Please Join Us!

Please click the Image above and print out the directions.

February 6, 2012: Austin's FINAL email before returning home!

Hello!

Thanks for your excited emails haha. I loved them! This week was soooo good! Monday night we went to the Wilson's house to have a FHE/scripture study with them and their niece Alex was there. She sat in with us and we ended up teaching her about the restoration of the gospel. We invited her to be baptized and she accepted a date for February 25th! She's really cool.

Tuesday we met with Sister Old and found out that she had smoked since Sunday. We had a really really Spirit-driven, long talk with her and she committed to stop for good. FOR GOOOOOD! All week we were praying day and night for her. Praying SO hard. And Saturday came along...and she got baptized!!! It was a miracle. It was the best baptism service of my entire mission. Short, straight to the point, and super spiritual. As we were in the font I was just burning inside. The best burning ever! I raised my arm to the square and said the prayer slowly. The Holy Ghost was right there with us. Very strong. I opened my eyes after saying "amen" and Sister Old had tears in her eyes. Then she went under and came back up a new person. All of her past mistakes...gone. It was the greatest way to spend my last Saturday in Florida.

Then Sunday was the best Sunday ever too! Sister Old got confirmed. I bore my testimony and was filled with the Spirit. And one of our investigators, Lene, who has been investigating the church for like 50 years got up and bore her testimony saying that she felt a strong peace that she had never felt before and that she knew the Book of Mormon was true! Coolest thing. Then I got to say by to everyone that I have grown to love in the Winter Garden ward.

It's so weird that I'm coming home in two days. I can't believe it. I am really excited to see you Mom and Dad. So stoked!!!!!! And all my other family and friends. It will be a sweet experience for me. So tomorrow I'll drive down to the mission home to be with President and Sister Hall, the Assistants, and all the departing missionaries. We will eat lunch, have a little "goodbye" meeting, go to the Temple to do a session, eat dinner, have a testimony meeting, then go to sleep. And then I'll see you the next day. Be prepared for a bear hug! I love you both so much. See you soon :)

--
Elder Austin Gable Engemann

January 30, 2012

Hello!

 

Thanks for the inspiring words! And thanks for the birthday package! Those cookies were so cool haha. I loved it. And they taste really good.

 

This week was awesome! We set three new baptism dates with people for the 25th of February. Timothy, Frances, and Terrance. And we also had one new investigator, Robin, come to church. It was a great week. I'm looking forward to the miracles that will happen this last week in the mission field. Crazy it's coming to a close.

 

Sister Old quit smoking once and for all yesterday! Please keep praying for her because she needs it this week before her baptism on Saturday. Ask that she will be given the strength and will power that she needs. Ask for angels to minister to her. We are praying so hard that she will be able to do it! She asked me to baptize her, which I am very honored to do so.

 

I've been thinking a lot about the things that I have learned on the mission recently. There are so many things I don't want to forget. Going back out into the world is going to be a big change. It will be harder to leave the mission than it was to leave home. I have pretty mixed and tender feelings about leaving. My heart is here in Florida. My main motive for coming home is seeing the both of you though :) haha. I have become a missionary. I still have soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much more to learn and become in this life but the mission has set a pretty solid foundation for all that is going to come. I don't even know what to say right now haha. I'm starting to tear up so I will probably get off the computer now hahaha. I'm just filled to the brim with a thankful heart right now. And when I see those that I love next week, it will be overflowing.

 

I love you! Have a great week family!

--
Elder Austin Gable Engemann

Photos, January 30, 2012

 My birthday party at district meeting

Elder Dupaix, Brother Dennis Herald, Elders Bingham, Dawson, Me

January 23, 2012

Hello Mother and Father! 

Your emails were great this week! Thank you for the birthday wishes! Your comments were really touching :) And that letter for the scouting board...thanks Mom. I'm really thankful you sent that to me. I love you both a ton!

So this week was pretty good. Just trying to make these last few weeks wonderfully memorable.

So Elder Mullen is next to me right now and he wanted me to tell you "Hi." hahaha. Now he says I can tell you that "I love them" and "I send my best wishes" and Elder Bingham says "Thanks for giving birth to Elder Engemann 21 years ago." Elder Grimm says "Thanks for having such good genes to make Elder Engemann cute." Hahaha these guys are funny.

Sister Old is doing great. She is working towards February 4th to be baptized. Please pray that she will be given strength to overcome her habits so she can live the word of wisdom. We are still trying to find more people to teach. We taught this really cool family of 5 this week and also a lady that is interested in family history.

On Saturday we had a stake zone conference with the leadership of the wards in the stake and all the missionaries in the stake. It was really really good. President Hall, the stake President and others spoke about how missionary work is centered in the ward and also how the wards and missionaries could work together in more unity. The only problem was that no one in our bishopric was able to make it. That was a huge bummer because it would have been perfect for them. But our ward mission leader was able to be there, thankfully.

Then later that day there was a stake baptism for all those who were being baptized that day. Four people got baptized. One guy named Geoff that the other Elders in the ward have been working with got baptized. Sister Old was able to make it and she loved it! We introduced her to President Hall after it was over and he explained to her how she was my "tender mercy" before I went home and how the Lord does that to missionaries who have been faithful. Sister Old started to cry. I almost cried too haha. I love President Hall. He's one of my best friends. I look up to him a lot.

So yesterday at church we had two people that are friends with the Kirkland family in the ward. We are going to try to teach them sometime soon. They seemed to like church. Then we are also starting to work with this lady that got her name removed from the church years ago. She did it because her husband wasn't too friendly towards the church. Hopefully now is the time that she will come back.

Anyway, thanks for everything! I love you! Have a great week!

-- Elder Austin Gable Engemann

January 16, 2012

MOM and DAD!!!

I love you. I hope you had a great week. Our week was pretty good.

I went to a Leadership Training on Wednesday and Thursday of last week. It was the best one I've ever been too. The main focusof the training was on this quote from President Boyd K. Packer: "True doctrine, understood, changes attitudes and behaviors." It was such a good conference. Best one of my whole mission. And I got to see a lot of my friends for the last time that came from all over the mission.

 Other than that, we have just been trying to meet with the members of the ward more. The members in the Winter Garden ward are great. I've been blessed to serve in some great wards in Florida. Elder Dawson is
doing good. He's so funny. I love him.

Last Monday Elders Dawson, Bingham, Dupaix, and I went to a bee keeper's bee place. I don't know
what they are called haha. But Brother Allison in our ward is a bee keeper. It was so cool. I'll attach some pictures. SO MANY bees.

Things are going great though. Thank you for your love and prayers. I love you a ton. Have a great week!

--
Elder Austin Gable Engemann

Photos, January 16, 2012

Cool bee suit 

  

Partying with the beeeees

 The bee pad

 Getting up close and personal :)

 

Buena Vista Reunion