Running Away, 28 Inches & 2 Years Away... 😏

09/04/2017

So this week has been fun. I was asked to car share for a little while with these other elders in a different area. Their area is a full time car area, so I told them to just use the car and if I need it I will call and use it for as long as I need it so that they can be effective in their new area. Which means I have been walking for the last week and a half which is no problem, but to add on to it the temperature high the past week was in the triple digits and a decent amount of humidity it has been a lot of fun for me. My companion doesn't like it as much. It has been a great time here in Southern California. 

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Thanks for the emails you guys.

This week has been a struggle.  I am having to deal with two elders that tend to make each other have a hard time and to top that --  one of the elders parents are not supportive to him. I have told him that if it continues to get worst that he can email my family and you guys will email him back. I think that a letter will be good for him right now if you could write a little to him that would be much appreciated. 

An area was reopened and it is a full time car area because it is just not safe to bike. They were not going to give them a car so the zone leaders and I had a long talk with the APs -- it ended up with me saying that for right now I will car share. So gave my car to the elders to help them.  Plus they are in a four man apartment and they don't have any ac on the top floor the apartment complex where it can get over to be 100 degrees -- so, I told them and the zone leaders that even though I don't have a big apartment they can sleep at mine 

These last 2 weeks I have been trying to make an effort to take on the harder part to try to make the missionaries in my district have a good mission. It  has been really cool -- cause I have noticed that even though I am trying to take on more and do more it is no harder to deal with than before.  I am learning that when you take on more for the Lord,  the Lord really helps. 

Another thing was that I don't like doing "normal" district meeting -- I like throwing other skills in -- like I had one to teach the Word of Wisdom and we practiced teaching following the prophet so to increase their understanding about the importance of prophets, then taught the WoW so that the person understood that it is important to do what the prophet says and the WoW is revealed by a prophet.

The new missionaries in my district haven't learned how to whisper quietly -- I was able to figure out they don't like the way I run my trainings. I have done really well with not getting angry I think that is more funny now how others act BUT it is all good --  cause my training are meant to help the people that are willing and ready to grow.  I am using the same training style that helped me out.  I like having fun and I think the way I have things set up helps others learn in a fun way. 

So so many members are talking about how much I have changed and I don't know about what they are talking about.  But I have noticed I seem to always have something to say and instead of just thinking about it and keeping it to myslef --  will say it.  And it seems that I am getting more out meetings.  I think it is because I am a participant -- I am acting and reacting.

I don't normally give a thought at the end of my emails --  but this scripture seemed to talk to me -- So, the Book of Mormon -- in the book of Mormon, chapter 5, verse 7, it says, 

-And it came to pass that we did again take to flight, 

and those whose flight was swifter than the Lamanites’

did escape, and those whose flight did not exceed the 

Lamanites’ were swept down and destroyed. 

A lot of the time we talk about putting on the Armor of God and taking the blows that Satan hits us with -- but that is not always the way it should be.  Sometimes we need to run away --  just like Joseph from Potipher's wife.  The verse doesn't just mean that those that are slower lose but that those that stayed a little too long were not able to get away.  I would elaborate more but I don't like typing. 

Also I share about not being the weak link in a chain that if the anchor is our testimony and the boat is us that is we find that one of our links is weak reforge it. Fix it now don't wait.

09/11/2017

So, this week has been great and fast,  once again. 

Our investigator moved this week  -- but only across the street.. we are still able to teach her.  We are teaching her kids, too,  who just got back from North Carolina. 

The weather has been pretty constant in the high 80's and mid 90's this week, but is was ok because I still get the ocean breeze here in Vista. 

This week has been full of cheesy jokes with 12 year olds, bike wrecks (not me but my companion) talking about college football to people on the street when they don't want to hear gospel messages. 

Other than that it has been a normal week of missionary life.


09/18/2017

So,  this week has been pretty fun and fast. 

We got to go the SoCal religious broadcast with Elder Cristofferson. It was great.  

Because it was during our dinner time, the Wach family  gave us money to buy dinner.  They said to either invite some more elders or go somewhere we hadn't gone before so. 

So.... we bought a 28 inch pizza! It feed all six elders that didn't have dinner that night.  

We helped this family move on Friday and they were really well organized by labeling every box!  Some of the boxes had some great labels. 

LDS SCRIPTURES -- Tastes Like Heaven, BURNS LIKE HELL

We have some really fun members in the Vista 5th ward that just make us laugh when we are out tracking, walking, or biking. Brother Demke drove up and at a stop light asked if we wanted to see him burn out in his mini van. He revved up the engine and took off, all we heard was a little squeak from the tire. At church he came up to us and asked if we like the sound of his fire breathing 4 cylinder. ​​ 



09/25/2017


I have gone on so many exchanges this week with the Spanish elders here in Vista. Yesterday,  I went to the Spanish Ward services -- I was completely lost, but it is cool how you can feel the spirit so strongly even when you can't understand the language. 

It has been pretty chilly in the mornings.  We can actually see our breath but it won't stay that way -- it is going to get hot here in the next weeks. 

We are getting some of the missionaries from Puerto Rico coming to our mission for a little while. 

The only weird thing that happened was that we talked to a Scientologist.  He was reloading bullets and said,  in two years -- aliens are coming back.