Well another month has passed. Trace has remained in the same area he started in. He and his companion have done amazing there. They have already surpassed the mission goals and have seen more baptismal success in the past four months than the area that was once considered one of the worst areas. He reports his language is coming along as is his appreciation for the people of Texas and his knowledge of the gospel.

We were thrilled to talk with him at Christmas and listen to the stories of mission life. It was funny to hear how his English accent has changed since he's been speaking Spanish. They are very close to the border of Mexico (about 10-15 minutes)and often hear gun fire from the disputes that happen with law enforcement and those working in the drug business. He says its different to live so close to a war-like zone but he feels safe and most of the time is too focused on the work to worry about it much. Here is a little something from his last letter about his P-day.

"p day yesterday was LEGIT. we played basketball for like 3 hours. then we went to a members house and had a bbq. after that we went "tie diggin" down here in texas they have these huge warehouses full of used clothes, and you can buy like ten pounds of clothes for a few bucks. almost all these places have ties too. i have no clue where they get them from, but they have tons. most of them are pretty dirty but if you just oxiclean them there are as good as new. yesterday i grabbed like 4 tommy hilfigures, like 3 donald trumps, a few geofferry beans, some jones new yorks, some calvin kleins, and a bunch of others for like 3 dollars. i wouldve spent like 400 bucks brand new. yep, thats life next to mexico. i'll send you some ties one day dad, and when you come to pick me up we can go diggin."(We remember the time when we took over an hour to find just one "perfect" tie."

We are very proud of him and are delighted to see him grow into a great man. One who loves the Lord.