Friends and Family,
Here is the latest letter from Elder Troy. He has an I-pad now and a bluetooth keyboard too, so his e-mails may be longer and more frequent. Not sure why we don't have more pictures. I’ll have to get on him about sending those! He doesn’t know where he’ll be in Houston in the near future because of transfers. That’s next week and they are also moving. So for now, if you have anything to send him it should be sent to the mission home. The address is:
16623 Hafer Rd.
Houston, TX, 77090-4401
As always, thank you for your continued love and support of our son. We appreciate you so much!
JD & Terri Troy
Sometimes God is manifest in a burning bush, and sometimes in a pillar of fire. But more often, he is in a dropped cell phone and a busy morning.
"The very details of our lives are of interest to God. He cares about all of it” - Elder D Todd Christofferson
Love,
——————————————————
Hello all!
This week had some tender mercies that were particularly poignant, and I’m so excited to share. They were both with less active members, which have been a real focus of ours lately, since it has been such a struggle finding people to teach who will keep their commitments. Everyone and anyone will profess a love for the savior on their doorstep, but very few will choose to live the way he asked them to. (John 14:15)
The first miracle was with an older man, an immigrant from Kenya. He has a great testimony, but some of the racism which (rancidity) flavors the culture here drove him and his family away from the Church. We tried to visit him on Thursday, but he wasn’t home. So we went down the street to another less active family and played basketball for half an hour with their teenage son before our curfew ran out. We headed back to the apartment and were at the complex gates before Elder Vickers realized he had lost the phone, costing us a half hour round trip. We went back to the basketball court to search for it to no avail. When we went to check the Kenyan family’s house, the phone was laying on their front lawn. I took it as a sign and we went and tried their house again. I’m glad I listened to the Spirit, because he answered the door and said he was glad to see us, and that just that day he had mentioned to his wife that he hadn't seen us in a while, and wondered whether we had forgotten about him. After we explained how we ended up at his door, he responded; "God is good, all of the time."
The second tender mercy was with a young mother. She has two elementary school-aged kids of her own, and two more live in her house. Her husband is a veteran with PTSD, and her kids are very difficult. Her brother-in-law lives with them as well. We were going to stop by in the morning, and I even started driving over to them, but Elder Vickers reminded me of how little time we had that morning. We changed plans and came back to them that evening. When she opened the door she had tear streaks down her face. A family member with depression was putting herself in danger, and this young mother was at the end of her rope. She tearfully explained that she had just gotten off the phone when we knocked. We shared a few comforting scriptures with her to help the message of her Father’s love for her sink in. She expressed thanks and Elder Vickers pointed out that the thanks are owed to our Father in Heaven, not the missionaries. (Matt 19:17)
The first miracle was with an older man, an immigrant from Kenya. He has a great testimony, but some of the racism which (rancidity) flavors the culture here drove him and his family away from the Church. We tried to visit him on Thursday, but he wasn’t home. So we went down the street to another less active family and played basketball for half an hour with their teenage son before our curfew ran out. We headed back to the apartment and were at the complex gates before Elder Vickers realized he had lost the phone, costing us a half hour round trip. We went back to the basketball court to search for it to no avail. When we went to check the Kenyan family’s house, the phone was laying on their front lawn. I took it as a sign and we went and tried their house again. I’m glad I listened to the Spirit, because he answered the door and said he was glad to see us, and that just that day he had mentioned to his wife that he hadn't seen us in a while, and wondered whether we had forgotten about him. After we explained how we ended up at his door, he responded; "God is good, all of the time."
The second tender mercy was with a young mother. She has two elementary school-aged kids of her own, and two more live in her house. Her husband is a veteran with PTSD, and her kids are very difficult. Her brother-in-law lives with them as well. We were going to stop by in the morning, and I even started driving over to them, but Elder Vickers reminded me of how little time we had that morning. We changed plans and came back to them that evening. When she opened the door she had tear streaks down her face. A family member with depression was putting herself in danger, and this young mother was at the end of her rope. She tearfully explained that she had just gotten off the phone when we knocked. We shared a few comforting scriptures with her to help the message of her Father’s love for her sink in. She expressed thanks and Elder Vickers pointed out that the thanks are owed to our Father in Heaven, not the missionaries. (Matt 19:17)
Sometimes God is manifest in a burning bush, and sometimes in a pillar of fire. But more often, he is in a dropped cell phone and a busy morning.
"The very details of our lives are of interest to God. He cares about all of it” - Elder D Todd Christofferson
Love,
Elder Derek Troy
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| Goofing around at zone conference. Not sure what Elder Troy is contemplating... |
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| The Woodlands Zone. Elder Troy is far right in back. |
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