Elders Lahache and Henderson at Ward Christmas Party

 Hey everyone!

 Christmas is just around the corner, I can't believe it already! Everyone at home must be so excited to get together with the family! So first thing is I forgot my camera, but I brought my cable for it! I'm sorry! If I have time during the week I'll come and send you pictures, we're just so busy as missionaries I really don't have time to take any pictures. We're always working, we can't really afford to slow down for 2 minutes there's always so much to do. Always one more person to talk to one more door to knock one more person to call or one more record to fill out.

Burnaby really picked up in these last few weeks and we need to be organized and be on the ball all the time to make sure that everything continues to run smooth. This is all about the people and we cannot afford to let them down. That being said I've had to become much more organized which I am now, luckily I've had many good companions in the past that I've been able to learn much from and they have helped shape me into the missionary that I am today! It's important to always be doing to BEST things especially as a missionary. It's like in the talk that dad wrote there are good choices, better choices and the best choices.

 I will definitely make time to take pictures in the future, pictures that I'm in. I'm honestly lost in the work and it's crazy because I'm constantly thinking about people and what they need. It's when I'm thinking about these people early in the morning or late at night that Heavenly Father often blesses me with the inspiration that I need to help these people out. I rely so much on receiving answers from Heavenly Father, I don't know what I would do if it wasn't for the gift of the Holy Ghost as a missionary.

 We are continuing to find people who are prepared, we have been steadily finding 1-2 new investigators a week. Not many of them get past the first lesson, but it's good to always be finding new people to teach.

 Elder Henderson is a great missionary, he's from Bountiful Utah! He's super excited to be on in mission, and always carries the spirit with him when he speaks. I can feel it and I'm excited to see that spirit that he will continue to bring into lessons as we teach in unity together.

 This week is going to be great were going caroling with the Kutney family on Friday night, and we're going to be going to visit some of their friends as well as some less active members in the ward. I'm excited we went caroling last year in Delta and it was great!

 So on Christmas day, we have church, I believe from 9:30-10:30 A.M. So I think I would call after church so probably around 11:00 here so 2:00 around at home. Hopefully that works, if it doesn't just call the mission office and tell them to send me the message. We're planning on working pretty much the whole day, someone has invited us over for Christmas dinner so that will be great! But I'm excited to go out and meet some people on 

Christmas, it's going to be just another work day as a missionary.

 I have a couple of good ideas to do that will make contacting more effective on Christmas, we're going to sing a song and share with them Luke 2 or maybe the Joy to the World DVD. Then ask them if we can come back another day. I'm excited to see how it will work. I haven't received the Christmas package that is wrapped yet, but when it gets to the mission office I will go pick it up for sure!

 Thanks for the socks and jams and the scones too. I really needed those socks I only had 1 good pair of socks left!

 I am so grateful for my mission, because I feel that I am becoming the person that Heavenly Father wants me to be. I get to help so many other people too and that brings me great happiness. I don't know what I'm going to do when I'm not a missionary anymore. Luckily it's still far away so I get to focus on this work which I love.

 I'm super proud and happy for Cody and the decision that he's made to go on a mission. I know that the Lord will bless him and he will be a great missionary.

Have a great week! I love you guys I'll talk to you on Sunday!

Love
Elder Kameron Lahache

Staying In Burnaby !

Hello everyone!
 
 So I have big news, as everyone knows last week was transfers, now we all now that I wasn't expecting to be transferred. However We also know that President Tilleman is known to be unpredictable. This transfer was crazy, there were many changes in the mission the Vancouver Zone (the zone that I'm currently in was divided into two zones). Plus 20 new missionaries arrived, as a result many new areas have been opened. So just so you know, we did get a call from President Tilleman on Transfer calls night. Turns out that...... I am .......staying in Burnaby! Elder McGahan got transferred to Vancouver YSA, and I received a new companion. His name is Elder Henderson and he is from Bountiful Utah! So I've been in Burnaby since June, but all the members in the ward are happy that I'm staying here for Christmas.
 
 So this week was crazy! Thursday was transfers, so we went to Richmond and I picked up my new companion, it was the biggest transfer that we had in a really long time, almost the whole mission was there for transfer lunch! It was nice to see many of my mission friends. We got to our area later that night and Elder Henderson and I decided that we would go out and do some street contacting. 


So we were walking around and I saw this one man in the corner of my eye and he had his hood up and headphones on and at first I thought that he wouldn't be too interested to talk to him. Just as I was about to pass him by, I got this impression, you need to talk to this guy. So I stopped called him from across the street and told him that we wanted to talk with him. At first he looked at us like we were crazy, and then he said you know I'm in a hurry right, and I said no problem we can walk with you. So we started to talk with him about what he believed and how God has made an impact on his life. He just completely opened up to us, it was really cool to see, then he paused and just asked us randomly, so what's going through your mind right now I'm sure you thinking about what your going to say to me. I just turned to him and I said honestly nothing, I'm just concentrating on what you saying so I will be able to understand you! He thought that was really cool and he said that he respected us because we were doing that. Then he continued walking and showed us to his home and he said he never does that with people but he felt that he would be able to trust us. So we talked with him for a few more minutes and got his phone number and told him we would be giving him a call soon. It was cool because it helped me to me to understand the importance of listening. When we really listen to people because we love them they open up to us and the spirit can be there.

 Also on Saturday Elder Henderson and I attended our ward Christmas party, which was cool. We had over 200 people show up it was a great success, there were so many non members there so Elder Henderson and I were so busy talking with everyone we barely even had time to eat. We also had the chance to sing a song, we Elder Henderson and I sang Oh Holy Night, it was great!
 
 So I also forgot to tell you last week that in our apartment we have a legit Christmas setup, we have a legit Christmas tree, with a legit electric fireplace, legit stockings and sweet Christmas music that we play every morning! I'll have to send you a picture to show you what it looks like. I keep forgetting to, then we get to that library and I always tell myself I'll remember for next week. But I'll get it to you. Crazy to think that in less than two weeks it's going to be Christmas right?! We need to start talking about when I'm going to be calling home, should I call Doda's like I did last year? We might be able to do video calls again, not sure yet but I will tell you as we get more details.
 
 The Christmas season is really opening doors to us, and we're planning on working all day Christmas too! I figure I have the rest of my life to relax and be with family on Christmas day, but this is my last Christmas as a missionary so I want to make the best of my time!
 
Dad I read your talk it's awesome! I wish I could have been there to see it. Thank you for sending it to me though. We have such an awesome family, I tell the missionaries here all the time and everyone wants to come and meet you all when I get back. Especially this one missionary names Elder Cielo he's one of the Spanish missionaries that live with us in our apartment!
 
Hope everyone at home is enjoying the Christmas season!
 
 Love,
 Elder Kameron Lahache

MIRACLES ARE HAPPENING IN BURNABY!

Hey everyone!

 The Christmas season has officially begun! Isn't it awesome, I love seeing all the lights and everyone is happy to see each other the music is heartwarming. It's truly one of the most wonderful times of the year! 

 So first of all I have to say, and I know this e-mail won't do justice, but WHOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!

First snowfall in Burnaby and our  haggard snowman

 Thank you so much for that package that you sent me. I wasn't expecting to get anything this early. I love the ties, I've worn them both already and everyone has been complimenting them. They're really nice. Thank you also for the iPod it's funny because I was debating whether or not I was going to buy an MP3 player soon, because it's become a pain to carry all my CD's that I've acquired on my mission. I was so surprised and so shocked. Elder McGahan and I were at home we were doing our weekly planning, and we just finished and were getting ready to eat lunch when I hear the doorbell ring. So I ran to the door because I always do it's just exciting the get visitors to our house. I open the door and the first thing I see is the UPS truck, then I notice that the UPS man is standing right in front of me. He said hi does Kameron Lahache live here, it was weird because I didn't recognize my name for like half a second. But then I said yes that's me, and he told me that the package was for me. So I grabbed it but I didn't open it for another hour at least. I was wondering the whole time what it could possibly be. I thought it was the razors for my shaver or something so I was like sweet. Then I opened the package read the letter and I figured that you sent me Dad's old creative MP3 which was still sweet. But then I opened more and I was like WOW!!!!!!!! Thank you I bought a cable to connect it with the car today and we're listening to awesome Christmas music.

 Well I hope that no one is sick of me saying this, but MIRACLES ARE HAPPENING IN BURNABY! Left and right I honestly can't believe how blessed Elder McGahan and I have been in our area. So on Friday night I think it was Elder McGahan and I were out tracting on a street. We got to this one house and a lady answers the door. We start to explain to her that we're the missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. She said that she knew who we were and that surprised us because not too many people just come out and tell us that. So we asked her how she knows us and she said that she used to meet with sister missionaries. She then went on to tell us that she appreciated what we were doing but she felt that she learned enough and that she felt that she needed to learn more about the bible before she would start to investigate The Book of Mormon further. That made me sad, but we do have to respect people's free will. So we went to the next house and knocked on the door. No one answered then we felt like we should go back to that ladies house again and ask her if she knew anyone we would be able to teach. So we went back and asked her and she said that she knew of this one person only she didn't really remember where she lived. So we gave her our card with our phone number on it and we said that if she remembers to please call us. She said she would and that was it. We got back to our apartment and we noticed that we had a voice mail, so we checked it and it was the lady who we gave our card to! She said that she had some questions for us and if we had time the next day she wanted to meet us to talk. Elder McGahan and I both freaked! So we went back the next night and we got to meet up with The Lady (Shannon) and her daughter Maria. It was a great lesson, we brought Brother Poetker and he shared his testimony it was great. We'll be hopefully going back later this week.

 The first Presidency devotional was great. We got John Wuttunee to come to church and he thought it was great. He loved the devotional too, I'm so excited for the wonderful things that have been happening here. It must be the awesome Christmas spirit. 

One HUGE Shar Pei like Shawn H's Congi away mon chienne

 Oh dad I was just thinking about you eggplant parmigiana this week. I smelt something similar this week, I was just dying for it! So I look forward to having it again in the future.

 Hope everyone has a great week.

 Tell everyone at home I love them, and I miss them especially around Christmas time. I know that this work is worth it though, we are helping people have better lives by coming unto Christ.

 Love,
 Elder Kameron Lahache

Time Is Flying By

Hey everyone!
 
 Wow I can't believe how busy you all are! Christmas must be around the corner! I can't believe it's already almost December, time just is flying by and it's crazy, next thing I know we'll be talking to each other on Christmas day. I'm super excited about that I can't wait to talk to everyone!
 
 This week was great! We had zone conference and Friday and Saturday, we learned so much! We focused on the Atonement of Jesus Christ how important it is and what we need to do to have the full power of the Atonement in our lives. The spirit was really strong there and I felt my testimony grow in strength. I am so grateful for Jesus Christ and his sacrifice that he performed on our behalf, I know that if it was not for him and his Atonement we would not be able to return to live with our Heavenly Father. I am grateful that he allows me to become a better person. I am grateful that he blessed all of our lives, I know that through Jesus Christ people change their lives and come closer to Heavenly Father, I've seen it and I've felt it in my heart.
 
 So with transfers, funny you should ask because we are getting our calls next Tuesday and then if I get transferred I would leave next Thursday so that would be December 8th. I honestly don't know what to expect. I know I've been in Burnaby for over 6 months now and this is my longest area, the two Spanish Elders that live in the apartment with us think I'm going places. But usually I have a feeling that I'm going to be leaving when tansfers come around and I haven't really felt that I'm leaving yet. But President Tilleman has a reputation for being unpredictable. I know that if I would be leaving anytime soon, this transfer does make sense for me to go. So we'll see what happens, but if you thinking about mailing me a package, I would say the best bet is to go with the mission office, like last year.

 The Lord has been blessing Burnaby these past few weeks, and we have seen many miracles here, that I am truly grateful for. I know that I wouldn't be able to do this work if it wasn't for the spirit, it leads us and guides us where to go what to say even how to say things. It still requires faith though, because I honestly don't know what I'm going to say when I start talking to a person but I open my mouth say hi listen to what the person says to me and then that's where the spirit takes it.
 
This past week we met with a man named John Wutunee, he's a new investigator Elder McGahan and I were blessed with about 2 weeks ago. We met him on the street near the Royal City Center and he gave us his phone number and we gave him a call, had a meeting and explained the message of the restoration. We gave him a copy of the Book of Mormon and he said he would read it. We got a call later that week and he said after reading the Book of Mormon he felt that he wasn't ready to change religions and he asked that we come and pick up the copy of Book of Mormon which we gave to him. So when we went over we sat down and he expressed how he wants to stay loyal to the church he attends at the moment. He felt bad because he said he didn't want us to waste our time speaking with someone who isn't ready to change. We told him it was okay and that we didn't expect him to be ready to change churches, he then told us that even though he wasn't ready to change he was willing to learn. So we said great he kept his copy of the Book of Mormon and we were on our way. The spirit really helped us there, so later on this week Elder McGahan and I were driving to north Burnaby to do some street contacting, when we got a call from John. He said he would like to see us if we had time. Our appointment that we had set up fell through so we had time to go visit so we went over right away. After speaking with John for a few minutes he paused for a moment looked down at the ground then he look into our eyes and said "Guys, I want to tell you something, I've been going to the salvation Army church for a little over a year now. Even though I've been going this whole time I just don't feel like all my needs are being met there, and I noticed that you Elders left me the time and address for church on Sunday......I'll be there" After we prayed and left I was in the car with Elder McGahan and I told him how grateful I was for the spirit. I know that Heavenly Father has been working a mighty change in John's heart! He is planning on coming to church this upcoming Sunday and he is also planning on attending the Christmas devotional (he loves the Mormon Tabernacle Choir!).
 
Heavenly Father has blessed us with wonderful honest good people to teach. I am so grateful for the spirit which leads us in this work. Just thinking about all that has happened here makes me just want to start dancing and singing because I'm so happy.
 
 Hope you all have a great week
 
 Love,
 Elder Kameron Lahache

Continued Blessings!

Hey everyone!




 Well this past week has been great miracles are happening here left and right and most of the time I still can't even believe how much the Lord has blessed Elder McGahan and I here.

 
Yesterday Elder McGahan and I were out tracting. We were tracting on Charlie street which is in North Burnaby. Normally missionaries in the past haven't spent too much time in North Burnaby because it's further off than other places you can go. But these past few weeks Elder McGahan and I have been making time to go there because we both feel that it is important. We've had much success so far! We found that guy Steven I think I told you about him last week from doing street contacting around there. So we decided that we were going to go to Charlie street and we started knocking doors. For the first few houses people were not receptive to us, but we kept on working. We eventually got to this one house and it was under construction and I couldn't see any lights inside. So my initial reaction was to keep going, and I almost did! Then I got this impression no we need to knock on this door, so we did. We knocked on the door and a lady comes out to her balcony and starts talking to us, we told her that we were missionaries and that we were sharing a message about Jesus Christ that would bless her and her family. She said she really appreciated what we were doing she just didn't think that he husband would be interested in speaking with us because he was a strong believer in his faith. So we offered her a restoration pamphlet and she said she would come downstairs to get it. So she opened the door to take the pamphlet and her husband was standing at the top of the stairs, and I don't even know how it happened but we started talking to the husband and next thing you know Elder McGahan and I are inside this guys house and were speaking with this whole family! It honestly took me by surprise because we had only been tracting for less than 10 minutes and it's very rare for someone to invite us into their home when were tracting. But it was a wonderful lesson, the spirit was there and we bore powerful testimonies! Looking back now I know that it was a miracle, we have been so blessed here in Burnaby and truly the Lord has been helping us in the work. So this whole family are now all new investigators, were going to see them again Sunday afternoon. Their names are 1. Teck (The husband) 2. Candice (Wife) and 3. Francis
(Teck's mother). They are such a humble family, as we were speaking with Teck I was impressed by how well he knew the Bible, and much of his beliefs that he has now are almost identical to the doctrines of the church! We told him about modern prophets and he said that he would be willing to do research on the subject and find out if this is true, we gave them 2 copies of The Book of Mormon. I'm so excited to see where this family goes, truly they have been prepared by our Father in Heaven.
 
The weather here has been nice, it's alot colder though it been around 0 to -3 everyday and it snowed two times in the past week which is sweet!

 
 On Sunday we had Stake Conference, and there was a member from the quorum of the 70 it was wonderful to hear the message that he had. The general theme overall for the conference was missionary work and why we do it. I learned alot and I was able to feel the spirit there. Rose and Gordie were able to make it which is fantastic. We invited Rose to be baptized this week also, however she is still not ready, Elder McGahan was there because I was on exchange but he told me that she believes in everything that we teach and she feels that it is true. She just doesn't want to cause any unnecessary conflicts within her family circle. We're going to continue to meet with her as well as Gordie and Kristina. The fact that we are teaching that whole family is a miracle as well. Think about it Gordie started to investigate the church because of the Book of Mormon Broadway musical. So he starts investigating and then he gains a testimony, and he asks to be baptized and he talks to his mom about it. And now his mom is sitting down with us 2 young kids who don't even come close to having the same amount of experience that she has but she is willing to listen to what we have to say and read the Book of Mormon. I love the family so much, they're wonderful.
 
 This week we have zone conference on Friday and Saturday so I'm really excited for that. I also can't believe how quickly Christmas is coming.




This past week we've been working especially hard and I just come home at night and I want nothing more than to just collapse in my bed and sleep! It's crazy but we're being blessed here and I know that we have the spirit guiding us every step of the way. This is his work so we have to do it his way not ours and there is no other way to do missionary work. I know that The Book of Mormon is true, I know that all who pray and ask in faith believing in Christ will receive an answer from the Holy Ghost confirming to them the truthfulness of it.
 
 Have a great week!
 

 Elder Kameron Lahache

We Seen Miracles This Week!

Hey!

 So I sang in Burnaby a long time ago! That was probably back in July or August, I don't remember what I sang honestly, it was when I was companions with Elder Clarke. We sang because he was in Burnaby for 7 1/2 months and everyone knew he was going home so the chorister sister Ishidao asked if we could perform a musical number before we left! So we did
 
Elder McGahan and I feel so blessed, the Lord has blessed us with miracles this week! On Tuesday we were contacting on the street around 4 in the afternoon, while we were walking along the street we see this one lady. She looked really concerned and it seemed that there was something wrong, so I walked up to her and pretty much just asked "Is everything okay?" She told us her name was Betty and she went on to tell us how she and he daughter just got into a fight and that he daughter ran away and now she was trying to find her. So we said well we can you help you find her, and she at first was really surprised that we would even offer but she accepted and we agreed to meet on front of her house in 10-15 minutes. So we started walking down the street looking for Betty's daughter Tessa. But we didn't find her so we went back to Betty's house to see if maybe Betty had found her. But Betty wasn't there and we waited around for 5-7 minutes, and we had another appointment to get to so we had to leave. I felt really bad because we weren't able to meet up and I had no idea if Betty even found Tessa or not.
 
 So the next day we were back around the same area doing more street contacting, when Elder McGahan was talking to this person I saw someone in the corner of my eye, and I felt I should go talk to this person. I've learned that whenever the Spirit tells you to do something you do it! So I did, and when I turned around it turns out that it was Betty! I was so excited to see her and she was happy to see us and turns out that she found Tessa and that everything was alright! We got her contact information and told her that we would be calling to set up a time to come over. A few days later I called Betty, and she sounded like she was really excited about something. We talked for a few minutes and she expressed her gratitude for the wonderful help that we were, then she paused and said that she had a question. I said sure, she asked what did our church think about a book called The Book of Mormon. I told her what we thought that it was another testament of Jesus Christ. She then went on to tell me that the other night she was walking around her house and she saw a copy of the Book of Mormon next to a dumpster, and she told me that she felt like she really needed to go a pick it up and take it home! She said it was really funny because lately little things have been happening to her that are helping her remember Heavenly Father. I shared with her Alma 36: 6-7 over the phone. She thought it was great. So now we have an appointment set to go meet her on Wednesday and it's going to be awesome! I have a testimony that miracles have not ceased, but continue today and Heavenly Father watches over and cares for his children!
 
 We also met another man on the street too, his name is Steven and we talked to him for two minutes and then he looked at his watch and he said "Alright, well I have to be a this restaurant by 5:00, why don't you two boys come and meet me there and we can have a good chat". I was like OK! So we went and met Steven at the restaurant and we taught him the message of the restoration, we gave him a copy of the Book of Mormon and asked us why it was important. We explained it to him and now he wants to have us over for another visit. We've been so blessed here, I know that we have been able to be successful because of our faith and the diligent effort Elder McGahan and I put in last transfer.
 
Tell everyone at home that I love them and think of them often and in my prayers!
 
 Have a good week everyone
 
 Love,
 
 Elder Kameron Lahache

Blessed With New People To Teach

Hi everyone!
 
 I hope everyone had a fantastic week this week! I don't have much time today, so my letter is going to be a little shorter than usual.

 This week was another great wonderful week in Burnaby, we started teaching another two new investigators this week! Once again the Lord has truly blessed us as we came to him with humble hearts and faith in him. I'm so grateful that I can be used as an instrument in the Lord's hands and help make these people's lives better!

 
 We started teaching a man named Shawn, he is originally from Philadelphia and he moved here about 5-6 years ago! He's such a cool guy, another set of missionaries met him on the street last week, so we called and set up an appointment. When we went and visited him at his house the first thing that I noticed was that there was guitars everywhere! I was freaking out! I started asking him a million questions like how long he's been playing and what kind of music he plays and other stuff like that! I was so excited and it's been a really long time since I've played, but I didn't play I asked him to play and he did. So that was a fantastic introduction, then we started discussing his relationship with Heavenly Father. He was telling us that God has always been important to him in his life, and that he relied on him. He said right not that he was specifically looking for a church that he would be able to start bringing his daughter to. He said that he attended multiple churches but none of them seemed right
to him. As if that wasn't good enough he then went on to tell us that he's been wanting to read The Book of Mormon for quite some time now he just never got a hold of one. I'm super excited for Shawn he's so humble and ready for the Gospel, I'm continually amazed how as soon as people are ready for the Gospel either we are put in their path or they are put in ours, it's sweet!
 
 We also started to teach another man name Mac, he's from El Salvador and has lived here with his family for 20 years, he also is very open and his relationship with Heavenly Father is really important to him. He has two children, who he cares and loves greatly. We met him at a Starbucks and shared with him the message of the restoration, when we shared with him the Book of Mormon, he was reading different parts of it for 3-5 minutes (I don't really know how long it was). But Elder McGahan and I were able to tell that the spirit was working it's magic as he read different passages of scripture. We are planing to have another teaching appointment with him, only this time we'll be going to his home! Hopefully we'll be able to teach his whole family next visit, that would be fantastic! It's just so much better to teach a whole family rather than one person in that family, because then the family can support each other as they continue to read and pray to know that the Book of Mormon is true!
 
Speaking of families, we also got to teach Gordie, Kristina and Rose again! We talked about the first half of the plan of salvation and Rose, Gordie's mom had questions about Adam and Eve and the role that they played in God's plan, we did our best to answer all her questions, but I was grateful because I felt that we were teaching with the spirit. Especially when we started to talk about prayer with them, and how the Holy Ghost will testify to them the truthfulness of what we teach! What's even greater is that Rose came to church the next day and loved it! I'm not going to lie I was a little nervous at first because I knew this was going to be huge for Rose, we needed to make a good first impression. Turns out that she loved it, we were talking about it with Gordie later on in the day, and he was thanking us go taking care of his mom and giving her a good experience at church.
 
 We also got to see a broadcast from Anchorage Alaska on Saturday night, and Elder Jefferey R. Holland addressed us. It was a great fireside and I was able to feel the spirit confirm to me the truthfulness of his words, he talked alot about the evidence that we have that the church is true. But the most important evidence is the confirmation that we receive from the spirit. That is so true, and everyone who ever prays to know if this church is true with a sincere heart with real intent and faith in Christ will receive an answer confirming to them that it is! I know that because I've received that answer, as I asked Heavenly Father in faith.
 
 So this week is looking really good, we have some new people lined up who we'll hopefully meet with his week.
 
 It's awesome to hear how everyone is excited about their new iPhones, I see them in church and flip out, all the members here think it's funny! I haven't really heard much about how transfers work now, But I know that this is my first 6 month area, so I guess we'll have to see, it would make sense that they want to keep missionaries in one area longer. I like moving places quick though, I guess just because that's how most of my mission has been. 

alot on our missions, I know I have changed so much, but I know I'm still me which is nice. I don't now the model of my shaver I'll have to send it to you later this week.
 
 Oh and also when you go for Cody's road test would you be able to get me a copy of my driving record and send it to me so I can get my BC license, I've been driving with my Utah one since I got here, but the vehicle coordinator wants me to get a BC one now, so I must obey!
 
 Have a good week, Love you
 
 Elder Kameron Lahache

Sill In Burnaby !

 Hey everyone!

 Well I have some news for you guys as you know last week was transfers, and I had no idea what was going to happen. Well.......... Elder McGahan is still in Burnaby and.................................I'm still in Burnaby! I was actually really happy that I got to stay so I should be here now until the first week in December.

 Also to answer your question about e-mailing on Monday, yes we are supposed to e-mail on Tuesday when there's a holiday on Monday. It's really hard to find time to write though especially when our week starts and we get working. We'll have to do better and I know it's very important for you to hear from me so I'm sorry for those weeks that I haven't written.

 Who are some of the less active members that you went and visited on Thursday? Have you seen blazes family in a while, I was thinking about their family the other day. We'll have to do something to help them come back to church.

 This week has been great though, Burnaby has really changed alot this week, we found 4 new investigators this week. I know that we found each and every one of them because the spirit guided to where we needed to be. We had a meeting with Rose and Kristina, Gordie's mother and older sister. It went really well, they had so many questions with us and Elder McGahan and I were talking about how the lesson went afterwords and we both felt the spirit strongly! Kristina is really searching for God in her life, she's a little sensitive about talking about God though just because so many people have gone overboard with her about it in the past. She told us that she wants to go to church though and that she is really interested in reading the Book of Mormon, so is Rose. So it was great I'm so grateful and I know that Heavenly Father is truly softening the hearts of Gordie and his family every week.

 My testimony was also strengthened this week to know that Heavenly Father truly prepares people to receive us. People who are sincerely searching for the gospel, then when we are listening to the spirit we can be led to them. Last week Elder McGahan and I were going to visit a member that Bishop asked us to go see. So we went stop by the "address" only to find that it's an abandoned church! So we start walking back to the car and we cross paths with this man, he asks us who we are and we tell him that we're the missionaries and then he shrugs that off and begins to walk away. But then he stops in his tracts turns around and says oh well what church is that? So we told him and started talking about Heavenly Father with him, turns out that he's been searching for God and trying to feel his love in his life, but hasn't found it. So we went and we visited him Saturday night! It was amazing, he told us his experiences that he's had in his life (his> name is Brad) and we shared with Brad the message of the restoration. After we were telling him about the Holy Ghost and the role that he plays in testifying to us the truth. He said that it made sense and that he wanted to feel it and he committed himself to pray everyday and he set up the next appointment for us to come back. I thought it was pretty cool! But really what helped him be open with us were his experience that he has had. It's cool to see how Heavenly Father works in people's lives.

 So for Halloween today we have to stay in our apartment so it will be my only day that I'm not allowed to do missionary work and be out talking to people it will be weird. But we're planning on handing out candy, and giving pass along cards with the candy ha ha!

 Anyway I'll talk to you guys later have a great day! Happy HALLOWEEN!

 Love,
 Elder Kameron Lahache

Getting Ready For Transfers

 Hey everyone!

 I hope everyone has had a good week! Our was really great here in Burnaby! So this week is transfers already and it's funny that you mention how fast time is going because it honestly just feels like yesterday that Elder McGahan and I became companions and now we're already in the last week of the transfer! I don't really know what to expect this transfer, I've been in Burnaby for a while so I might be moved somewhere else, but at the same time I still feel like there is much for me to do here! So we'll see what happens
 
 We're still working really hard spending time in the neighborhoods and on the streets, talking to as many people as we can! This week we were tracting around the church and we were knocking on this one house and we saw a man walking across the street with his dog, and he seemed like a really nice guy. We waved at him and he waved back, but he was a little far so we didn't get a chance to speak with him. We knocked on the door of his house! He opened the door and he was like "You guys found me!", he invited us it was neat because we were tracting for about another hour. So within for a few minutes, we spoke to him about what we did as missionaries and he thought it was really neat. He said he didn't have time to meet with us right then because he was about to ave supper with his family but he invited us back later on in the week. He told us his name (Darcy) and told us to come back and that he was open to learning new ideas, which is awesome! I'm excited for him he seems like a great guy with an awesome family!
 
 Yesterday we were walking around going visit a less active member, who lives in Queensborough, we got to the address of where this member lives only to find that it was a run down church. So we started walking back to the car and we saw a man walking down the street, we both thought hey we should go talk to that guy! So we did at first he was hesitant to talk to us and he actually started walking away, but then he stopped and turned around and asked us what church we were from. We explained that we were the missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and that we had a message for him. He then went on to tell us how he has been trying to find answers about Heavenly Father as well as his purpose for sending us to earth. We told him our job was to help people learn these things and then to pray and ask if they're true. He thought it was great, we got his address and we're going to be visiting with him this week. It's really awesome to see the spirit work with people, to open themselves up to us so that we may help them. I'm so grateful for the spirit in missionary work. It's amazing the miracles that happen. Sometimes they are simple, but I have a strong testimony as Alma did that by small and simple things great things are brought to pass.
  
 Gordie is doing amazing, as always. He actually got to go to a tri-stake priest/laurel conference this weekend and he loved it! He said that he really enjoyed the testimony meeting because he said that many of the people that went up to bear their testimony had very similar experiences to the ones that he has had. His mom also got to drive him to the conference on Saturday morning which was on Saturday. It was also in Langley where the temple is, so she got to see it! I know that the temple has a special spirit and just being on the grounds brings us closer and helps us become more sensitive to the promptings of the spirit. We have not been able to meet with her yet, she's have a hard time finding time in her schedule to meet with us, we're working closely with Gordie and this is something that he wants
which is great. He has a strong righteous desire which I know Heavenly Father will bless him for!
 
So next week when I e-mail you I'll either still be in Burnaby or not, I'll go wherever the Lord needs me!
 
 Have a great week! Tell everyone I say hi and that I love them!
 
 Elder Kameron Lahache

My Mission Is One Of My Greatest Experiences

Hey everyone! 

I'm so sorry that we didn't get a chance to e-mail last week the library was closed! I should have told you but I forgot I'm sorry.

 I can't believe Jason is already coming home! I'm telling you I can't believe how fast time has been flying by! It's scary sometime, but it does motivate Elder McGahan and I to work extra hard! You'll have to give Jason a high five for me and a hug too, Uncle Jay and Auntie Fatima must be so excited to have someone living at their home again, well maybe. From what I read on his blogs though it sounds like Jason is really going to miss his mission, but I know he will be a blessing to the Lasalle ward, I was just thinking about that this morning actually, how it's a miracle that we have so many missionaries in our ward out on missions. Honestly a mission is one of the greatest experiences EVER!

 The Talent show sounds like it must have been so much fun! I can totally see Cody being Mr. MC too! The past few weeks I was thinking what could we do to get more people to come to the church and feel the spirit there, and I felt inspired to begin organizing a fireside, that goes over all the principles in the first lesson in Preach my Gospel. Basically how it would work is for each principle there would either be a short 2-3 minute talk done by a member or missionary, or a musical presentation and or audio visual presentation. So the principle of the Savior's Earthly Ministry we would sing the primary song; "He sent his son". Then for the restoration sing "Joseph Smith's first prayer". So now our zone has heard that Elder McGahan and I have started working on this and they wanted in on it too, so now it has escalated to a zone fireside. So basically all of Vancouver is going to be involved in it! I'm really excited for that, and I know it's going to take quite a bit of planning but, if it's done right it will be a huge success! The plan is to have it sometime after Christmas and the Holidays, so we have quite a bit of time to prepare and make sure we do this right.

 I got the dear Elder that you sent I think it was about a week ago AND I also got a million packages from you guys! WOW your so great, I was so surprised when I got them I remember you telling me that you sent me a package but I honestly wasn't expecting all that! I really do appreciate it thank you very much! The whole night I was just showing off the pictures that you sent to the other missionaries in our apartment and now everyone wants to come over to visit. I especially like those drinks that Cody sent! Tell him I said thanks ; P

Vancouver Zone Missionaries

 For the past few weeks Elder McGahan and I have been working really hard everyday looking for people who are being prepared to receive the Gospel into their lives. So we have been spending much of our time out in the streets talking to as many people as we can, as well as in the neighborhoods. It's funny because the situation that Burnaby is in right now reminds me so much of how it was in Delta, so I just feel like we know what we need to do to make this area be awesome, so that's what we're doing. We focusing our finding efforts we are finding alot ourselves and we are working with the members too. I know that as we continue to work diligently that the Lord will bless us for our efforts and this area will be an amazing place to be. Until then we will continue to work hard, I know that the Lord is teaching how to be effective finding missionaries. I know that we have to be patient, that's probably one of the most important lessons that I learned while I was in Delta, because it's not our work and the whole reason we do this is not even for our benefit. It's for our brothers and sisters, so they can experience the blessings of the gospel. Plus this is the Lord's work so we have to do things his way, and we'll be blessed in HIS time not ours. It's really taught me to have faith and rely on him, and I know that through that my own testimony has grown so much in the process.

 As far as I know Andrew still isn't coming to church much, I can him when I can to encourage him. It seems like he's going to have to make his own decision about this, I know that our prayers do make a difference, so thank you for continuing to pray for him. Our solid investigator Gordie is still amazing! It's crazy to just see how his testimony is growing every week, I'm so happy for him. It reminds me of how the sons of Mosiah felt when they went on their mission their joy was full in the salvation of their brothers and sister, and I feel the same! Right now Gordie is waiting for his parents to give their okay for him to be baptized, we're actually going to start teaching Gordie's mom and sister this week, so that's a huge step toward helping him!

 I'll talk to you guys next week! I love you guys!

 Elder Kameron Lahache

Another Great Week

 Hey!
 
 Man! Well this weekend was awesome! Conference was great the talks were uplifting and inspiring and I received direction as to how I can do better as a missionary, and I've also received direction as to how Elder McGahan and I can help our investigators.
 
 This week was a great week though, Elder McGahan and I have been working hard. It was definitely a week of finding though, which is fantastic because I love finding! It's just great being out and talking to as many people as you can.
 
 So the weather here has been raining almost everyday, but it didn't rain on Sunday which was nice, but I think I'm pretty used to it raining all the time, so it will be weird to go come home and have it rain no as often.

 The work here has really changed in the past week, we've been doing alot of personal finding because we are to finding solid new investigators! Right now our only solid investigator is Gordie! It's so weird because all of our other investigators suddenly disappeared and are not returning any calls, or they haven't been keeping commitments that they've made. If they don't keep commitments well then they can't really progress, so they're stuck. So that's why we're starting pretty much from scratch now. But Gordie is still amazing, his parents met with Bishop on Thursday and they got a tour of the church and from what bishop tells us the meeting went really well! So hopefully we'll be able to start teaching Gordie's family they are solid too and would make perfect members.
 
 However as we have been out I have been able to feel the spirit work through me! Which is always great because I know I would not be able to help these people by myself! I am so grateful for the spirit which does lead and guide us as we are obedient to the commandments, and as we keep ourselves worthy of his companionship.
 
 Elder McGahan is such a great example to me, he works so hard and is always striving to do what is right. This week we took a really big step with an investigator who has been investigating the church since 2004! We went over to visit him at his house, and he was gardening so we offered to help him, as we helped him he started to ask us questions about our mission and why we came out. We both shared our experiences and testimonies, as we did so the spirit was strong. We were able to tell he was feeling it to, I noticed it in his eyes. He invited us into his home, where we sat down with him and talked about the importance of baptism and priesthood authority. The spirit was working through Elder McGahan and I because we were explaining the doctrine so clearly and simply, and the words to explain were being given to me as I continued to speak. When we finished discussing, the man sat there, we were able to tell that he was thinking. Then finally he said "So what you two boys are telling me is that I need to be baptized again, by someone who God gave permission to perform baptism" We both nodded our heads and said yes. The next thing that he said really surprised me, he said "So I guess that the ball is in my court then, I need to pray and ask God if this is something that he wants me to do." We didn't even have to invite him to pray to know, the spirit naturally helped him understand what he needed to do! I have a strong testimony, that Heavenly Father knows us. He leads and guides us as we come to him with humble hearts, and he knows how to touch the hearts of his children.
 
 I would like add my testimony of the Book of Mormon to the many that have been shared at General Conference. I know that it is true, because I have prayed about it and because I have asked God it if is true. He has showed me that it is. I know that as we read it our desire to live righteous lives will increase. Our faith in Jesus Christ will grow, we will become more humble and we'll want to do good to others continually! It has blessed my life greatly and I know that it can bless the life of anyone who reads it.
 
 That's all I have time for this week! Thanks so much for your prayers!
 
 I love you!

The Blessing Of Fasting And Prayer

 Hi everyone!
 
 Hope everyone has had a fantastic week! I know we did here in Burnaby, although it has been pretty clear that the warm weather has left us. It had been raining for pretty much a week straight!
 
 Elder McGahan and I were incredibly blessed with guidance from our Heavenly Father as well as one of his special witnesses. On Wednesday we had a member of the first quorum of the seventy come to give a training to our mission! We were visit by Elder Richard G. Maynes and he gave a talk at last general conference about having a Christ centered home. I remember I really enjoyed his talk so I was really excited to be able to hear him speak to us! So we had to be at the meeting at 7:45 A.M.! Which I thought was a little crazy, so we got up early Wednesday morning and left home at 6:30 which is when we usually wake up! I was actually really surprised because I wasn't tired once the whole day, so it shows that Heavenly Father will help us out as we rely on him to give us strength. 


So in the conference we learned the importance of teaching people who will receive and exercise their faith by living the commitments that we as missionaries give. I learned so much, in the training Elder Maynes told us that if we wanted to find people who were sincere seekers of truth that we need to have 10 "Quality Gospel Conversations" a day. A quality gospel conversation is when we go and begin talking with someone and listen to a bit of what they tell us, as we listen to what they say we have to listen to the spirit so we can be inspired as to which gospel principle we will be able to share with that person. As we do that the spirit will be there to testify of the truths which we will share, then we ask if they would like to learn more about the gospel. We were promised by a member of the seventy that if we do that everyday then our area will be successful! 


I can testify that is true! I've seen how Burnaby is being blessed as we have been diligent in our efforts and have been working hard everyday! The important thing for us to to always have a positive attitude and to NEVER get discouraged. Discouragement is the devil's tool and we need to punch the devil in the face!
 
 So remember last week how I asked you all at home to pray for Gordie that he will receive an answer to his prayers? Well this week Elder McGahan and were praying with all our hearts to Heavenly Father asking what we should do about Gordie. When we met with him in the past we asked him how he felt as he came to church and as he read the Book of Mormon, and when he described how he felt he pretty much described the spirit. But for him he felt that wasn't an answer to his prayers. So last Monday Elder McGahan and I decided that we should pray and ask our Heavenly Father what we should do. Should we 1. Help Gordie understand that he has already received an answer to his prayers or 2. Continue to pray with him and ask for a miracle. So we asked Heavenly Father what we should do and we both felt very strongly that we should wait and let Heavenly Father do his thing. I felt that was right because I know that Heavenly Father knows what each of us must feel or understand in order to be converted to the gospel. So I fasted on Tuesday and Elder McGahan and myself fasted on Wednesday, I had complete and total trust that Heavenly Father would answer Gordie's prayers. Gordie was praying and working hard for his answer so I knew that it would only be a matter of time. So Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday all passed by and Gordie still hadn't received his answer. 


On Thursday morning just as I finished saying my opening prayer for my personal study we got a text message from Gordie that said "hey so last night after I finished talking to you guys, I read the Book of Mormon a bit, I prayed about it again. Only this time I got my answer." When I read that text message I jumped out of my seat and I started dancing around the room and I was just so happy. I was especially grateful to Heavenly Father, I was grateful to the spirit, it was just amazing! So Gordie wants to be baptized now and he has a testimony of the Book of Mormon. When we met with him on Sunday, we asked him to share his testimony, it was incredibly simple, BUT it was powerful and I was able to feel the spirit as he bore his testimony of the Book of Mormon. Since Gordie is 16 he needs permission from his parents to be baptized. Gordie talked with his mom about being baptized before, but I guess she never really took it seriously so when he went and told her that he received an answer from God and that he wanted to be baptized into the church it caught her off guard. So now we're working with her and we will probably start teaching her the lessons this week! She's going to meet with Bishop on Wednesday, I think it's good because she'll get a chance to see what Gordie has been experiencing, it's really exciting because now I can see Gordie's whole family being baptized and being solid members!
 
 So he should be getting baptized within a couple of weeks. So thank you so much for your prayers and for the continued support that you give me! I am so grateful for the chance that I have to be a missionary, because I get to witness miracles happen! However I know that the Lord works mighty miracles according to the faith of his children. My heart rejoices because  as missionaries we are bringing people the message of true happiness, that is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer and that there is a plan for all of us to receive all the wonderful blessing that out Heavenly Father has to offer us. Jesus Christ and his atoning sacrifice is central to that plan. The Book of Mormon is true! This is the Church of Jesus Christ restored to the earth, we have a modern prophet who leads and guides the church through inspiration that he receives from Jesus Christ. I love the gospel, I know if blesses us as we live it. I've never been so happy in my life! I just love being a missionary and I love my Heavenly Father.
 
 I got Ma's letter this week also so you'll have to tell her I got it and to say thank you and that I love her! I love everyone at home actually so you can just tell everybody! At least twice, but I think I would prefer thrice! 
 
 So this will be another week of working hard, but Elder McGahan and I are excited to be here working together!
 
 I Love you all thanks for you love and prayers!
 
 Elder Kameron Lahache

Week 59 Still Serving In Burnaby

Hey everyone!

 First of all I'm so sorry that I didn't get to e-mail last week, it was insane! Unfortunately Elder Soucy had to go home for personal reasons, so I was companion less for about a week and a half. I was really sad to see Elder Soucy go, but he needed to take care of some things so I respect his decision and I pray for him often. So transfers were last week and I DID NOT get transferred from Burnaby! I'm still here and I'm so happy that I get to serve the people here for another 6 weeks, we'll be giving it our all! My new companions name is Elder McGahan, and he's from Cedar City Utah, which is near St. George. He's awesome we've been together for four days now but already I find that I'm learning so much from him. He is really motivated to do missionary work and wants to give 100% all the time. That's what I like!

 The work here in Burnaby has been exploding! I don't even know what happened but all these awesome new investigators are coming out of nowhere! The Lord is truly blessing us with opportunities to teach people! This week we had 5 investigators come to sacrament meeting! That's the most I've had on my whole mission! It really helps too that members are helping us make these wonderful people feel loved and welcomed at church.

 So funny story with the family from Sri Lanka! They really nice and very humble. We had a lesson with them last week and it was the first time that we went visit them. We knock on their door and they open it and they're all excited to see us and they let us in. It was so funny because they had their living room all set up for our lesson. They had these two big comfy chairs that were right next to each other and then they had their huge couch sitting directly across from us and that's where their whole family of 6 sat while we sat in the huge comfy chairs, it was pretty funny. One thing that I'm learning from teaching them is that we have to teach them incredibly simply! Their English is good but it's not 100% yet, and they don't know many gospel terms that we use when we teach people, so we've really had to adjust the way we teach to meet their needs. They're really good though and we have a lesson with them scheduled this week and we're planning on bring a family in our ward who is actually from Sri Lanka and they live less than 5 minutes away! What's even crazier is that they already know each other! I'm not going to lie it's pretty awesome to have the Lord on out side!

 So before Elder McGahan came to be my new companion I was all alone. I pretty much had to call a companionship of missionaries every night and see if they would be able to spend the day with me in Burnaby. It's pretty funny because I had missionaries calling me up asking if I wanted to go to their area for the day or even overnight! So I kept telling everyone that I'm the missions first free agent missionary! It's crazy though last week we had 16 lessons and this week we had 14!

This week Elder McGahan and I set a goal to have 19 lessons! I have full confidence that we will be able to achieve that too, especially as we put our trust in Heavenly Father! 

 Oh and I also have to tell you and give you an update on Gordie Carley, I don't know if you remember but he was an investigator who started investigating the church because he went to Mormon.org! He's still doing amazing, he actually has a baptismal date for this Saturday, he wants to be baptized and everything the only thing that he is waiting for to be baptized is an answer to his prayers confirming to him that he needs to be baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. 

Today Elder McGahan and I will prayed really hard about what we could do to help him be baptized by Saturday. We felt the spirit incredibly strong, and we both felt that what we can best do to help Gordie is to fast. So we're going to do that tomorrow! We were also wondering if everyone at home could pray for Gordie, that he will receive an answer from the Holy Ghost that he will recognize. Confirming to him that baptism is the next step that he needs to take. I have faith that Heavenly Father will answer his prayer by Saturday! Mom's story of how she got her answer just the night before gives me alot of hope. But I know Heavenly Father hears and answers every single one of our prayers as we have righteous desires!

 So I should be sending you pictures of his baptism next week! That will be exciting I'm so happy for him, he's a great guy. I'm blessed for the chance Heavenly Father has blessed me with to work with this amazing young man! (He's 16) I couldn't find my camera this morning so I can't send pictures today, but expect some next week!

 That would really be too bad if Jason got home at 2:30 A.M. that's incredibly inconvenient. Did you get to talk to Thiago much about how he enjoyed his mission, it's weird calling him Thiago again, I'm used to calling him Elder Morais!

 Tell everyone that I love them and that I think about everyone at home quite often! I pray for you everyday and I can feel the power of your prayers especially with the success that we've been blessed with here in Burnaby!

 Have a great week I love you!

Elder Lahache