I hope that whenever we are given an opportunity to serve our fellow men, we don't waste it.

Skyping with Elder Jake on Christmas Day!!!

Well, not much is new since we talked on Christmas, except we got a new investigator. Her name is Denise. Sister Wallace brought her to church and we were able to pick her up as an investigator and get a return appointment. We are super excited. Other than that not much has happened. Here is my spiritual thought for the week however.

We were in Dollarama. A dollar store with much more expensive things that just one dollar. Anyway, we were walking out and this lady was in front of us. At the exit, she took her stuff out of her cart, and just left. She left the cart right in the way of everything. Well Elder Olsen without even thinking about it took the cart and put it away in the cart return place. It turns out  that her son, who was in his 40's?, was behind us and saw it. As he passed us, he thanked us for doing that, then went to him mom and said, "Mom those nice Mormon boys just put your cart away for you." It was awesome to see how that man noticed what Elder Olsen did and how grateful he was. Such a simple gesture, but such a great service. 

I hope that whenever we are given an opportunity to serve our fellow men, we don't waste it. We never know who's life we will affect. "When ye are in the service of your fellow beings, you are only in the service of your God." May we all serve our God with every opportunity we get. He gives us so much, it is only right that we give back every chance we are presented with. Time to go out and do good! Love you all!

Elder Anderson

Chose to be Chosen! Chose to be on the Lord's side!

Well, we might not get a white Christmas, which isn't a bad thing at all! I think I have brought some of the San Diego weather to Canada to help cancel out some of the cold. It has been really nice here lately. I have been in just a sweater most of the time and it is nice. No snow, but still some ice in the neighborhood roads. The truck we drive is really nice. It handles the weather really well. It's the same one we had in High River. We are pretty spoiled.

 

Well we were able to meet with the referral that we got last week. Her name is Diane Hibbard. We met with her on Wednesday and she is golden. We taught her the first lesson and it went really well. She set up another lesson right after and wants to continue meeting with us. I am pumped. She will be coming to church this week too! Things are looking really good for her. We have found a perfect fellowship too! It is so exciting!

 

Well it's Christmas. My last one haha! I'm over the hump too. It's crazy to see how fast the first year has gone. Time just seems to slip away. This next year will be gone before I know it. Time to put my head down and give it all I got. They say the second year is even faster. If that is true, then there's not much time. I can't wait to see what's in store for the last year here. I have absolutely loved the first one! It has been the best experience of my life. I wouldn't give it up for anything. There is no time to waste! The Lord needs every person he can get in order to hasten his work. We are all enlisted! Many are called, but few are chosen! Although it is Heavenly Father who chooses us, it is our choice whether we want to be in that group of chosen individuals or not. Chose to be Chosen! Chose to be on the Lord's side! And chose to live in His infinite glory forever! This is my prayer always! 

I love you all and miss you. Have a Merry Christmas and never forget the reason we have Christmas to begin with! #BecauseOfHim!

 

Elder Anderson

The Lord is handing us work to do on a silver platter!

Elder Jake being spoiled by Sister Roma Ranger!

Well this was a pretty slow week. We couldn't meet with any of our investigators. Pretty rough. We of course saw the Pollards however! Oh what joy they bring in our lives! hahaha We went over and were in the living room when Matthew (32) comes down and says, "Mom! I was playing video games with dad but I put it on one player so he can play by himself and I can be with the missionaries!" Hahahahahaha Oh man what a great was to enter a room. The next five minutes was taken up giving him a hand shake. He really likes seeing how long you can last. Hahaha

No birds were involved with this visit, however the bunny was. I asked where it was and Crystal (29) went up stairs and got it. She gave me a blanket so I wouldn't get fur all over me and gave me the bunny. For whatever reason this bunny thought I was a mound of dirt and decided to dig it's little way to china. The bunny was going nuts! Holy cow it was out of control! I didn't know what to do! It would dig and dig and dig, then take a few minute rest, then go at it again! hahaha Oh man it's an adventure every time going over there! We are going over Christmas morning to have breakfast with them, I think. Good times. Can't wait!

Well I honestly don't have anything else to say. Like I said it was a slow week. Oh! I can share this. Last night we got a call from a lady in the West Stake. She said that this other lady showed up to church and asked if she could come inside. She sat next to the member lady and started saying how she was dropping her brother off at work, passed the church building, and was curious to see what it was all about. The member got her info and said she could have the missionaries where she lives contact her and teach her more about it. She was super happy. Well the member tells us all about this and gives us her info. It was too late to call that night so we had to wait until the morning. Well this morning before we got the chance, the lady calls us! She asks if we are the missionaries that cover the chapel on 24th! I couldn't believe it! I have never had a referral that I had been given contact us first! She wanted to meet with us and set up a time for Wednesday morning! We are so pumped! This was the coolest thing ever! What a miracle! The Lord is handing us work to do on a silver platter! That is the spiritual story of the week.

One other thing that happened was we got to see Meet the Mormons. It was really good! President Nicholas showed it to us. If you haven't seen it you definitely need to! It's really good! Anyway, hope all is well back home! Can't wait until Christmas! So pumped! I love you all and pray for you every night! I feel your prayers and am super grateful for them! They truly make a difference!

Take care!
Elder Anderson

This is the best time of the year to share your beliefs!

Well I got moved into the Woodbine ward! Which I already covered before while in the Mandarin program, but now I get to focus completely on the ward. I'm so pumped! My companion is Elder Olsen. He is from Riverton Utah. He is so sick! I'm stoked! The members are sweet too! We had the ward Christmas party this past Friday and it was so much fun. They did a Book of Mormon theme for it. They did a play and everything. And we got Mexican food which is always a good thing. This ward is sweet. It was really sad to see Elder Hancey leave. He was awesome! I think he was really sad too but excited to see his family. Especially with Christmas coming up. I hate killing missionaries haha. It's so trunky! I would be ok not having to do it again haha!

Well the only investigator I have met with so far is Guy (pronounced Gee with the g sounding like it does in guy). He is sweet. He is from Quebec. Really strong accent. We stopped by to meet with him and he was building a small stage/stand. It looked like something A kid would have built, except really sturdy. Kinda like he didn't know what he was doing, but just went for it. It turned out ok. We used it for the Christmas program. Samuel the Lamanite stood on it for his wall. Anyway, Guy said he is a carpenter, then he stopped and said, "Like Jesus! See we have that in common!" Hahahahaha so funny!

The only other people I have met with who we are working with are the recent converts the Pollards. I'm sure you will be hearing a lot about them this transfer and for transfers to come. Lets just say, hilarious Like you can't believe. I'll get pics and send them and tell you all about them. I'm sure I will have a story a week. The story for this week is that I ate dinner with a bird on my shoulder the whole time. While the bird tried to make a nest inside by body by eating away my flesh until he could make a hole big enough to fit in! hahahaha oh man the stories to come!

Well there's not much else to tell you. Other than it's warmed up to around 0 degrees and that's been nice. It's supposed to be around 11 this Wednesday so I'm pumped for that. We'll probably break out the short sleeves without a sweater! I hope it's still nice and warm back home. I'm sure it is! Well I love you all and pray for you always! take care. And remember, this is the best time of the year to share your beliefs! #HeistheGift

Love you!

Elder Anderson

You can watch "He is the Gift" here:

http://www.mormon.org/christmas

I truly do feel joy when I bring someone closer to Christ!

Well, I'm getting transferred. I will be staying in Calgary. I have been serving in the Mandarin program, but as secondary, we have been helping out in the Woodbine and Evergreen wards (the other wards in the district). I have a feeling I will be going to the Woodbine ward as one of the Elders is getting transferred as well. I don't know but that would be cool. 

It has been a blast serving in the Mandarin program. It is a totally different experience. It is bittersweet to go. I will really miss all the people I have met and the fun we have, however it will be nice to get back to a normal area where I can contribute more. I am grateful for the opportunity none the less. 

The spiritual story I have for you this week comes from a lesson we had last night. We met with our investigator Elaine we just picked up and talked about the Plan of Salvation. She liked everything we said and was taking it all in. Afterward her fellowship brought up that she wanted a blessing so Elder Hancey gave her a blessing of comfort. The spirit was so strong! It was incredible! Elaine said she could feel God's love for her and could picture Jesus Christ smiling at her. After the blessing, the Word of Wisdom was brought up. She said she drinks a cup of coffee every day. When we told her what the Word of Wisdom was, she said she will swear off coffee after she is done with the bag she just bought. Then she said that maybe she will just give it away! Then she will quit! It was incredible! I have never seen so much faith in an investigator before! I thought of the John Tanner story where he gives up his huge bag of coffee! Hahaha man she is golden!!! 

Anyway, that's my spiritual story for the week. I truly do feel joy when I bring someone closer to Christ! The joy fills my soul! I know that this is the true Church. It has blessed my life so much. I can't imagine where I would be if I didn't have the gospel. How great is our God! I know he loves me and loves each and every one of you. There is nothing that we can do to escape that love. Nothing! That thought alone gives me hope and encouragement to push on. It is my prayer that you all feel this wonderful love of God! Stay safe and press on. 

Until next week...

Elder Anderson

"We were at a members house for dinner and they had a ton of birds and a bunny,
so naturally, I got a pic with them."

These are tender mercies like you can't believe.

I can't believe how time flies. Transfers are next week. It is insane. I don't know what will happen. right now the Mandarin missionaries are odd, there are nine of them. Elder Hancey is going home this transfer, so there will be and even 8. However there is another Mandarin called missionary coming out this transfer as well. So there will be 9 again. Making it odd again. So I might stay, or I might go. We'll see what happens. I would like to stay another, but who knows.

Anyway, this week has been good. It has been warmer here which is really nice. We have had a Chinook. Which means the really cold weather gets trapped in the mountains and just kind of swirls around. This lest the warm air blow over the mountains and warm things up. I think that's how it goes. Whatever the case, I'm a fan. Oh and by the way, it's Chinook is pronounced with an Sh instead of a Ch. Just so you know. That way you don't go around talking like greenies haha.

Well we had a pretty cool experience this Sunday. We were in the west side of Calgary because that is where the mandarin branch meets. In the middle of second hour, we get a call from some elders in our zone. They told us they have a Chinese lady here that wants to be taught the lessons and what not. So we ditch out on third hour and drive back to their ward. We get there about half an hour into third hour and walk into Relief Society to sit next to the Lady and her friend who brought her. They step outside with us. We do the usual introductions and find out she is ready to be taught the lessons along with her two boys. We get her information and set up a time tonight for Monday. She seems golden! haha it was crazy. We get a call from other missionaries and thirty minutes later we have a new investigator to teach. It was awesome. 

Then to top it, we get another call a little later from the same missionaries saying they have another Chinese lady here that just showed up at church. Elder Hancey talks to her over the phone and next thing I know, she will be going to church next Sunday so we can meet her and possible teach her. Holy cow! This all happened within about an hour or so! Talk about silver platter! I can't believe it. These are tender mercies like you can't believe. This was the best part of the week that's for sure. 

Other than that things were pretty normal. I hope your weeks were good and productive. I pray for you always. And I am grateful for your prayers. I can feel them! Stay safe and take care of each other. 

Love you!!!

Your captain,

Elder Anderson

I am 11!

Me and Olsen emailing

(Who knows what that silly missionary has on his head)

I am 11! On a mission, you have a birthday every month. Today I turn 11. Nice! One away from halfway! It is crazy how time flies! I doesn't feel like I have been out almost a year.

Anyway. This week was good. It is crazy. Quite a few missionaries just got sent home. A couple were going home at the beginning of December anyway, but others had a while to go still. We don't have a clue what happened. It is weird. I don't know if any will come back out after a while. We'll just have to see.

This week was similar to the last couple weeks. Still working with the investigators we have. Some good news is that Al Valin from my last area got baptized! That is so awesome! I am so excited for him! It took a while but it finally happened.

Oh and I got in a fender bender haha. I hit some ice and hit a parked car. It only dented the bumper but it kinda stinks. We got it all figured out though. The people said they got hit the exact same way last year. Haha same exact thing. People are used to that kind of stuff here. With ice, it's always a possibility. Anyway. It all got figured out and squared away.

Well. Not much else is new. Hope all is good back home.

Love you all!

Elder Anderson

The tallest building in Calgary.

And me, the studdliest man.

It's hard to tell, but the architect built this portrait of his daughter in front of the building.

This is a better shot.

And me at Costco with pancakes.

(Jake told us he eats pancakes for breakfast and dinner some days. 

He has developed a pancake obsession!)

haha My sweet new watches. I also have one like the blue only it's gray.

(Jake bought these at the dollar store. He also has a watch obsession.)

I would like to be able to bear a simple testimony or say a quick prayer in Chinese

Jake and Elder Faimalo - his previous companion in Lethbridge

Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came forth sweetness.If someone can riddle me that, I will be very impressed. You can't use the Internet!!!!!! I will give you a hint however, you must be a very good judge to figure it out.

Well we had a good week. We are still working with Daniel and Justin. They are doing great. Everything they should be doing. We told them to pray and ask God if baptism is something that is right for them. They are great and really prepared. I hope that they will be able to get a confirming answer that everything will be ok if they get baptized. Nevertheless, not my will be done. 

Lulu is doing great. We are planning on asking her to be baptized this week. She has already she will live the Word of Wisdom WHEN she is baptized. Haha she is great. Hopefully she feels as ready as we know she is! 

Brother Wang had a migraine so he couldn't read the scriptures but when he is feeling better he will get back into it. They planned on coming to church but the weather was bad so they didn't show. It was really cool. 

Woodbine ward had a bring a friend to church Sunday. There were a ton of non members there! It was great. Really good idea. They had sacrament then second hour was just a meet and greet social hour. They went in the Relief Society room and had snacks and talked. It was cool. 

I just got a Mandarin book that they give out in the MTC to help you learn the language. I will try to start learning a little bit. I would like to be able to bear a simple testimony or say a quick prayer in Chinese. That would be sweet. We'll see if I have the gift of tongues or not haha! 

Other than that, not much else is new. Another week gone. Another week closer to Christmas! I can't wait for that. My last Christmas in the mission haha! I hope you are all doing well back home! I miss you tons but love it here, in spite of the freezing cold! 

Take care until next week!

Elder Anderson

Oh the weather outside is frightful!

Calgary in November

Well winter is here. And it's not fun. It's pretty cold. Hasn't been in the negatives yet, but I'm from California, what do you expect me to think about it? The ice isn't too bad yet but it's here. Just waiting for my first senior life alert moment. Can't wait...

Anyway. Good news. I found out that an investigator in my last area we were working with is now on date! November 8th!!! So stoked. We were working with him for a while. He was super busy so we couldn't meet with him lately. Things have slowed down for him now though. It's great to hear.

We had Zone Conference this week. It was great. They talked a lot about accountability. They talked about letting go of everything and giving yourself to the Lord 100%. They talked about how The Lord will bless us with tons more than we gave up. It was a great lesson and the spirit was great.

We found out that our investigators, Daniel and Justin, who are on date can't be baptized yet. Their dad is in China and he is trying to get a government job. If they find out that he has two sons that are Mormon, he won't be able to get the job. Once he gets the job they should be able to be baptized, but until then, we have to wait. That is a bummer but we will keep working with them and keep them progressing.

Lulu is doing good. We are hoping to put her on date soon and get her baptized. We went over the baptismal interview questions with her and found out what we need to focus on. I think we will be able to get her on date soon. She is awesome. We found out our investigator Brother Wang wants to go to church. But he wants to go to an English sacrament. That is really good news. He hasn't had a desire to go in the past. We are excited for that.

It looks like we will be singing in the stake choir haha. We kinda got volunteered for that one. Should be fun though. The choir director is Sister Chipman from High River. It was cool seeing her again. She even remembered me haha! We are planning to go down to High River maybe this week to meet with an investigator and visit some people. I'm excited. Other than that not much else is new. The work is going great and we are having a ton of fun. I love this area. I hope all is well back home.

Love you all!

Elder Anderson

Amazing Sister Roma Ranger drove all the way to Calgary to take Elder Jake and his companion out to lunch. She told me she would give him a hug from me, and she was true to her word. 

Lucky Roma!  Lucky Elder Jake!

Jake has made a new friend.  This adorable little Chinese boy is the son of on of their investigators.  Too cute!

I am so grateful for the spirit's help every day of my life

 Elder Jake and his new Mandarin companion, Elder Hancey

Jake said they get along great!

Winter is here! Well it is pretty cold. It snowed yesterday. That was about as depressing as it could have been. At least that means Christmas is coming! I can't wait for that!

The work is going well. Apparently this is the busiest Mandarin area so that's kinda cool. We are meeting with some sweet people. I had real Chinese food the other night for the first time. I have no clue what it was but it tasted great. And my hand felt like a pretzel after from using chopsticks haha! Those things hurt! One of our investigators, Lulu, fed us after we helped do some yard work for her. She is super nice and her little boy is super hyper and hilarious. I can't understand a word he says but he is super funny. We are basically best of buds.

We are also teaching two twins in college, Daniel and Justin. Their English is pretty good, but the lessons are in Mandarin so they understand them better. They are super cool. They live in a member's basement and that is how they were introduced to the church. The members called the missionaries for translating haha! Pretty cool.

We also are teaching this lady Jane. She comes to our ESL classes (English as a Second Language). She became interested in the church and we are now teaching her. She is super sweet. Her husband speaks really good English. He is really cool. We are also working with Joanne and Jimmy. They are husband and wife. They are super cool. She wanted the family to be united in a religion so she invited the missionaries over. The dad is really interested and she really likes what this church teaches.

We are also teaching a man Brother Wang (pronounced Wong). He is an eternal investigator haha. He smokes and doesn't really have any desire to quit, but he likes us coming over to teach him and he has a ping pong table downstairs that he lets us play on after the lesson for a few minutes haha.

Yeah so the teaching is going really good. Although there is an obvious language barrier, I am amazed at the opportunities I still get to help out in the lessons. For example, we were teaching Lulu. She speaks pretty basic English. She was struggling with tithing. She didn't understand why we had to pay it and why God wouldn't just bless us regardless of whether we pay it or not. I was able to share your experience with tithing, Mom. About when you were struggling and went to pay your tithing and when you put the check in the mail, there was a check for you in the mail from one of dad's cases that was supposed to come a while ago. I think that's how it went. I told her that the Lord helps us provide for our families when we help provide for his church. Right then she understood completely and it was no longer a question of why we have to pay tithing. It was awesome so see how well the spirit was able to help her understand what I was saying and the importance of this principle.

It is amazing the things that the spirit is able to do. I am so grateful for the spirit's help every day of my life. It is such a blessing in our lives to be able to have that direct connection to our Heavenly Father through the spirit. I hope that we are all doing our best to remain worthy of the wonderful blessings the spirit has to offer. For without the spirit, we are lost. I know this is true.

I hope you are doing well back home. I pray for you all every night! I am grateful for your prayers for I feel them all!

Take care! Love you!!

Elder Anderson

Elder Jake and the Leavitt Family from Lethbridge

Jake said they are "sick" which in Jake language means awesome!

I know there is a lot for me to learn here and that I am here for a reason

我是安长老
Translation: I am Elder Anderson!

I can even say it! I am serving in a zebra companionship. that means my companion is a Mandarin speaking elder. We cover two stakes, the South and Foothills. That means that High River is in our area too! I'm stoked to stop by and visit sometime. 

It is crazy going from Lethbridge to Calgary. It's a lot bigger and busier here. There are nine Mandarin speaking Elders in the mission and they are all in Calgary. North/Airdry, South/Foothills, East, West, and Downtown. I make the tenth Mandarin. It is almost like being part of a separate mission. It is cool.

They get together for meetings and what not. They kind of run their own show. It's as if we are our own zone. They are sweet too. They accepted me as one of their own. I had to do an initiation first. Just eat a Thai pepper that was super hot but after that, I was Mandarin! I even get to have my own Mandarin name tag! I'm stoked for that.

There is a good amount of work going on here. The Chinese people are so cool. They are super nice and humble. I don't help a lot during lessons, but occasionally I get to share a story or testimony here and there if they speak a little English. We are teaching this lady Lulu. She is sweet. Super nice. She is really interested and is doing great. I got to help teach her a little about tithing. It was awesome. It is sweet sitting back and listening to them speak Mandarin. It's a totally different experience. I love it!

Although I really miss this Lethbridge and Roma, I really like this area and am happy to be here. I'm super glad I get to serve with the Mandarin missionaries and see the mission life from this perspective. I know there is a lot for me to learn here and that I am here for a reason. I can't wait to see what God has in store for me in this area. I can already tell it's going to be great. Other than that not much else is new. I hope all is well back home.

I love you all! 下周见 (See you next week)

爱,

长老安

( Love, Elder Anderson)

Goodbye Lethbridge

Well this is the moment I have been dreading. I love Lethbridge. I love this area but I had to leave at some point. It will be sad saying goodbye to everyone here. I love the members and the ward. I feel like this is my own ward now. I am going north. Probably Calgary. I will find out Thursday. Looks like I will be in the big city for the winter. Which also means Christmas. 

Anyway, I am grateful for the opportunity I was given to serve here. I hope I will be able to return here again and be close. I have learned so much in this area. I have spent 7 months here. There hasn't been a baptism for a while in this area. Some people are really close, but I won't be here to see them make the commitment. 

I hope I can leave like Abanadi. He didn't see any fruits of his labors but because of him thousands upon thousands were baptized. I hope that even though I wasn't able to get anyone baptized here, there will be people who will get baptized when I leave. I hope the efforts I put in here were not in vain. I hope that I have done something. I don't expect to be quite as accomplished as Abanadi though haha. 

As much as I will miss this area, I am excited to see what's to come in my new area. I'm ready for the new challenges and trials that I will inevitably face. And I am definitely ready for the good times. I have had some pretty sweet companions so far so I am due for a dork. That has me nervous haha. It will be good either way. 

The Lord kinda knows what he is doing haha. I'm sure things are exactly the way he wants them to be. And to know that I am in his hands brings me all the comfort I need. I hope you all know that the Lord looks after each and every one of you personally. He knows your situation and knows exactly what you need. All he asks us to do is ask him for help. The task ahead of you is never as great as the power behind you. And that is a promise. 

Take care until next time. 

Elder Anderson

Elder Jake is amused by a tired missionary who is sleeping during General Conference.

Missionaries work hard, so no judgement here.  : )

It is so important for us to always be in tune with the spirit so when our Heavenly Father needs our help, we will be ready to listen to what he has to say.

New news!  Pretty slick subject right? Took me about ten seconds to think of it. Well this has been a pretty sweet week. We were able to get in with a few of our investigators so that was really good. Some of our other investigators are not doing good. They aren't meeting with us anymore and getting into things that are not good. But we had a really sweet experience with one of the moms of the kids we are teaching. 

We stopped by on Sunday because we hadn't seen them in a while. They let us in and we were just catching up for a while. Right as we were about to get to the lesson part her husband calls and needs a ride. I was super bummed at first because we weren't going to be able to share the message. I had the talk by Elder Holland that you sent me called lessons from Liberty Jail about prayer and receiving revelation no matter where we are in our lives. 

Instead of giving the message I just gave her the talk, asked them to read it, then we would go over it next time. Well a week later we stop by and she doesn't have much time because she is getting ready to eat dinner, but she invites us in for a quick sec to tell us what happened. She read the talk and as she was reading it she realized it was exactly what her friend was going through. She thought the talk was written for her. Her friend is an active member of the church who was recently offended and started having doubts. She called up her friend and read her the talk. Her friend said that the talk answered every question and doubt that she had. She said all but one. Then Sister Sheppard, the one I gave the talk to, read her your testimony that you put in the back, Mom. Her friend said that that answered the last question she had. 

Sister Sheppard said it was really weird that everything worked out the way it did. You sent me the talk. I highlighted the parts I liked. I gave the talk to Sister Sheppard because we didn't have time for a lesson. Then she read the talk and realized that is was perfect for her friend. Her friend was starting to have doubts about the church because of what happened. This talked cleared everything up and helped answer every question she had. It is amazing to see how the Lord works in our lives. 

Everything had to work out perfectly in order for that to happen. Not being able to share the message turned out to be a blessing in disguise If you remove one variable from that equation, then it all falls apart. When we said the closing prayer, I felt inspired to give the talk to Sister Sheppard. I don't know why. I didn't want to give the talk away. I love that talk and have read it multiple times. I figured I would get it back but you never know. Had I ignored that prompting, I would have denied that woman an answer from God. 

It is so important for us to always be in tune with the spirit so when our Heavenly Father needs our help, we will be ready to listen to what he has to say. How great it is to be able to be an instrument in the Lords hands. Although this email is short this week, I hope you can learn something from it. I know that I have. 

Stay safe and love one another. Until next week.

Elder Anderson

Here is the link to the marvelous talk that Elder Jake referred to, Lessons from Liberty Jail:

https://www.lds.org/ensign/2009/09/lessons-from-liberty-jail?lang=eng

An email "conversation" with Elder Jake

Elder Jake (back right) and seven other fabulous Lethbridge missionaries at Dairy Queen!

Elder Jake wasn't able to send an email today because the server went down while he was typing it.  Each week he and I are able to "chat" back and forth while he is on the computer.  I make sure to be at my computer so I won't miss the opportunity to check in with him.  It's a great blessing!  Since he wasn't able to send an email this week I thought I'd post the back and forth conversation we had today.  You can see the real Jake and his fabulous sense of humor in this casual chat.

I sent Jake (an android lover) a picture of me (an iPhone lover) holding my new iPhone 6.  And this is where the teasing started!  : )

Jake

You DO look different

me

Why do you say that?  Do I look cooler?

Jake

No. Older

me

I KILL YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!

You should be giving me sympathy!  Not being mean to me!!!!!

Jake

I thought you were a grandma

me

I look a lot cooler with the 6 in my hands!!!!

Jake

Not impressed

me

Oh you should be!  It's amazing!  Huddy and I can send voice texts to each other.  It trumps the dumb Androids big time!!!

Jake

Hahaha oh i'm sure

me

You are so jelly!!!

Jake

We should be getting iPads soon enough

me

When will you be on Facebook?  And when do you think you'll get iPads?

Jake

Elder Packer said Facebook should come before the end of the year and iPads might be before the end of the year but probably the beginning of next

me

Awesome!  How will you use Facebook?

Jake

I don't know. I've heard we will have some time during the day to go on and use it to proselyte. I don't know if we get to keep our old account or if we get a new one though

me

Gotcha!  Do you miss being on the computer or having a smart phone?

Jake

Not really. We have a phone to call and text people and that's about it but I don't miss much

me

That's good.  Do you feel like you are busy all the time?  Is it kind of crazy?

Jake

We aren't too busy but we always have stuff we can do so it's pretty good

me

That's good.  Do you sleep well?  Why were you so sleepy at the conference, and at the temple?

Jake

Hahaha meetings… they are too long. The conference was from 9 to 3

me

WOW!  That's a doozy!  

me

What are you doing today?  Is it P-Day?  (P-Day is the missionaries day off)

Jake

yeah. We are probably playing basketball. Possible going to Henderson lake to play football or soccer

Jake

I can't get on to the mail server so I won't be able to write a weekly email. It closed out on me and is giving me an error. I'll have to write next week

me

That is not acceptable!!!!!!!  You must write and email.

Jake

Haha I can't sorry. I will write a good long one next week

me

They are predicting that over a million people may die from Ebola.  How sad!

Jake

Man that is crazy. Is it in the states?

me

No, just in Africa right now.  I feel terrible for them.  Have you heard from Cody lately? (Cody is Jake's cousin who is serving a mission in Ghana.  He was called to serve in Sierra Leone but was moved to Ghana when the Ebola outbreak got so bad.)

Jake

yeah he wrote me this week. He said he went from a 3rd world country to a 2.5 hahaha

me

That's pretty funny!  Ghana seems to be a lot more civilized than Sierra Leone.  I think it's been kind of a hard adjustment for him.  How is your son doing?  (The word "son" is used by missionaries to describe a new missionary that they are training.  Jake loves his "son" Elder Faimalo, and says every week how much fun they have together.)

Jake

Great. He is so funny

me

The video you made is awesome!  Make more!

Jake

Haha ok I will try. There is one of us singing a hymn acapella that is pretty cool. I'll see if Roma can sent it to you

me

I would love that!  Do it!  She is seriously the best!!!

Jake

yeah she is awesome

me

I saw a pic of you on Facebook at Dairy Queen last night.  LUCKY!

Jake

Hahaha no way! A lady took that and put it on this blog for missionary moms hoping that some of our moms would see it. That is awesome!

me

I know!  I love it when I see pics of you on there.  What three words would you use to describe your mission?

Jake

Hard Enlightening and a blast

me

What's hard?  I know it's hard but what makes it hard?

Jake

There is a lot of responsibility and obligation involved. along with the fact that it is tiring and you have rules that seem ridiculous and are hard to follow.

me

HEY!!!!  Dad said he got an email from you.  You said the server is down.  I need an email!!!

What makes it enlightening?

Jake

Hahahaha I told you it closed down on me and I can't get back into it

me

Sure it did!  : )

me

So what makes it enlightening?

Jake

You just learn so many things about the gospel and the church and how it is run.  And a lot about people in the world. It's funny because we are in the world but not of the world, but we learn so much about being of the world through other people we meet

me

What makes it fun?

Jake

And it's fun because of the people you meet and the good times you have

Are those good enough primary answers?

me

That is awesome!!!!  It's such a blessing that you decided to serve for these 2 years!

Jake

It's a long 2 years that passes in a flash

me

It's going by really fast for me!  And I'm so grateful!

Jake

Me too. Well I have to get going early today. We are on a members computer because the library was full. I'll talk to you next week

me

OK!  Love you so much!  Just keep swimming!

Jake

Love you too!!!

It doesn't matter what your weaknesses are. God can make them your strengths if you let him into your life and allow him to make some changes.

Joseph Smith in Liberty Jail by Liz Lemon Swindle

Well I guess that works as a subject. Well this week has been pretty sweet. We have had so much fun. I told Shelby that it should be a sin to laugh that hard. I was in tears last night. All because of the dumbest things. Regardless, laughter is the best medicine. Too bad I wasn't sick. Saturday we built a concession stand in Stirling for the people there. That was super fun. Almost the whole zone was there. It was a gong show. 

Yesterday we were able to get in with the Laytons and Sheppards. They are investigators of ours that we haven't seen in a while. It was good to meet with them. They have been busy. The Laytons had a little baby boy two months ago and he has hair thicker and longer than Huddy's right now haha. It is insane! We shared the message from the talk by Elder Holland called Lessons from Liberty Jail. We talked about how it doesn't matter where we are or what kind of situation we are in, we can always communicate to Heavenly Father. He is always listening and he will always answer our prayers. It is a simple yet powerful message that is perfect for all of us to hear. We all need to know that we can always seek for guidance, council, strength, comfort, love, and so much more when we pray to God. What a great blessing that is in our lives. 

I have learned a lot about responsibility this week. We are accountable for a lot on a mission. There are duties that we have that are important. We will be called to give blessings, service, lessons, and all kinds of help at a moments notice. It is important that we quickly respond to these callings. It is our calling that we serve God's children to the best of our ability. That thought is kind of daunting haha. We are responsible for the people here. It makes it hard when you don't see a lot of progress. You feel like you are letting the area down as well as God. It is a heavy burden to carry. I am constantly reminding myself that the progress is not just based on us. It is also based on the pride and stubbornness of the people. And that makes it hard to love them sometimes haha. However, I have seen God not only change others lives, but mine as well. 

I have seen so many ways God has looked after me out here. Even for things like my appetite. I will eat virtually anything now. So simple but it makes a difference. I have learned to love everyone. I have grown a love for the people here. I care about them. I want to see them progress. Back home, I didn't like people much. I hardly talked to my relatives!  (This is Jake's mom, and I'm giggling reading about him not talking to people.  That's not far from the truth.  Jake was a bit reserved at times and to see him growing in this way is marvelous!  A huge tender mercy!!)  And out here I am knocking on doors and talking to people about the one thing they don't want to talk about! Religion! It doesn't matter what your weaknesses are. God can make them your strengths if you let him into your life and allow him to make some changes. Even if the only way to make those changes is through trials. This email probably doesn't make any sense but I was led by the spirit not knowing beforehand the things which I should do. Hopefully I said something that will help you. Take care until next time my friends. 

Elder Anderson

You can listen to or read Elder Hollands amazing talk, Lessons from Liberty Jail, here:

https://www.lds.org/broadcasts/archive/ces-devotionals/2008/01?lang=eng