What’s up fellas
The most important part of this email is the invitation I’m going to leave for you guys at the end. It’s very important. So, if you’re not gonna read the email, scroll to the very bottom (step 7) and follow through with my invite. It’s pretty awesome.
Alright hombres, so this week was decent. Every day and every week it feels like things get better, but even then I feel like I’m not really making progress at the rate I would like to. As far as dealing with myself, I’m not a very patient person, and I have a tendency to get discouraged when I don’t see the result of my efforts as soon as I would like. I had an interview with president bell and his invitation to me was to be patient with myself so that’s what I’m trying to do. Anyways, got some funny stuff to share too so here we go.
Phantom of Elder McNeil
Almost died
approved/unapproved music
160?
Teaching people
Spiritual thought..?
INVITATION
Aight so like I mentioned last week, Elder McNeil got transferred. It was kinda sad to see him go honestly. Until we found out he was getting “transferred” to our same apt complex and moving into me and my comps ward, but just out of our current apartment. So basically he’s still here. While he was staying in our apartment though, he would hide in the closet by the door in my room and when I’d walk in he would scare me. DROVE ME CRAZY. One time that he scared it me it made me so mad that I full on punched him and he fell to the floor. Anyways so he would scare me all the time and I was never ready for it. But the closet he’s scaring me from has a bunch of white shirts hanging on the coat hangers, so when I walk in now, out of the corner of my eye I see a white shirt and I always think Elder McNeil is there again. Essentially, everytime I walk into my room I jump and yelp. I literally always think he’s there. It’s not a good way to live.
Okay so this was kinda scary. So Elder Morgan was driving, and he was turning left. Our light had turned from green to red, so naturally when that happens on a left turn you just go. So he started making the left turn, but I could see that the oncoming traffic wasn’t slowing down, so I yelled and grabbed the wheel to stop Elder Morgan from turning as the car skirted past. Basically I almost died. He almost just turned me into oncoming traffic and the car would have totally nailed me. Good thing I was paying attention. Thank you safety zone!!!
So as a missionary we can’t listen to a whole lot of music. Or good music anyways. Our library has to be either 1) produced by the church or 2) instrumental hymns. So that’s not a whole lot of stuff, especially for a guy who lives off of music. Butttt there are some songs that are “approved” but probably shouldn’t be. For example, some Motab. I think they’re trying to expand their range of people who listen to their music, so they have some songs that are not “missionary appropriate”. Like for example, Duel of the Fates from Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. TabCats did an arrangement of it. So it’s approved, but like not really. But, if it’s approved it’s approved, sooooo I’ll jam to it. Anyways me and Elder Morgan were in our room playing some modern motab on my speaker and then the ZL’s came in to chastise us because it sounded unapproved. Then I showed them that it was by motab and they were shocked. Then, Elder Bowles pulled out his phone and whispered to Elder Morgan “will you send those to me?”. It’s just pretty funny. So if any of you guys have approved music you can send me feel free. (Avengers Endgame)
I’m eating so much food. Any chance I have for a break I eat. A little over a week ago I hit 150 and this past week I hit 160. That’s nearly 10 pounds in one week, and 25 pounds since MTC. The scary part is that I don’t know where it’s going! Like I don’t look different. Or maybe I am getting fat and I just don’t know (not likely). And this is why, as painful as it was, I didn’t buy another bag of Fruity Dino-Bites with Marshmallows this week. I also joined the “swol missionary support” group on facebook. I was shocked to see how many Elders I know on that page (Elder Pugsley was not one of those btw). To join the page you had to write why you wanted to join the group and I said “I’m gaining weight like crazy and I need to turn it into muscle before it’s too late”. So I’m gonna start doing some P-90X with the other Elders this week. I did some push-up workout with them this past week and it broke me. My body was aching for days.
So teaching people lately has been a grind. I feel like we’re not getting anywhere, so the other day I had me and my comp sit down and I set goals for us as a companionship. One of these includes just getting out of the apartment and talking to people. So we’re gonna try to go on a walk every day and casually talk to people. Yesterday on our walk we had this guy come up and just start asking us questions! We got his number and I feel like we’re gonna make progress with him. I hope so.
Spiritual thought for this week:
I was reading in Alma 56. I don’t know why, but these versus hit hard. It’s about the army of helaman. Made me cry.
“44 Therefore what say ye, my sons, will ye go against them to battle?
45 And now I say unto you, my beloved brother Moroni, that never had I seen aso great bcourage, nay, not amongst all the Nephites.
46 For as I had ever called them my sons (for they were all of them very young) even so they said unto me: Father, behold our God is with us, and he will anot suffer that we should fall; then let us go forth; we would not slay our brethren if they would let us alone; therefore let us go, lest they should overpower the army of Antipus.
47 Now they never had fought, yet they did not fear death; and they did think more upon the aliberty of their bfathers than they did upon their lives; yea, they had been taught by their cmothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them.
48 And they rehearsed unto me the words of their amothers, saying: We bdo not doubt our mothers knew it.”
Reminded me of my family, especially my mom. “We do not doubt our mothers knew it” really hit me. It continues after the battle and says
“55 And now it came to pass that when they had surrendered themselves up unto us, behold, I numbered those young men who had fought with me, fearing lest there were many of them slain.
56 But behold, to my great joy, there had anot one soul of them fallen to the earth; yea, and they had fought as if with the bstrength of God; yea, never were men known to have fought with such miraculous strength; and with such mighty power did they fall upon the Lamanites, that they did frighten them; and for this cause did the Lamanites deliver themselves up as prisoners of war.”
This is probably my favorite story in the whole Book of Mormon. Their faith was so strong. I want more of that. Gotta be honest you guys, I’m kinda depressed about my whole call to the Dominican Republic. I honestly don’t know if I’ll ever go there. I messaged the mission mom in the DR and she basically said everything is still totally closed and that she doesn’t know if we’ll ever get there. It just felt so perfect when I got that call and I felt like that’s where I needed to go, and all the sudden I’m in missouri and don’t know if I’ll ever leave. Why did God call me to the DR if I would never go there? I wish I had just been called to Missouri right off the bat. Then I could just relax about everything. And I have had no spanish opportunities here. Anyways, that’s been on my mind lately and it’s making it harder to focus. I’m trying to lose myself in the work, but it’s brutal. This isn’t what I thought my mission would be like.
7) Finally, the most important part of your guys’ week. This is extremely important. You must follow the following steps with exactness.
In the Doctrine and Covenants, open up to section 138 (the very last section). WITHOUT READING THE VERSUS, go highlight/mark in some way the following: 38-47, 49, 53, 55.
Pull up the audio on THIS LINK and put it at 1:46. Do not play it. Keep it paused, but have the audio ready to go at 1 minute and 46 seconds (don’t worry, the music is by MoTab).
Find headphones, or a loud speaker. You need the sound in order to fully enjoy this experience.
This is where we have two options. The more impactful option would be to read all of section 138 and wait to play the music until arriving in verse 38. I only recommend this so that you know exactly what’s going on. Either way, it’s pretty awesome. If you don’t have time to read all of 138, skip to step 5.
If you’re lazy or don’t have a whole lot of time, you can just skip to verse 38. DO NOT PLAY THE MUSIC UNTIL YOU START READING VERSE 38. Then, with the music playing, read the verses you have previously highlighted while the music is playing.
REMINDER: While the music starts playing at 1:46, read 38-47, 49, 53, 55. Or, after verse 55, if you want to keep reading you can. But that’s the minimal requirement.
Enjoy! If you don’t enjoy it or are confused, you are uncultured and need to watch more marvel movies. If you have any questions or comments about all this, let me know.
Well that’s basically it for me this week. Just gotta keep going forward and pray that the Lord will show me that this really is where I am supposed to be right now. Keep Elder Wride in your prayers. I really want to make the most of these two years. I don’t want to have any regrets after the mission.
Love you guys! Email me if you feel like it
adios
1) me and Elder Kimball
2) spanish practice call with elder pugsley and elder brady. Don't worry we were practicing spanish but were also simultaneously using filters.
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