Week 94. Better late then never

 Not going to lie. I totally forgot about this email

North Cascade Park - we had a half mission conference and the church owned park in North Cascades, Arlington. It was super cool and spiritual. It was also the day the new PMG came out. Right in the middle of our meeting. That was super exciting 

Friday - this morning our fire alarm went off twice. By that point we gave up trying to study and just went out to eat. Then later that evening we were having dinner with Daniel when this man came up to us and started talking. He was no longer active but talked to us about his mission and how he might be a little tipsy but it was okay because he blessed his beer. The man was hilarious, hopefully next time he talks to missionaries it won't be while he's drunk. 

Saturday services - we went to help a member move out and it was the best move ever. He didn't have that much and literally took 30 min for the loading and unloading at a storage unit. Then as we walked back, we saw a couple moving in and we helped them and they might show up to volleyball. It was fun

Sunday feels - wasn't feeling too great about myself and was really looking towards feeling the spirit at sacrament. But I didn't really feel too different afterwards. Then during a talk, I felt the Spirit say listen and I knew God was aware of me and loved me and my efforts. Best feeling ever

Spiritual Thought - Alma 37:6

"...that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass..."

That includes your efforts. Nothing we do would ever be enough, but because of the Atonement, Christ bridges that gap. You are always enough, and if you're having a hard time feeling that then reach out to Him. He wants you to know that and use His Atonement. I know and Sunday was just another reminder

I love ya, God loves you, and here is one pic I took and 2 that I stole from Facebook. Azalee made some of these posters and placed them around Seattle. She's lit. Y'all should help your missionaries, it would make their day 

Week 93. Cloudberries are bomb

 Hey Everyone! This week was cool and so is the spiritual thought so I hope you enjoy it all

Transfers - staying for another!! Love this ward. Even though all the students are gone our activities are popping off because everyone is free now. So we'll keep going

Dinner/Institute - instead of a full on dinner, it's just snacks now. This week was honey butter and bread. Best thing ever. And class was on the beginning of Christianity and how it separated from Judaism. It was super cool and wye opening and we talked about the parable of the new bottles for the new wine and what that meant. 

Elliot - after institute we got to talk to Elliott again. He's a physicist and very intellectual and trying to investigate the gospel on his own. We asked him how it was going and he explained how he learned about babies not needing baptism. We expounded on that and taught him some of the plan of salvation and he seemed so surprised. We gave him a pamphlet and asked if we could teach him more, and he said maybe. So we'll see. He's lit tho and he came to basketball 

MS - Multiple Sclerosis group gave us a call and asked for some service with inventorying their event signs. I wish I asked them how many signs there were but we got it all done in an hour and thirty. We sped at the end and we got done on time. I was very proud

Cloudberry Jam - and then there were cloudberries. They are a Scandinavian fruit that is apparently good. So of course we had to try them. Bought the jam, had a lesson with Caitlin, who's family is Swedish and ate. It was delicious. And we also got to share Helaman 5 with her and finding strength through trials. It was good and we will continue to help her with her goal towards baptism 

Camille - was someone getting taught by missionaries for 4 years but had lost contact for no reason. So we reached back out, met her for boba and will hopefully be teaching her more because her understanding of our doctrine is not as large as it should be. She's cool tho, and loves the Bible and took a Book of Mormon

Spiritual thought - in the Old Testament the children of Israel were given the law of Moses. It was very particular and had a ton of extra laws that all the Jews had to keep. And it explains in Galatians 3:10-13 that the law was given to show the need for a Savior. That the old law could not be kept perfectly and that a Savior was needed to redeem us. If you're going through something right now, don't forget to invite Jesus to be with you and help you, cause that's what He promised to do and He will as long as you'll let Him. 

Love y'all here are pics

Week 92. Pirates, Aliens, or Ghosts?

 So this question was asked before Elders Quorum on Sunday, about who you'd rather be kidnapped by. A poll went around and a dude explained that Pirates would probably be the best because you'd have the most insurance since they want to get ransom. While aliens are just going to use you for science experiments. But then I said it would be Ghosts aka spirit angels. Because if God is sending angels to take you back to Him why would you say no, and if they are evil spirits then you can just cast them out. 

Who do you think won the debate?

Gatorball - this made up game, mix of handball and soccer. The funny part was Niven sitting on the stage got hit 3 times. After each time he moved to a different spot and each time he got hit. It was kinda funny. Don't worry, no headshots 

Baptisms for the Dead - so the night before Azalee had spiraled very low in her mental/emotional well being, because she liked my companion and we set some boundaries in place to make sure things didn't get out of hand. She got embarrassed and yeah. The next day we try talking to her and she is doing slightly better and decides she's still going to the temple. It was a great time and afterwards she was back to her normal self. The temple is awesome

Apts stuff - so long story short. They got this better apt and we're going to go live in it. It's really nice but they are only keeping it until the lease ends in August because they're supposedly going to charge an extra grand. Seattle is crazy. Would not recommend living here, even if you're not broke because it will make you broke. 

Jeff - Jeff is the best. For context. We helped another person move in and being a young single adult you'd think they wouldn't have much stuff. And compared to a family moving, she didn't. But she also has no experience moving. Luckily her parents were there to help, hence Jeff. But this girl, living by herself, had a king sized bed and a 7'6" couch. The bed wasn't too bad, but the couch took an hour just by itself trying to get up the stairs and into her apt. That whole time, Jeff was cool, level headed, and figured out all the angles. All while carrying the majority of the weight. I aspire to be like Jeff. Don't worry Dad, I still want to be like you too. 

Last group Run - with all the students leaving that also means our running group has come to an end. We decided to go on one last run, also our longest. And as a departing gift, Kayla got us both American Rompers. They are amazing. I even saw someone take a picture of me while we ran. It was great. I loved it and now I'm going to wear it next p day

Temple Trip - anotha one. I love the temple. Our president is trying to have us go once a transfer and that is the coolest thing ever because there's no better place to be. Just getting there early and reading the Scriptures inside is a better experience. I encourage y'all to go 

Spiritual thought - 

Moroni 7:41 

"And what is it that ye shall hope for? Behold I say unto you that ye shall have hope through the atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection, to be raised unto life eternal, and this because of your faith in him according to the promise."

We talked about hope with one of our friends who felt life was harder than it should be with the Gospel in her life. And so we talked about how to focus our hope and let it light up our whole life. First comes knowledge, without understanding the Atonement of Christ there can be no hope. Faith is also necessary. Not only understanding but believing and trusting in it. With that knowledge and faith comes Hope. If you'd like to feel more hope in your life, I would implore you to study the Atonement of Christ and pray for the Spirit of God to confirm its truthfulness. It will change your life. 

I love you all. Here are pics

Week 91. Azalee’s Baptism!!

Hi. Another late week. My grandma said it best when the longer I put it off the harder it gets to write. Thanks Grandma, love ya. And thank you all for waiting, here are the highlights:

Kickball - we played kickball as a zone. District against district. We won of course and I had an awesome homerun and a slide into home. 

Caitlin - Ran with Caitlin on Monday. Had to call the whole zone to find an Elder to do it with me. Finally got Elder Burris, the deaf one, and it was fun. Afterwards we got burritos and she told us she wanted to be baptized June 17th. Super cool! 

 The next day, she talked with her mom, an evangelical, about how she wanted to be baptized and her mom just ripped into her. Told her we were a cult and that she should be smarter than that, tried guilt-tripping her and more. It sounded like a very unhealthy conversation. But Caitlin said she knows what she felt and that she needs to be baptized and that before she does she wants to try and explain it to her parents so they can at least respect her. She's a stud. 

3rd Service - Elder Niven forgot to tell me about this, so we got a text asking if we were on our way. We said yes and left immediately. Luckily other missionaries were notified and so it went fast and easy. It was loading up a uhaul for a less active and her non member husband. Super cool people and sad we didn't know about them before they left, but we gave the guy a book of Mormon to read on the way to their new home. Hopefully something good happens there 

Wednesday BBQ - had a great time there, lots of people came and some random people walked up and joined. Tried talking to everyone and invited them to come to other activities we'll see if anything happens tho. But Mos was the DJ, and the Hardmans grilled. 

Cookies with Moulding - another fun day of cookies. Went on splits with the APs. Elder Moulding and I did cookies. Our question was: what is your purpose in life; and we had some really awesome conversations with some people and also some odd ones. You know, the usual. So the odd one this week: this girl asked us if they were Mormon cookies. I said they were chocolate chip made by a Mormon. She was weird about it. Then her Dad hustled over, grabbed his daughter, and said as he pushed her away, There is no purpose to life and we don't want your cult cookies. I thought the last part was funny, but the first part was just sad to think about, especially how he said it infront of his daughter. Then what's the point? I'm glad we have a purpose, because with the knowledge it brings, life can become easier. Hopefully they realize that someday 

Restoration Lesson - Had a lesson with Kat, Kalya, Addi, and Azalee. We typically don't teach members the same lessons we teach friends, and even tho Azalee was there it was directed for the others. But it was super cool to just teach and discuss the points of the Restoration and the importance of Prayer. Something that really stuck out to me this week

Lothlorian Apt - we have to clean it so they can get rid of it, but the last people to live in it were Sisters. We had 8 bags of clothes donated and 6 bags of trash. It was insane. 

Azalee’s Baptism - Didn't have to fill a font, God covered that when He made the ocean. But we did get there early to help set up chairs and make sure everything was ready. We had the whole program at Bishops house and it was actually awesome. Other than missionaries and ward members we had Mos Caitlin, Danny (a friend some missionaries brought), and 2 Sisters from the Seattle Mission that first contacted Azalee. They thought it was crazy we got permission for an ocean baptism and we thought it was crazy they got permission to come to it. 

There were other people at the beach and our 2nd counselor Larry talked with a lot of them. It was super beautiful and awesome. Pics below

Spiritual Thought - I think God was trying to teach me a lesson these past few weeks. We're supposed to daily plan and set up a detailed schedule of things to do. But recently that schedule has to continue to be edited and moved as random things come up. That kind of stresses me out because I feel like I'm missing things and not getting the things I planned on done and so now I need to find a way to fit it in.

 But what I think He was trying to teach me some more faith. Faith that what I'm doing in the moment matters most, that sometimes God has us go off the plans to be there for someone who needs it more, and that no matter what I'm doing as long as it's for God, it's good. 

Proverbs 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 

In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Love y'all and hope those scriptures hit home to some of you

Pics

Also ran into a trash can with my car. And so help me, if I get crap for this...