April 28 2014 "New Location. New Companions."

Hey everyone I finally got transferred to a new area after being in the last for a year straight. For those that don't know, that is a very long time in one area for a missionary. Normally we are in an area for about 6 months which if we look at my situation now I might be here for the rest of my mission. Yes Ben I know you are very close to me but even so I can't meet up with you unless my Mission President says so. Normally he doesn't allow it because its a Church policy. Sorry :( Anyways I love my new area, sort of. It is kind of weird being in a Young Single Adult Ward with people from 18-31 years of age and working with them on missionary work. Its a switch of a mind set but I am excited about it because I only cover one area! My whole mission I have covered 2 areas with at least 250 households in each and trying to remember everyone's name. Now I have 1 area with 170 names to remember. My brain feels relieved. I have a great new companion named Elder Nathan Wainwright from Bountiful, Utah. I was near him in Glendale North and was able to work with him a lot so I am really excited to work with him now and I think I will be with him for awhile, or at least we hope we will. Another funny thing is that we have served in the same zones throughout our missions. We live in this awesome apartment with 2 other amazing missionaries named Elder Jacob Lower and Elder Ryan James. Elder Lower is a tall 6' 7'' basketball player who plans on playing college basketball after the mission in Utah somewhere. Very nice and smart person but he goes home soon. Elder James is from Missouri and just got out on the mission so we are all teaching him and helping him get on the right path for the rest of his mission. It reminds me of the days I trained.

On Sunday at church it was way different for me because we were in a room full of my peers. In the meetings the ones that were teaching the class were near my age and with similar backgrounds. Its a lot different but I think its a good think because it will help me see how well I will do with adjusting to life after the mission. I guess it will also help me show myself as not a weird person to my friends after the mission. I am different but I promise I am not weird.

So one funny thing that happened during the week was we were going to see this one lady named Destiny and when we got up to the door we saw that the door was open with a sheet over it. My companion got to the door and popped his head in front of the door way right as this 16 year old was about to exit the door. The kid jumped back yelling a few things and threatened him saying,"Boy you just bout' got yourself beat up!" It was hilarious how far the kid jumped.

We taught this guy named Kris this week and this was the first time he and I met. He said he has been trying to get through the one main concern about Christ that the church teaches before he wants to plan on baptism. The concern is that Christ was resurrected with a physical body. He believes that he has just a Spirit and that's it for eternity. This is the first time that I have heard about this as a concern. He has been shown the scriptures from the New Testament about him eating the food with his apostles after the resurrection and with the people feeling of his hands, feet, and side showing that he had a physical body but he said he just cant believe it like that. Even though someone can prove something with physical or scriptural evidence doesn't mean we automatically believe it. It must come through the Spirit to confirm it. That's a big reason as a missionary we establish with people that its not what we say that you should just believe but to pray about it and receive that confirmation of God. Isn't it amazing that prayer is such a powerful thing that truth, whatever it may be, can be found through prayer. That in any situation we are never to bad to talk with God. I was praying the other day about this dream I had and why I had that dream and why I couldn't get it out of my head. I prayed multiple times throughout the day about what the meaning of the dream was and why it is still lingering like a song that gets stuck in our mind. Each time I prayed a new thought came to mind about what I could learn from it and why it might be there and each time I prayed the truth built upon each other. Same with us when we pray and receive an answer, we shouldn't stop there. Keep praying to see if there is more for you.

I love you all and am so grateful for the many people that read my emails and respond, it means a lot to know there is someone on the other end of the phone line. God bless and may your summer be memorable!!

Love Elder Caleb Leonhardt

April 22 2014 "Transfers...."

April 22 2014
I want to apologize for not writing last week. I came to write an email and I could think of what happened that week so I decided not to write. Hope you all had a wonderful Easter!

Well I found out today that I am being transferred to a new area so we will have to see where I end up. I am a little sad that I am leaving a lot of people that I like and have gotten to know well but I am also happy to move to a new area and get to know more interesting people. Change is hard because I am also leaving an awesome apartment where we all get along and love each other a lot, it's like leaving my little family. Things will go well though.

(new address: 220 W Bell Street, Apt # 2125, Phoenix AZ 85023)

This past Wednesday we had zone interviews which happens once a quarter. This is where we each get about 5 mins with our mission president. Each time I have used my interview well and asked him lots of questions and I used this time well too. But he asked me a question that I wasn't expecting
to get while there, "What should I keep in mind for transfers?" My first thought was why are you asking me? It's all lead by you, what say do I have? But it was nice because it gave me a different
perspective on input. Whatever I could have said may or may not have changed anything but it put into my mind that he values my opinion.

Alexa Flores was baptized recently and we have been working on getting the family to prepare to go to the Temple. Since we have given them that idea we have seen a switch go off in a number of the family members. They have a desire to go there and feel the spirit. There is something amazing when you invite someone to an ordinance and to do service.

We were invited over to President Page's home, first councilor in the stake presidency, for a BBQ on Easter. The food was amazing and the conversations even better. I have looked up to President Page a lot because of all that he does in his life and still puts a focus on missionary work and family. His family is amazing and it shows why, amazing parents. We got onto the topic of raising kids and the things they did that their kids now thank them for. Later that day we went to another members home to share a message when we found out that there were a couple other families there too, actually 5. We shared an Easter message and the real meaning of Easter. At the end one of the families came up to us and gave us both a bucket full of prizes and candy for Easter. It was so kind of them!

There was a lesson we had at the Strode's home and before going in we had a game plan of what we wanted to share there and were prepared to have a lesson more focused on the member family. Right before we entered the house they said their daughter invited friends over and they were going to hears the message too. We quickly thought that the original message wasn't appropriate for that setting so we both weren't really sure what to do being blindsided. We had but a few seconds to talk to each other and get on the same page of what to share. We said 3 words to each other and that was it. Then we presided with what we had.

Lately I have had the thoughts of becoming a dad in my mind and how much I want to have kids. I also have been thinking about what kind of style of parenting in mine. We were over at a home where their kids were pretty crazy and all off the wall, literally. We tried to share the message but it was very hard to do so. I have so many great ideas of parenting that now I want to put them to the use. Most of this desire has come from the great understanding of the roles of a father and how important it is. The effects of a father last a life time and that in itself is amazing!

Love Elder Leonhardt

April 7 2014 "Witnessing"

With the General Conference of the Church which happens every 6 months
with the Prophet and the Apostles speaking to us there were a few
times that the Gilbert Arizona Temple was mentioned and the experience
that the authorities had while there. Our mission president and wife
were invited to attend in the Temple during one of the dedication
ceremonies and he related his experience to us. He talked about the
powerful spirit he could feel while being just a few feet away from
the Prophet and to know that he is chosen from God to guide us today.

We went to talk to a member of the church that I haven't met yet and
saw him outside while he was watering down his driveway...yes
concrete. As we were talking with him he asked us if we liked cars and
wanted to see something cool. He opened his garage and showed us a
2014 Corvette Stingray just bought it last month. Not to sound like I
was drooling but it was very nice, just wanted to share that with you.

Elder Mullenix and I have been working on becoming better teachers and
one thing we are doing to help is testifying after each other. As it
is shown in the Book of Mormon with Alma and Amulek while teaching the
people for the first time together they testified one after the other
going with the pattern established by The Lord of 2 witnesses. There
is such a power when one gets a testimony of a principle by 2 people
rather than the opinion of 1. It makes me think often about the need
of the bible as the Old Testament testifies that Christ will come, the
the New Testament testifies that he came and will again, the Book of
Mormon testifies of those 2 topics as well and thus we have a
testimony of 2 witnesses. Reading both the Bible and the Book of
Mormon will help us understand more of Christ's mercy and plan for us
than by any other method because they carry the same testimony.

                                                         Gilbert Arizona Temple