Zone Conferences 10-18,19,20- 2016

We love zone conference, being with every one of the missionaries in our mission is the very best!  We love learning and growing together!  We talked about the Joy of Learning, Faith based goals, Amulek, Teaching with the Spirit, and Missionary Purpose and Character.  We left the meeting energized and ready to teach, preach and live the Gospel.

It is a great day to be a missionary!

SOUTH ZONES

Hanford, Visalia, Porterville

BACK ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT:  Elders Sparks, McGraw, Fernandez, Rust, Wright, Stojka, Mapp, Wilson, Toombs, Blume, Frei, Davis, White, Ekpo, Perez, Fischer, Lopez
3rd ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT: Elders Collins, Matienzo, Keeley, Wilmoth, Call, Flores, Nelson, Baconawa, Wright, Merrill, Muir, Walker, Tongish, Quinn, Davis, Mountford
2nd ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT: Elders Lamoreau, Atkinson, Kloepfer, Anderson, Morrison, Milburn, Biggs, Nelson, Strommen, Maas, Dean, Arebalo, Van Vleet, Vargas, Bingham, Bishop, Derbidge, Speer, Olsen
FRONT ROW, STANDING: President Denison (Visalia Stake), Sisters Kokol, Tompkins, Jones; SITTING: Sisters Gibby, Windham, Wright, Johnson, Anderson, Elwell, Elder and Sister Hammond, President and Sister Clark, Elder and Sister Gressel, Elder and Sister Levie; STANDING: Sisters Whitney, Jefferies, Blocker 

NORTH ZONES

Merced, Fresno West

BACK ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT:  Elders Taylor, Perkins, Kauai, Ordonez, Valenzuela, Morales, Rearte, Richardson, Cummings, Witt, White, Herman, Ikimau, Corless, LaMay, Rogers, Ford
MIDDLE ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT: Elders Speer, Larson, Nielsen, Burke, Flores, Bennett, Hopkins, Mederos, Watson, Gibson, Schmid, Talbot, Jones, Edwards, Woodmansee, Vastbinder, Belmont, Estrada, Olsen
FRONT ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT: Sisters Wadham, Balls, Plummer, Baldwin, Elder and Sister Richards, President and Sister Clark, Sisters Maxwell, Jeppesen, Troseth, Aboussou

DEPARTING MISSIONARIES

Elder Bennett and Elder Vastbinder

FRESNO ZONES

Fresno, Fresno North, Fresno East

BACK ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT:  Elders Del Carmen, Lee, Allen, Mendez, Bagley, Schaff, Smith, Park, Smith, Stegelmeier, Thornton, Garner, Nesom, Vawdrey, Sullivan, King, Gray, Draney, Halliday, Poulsen
MIDDLE ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT: Elders Lillywhite, Warren, Austin, Johnson, Pettit, Hibbert, Watts, Noffal, Agazzani, Kennick, Rushton, Knapton, Carnahan, Smith, Gollner, Paukovic
FRONT ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT: Sisters Willmore, Malpica, Bermudez, Gough, Miller, Dowdle, Rendon, Padilla, Elder and Sister Beutler, President and Sister Clark, Elder Speer, Sister Winter, Sisters Tyler, Bangerter, White, Frazier, Aguilar, Jordan, Larsen, Murray

DEPARTING MISSIONARIES

Elder Draney, Elder Speer, Elder Knapton

Trainer/Trainee & District Leader Trainings

It was wonderful to have so many missionaries at the office for training!  We were inspired and enlighted by their spirits and are continually amazed at their strength & depth in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  We are truly blessed to know all of these great missionaries!

Trainers & Trainees

Back Row:  Left to Right: Elders Warren, Ordonez, Morrison, Blume, Lillywhite, Hopkins, Vawdrey, Mederos, Rogers, LaMay, Rearte, Jones
3rd Row: Left to Right: Elder Speer, Sisters Larsen, Jordan, Tompkins, Elders Kauai, White, Stegelmeier, Schaff, Sisters Whitney, Jefferies, Blocker, Elder Olsen
2nd Row: Left to Right: Sisters Miller, Dowdle, Balls, Gough, Bermudez, Wadham, Elwell, Anderson, Jones, Kokol
Front Row: Left to Right: Elders Davis, Lopez, Derbidge, Edwards, Anderson, Mendez,
Perez, Fischer

 District Leaders

Back Row; Left to Right: Elders Speer, Hibbert, McGraw, Call, Morrison, Mapp, Muir, Quinn, Collins, Smith, 

Morales, Olsen

Front Row; Left to Right: Elders Del Carmen, Lee, Gray, Hopkins, President & Sister Clark, Elders Kennick, Rearte, Ordoñez, Keeley

President's Weekly - Do Whte Is Required To Accomplish What Is Desired!

Do What Is Required To Accomplish What Is Desired!

Dear Elders and Sisters:

A young man asked Socrates the secret to success. Socrates told the young man to meet him near the river the next morning .They met. Socrates asked the young man to walk with him toward the river. When the water got up to their neck, Socrates took the young man by surprise and ducked him into the water. The boy struggled to get out but Socrates was strong and kept him there until the boy started turning blue.

When Socrates pulled his head out of the water the first thing the young man did was to gasp and take a deep breath of air. Socrates asked: " What did you want the most when you were there?" The boy replied: "Air." Socrates said: "That is the secret to success. When you want success as badly as you wanted the air, then you will get it. There is no other secret."

When Nephi responded to his Prophet/Father: "I will go and do the things which the Lord has commanded..." he was demonstrating his resolve to do whatever it took to "accomplish" the Lord's will, desires, and commandments.  And it is clearly demonstrated in this account of Nephi and his brothers that oft times what is required to accomplish the Lord's will often, if not always, requires significant effort and may be very, very difficult. 

Is living your Missionary Purpose the thing you want the most...like air to the boy in the Socrates story?  Is the way you conduct yourself every hour of every day aligned with the mark of a successful Missionary: "Your success as a Missionary will be measured primarily by your DESIRE to find, teach, baptize and confirm people and to help them become faithful members of the Church who enjoy the presence of the Holy Ghost."

Our Zone Goals combined throughout the mission is 70 baptisms this month.  This will only come to pass if YOU desire it more than anything and then "go and do" so that the Lord can bless you to "accomplish" this thing!!  If your faith is lacking, please lean on mine and then go to work and give God a reason to bless you.  I know, I absolutely know that we can accomplish these goals and bear my witness that as we "do" what is required we will "accomplish" what is desired.

Sister Clark and I love you and are honored to be serving with you here and now!

President Clark

Incoming Missionaries 9-2016

Finally, a large transfer!  We have been waiting for a meaningful net increase of missionaries and here it is!  It's so nice to have such a large group in.  Three Missionaries returned home and in exchange we received 20 new Missionaries.  And they are great!  Immediately below there are pictures with their trainers and the rest of the pictures simply show how much fun it is to begin a Mission in the California Fresno Mission!  President and Sister Clark are feeling so blessed to have them and we know they will be a great blessing to this mission.  

Back Row, Left to Right: Elders Olsen, Meteors, Hopkins, Blume, Tawdry, Rearte, Ordonez, Bagley, Morrison, Kauai, Speer 

3rd Row, Left to Right: Sisters Blocker, Jordan, Larsen, Tompkins, Elders Lillywhite, White, Stegelmeier, Schaff, Sisters Whitney, Jeffries, Jones, Kokol

2nd Row, Left to Right: Sisters Wadham, Balls, Gough, Bermudez, Anderson Ewell, 

Dowdle, Miller

Front Row, Left to Right: Elders Warren, Edwards, Davis, Derbidge, Lopez, Perez, Fischer, Anderson, Mendez, LaMay, Jones

Left to Right:  Sisters Elwell & Anderson, Sisters Wadam & Balls

Top Row, Left to Right: Elders Bagley & LaMay, Elders Mendez & Schaff
Middle Row, Left to Right: Elders Vawdrey & Stegelmeier, Elders Lillywhite & Warren
Bottom Row, Left to Right: Elders Meteros & White, Elders Hopkins & Edwards

Top Row, Left to Right: Elders Lopez & Derbidge, Elders Perez & Fischer
Middle Row, Left to Right: Elders Rearte & Jones, Elders Ordonez & Kauai
Bottom Row, Left to Right: Elders Perez & Fischer, Elders Blume & Davis

Top Row, Left to Right: Sisters Jones & Kokol, Elders Morrison & Anderson
Middle Row, Left to Right: Sisters Blocker & Tompkins, Sisters Jefferies & Whitney
Bottom Row, Left to Right: Sisters Dowdle & Miller, Sisters Bermudez & Gough

Fresno Yosemite Airport

President's Weekly - A General Conference Pattern

A General Conference Pattern

Dear Elders and Sisters:

It was truly a spiritually uplifting weekend to sit at the feet of Apostles and Prophets and hear the "pleasing word of God".  From King Benjamin to now, the Lord has blessed His Saints with the marvelous blessing of conferences.  Even in King Benjamin's time they "caused that the words he spake should be written and sent forth....that [all] might receive his words."  Today the Prophets "cause" the same and even as early as this morning you can find General Conference talks on the internet.  In a few weeks you will receive your personal copy of the Ensign with these talks in order to have the "pleasing word of God" with you "always". 

I encourage you to set a General Conference pattern for your life.  I know there are talks that are really resonating with you spiritually from yesterday.  Talks that really "spoke" to you.  Talks that had messages and answers to questions you were asking.  All the words spoken, especially by the Twelve, are the voice of God.  Don't let them dim and fade away!  Study them!  Set a General Conference pattern to bless the rest of your life.  Plan now to review all the talks between now and the next General Conference and to do so multiple times and each and every week between now and then.  It's easy to be excited for the next few weeks or even months, but please sustain this focus on the word of God through His prophets each and every week!  There are 26 weeks between conferences.  In any General Conference there are at least 16 to 18 talks from the Prophets.  I try to study/review each one twice by tackling one to two each and every week between now and April. It really helps me get their instruction, revelation, and encouragement deeper into my heart. I also make sure I review each of the rest of the talks at least once.  And I try to do this each and every week so that it is a pattern for life that blesses each week of my life.  I encourage you to do the same.

We had a marvelous MLC on Friday and under inspiration set Zone Goals.  You Zone Leaders will communicate your Zone Goal to you, likely today.  The summation of all the Zone Goals is 70.  I know we can reach this during October and trust you can feel the same spirit as you read this.  Each baptism takes a bite out of the unit goals.  Each baptism takes a bite out of this Zone Goal.  In order to be a high baptizing mission, you have to have a lot of high baptizing missionaries who constantly live their purpose in great faith, diligence and exact obedience.  I know we have that kind of a mission so simply encourage you to get to work and give God reasons to bless you and send miracles as a result of your exact obedience.

With much love and gratitude for who you are and what you are doing!

President Clark