Drive by shooting

18 March 2013

Dear Home,

BEN IS BACK! SO I hope that you remember the man that I have written so much about previously, Ben Ledesma. We haven't seen him in over 2 months now and as we were riding by we saw him outside his house and stopped by to talk with him. He was thrown back from the last conversation that we had about being baptized and that it would take awhile for him to get there but that it was possible. He had been thinking a lot about that and said he wasn't sure about the whole baptizing thing at that time because be was still involved with the drug life. He confessed everything to us and said in the end that he has missed the feelings that he had while meeting with us and misses going to church to feel the spirit. He wants to start up again and do what he can but can't give up parts of the job because that is the only way that he is able to provide for his family. He doesn't know what to do other than that he needs more of the Spirit in his life. I am so excited to be teaching him again! I have really learned how to love that man.

Up until my meeting with Ben I had been feeling very "out of the game" with talking with people and motivation to do things because I felt that the miracles I had been seeing before weren't being made present to me anymore. I couldn't see the Hand of God in the works around me and started to get a little down. I know God is working behind the curtain but, why does the curtain have to be so thick. Can't it be a little more transparent? I have found that my focus has changed from what it was before to what it is now and that is because I am training someone and the focus isn't for me to see the miracles but for my companion to witness them so he can be fired up to do more work and to see the fire in him should be all the witness I should need. Its tough but I will work through it.

As well as the weather... People down here are telling us that this is going to be the hottest summer yet. Worst than last year, which broke records. It should be in the 100's in another week or two and thats not even the worst part. Soon it won't even get below 100 at night. They say that for about 100 days or more straight it will be over 110 during the day and over 100 at night where the heat will just radiate up from the ground. Happy days. I can't wait for the trail of my faith :)

During the winter down here I think people are much nicer. I hadn't really had any problems with anyone and I haven't had to worry about people doing anything towards us either but now things are starting to change. The heat is getting to them. I got shot at by a drive by. One of the rounds grazed me and left a pretty bad mark. Luckily all that happened with my finger was swelling, it should heal soon. What was hurt even worst that I'm not sure will heal correctly is, my spirit. The air soft hurt but the disrespect cut me even deeper. I am thinking about carrying eggs with me in self defense but then again if they break in the bag the joke would be on me so its still a thought in progress. It really isn't that bad though.

I hope All is well. Enjoy Spring break!!!

Love Elder Leonhardt

I received word that Mark Kowalke is coming down to Phoenix for spring break and the area that he would most likely be in is less than 5 miles from me. I can see the baseball fields from the edge of my area. It is kind of weird to think about contact from the outside world. Also to hear that Matt and a close Elder to me his father, which we have grown to be very good friends, are working together in the same ward on his brothers. I most likely met him before I met his son whom I am serving with now. Small world.

Joe Joe

The bird in the tree is named Joe Joe and we got to play with him at a part member families home.

letters from kids

This is a letter that Rosa Chapman's, recent convert, kids made for Elder Wardle and I before he got transfered

spiritually AND physically HUGE

11 March 2013

Dear Home,

Well I'm not dead....and neither is my companion. The first couple days were not the greatest for me as you could tell from the last email but life is now looking up. We are starting to get along better and have held one or two conversations since he got here. He is a really nice guy and likes to work hard which comes from working on a farm. So thank you Ron Bula for letting me work on your farm, I now have something to talk about with my companion. One of the topics that we got talking about last night actually was about lifting and where we want to be with it after the mission. He started lifting in 7th grade and in high school got his bench up to 310 which was a little better then my best...135. We joked with each other about it and set goals for each other and now we are going crazy with the arm lifts. I'm going to be Spiritually and Physically HUGE when I get back. I can't wait.

It rained again down here while we were working and got soaked. My shoes are still drying out and I now have athletes foot, as well as stinky feet.

We got the opportunity to teach a family of four, father and mother Travis and Jennifer and the kids Travis and Tyson. The parents aren't married and when we brought up baptism with them it was a conflicting matter because they would have to be married before they could get baptized and they weren't ready to move on with that part. The questions that Jennifer brought up were very good questions and made me think a lot about families after we had left. There are so many people in the world where the central values of a family have been distorted and crumbled at the foundation. Many people don't know what a good family looks like as well as how one would function. I can tell that this is a large targeting point of the adversary. We often times get distracted from the fundamentals that matter most in life and for a lot of us, including me, don't even know it. Such as when is the last time we sat down and talked with our Grandparents either in person or on the phone. What about contacting all our our brothers and sisters each week. I have noticed with people down here that most talk with their family members about 3 times a year and they are ok with it.

I also thought about the comment I made last week about being a father and have decided that I am training my companion so well that I am ready for fatherhood and the day I get home I am adopting myself a child. Or a dog. Which ever one can learn to get the newspaper first. Ah just kidding parenting is hard and I have to give anyone credit that can do it with a smile. The mothers and fathers of this world have a large responsibility upon them and that is to prepare the world for the third generation, through their next generation. All the problems of the world can be fixed through parenting. A lot of pressure but lots of blessing as well. Thank you parents for putting up with me :)

Love Elder Leonhardt

I'm training...not exactly what I was anticipating

March 4 2013,

Dear Home,

Yup I'm a training...not exactly what I was anticipating but with the large number of missionaries coming to the mission they really had to scrape the bottom of the barrel for trainers. It was not easy for them to extend the assignment nor was it easy for me to say yes with a smile.

The first couple days were the worst because I was so used to teaching with my old companion that I forgot that I was going to have to do both parts of teaching the lessons until my companion picks it up. I wasn't ready for that. I prayed HARD those first couple nights asking for help with the lessons that I could teach the lessons effectively and that I could teach my companion how to teach. Good thing God answers prayers! The next day we had 2 lessons that we taught and they went surprisingly well.

There are always going to be struggles that I'm going to have with training but our mission president said that being a trainer is the first glimpse you are going to see of being a parent. So, if I do a good job here it means lots of females will want to marry me because I'll know what to do right? But then again if I do bad girls won't want to be around me and I won't have to worry about the drama that comes with that, so now I have a dilemma...

My companion is from Idaho Falls, Idaho and comes from a family of 11! 6 girls and 5 boys. Oh and his name is Elder Empey. He used to wrestle, run track and CC so the first couple days of morning workouts I went on extra long runs to test his limits. It wasn't a good idea. I became more tired and had less focus on my studies as well as we were putting 20-30 miles on the bikes a day. I still think I was beating him in the mornings but the rest of the day I was so tired that I repented from my challenge.

The work has started to pick up in both wards that we cover and we are getting lots of opportunity to teach people. It is so interesting to see what kind of people have been prepared to meet Elder Empey. I have really seen a difference in those who we have been running into. We are preparing 4 people for baptism. It is very exciting to see some of our hard work begin to pay off.

We got to take part in a spiritual experience yesterday as we were out at 730 pm. We prayed with a member at his house who hasn't been able to get to church for awhile because of work and really needed a prayer at that time. He said we made his week. We asked him if there was anyone else that he knew that we could pray with and he secretly pointed us to some other members down the road. We went and prayed with them right away. They have a son who just left for a mission and needed comfort on what was going on with him and what things a mother and father could do in support for him since it was their first kids going on a mission. They were also having some family problems with a 18 yr old daughter and we were able to calm their fears with that. They then gave us 5 referrals to go pray with and that never happens. We then thought we wouldn't have time to go pray with some other members but quickly tried that they sent us to their neighbor for a pray. They were home and asked us in sincere desire for a blessing over the home and the moment the prayer was over she felt the spirit come into the home!

Love this work and Love you

Love Elder Leonhardt

New address

I now know where I live please tell everyone to mail me at 7403 North 83rd Dr Glendale Az

For the zip code could you go on to google maps and look it up. Just type in the address and it should tell you.

I am a live.

Love Elder Leonhardt

Well, it's the end.

Dear Home,

I found out at 9:44 pm Saturday night the 23rd of February that I am going to get the opportunity to ruin a missionaries mission by training him. I am most likely going to get a new 18 yr old missionary fresh and scared like I was. President Taylor was telling us that being a trainer is the most important part of a mission. The training will reflect on that missionaries entire mission and they are the future of the mission and they might train more which will set the tone for the mission and soon the whole area is effected by me. Eh nothing that important though. I am excited to learn from a new companion and to help aid in the development of a new missionary.

I have been thinking about those that I have been able to teach in my area such as Brittany Rowland and Ben. Those two stuck out to my the most because I had my most spiritual moments with them. They know that the messages that we've shared are true and that the Book of Mormon is true as well. Both have cried with tears of joy and felt the Spirits press upon their heart. They have now though decided to stop striving for the beginning of the journey starting with Baptism. They haven't come to church for over a month now and haven't been able to sit down and teach them either because they have become to busy and unreliably. They are starting to go back to the normal life with out those feeling. We are told that lots of people will have a spiritual conformation that this is true but still some will choose to disregard them. That is why agency is such a large and important part on God's Plan for us, we must choose him. We can ask, he will answer, we have to choose to listen and act on the answer given. It sometimes seems so disrespectful to God that when we ask for help or for knowledge and he answers and we don't act on it, God knows that that will happen why does he give the answer. He does so much for us. He truly is a merciful God for being so willing to help us and not expect us to follow through perfectly but that he is willing to help. How many of us are willing to help those around us and not ask or expect for something in return. Its sometimes hard to give someone something that is so precious to us and not expect for them to destroy it. Its like giving a homeless man a new home where he can have shelter and protection then him setting it on fire without taking in the warmth from the flames. Sounds terrible but that is what God has done for us. He gave Jesus Christ and the human crucified Him. Jesus Christ gave us the Atonement for us to use and save us from our sins but most of the world goes each day without using it. The work of God is not frustrating but the works of men are.

My companion and I also got the opportunity to teach the young women class in church and they didn't participate very much so I now know what its like to be a teacher. All the power to you men and women that can do that everyday and stay sane. We have begun to teach Ciera, a young lady age 14 who used to be taught awhile ago. She is the most spiritually mature person I have met so far. She reads the Bible alot and now the Book of Mormon and tells us that she prays every night to find the truth, the true church and to know if meeting with us is wasting time. She doesn't want to waste time on something that is not the truth. How many times do we step back and do the same. I definitively didn't do that when I was her age but I have begun to do it more now. Her big think which I believe is the big think with everyone is knowing what our answer is. She feels good when she prays but is looking, like most of us for a big answer. We can relate this to the story of Saul on the road to Damascus. 

Love Elder Leonhardt 

The Diverde's

I was going to take a picture of me riding it with a cowboy hat but I thought that my mom wouldn't be happy about that.

These are the Diverde's They are an old couple in one of my ward. They are the funniest and most adorable couple I know, other than my grandparents :)

Pray and an answer will come

Well actually mother this monday was presidents day so the library was closed and we couldn't email so that is why I am doing it today. Next week however we are having the P-Day on tuesday and will see if I am moving location or not, we'll see. As to your questions. Yes I got the money and letters, thank you so much. We spent the money on cheesecake and chocolate covered strawberries that a recent convert made. She makes them and sets up a stand for people to come by and buy for their sweetheart. She makes the best cheesecake I think I have ever had, not sure though because I haven't made yours in too long. I also really appreciated the jokes and stories I miss hearing jokes from the outside world.

This week I had the privilege to partake in a team baptism. Since the wards that we cover got changed we got to teach a lady named Jimi Hunt and helped her towards baptism. She had 2 or more sets that were teaching her right before she was baptized. This has been such a great step in the right direction in her life for many reasons. She used to be into alot of drugs and had many problems with that as well as she is a single mother of two girls (7,14) at home and a son somewhere else. Her struggles have taken her across the country in many directions and make it very difficult to raise her kids, to the point of braking down in need of help. Missionaries knocked on her door in a small 5 min window of her being home and sat down with her the next day. She has stopped everything she used to do and has started to rely on the Lord for strength. We have taught her kids for some time now and they love to learn and to hear more about Prophets and Apostles and Jesus Christ. We are preparing the older one for baptism and the younger one is preparing the family to live the gospel. She has a countdown on her ipod for the day that she can be baptized, not her birthday. She is so cool.

As I have been able to teach the Chapmans, the husband knowing Arabic ans has read the Koran, I have really learned alot more about other religions and the beliefs of many people. But because of the many different beliefs of people it is very hard for someone just hopping in to know which is right. There are lots of nice people out there and there are also lots of bad people, both of many different religions so looking at people wont cut it. We can then look at the material that religions read and try to know from that but then again by reading the Bible itself there has been over 20,000 Christan churchs develop in the U.S alone and most then translate there own Bible to conform to there own thought or just the way they perceive to material wont work either. That leaves us to ourselves and our thoughts alone. That is how we can know. Pray and an answer will come through our thoughts and feelings.

Love you all

Sincerely, Elder Leonhardt

sweet is the work.

CSI

Yup I found it, CSI PEORIA TV show starts soon with me as the star.

The Power of Kneeling in Prayer

Dear Home,

This week has been amazing because we had a baptism for a Lady named Rosa Chapman. She has a pretty cool story. She was taught by the missionaries about a year and a half ago and wanted to get baptized but couldn't because she wasn't married and had kids as well as expecting one more on the way. So she got put on the side till her situation was fixed and Elder Wardle and Elder Wood always tried to go back and see her but could never meet up with her. When I came Elder Wardle had stopped trying to knock on the door because he has never been able to meet with her. On an exchange with Elder Nield and I in our area I tried to knock on her door and got in to pray with a young man that was leaving soon but his father lived there and he only spoke Spanish. I gave the referral to the Spanish and later that week they went by and there was Rosa picking up her kids from being at there dads house. Met with her later that night and set a baptismal date with her and handed her back to us because she wanted her kids to be taught in English. She was then married to a military man and was being set in the right direction. Husband is interested in the Church as well and found out from his mom that he might have been baptized when he was 8 but he doesn't remember. Now she is baptized and her kids are on date and well as the husband if the records don't come. We have been waiting for over a week now for them. I love her family and am very excited to see what kind of stuff she will accomplish, God really wanted/wants her to be apart of his church.

We have another baptism lined up for next week as well for a lady named Jimmi Hunt. She is a single mother with two daughter in the home ages 15 and 7. The 7 yr old, Rosy, is the glue of that family. She is so spiritual and wants to be baptized so bad. She has a countdown on her ipod for her baptism rather than her birthday. They have gone through alot as a family and the mother struggled with alot of the things in the Word of Wisdom speaking about refraining from Coffee, Harmful drugs, Alcohol, Tea , and Tobacco (CHATT) but now that she has been able to over come alot of those problems with the help of God she and all of those around her have seen a dramatic change in her. There is less tension in the home and everyone gives her more respect and appreciation for doing so. In fact we were able to help them realize the blessing of prayer in their life. We talked about the days that they get to sit down as a family and offer a kneeling prayer together and the days that they don't and the day before they forgot to do so. They had an argument and the day after they did pray together and there was not tension in the home. When they connected the dotes they were like Oh my goodness, WOW, I never noticed that but I totally understand now. Now they are going to pray every night and every morning because they realize that the power of prayer is real and is amazing.

So my challenge to all that read this is to commit themselves to offer every night and every morning a kneeling prayer as a family. And I PROMISE YOU that things in your life WILL GO BETTER.

And now as I am writing this email we just got notice that someone that we just ate dinner with 17 hrs ago just died. We are teaching his daughter in whom he just got back after 18 yrs of searching for her from a divorce. The purposes of God will be shown forth only after the trial and effort of our faith are presented before the Lord our All Might God Matt 15: 22-28. May God bless his family and the works that he has done for them.

I leave these things with you in the name of Jesus Christ Amen.

Sincerely Elder Leonhardt

He was already baptized.

Dear Home,

 

The Chapman family continues to get more and more interesting ever time I meet with them. We were talking with him and his family the other day and he told us, hesitantly, that he talked to his mother the other day on the phone. His was telling her that they started going to church again, she asked what church, he said the LDS church, she laughed a little and didn't say why. Then he said that his wife Rosa is getting baptized on the 9th of Feb., she began to laugh even harder and he wondered what was going on. She told him that he was baptized when he has 8 but doesn't remember it. So he might be a member and never knew. So we are looking for his records. He told us that he had never heard of the LDS church until about 2 yrs ago when he was in a translator thing in Iran speaking with some Arab's and someone that he had to translate for said he was Mormon. God really wants him and his wife Rosa in the church and has been working for a long time trying to bring them to it. They exclaimed to us that they love having us come over because every time life is going hard or something goes bad we somehow end up on their doorstep. Once it was right after Rosa's Dad died and another when there was speculation on his death. Once when their car broke down and didn't know what to do, we knew a member that could fix it. They were sick and didn't have any food, we showed up and contacted the Relief Society and they brought them food. Every time we leave they say they have a good feeling in them and feel that everything seems to stop and relax for a while and go smoother. Things and going great with them.

 

Also something crazy that happened yesterday was while we were at church a lady came off the street into the church building and asked for people to pray for her. A man sat her down in one of the rooms and called for the Bishop to come help him. He came to a lady that was completely naked asking for them to pray for her. A little awkward I would say. They called the cops and they came and got her after the Bishop gave her some cloths.

 

 I  moved too so send everything to the Mission Office in Glendale please and Thank you.

 

In the picture is a letter give to my companion and I from the daughters of the Chapman family, they are around 9, 11, and 12. This is the best letter I have ever gotten from anyone down here. They're the best.

 

I will try and write my siblings more and others less. Tell them the freight train is a coming. Also a suggestion for people is something that I have really fallen in love with. They are the videos for the youth on Moromnchannel.org they are really good. Some of my favorites are by Elder Holland, which I now know where lives. Near my companions home in Midway.

 

Love you all and hope that inspiration may come from within.

 

Love from the Hardt, Elder Leonhardt

To the Mormans

Spanish Elders Elder Tanner Condie and Caleb Areve

Cowboy Baptism

Monday January 28, 2013

Hello Family

This week has been very weird and the next 4 will be very hectic. We went through transfers and neither I or my companion left but we got reassigned to a different ward. A bigger ward. We now cover an area that is about 6-7 miles long and 4-5 wide and we don't technically live in our area oh and we are on bikes. Not that I'm complaining about it but because we spend so much time riding from place to place that I feel like we don't get to do as much and talk to as many people.

We soon will have to move in with some members that live even farther from what we are doing so work will be even harder. But if there is a will there is a way and I hope I have a will.

We had a baptism this past Friday that was one of the most powerful ones I've been apart of. His name is Micheal Fellman and he's a Cowboy. It was very, interesting, to say the least when he went under the water you could feel the power of that ordinance. It was seriously like being hit by a wave. We had a couple guests there, Rosa and Brett Chapman and there kids. The Spirit that was felt in there was so strong that Rosa couldn't hold back the tears and Brett was blown away by it. They are both getting ready to be baptized on Feb 9th.

I don't have much to say today. I feel that I have written 30 letters and received 4 but I understand how that goes so soon I will just stop writing those that send me cards and have you tell them thanks for me and that I am grateful for their support. I will make a list of people to mail and so far who I think will be on it will be you (mom), Tyler Fish, Zachery Caldwell( someone from the MTC), Dad and Collette and which ever one of the siblings want to write me not email me. I've made a binder and I am trying to fill it up will letters but so far not much is getting in there. I love you mom and family and hope all is going well.

Sincerely with love Elder Leonhardt

Micheal Fellman after baptism

It rained!!!! We got soaked