07 July 2008

Morgan sent us 3 voice files this week so his letter was short. But he had a great week in teaching. He was able to travel this past week to Brno. I think it is the second largest city in the Czech Republic. While there he had great success in speaking to 3 people who spent at least 30 minutes talking with him in the big city square. They asked him to come to their home and teach them again. He gave their names and addresses to the missionaries who are serving in that city. He was only there for the day, but he was excited about that. He also tracted into a "Gangster Group" of teen agers. They go by american nicknames of: Dr. Style, Baboon, Smile and Lemon. He said they didn't seem extremely interested at first, but they gave them what they could and prayed that they would want to hear more. They set up an appt with one of the young men and have met with them a couple of times. There were 3 in the original group and now at the last appt there were 7. Isn't that awesome. I think my son and his great companion are just what these young people need. Morgan's companion is Elder Chambers. He is the Zone Leader and played drums and guitar in a band, and Morgan played drums in a band called Handlebars, so they know alot about these kinds of kids. They have developed a great relationship and seem to be just where they are needed at this time. Morgan got his package this week and 8 letters. He was so excited about the letters, so if you haven't written to him, he would love to hear from you. Missionaries LOVE letters.

I also received an email from the senior couple who is serving with 4 other missionaries in Olomouc. It was so sweet, I had to post part of their letter here:

Dear Brother and Sister Nowland,
How are you doing today? My name is Sestra Suzanne Rustova and my husband and I are serving a mission in the Czech Republic and are blessed to be here in Olomouc with your great son. He was not here in Olomouc when we first arrived in May but was transfered after the first transfers when we came. His Czech was so good that I thought he had been serving for a long time and I was shocked to find out that he came barely before we did. He has translated for us in church and he does such a good job at it. What a kind, good person he is. We have loved getting to know him. He is such a hard working missionary and does just what he is asked. He is also one who doesn't steal the limelight but is there ready. He is always the last one to eat and makes sure that everyone is taken care of. He has a lot of wisdom for one so young. Tonight I noticed the scar on his arm and he told me about it. That was some accident. He and Elder Hill taught the English class all by themself tonight and they did such a good job. I know it was pretty hard without the other Elders but they did such a great job. It was the first time we have gone to English and we thought they were great. Also, Starsi Nowland comes up with the best games for home evenings. Last week was so fun with the flour in the cup and the glasses with ping pong balls. We all had a good time. Thank you for raising such a special son. We think the Lord sent the best young missionaries to the Czech Republic. They are outstanding missionaries and you have one of the best. We love him. May the Lord Bless your family while he is serving here.
Love, Sestra and Starsi Rust