I'm a Dad!

October 24, 2016

This week was pure insanity.

 

Monday was normal, after all the usual pday stuff we taught a couple less actives, then taught Charlotte and Grace (recent converts) then met with the stake high counselor over missionary work.

Tuesday we had a good district meeting, then after that had a lesson set up with a potential investigator. We get to the house and, nothing, he is not there, so we pray and ask the lord where we need to be and we feel we need to head down the hill. So when we get down there we are driving along and see someone and get out to talk to him, just to find out it's a former investigator. So we ask him when we can teach him again and he invited us over right then, so we taught K. and put him on date! Then we ate dinner, taught an excommunicated member, and a less active family that has been come back to church, then taught H.

Wednesday we started exchanges, I stayed in the area and Elder Bower came to be with me. We were able to find a new investigator which was great. We taught a couple less actives and our investigator J.

Thursday morning I had to go to a meeting so elder Bower worked with another district leaders companion while we went to the meeting, then after the excuse we taught K. again, which went pretty good. He definitely seems to be getting more enthusiastic about the gospel. We worked till dinner then split up after dinner, and we found some super good potentials!

Friday. Ha. So I can't give too much detail about Friday and Saturday, other than we spent more time with the Mission President than any missionary wants to, but basically it ended with Elder Simmons getting Emergency Transferred out. My new companion is great!

Elder Westover is from Washington state and has been out for 3 weeks! So I'm training which has been fun so far!

Sunday was pretty long, we were slammed all day. We taught a family, the dad of which is less active and has been coming back to church. Great family.  And today has already had a rough start, we had to give our car back :( but that's good because the weight gain season is coming up! Haha.

Well I hope all your weeks weren't as crazy as mine! Here's a crappy pic of elder Westover and me with dinner last night!

Love

-Elder Ray

Elder Westover and Elder Ray at a dinner appointment

"This Week was Crazy"

October 17, 2016

This week was crazy.

Monday after shopping we decided to go on a drive, so we took the Sliderolla up Butterfield Canyon to the Kennecot Mine overlook. That was a pretty fun drive, it felt good just to...drive... after that we played some sports with our zone then taught C. and G. a recent convert lesson. 

Tuesday we had District Meeting, the zone leaders were evaluating another district meeting so it was just Elder Simmons and I, and Elder Brock and Elder Bower. It was a bit odd having a tiny district like that again. We had dinner with the nicest people I've ever met, and they weren't members of the church. Sadly they were not interested in hearing our message. We still shared it, still invited them to be baptized, they still said no :/ After that we made visits with Ward mission leaders. We taught an excommunicated member who is waiting to get baptized again, then a less active fam that's been coming to church. Then we taught G. (a former investigator) and put her on date for November! Hopefully she can stay on date and we don't have to drop her again haha.

Wednesday I had a District Leader Training meeting all morning which was awesome. I took away a ton of things I can do to improve. After dinner, we had RTC (real time correlation, i.e., visits with Ward mission leaders). We taught a great guy, K., whose not a member, but we couldnt get him to commit to letting us back to teach him again. Oh well.

Thursday we had a mission tour, where Elder Michael Ringwood, a General Authority Seventy, came and taught us all day. It was pretty great. After dinner we took a 20 yr old out with us who is prepping for a mishmash and taught a couple less actives.

Friday we went on exchanges, I went to elder Brock's area and elder Bower came here to be with Elder Simmons. They went pretty good, we were able to put someone on date for baptism in their area.

Saturday morning in their area we helped Mia and her mom move, they moved from my stake into elder Brock's stake so we were on the receiving end of the move. Then we finished the exchange and worked hard till the end of the day. We were pretty exhausted which is always the best.

Sunday we did church all day. Then taught W., a less active who is coming back to church, then spoke at a mission preview activity for a Ward, then taught S., then hit the hay. 

Peace fam

Love

-Elder Ray

Seth at the Kinnecot Mine Overlook

Wisdom Teeth, a Bike Rack, and a Baptism

October 10, 2016

Well as you all know, Monday Elder Simmons got his wisdom teeth out. It was possibly the best day ever. I'll send some video. Later in the evening elder Simmons stayed with some members and I went and taught M. and H. with her family. 

Tuesday morning we had a zone meeting but elder Simmons was still way out of it so he stayed with a member again and I went to the meeting, then we didn't do much till dinner. After dinner I dropped elder Simmons off at a members house and I went out with some Ward mission leaders and taught some less actives. 

Wednesday morning we had Interviews with President Lansing, and we got a bike rack for the car! So now (when Elder Simmons gets better) we can haul our bikes to parts of our area and bike them. We taught a Christian pastor whose knowledge of the Bible is way too much for his own good. He refuses to view the Bible any differently than he currently does. Oh well. Elder Simmons worked with me that night but it beat him good. 

Thursday we had a zone leadership meeting so I got together with another District Leader and we went, leaving elder Simmons with the other district leaders companion. Then we visited some people and had M.'s baptismal interview.

Friday we had weekly planning, then elder Simmons had another Dentist appointment to see what the next step with his teeth is. We got home around 2 and did call ins till our lesson with S., then we went to help some elders in my district fix their bikes so they could get to dinner, then had dinner, then we taught E. 

Saturday... BAPTISM! M. got baptized, it was killer. One of the best parts was probably that her mom (who is catholic) said it was one of the most powerful things she has ever seen. Too bad they are moving next week! That's okay though, the other missionaries can get her:) After the baptism we went and had refreshments at M.'s house and then went out to work. We were pedal to the metal all evening, it was a good feeling since we haven't done that in a while. At about 8:30! We had the impression to go by a part member family, so we did. We knocked and a large African American guy answered and invited us in. Elder Simmons was happy. He is not a member, and his wife is active. We had a great visit and Taught him the restoration, he clearly felt the spirit. It was a great end of the night. Apparently we caught him just right as he got home, he is a truck driver so he is hardly ever home, it was a miracle!

Sunday was great but long. President and sister Lansing showed up to one of our sacrament meetings which was really cool. They bore their testimonies, we bore ours, and pretty much everyone else who bore their testimony bore it on missionary work, the spirit was so strong! But the best part is that W. showed up. W.'s wife and kids are super active and super strong, but W. hasn't been to church in over a year. About a week ago we set up an appointment with his family to teach them (him, mainly) Sunday evening, so it was so cool to see him come to church before we even committed him! After dinner we went to W.'s house and taught them. The spirit was so strong! It is so cool to see how the lord prepares people to come back to him, I know that we were foreordained to teach W. We were able to connect with him so well, he opened up to us in a way that perfectly allowed us to boldly testify and commit him to come to church. After that we taught S. again. 

I am so grateful for the spirit. It's presence in my life has greatly strengthened my faith. The Joseph Smith translation of Romans 4;16 reads "Therefore, he are justified of faith and works, through Grace." This prevents us from believing that faith is merely a passive belief, resulting in no change to our behavior, loyalty, or character. Paul saw faith as a principle of power and action. 

While our works do not justify us from sin, it is only Christ's atonement which can, our works signify our faith. To be blunt, if your works are not righteous due to your faith, then you have no faith, you have a passive belief.  Moroni 7:38 says that "No man can be saved, according to the words of Christ, save they shall have faith in his name." That is true. So have faith on him, and act according to that faith. If you do, "Ye can enter into the rest of the Lord, from this time henceforth until ye shall rest with him in heaven."

Love 

-Elder Ray

Elders Ray and Simmons with Mia at her baptism

South Jordan Zone

Prepare the Way!

October 3, 2016

Dear everyone, 

Coming to you live from the oral surgeon where elder Simmons is getting his wisdom Chompers out!

It's been a quality week. Monday we got news that we both stay together again! Sadly we still had to pack up and move because our apartment contract ran out, so we moved to a much, much smaller basement. But that's okay! We spent most of the day packing and then taught E. and his family and a couple other people. 

Tuesday morning we moved everything over to the new crib and then went out to work. We met with the zone leaders and the other district leaders to go over a few things. We taught J. that night, who we haven't taught in a while. He said he feels bad because he said he slacked on reading and praying, and he noticed his faith and spirituality decreasing. But it's cool that he could recognize the difference in his life when he follows the commandments or doesn't. We taught a few other lessons then hit the hay. 

Wednesday we had district meeting, and I'm back to having two other companionships in my district which is nice. Still a small district but I get a bit more participation which is appreciated. One of the new missionaries in the mission/my district is from Queen Creek. Represent! We taught some Jehovah's Witnesses that said we are horrible people for celebrating Halloween. C'mon... I like candy... Then we taught a few other people. 

Thursday and Friday we taught some people... we taught M., she's almost ready! The baptism is on Saturday  we are stoked! She knows more about the gospel than any other kid her age I know, and she wasn't even raised in the church. 

Saturday was general conference! We watched the first session at the High Counselor over missionary work's house, then went out to work, then came back to his house and watched a bit of the pm session, then got ready to head downtown to view priesthood session in the Conference Center. We took T. (H.'s dad) and J. It was really neat, T. struggles with the word of wisdom and President Monson's talk just hammered on that, it was great.  

Sunday we had breakfast with the newly created 12th ward's bishopric, and then stayed and watched the first session with the Bishop and his family. Then between sessions we went out and worked some more, then watched the second session with the Batman family. We worked hard the rest of the day and taught S. at the end of the night. We invited about 20 people to be baptized over the weekend, it was a blast. 

I think that the best part about this week was getting to go to the conference center during priesthood session. This was my third time going, and every time you have a similar experience. The center is huge and there's over 20,000 people there, but the minute President Thomas S. Monson walks into the room, you feel it. The second he walks into the room the Holy Ghost teaches you that that man is called by God to be the Prophet of the World, and I testify that it is true.  Amos 3:7 tells us that "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.' Today God is doing his work on the earth and as Daniel taught in chapter 2 verse 44, "The God of heaven shall set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever." This is the Last Days, The Final Dispensation, and we must prepare the way for the second coming of the Messiah. 

Have a good week everyone, prepare the way!

Love 

-Elder Ray

Elder Simmons with T. and Seth at the Priesthood Session

Elder Simmons and Elder Ray at the Conference Center

Ebola

September 26, 2016

This week was even slower than last. The new diagnosis for elder Simmons is Ebola. When we told the mission presidents wife that the doctor said elder Simmons had Ebola she almost had a heart attack, that was pretty funny. 

Monday we got hair cuts, then had a zone activity. We played frisbee and touch rugby. Then we taught E., Z., and L. They are great! It seems like the only one with any concerns is E.'s wife, J. And yet she is the member in the family. Haha. 

Tuesday we had district meeting. My district almost doubled in size because the Daybreak stake got an MLS couple. After the meeting elder Simmons was dying so we took him to instacare. They told him that everything in his body was inflamed. Haha. Then after dinner we taught a few less actives. 

Wednesday we went on exchanges, I went to the Daybreak stake to be with elder Cady and elder Craig came to be with elder Simmons. 

Thursday we taught R., the Christian pastor we have been teaching for a few weeks. Great guy! He has some crazy desire to seek truth, but struggles with understanding that Christ gave priesthood authority by the laying on of hands. Then we taught some more less actives. 

Friday elder Simmons was sick all day,  but it was different than before, so we had Erik take him to the instacare again. They said nothing's wrong with him... 

Saturday we had lunch with Erik and taught him... not much else.

Sunday we left for meetings in the morning at 7:30, went to church till we sung in a primary program around 1, then stayed at church till a meeting at 4 with all the Ward mission leaders, then went to dinner with a Ward mission leaders fam. After that we talked to one of our investigators and set up an appointment, then taught S., a less active. 

We haven't gotten transfer calls yet but we are pretty sure we are staying here and together, because elder Simmons is getting some major dental reconstruction done soon and president doesn't wanna push that on another companion, so I'll probably be staying with him.  That'll be sick, I'll get to video him when he gets his wisdom teeth out next week. :)

Love

-Elder Ray

Seth with the Daybreak Zone in South Jordan

Leprosy

September 19, 2016

This week was pretty slow compared to most. Monday elder Simmons was sick, but we hit up the batting cages with the Daybreak elders anyways, then had dinner with a less active lady and shared a message with her, then met with our high counselor. 

Tuesday we had district meeting, then went straight to the dentist so elder Simmons could get some cavities filled, then we had dinner with the Batman family, then did real time correlation. We had a lesson with E. and his two kids, L. and Z., are now on date for baptism! Then we taught a few less actives with Ward missionaries and called it a night. 

Wednesday we helped H.'s dad T. move some old couches outta their apartment and some new ones in. I tell ya... All these new apartments are so 'Space efficient'... It is not easy getting couches through those stairways. Elder Simmons was still sick so he almost passed out a few times. #trooper. Then we started exchanges with the zone leaders. I got to stay in the area with elder Craig and Elder Simmons went to Elder Bouchillon's area. We taught a bunch of lessons Wednesday, we picked up a new instigator named S. (say it in an ozzy voice), then taught H. who all of a sudden came up with a bunch of concerns, then taught a 19 year old kid named S. who has fetal alcohol syndrome so he is essentially 10. S. is awesome though because he has a true desire to make his life better and discover if God is there. In the past couple weeks of meeting with him he has gone from hating life and believing there is no God, to loving life and knowing God is there. It's so cool to see the change the gospel helps people undergo. After dinner we taught a couple less actives and our investigator M. who is super solid. She knows everything already which is rad!

Thursday morning after studies we didn't have much time because elder Craig needed to leave to go to the temple with one of his recent converts at like 11, so we just booked it out of the apartment right after studies to head to knock on a door or two. We saw a girl at the park with some kids and went to talk to her and found out that she is a member but usually doesn't go to church cuz she spends time with her Fiancé that has started to resist going to church. We were able to just share the blessings of putting God first and she told us how good she felt talking to us about that. It is amazing to see the spirit testify of truth even in the most casual situations to help God's children make correct choices. After we ended the exchanges elder Simmons was, you guessed it, sick, so we didn't do much till after dinner, we tried to go out and work but he was too sick so he went home with a split and I went with a member and taught E. and his Family the plan of salvation. They all had a ton of good questions which is always a good sign!

Friday was extra crappy, elder Simmons was too sick to get outta bed so I did weekly planning by myself then did call ins till about 2:30, then we had dinner just drop off food, then we tried to walk to the church to get our bikes to head to an appointment. When we got to the church elder Simmons immediately went to throw up, then threw up two more times before we left, so we rode the bikes back home in defeat. We weren't able to find someone to stay home with elder Simmons and someone to come out with me so we stayed in the rest of the night. 

Saturday was pretty similar, no luck finding people willing or able to split with us so we stayed home most of the day till the evening when we had a lesson with M., we were able to find a split to go to that. 

Sunday wasn't bad, we spoke in sacrament in the morning and elder Simmons didn't throw up till after sacrament meeting, then we went to a few different wards, and then practiced singing with a primary for their primary program next week. Should be fun. Then we taught H., had dinner with a less active Tongan family, taught S. again, and then hit the hay. 

We're onto the last week of the transfer again. Hopefully elder Simmons feels better so we can work hard! My diagnosis is that he has Leprosy.  

Have a killer week everyone. Don't forget to write!

Love 

-Elder Ray

Batting Cages on Pday

Elder Simmons at the Dentist

Utah Salt Lake City South Mission at 5 Mile Temple Run

No Mo Pokemon Go

September 8, 2016

Hokay, you guys get a bit of a break this P-Day, it was a short week. Thursday night a single lady signed up to feed us so we went to the north shore of the Oquirrh lake, where every Thursday night about 15 food trucks line up so people can come get food. After that we had real time correlation with a couple Ward mission leaders. 

Friday was pretty cool, we had the usual Friday planning and call ins till about 3, then after that we went to see a kid who just came home early from his mission. We know his family pretty well since they have helped a lot with teaching and fellowshipping Erik. Their son J. got his call to Argentina and within a couple weeks there in one of the roughest areas of the mission he got mugged a few times, apartment got robbed, and a ton of other crazy stuff that would be sure to freak you out if you just came from Utah a few weeks earlier. After that we went to an early dinner, then went to a nearby stakes Community Fair. The mission president wanted us to volunteer at it so us and a few other companionships did as well. It was an awesome change of schedule. I spent from about 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm making cotton candy, so you could say imma pro by now. If anyone needs a cotton candy maker for a party, I'm your guy. After that we cleaned up for a few minutes and I got to wander over to the car show to see a 50's ford pickup built into a class 8 desert truck. Cool shtuff. 

Saturday was a slow day. All of our lessons cancelled, after dinner we were headed to knock on a potentials door when we saw a family out doing some yard work. We offered to help which they took us up on, and while we were helping we learned that it was not their house, it was the dad's brother's house, and earlier that week he was accused of a pretty big crime so he couldn't go outside because  constantly news reporters were trying to photograph him. But, they needed their yard cleaned up because if they didn't have it clean by Monday the HOA would slap them with a fat fine. (Daybreak literally looks like something out of the Truman show.) Then the family that was outside had to leave at about 7 pm, so we were left to do it alone. So we were there till 9 and completely manicured this dude's yard. Looked pretty good at the end of the night if I do say so myself. So if you need full service yard care, I'm your guy! Haha 

Sunday morning at 8:45 we taught H. and her dad T. They're doing pretty good, H. is ready to get baptized but there's some issues with the family keeping it from happening soon. They are progressing... Just a little slower than optimal. Right now we're looking at a baptismal date early November. After that we had a regional conference, broadcast from he conference center to almost the whole valley, it was great. Bishop Waddell of the presiding bishopric, the General YWP Bonnie L. Oscerson, Elder Hallstrom of the 70, and elder Ballard of the quorum of the 12 Apostles all spoke. There was a huge emphasis on a ton of things that the world seems to struggle with today. Oh and I'm pretty sure elder Ballard condemned Pokemon Go and other video games. Take note, kids. After that we taught Erik, but about half way through the lesson his back started going crazy and he was in a ton of pain so we gave him a blessing and disbanded. We then went down the hill with a ward mission leader to contact a referral from the Spanish elders, and while we were down there we got the impression to go see S., a man we had talked to on the street earlier this week. We went by and were invited in, he lives there with his wife's parents, and their 4 kids (two of which are also married with kids). So it's a busy house. They are all members but we could tell they weren't active, so we shared a brief message, and at the end of the lesson the dad spoke up and said they as a family have been struggling spiritually and that we were an answer to their prayers. That's probably my favorite thing ever, just as our Prophet says, "to follow a prompting and later find out it was the fulfillment of someone else's prayers."   After that we taught H., and were able to have a member who spoke Mandarin there with us. 'Coincidentally' he moved in to the ward almost at exactly the same time we started teaching H. That's cool. 

So it was a great few days. The lord loves missionary work, that's all I gotta say. I hope we can catch the same vision!

Love
-Elder Ray

Making Cotton Candy at Community Fair

Elder Simmons and Elder Ray at Oquirrh Lake