Seen better days - 09/17/12

I've seen better days. But, it's important to note that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all that exercise faith.

 

On Monday, I was sick, but Elder "A" still hit the streets and talked to 20 people. Typically our daily goal is for each of us to talk to 10 people, but because my voice was crackly and croaky, he did almost all of the talking. And so, we were obedient and got our 20 OYMs even on a P-day, which has been difficult for us in the past. On Tuesday, I got my companion sick. So we stayed inside and were miserable for most of the rest of the week. Oddly enough, I was sick for over a week with this sore throat and cold that wouldn't go away, but Elder "A" caught it and got over it in only three days. Lucky him.

 

Well, we felt pretty bad about how we started the week with such diligence, and then were kept from achieving it by our health problems. But the Lord knew the desires of our hearts, and blessed us with five new investigators even though we only taught 3 lessons to investigators this entire week. My favorite new investigator is "L.A.", an anesthesiologist with a good friend in Orange County that is a member of the church. The Jurupa 2nd Ward elders found her at the store and she asked them to be taught. So we got that referral, called her, and she showed up to church the next day. On Wednesday, she took us out to eat and asked to be taught "Lesson 1 in Chapter 3 of Preach My Gospel". Yeah, our investigator bought herself a Preach My Gospel. How cool is that? Whoever this friend of hers in Orange County is, he is the best member missionary ever.

Our other new additions to the teaching pool came from some elders in Norco ("R.G."). She cleans the church buildings there, and she wants to get her and her family involved in church. We taught her, a 17-year-old daughter, a 16-year-old son, and a 8-year-old daughter on Saturday and they all teared up at the First Vision story and committed to baptism. Can't wait to teach them again!

I also thoroughly enjoyed teaching "C.H.", a child of record in a recently divorced home. She has a severe auditory handicap, and even with her hearing aid in, it's hard for her to hear unless she can read our lips as well. But she's very smart, and very excited about getting baptized if her Dad will let her. We're still waiting to hear about the custody battle. Oh, and "J.B." is on date for baptism now. That was our third investigator lesson this week.

I also had the distinct pleasure of going to a mission conference this week and learning at the feet of a General Authority, Paul B. Pieper. He stressed the importance of understanding the doctrines of the gospel and the associated principles, which explain the "what" and "why" of what we do in missionary work, while the application of those principles are the "how". The way we do missionary work can change based on who we're teaching and what their needs are, but the truths we teach and the standards of the church never change.

I had a lot of time to contemplate and ponder while sitting at home sick as a dog this week. I've come to really appreciate the love of my family and friends that pushed me to keep moving forward and not give up on myself. You guys are great for believing in me even when I didn't believe in myself. I am honored and amazed at the love Jesus proffers me, and at the priceless opportunity that I have to serve a mission for the Lord's church.

 

Have a great week guys!

Stuffy and sick - 09/11/12

A day late but here you go:

Sorry for being a day late! Due to poor planning and not understanding the library schedule, we didn't get our email time yesterday. So I hope you'll forgive me for being a day late.

 

I got pretty darn sick this week. Sore throat, cough, stuffy head, the works. When it got so bad that I couldn't sleep at night, I called the mission nurse. She told the doctor, who then told me to just wait a while and see if the symptoms go away. I wasn't very happy with that answer. But it seems that I am finally getting better. So hopefully, I will be getting over it soon.

I wonder how Mom and Dad are feeling about the nest being so empty these days. I know that it will be harder to find a babysitter from here on out. I bet Tanner is having fun at college. And it's good that Jared is back at school as an old married man.

Today marks five months that I've been a missionary. How cool is that? Doesn't seem that long. Just another 19 months and you'll be seeing me in person again. Hopefully I'll be a lot more mature and wise by that point. I'm still working on becoming the kind of person that Christ wants me to be. But bit by bit, I'm finding my way there.

 

Songs of hope - 09/04/12

Here is the latest from Tyler:

I rewatched the Mormon Message entitled "Men's Hearts Shall Fail Them," and I really liked it. I'm particularly impressed by the statement that God does not expect perfection in this life, only improvement and progression. Elder "A" and I had a rough six weeks together. Looking back, we could have tried so much harder. So we are setting goals for the upcoming transfer to make our companionship more efficient and more obedient so that we can competently do our work and continue to grow individually.

This week, we were particularly treated to start teaching a very inquisitive woman in a very inactive part-member family. She has lots of great questions and absolutely no religious knowledge to cloud her perceptions of what we teach. Last night, we were both struck by how much sense the gospel makes, even to someone who hasn't been taught anything about Jesus Christ previously. She has lots of faith in our abilities as missionaries, which is very humbling, actually.

We also had a potential investigator take us out to dinner at a nice Italian place for our very first lesson with him. While it was only 4 miles away from where we live, it just so happened to be out of our zone, so we had to ask the APs for permission. But, the fact that this guy is so earnestly trying to understand what we believe, and that he had very strong convictions to fulfill what he had promised his former coworker that he would listen to the missionaries, made it a relatively easy thing to ask permission for. And we thoroughly enjoyed our meal, and the conversation that we were able to have. This man is going to be an excellent member of the church someday. He has an immense strength of character and recognizes a lot of the good that comes from our church, even if the doctrines are foreign to him.

 

I also really enjoyed listening to the Jeffrey R. Holland talk "Safety for the Soul", right after an opportunity I had to bear my testimony to the world. I looked in the eyes of an antagonistic heckler on the street this past week, and for a split second I saw in him the pain and confusion of a spirit child of God that has been led astray and hurt. I wasn't perfectly dignified when I first responded to his comments, but at that moment, I changed. I was able to look him in the eye and tell him that I know the church is true, and there was absolutely no fear, no doubt, and no reservation in any part of my soul as I said it. He may never change his views, but I have witnessed to him through my testimony that no matter how misguided or brainwashed he thinks I am, I know the Book of Mormon is true, and I know this Church is God's church. God lives, he loves us, and I cannot deny Him or his power, for he knows that I know it.

 

I also memorized 2 Nephi 33:10-12 and shared the verse with someone at their doorstep this week. I pray the Father in the name of Christ that most of us, if not all, may be saved in the Kingdom of God in that great and last day.