Life in Texas

We have interviews with President Ashton on Thursday. I remember my first interview with him.

I walked into the interview with the determination to keep constant eye-contact throughout the interview. Why I wanted to do this, who knows, nevertheless it was my endeavor. I sat and look him in the eyes as he arrange the papers I handed to him. As he gathered them together he looked up and our eyes met. Piercing, discerning eyes looked back at me. My previous resolutions seemed to disappear. I quickly diverted my attention.

Good times! I look forward to the interview on Thursday.

 

I love you

Christmas Giving

Rebekah asked if we could find a family and give to someone in need this Christmas instead of exchanging names of family members.  I asked our Relief Society president if there was a family in need.  Here are the possibilities:
1. Doty family - Father has been out of work for quite a few months, they have moved to a trailer on the edge of town.  Mom, Dad, 13 year old girl.
2. Hill Family - Dad has been in hospital a lot this year, they have huge medical expenses. 2 young boys in Elementary school, mom and dad.
3. Yours, mine and ours family - Dad, mom, 2 autistic sons high school age from one spouse, one middle school age son from other spouse, 1 adorable little girl from mom and dad. (I'm not so worried about the little girl as she has a doting grandma. Considerable medical expenses this year.

So what strikes a cord with you?  Who do you want to give to? Do you want to do this?

October 15, 2013

Elder Golden of the Seventy came to our mission last week. He stated his purpose was to change our life. Well played Elder Golden, well played.

As he spoke I was reminded of how Jesus Christ taught with authority and not like the scribes.

At one point he opened the floor to questions. In honor of Dad I shot my hand up and asked him what the difference is between especial and special witnesses of Jesus Christ. He said there is no difference and immediately moved on.

The thing that stood out the most to me was a story he gave. He visited a man in the hospital who had many broken bones. He asked the man how he was doing. He replied that he was having a great time. Several people with long white robes sang for him and one of them read a book to him. The nurses wore green uniforms. They were ministering Angels to him.  The man said it was a "party".

It rang true to me as I listened. Life is a party when we feel the spirit with us. Its there with you always. Angels have charge over us. We don't always feel them. Elder Golden advised the Elders to think twice before picking their noses in the bathroom because they are being watched.

Perhaps you are wondering why this email was sent on Tuesday instead of Monday. We had the opportunity to go to the Temple this morning. Like always it was an uplifting experience. Thank you to whomever sacrificed to have that House built.

And on to other news. Elder Johnson finally got his "Texas Hamburger" which he has been craving since the beginning of his mission. We drove up to our local Whataburger and asked one simple yet direct question. "What is your largest hamburger?" So we got it and half of it is still uneaten.

If you want to slip another CD with some Christmas songs in the package that would be great. I like hymns like Oh Come Oh Come Emmanuel, We Three Kings, Oh Holy Night, The Last Noel, Angels We Have Heard on High, etc.

I love you and am grateful for you.

October 7, 2013

How did you like Saturday's General Conference? I absolutely loved it. The promises made for missionary work were awesome. And how about Elder Ballard's talk? We live in an awesome time. Elder Nilson of the 70 is our area authority. I listened to him speak at a stake conference in Bay City a few transfers ago. It was fun to hear him talk about missionary work.

We are in the process of opening our church buildings for the public. We are becoming a pull business rather than a push business. That probably wasn't the best analogy.

We will be using Facebook soon and we are one of 50 missions in the world that will be piloting ipads. Cool stuff. President Ashton is the man.

The Sander's fed us some homemade enchilada casserole yesterday. And yes it was good enough to make my weekly report. Lets keep in mind it is nowhere as good as Grandmother's meatloaf. Or Mom's stuffed manicotti for that matter.

I have a testimony of Jesus Christ. He is looking out for His sheep. He knows what we are going through and will help us become something if we let Him. If you ask for gifts in His name they will be given to you in His timing. It appears we will have a personal interview with Him after everything is said and done. I think Elder Nelson said that. I hope there is a big enough change where that conversation is comfortable. I am grateful that Joseph Smith paved the way to let every man speak in His name (1:17-20).

Mom I got your packages. Thank you so much! You're simply the best. What does dad always say about you? Oh ya, "I lucked out"!

I love you. May God bless us, every one.

Answers to Questions

I listened to that talk by Elder Bednar in the MTC-- game changer. Thank you for reminding me of it.

 

The Lord blesses His children with opportunities to bare testimony. I am so grateful that He allowed me to bare my testimony to brother Ayo. He attacked the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith the Prophet. He hoped he had us, but he didn't understand the Lord promised that we wouldn't be confounded. It was an awesome time we had to bare testimony. While baring mine I was reminded of Elder Holland's testimony. An evil man couldn't write that book. And a good man wouldn't write that book unless God told him!

 

Mom I love hearing your testimony about the Savior. I wonder what it will be like when we see and remember Him.

 

Allow me to answer some of your questions from last week.

For morning exercises we are expected to run for twenty minutes and do a muscle workout such as push-ups for ten. A mini-mission is a short mission someone goes on to see if they can or want to go on a full 18 month or 2 year mission. I have heard of day, week, and six week mini missions. The person is literally set apart as a missionary (even for the day long ones I think)..........

Life is really good mom. It comes at you fast on the mission but it is the good life. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else on this planet than the five square miles I am assigned to cover by the Lord.

 

Love you

Lots of Family Together at Matthew and Debbie's Wedding

It is so nice when the family gets together and bonds over different circumstances. Matthew had the priviledge of meeting lots of Debbie's extended family in various states. Really nice that he could travel so many places this year! Having Nate and Kelsi travel back to California was a nice time for us too!

Rebekah and Jayson having an eye contact moment

Greg, Kim, Jeffrey, Mike
It only needed Becky!

Life is Good

Weddings are such great times to make connections with extended family!  I noticed many of Debbie's family, though I don't know who is who. Maybe we'll have to start a Matthew and Debbie Blog and name all the players of the team!

For me it is always a treat to have my sister Susan with me

What a treat for Laurie Henderson to have both daughters and a new grandbaby! (Actually 2!)

Here is family togetherness

Communication

The Mormon musical left town yesterday. I decided to try and write an article in the newspaper. I got this idea from Preach My Gospel. Unfortunately, I don't have a whole lot of time to reread what I wrote.  In fact I wrote only one draft. As I read though it seemed a little edgy. You can read over it if you desire. I am open to feedback. I'll put it onto the end of the email.

 

Life is sweet mom--thank you for asking. Elder Johnson is from Utah. He has one older brother who is severely autistic. He is a blast to work with. He had a full ride scholarship to Weber State for his ability to play the trumpet. It would be way fun to play some tunes with him when we get back or something. It would be extremely fun to pay bossa nova with him.

 

The non-tracking is interesting. We are to work with and find through members. It is funny because the members are not aware of most of the change in missionary work. They are not aware that the Lord is hastening His work. I would take a solid referral over a meal appointment any day of the week. It really comes down to believing in the system and believing in the missionaries.

 

It is fun to be on the Lord's team!

 

Love you Mom!

 

 

The Real Mormon Musical

 

Mr. Jones opens his door and steps on the porch. He squints his eyes as the late morning light penetrates the sky. He looks up and sees two young men riding their bikes. One of them is tall and lanky, the other short and stout. Both have a white shirt and tie on. Mr. Jones chuckles to himself and raises his eyebrow in wonder. Who are those boys and why do they do what they do?

 

Hello. I am Elder Adams. I am a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints-- often called the "Mormon" church. Allow me to give you a VIP, behind the scenes look into my world. Forgive me for not using bright lights and music to say who I am and what I do. No Broadway show could ever give justice to our service and how we actually spend our time.

 

I rise at 6:30 every morning and prayerfully begin the early hours of the day. I do this because of my deep--life changing--belief that God is my Father as He is yours (see Romans 8:16). He wants to communicate with us. He decided to accomplish this through prayer. What a glorious reality! I hope you see how a firm belief in God can shape a young mans heart.

 

Every morning from 8 o'clock to 11 o'clock I devote to studying the word of God. The words of the Lord flowing from the lips of the Prophets. During this time God communicates to me through his Holy Spirit the truths found in the Bible and the Book of Mormon. I devote the rest of my day (until 9 o'clock) to inviting people to act on those words -- that is the words recorded in the Bible and the Book of Mormon.

 

I sense a questioning look on my reader's face. Perhaps you're wondering why I devote myself -- for two years by the way--day in, day out to this cause. You may ask," Elder Adams why do you spend you're days talking to strangers? Why do you focus on the Bible and the Book of Mormon? And what is the Book of Mormon in the first place!?" Hold on, allow me to explain.

 

I believe the Bible, when translated correctly, to be the word of God. I also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God. The Bible contains an Old Testament of Jesus Christ (Genesis through Malachi) and a New Testament of Jesus Christ (Matthew through the Revelation of John). The Book of Mormon is another Testament of Jesus Christ. The Bible is an ancient record that contains God's dealings with man in and around Jerusalem. The Book of Mormon is an ancient record of God's dealings with man on the American continent. The Book of Mormon contains the fulness of Christ's everlasting Gospel. Many dubb us "Mormons" because of our belief in this wonderful book. Let me explain a little further.

 

My belief in Jesus Christ, the Book of Mormon, and the Bible lay a foundation for who I am. This is why I do what I do. We as missionaries believe it our duty to "teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost" (see Matthew 28:18). What an amazing work we do! But how can you know about these truths I've discussed?

 

Don't let bright lights and corny music give you prejudice against the Book of Mormon. Don't let other people think for you. Read the Book of Mormon along with the Bible and figure out the Truth for yourself. If you don't have a Book of mormon or a Bible I'll give you one. I'm with you every step of the way. I tried to answer you're questions in this article but you'll have more. Feel free to call me--713 371 8965.