Week 98 This is the greatest work in the world!!

Well carrying Moroni was great last week but declaring the Truth of the Everlasting Gospel is a bit better!!

After 23 months a one week Elder Johnson and myself were finally united!! Elder Johnson came on a trade off to my area. He was with me and Elder Hansen in the MTC all those days ago. Well it was our time to shine and really smash the work. I was so excited and started to plan for a perfect day!! I wrote down every person we could possibly see. Well by 2:00 pm we had seen everybody and nothing great had happened.

So we started to knock doors. Now we had 3 hours to knock. We thought if we ran from door to door we could talk to more people. So we ran!! People thought we were crazy but we were full of the Spirit. People could also tell that!! We had great conversations with some great people. I have found that the Lord usually blesses us after we have put in hard work.

Well as we ran to one of the last doors we met Johannes Kaese. Oh my goodness this is the Lords work!! We could not have even accomplished what happened without divine help!! We started off pretty normal at the door. Hello how are you...Etc. He told us he knows a Mormon and I asked who. Well it turns out he knows a young man from my ward who just got back form his mission four weeks ago!! Brody Manler. Johannes spoke about what a great example Brody was and it opened it up for us to sit down and teach with him. The best was to explain the lesson we taught is by saying it was a lesson just for him. It was not very set up where we said God is our Heavenly Father...Joseph Smith is a prophet...We touched all the points but while having the purest conversation with him.

It went along the lines of we said, “If God gave you pure truth what would you do with it?" he gave a great response about acting on it. Then we asked what if you knew God gave you truth but bad things started happening and your friends made fun of you...? Would you still act on it? Boom silence for a long while. But at the end of it he said he would act on it. "Well we are here sent to you from God to say what he wants said and do what he wants done. To do the very thing He would do if He were here. To teach what He would teach. What you are holding in your hand (The Book of Mormon) is truth. God wants you to have it and act on it." I have never said anything like that before. It was 100% from God!! Johannes had the greatest insight and questions and what I would call real intent. It was amazing!! We taught with the authority and power of God and Johannes felt that. He shared with us what he has been going through. Eight weeks ago he took drugs that he has never taken before and when he woke up he told God he was going to change. Well for the last eight weeks God has been preparing him!! He has been sober for eight weeks and has wanted to reach out to God.

He said the closing prayer and it was the most sincere prayer I have ever heard!! He prayed like he has prayed a million times before. At the end of it he said, “It is funny that you showed up today. I was not even planning on being home. I was going out with mates to the Sunshine Coast but then I got a feeling that I should stay home.” We got to testify that it was God preparing him to meet with us today!! I am telling you Johannes is my favorite guy!! If we left at that moment I would have been happy. During his prayer the Spirit said invite him to be baptized!! Far out I love when the spirit speaks to you and you are bold and follow it!! He accepted the date of August 25!!

Elder Johnson and I leaped for joy!!!! We had the best day ever!! We called Brody and told him and he is so excited to help and bring his friend into the fold!! I am telling you this is Gods work!! When you are obedient and work hard he blesses you with things you can’t even think of!! 

When we spoke about him in ward council and our correlation meeting everyone one was so excited and willing to help!! We had so many other great things happen on that trade off! To much to write in here!!

The biggest thing that I want to ask of you is to pray for Johannes. Satan is going to be working really really hard on him so I ask that you pray for him!! Thank you so so much!!

This work is the greatest work to be apart of and tomorrow it is going to take a big jump. My mission is getting smart phones. We have been getting trained on how to use them in this work and how to have them be our servants rather than our master. Boy I am really really excited!! So if you see me on Facebook I am not home yet. I am being an obedient elder!!

Yesterday we had district meeting and I made a whole bunch of cardboard smart phones. I told the district that we got our phones a day early. When I said that everyone was so excited and then I pulled out the cardboard ones and everyone was so mad but started to laugh so hard!! It was so funny!!

Well I love everyone so so much!! This is the greatest work in the world!! I hope you all have a great week!!

Love, 

Elder Cahoon

Week 97 I Got to Carry Moroni

Geez it is amazing how you can have a great week and then in your eyes the worst week in the world!! I hate the feeling that I am not accomplishing anything...

Last week we got to see some great people and work heaps with the ward. This week we got to door knock for ages with no success. It is not the way to do mission work but when you have to fill up the whole day with things to do you have to do it.

Door after door, rejection after rejection. I think we had 3 people say we could come back. Ok wait there were some good people. One of them was Jaco. He is from South Africa and brought his family over for safety. He grew up Christian but has a hard time believing that God is real because of how the world is and how bad South Africa is.

Long story short he invited us back. If you never follow up you might as well never have met them. We followed up and he was home. Question after question. So we told him about the 5 lessons we teach and how they will answer all his questions in an orderly way. At the end he can make the decision for himself. He really liked that. So we taught the restoration to him. It was great and answered a lot of his questions. The Spirit was really strong and he agreed with all that was said. The only hard part will be to get him to believe in God. Because of his Christian upbringing he said the message made sense. The key will just to get him to read the Book of Mormon. He is great!! I love when people open up and talk to us about what they think and believe. It is amazing how the Light of Christ works with the Holy Ghost to testify of all the truth!

Knocking and knocking and knocking. One day you get blessed. For as we say here for every door you knock a person gets baptized in South America. haha

Despite it being a rough week we still had great things happen for us. I was just feeling a bit alone. I have been worn out. It is tough leading an area that you don’t really know. Things are getting there though.

Like I said last week we really started getting to know the members and work with them. The YSA leaders for our ward area super keen to help so we met with them and talked about our activity night. BTW we are doing it again tonight because it was so good last week. Anyway the YSA leaders (the Greens) were having a pot luck dinner with all the YSA at their house. We were invited and really got to know more of the YSA. The better part was there were heaps of less active YSA that we really hit it off with! I was ecstatic.

On Sunday we had a lot of those YSA there!! Plus some ones that come but are struggling. The even better part was we got asked to teach the YSA class on faith. Geez I really love to teach and while teaching the class I had the thought, hey maybe you should be a teacher. It was pretty fun. It was not the only teaching I was doing on Sunday. I got to give a talk and teach sharing time.

Over time on my mission I have really grown to love to talk and teach. I hated it back home and was always so scared. It has been so fun to do on my mission though.

We had transfers this last week. I got to see Elder Winter & Pugsley. They have now gone home. I looked up to them for so long. It is crazy!! While we were saying our goodbyes a member from my last ward was at the temple too. He was fixing some stuff up. His job is to keep the temple going. Well a few months ago I sent home a picture of Moroni and me. Well at transfers Moroni was getting transferred too. So Bro. Odwyer called me over and asked if I could gather a few of my mates and help him. I got all my comps still on the mission. Elder Winter, Choi, Beranibwebwe, and then Elder Top, Tenny, and Olson. We had to put on some special white gloves and then carefully pick up Moroni and put him into his shipping box!! It was the coolest thing ever!! I got to carry Moroni! It was such a unique opportunity.

I am so excited for my last transfer. Things are going strong. I am going to give it my all. It is crazy that it is coming to an end. There is so much to do. I love my mission so much!!

Have a great week. 

Love, 

Elder Cahoon

Week 96 I Am Like Abanidi

Haha I love my mission so much right now! Sorry for all the spelling mistakes in this email. The spell check is not working and I am typing fast!!

A few weeks ago when Chad Hymas visited our mission he spoke to the leaders and said, “Here is how you will "Make a Movement."” Those words really hit me and I have been trying to do that ever since.

The crazy part is I only have so long left so I am trying to do all I can to make it happen. In one of my studies this week I just loved what I found. Everywhere I go I say we are going to make a movement. We are still trying to figure out exactly how but we have the ball rolling. I found in the scriptures King Noah said "But behold, it came to pass that the king, having discovered a movement among the people, sent his servant to watch them..." I found that scripture and just loved it. How did Alma make that movement? He baptized 450 souls and people took notice. How did he do it?

It starts out way before him with Abanidi. Abanidi stood up all by himself and taught the wicked king and priest. Abanidi was different, he was not afraid to stand alone. He was doing something grand. The best part comes when Alma stands up for him. That is what made the movement. Abanidi was great but Alma was just as great to stand up. He did it different. He went and did the opposite of what every one else was doing.

That is the key for us. I am like Abanidi. (hopefully I do not get burned at the end of my mission) but I am standing up for what is right and true. Now I have to find my Alma to stand up with me. His name is Hayden. He is a 17 year old young man in the ward. We really hit it off with him. One day he took us out to lunch and that is where we yoked.

We now have him and he is eager to work with us. He texts us when he can come out to help. With one keen follower more will come. It is never easy to join a lone nut who is doing something but if there is two or even three it gets a lot easier and less risky to join and help. I hope everyone gets what I am saying.

This week we told Hayden we would be playing basketball at the chapel at 2:00 to 3:00. He was welcome to come and bring any friends. Well he brought two less active friends who we have been struggling to meet with. After a fun game with them we just talked like normal guys. We played at the chapel but it was nothing grand. That was our hour of missionary work with them. It was way better than knocking on doors for one hour.

The key is to work effectively. You can work all day to cut grass with scissors but you can also work hard all day and cut with a law mower. I am super excited for where things are going in our ward. Hadyen is now texting us saying we should go visit this friend and see this person. We are hoping tonight we get more youth and YSA involved. After institute we will be having a classic Cahoon games night with the name game and fun like that!! We will have all the YSA and Hayden is bringing his friends again.

Our Bishop and WML also told us in our correlation meeting that the key to get work done here by being in the members home. We need to visit them and get to know them. So this week would visit members and talk with them but we would also find through our own efforts door knocking. We are slowly starting to see the success come. It may take a few weeks to get it rolling but once it does it will roll forever. The next elder after me is going to love this area!!

We have a man named Kane who has autism but is very functional. He is very slow but very fun. He got baptized about 3 months ago and got called to be a ward missionary. He has been begging us to take him door knocking. The only problem is he does not function super well. We thought ok we can door knock his street with him and he will last a few minutes. Two hours later we finished three to four streets and he got two potentials. I was so shocked and it made it so so fun!!

It is crazy how great it is to really work with the members. My mission president told me in these last few week to really refine my missionary skills. Now I am not perfect, far from it. But it has been amazing to see so many missionaries go through the motion and never grow. I have struggled with it. You get caught up in other things and never reach your full potential or never fully yoke with the members. We have a great bishop who is really helping us see that!!

One funny dinner appointment we had this week was a FHE with the Davidsons. They were holding a newly wed dinner. So when we got there there were three new weds. Boy we were out of place. We could not follow any of the conversations because we were not married. It was really funny. We had a great time and had lots of laughs but just felt so out of place. It was awesome!!

I had a great week and saw so much success. Life is so great and I hope everyone has a great week.

Love,
Elder Cahoon

Week 95 Karol's Baptisim

Wow I say it week after week, "What an amazing week!!"

I want to start off by saying it is such a blessing to be on a mission. This week was a great reminder of that!!

If you remember from my last area there was a lady named Karol. She was working through some things that she needed to overcome but with the help of a good mission president and a helpful bishop, I got a call a few weeks ago from Karol. She said she has set a date and would like me to come and baptize her if possible. It was amazing!! Elder Tewes really worked with her but when some one is really ready they do things for themselves. Since the first day we met her she strives to keep what we taught her!!

As we were taking the photos you could tell that she was really really nervous. She really wanted to be there and be doing what she was about to do but she was scared. We got down into the water together and everything went smoothly. She went under and when she came out she was beaming!! We both just stood there for a good while just taking in the Spirit. She looked over at me and said I feel so much peace!! She was just smiling so big. I love baptisms because it is the perfect Spirit for the convert!! They get a strong witness that what they are doing is right. Karol recognized that and loved it!!

It was great to see Elder Tewes, Elder Biranibwebwe got transferred though. Oh well.

Chad Hymas was still here for last half of the week and taught us so much!! I was so grateful for all he shared with us. He taught about how to be powerful leaders and how to make movements that will last a life time. I really took that to heart and want to apply it for the last little bit.

From our inspiring moment with Chad our Mission President challenged us to set 44+ people of baptismal date on Saturday. We ended the day with 55. It was a really big miracle that the Lord blessed us with. President McSwain then had a big conference call that night and said some remarkable words. He said, “You may get the impression that dodgy missionaries have more baptisms. Let me tell you that their baptisms were only baptized because the Lord needed them, not because they received light and knowledge from you. You fail at the thing you were called to do. The obedient missionaries baptize converts who receive light and knowledge from you because you were fulfilling your calling.”

Those words really made an impact on me.

There is one other story I would like to share. We were with a young man who is preparing to go on a mission. We did not know what we were going to do with him for that hour. He felt impressed to call Ulania and see if she was free. Long story short she ditched her friends to meet us at MacDonalds. I testify that it was an inspired visit from the Lord!! She was so amazing. We had a great chat but it ended with her asking for a blessing and expressing desire to come back to church. She is going to institute tonight. (the teacher is real trash) (I am teaching) haha. Words cannot describe how amazing it was to visit with her. It is why I came on a mission. Tonight at institute I am sharing about becoming an instrument in the hands of God!! That is what happened while we visited her.

While we were there we didn’t know who shouted us food. It was such a surprise and we talked to everyone in the store trying to find the person to thank them.

I want to quickly testify that it is such a blessing to serve a mission. It is not a sacrifice. Everything we have, we have because of Him. It is not a sacrifice to bring his children back. I testily that He lives and it is His work!!

Love, Elder Cahoon

Week 94 I Got to Ride a Boat

Dang time is really starting to fly!! The best part about serving is when you really work hard and do all you can, that is when the time feels the best!! Yes you are tired and ready to fall asleep on the spot but when you don’t work and you are lazy you feel like crap.

We had so much this week that there was no time to feel like crap. One thing after another. I loved it!!

There were some fun highlight for me. One of them being I got to ride in a boat this week. In my ward we have hundreds of islands off the coast from us. About 4 or 5 are heavily populated. Among the people that live on the island are all the less actives that are trying to hide from us. I thought living on an island would be expensive but because you have to take a ferry to get to the main land it makes the cost of living there very cheap!!

While we were planning in the morning we had a very strong impression to go to Russell Island. It is no easy task getting there. It takes up a big chuck of our day. The ferry is about 30 minutes and we have no car so we have to walk up and down the 8 k long island. We began our journey out there and had a map with all the less actives that we wanted to visit.

We got 100 meters from where there ferry docks and a man stopped us and asked if we were Mormons. Yes we are. Can we help you? Two hours later we had made a great friend and really helped this man understand all the questions that he had. It was quiet a unique experience. We just loved it. He was asking some really deep questions not to contend with us but just to get answers. His heart was not ready to accept the gospel but he was ready to be served. That is why we are here. Not to convert everyone that we talked to but to serve everyone we meet. We knew we needed to be on that island and we thought it was to visit less actives. Little did we know we needed to be there to find him!!

We never made it to a less actives house due to time and the ferry scheduled with our next appointment but it was amazing!

One of the other great things that happened was on Sunday. We have a family of 8 that we are teaching. The oldest is 9 and she got baptized already and the rest are too young to. In August one of the boys will turn 8 and he is so excited. Mom and Dad are working on getting married first and giving up smoking. During one of your visits with them there uncle Robert sat in and said, “Can I be baptized?” They are just a family of miracles. Dani and Leigh are the parent’s name. The best part was they all came to church as a family this week. Everyone loved them. Both parents have every part of there body tattooed so they stood out like a sore thumb but everyone loved them.

The best part about the wards that I am in is their love for missionary work!! We had a young man bring his girlfriend to church for the second time in a row. We got to teach is Sunday school class while she was there! It is so amazing how much love our Heavenly Father has for us and how much he wants to bless us through others!!

We had a big training about the Smart Phones that we will be getting in 4 to 8 weeks. So I might be able to use one for a week and then go home or I might not even get to see one. It was such a cool training and is really going to hasten the work here!! The part that I just hated was I was getting all excited to think of how I can use it and implement it with my area and investigators and so on. Then I resized that I am going home soon and will not get to be a part of it. Nonetheless I have had a great mission and would not trade it for anything. I challenge you who have smart phones. Help the Lord hasten his work. I have knocked on over a million doors in two years on my mission to talk to people and you can to share the message with them and you can do the same thing in two minutes with the phone in your pocket.

I love this work!! I love the Lord!! I know that he wants his children back into his fold. Help him with it.

I have been very blessed during my mission to hear from general authorities and a lot of really amazing people. This week we had Chad Hymas come to our mission.

So far he has spoken at a fireside that we were able to attend and also spoken at our zone conference. I have heard him speak before at my high school. He flew in on a helicopter. So I have never forgotten who he was.

His story is quiet amazing and makes you want to do something! Hearing from him twice already has been such a blessing and on Friday I will get to hear from him again at our MLC. He wants to train us in public speaking and improve our training qualities. He is ranked number 8 in the world for public speaking. So it is going to be such a blessing to hear from him!!

I hope everyone has a great week!! 

Love, 

Elder Cahoon

Week 93 Australia is Having a Cold Stretch

Well things are going just great right now!! This last week was a really successful week for us. We have really been able to work with the ward. On Sunday we had the best coordination meeting I have ever been too!! The WML and bishop are so helpful and supportive.

I wish I could have served longer here. This area has so much going for it. There are so many YSA who are RM's or preparing. With all their help we are going to see a lot happen. Just yesterday I did not see my comp all day because he went with one YSA to another for splits.

One of my favorite parts about the week was going on trade off with Elder Ahn and Fauai. Since we are in a trio we can split and have one go with both of them. So it was my first trade off with both elders in their area. They white washed this transfer so we were really hoping to build up their teaching pool. Boy miracles happen everyday!!

As we knocked on doors Natalie opened up for us and we taught the POS. She has 3 kids and just loved the idea of being together forever!! I am really excited for the elders to go back and teach! We also did some following up with former investigators and again a wonderful single mum with 3 kids said she wants to come to church and have the lessons. It was so great!!

One crazy thing that is going on right now is a cold stretch. It has not been this cool in awhile. At night it drops down to 35 and during the day it ranges from 60 to 70. That may not seem to cool but when you are now used to being warm all the time it is killer. Getting up in the morning is so cold. I do some push ups then just right into a warm shower. 

It is amazing to see that hand of the Lord in his work. This week we were able to find some really great people. T is doing pretty good. She had work all week but texted us that she will have a day open and can meet then. Irene also was busy but we figured out she lives next to the elder quorum president so he is going to be a big help there. There are little tender mercies ever where we look. We just have to make sure we recognize them.

Sorry for the short email. But hope all is well. Love you!!