It's been another crazy fast and long week. I really don't know where it went. Sunday rolled around and it really threw me for a loop. I looked at Elder W Saturday night and said "Woah. Tomorrow's Sunday. Wasn't it just Sunday like yesterday?" It was, at the same time, very long. The only reasonable explanation for the length as well as the time dilation is that I must be going light speed.
Anyway - I'm going to try and give y'all a little bit more detail this week so we're going to do it blow by blow.
MONDAY (31st) It was preparation day. I felt better but still not a 100% (I had been struggling with some sort of fever/stomach something). I emailed y'all and did regular old preparation: wrote some Christmas thank you cards (Grandma and Grandpa- yours should be getting there soon - I didn't have you address and knew a letter would be coming so I waited a few days), shined my shoes, shopped, and did loads of laundry. As it was new years, the N's invited us over for dinner and fireworks. Bishop N met us at a Mexican restaurant called the Poor Mexican which was kind of an oxymoron. As for being a poor Mexican, it was quite nice inside. I looked at the menu and asked for the carne asada. I'd heard about it and I knew carne meant beef and asada I think was cooked. The rest of the N's arrived and we enjoyed some pleasant small talk. My order came and it was a giant steak with tons of beans and rice with tortillas. It was a large amount of food. Bishop N looked over and asked "What did you get?" It was really good though. Afterwards we went over to the Bishop's house (he kind of lives out in the sticks and I think that made it okay) for fireworks. They had bought a MASSIVE amount of fireworks. He's a lawyer and can do stuff like that but they filled up the back of their SUV with fireworks - the fun kind. They were about the size of a large soup can and covered in gold foil but they were crazy. They fired several fireworks way up in the air that exploded with big bangs and crackles. It was right overhead and when the wind changed you could feel the bits hit you. It was way loud.
TUESDAY (1st) I felt much better and we talked to many new people. We had district meeting in Daphne which, as usual, was quite good. We went out for lunch as a district as it was the new year afterwards to Panera Bread (it's like a fancy soup and sandwich shop for hipsters and healthy people). I got an avocado and bacon sandwich. It sounded good and like the sandwich might be healthy enough to offset the bacon. It was good though. We decided to try and visit G W which was strange as he works everyday until late in the evening (super cool guy and loves the gospel - just has trouble coming to church because of work and things). We met his step son, C, who we had a great conversation with and gave him a copy of the Book of Mormon. I'm really hoping and praying he reads it. Super nice and very smart kid. He's going to college in criminal justice. We helped a less active/active member move something and he fed us dinner. We had a good chat with him and got a better feel for his background and who he is and why he only comes to church some of the time. We met several other people some of whom we've met before and had trouble catching. It was a good day.
WEDNESDAY (2nd) was another good day (I had all good days this week). I did the normal stuff like exercise, shower, breakfast, studies, clean for a bit, then head out. I finished 3rd Nephi though and went into Mormon during studies. We visited several people but no one was really home. We had lunch at Firehouse where I had a steak n' cheese number 10. It was the same sandwich I had when I first arrived in Florida and we were headed out to Georgia. It was much less greasy and smaller than I remember but still quite good. We had the wonderful opportunity to go on splits with Brother L, the high priest group leader, who is a wonderful guy. We went to Robertsdale and visited several folks down there and he really hit it off well with one of the LA/PM families we're working with. They were just about to head out but we were able to say hello for a few minutes and Brother G really liked Brother L. We visited some less actives who we thought might have moved. She had moved. We got a very angry phone call from the lady that lives there now. Missionaries had stopped by previously and she had told them the lady had moved but they didn't pass it on clearly to us. We visited another wonderful family - the P's (they came to all three hours of church yesterday - yay!). We helped out the Young Men's leader and helped teach Preach my Gospel. We're working on helping them know how to share what they believe and be prepared for missions. It went well in my opinion and we were able to pass out cookies afterwards (we have SO much candy and cookies right now). In hindsight, telling the boys to take all the cookies was a mistake (there was no way we could have eaten that many cookies. They were those danish shortbread butter cookies that comes in the tin around Christmas time. Some of the boys walked away with 7 to 10 of the little white paper cups with about 4 or 5 cookies each. I hope their parents didn't know it was us that provided the multitude of cookies.
THURSDAY (3rd) is the hardest day from a mental standpoint. We had weekly planning for most of the day which seems to always take 4 hours. We helped out at a local food bank warehouse. It was an interesting peek into Elder B's past life (he worked in a warehouse for a year before coming out on his mission). We moved pallets from one spot to the other spot and stacked cans on other cans but my favorite was moving chicken into a freezer. Poor Elder W donned the large coat and was inside the freezer. I handed him the large boxes of chicken to stack inside the freezer. I looked on the gauge and it was about 10 F or so in there. Luckily, Elder W wasn't too phased (Utah people...). We showered and got onto weekly planning until dinner at the H's. We had delicious sweet chicken black bean burritos and of course rolls. We have rolls every single time we go over there because Elder W loves them so much and she makes delicious rolls. The weekly coordination meeting soon commenced and we quickly ran through everything as we had to get to the church by 7:15 for splits with Brother E. We visited the A's and discussed with them about coming back to church and reading their scriptures. Wonderful family and it was good to finally met Brother A (he had been suffering from heart problems and when we visited them and moved them a few weeks prior, he had been absent). He looked good and said he felt great which was wonderful news. It was a good visit and Brother E was a big help. He's a great guy and pretty funny too. We came back and I learned that Bishop C was in the building as he had been giving seminary instruction (he's in charge of seminary/institute stuff for the area). I went in to say hello and walked in and he asked, "Could you help me give a blessing?" We did so. It was quite neat how it worked out. I had a nice chat with him and it was good to see him again. He's a great guy and I really liked what he said "Man- Elder Carlson. We miss you buddy. We only had you for 6 weeks! We got gypped!" I laughed and said "Yeahhh. I mean, No. Elder B and Elder T are great guys". We gave another blessing to someone else as they were really struggling. I hope we made a difference for him.
GRRR... running out of time.
FRIDAY (4th) was President S day. Any day is a good day when you're around that guy. We visited some people in the morning and met him around 1pm. We had asked him if he wanted to do lunch since he usually tries to do that. Even if we eat before he still takes us to lunch. We called and he said that would be great. We told him, "This time we're paying for us though". He laughed "hahahah....no". We had a good lunch at Chick-fil-A (for those of you in Oregon and Utah - it's a restaurant that sells chicken sandwiches and lemonade. That's about it though. I did had a chocolate peppermint milk shake that was quite good. We visited many folks and really made some good headway on some of them. President S was very kind and drove us all the way out into the sticks to see some folks. President S is one of those who truly has charity. I've never met someone who didn't like him. The best part is he's really humble about it. He was the stake president in Mobile for about 10 years and was released from that a few months ago. A few hours after he was released, he was called as the first counselor in the mission presidency. As he says, "There's no rest for the wicked." He's a great guy and I love him to pieces. Anyway, we visited all sorts of folks- some of whom were not well or busy and asked us to come back and some of whom we were able to visit with. We even saw B who is someone we're working with who is a bit rough around the edges. He did a lot of crazy stuff before he came around and really gained a testimony of Christ but he's a great guy and is very nice to us. He's working on reading the Book of Mormon and really felt something when we gave it to him. I think he has a long way to go but he can make it. We met T's wife and she was WAY more receptive and just opened up. We gave her a Book of Mormon and promised her some blessings if she read it as she's having a rough time. We also met her son who's good friends with one of the ward member's son who is on his mission in Albania right now.
SATURDAY (5th) was very very interesting. The highlight of the day was getting 4 letters and going to Catholic mass. I received a wedding invitation from he-who-was-Elder O and, after closer inspection, learned he had been married on Thursday. The thought of him being married really weirded me out and still does. I hope he's happy though. He looked happy. =) We met with Father B and invited him to Fast and Testimony meeting. He said he would think about it. He has been talking about us going to Catholic mass and suggested we go to the one in Fairhope. The time for the mass worked out just right and (perhaps jokingly) Bishop N asked us to go to another church and just sit there and just see what happens. We did so and stayed quiet. Lots of standing, sitting, kneeling, and singing. It was a tad bit confusing as their hymn book wasn't in order and there was a lot of ritual to it. Lots of memorized and read stuff. The message was good, short, and simple. It was about living our faith and keeping our lives simple. It was nice. Anyway, we also met this very old lady in this very odd looking house that was the same number as the one next to it. She had huge glasses and we talked to her for a bit and she kept saying, "OOooooHHH! How INter-e-sting! Where's your temple?". She was funny and we offered our help if she needed anything which she appreciated. "Sunday is a good day for worship".
SUNDAY (6th) was a great day but as usual, quite busy. Father B came to church! I think he enjoyed it. It was his second time. We had a meeting afterwards about the 'To the Rescue' efforts but it kind of got off track about improving sacrament meeting which was good. About half the people that attend are there by 9:00. It was funny because Stake President J (the one from Corvallis, Oregon) popped in and asked what we were doing. Someone quickly said "succession". He smiled and said, "Plotting my overthrow? Please do!" It was a funny moment. We went to one of the B's boys baptism as he turned 8 and Brother B invited all his friends. We talked with them and it was a wonderful baptism. I hope they felt something. Two of the B boys played a duet- one on the piano and one on the oboe. They're 14 and 10 but it was beautiful. It was that baptism song that they always play that I love. I almost cried. =) We went to the A's for dinner (pork chops, zucchini squash, and rice = delicious). We had splits with Brother W and we gave a lady a blessing who was having surgery and visited the W boys. They weren't at church today but I think they weren't feeling well. We had a good visit. The W's are a great family. Sister W is just fantastic.
That's all I got. Hope you enjoyed the detail.
Sorry but I didn't really take any pictures this week. Besides, this week flew by so quick they would have been blurry anyways.
I love y'all! Have a happy new year.
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
Monday, January 7, 2013
Monday, December 31, 2012
Shiver Me Timbers!
Well hello!
It's been a very fun week and a very rough week.
It was Christmas and I had a wonderful time. We had present time, skyping, dinner, a tornado, and everyone we talked to was quite nice (yes we still proselytized). People asked us "Y'all work on Christmas?" "Yes Ma'am! It's Christmas and what better time to represent our Lord?" (They also had been asking the past few weeks if we were headed home and were often quite taken aback when we explained 2 years meant 2 years). It was a wonderful holiday and I enjoyed it.
We had weekly planning on Wednesday on account of the weather (we were going to have zone training but it was moved to Thursday on account of the weather). It was odd doing the planning on Wednesday instead of the usual Thursday but we did it. We chiseled at it for many hours until it was completed. It took a lot out of us and our day but we finished it and went on our way to get stuff done.
I woke up Thursday very cold. I knew we would be inside for training for a part of the day with suits on so I wasn't too worried about having to be outside in the morning. But as our morning commenced, I was really cold. So cold, I was shivering! I put on my black long-sleeve sweater vest and wore that underneath my suit. The meeting was fantastic but I was still cold! We mainly talked about our new goal as a mission in terms of convert baptisms and what we need to do to get there. The three main areas of improvement that were highlighted were removing distractions, being obedient, and helping people actually progress. We had Steak and Shake with Elder J and Elder C afterwards (it just worked out with the ride situation - I'd explain if I had more time) which was fun. I wasn't hungry by that point so I just got a small sandwich. I think I ate a part of that and some fries and was done. It tasted good.
We did more stuff but as the day wore on I just didn't feel any better. I took some Ibuprofen for the headache and other stuff going on (stiffness and general ickyiness - I'm sparing you a lot of unpleasant details) and that helped. We had dinner at the E's - wonderful family. One of the E's, T is a young man who goes out with us often and is going on a mission soon to Brazil. He's pretty cool. Anyway, dinner was quite nice but I wasn't really feeling well enough to eat and wasn't really hungry so I mentioned that Sister E who was very understanding so that was nice. Later on she took my temperature (she asked and kind of insisted so I said okay - it was one of those ear checker thingys). I had a fever! So we went out and talked to some more people and contacted some folks in the neighborhood.
I woke the next day even worse and we decided it would be best if I rested that day. It was a good decision as I was feeling even worse.
I'm mostly out of it now but I have some lingering effects. Whatever got me got me but I did learn an interesting lesson. I am now grateful for hunger. You don't know you would ever be grateful for it but I learned that is really hard to make yourself eat something. I hadn't eaten in a while and figured it might be a good idea to try and get something in there or I'm just not going to have any energy. I tried eating some bread and it was extremely hard. I do sort of have an appetite now. It's gradually coming back (I had lunch yesterday and had most of breakfast today). I'm making progress.
Anyway, sorry to bum y'all out. It was kind of a boring week.
The pictures are pretty self-explanatory. The aftermath of Christmas, the skyping laptop, Elder W skyping, and me with a stocking.
This is true. I've heard many stories this week of the gospel blessing and transforming peoples lives. It can do that same for you.
Love you all.
(PS mom - I got an attaboy from this super nice older baptist couple. They told me to tell you that they said that to me)
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
It's been a very fun week and a very rough week.
It was Christmas and I had a wonderful time. We had present time, skyping, dinner, a tornado, and everyone we talked to was quite nice (yes we still proselytized). People asked us "Y'all work on Christmas?" "Yes Ma'am! It's Christmas and what better time to represent our Lord?" (They also had been asking the past few weeks if we were headed home and were often quite taken aback when we explained 2 years meant 2 years). It was a wonderful holiday and I enjoyed it.
We had weekly planning on Wednesday on account of the weather (we were going to have zone training but it was moved to Thursday on account of the weather). It was odd doing the planning on Wednesday instead of the usual Thursday but we did it. We chiseled at it for many hours until it was completed. It took a lot out of us and our day but we finished it and went on our way to get stuff done.
I woke up Thursday very cold. I knew we would be inside for training for a part of the day with suits on so I wasn't too worried about having to be outside in the morning. But as our morning commenced, I was really cold. So cold, I was shivering! I put on my black long-sleeve sweater vest and wore that underneath my suit. The meeting was fantastic but I was still cold! We mainly talked about our new goal as a mission in terms of convert baptisms and what we need to do to get there. The three main areas of improvement that were highlighted were removing distractions, being obedient, and helping people actually progress. We had Steak and Shake with Elder J and Elder C afterwards (it just worked out with the ride situation - I'd explain if I had more time) which was fun. I wasn't hungry by that point so I just got a small sandwich. I think I ate a part of that and some fries and was done. It tasted good.
We did more stuff but as the day wore on I just didn't feel any better. I took some Ibuprofen for the headache and other stuff going on (stiffness and general ickyiness - I'm sparing you a lot of unpleasant details) and that helped. We had dinner at the E's - wonderful family. One of the E's, T is a young man who goes out with us often and is going on a mission soon to Brazil. He's pretty cool. Anyway, dinner was quite nice but I wasn't really feeling well enough to eat and wasn't really hungry so I mentioned that Sister E who was very understanding so that was nice. Later on she took my temperature (she asked and kind of insisted so I said okay - it was one of those ear checker thingys). I had a fever! So we went out and talked to some more people and contacted some folks in the neighborhood.
I woke the next day even worse and we decided it would be best if I rested that day. It was a good decision as I was feeling even worse.
I'm mostly out of it now but I have some lingering effects. Whatever got me got me but I did learn an interesting lesson. I am now grateful for hunger. You don't know you would ever be grateful for it but I learned that is really hard to make yourself eat something. I hadn't eaten in a while and figured it might be a good idea to try and get something in there or I'm just not going to have any energy. I tried eating some bread and it was extremely hard. I do sort of have an appetite now. It's gradually coming back (I had lunch yesterday and had most of breakfast today). I'm making progress.
Anyway, sorry to bum y'all out. It was kind of a boring week.
The pictures are pretty self-explanatory. The aftermath of Christmas, the skyping laptop, Elder W skyping, and me with a stocking.
This is true. I've heard many stories this week of the gospel blessing and transforming peoples lives. It can do that same for you.
Love you all.
(PS mom - I got an attaboy from this super nice older baptist couple. They told me to tell you that they said that to me)
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
Monday, December 24, 2012
Christmas Time is Here!
Hello one and all! It is indeed Christmas time here in the south and I have been enjoying the 60-70 degree days. It's kind of strange as it really doesn't feel like Christmas. It's supposed to be cold and family is supposed to be in town and I'm supposed to be goofing off. It's been good though. It's just a different kind of Christmas. I suppose that this Christmas I get to understand the meaning of Christmas and not just simply enjoy it. I'm working on understanding the true meaning of Christmas. It's something that the church, my parents, the scriptures, and TV specials have been trying to teach me for years but I think this year is the year I might finally get it. =)
It's been a busy, busy week. I really don't know where it went. It was just suddenly Saturday. It was kinda weird. To be honest, I kind of want my week back. There's some more stuff I wanted to do but we did get some good stuff done. We did some good service and we might have a family with some good potential. We helped them move.
I don't have much time as we need to be running to dinner. I am actually emailing you from the lovely home of the E's family who are just fantastic. Elder W is even writing his email on an iPad! (I chose the laptop to be able to type more - you're welcome Mom!)
PICTURE TIME!
This is Father B's door bell.
He's a retired Catholic priest that we visit every other week or so. He's very nice. We answer his questions and have some pretty good discussions. Missionaries have been working on him for years and years. I think about 10 or 15. He did come to church a few weeks ago which was really cool.
Sister H is the wife on the ward mission leader and we go over there for dinner about every other Thursday and she is fantastic! She made us cinnamon rolls and they are some of the best cinnamon rolls I've ever had.
I reheated this one in the microwave this morning and took a picture for y'all.
We were walking in Robertsdale and we saw this old pickup truck and noticed it was quite customized!
It was cool because it had Tow Mater painted on the side and everything.
Something I've noticed this past week was the fact that people really are searching. Our upstairs neighbors recently had their first child and we went over to congratulate them and had a very good conversation. He's looking. He said "There's got to be something out there. Right now my biggest priority is my family." We promised him that this would really help and bless his family and told him a bit how families can be together forever. We're going to teach him once things calm down and he's back from out of town. They are kept from the truth because they know not where to find it.
So let us be bold and say "Hey. Give this a try. This is something that really helps me."
Merry Christmas to all. May the love of the Savior grow in your hearts.
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
It's been a busy, busy week. I really don't know where it went. It was just suddenly Saturday. It was kinda weird. To be honest, I kind of want my week back. There's some more stuff I wanted to do but we did get some good stuff done. We did some good service and we might have a family with some good potential. We helped them move.
I don't have much time as we need to be running to dinner. I am actually emailing you from the lovely home of the E's family who are just fantastic. Elder W is even writing his email on an iPad! (I chose the laptop to be able to type more - you're welcome Mom!)
PICTURE TIME!
This is Father B's door bell.
He's a retired Catholic priest that we visit every other week or so. He's very nice. We answer his questions and have some pretty good discussions. Missionaries have been working on him for years and years. I think about 10 or 15. He did come to church a few weeks ago which was really cool.
Sister H is the wife on the ward mission leader and we go over there for dinner about every other Thursday and she is fantastic! She made us cinnamon rolls and they are some of the best cinnamon rolls I've ever had.
I reheated this one in the microwave this morning and took a picture for y'all.
We were walking in Robertsdale and we saw this old pickup truck and noticed it was quite customized!
It was cool because it had Tow Mater painted on the side and everything.
Something I've noticed this past week was the fact that people really are searching. Our upstairs neighbors recently had their first child and we went over to congratulate them and had a very good conversation. He's looking. He said "There's got to be something out there. Right now my biggest priority is my family." We promised him that this would really help and bless his family and told him a bit how families can be together forever. We're going to teach him once things calm down and he's back from out of town. They are kept from the truth because they know not where to find it.
So let us be bold and say "Hey. Give this a try. This is something that really helps me."
Merry Christmas to all. May the love of the Savior grow in your hearts.
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Wise Men Still Seek HIm
Hello everybody!
It's a Tuesday - I know. Monday was a little crazy. We went to the library like normal and noticed there weren't any cars there. "Maybe it's the whole Christmas season thing?" We walked up to the library and joined the small group of people reading the sign on the locked doors informing us due to unexpected remodeling that they would be closed until Wednesday. We tried some members but that didn't work out so we are emailing from Robertsdale, Alabama today! It's a nice little town - much like Philomath, OR.
It's been an eventful and interesting week. The other Elders - Elder C and Elder J left. It was fun to have them to pal around with and more fun to be able to work with them. It was really nice because we could do two things at once and we could tract out a neighborhood twice as fast. They left on Thursday to their own area. It was a long ways away though. I assume they are good up there. Elder C and Elder J are both great guys and Elders. As you can see from his picture, he is very enthusiastic about the work.
Anyway - it's been an interesting week as we've just had far too many appointments fall through. I don't really know what else we can do to have our appointments be more solid. =( As far as investigators goes, here is an update on them all.
T: We have a baptismal date with him but we're not sure on his understanding. He's working on reading the Book of Mormon but I'm not sure how much he gets out of it. Shortly after that lesson where we set the baptismal date with him, his wife lost her job and it's been really rough one them. Last time we came by he was quite sick so hopefully he's better now.
S: We've taught her most of the restoration except for the restoration. She had to leave right as we finished the Great Apostasy. We explained that the church was restored and left her a restoration DVD. She read some of the Book of Mormon (yay!) and enjoyed what she read. Hopefully she'll continue.
B: He had been reading the Book of Mormon every day (about 20 pages a day) but has been really busy with work and is just really tired when he comes home and finishes all the Christmas stuff he's working on. He's in Jacob and enjoys it. He just doesn't understand how there can only be one true church. Hopefully the Book of Mormon will continue to soften his heart - we just need to help him pick it up again.
S: He's been investigating for a long time and we're working on re-teaching him. He's kind of waiting for his wife before he really goes ahead. He reads the Book of Mormon every day and is in 3rd Nephi. He wants to be baptized but is waiting for his wife. His good friend and neighbor, Brother S, has really been working with him.
M: He's not an investigator but a somewhat less active. He's a great guy and is trying to do what's right. He comes from a large family and is related to half the stake. He came to church on Sunday and it's great to see him there. It takes a lot of guts to come by yourself and none of your immediate family wants to get out of bed. He's working on preparing himself to receive the Priesthood which is awesome!
We've found many new people with some great potential. Usually it's been in strange places like Belk's when we went to use the restroom, or walking in the park, or helping someone's son move. Hopefully we'll be able to follow up and really start sharing our message with them.
This is our district. The young man not in the suit in the back on the right is T. He's preparing to go on a mission to Brazil (Recife) in February but until then he is always happy to help us out and go out with us to do stuff and run us all around the place. I really like him plus he's super cool. I wish I was that cool before my mission. Ah well.
"This is Christmas! This isn't just any old holiday - I get a bunch of those throughout the year." - Brother Patterson
I wish you all a merry Christmas and may you keep Christ before Mas (more). The Church is true - otherwise the Priesthood wouldn't work. It's that simple.
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
It's a Tuesday - I know. Monday was a little crazy. We went to the library like normal and noticed there weren't any cars there. "Maybe it's the whole Christmas season thing?" We walked up to the library and joined the small group of people reading the sign on the locked doors informing us due to unexpected remodeling that they would be closed until Wednesday. We tried some members but that didn't work out so we are emailing from Robertsdale, Alabama today! It's a nice little town - much like Philomath, OR.
It's been an eventful and interesting week. The other Elders - Elder C and Elder J left. It was fun to have them to pal around with and more fun to be able to work with them. It was really nice because we could do two things at once and we could tract out a neighborhood twice as fast. They left on Thursday to their own area. It was a long ways away though. I assume they are good up there. Elder C and Elder J are both great guys and Elders. As you can see from his picture, he is very enthusiastic about the work.
Anyway - it's been an interesting week as we've just had far too many appointments fall through. I don't really know what else we can do to have our appointments be more solid. =( As far as investigators goes, here is an update on them all.
T: We have a baptismal date with him but we're not sure on his understanding. He's working on reading the Book of Mormon but I'm not sure how much he gets out of it. Shortly after that lesson where we set the baptismal date with him, his wife lost her job and it's been really rough one them. Last time we came by he was quite sick so hopefully he's better now.
S: We've taught her most of the restoration except for the restoration. She had to leave right as we finished the Great Apostasy. We explained that the church was restored and left her a restoration DVD. She read some of the Book of Mormon (yay!) and enjoyed what she read. Hopefully she'll continue.
B: He had been reading the Book of Mormon every day (about 20 pages a day) but has been really busy with work and is just really tired when he comes home and finishes all the Christmas stuff he's working on. He's in Jacob and enjoys it. He just doesn't understand how there can only be one true church. Hopefully the Book of Mormon will continue to soften his heart - we just need to help him pick it up again.
S: He's been investigating for a long time and we're working on re-teaching him. He's kind of waiting for his wife before he really goes ahead. He reads the Book of Mormon every day and is in 3rd Nephi. He wants to be baptized but is waiting for his wife. His good friend and neighbor, Brother S, has really been working with him.
M: He's not an investigator but a somewhat less active. He's a great guy and is trying to do what's right. He comes from a large family and is related to half the stake. He came to church on Sunday and it's great to see him there. It takes a lot of guts to come by yourself and none of your immediate family wants to get out of bed. He's working on preparing himself to receive the Priesthood which is awesome!
We've found many new people with some great potential. Usually it's been in strange places like Belk's when we went to use the restroom, or walking in the park, or helping someone's son move. Hopefully we'll be able to follow up and really start sharing our message with them.
This is our district. The young man not in the suit in the back on the right is T. He's preparing to go on a mission to Brazil (Recife) in February but until then he is always happy to help us out and go out with us to do stuff and run us all around the place. I really like him plus he's super cool. I wish I was that cool before my mission. Ah well.
"This is Christmas! This isn't just any old holiday - I get a bunch of those throughout the year." - Brother Patterson
I wish you all a merry Christmas and may you keep Christ before Mas (more). The Church is true - otherwise the Priesthood wouldn't work. It's that simple.
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
Monday, December 10, 2012
The Key to a Happy Life is an Eagerness to Learn and a Willingness to Change
Well, it's been a very interesting week. Primarily because the sudden appearance of this guy:
Good old Elder J. It was a rather funny week. I noticed he was headed to Grove Hill on the transfer sheet. He served in Daphne a few months back and knew the branch president for Grove Hill (he lives in the Daphne Ward - the Grove Hill Branch is really small), so he was a good choice to open that area (they haven't had missionaries in years). We went to the transfer spot on Wednesday to get some supplies and hoping to see him there but no one came. So we went on our merry way trying to visit some less actives. I had a feeling that we would be helping Elder J out somehow so it wasn't too much of a surprise when we got a call from Elder C (the missionary that Elder J is training) tell us they were instructed to sleep at our apartment for the night. It was kind of comical almost as they had no idea where they were headed or what the plan was. They had recently learned they were also covering Toxey and putting the two branches together. Their area covers about 1/3 or the stake. It's crazy. They are going to be staying with members who are currently on vacation so they've been chilling with us for the past week. It's an hour to Grove Hill and another half hour from there to Toxey so they've been rolling with us and it's been fun. It makes me feel kinda extra productive since we can get two things done at once. We've been focusing on finding this week and have been abundantly blessed and I am very excited about some of the potentials the four of us have found. =) It was rather funny - someone at church told us we had tracted into a friend of hers the other day and she had wanted to talk to us but had to study for an exam. It was just kinda neat. Sorry - fun tangent: we went to McAllisters (a very nice sandwich shop) with a member and I left the car with a copy of the Book of Mormon in hand. I soon discovered in the restaurant that I brought in a book. We ate dinner and I decided we should leave it on the table. We wrote our number and Mormon.org inside the front cover. We never leave copies of the Book of Mormon in restaurants so it was rather unusual. I really thought nothing of it until we came out of district meeting a few days later. R (a recently returned missionary from California) looked at us and asked, "Is this your handwriting?". He held up a picture from Facebook on his phone and some girl had posted "Someone left this at a table at work" with a picture of the same Book of Mormon and it's front inside cover with my handwriting in it. I thought it was just really funny).
Anyway, this preparation day in particular has been interesting. Elder W has been feeling pretty sick - poor guy. He threw up quite a bit last night and all throughout today.
So I've mostly been inside all day and that's why this email is coming to you so late in the day.
T our investigator with a baptismal is doing okay. His wife lost her job and it's really a struggle on their family. He has a testimony and is trying to do what's right. He doesn't have a solid grasp on the scriptures yet but he's still working on it. We gave him a blessing and that really helped ease his mind as he was very distressed. He got "his spark back". The Spirit was there and it really did make a big difference in him - you could see it.
Another funny story - I got my hair cut last Monday and I was telling Sister N (the one who cut our hair) a story when a big old glob of hair just fell right in my mouth. It was so nasty. Hair is actually quite sharp, gross, and pokey. I was very glad to be able to spit it out.
We were with T all day on Monday. He's a great guy and I really like him. He's headed to his mission in Recife, Brazil in February and is just super gungho about going out with us. He came over at 6:30 AM and we exercised and did all sorts of things. He came to district meeting with us (which was awesome) and was even in the picture (the one on the far right).
We went to Lambert's Cafe which was delicious but we got SO MUCH food. It was incredible. Just me - I had food for about 2 more meals and I left stuffed. Their rolls are delicious and there is a guy who rolls around a little cart with just this huge tray of rolls and yells "HOT ROLLS" and you just raise your hand and he'll throw them at you. He was quite accurate and had pretty good range but man they were hot. And delicious. Did I mention how delicious they were?
T was awesome. He stayed all the way till 10:00 PM or so when we finished planning. It was a fun day.
I love and miss you all! But for now, I am called to declare what I know and to be a witness. I had a few conversations with people who just asked weird, obscure, and irrelevant questions. I would answer the questions and then they would ask a different question which hinged on the previous question. I was able to respectfully answer their questions. I was grateful for that. One of the questions someone asked was about our views on salvation (something I get a lot). I've learned much about "salvation" during my sojourn in the South. It's not just about saying a prayer, filling gaps, or even just keeping the commandments. It is difficult but doable to change behavior. It is easier still to declare something. But what the Savior really wants is for us to be the best we can be and that is why the Atonement is so critical. The goal of repentance is to change ourselves as well as our behavior. "For the natural man is an enemy to God and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever until he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the Atonement of Christ the Lord..."(Mosiah 3:19). That brings happiness and peace. An eagerness to learn and a willingness to change.
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
Good old Elder J. It was a rather funny week. I noticed he was headed to Grove Hill on the transfer sheet. He served in Daphne a few months back and knew the branch president for Grove Hill (he lives in the Daphne Ward - the Grove Hill Branch is really small), so he was a good choice to open that area (they haven't had missionaries in years). We went to the transfer spot on Wednesday to get some supplies and hoping to see him there but no one came. So we went on our merry way trying to visit some less actives. I had a feeling that we would be helping Elder J out somehow so it wasn't too much of a surprise when we got a call from Elder C (the missionary that Elder J is training) tell us they were instructed to sleep at our apartment for the night. It was kind of comical almost as they had no idea where they were headed or what the plan was. They had recently learned they were also covering Toxey and putting the two branches together. Their area covers about 1/3 or the stake. It's crazy. They are going to be staying with members who are currently on vacation so they've been chilling with us for the past week. It's an hour to Grove Hill and another half hour from there to Toxey so they've been rolling with us and it's been fun. It makes me feel kinda extra productive since we can get two things done at once. We've been focusing on finding this week and have been abundantly blessed and I am very excited about some of the potentials the four of us have found. =) It was rather funny - someone at church told us we had tracted into a friend of hers the other day and she had wanted to talk to us but had to study for an exam. It was just kinda neat. Sorry - fun tangent: we went to McAllisters (a very nice sandwich shop) with a member and I left the car with a copy of the Book of Mormon in hand. I soon discovered in the restaurant that I brought in a book. We ate dinner and I decided we should leave it on the table. We wrote our number and Mormon.org inside the front cover. We never leave copies of the Book of Mormon in restaurants so it was rather unusual. I really thought nothing of it until we came out of district meeting a few days later. R (a recently returned missionary from California) looked at us and asked, "Is this your handwriting?". He held up a picture from Facebook on his phone and some girl had posted "Someone left this at a table at work" with a picture of the same Book of Mormon and it's front inside cover with my handwriting in it. I thought it was just really funny).
Anyway, this preparation day in particular has been interesting. Elder W has been feeling pretty sick - poor guy. He threw up quite a bit last night and all throughout today.
 |
| From left to right: Elder C and Elder W on the couch |
So I've mostly been inside all day and that's why this email is coming to you so late in the day.
T our investigator with a baptismal is doing okay. His wife lost her job and it's really a struggle on their family. He has a testimony and is trying to do what's right. He doesn't have a solid grasp on the scriptures yet but he's still working on it. We gave him a blessing and that really helped ease his mind as he was very distressed. He got "his spark back". The Spirit was there and it really did make a big difference in him - you could see it.
Another funny story - I got my hair cut last Monday and I was telling Sister N (the one who cut our hair) a story when a big old glob of hair just fell right in my mouth. It was so nasty. Hair is actually quite sharp, gross, and pokey. I was very glad to be able to spit it out.
We were with T all day on Monday. He's a great guy and I really like him. He's headed to his mission in Recife, Brazil in February and is just super gungho about going out with us. He came over at 6:30 AM and we exercised and did all sorts of things. He came to district meeting with us (which was awesome) and was even in the picture (the one on the far right).
We went to Lambert's Cafe which was delicious but we got SO MUCH food. It was incredible. Just me - I had food for about 2 more meals and I left stuffed. Their rolls are delicious and there is a guy who rolls around a little cart with just this huge tray of rolls and yells "HOT ROLLS" and you just raise your hand and he'll throw them at you. He was quite accurate and had pretty good range but man they were hot. And delicious. Did I mention how delicious they were?
T was awesome. He stayed all the way till 10:00 PM or so when we finished planning. It was a fun day.
I love and miss you all! But for now, I am called to declare what I know and to be a witness. I had a few conversations with people who just asked weird, obscure, and irrelevant questions. I would answer the questions and then they would ask a different question which hinged on the previous question. I was able to respectfully answer their questions. I was grateful for that. One of the questions someone asked was about our views on salvation (something I get a lot). I've learned much about "salvation" during my sojourn in the South. It's not just about saying a prayer, filling gaps, or even just keeping the commandments. It is difficult but doable to change behavior. It is easier still to declare something. But what the Savior really wants is for us to be the best we can be and that is why the Atonement is so critical. The goal of repentance is to change ourselves as well as our behavior. "For the natural man is an enemy to God and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever until he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the Atonement of Christ the Lord..."(Mosiah 3:19). That brings happiness and peace. An eagerness to learn and a willingness to change.
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
Monday, December 3, 2012
A Busy Week
"Down here in the south, we don't have a single mosquito. They're all married and have large families."
-- President Spencer
Hello one and all!
It is transfer week this week and many people are headed all sorts of fun places. Elder B is headed to Quincy and Elder H is going to be working with a new missionary! I'm staying here in Daphne with Elder W. So things are pretty good. Can't complain. =)
This has been a pretty awesome week if I do say so myself. It's been a spiritual, hard working, getting in people's homes, tiring week. We had some interesting things happen this week. Random thoughts that come to mind:
Monday was, of course, preparation day and after we emailed and shopped we wrote some letters, cleaned for apartment inspection (for about 15 minutes - we've been keeping it pretty clean), we went out to the golf course behind the apartment to hit golf balls across a small river.
I realized that I really have absolutely no idea what I am doing. I did get some pretty good hits but Elder W had this crazy hit that just went FOREVER! (videos will be coming someday - not this card but the next card). It was quite fun. We passed apartment inspection and got candy bars. Sister K said "Not bad for two guys". We had lasagna soup for dinner which was quite good. Sister W probably got the recipe off of pinterest which is super big in the ward.
Tuesday was a cool day. I was with Elder R as he's our district leader and I got to be driver for the day! I was pretty stoked about it. Anyway, we had a great day and went on splits with members and had some good lessons. We were about to catch up with B which was really interesting. He's a 70 or something guy who is 6' 7". He's a hard core Alabama football fan and has a whole room devoted to it. Neat guy and he's been reading the Book of Mormon at about 20 pages a day for a month! He's in Jacob and he's really liking it so far. Now we just need to teach him and get him to church! =) He's having a rough time understanding where the Book of Mormon came from and that's something we need to address. We went to the P's for dinner which was interesting. Brother P is like a big kid and it was just super funny to see him making a pie. His daughter made the pie crust dough and he was rolling it out into the top and bottom. He kept joking with her with comments like "This dough is weird! The top is supposed to be smaller than the bottom!" "No Dad! You got them mixed up." "No, this dough is weird!" "Well, you told me how to make it!" It was just one of those things you had to be there.
Things started off slowly on Wednesday. We traded back in Robertsdale and made a few visits. It was rather cool as one particular visit was a potential investigator we had found. He works a lot and just happened to be home. As we were talking, a question came to mind about why there are so many churches. He really opened up and plainly told us he didn't know. He had to go so we promised him the answers next time we met. =) Inspired questions are the best! We drove back to Daphne and finished Weekly Planning. Yes, we started last week on Thursday (told you we've been busy). We kind of sped through it as we were mostly done and were just going to do it tomorrow. We visited B who just got off work. He was just "dog-tired" and we didn't stay long. I'm pretty sure he fell asleep during the prayer. Splits with Brother P went well. Great guy! Moved here from Arizona and is just happy to help. We hadn't had dinner so he insisted on taking us to 5 Guys. I had a delicious burger and way too many fries (fun fact: they have Cajun fries down here. I kind of like original better but the Cajun is fun to try). Brother K in Pensacola said (to be read in a thick Georgia accent) "I love them 5 Guys burgers, but whoowe, it's like shooting pure Crisco in your veins."
It was back to the planning grind wheel on Thursday but we made it and set forth some pretty good plans. It's always interesting to plan for week 6, knowing there is a possibility of one of you getting transferred. We went and saw T who's a great guy. He can feel the spirit when we come by and talk with him. He calls it conviction. We set a date for him to work toward being baptized and receiving the Holy Ghost. I'm not sure how much he really understands but we'll see. Brother S went with us and he was a good help. He's a very quiet guy and T is a talker. We also met Ken Sandgreen [a relative of Matthew's] that day. Very nice guy and as soon as he opened the door I could tell we were related (mainly by his nose). We sat on his back porch and enjoyed the very scenic view. It was a balmy 70 or so with a slight breeze and just a perfect night to be on a porch. He talked for all of the time and it was hard to get more than a "yes" into the conversation. It turns out that he lives right across the street from the S's, a very nice family in the ward. We talked with Brother S and he said they've had Ken over for dinner with the missionaries. He's a super nice guy but they're not sure on his interest level. We'll be stopping back by. We actually had dinner at Sam's Club that night. We met a member there and we shared a pizza. We walked in and the lady tried to stop us. I was super confused why she was stopping me. Then I saw C (a priest in the ward - great guy) running with a membership card outstretched. She turned saw him and looked back at us. Elder W timidly said "we're with him". She let us in. We walked around after dinner and met some members as well as some people we met tracting - still not interested though.
Friday was a fairly nice day. The only real highlight of the day was having a bad lesson with B. He's a good friend with one of the members and whenever we go over we usually just talk about stuff until the Gospel comes up and B goes silent. We decided it was time to focus more on B. It didn't go well. We were trying to ask questions and get him to open up and he was just giving short, brief answers. I was giving a brief overview of the Restoration when he shot me this look of just, "I don't want to listen to you and wish you weren't here". I wrapped this up and I don't think he's really all that interested. Maybe someday. =( We stopped by the Fresh Market (it's the southern version of Market of Choice) and I got Creme Brulee. It was quite good. They even caramelized the top for me and everything. It wasn't as good as that first time at the C's [back home] but still pretty good.
Saturday was a neat day. We got to met with Father B, a retired Catholic Priest. We meet with him every once in a while. We answered his questions and things as he already knows a lot about the church and has read most/all of the Standard Works. I'm thinking the spirit world might have to pick up this one. He did come to church though as we were giving talks and really enjoyed it. He was quite impressed. We had a meeting with our ward mission leader Brother H (he's awesome). We've been working with him, meeting about 3 times a month, getting things done, and it's just been awesome. Random tangent! We were driving down a highway when we saw a car stopped with it's hazards on. We thought "hey, maybe they need some help". We flipped around and pulled behind them and saw the person on the passenger side was out of the car all hunched over. "Cool, he's just feeling sick". Elder W flipped on the blinker to get back on the highway when the guy just lost it and out it came. It was kinda gross. I had never really watched someone throw up before. We went to the W's for dinner and enjoyed a southern breakfast with eggs and grits. =)
Sunday, as always, was good. Fast and Testimony meeting was great and Brother W gave his testimony. He mentioned that he had the opportunity to have the Elder's (us) over the night previous and that when we left his son came up and said "Dad, we really do have some cool Elders". His son N, who's 13, is a great kid. He's reading the whole Book of Mormon all by himself. When Brother W mentioned that, I was just filled with gratitude to truly be a representative of Jesus Christ and to be privileged to call myself by the title of Elder. We went with Brother B on splits and saw some great people when we were headed back and we decided to follow a mini-van (don't ask why). We lost it and wound up on a culdesac. I spied some people doing yard work and Brother B stopped the car and I jumped out and offered help. They politely turned us down and we somehow struck up a conversation. Brother B came out (he's from Guatemala and it turned out the lady's mother was from Guatemala). We offered them the opportunity to hear our message and after some hemming and hawing the husband said "Why not? Maybe we can bring them back" and they agreed. It was an interesting discussion and Brother B was a HUGE help. He just remained calm even when they went off about stuff and remained cool headed, logical, and made excellent points. We taught the whole Restoration (we spent most of our time on the great apostasy). It was funny as she said "There's that authority that you need to be the true church!" We nodded and agreed. "And no one else has it!" We agreed and she just looked flabbergasted. She agreed to read the Book of Mormon and find all the "errors" and look into her church more. It was quite interesting experience though. I don't think it would have gone nearly as smoothly with Brother B (He served his mission in California and kept coming up with Spanish terms during the lessons). We were monumentally late to dinner with Bishop N (we had steak - it was good), which I felt quite bad about. We watched the First Presidency Christmas Broadcast at his house.
This week has been a busy one. I can only share a small part of what I do. I'm looking forward to when I can talk with you and tell you all the stories. But until then, I need to make the stories to tell happen. =)
Pictures: the dog's name is lucky and is a cocker spaniel that looks crazy like scooter. The GPS is a record of how fast we went down a hill. On our bikes. I broke my record! It was crazy scary but I'm going to try again. I think I can go 5 MPH or so faster. Any more than that and I don't think my bike would hold together. =) The wrinkly fruit - yes that is an apple.
The world is addicted to noise. What would you give for the serenity in a drop of peace? What would you give to feel the peace that the Savior offers? The requirements are not high nor is the availability limited. I've felt that peace before. It comes with the Holy Ghost and there is no other lasting peace that comes. There is a difference between peace and contentment. Between gratitude and satisfaction. The Savior's terms are simple: a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Don't be fooled into buying an inferior brand of happiness labeled pleasure. True happiness comes from serving others.
I love and miss you all!
Elder Matthew Carlson
-- President Spencer
Hello one and all!
It is transfer week this week and many people are headed all sorts of fun places. Elder B is headed to Quincy and Elder H is going to be working with a new missionary! I'm staying here in Daphne with Elder W. So things are pretty good. Can't complain. =)
This has been a pretty awesome week if I do say so myself. It's been a spiritual, hard working, getting in people's homes, tiring week. We had some interesting things happen this week. Random thoughts that come to mind:
Monday was, of course, preparation day and after we emailed and shopped we wrote some letters, cleaned for apartment inspection (for about 15 minutes - we've been keeping it pretty clean), we went out to the golf course behind the apartment to hit golf balls across a small river.
I realized that I really have absolutely no idea what I am doing. I did get some pretty good hits but Elder W had this crazy hit that just went FOREVER! (videos will be coming someday - not this card but the next card). It was quite fun. We passed apartment inspection and got candy bars. Sister K said "Not bad for two guys". We had lasagna soup for dinner which was quite good. Sister W probably got the recipe off of pinterest which is super big in the ward.
Tuesday was a cool day. I was with Elder R as he's our district leader and I got to be driver for the day! I was pretty stoked about it. Anyway, we had a great day and went on splits with members and had some good lessons. We were about to catch up with B which was really interesting. He's a 70 or something guy who is 6' 7". He's a hard core Alabama football fan and has a whole room devoted to it. Neat guy and he's been reading the Book of Mormon at about 20 pages a day for a month! He's in Jacob and he's really liking it so far. Now we just need to teach him and get him to church! =) He's having a rough time understanding where the Book of Mormon came from and that's something we need to address. We went to the P's for dinner which was interesting. Brother P is like a big kid and it was just super funny to see him making a pie. His daughter made the pie crust dough and he was rolling it out into the top and bottom. He kept joking with her with comments like "This dough is weird! The top is supposed to be smaller than the bottom!" "No Dad! You got them mixed up." "No, this dough is weird!" "Well, you told me how to make it!" It was just one of those things you had to be there.
Things started off slowly on Wednesday. We traded back in Robertsdale and made a few visits. It was rather cool as one particular visit was a potential investigator we had found. He works a lot and just happened to be home. As we were talking, a question came to mind about why there are so many churches. He really opened up and plainly told us he didn't know. He had to go so we promised him the answers next time we met. =) Inspired questions are the best! We drove back to Daphne and finished Weekly Planning. Yes, we started last week on Thursday (told you we've been busy). We kind of sped through it as we were mostly done and were just going to do it tomorrow. We visited B who just got off work. He was just "dog-tired" and we didn't stay long. I'm pretty sure he fell asleep during the prayer. Splits with Brother P went well. Great guy! Moved here from Arizona and is just happy to help. We hadn't had dinner so he insisted on taking us to 5 Guys. I had a delicious burger and way too many fries (fun fact: they have Cajun fries down here. I kind of like original better but the Cajun is fun to try). Brother K in Pensacola said (to be read in a thick Georgia accent) "I love them 5 Guys burgers, but whoowe, it's like shooting pure Crisco in your veins."
It was back to the planning grind wheel on Thursday but we made it and set forth some pretty good plans. It's always interesting to plan for week 6, knowing there is a possibility of one of you getting transferred. We went and saw T who's a great guy. He can feel the spirit when we come by and talk with him. He calls it conviction. We set a date for him to work toward being baptized and receiving the Holy Ghost. I'm not sure how much he really understands but we'll see. Brother S went with us and he was a good help. He's a very quiet guy and T is a talker. We also met Ken Sandgreen [a relative of Matthew's] that day. Very nice guy and as soon as he opened the door I could tell we were related (mainly by his nose). We sat on his back porch and enjoyed the very scenic view. It was a balmy 70 or so with a slight breeze and just a perfect night to be on a porch. He talked for all of the time and it was hard to get more than a "yes" into the conversation. It turns out that he lives right across the street from the S's, a very nice family in the ward. We talked with Brother S and he said they've had Ken over for dinner with the missionaries. He's a super nice guy but they're not sure on his interest level. We'll be stopping back by. We actually had dinner at Sam's Club that night. We met a member there and we shared a pizza. We walked in and the lady tried to stop us. I was super confused why she was stopping me. Then I saw C (a priest in the ward - great guy) running with a membership card outstretched. She turned saw him and looked back at us. Elder W timidly said "we're with him". She let us in. We walked around after dinner and met some members as well as some people we met tracting - still not interested though.
Friday was a fairly nice day. The only real highlight of the day was having a bad lesson with B. He's a good friend with one of the members and whenever we go over we usually just talk about stuff until the Gospel comes up and B goes silent. We decided it was time to focus more on B. It didn't go well. We were trying to ask questions and get him to open up and he was just giving short, brief answers. I was giving a brief overview of the Restoration when he shot me this look of just, "I don't want to listen to you and wish you weren't here". I wrapped this up and I don't think he's really all that interested. Maybe someday. =( We stopped by the Fresh Market (it's the southern version of Market of Choice) and I got Creme Brulee. It was quite good. They even caramelized the top for me and everything. It wasn't as good as that first time at the C's [back home] but still pretty good.
Saturday was a neat day. We got to met with Father B, a retired Catholic Priest. We meet with him every once in a while. We answered his questions and things as he already knows a lot about the church and has read most/all of the Standard Works. I'm thinking the spirit world might have to pick up this one. He did come to church though as we were giving talks and really enjoyed it. He was quite impressed. We had a meeting with our ward mission leader Brother H (he's awesome). We've been working with him, meeting about 3 times a month, getting things done, and it's just been awesome. Random tangent! We were driving down a highway when we saw a car stopped with it's hazards on. We thought "hey, maybe they need some help". We flipped around and pulled behind them and saw the person on the passenger side was out of the car all hunched over. "Cool, he's just feeling sick". Elder W flipped on the blinker to get back on the highway when the guy just lost it and out it came. It was kinda gross. I had never really watched someone throw up before. We went to the W's for dinner and enjoyed a southern breakfast with eggs and grits. =)
Sunday, as always, was good. Fast and Testimony meeting was great and Brother W gave his testimony. He mentioned that he had the opportunity to have the Elder's (us) over the night previous and that when we left his son came up and said "Dad, we really do have some cool Elders". His son N, who's 13, is a great kid. He's reading the whole Book of Mormon all by himself. When Brother W mentioned that, I was just filled with gratitude to truly be a representative of Jesus Christ and to be privileged to call myself by the title of Elder. We went with Brother B on splits and saw some great people when we were headed back and we decided to follow a mini-van (don't ask why). We lost it and wound up on a culdesac. I spied some people doing yard work and Brother B stopped the car and I jumped out and offered help. They politely turned us down and we somehow struck up a conversation. Brother B came out (he's from Guatemala and it turned out the lady's mother was from Guatemala). We offered them the opportunity to hear our message and after some hemming and hawing the husband said "Why not? Maybe we can bring them back" and they agreed. It was an interesting discussion and Brother B was a HUGE help. He just remained calm even when they went off about stuff and remained cool headed, logical, and made excellent points. We taught the whole Restoration (we spent most of our time on the great apostasy). It was funny as she said "There's that authority that you need to be the true church!" We nodded and agreed. "And no one else has it!" We agreed and she just looked flabbergasted. She agreed to read the Book of Mormon and find all the "errors" and look into her church more. It was quite interesting experience though. I don't think it would have gone nearly as smoothly with Brother B (He served his mission in California and kept coming up with Spanish terms during the lessons). We were monumentally late to dinner with Bishop N (we had steak - it was good), which I felt quite bad about. We watched the First Presidency Christmas Broadcast at his house.
This week has been a busy one. I can only share a small part of what I do. I'm looking forward to when I can talk with you and tell you all the stories. But until then, I need to make the stories to tell happen. =)
Pictures: the dog's name is lucky and is a cocker spaniel that looks crazy like scooter. The GPS is a record of how fast we went down a hill. On our bikes. I broke my record! It was crazy scary but I'm going to try again. I think I can go 5 MPH or so faster. Any more than that and I don't think my bike would hold together. =) The wrinkly fruit - yes that is an apple.
The world is addicted to noise. What would you give for the serenity in a drop of peace? What would you give to feel the peace that the Savior offers? The requirements are not high nor is the availability limited. I've felt that peace before. It comes with the Holy Ghost and there is no other lasting peace that comes. There is a difference between peace and contentment. Between gratitude and satisfaction. The Savior's terms are simple: a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Don't be fooled into buying an inferior brand of happiness labeled pleasure. True happiness comes from serving others.
I love and miss you all!
Elder Matthew Carlson
 |
| Matt did not explain this picture |
Monday, November 26, 2012
Pray, Plan, Prepare, and Perform
Hello one and all!
It is once again I, Elder Carlson, writing from Daphne, Alabama with tales of my travels and adventures in my service as a traveling minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and representative of the Savior.
It's been a pretty good week this week. I can't complain. Kind of crazy, hectic, and very tiring; but hey- all in a day's work. With Thanksgiving and all, it's been a good week.
This little guy we found on the windshield wiper of our car. He traveled some 10 miles before we stopped at our destination. He hung on which amazed me as it must have been cold. A video is coming later.
For thanksgiving we went over to the A's. President Jensen was nice enough to let us have an extra hour to spend with our dinner appointment. We arrived and found them making gratitude turkeys.
I saw the construction paper and started to formulate a plan. I cut up some paper and made a square to be able to draw corners and straight lines. I then quickly began to draw and after a few minutes had a nice plan coming along. I didn't finish but I did get pretty far.
Some of the people there thought it was just the neatest thing. I'm hoping to finish it one of these days - maybe today if I have time. Thanksgiving was great but many people were out of town which made some our work difficult. It worked out okay though.
The work is starting to pick up a bit here which is great! Hopefully we can get things going with members more. I do wish that I could compose my thoughts faster for emails home. Maybe I'll just send my journals home and you can just read those. =) Time is so short...
We had a great lesson with one guy we're working with named T. He's had a bit of a rough life and has some medical problems. He has a good heart and feels the Spirit when we come by and talk to him. He calls it "conviction". We taught him the restoration and he just kept saying over and over again how much we had done for him. The thing I liked the most was when we left he made the comment, "I want to put some things right in my life." The spirit lets people know what they need to change but it also gives them the encouragement they need to change. It was a neat experience.
The strength to change comes from the Atonement of the Son of God (Ether 12:37, 2 Cor. 12:9). I've seen the end result in people's lives. You can just tell. There is a spiritual power and strength in those people that just isn't in others. There is a maturity, perception, and an understanding in their eyes and manner. People like our ward mission leader, Brother H or President S - who you can just tell have that inner source of strength that comes from yielding their hearts to God and having an unwavering desire to please the Lord. The Savior wasn't just an example for us to follow. He is the destination for us to ultimately reach. He is also the driving force that can propel us forward. We have to want it and we have to work and do our part in order to receive it. Can I help you and give you power to change? No. I am just a normal mortal guy who is called to teach some extraordinary truth. But let me tell you about a friend of mine...
Elder Matthew Carlson
It is once again I, Elder Carlson, writing from Daphne, Alabama with tales of my travels and adventures in my service as a traveling minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and representative of the Savior.
It's been a pretty good week this week. I can't complain. Kind of crazy, hectic, and very tiring; but hey- all in a day's work. With Thanksgiving and all, it's been a good week.
This little guy we found on the windshield wiper of our car. He traveled some 10 miles before we stopped at our destination. He hung on which amazed me as it must have been cold. A video is coming later.
For thanksgiving we went over to the A's. President Jensen was nice enough to let us have an extra hour to spend with our dinner appointment. We arrived and found them making gratitude turkeys.
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| Elder W's Turkey |
I saw the construction paper and started to formulate a plan. I cut up some paper and made a square to be able to draw corners and straight lines. I then quickly began to draw and after a few minutes had a nice plan coming along. I didn't finish but I did get pretty far.
Some of the people there thought it was just the neatest thing. I'm hoping to finish it one of these days - maybe today if I have time. Thanksgiving was great but many people were out of town which made some our work difficult. It worked out okay though.
The work is starting to pick up a bit here which is great! Hopefully we can get things going with members more. I do wish that I could compose my thoughts faster for emails home. Maybe I'll just send my journals home and you can just read those. =) Time is so short...
We had a great lesson with one guy we're working with named T. He's had a bit of a rough life and has some medical problems. He has a good heart and feels the Spirit when we come by and talk to him. He calls it "conviction". We taught him the restoration and he just kept saying over and over again how much we had done for him. The thing I liked the most was when we left he made the comment, "I want to put some things right in my life." The spirit lets people know what they need to change but it also gives them the encouragement they need to change. It was a neat experience.
The strength to change comes from the Atonement of the Son of God (Ether 12:37, 2 Cor. 12:9). I've seen the end result in people's lives. You can just tell. There is a spiritual power and strength in those people that just isn't in others. There is a maturity, perception, and an understanding in their eyes and manner. People like our ward mission leader, Brother H or President S - who you can just tell have that inner source of strength that comes from yielding their hearts to God and having an unwavering desire to please the Lord. The Savior wasn't just an example for us to follow. He is the destination for us to ultimately reach. He is also the driving force that can propel us forward. We have to want it and we have to work and do our part in order to receive it. Can I help you and give you power to change? No. I am just a normal mortal guy who is called to teach some extraordinary truth. But let me tell you about a friend of mine...
Elder Matthew Carlson
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