March 1, 2014

The 2014 re-enactment of the Saints from Nauvoo was wonderful! It was cold, but the snow was light and powdery and that was indeed a blessing.

At the beginning of the re-enactment

329 people walked the 2 miles down Parley Street and it was a beautiful sight to behold, as they carried flags from the countries of their ancestors and wore name tags of their pioneer heritage. Sister Warner and I wore the name tag of John S. Fullmer, my third great-grandfather and his wife Mary Price Fullmer. It was a very moving and touching moment for us to be just a small part of this wonderful day and to feel of the spirits of those Saints that went before us and paved the way for generations to come. The Mississippi river was frozen solid all the way across to Iowa and it was measured to be an average of 26" deep with ice. We could have easily walked across and we would not have to be concerned with falling into the river. We have had the coldest winter since 1980 and more snow is expected this week. We hope that spring will soon be here:)

Nauvoo District standing on the Mississippi some 50 yards from the shore

This past week, Sister Warner and I spoke in Zone Conferences in Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Iowa City and Nauvoo. It was a wonderful opportunity to meet and be around the missionaries of the Iowa Des Monies Mission. We spoke 45 minutes on the subject of going into members homes and teaching them how to Find, Fellowship and Testify. The missionaries embraced the importance of this program and for the need to get the members involved in missionary work. Soon there will be nearly 100,000 missionaries in the field and their success depends on the members become really good Finders, Fellow shippers and Testifiers (FFT'S). We hope that you are doing your part in becoming FFT's!! 1 OUT OF 1000 investigators join the church as a result of tracting. There is a better way!! Your full time missionaries can teach you how easy it is to become FFT's in a very real way. It is easy and it helps to eliminate that fear and rejection that members often experience as they invite non-member friends to hear more about the gospel. Invite your missionaries over for a Family Home Evening and let them share with you this wonderful program. We have taught about 15 families in our Ward and it is already beginning to bring about referrals. Contrary to popular belief, there are people in Nauvoo that DO want to know about the gospel and they have a desire to know the truth. Hearts are softened when we re-act to the promptings we receive and share our beliefs with others.  

We remain busy as we are currently teaching four investigators. We think two of them will be baptized in March and we are working toward that end. Two are of greatest obstacles remain people living together, and Word of Wisdom issues. We hope to overcome these obstacles with our two of our investigators. We are also teaching the follow up discussions to our recent converts, providing FFT training to Ward members and working with the less-active.

The current count on missionaries is 83,000 in the field, 12,000 that have received their calls, 5000 that are awaiting calls or are working on their mission papers, plus a couple of thousand Sr. couples. These 100,000+ missionaries cannot do the Lord's work alone, they need YOUR help!!  Please reach out to your neighbors and friends and invite them into your homes. I promise you that they will feel of the spirit and want to know more! Be the best FFT that you can be!!

Stand Strong and Be Bold!!

We love you,

Elder and Sister Warner