Engagement party?

 ヤッホ~皆さん！

This was a super good week! So much craziness happened haha, I honestly don't know where to start

So I'm staying another transfer here in Midland, but my companion is leaving to go train up a new missionary. He's pretty excited, he was getting tired of some of the stuff we do here haha. My new companion is Elder Holgreen, and he seems super sick! Can't wait to meet him tomorrow

Our ward rocks, we are some lucky ducks to get to be here! They do so much for the people we teach.

We met this guy a couple weeks ago, and he is probably the fastest progressing person I've ever met. He came to church in a suit, had read all of 1 Nephi that week, then we met this week and he decided he wants to be baptized on the 9th of April. It was crazy. He's YSA age, so we took him there, but hopefully he didn't enjoy it, that way he stays with us ;)

The two kids that are getting baptized this weekend are doing really good too! They're sweet, we went to a fake engagement party their step-dad was throwing for his son, and it was a good ol time. He's progressing really well too. Never expected it, but he's dropping coffee cold turkey, so LET'S GOOOO!!!

Also side note, I'm working on my visa stuff for Japan! I had a small hiccup because I lost my vaccine card, but we got it figured out!

The Atonement of Jesus Christ is real in case you forgot :) I've been studying it a lot, because it's not often that you hear a strong testimony that isn't about The Atonement. 

愛している！またね

New phone, who dis?

 

The Zone

どうもジョーンズ長老です！

Well hello there everyone! I hope you had a good week :)

I got a loaner phone from the mission this week because my phone stopped working with the SIM card, so that was a rip, but now I've got a nice one battery life hehe

It was a really good week here though. We had a couple good exchanges, which was fun! We did a little more service and I found a new little trick. When you're cleaning out a nasty yard that the people don't care about, put all the metal you find in your truck and take it to the scrap yard! We made 91 bucks from it this week... but we gave it to the member we were helping out haha

We met some pretty cool people this week That came to church too! We also almost had to give talks  

Other than that, nothing too crazy this week

天のお父さまはご自分の子供たちを愛しています。計画があると知っています。

またね

My companion getting a fresh cut

Some cool taxidermy animals

Service on service on service

 

Craft with the bois

こんにちは皆さん！

This week was pretty crazy. We did tons of service so I'm all burnt up today haha. We helped out gardening at a super coop nature museum here, taught a young women's activity, helped clean a super nasty member's yard, helped a couple missionaries move, helped clean a garage for 6 hours, helped vaccinate animals, then helped a member move. It was so much work haha

We also found out that a part member family we've been working with has two kids that aren't baptized, but they couldn't be more excited to! So they're on for the 26th :)

Nothing else super exciting happened, but there's lots of good stuff coming ;) 

I hope you're all looking forward to general conference next month! It will be so uplifting

またね

Sumo guy I found at service

My quest once I get to Japan

Funerals, zone conference and more!

 

A jackalope!

どうもジョーンズ長老です！

This was an interesting week! We had a ton of stuff happen. We had zone conference, interviews, exchanges, a funeral, and a bunch of service! Craziness haha

I had someone yell at me for the first time... if it was a random person it woulda been whatever, but it was the lady that just accepted a date to be baptized... her family is pretty anti, so that was rough. We'll keep trying with her hopefully!

We saw a lot of success this week still and had some great progress with our people. Our members have been so helpful.

I can't think of anything in particular that was cool that happened... the funeral of our member was pretty good though, they're a good family

I'll leave you with the words of a lady we're teaching, "when the time is right, things will happen."

またね

My and my companion with super power

We have more funerals than baptisms in our ward

 

A Chourou eating a churro... but it just looks like ice cream

どうもジョーンズ長老です！

Wow so much happened this week... it was nuts.

Our friend Breanna accepted a baptismal date and she was so excited! She is a single mother of 4 kids, ages 5,4,3, and 3! Plus she's doing college right now. Golly she's one busy lady, but she's awesome.

Elder Cottrell got food poisoning on Tuesday, so we were doing a bunch of mini exchanges to keep working, while letting him rest. We had to go pick up an Elder that was returning to this mission from Russia, because of everything happening over there.

Then one morning we went to help out an old couple in our ward. We were cleaning up their backyard so that it would be ready for a wedding of one of their kids... but he was feeling really bad and he couldn't remember anything, so we gave him a blessing and pretty soon before we left the ambulance came and picked him up. He's the second member to pass away in this ward since I got here! We visited their family on Sunday and got to talk to them.

Someone got baptized on Saturday and we were able to invite a lot of our friends to that which was awesome! And after the baptism we went to watch some baseball!!

Just kidding... kind of. One of our friends is a former pitcher for the Pirates and he coaches youth baseball here, so he invited us to watch the tournament. He was real excited to see us haha

Anyway yeah it was a super busy, but good week. Way too much happened haha

Bye!

Many a meeting

 

Japanese snacks my family sent

こんにちは皆さん！

Lots of good meetings this week! We had transfers on Tuesday and I got to see some old faces, so that was way fun

We also had a meeting up in Lubbock again, so that was a nice long, tiring drive, but I saw a bunch of people I've missed a lot. Good old Burton Chourou was there!

We taught some really cool people. It's cool to talk to people who really care about what you're teaching. We're teaching someone who has probably been my favorite person to teach on my mission. Her name is Kacie, she was referred to us a while ago by a member in another ward. She has some questions and doubts, but it doesn't stop her from seeking answers. She even goes to different wards in the city if she can't make it to our time! The gospel really changes lives.

A little girl Elder Richardson and I found a while back got baptized this weekend too! She the cutest little thing, she was so excited. I'm glad I got to play a part, even though we passed her off to some other elders here

I've been learning a lot this week, listening to a SUPER intelligent guy who discusses the Gospel with people who attack the church. Even if we remove ourselves from our preset positions and look at things objectively, the Gospel just makes sense

Here's poem from a talk by Elder Cook

"O, one might reach heroic heights 

 By one strong burst of power.

 He might endure the whitest lights

 Of heaven for an hour;—.

 But harder is the daily drag,

 To smile at trials which fret and fag,

 And not to murmur—nor to lag.

 The test of greatness is the way

 One meets the eternal Everyday"

またね

Happy early birthday Iwaasa Chourou!

Skatin boi

 どうもジョーンズ長老です！

This was a pretty good week here in Midland, lots and lots of teaching!

We have some really cool people that we're teaching now, so hopefully this next transfer we'll be able to see them progress toward baptism. We have so many people that are like 1 step away haha.

We got to go on Exchanges with some Elders here which was really fun, I got to bike again! It's been a while since I've done that so uh... it was a tad rough at first

Hmm... what else happened... I skated on P-day, so that was fun. I got a little cut up though haha

We were really busy this week but I seriously can't think of anything else to write hahaha. We're staying together down here for another transfer so that's great! 

OH YEAH! I forgot it snowed this week! That was exciting

"If you want a thing bad enough

To go out and fight for it, 

Work day and night for it, 

Give up your peace, and your sleep and your time for it; 

If only your desire, 

Makes your aim higher

Never to tire of it, 

If life seems all empty and useless without it

And all that you dream and you scheme is about it, 

If gladly you’ll sweat for it, 

Fret for it, 

Pray with all your strength for it, 

If you’ll only go after the thing that you want, 

With all your capacity, 

Strength and sagacity, 

Faith, hope, and confidence; stern pertinacity, 

If neither poverty, nor pain, or famished and gaunt, 

Nor sickness or pain, 

to body or brain, 

Can turn you away from the Aim that you want, 

If dogged and grim you besiege and beset it, 

You’ll get it."

Heres another poem from Vaughn J. Featherstone for ya

またね！

Elder Joseph Hyrum Smith on a tricycle

It snowed!

Visiting the shrine of Mary once again