love,

Elder Kade Bartschi

May 14, 2012

14 May  2012

Dear Sisters and Elders,

A beloved prophet, Ezra Taft Benson taught,

 “In all ages, prophets have looked down through the corridors of time to our day.

Billions of the deceased and those yet to be born have their eyes on us.  Make no mistake about it---you are a marked generation…

For nearly six thousand years, God has held you in reserve to make your appearance in the final days before the second coming of the Lord.  Some individuals will fall away, but the kingdom of God will remain intact to welcome the return of its Head---even Jesus Christ.

While this generation will be comparable in wickedness to the days of Noah, when the Lord cleansed the earth by flood, there is a major difference this time: (It is that) God has saved for the final inning some of His strongest….children, who will help bear off the kingdom triumphantly.”

That is who we are. He has not left us alone in this great responsibility. He has given us the Book of Mormon.  In our Zone conferences we read about how some great missionaries went about their work. They ‘gave themselves to much prayer and fasting’ and they did ‘fast and pray oft’. Many of our missionaries are experimenting on the word and are giving themselves to much prayer and fasting.  One companionship reported : “We just had a family of three show up at church today! Three potential baptisms. Fasting works!”

           

Preach My Gospel promises that great blessings are available to those who obey God’s commandment to fast. Fasting and prayer go together. When we fast and pray with faith, we are more receptive to receiving answers to our prayers and blessings from the Lord.  He promises us that He will guide us continually.  We should fast and pray for specific purposes. P. 79

You and I must strive to understand and live the principles and standards of the higher law as taught by Jesus Christ  in Mathew Chapter 5 ; 3 Nephi Chapter 12.  As we do so, we are promised that we can enjoy the companionship of the Holy Ghost and follow his direction. As we follow his direction, we can fulfill the responsibility of our generation. As David A. Bednar said, “We were fordained in the premortal existence and born into mortality to fulfill the covenant and promise God made to Abraham.  We are here upon this earth at this time to magnify the priesthood and to preach the gospel.  That is who we are, and that is why we are her--today  and always.” November Ensign 2005.

Please share with me in your weekly email your experiences with the fast and your Book of Mormon reading. Go forward with faith. The harvest truly is great. You are the hope of Israel.  I love you and I believe in you.

President Summerhays

May 7, 2012

Hello family!

We have had an amazing week here in Ft. Myers.  Although we weren't able to meet with all of the investigators that we wanted to, things worked out they way they were supposed to.  This has been the week leading up to Janelle's baptism, and we've been praying like crazy that it would go through.  After it was pushed back from the 21st, I was worried that it might happen again.  We had a lesson with her on Tuesday, and she brought up a couple of things that she felt she had concerns about.  We were able to answer all of her questions, but really what it boiled down to, and what we ended up telling her, was that she was just nervous.  We encouraged her to go home that night and to sincerely pray to her Heavenly Father, and find out if she is supposed to get baptized.  She texted us the next morning and asked if we could all meet up for lunch somewhere.  We got together on Wednesday, and she let us know that she had gotten her answer.  That night she was reading through some gospel literature that she had, and she came across an article that said something along the lines of--Do what you know to be right even when those around you try to keep you from it.  Pretty straight forward, and that what she took it as.  We put in the preparations, and she was interviewed on Friday night, and then we got everything together for the baptism on Saturday morning.  It was a little stressful getting everything together, and her parents weren't helping the matter.  As we were printing off the programs the morning of, we found out that Janelle decided to check her facebook and found out that her Dad had decided to post on there that his daughter was about to join a church some man made up in the 1800s and it was against he and his wife's wishes.  Janelle was really upset and called him right away.  He did end up taking it down, but it hurt her feelings pretty badly.  About that time everyone was showing up over to the church, and fortunately through all the support she shook it off and moved on.  The program went really well though, and Elder Smith and I had the opportunity to stand in as witnesses.  It was such a spiritual experience to open the doors and to see her standing down in the font with Brother English.  Everyone in the room could feel their hearts touched as the Spirit felt like it was washing over us from head to toe.  She asked me to sing, so that took place right after she came back out.  It was an arrangement of "Savior, Redeemer, of My Soul", and it went pretty well.  The next day she was confirmed, and I was able to be the one that confirmed her a member of the church.  She will be an incredible member, and I can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for her.  

Jobiana has also been doing really well.  Franc has been able to sit in on a couple lessons this past week and it has been fun to build a relationship with him as well.  We've been reteaching the lessons to her, and it's crazy how much she remembers.  This week she was able to tell us the entire Plan of Salvation step by step, and then she went through the Gospel of Jesus Christ and explained it all.  On Saturday, Fabiana, Jobiana's twin sister, and her husband flew in from Brazil.  Before we even started meeting together they've been planning on this trip, but now her sister will be here for her wedding and baptism.  The Lord definitely works in mysterious ways.  On Sunday we were able to go over after church and to teach parts of the Restoration.  You could tell that Jobiana was trying to contain herself from drowning her sister with her love of the gospel.  If nothing else, her waiting to get baptized has completely energized her desire to be baptized.  When we first started meeting up she talked about her family going to a Christian church, but she didn't really care which one.  Now that perception has changed though.  She was telling us this week that they don't understand.  It's not like picking out a pair of shoes.  There is one church that is right for  everyone, and it's because it truly has the fullness of the restored gospel.  Every time I leave her house I feel like I can take on the world!  It's amazing how strongly the spirit resides there, and I can't wait for her to have the gift of the Holy Ghost to be with her always.  Well the wedding is going to be on Thursday at 7pm, her interview will be Friday, and then on Saturday at noon Jobiana will be baptized.  I cannot wait.  

Well I love you all!  Have a great week, and I'll talk to you on Sunday!

Love,

Elder Kade Bartschi

May 7, 2012

7 May 2012

I feel so good about the Florida Tampa Mission and the missionaries serving here. Almost all of you are serving with your might, mind and strength. We are doing well but we can become more powerful in blessing lives of our Heavenly Father’s sons and daughters, more powerful in serving others.

We can learn a great deal from the Book of Mormon missionaries. Many years ago they taught with great power and authority. One of them was so powerful that it was “Impossible not to believe his words.” 3 Nephi 7:18. We know that they gave themselves to much fasting and prayer. We know that they used the records from which the Book of Mormon was taken. When Alma the Younger gave the record that would eventually become the Book of Mormon to his son Helaman, he taught that without these plates, “Ammon and his brethren couldn’t have convinced so many thousands…; yea, these records and their words brought them unto repentance.”

God showed His power through the plates by fulfilling one purpose, “even…the restoration of many thousands…to the knowledge of the truth.” Alma then prophesied that God would “still show forth His power in them unto FUTURE generations. Therefore they shall be preserved.” Alma 37:19  Thus the records were preserved and you and I are part of those future generations  Just as in the days of old, we can be more powerful missionaries by using the Book of Mormon.

We have studied the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. We are reading the Book of Mormon in the same time period that Joseph Smith translated the sacred plates.  We could say that it is a book that was shepherded by the very finger of our God. We can teach the doctrine and principles found in the sacred pages of the Book of Mormon. We can teach anyone from this book.  We can quote, read, or repeat by heart the book’s very words as a “convincing power of God” to convince both Jew and Gentile about Jesus Christ and the Restored Gospel.

Please in your email this week, share with me a new insight gleaned from your latest Book of Mormon reading. And please, use and read the Book of Mormon with those you teach. You and I are part of those future generations  written about in the Book of Mormon. I know that as we incorporate the use of the Book of Mormon in our teaching and in our studies, we can become more powerful missionaries here and more powerful husbands, wives, Mothers and Fathers, and church members. We will be able to bless the lives of our Heavenl y Father’s sons and daughters. I testify of the power and truthfulness of the Book of Mormon, and with the Book of Mormon, I testify of Jesus Christ. I love you and I truly do believe in you. You are the best of the rising generation. You are the hope of Israel.

President Summerhays 

April 30, 2012

Hello my family!

Well we had a great week here.  The weeks are flying by, and this one felt especially fast.  Probably because I was on exchanges for two of the days.  We have a Haitian-Creole speaking missionary companionship in our district, so I was in their area for both days.  It was a lot of fun, and always really interesting to experience a new culture.  On Spanish exchanges, I can at least have a fairly good understanding of what's being said....but with Creole I just sit there and nod the whole time.  Both of the missionaries that work there are a lot of fun though, and we had a good time.  It's difficult for them to tract there so we spent a lot of time visiting less active, and dropping in on a few potential investigators.  One of the highlights of the exchange was the English Class they teach on Friday nights.  I'd never been in a class where people are trying to learn the language I speak.  I imagine it'd be like a Hispanic person sitting in on my spanish class in high school.  It was pretty funny to be apart of, and once the Haitian people found out that I didn't speak their language, they immediately wanted to teach me some Creole.  I guess the language is similar to French, but with lots and lots of slang.  I did learn that food is "manje" and fish is "pwason"...just in case I ever need to say either of those words.  

We had a really successful week meeting with investigators though.  Jobiana is still doing extremely well.  She records shows on BYUTV, and reads talks online all of the time.  She and Helena have started the Book of Mormon together and are about half way through 1 Nephi now.  I love visiting them and seeing the progress they're making.  Franc came to church on Sunday and he and Jobiana talked with the Bishop about them getting married.  I had to leave church early so I didn't hear how it went, but we have a lesson with them tonight.  

The last musical fireside performance was last night in Sarasota.  Is was pretty well attended and the Spirit was definitely there.  Sister Draper (the senior missionary the put it together) did such a good job with all of it.  I almost felt like I was back in choir again and feeling like I really accomplished something at the end of a concert.  It was an opportunity for us to share our testimonies, but this time it was through song.  I'm sad it's over, but I'm really happy I got to be apart of it.  

Janelle is doing well.  She has gone through a lot in the last week, and her parents have made it very clear that they don't want her getting baptized.  She has decided that it's what she wants to do though, and will be going through with it this coming Saturday.  We told her that we're so sorry for the hardships, but continued to promise her blessings associated with getting baptized.  Janelle has a testimony, and she knows that the gospel is true.  Being baptized is the next step she needs to take, and she knows that.  It's hard for me to put myself in her shoes and imagine what she's feeling, but she has strong faith in her Savior and I know that she'll make it through.

I love you guys!  Have a great week.

Love,

Elder Kade Bartschi

April 30, 2012

30 April  2012

Dear Sisters and Elders,

I love being united with you as we read the Book of Mormon together looking for the Doctrine of Christ. Part of the beautiful plan of our Savior requires us to ‘endure to the end.’  I have keenly felt the responsibility to see that you are prepared to be steadfast, faithful, obedient and valiant when you return home. I know that will only happen if you set a pattern now of being steadfast, faithful obedient and valiant.  The Book of Mormon is a crucial foundation of that pattern. Consider the remarkable promises related to daily study and application of the Book of Mormon given in an address at a Mission President’s Seminar by Elder David A. Bednar:

An Elder or a Sister with a deep and developing testimony of the Book of Mormon will be a qualitatively different and more effective missionary in the field; he or she also will remain firm and steadfast upon returning home.  Please listen to this admonition from President Benson, “There is a power in the {Book of Mormon} which will begin to flow into your lives the moment you begin a serious study of the book.  You will find greater power to resist temptation.  You will find the power to avoid deception.  You will find the power to stay on the strait and narrow path” (President Benson, Ensign, November 19856,7) I cannot imagine greater blessings, particularly the power to stay on the straight and narrow path.  Your elders and sisters who study seriously the Book of Mormon will strive more fervently to put off the natural man and become a saint through the Atonement of Christ the Lord (see Mosiah 3:19).  Such missionaries will come to know the Savior they represent.  And a missionary in the field who is coming unto the Savior, and assisting investigators to do likewise, will continue in the process of on going conversion after returning home.  Your elders and sisters who study seriously the Book of Mormon will find examples of great missionaries and models of Christlike attributes.  And a missionary in the field who uses appropriately the Book of Mormon in the process of developing Christlike attributes will continue to do so after returning home.  Your elders and sisters who study seriously the Book of Mormon will discover a powerful source of dependable, daily assistance  Such missionaries will learn that diligent study of the Book of Mormon sets the spiritual tone for each day of proselyting.  They also will observe repeatedly the following miracle:  The specific scriptures or topics reviewed during a morning Book of Mormon study session will be central that very day to answering an investigator’s question or to a resolving a concern. And a missionary in the field who relies upon the Book of Mormon as a powerful source of dependable, daily assistance will continue to do so after returning home.  In Alma chapter 23 (see verses 4-6) we read about Aaron and his brethren traveling among the Lamanites preaching and teaching the word of God…Now consider the importance of the following scriptural statement: “As many of the Lamanites as believed in their preaching, and were converted unto the Lord, never did fall away” (Alma 23:6, emphasis added).  Please note: these investigators who were converted unto the Lord---not to personalities of the missionaries or to particular Church programs, but were converted unto the Lord---never did fall away.. and missionaries who are converted unto he Lord---not to the exhilaration of achieving goals or to the prestige of leadership positions, but were converted unto the Lord----never fall away.  This plain truth applies equally to investigators and to missionaries who are converted unto the Lord through the Book of Mormon. ( Elder David A. Bednar, MTC, June 2008)

I love this Mission. I love YOU.  I am passionate about your future success and happiness. I know daily study and use of the Book of Mormon is a foundation of your present and future success and happiness. I believe in you!

President Summerhays

April 23, 2012

Hello my Family!

Although this week didn't turn out like we'd planned, we still got a lot of good things accomplished.  We were prepping everything for the baptism this Saturday and Janelle seemed totally on board with all of it.  We were approaching Saturday, and two days before the day she let us know that she's going to push it back a couple of weeks so that her parents would feel more comfortable with all of it.  They let her know that she felt like it had been sprung on them, and that they didn't agree with her decision at all.  When Janelle invited her mom to the baptism she burst into tears.  Although we told Janelle that it would probably be best if she just went through with it, she decided it would be best to wait.  So now we're planning on May 6th for her.  She still had a lesson with her on Saturday though, and let her know that we still supported her in this and just encouraged her to stay strong for the new date that she has decided on.  She texted us later that day and let us know that she wishes she would have just gone through with it.  Apparently she talked to her parents that night and offered to set up a dinner with a member couple in the ward so that they could answer their questions, and they immediately shut that idea down.  I feel bad, but I'm praying that she'll see that she needs to just go through with it if she knows that it's right.

Thank you for the birthday stuff!  I had an awesome day, and was well taken care of by a few different people.  The Burtons had us over for dinner on Friday with the Haitian elders because one of them had their birthday the day before mine, so we just had a little joint party.  It was a blast and Jobiana and Helena came as well.  We made our own pizzas, played some games, and they had an incredible birthday cake that she made.  I'll have to send some pictures.  On Saturday a member took us out to lunch, and then we had a dinner with the McGinnis' that night.  It was a lot of fun, and I felt pretty spoiled.  

We met some new investigators this week and more and more people are using the mormon.org website and are ordering things from them.  One is named Craig, and he's from Jamaica.  He had met with the missionaries about a year and a half ago, and decided that he wants to learn more.  We taught him the first lesson this past week and he took it really well.  He is an active member of his church, but he agreed to coming and attending a service at some point.  He has a bunch of the church dvd's that he'd gotten from the other missionaries and he seems excited to get back into learning about it.  

Yesterday we had another choir performance, and this one was up in Tampa.  Even though the ride takes a long time, it was a lot of fun to see some of the people that I know from past areas.  I got to see Sister Typner, and then some members from Palm Harbor as well.  The performance went really well though, and has actually been well worth the time we've put into it.  So many people have come up afterwards and let us know that they had felt the Spirit really strongly.  

Well I love you guys!  Have a great week, and I'll look forward to hearing from you.

Love,

Elder Kade Bartschi

23 April 2012

Dear Sisters and Elders,

After a week of interviews, I feel so renewed and energized in my love and gratitude for you.  We have begun our mission Book of Mormon read with the goal of reading it in the time period that it took Joseph Smith to translate those amazing plates. We are searching for our missionary purpose as we peruse those pages. The Book of Mormon testifies: “….turn to the Lord with full purpose of heart, and …serve Him with all diligence of mind…”. 

President Monson gave this prophetic  promise  in the April 2010 General Conference: “Brethren, fill yourminds with good thoughts and your actions will be proper.”  I testify that there is no better way to fill your minds with good thoughts than daily feasting on The Book of Mormon. I repeat: there is no better way to fill your minds with good thoughts than daily feasting on The Book of Mormon.  Please lay claim to the promise that “your actions will be proper” by daily feasting on The Book of Mormon.  Years ago, I heard President Marion G. Romney give these prophetic words, “The great overall struggle in the world today is, as it has always been, for the souls of men.  Every soul is personally engaged in that struggle, and he makes his fight with what is in his mind. In the final analysis the battleground is, for each individual, within himself.  Inevitably he gravitates toward the subjects of his thoughts.  Ages ago…this truth was taught, :As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he”…. If we would escape the lusts of the flesh and build for ourselves and our children great and noble characters, we must keep in our minds and their minds true and righteous principles for our thoughts and their thoughts to dwell upon…If we would avoid adopting the evils of the world, we must pursue a course which will daily feed our minds with and call them back to the things of the Spirit.  I know of no better way to do this than by daily reading The Book of Mormon.” I know there is a power that comes into our day each and every morning that we feast upon The Book of Mormon.  This power allows us this very day to do good, to be good, to love and lift others, to resist temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary, and stay on the straight and narrow path. This power insures that today’s actions will be proper.  And if your actions will be proper this day because of your feast in The Book of Mormon, then why not make every day’s actions proper by a similar daily feast.  I plead with you to partake this day and every day of your lives from the power of the Spirit through a feast in The Book of Mormon.

Everyone needs this power of the Spirit. “People need a reason to change their thoughts and actions. Promised blessings often provide powerful motivation to obey God.” PMG 197.  I plead with you to teach, testify, invite and promise these blessings to all you teach. Invite your investigators to make a commitment to read and pray about the Book of Mormon.”  Remember This “ help everyone you teach make commitments that will bring about repentance and strengthen their faith in the Savior.” The Book of Mormon is a blessing for the world.

I love you and I believe in you.

President Summerhays

This week we should be on page 110 by Tuesday and 155 by May 1^st  PS  The word of the day is Peruse J

April 16, 2012

Hey Family!

I don't have a whole lot to report on this week actually....probably because I don't feel like I was in my area hardly at all.  On Wednesday I went to a meeting in Sarasota that took up half of the day.  Now I can't remember if I've told you this, but the mission is doing another missionary musical fireside.  I'm singing in it, and we are having three different performances.  One was yesterday in Lakeland, and then the 22nd in Odessa, and then a final one on the 29th in Sarasota.  Anyways, because of how far away all of those places are from the southern half of the mission I got the mission van in Tampa on Thursday evening after a choir practice in Sarasota (yep I went there the next day) and drove it all the way back down to Ft. Myers.  Fortunately I had a few days to meet with people, and things are going so well.  Janelle finally told her parents that she want to join the church!  I can't even imagine the anxiety she was feeling as she mustered up the courage to talk to them.  They have taken it all fairly well.  They're not particularly excited or supportive, but they know that she's old enough that she'll make her own decisions.  Because of that, we're officially on for her baptism this Saturday.  I can't wait.  She has been learning about the church for about a year and a half, and is ready.  She really wants to have a family in the church, and knows how important that would be.  She is really good friends with the English family in the ward and that was what originally got her interested in learning more.  We go to Family Home Evening over there on Monday's and she and Joy come there.  Jobiana is also doing so well.  She has completely finished the Book of Mormon this week!  I can't believe how much she has learned so quickly.  As we talk about the things that she's read, she can recall even the little details from the stories.  Things have been a little shaky between Jobiana and Frans (her fiance), but it has all worked itself out.  They're still planning on the wedding at the beginning of May, and I can't wait.  Jobiana has also sent the missionaries to her family's place in Brazil, and she told us, "I'm not even a member, but I'm a missionary!".  She's great.  

Well I hope all is well with you all back home.  I love you and hope to hear from you soon!

Love,

Elder Kade Bartschi  

April 9, 2012

Happy Easter Family!

We have had a great week leading up to our Easter weekend. We were able to meet with nearly all of our investigators at least once, which was great. Normally someone will be out of town, or just too busy to meet up with us, but things came together for us.

Helen has been doing pretty well this week. We had a lesson with her and talked a lot about the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith. She has a hard time understanding the difference between our church and other Christian denominations, so we keep coming back to that. A couple weeks ago we got her a picture Book of Mormon and made flash cards to help her review what we're teaching. We've been praying really hard that she would remember, and this week she could tell us who Joseph Smith is! That's a huge step in the right direction. She told us that he was looking for the right church. And then he prayed. And Jesus told him that none of the churches were true. Helen is a trooper though, and she's working really hard to keep everything we're teaching straight in her mind. She came to church this Sunday though and really enjoyed herself. She loves the Bishop and said that if he tells her that she can be baptized again, then she's be up for it.

This week we also were able to meet up with Helena and Jobiana. We reviewed some of the conference talks and also the Book of Mormon reading that they've been doing. Especially Jobiana's reading. She has become consumed with the Book of Mormon and told us that whenever she has a free minute that's what she does. We've been meeting together for about 2 months now, and yesterday in Sunday School she opened her Book of Mormon and pointed at Alma 50. At first I wasn't sure what she was trying to say, and suddenly it hit me. "Are you at Alma 50??" She just laughed and nodded her head. She and her daughter blow me away every time we meet with them. This Sunday Helena was confirmed in Sacrament meeting! She asked me to perform that ordinance, and I was really excited. Confirming someone is one of my favorite spiritual experiences. Saying "receive the Holy Ghost" always brings a rush of the Spirit that everyone can feel. We've set a solid date for the wedding and baptism for Jobiana. She's getting married on May 10th and then baptized on the 12th. I think Jobiana is more excited for that than she has been for anything else in her life. She cannot wait.

Janelle is continuing to progress as well. She's planning on the 21st still to get baptized! This last week I brought my conference Ensign from May of 2011 to share an article with her, and she asked afterwards if she could borrow it. She's been reading from it, and really enjoys everything that she has come across. Her goal is to tell her parents this week about the baptism. She's really nervous, but has decided that regardless of what they say she's going through with it. I really admire her for that. I have no idea what that would be like, we can only encourage her to have faith and move forward.

Well I love you all! Thanks so much for the Easter package, and I hope you all have a great week.

Elder Kade Bartschi


These are some of the other pictures of the ball game that I told you about last week (David Ortiz hit a homerun, which is that picture of him jogging towards home plate). And then the other pictures are of Helena's baptism! It went really well, and she was so excited for all of it. Jobiana cannot wait for her own now.

President's Letter

Dear Sisters and Elders,

Happy Easter! In sacrament meeting today, we sang “I Know That My Redeemer Lives”. That combined with this beautiful day got me thinking about the words in that hymn. I began to think, “What do I LIVE for? Maybe we LIVE for our family, or soccer, or golf, or our music, or to be a missionary or whatever we love that brings us joy. In the hymn, it says that He lives “to bless me with His love, He lives to plead for me above, He lives my hungry soul to feed, He lives to bless in times of need. He Lives to comfort me when faint, He lives to hear my soul’s complaint” etc. He doesn’t just DO these things- He LIVES to do them. It brought new meaning to me about how much He cares for ME and for YOU. God loves you right now, right here, exactly as you are. We must all repent and improve where necessary, but as Sister Holland has said, “God does not ‘wait’ to love us.” Easter time is a reconfirmation of His love and His Atonement which not only provides a way for us to return to Him but also enables us to DO and Be so much better.

We all want to be good and do good and we can do so much more as we plead in faith and go forward in “the strength of the Lord.” In His strength we can do so much more than we could do otherwise. We are finding more PEOPLE. They are coming to Sacrament meeting, setting dates and being baptized. In His strength you can do great things. We must strive with all of our hearts to tap into this power. Preach My Gospel testifies:

“Faith is a principle of power. God works by power, but His power is usually exercised in response to faith. Faith leads to action, including repentance, obedience, and dedicated service. .. By faith you are able to do miracles according to the Lord’s will. Your faith will be manifest through diligence and work. Through faith you receive answers to your prayers and personal inspiration to guide you in the Lord’s work… (PMG p 116)

Preach My Gospel also reminds us that “No effort is wasted.” If we want to make a difference in this world, we must be different than the world. Jesus Christ atoned for every person who ever walked the earth. He did it because the ‘worth of souls’ is great in His sight. The thing that we can do that is of most worth to Him is to bring souls to Him.

The Mormon.org Easter campaign boldly testifies that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is our Savior and our Redeemer. We proclaim His teachings and witness His divinity. Florida Tampa Missionaries also boldly with faith, power and authority proclaim and witness this truth as we FIND, TEACH, BAPTIZE AND RETAIN. We go forward with faith in the ‘strength of the Lord’. I love Him. I love you and I believe in you.

President Summerhays

April 2, 2012

Hello my family!

We have had such a wonderful week here in Ft. Myers. It was really hectic, and I was a little stressed, but everything worked out the way it was supposed to. We worked hard all week leading up to the weekend and it was well worth it. Nearly everyday we met up with Jobiana and Helena and made sure that she was completely ready for Saturday. I know she was a little nervous, especially because her Mom wouldn't be getting baptized on the same day, but she finally started looking forward to it in the end. Helena has been reading from the Book of Mormon, and even highlights her favorite scriptures from what she reads. You wouldn't believe her comprehension of it either. She's about to turn 11, and understands what she's reading better than the majority of people I've taught. Helena decided all the details and the ward was extremely supportive. By the time Saturday rolled around everything really came together. In between sessions of General Conference, Helena was baptized by Elder Smith. The Spirit was really during the service, and Helena's Dad loved it as well. She and her parents were all there during the morning session, and then after the baptism we went to their house and had lunch and watched the afternoon session. We gave her a journal that we had written our testimonies in, and encouraged her to write that day and record what she had felt. She promised that she would, and let us know yesterday that she had done it. Jobiana was so supportive, and is just using this as more encouragement for her as well. She has talked to Frans, and they will be getting married on May 9th, and then she will be baptized on May 12th. Not bad timing at all.

Another awesome experience this week, was that Elder Paget (a Haitian missionary) and I got permission to attend a Red Sox Spring training game! A member in the ward called us and let us know that his son had tickets to the game, but wouldn't be able to attend, so he was wondering if we'd be able to get out there. After a phone call to president, and deciding that we would take time out of our Pday in exchange, we were on to attend. I think we were the youngest people in the park by about 40 years, but it was a blast. I'd never seen the Red Sox play live, so that was a neat experience. It was the closest I could get to Fenway while still in SW Florida.

Janelle has been making some great progress this past week as well. She is still planning on her date for April 21, and is going to tell her parents soon. I've been a little unsure about whether she would do it or not, but she let us know this past week that she will be telling her parents within the next week. She has been attending the same church since she was little, and is worried about what her church family there will think. Janel le has a testimony though, and has come to the realization that she will have to tell them before she does it, and she doesn't want to put it off any longer. It's hard for us to really know what we can do to help except to just support her and continue to try and strengthen her testimony.

Conference was awesome! I love the Spirit that is felt over that weekend. I felt like my questions that I had were answered, and I was able to learn a lot. I did think of Britta and Bryce a lot though with all the talk on raising children and families. I love you all, and was just reminded of how much I've been blessed to have you. Elder Holland's talk was definitely one of my favorites. We watched that one at Jobiana's house, and she put her hand to her chest after it was over and said, "I love him!". It was a great weekend.

Well I love you all so much!

Have a great week,

Elder Kade Bartschi

I have a ton of pictures I need to send you. I haven't sent any in forever....sorry I haven't had my cord to do it for a while. But here they are...This series of pictures includes fishing last p-day with Brother Burton. We went fishing off of a pier of sorts that leads from Ft. Myers over to the island of Sanibel. It was beautiful. We didn't catch anyt hing, but I did snag a picture of a dolphin! Also...this past week Elder Paget, a Haitian missionary, and I got permission to go to a Red Sox Spring training game! It was so much fun. Obviously coming down to Ft. Myers was inspired if this is where they train. Haha I'll get you some more pictures of the game.

The first couple are of right when we picked up Elder Murray. After that are some pictures of a sweet graffiti wall we found in Ft. Myers. Haha we had to snag a couple of pictures there and...I got pressured into taking a serious one haha. I remembered whit trying to teach us how to do it in Arizona at the temple and started laughing really hard.







President's Letter

Dear Sisters and Elders,

Good morning! I love General Conference! The Lord speaks to us through His prophets. Those who speak to us “serve as mortal messengers with angelic messages.” Each conference He gives us direction that will improve our lives, if we act upon the counsel that pressed on our hearts and minds. The Prophets, Seers and Revelators testify that what you are now doing this day will have a profound effect upon your present and future happiness. They plead with us not to look to tomorrow as the time we will do all the things we desire to do. There will be no tomorrows to remember if we do not do something today. Please do not procrastinate acting on your desires to be excellent. Please do not put off till tomorrow your commitment to be the very best you can be. If you cannot be excellent today, if you cannot do the very best that is in you now, there is likely no excellence or best delivered tomorrow. Learning to do it now, is the great secret of time and eternity. Procrastination is the great thief of happiness and peace. President Monson prayed that we would become even better than we were when conference began. Let’s ponder on some of the truths we heard.

Wasn’t it wonderful right at the very beginning to hear President Monson declare the Standard of Truth? This is a recitation we use and that is what we are doing right now. One of the first hymns sung by the choir was “There is Sunshine in Your Soul Today”. There is sunshine in our hearts as we serve in the ‘sunshine state” with the light of Christ being the source of that sunshine. There was much said about awakening our desires and yielding to His will. All of our life’s actions are the result of our desires. Elder Scott reminded us that inspiration carefully recorded shows the Lord that we treasure it.

Elder Anderson said that ‘being His disciple in this day will be a badge of honor in the eternities.’ How blessed we are to be serving as His disciples! Bishop Edgley reminds us that we have been called to succeed.

Our prophet has asked us to ponder the truths we have heard. I am going to ponder about what Christ thinks of me. Let us listen to our Prophet’s voice and put aside mediocrity in our service. Let us be pure. Let us have faith in Christ and be exactly obedient. I feel a deep and consistent commitment to your present and future success and happiness. As you ponder conference and act on your promptings now, you will be happy. I love the privilege of serving with you. As you know, great and marvelous work happens in the Florida Tampa Mission. Thank you for relying on Him and His strength so we all see the miracles!!! Share with me what truths touched you in conference. I love you and I believe in you.

President Summerhays

PS . Thank you for your March Madness Finding Frenzy. We averaged over 130 new investigators each week. Please continue to strive forward to reach our goal of 180!!!

I can do hard things.

March 26, 2012

Hey Family!

It sounds like this last week back home could have been made into a movie. I could just imagine Mom sprinting all over the hospital trying to check up on Britta and Whitney. I'm so happy everything went well with the baby getting here. She's beautiful! I loved the pictures. You'll have to send some more.

Well things were pretty crazy this week. It has been a roller coaster as we've continued to work with Jobiana and Helena. On Tuesday we stopped by for a lesson and when we had neared the end of it Jobiana asked us what our church's stance was on people living together if they're not married. We told her a little bit about the Law of Chastity and she got a really worried look on her face. She then let us know that she and Fronce aren't married, but they've been together for 12 years. We let her know that she'd have to be married in order for her to be baptized. Jobiana looked pretty crushed and we did our best to encourage and support her. She already has such an incredibly strong testimony of the gospel, and she was determined to figure out how she'd still be able to go through with it. The next morning Jobiana called us crying, and let us know that her husband told her that he didn't want to get married. We were so disappointed and ended up going over that day and had a lesson with her, Helena, and Brother Burton went with us. We watched a talk from conference on lds.org and she told us that she wasn't going to let this get her down. Helena decided that she still wants to get baptized on the 31st between sessions of conference after some encouragement from us and her mom. We then had another lesson with her on Friday and taught about tithing. We offered to fast with Jobiana on Sunday and she agreed. She and Helena came to church and Jobiana paid fast offerings, and then we broke our fast yesterday evening. We've been praying so hard for her and just hoping that somehow it would all work out. Well this morning as we were getting ready we got a call from Jobiana. She was doing her best to contain the excitement in her voice as she exclaimed, "Fasting works! Fronce asked me to marry him!!". I almost couldn't believe it. More than anything, my testimony has continued to grow so much as we've been working with her. Her faith is so strong, and she just knows that the gospel is true. Plain and simply.

I don't have too much time to write anymore, but I love you all so much! Things are going really well here, and training has been fun. Miracles are occurring and it's amazing to be apart of it.

Have a great week!

I love you all,

Elder Kade Bartschi

March 19, 2012

Hello my family!

Things sound so busy back home right now. Babies and a broken finger sounds like a lot to deal with. I'm really excited to hear about Britta though! This whole pregnancy I keep forgetting that Britt was pregnant, but now whenever I see someone that looks like they're really close to having their baby I think of my sister. I'm praying that everything goes well with the new baby this week.

We had a pretty good week here. Jobiana and Helena (yeah, we found out this week it's spelled with an "H") are still progressing really well! This week we taught them about the Plan of Salvation, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the Word of Wisdom. I know that sounds like a lot, but Helena was on Spring Break and we were able to have three lessons with them. One of which was on Saturday night when we got to meet her husband. His name is Fronce and is from Brazil as well. He is a really nice guy and listened intently to all of the things that we had taught. We discussed the Restoration with him so that he could have an understanding of what his wife and daughter have been learning. At the end of the lesson he accepted a copy of the Book of Mormon and said that he would read and pray about it. We also asked him what he thought about Jobiana and Helena getting baptized and he just smiled and said, "If it makes them happy, it makes me happy". We also did end up moving the baptismal date to the 31st of March. Both of them will get baptized between sessions of General Conference. You would be amazed by how much they already know and understand. Every time we have a lesson they'll say something that makes me shake my head and just laugh because they're so ready to join the church.

We also had a good lesson with Janelle. She decided that she wants to find out why people don't like the church, which basically turned into her stumbling across anti-mormon literature. She brought that to our lesson and we were able to walk her through all the concerns that she had. Honestly, she is really ready to be baptized. She feels the Spirit and has a testimony, she's just worried about telling her parents. We talked to her about setting a goal date for baptism and that as long as she moves forward with faith, the Lord will prepare the way. After some discussion, she decided on April 21! Not a bad day in my opinion. She came to church this Sunday and we'll be meeting up with her again this week. Oh, and Joy got back from her trip to Italy this week. We didn't have a lesson with her, but we will this week.

Well I love you all! Have a great week and I'm really excited to hear how everything goes.

I love you!

Elder Kade Bartschi

President's Letter

Dear Sisters and Elders,

Thank you for your labors! March Madness finding!! You are really doing it.

I know that as we persist in doing all we can to find New Investigators, we will increase our capacity, inspiration and insight to increase the number of people we find whom the Lord has prepared. We must continue to make finding new investigators a passion, mindset and culture in the entire mission.

Two weeks ago we found 115 New Investigators, this week we found 158 New Investigators!!! This is a magnificent effort! You are giving it your all! We are so close to our goal. I know we can do it. Please continue to do all you can to access the enabling power of the Atonement to positively effect the people represented by the Key Indicators in your own proselyting area. I know your happiness and joy will grow as you access that power.

Miracles are happening in the mission. You are stepping up to the plate. I feel so fortunate to be working with you. I am confident we are on the right course. We just need to continue our March Madness finding emphasis for an extended period of time.

Success on our Mission and in life is contingent on doing the right things, in the right spirit and doing them long enough. Paul knew the secret when he said:

“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” (Gal 6:9)

I pray for you. I love the feeling that comes to me as I think of you in those prayers. I feel a friendship, confidence and gratitude toward you that is strong and sweet. I am confident that we are a winning team. Thank you for your humility. Thank you for your faith. Thank you for your diligence. Thank you for your love. The work is true. I believe in you.

President Summerhays

March Madness finding: KNOCK and it shall be opened unto you ::180 “If” is the key word.

March 13, 2012

Hey Family!

It sounds like you've all had a great week. Thanks for the updates on how everyone is doing.

We've had a great week here in Ft. Myers. We were able to meet up with almost all of our investigators, and that kept us running from place to place. I feel like we've been constantly sifting and changing our teaching pool since I've gotten here, and I think we're finally having the ones who are ready to accept the gospel rise to the top. As we've been teaching and finding you just keep working hard until things start to fall into place. When I look back on the people that I've taught, pretty much all of the ones that have gotten baptized just were ready and quickly made the changes that they needed to. It's all about timing.

Jobiana is one of those people that have been prepared! We stopped by there this week with the Burtons and she is still doing really well. She talked to her husband and because of how excited she was about the church, he decided that he'd meet up with us this coming Saturday. That will be a big opportunity for us to help him feel the Spirit, and hopefully present us with the opportunity to teach him as well. But for the lesson this last week, we taught again about Joseph Smith the Book of Mormon. She blew us away with how much she has been learning on her own. While we were discussing Joseph finding the plates, she said, "Didn't the angel Moroni come to him once a year for four years before he actually got to take the plates?". We just broke out in smiles after that and let her know that she had read correctly, it did take him four years. Following that we watched The Restoration with her, and about five minutes into it she told us how much she had enjoyed this movie. I was a little confused, and after asking her about how she already knew, she let us know that she had watched it online. It looks like she's about five steps ahead of us, and her daughter is on board as well. After we left last week Jobiana told us that Elena (her 10 yr old daughter) put her hand on her chest and said that she felt a warm feeling in her chest. Their date is still tentatively for the 24th of March, but it could change because the Burtons are leaving town that week, and Jobiana loves them.

This past week we also met with the Zellers. They're actually getting ready to head back up to Indiana, so that was our last lesson with them before they leave. We watched The Mountain of the Lord, a movie on the building of the Salt Lake Temple, at the request of their member son in Indiana. It went well, and Bill actually really enjoyed it. I think that whenever he sees the incredible faith of the early Saints he has a hard time denying the fact that there really is something to our church. We're praying that when they go back home that something will soften his heart. They're such good people, and I know that Sister Zellers is just waiting for it to happen.

Have a happy birthday Dad! I love you and hope that you have a great week.

I love you all!

Elder Kade Bartschi