Elder Tyler's letter 12/29/2014

OH MY GOSH!!!!!!!!

WHAT??!!!!

You are ALL soooo in-freakin-spired!!!!!  Every single one of your emails was EXACTLY either what happened this last week, or what I needed to hear!!!!

Holy crap, I think I know how Alma felt when he fainted with how exceeding was his joy! hahah I had to lock my comptuer screen, go to the bathroom, get a drink and take a break!! I'm soo serious!!!

Wow where do I start?!?! I'm definitely going to be sending a recording next week!!

Ok, so first off, I was having a rough go of it in the middle of the week. I felt just tired.  Tired of taking ALL the initiciative in every single aspect of our work here, teaching all the lessons, making all the plans, doing all the contacting and coordinating with ward members and leaders when it's my second week here, my head was killing me. Just tired. On Friday, I wasn't sure how much more of this I could take! I felt like I was in arm's length of my limit! but then I decided to take the advice from Elder Busche and instead, turning all my thoughts, grumblings and tiredness into the perspective of my eternal hope, and in gratitude of my Savior, and Father in Heaven!  Boy did that make me feel better :) Then on Saturday, we talked for a minute about what we thought our purpose was here on the mission!  It started my companion asking why I was so "go go go" all the time, and he felt like I needed to slow down.  I told him that I'm here for these 2 super short years to completely immerse myself in the service of the Lord, and to see what miracles come when I'm totally focused, heart might mind and strength on missionary work.  I feel like I have the ability, right now, to rise to MY full potential. Just like the Book of Mormon prophets, they turned into millions of people's heros by first following spiritual prompting, then another, then another, then another.  Pretty soon, the decisions that required soo much sacrifice were easy for them, because they were diligent in keeping the commandments (or promptings) of the Lord! Also that I did NOT want to look back on my mission and have an ounce of regret. I want to leave as Peter, "I have fought the good fight, I have kept the faith" and I feel pleased with my service. The conversation then moved to how we felt about being consecrated to the Lord's service, being set apart from the world, and how we felt about our calling as missionaries.  I didn't like his opinion on that one, and we'll leave it at that.  

That week in sacrement meeting, a high councilman stood and delivered an amazing talk about the Savior. I went up to him and congratulated him, told him what an amazing talk I thought it was he gave, and explained that I learned a lot about what to do when times get hard, and almost out of random, he told me "I'll give you one piece of advice. Maximize every moment of your mission. Don't waste a second.  You have 2 years to put forth your best effort, and your whole life to analyze how you did." talk about confirming revelation!

Later that day, my companion expressed desires to stay in the apartment and carry on P-day activities at 7:00. At first, I couldn't believe what I was hearing.. then, (thanks to the spiritual preparation I received, I'm sure) I sharply rebuked the notion by the spirit, he then, without another word, got changed back into prosleyting clothes, and we went out and visited a family he thought we should. Turns out that the woman of the house had the strong impression to call the missionaries the day before to help her 6 year old deal with a mountain of guilt she was carrying due to life in foster care. She teared up when we showed up "randomly" the very next day. We then had a powerful lesson about being strong and of a good courage (that he lead, and it was SUPER spiritual! it was incredible!) and I experienced an angel of the devil being cast out during the closing prayer. When I prayed that Satan's grasp on her be loosened (or whatever the spirit said) it disappeared almost grudgingly! The point is, ALL your emails and ALL the quotes were all about hope and about these very principles I experienced this week!! I'm totally printing out almost all the emails sent to me today and keeping them!!! I love you all more than I can express!! You're the reason I'm able to be strong and of a good courage!! You're in my prayers always!!

Love,
Elder Judy
foot note (a) Perfect meaning whole, or complete.

Elder Tyler's letter 1/5/2014

Dear Mom,

That's so inspired that you shared the scriptures in D&C 6!!  I've used those scriptures a lot in sharing them with other people, but I didn't even think twice about applying them to myself! Actually, now that I'm thinking about it, I got the feeling to read my journal a few days ago, so I'm reading it just like scriptures! right now I'm in the "section" where I'm a few days out in the mission field! hah I was so green... :) I think what's really cool about what the scripture says about "say nothing but repentance unto this generation" I've taken that to include my companions, other missionaries, and people I come in contact with. When I know by the spirit what I'm doing is right, I feel like it's a commandment of the Lord to stay faithful and diligent to it.  If it's not my words, but my example that is preaching repentance, so be it, so long as I'm fulfilling the Lord's will.  But yay!! Thanks for the update!! That's so fun! I was wondering about you guys going skiing!! That's come up a few times in conversations about skiing. You guys need to keep up your skills so you can re-teach me everything I've forgotten!

Yeah I'm going to contact the mission office about my apartment, because the floor is curling up around the toilet, and tub, and revealing the nasties from beneath... eck. BUT!! a miracle happened this week!! I went to the other missionaries' apartments, and I wish I took before and after pictures of when I first got there til now! THEIR apartments are looking a LOT cleaner than they used to be! and they admitted that the cleanliness may or may not have been inspired by our place... :)  It was super awesome!  It re-invigorated me to continue cleaning up after myself and one other person :)

My 3 wards are doing ok!  We cover 8th ward, 9th ward and YSA Branch (which is over ALL of Safford).  We have one 10 year old we're baptizing this week!! woohoo!! His dad (less active) is going to baptize him, and he wants me to confirm him! I'm so excited! :)  We also have our other investigator, Frank, come to church this passed week! he only stayed for sacrament, but that's the most important part!  We'll work with that! :)  He said he wants to be baptized on March 28th (Dallin's birthday wooo!) but I know the spirit has prepared him to accept a date MUCH sooner than that ;) haha

One of the miracles I saw this week was during fast Sunday!  I was hungry.. obviously.. towards the beginning of the day when I didn't have all the reasons for my fast written down and figured out just yet, so I was just "wandering" around the kitchen looking at the food longingly, when the impression came to me so strongly, that I spoke it out loud: "the Lord wants to give me something better." BOOM! I was never hungry or even tempted to think about even BEING hungry the rest of the day because, along with my reasons for fasting, I would repeat that to myself every time! :) I don't know what it is yet, but I'm super pumped for it!! haha :)

SO! I have a person in my ward that works at the Nauvoo temple seasonally, and he said that he would have been working at the time I got my endowments!!!  whaa?!  super cool!!  So I built a new deck for him for his trailer-house :) hahah

 ALSO! we had this Mission Unity Day on January 1st where we had the entire mission come together and play a whole ton of games, sports, and other activities!! it was soooo fun!! I hung out with Elder Malcarne the whole time :) hahah it was to beesstt!!

LAST THING!  We had a lesson with the 6 year old I told you about, and my companion actually said some things!!  On top of that, they were freakin inspired!! It was soo cool! it was like a 60-40 teaching lesson!! I was soooo pumped!! things are DEFINITELY getting sooo much better!!  Plus I feel like we're actually good friends! :)

I love you mom! Thank you for being inspired and loving me so much. I am so grateful for all the hard lessons you taught me, despite my grumbling attitude towards...all of them... I really appreciate the influence you've had on my life.  It's done nothing but good for me here on my mission. I love you!

Love,

Elder Judy

Elder Dallin's letter 1/5/2014

Elder Dallin's letter

Dear Family, 

   Thank you guys so much for the letters!!! Your thoughts and comments are so endearing and inspiring!! I tell everyone about your stories and I reflect on them all the time throughout my week! I truly just love my mission and I have changed so much during my mission! 

    I actually got to speak in sacrament meeting this week! It was nerve racking of course, but we both actually spoke and were asked to speak on the New Year. So Elder Madsen spoke on just renewal in general, and I talked about putting this new year in the hands of the Lord, and following Him. 

    But here's some updates! Elder Ombach was called as the new district leader! So now I'm being led by my new missionary!! It's actually quite fun!! I like to give him a hard time. We have SO much fun together! And for New Years, as we were riding home, I had a cop pulled me over on my bike and got out to tell me that we were on the most dangerous street in the city, there is always stabbings and shootings here, and whenever cops are called to that street, they always send two. And that just happened to be the very street that we live on!!! Hahaha!!!! It was pretty funny. The cop was a member of the church in a different city. 

 But if I send a list of things, could I have you guys pray for them?  Here's the things I need help with:

-The first is the father of a family that has 6 people in the family and he doesn't want to get baptized because he doesn't feel that this is the only true church. He needs the Spirit soften his heart and we need inspiration with who we need helping us to get him 

-My companion.  He needs answers to his questions and answers to his prayers. He needs motivation and help with loving the work. 

-Me. I need help staying focused and strength to work harder and smarter. Thanks so much guys!!!!!!!! 

       But I can't believe that it was that cold there!!! I'm going to straight DIE when I get home!! I get SO cold when it's only like 40's! The gloves and sweater that you sent me works awesomely! 

     But I learned something cool this week!! When Nathaniel and another to-be Apostles were following Jesus, He turned around and said, "What desirous thou?" and they said "where dwellest thou?" and He said "Come and see." I love how He didn't say, "listen to my teachings, and it will give you peace, or happines, or purpose." He simply invited them because the teachings of Christ help us all with the individual needs that we all have. Some actually do need peace, some need forgiveness, some need direction. "Come and see."

    I love to study the life of our Savior. He is such an incredible Person. He truly wants us all to have the most happiness that we can have and knows all of our potentials. I am so thankful that he will share His perfection with me so that I can "become perfect IN Christ" (Moro. 10:32). I know that He actually lived and that He has a plan for us. I am SO thankful for Him and all that He has done for me. It is truly an honor and exquisite privilege to sacrifice in His behalf and to help our brothers and sisters say "yes" to His gospel again!!! Thank all of you so much for your profound support and love that has carried me through the hard times and has always been there for me!! Your letters and packages are ALWAYS so awesome!!!!!! LOVE YOU GUYS!!!!!!!!!

-Elder Dallin Judy

Elder Tanner's letters 1/5/2014

Elder Tanner's letter 1/5/2014

This week has been a great week! We had a great New Year's Day. It was Elder Nanney's birthday, an elder from the Heritage ward who is in our complex, on the 31st so we had a surprise party for him and celebrated with him for a while which was fun.

Elder Jacobson and I have had a really good past few weeks! We found 2 new investigators so that makes 6 in 2 weeks which we are really excited for. We did a LOT of tracting. All of our investigators all said to meet with them the week after new year so we had no one to see so we tracted our shoes off. We tracted about 30 to 40 hours in two weeks minimum, but things are going to really pick up for us this week as we visit all of our old investigators and new.

Elder Jacobson and I really have bonded well this past week. My perception of him has finally changed from " my trainee" to my companion and I have seen him as an equal to me. When I got the call to train, with out meaning to, I perceived him as just a lump of meat who didn't know anything about missionary work and assumed I knew the right way. 

I think I thought that way because that's how I came out. I felt like a didn't know a single thing and the only thing I knew how to do out here was keep myself alive. So I think I felt like I needed to help him out this grand amount like my trainer did me, but he has his own potential and his own knowledge. So I had a really humbling change of heart this week.

The work is going well! Like I said we haven't been able to make much progress with our investigators this week which is a shame, but we are still optimistic about them all and really hope to baptize soon! However, we did have one woman who we have been trying and trying and trying to see for months and FINALLY she answered and seemed really down, and she told us she recently had a death in the family and wanted us to come back and teach her.. exciting but sad :( I know the lord has a plan for each of his children and we can have confidence  in that.  

Thank you for all your prayers and support with your letters they really help and they are so spiritually refreshing!

Love, Elder Judy

Dear momma

Thank you so much for those scriptures and thoughts! I wrote them down for Kenny.

 I hold those scriptures you just said very close to my heart. I remember when I had finished the book of Mormon on my mission for the first time and I prayed for a witness that it is true.. I and It didn't really come as strong as I wanted. I felt the spirit.. but not in the way that I thought. so I decided to read d&c for my next book to study, then I read those verses and I remembered the first time I received a witness it was true and how powerful it was and then I felt the spirit so strongly then! It was.. something else.

I  have DEFINITELY felt your prayers this week prepare my heart for a big change I need to make within myself. Elder Jacbson and I had a heart to heart last night, and he was asking me questions about the way I did certain things.  I realized that in my prayers to develop Christ like love, that was the answer I was looking for.  I know your prayers helped my heart accept it and try to change. Thank you.

I actually have used vs 33 through 36 MANY times when talking to members and trying motivate them to do missionary wrk!

Love you so much thank you for your prayers and support.. I really couldn't do this with out them.

Love always, Elder Tanner Judy

 oh ps we weren't able to see Kenny this week :( he was busy

Dear Elder Tanner,
You have been in my prayers especially this week.   I hope you have the guidance you need with your new investigators. You have many challenges.

Something that has helped me when I am facing discouragements and challenges is to read my journal when I have received answers to my prayers.  Our Heavenly Father is with us.  We just need to remember.  

In Doctrine and Covenants, I love these scriptures.
6:22 Verily, verily, I say unto you, if you desire a further witness, cast your mind upon the night that you cried unto me in your heart, that you might know concerning the truth of these things.
6:23 Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter? What greater witness can you have than from God?

I have many experiences recorded in my journal of times when I have received sweet feelings of peace and answers to my prayers. I was thinking that in the case of Kenny, maybe he needs to be reminded of the spirit that was there the first time he came to church.  Heavenly Father teaches us through the spirit and we need to remember.

I love the whole section 6.
D&C 6:8 Verily, verily, I say unto you, even as you desire of me so it shall be unto you; and if you desire, you shall be the means of doing much good in this generation.
9 Say nothing but repentance unto this generation; keep my commandments, and assist to bring forth my work, according to my commandments, and you shall be blessed.
34 Therefore, fear not, little flock; do good; let earth and hell combine against you, for if ye are built upon my rock, they cannot prevail.

I know that when we are about the Lord's work, we are so blessed.

I love you so much and pray for you all the time. 

I will send another email with updates:)

Love
Momma

Elder Tanner's letter 12/29/2014

This week has been a great week! It was SUPER awesome to talk to you family!!  It was super weird at first, I felt like I was breaking some serious rules when I called cuz it was on my mission phone, the one STRICTLY for mission purposes hah but I got over don't worry:) 

As far as what to do for Mothers Day, I am going to ask President Ames about doing an exception with Skype at a members home for Dallin's last call home and cuz the 3 missionary thing. Or something else we could do is a conference call rather than 3 individual phones..

Christmas was super fun! I LOVED all the presents I got! and thank you SO much for them!!  The glasses, the ties the sweaters, the gloves, the candy, the posters, the cards EVERYTHING just put the biggest smile on my face! :)

This week has been actually really successful! we did a lot of tracting for sure this week, but luckily we found great success from it!  We have been focusing on finding the people whom the Lord would have us find and trying our best to teach each person like that's the one sent from God. We taught 5 other lessons and got 4 new investigators from them! The spirit was really with us with the people that we got to talk to.  It was awesome.

There was actually a funny experience that we had the other day.  There was a man driving past us when we had stopped for a second to re evaluate our plans.  He stopped in the middle of the road and he asked us, " Mormons?" and I replied, " Yes sir!" then he smiled and said simply, " love ya."  It was really an uplifting, simple remark, but from a complete stranger it was refreshing and funny.

We taught Kenny again this week.  We taught him about the importance and role of prayer expressly. It was a pretty powerful lesson, but he still feels like he needs to investigate other churches. We encouraged him in what he did, and we hope that he will take seriously the quest for finding the true church and do what we've advised him to do as far as reading and praying.

Sadly we weren't able to get in contact with any of our other investigators this week, so theres no real update as far as other names I have mentioned in the past.

But as far as Elder Jacobson and I go we are doing really well and our companionship is growing into more than me training him on how to be a missionary, but to us being more equally yoked in the "cause of the Christians".  It has been really interesting what the Lord reveals to each of us and allows for the other to trust the promptings of the spirit and seek confirming revelation.  We have strived for unity in all we do and are trying to find better ways to be unified and the Lord has blessed us in our efforts for sure. 

We recently read Doctrine and Covenants section 109 and that section is the dedication of the Nauvoo temple and it is AMAZING it is just full of promised blessing from the Prophet Joseph Smith.   I read it with more sentimentality cuz me and Tyler took our endowments out in that temple:)

I love you all sooooo freaking much!!

Hurrah for Israel!

Elder Tanner Judy

Elder Tanner's letter 1/26/2015

Dear Family,

 

This week was a fantastic week!  We taught a good lesson to an 8 year old girl about to be baptized on Monday which was fun.

Tuesday was our zone conference and that was absolutely amazing.  I learned soo much. and also I learned things that I didn't really notice I needed to work on particularly working with members.  I didn't really know that my pre-dinner, mid dinner conversations were a little less then "consecrated to missionary work".  Now with the vision I have been given in zone conference, we have been keeping the conversation topics about the gospel and missionary work which has had a dramatic influence on the lesson afterwards.  The lesson has been much more powerful as we have thought about and prepared a lesson each day this week.  We have President Ames's  vision to thank for increasing our own.

Quick investigator update:  One of our investigators has been really sick this week he was actually admitted into the hospital this past Thursday.  We have been praying for him and asked our zoneleaders to have our zone pray for him, so he's doing a lot better his mom said.  What is really cool though, is we told our bishop and he said he would take the priests down to the hospital on Wednesday and visit him which is a great idea and I'm really glad he is willing to do that.

We recently found a new investigating family.  They are pretty young with 2 kids.  The wife feels the need to be "rebaptized" and the husband has been really interested in the doctrines of the church and how everything seems to be "lining up" so this next lesson is going to be solely about the Holy Ghost which we are really excited for.  Our last lesson was really powerful in that Elder Jacobson and I bore our conversion stories about gaining our testimonies of the book of Mormon.

Sadly, we weren't able to get a lesson with our new investigator this week.  We had an appointment scheduled for a week in advance that didn't work out and they weren't able to make it to church. :/

We stopped by the home of one of our older investigators.  They are a LA/PM and she really wants him to come to church and feel the spirit.  She actually was brought to tears there on the doorstep when she felt like it wasn't going to happen.  We assured her that as she tries the Lord will indeed bless her efforts, and that the Lord's will will be done as she follows the promptings of the Holy Ghost.  It was a powerful exchange.

We have had a great week this week all in all!  I was feeling pretty depressed on Tuesday, because the weight of my calling and the responsibility I have was pressing on my mind and it caused me to reflect on how far away I was from being consecrated.  However, during the week I read a "consecrated missionary" talk by Tad R Callister, and was surprised to see that most of the attributes described in it were things I had realized and had been working on.  Then it really came to me that it was a process and a "receiving spiritual light" talk by David A. Bednar and that one became meshed in my brain.

I realized that the Lord "give[s] us our daily bread" as pray for it and seek it.  He helps us and strengthens us day by day to help realize the humility and patience we need to have in this process of becoming sons and daughters of God here on earth.  I learned that in our prayers, we need to ask for strength and help on a daily basis, and to look at the blessings that come from living the prayer you offered, and to not be frustrated when the end result isn't achieved in a timely matter, but to have confidence that we are indeed changing and "receiving more light, and becoming more Christlike " as we are faithful in our prayers.

 

For example: I have been praying for Charity, and In hind sight I noticed something.. as I began praying for it daily, I was given a little bit more.  I was able to love one person a little more than I would have otherwise.  Over time I had become frustrated that I wasn't loving everyone perfectly after all these prayers and working on it..  Now in hind sight, I can see just how the process of developing charity had begun and just how much it had indeed changed me.  Also, just how much I had overlooked it, being so focused on trying to be as charitable as Christ.

Thank you for your prayers and confidence.  It has been an amazing strength to me to see the positive nature of the vision and support I have from those I love.  It truly helps me keep my vision towards heaven not to the ground.

Love Elder Judy 

Dad's letter

Dear Elder Judy,

We've been in Las Vegas this weekend as it was Mary's farewell...  Mary's talk during sacrament was about service and was based on a conference talk from this past general conference.  I started to think about the parable of the good Samaritan and thought I'd share a couple of thoughts with you that came to me during the rest of the meeting.  I've also been reading the Gospel's again, and I've felt that the words of the Savior are so perfectly chosen.  There isn't a time where the words in the scriptures aren't exactly what He wanted to be there regarding His personal teachings.  As such, with respect to the good Samaritan parable, I was thinking about what the cost of service to the Samaritan was.  Approaching the injured man might have placed him in peril as those who'd done the deed may have been still around and he could have identified them to the Samaritan for justice to have been done to them.  Despite the possibility, and against the current sentiment of mutual dislike between their regions of origin, the Samaritan bound up his wounds and placed him on his beast.  My guess is that the Samaritan had to then bear the burden that had previously been on his donkey as I'm sure the donkey couldn't have handled both the injured man and the current load it was bearing.  The Samaritan then was seen in public with the injured man while presenting him to the innkeeper where he took from his own purse the cost of lodging and care that might have been incurred along with an assurance of payment for any further costs that might arise in bringing him back to health.  I thought I'd just list some of the costs of service the Samaritan faced:

Dear Elder

 

public scrutiny, physical labor, personal inconvenience for the detour of way and time, financial outgo, personal ownership of the situation for future costs.  There may be more, but ultimately, the teaching wasn't meant to be one of an extreme example.  I believe it was meant to show an everyday situation and what our level of willingness to serve ought to be.  It may actually cost us money and perhaps a significant amount.  We are likely to be inconvenienced in our time and way.  We may have a social cost that we feel as we serve, but all of it is known to our Father in Heaven who sees and hears us in secret and rewards us openly when our eye is single to His glory in serving His children.  I know that our efforts to serve Him are NEVER unnoticed by Him or wasted.

 

 

Have a great week!  Hurrah for Israel!

 

Love Dad