Erase myself and let go of what I've done - 10/21/13

Big news! I am leaving my beloved companion and the Hidden Springs ward. I will be serving as a Zone Leader in Hemet, starting today. 

I feel like a lot happened this week but I have no clue what to write about. Mostly I'm just sad about leaving and excited that big things are happening. My companion is going to train and be district leader here. 

I know we taught a lot of lessons this week but I can't remember anything. I do remember going to a couple of baptisms this Saturday. I baptized a little girl I taught in Lasselle ward and forgot about my camera in my pocket so I baptized my camera as well. I went to another baptism for another set of missionaries so that our eternagator from the canyon could see a baptismal service. She and her daughter both really liked the baptismal service. It was a very spiritual day. Although I think I ruined my camera. I tried to turn it on and the screen went all screwy. That was probably a mistake. I should have just taken out the battery and stuck it in my uncooked rice. Oh well. Now I'm bumming pictures off of everybody else. 

Have I mentioned that I haven't packed? 

Oh yeah I got my temple recommend renewed this week after President Smart did an interview for our investigator from the canyon. She's getting dunked on 2 November 2013. Pres said that my interview was the first one he's done where the recommend will expire after he goes home and is released from being a mission president. That's pretty cool. 

Also, I get to go back to Jurupa to attend the baptism of somebody I taught like a year ago!  She's having me give a talk. I am so stinking excited! It will be at 5pm on 27 October. So I will be doing that this week. I was so excited to hear that news! It really made my week. 

And then I got told I'm leaving my companion and I have to be a Zone Leader in Hemet. So I'm kinda sad about that and in a daze because I have no clue what to do. Oh well. Life goes on. And God is still great.

Love you tons! See you later.

I'll face myself to cross out what I've become - 10/14/13

Things are going pretty well! We are super happy that a bunch of our investigators came to church this week. The eternagator from the canyon is getting interviewed this week and is on track for her baptism on 26 October. Her son is also expressing interest in baptism but may take a little extra time to get ready (having recently served time may prove to be problematic). 

Our softball star also came to church for the first time since we started teaching her! I was super impressed with her craftiness, actually. Initially when she told her father that she wanted to skip one of her three softball games on Sunday to go to church, Dad said no, because she needed to keep her spot on the team. Well, since one of the coaches for her team is a member, we got her set up to play in games two and three instead of game one. And then she waits until her dad goes on a date, and calls him on his date and gives him that news and asks if she can go to church. Of course he was much sweeter to her in front of his date. I'm reminded of King Lamoni being caught with guile in Alma 18. :D 

We had a super great lesson with the guy we got from the Spanish sisters. He's our resident Hispanic musician. We taught him all the commandments in one big marathon lesson. Our YSA teamups were great and he accepted and understood all of the commandments and committed to live them. He still has hangups, though. We were going to tackle those in our lesson on Sunday after church, but he didn't come to church. Sad. Really hope that we can get in touch with him and schedule another lesson soon. 

We are no longer teaching our 7th Day Adventist friend because her inactive LDS husband pitched a total fit about her joining the church. We are praying that he will stop being so stubborn and let her do what is right. Hopefully it's soon enough that we can pick right up where we left off, but it might take until their baby is born before he has a change of heart. She's read a lot of the Book of Mormon, and she's still reading and talking to her friend about it, but she told us through her friend that she can't come to church or meet with us while it's causing so much tension in her marriage. Totally stinks. But that's what happens in missionary work. 

I have been thinking a lot about the temple recently. I kind of wish I could take a day off and go do temple work all day long, but that's not what I'm here to do. It sure would make me feel awesome, though. I'm really looking forward to doing initiatories again and sealings. I've never done a proxy sealing but I really want to! But yeah, I'm supposed to focus on saving the living, and not the dead. 

We got an awesome pamphlet from Salt Lake called "Adjusting to Missionary Life" that's training all of the missionaries how to handle stress on a mission. I really enjoyed reading it. I can tell the leadership put a lot of effort into putting together a resource for their rapidly growing and increasingly youthful missionary force to deal with the stresses of being a missionary. I really would have liked to see this used in my past companionships! But oh well. 

"Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed." Doctrine and Covenants 123:17

So let mercy come and wash away what I've done - 10/07/13

I'm convinced that the mission is life in miniature, a microcosm of the human experience as a whole. What sticks out to me today is how there will always be things to be happy about or things to be sad about. Whether your focus is on the victories or the setbacks will determine your attitude about the future. And your attitude influences your actions in a large way.

We taught a lot of lessons this week. We had a lot of cancellations this week. I'm super proud of most of my investigators, actually. I told somebody this week about how being a missionary feels like being a parent, and on any given day, four out of five of your investigators/children will tell you they are making bad choices. But when you get one that changes their course for the better and listens to the counsel of God, it means that much more to you. My companion was quick to chime in that I feel that way because I care way more than most Elders do. But this week, I feel like I have a lot to be grateful for. 

Our eternagator from the canyon recorded the conference talks on her DVR and is all set for her baptism on the 26th of October. We need to get her interview set up soon, I almost forgot. 

The 7th Day Adventist watched conference with her in-laws and really enjoyed it. She's still reading everything we give her and is nearly spellbound by our lessons when we teach her. Apparently there's some paperwork to take care of for her client that was formerly on Sundays, but I think she will start attending soon. She's praying about a date right now, and I'm pretty sure it will be pretty darn soon. Mostly I think it's her husband's hard feelings towards the church that are making her even the slightest bit hesitant. But she's pretty strong, and I don't think that the less-active husband will hold her back much longer.  

The guy that we promised an answer to didn't make his appointment this week. I hope he actually knelt down and prayed. Our softball star has had to cancel on her last appointment - actually her last THREE appointments, but who's counting - but I'm convinced that the spirit will not let her give up on the light that she's found. 

We had a fun unplanned lesson with a 14-year-old truth seeker at our dinner appointment last night. I hope that she takes the effort to read and pray. We also picked up an investigator from the Spanish sisters.  They are the best sisters I've ever met, and they're in my district, and they do the best work, and they're so much fun to be around. Just wonderful! This guy needs some good influences his age, and our ward has a pretty good YSA presence. I'm convinced we will fellowship him as well as anybody, and he speaks English really well, so the handoff has been smooth so far.

General Conference weekend is always the best! I've really come to appreciate President Monson's facial expressions. The eye roll during his priesthood session talk about bad home teachers was hilarious! And I really enjoyed being able to spend all weekend at the stake center with the other missionaries. It just so happened that the neighborhoods around the church had their bi-annual neighborhood yard sales on conference weekend, so my companion and I got to walk around and get our daily contacts in short order right before conference started. Then after priesthood session, we had dinner with one of our favorite families and celebrated the 19th birthday of one of our ward missionaries. He invited some non-members over for dinner too, and it was a pretty fun missionary experience. They didn't end up coming to conference or taking the lessons, but that's their own fault. :P 

I have so much to be grateful for guys! And he that receives all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious. Thanks for your prayers, and I'll keep on being an awesome missionary.

While I clean this slate with the hands of uncertainty - 09/30/13

I HAVE A DREAM that SOMEDAY I will have investigators that attend church WITHOUT phone calls, begging, pleading, persuasion, or guilt trips.

It seems that God likes that dream. My eternagator from the canyon came to church this week, along with her son and grandson. We didn't even arrange for a ride to come pick her up! She just came. Granted, we had to lay down the law on her pretty hard when we taught her on Thursday, but still! She came to church using her own agency. And she accepted a baptismal date: 26 October 2013, the weekend *after* transfers. I'm just happy that she seems committed enough to stick to a date.

Also related to that dream: our Seventh Day Adventist friend works from 7am to 12:30 pm every Sunday taking care of elderly people in Corona. She told us that she wants to get baptized, but that she can't come to church until she takes her maternity leave in December. Her fellowshipper (whom I love dearly) talked to her about quitting earlier than that, but they looked at the finances and they don't think she can make ends meet without pushing through to December. So the three of us decided that all we could do was pray for some way to appear for her to get baptized sooner than December. I was also hoping that God could bless us with some rained-out Sundays so that our softball star investigator would have an easier time coming to church.

Oh, I almost forgot: On Tuesday, we had a talk with one of our favorite part-member families and was led by the spirit to promise him, in no uncertain terms, that he could not resolve his issues with our doctrine until he got on his knees and prayed about whether the Book of Mormon was true. I read to him Moroni 10:3-5 and 2 Nephi 33:10-12. I then promised him that if he took Moroni's challenge and prayed about the Book of Mormon, then either we would have something to talk about in our next meeting, or the next meeting would be our last. I felt very confident in saying that. If he gets on his knees and asks, God will let him know. We've taught him more than enough, and he keeps coming back to the same hangups. It was time. 

I left him with a note for his wife that said "From the desk of Elder Hansen and Elder Harrison: Please excuse "TG" from bath time with the twins tonight. He was learning about the Book of Mormon with the missionaries. He has committed to pray about the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon in a quiet, grateful moment during the week. Love, the missionaries." He thought that was amusing. 

Also on Tuesday: we met with our softball star investigator and talked to her about 2 Nephi 31.  She had lots of questions.  As we read it out loud together, discussed it, and defined things that she didn't understand, she got so very happy. The spirit was thicker in that room than humidity in a SC summer. She kept saying how she just couldn't stop smiling. I would have put her on date in a heartbeat if I wasn't scared of her softball schedule keeping her from church. I wonder if I should have just pushed the issue anyways. But perhaps there was a reason why my tongue was still every time I thought that.

So, we had a pretty decent week. We taught more lessons than last week, and they were mostly really productive lessons. I've been bolder than normal recently, and it feels awesome. Joshua 1:9, baby. We also have been looking for service opportunities with a passion reminiscent of my former passion for World of Warcraft. We took care of one old lady's lawn this week, and I think we have four more service projects lined up for the coming week. I love service! It's way better than trying to find something productive to do at 10am when everybody's at work. 

Oh yeah, I almost forgot: our Seventh Day Adventist read all four of the chapters we wrote down for her and told us about them and read from her notes what she learned from them. She's making our job way too easy. She said she feels that desire that Alma 32 talks about really strongly, and I quoted the Savior's "Blessed are they that do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled." She is a sponge and wants to soak up more and more of what we can teach her. It's so exciting to work with her.

This part is my favorite part of the story. In fast and testimony meeting, we learned from this investigator's mother-in-law that her elderly client on Sundays is no longer needing her services. Nothing to do with her, but the company she works for. So it appears that now she is out of a job on Sundays and can attend church every week. That story was shared from the pulpit in the second testimony - I was first - and my jaw dropped. That is one of the coolest and quickest answers to prayer that I have seen in weeks. 

So keep up the good work, guys. God is hastening his work, and he is pouring out his blessings abundantly upon those that labor in his vineyard. I've been coughing and sniffling and not sleeping at night, but I am trying to emulate and ponder on Isaiah 40:31. "But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." 

My closing thought for today: "Whenever you have the choice to be right or be kind, always choose to be kind."