Those Who Stay....

Hi everyone,

We have had an awesome two weeks here. We have seen so many blessings and miracles. We were able to have 25 friends come to church last week and then 18 this week for stake conference. It was so cool to see them make the sacrifice to be there early in the morning.

Overall, we are doing good. We have been knocking on doors all day, and we have met some people who have been prepared to accept the gospel.

Six months ago, when I was in Fort Smith, I came to Springdale on an exchange. While I was here, I met someone named Jonuel who said he'd be interested in church. I gave him my phone number and didn't think much of it, but we stayed in contact while I was down there. When I got here, we reached out to him, and he said he'd like to come to church. He has been the last two weeks now and is preparing to be baptized in April. When hearing the story of Joseph Smith for the first time, he said, "Wow, this is maravilloso."

On Friday, we had the opportunity to go to the Bentonville Temple with one of our new converts. We planned it out so it would be the same day that one of the new converts from Fort Smith would be there too. They both came straight from work and still had paint on their arms when they walked in. At 9 p.m. on Friday night, the two newly baptized men were the last people in the font. They were able to baptize one another and share that moment. I'll never forget the joy I felt watching Henry and Evelio be there.

I love it here.

Moroni said, "And now ye see ye cannot destroy this our faith." I feel the same way. This is as good as it gets.

Love and miss you,
Elder Smythe

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