Well it's been a very interesting transition for me. Interesting in many aspects. Madison is much more rural than the cities like Daphne, Mobile, and Gulf Breeze that I'm used to. A prime example happened this morning when I discovered that the trash bag that I had left outside due to it being rather stinky had been attacked. I guess I was still in the city mindset. Anyway, it's been an interesting transition.
I was struggling a little bit earlier this week- particularly yesterday and the day before. It's getting better but I still don't know anyone or anywhere and it's a very small town. Every street has been tracted in the past few months which makes my default fall-back approach rather not useful. But we've got some good people we're working with and the branch here is actually quite good. The youth are amazing! Most of them are quite active and invite friends to church. One in particular has even had a good friend join the church. She's very nice and is planning on going on a mission soon. =)
This past week has been CRAZY! Elder W and I went into crazy overdrive to get everything done before we left. We both had to pack, clean the apartment, say goodbye, and finish bringing the records in the area book up to date. Monday we had the privilege and opportunity to go and visit Tyler before he left for the MTC. He left Tuesday night for Provo so he was finishing packing. It was a tough thing to say goodbye but he'll do great. His family was pretty sad that he was leaving. His littlest sister came in his room as he was showing us his room and she started crying. "I don't want you to go!" All was well in the end. Plus, I'm going to visit him in 2 years. His plan is to head to Utah when he gets back and go to summer term at the University of Utah so we'll get to see each other again. Maybe we'll do lunch. Speaking of lunch, we went to Five Guys on Monday. It was delicious. We met a less active member who works there who offered to feed us if we came back on Monday.
Tuesday was another crazy day. We had our last district meeting as well as lunch with CM. He took our district out to lunch at a very nice restaurant called Chick n' Sea. They had a very delicious lemon pie. The place was packed though! We rode back to Daphne, stopping along the way to say goodbye. We really wanted to say goodbye to S but he wasn't home. I'm really hoping and praying that things go well with him and that he'll be able to gain a testimony. I miss S. We spent a good portion of the day just packing and packing. I don't know how I fit it all but it seems like I have more and more stuff every time. I even forgot a few things that I will hopefully be getting here soon. We also did a good deep clean and wrote a helpful note to the new elders in Daphne (the reason I got moved was that the Zone Leaders who were in the Mobile Ward needed to be closer to the Stake President who lives in Daphne so it was rather only natural that the Zone Leaders be moved here.) I'm glad to know we left the apartment clean and in good shape.
Wednesday was mostly taken up by transfers. We did a bit of last minute packing and cleaning (mostly on my part) and loaded up the car. We met at the transfer spot at about 11:00 and waited for a few minutes. Soon the cars began to roll in and I said my goodbyes to Elder W. After a prayer we were off to Pensacola. We arrived in Pensacola half an hour early. We milled around and I talked to some old friends I hadn't talk to in a while. Everyone from Elder H, to the C's, to the F's (the C's are headed home in April! Can you believe it?) We then learned that one of the transfer vehicles (that's right- there were two. First time ever) had a blowout. I later learned from Sister Jensen that there were many things that went very wrong with this past transfer. Everything from lost luggage to a sister missionary left at the airport. It's really amazing that it even happened really. The van arrived and I drove from Pensacola to Tallahassee. One of the old cars from Theodore is dying (it's past 50,000 miles) and hence, needs to be taken back to Tallahassee to be liquidated. I had the privilege of driving it and Elder G was kind enough to accompany me. He told me all about Pensacola and some of the good that's happening there. The M family is going to the temple in a month or so here! That was amazing news. I love that family. I got to know Elder G much better (it was a 4 hour drive). I arrived in Tallahassee about 7:00. We did some unloading and I met Elder F who is my new companion. We loaded up our red Toyota Corolla and set off to Madison. We arrived in Madison about 8:15. We went to Harvey's (a southern grocery store chain which is rather over priced) which is really the only grocery store and got groceries. Things like milk and cereal and bread.
Thursday was mostly taken up by weekly planning. I kind of got the gist of the current people we're working with and we made some plans for them. We went out and did some work. We biked around and visited people but mot many people were home. We had dinner at the K's and they had a delicious corn bread/hush puppy type thing. Whatever it was, I enjoyed it.
Friday was a very wet day. We were out on bikes from about noon to 3. During that time it rained quite a bit. I got pretty soaked and Elder F even more so (he didn't have a rain coat for the first half of the journey).
Saturday was another day at work. I can't really think of anything too amazingly significant. I had accepted the fact that I had lost a bag. During transfers, one of my bags disappeared. It contained a pair of glasses, my GPS, and most importantly my companionship journal. I was kinda sad about losing the journal as it was the one absolutely irreplaceable thing. But looking back, I'm grateful I lost the bag as I have been taught much about the value of material things and how little they actually matter. We are required to be willing to sacrifice all worldly things. I'm glad to know that it won't bum me out too much if that should ever happen.
Sunday was an early day as we woke up to make it to the early morning meeting for investigators, less-actives, recent converts, and missionaries in Tallahassee starting at 8:15. It was hosted by one of the members of the Seventy who presided over stake conference. It was a rather good meeting and it really stayed simple and focused on the needs of the people attending. Stake conference started shortly thereafter which was quite good. We biked around and visited many people but not many were home. We had dinner at the B's (the senior couple in Madison) and went home for studies. We did receive a very welcome call that they found my bag! The Zone Leaders came and dropped it by. I was grateful that Heavenly Father answered my prayers and my bag was found. =)
Not many exciting things happened this week. We moved to a new planner and I don't have my records to help my remember. =(
I've learned much this past week. I think I've grown a little bit too. I'm adjusting to Madison. I miss Daphne. A lot but I can tell someday I'm going to enjoy Madison. It's up to me as to how quickly that day comes.
Scripture of the week: Alma 34.
Sorry- no pictures this week. I forgot my card reader. =(
I LOVE Y'ALL!
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
Monday, February 25, 2013
Monday, February 18, 2013
The easiest way to prevent the regrets of tomorrow is to follow the Savior today
Well it's transfers once again. Crazy huh? Seems like I just got to Daphne and I was really thinking I would be staying but I guess such is not the case.
This week was pretty amazing and fun. It was also quite busy (of course things are just about to get more busy).
I don't have much time so I'll cover the highlights.
Monday- the big events of the day were going to Mobile to get a banjo. Elder W had been talking about it for months. He even dreamed about it once. So we finally when and got it with the help of T. It took forever but we got it. We ran into several bumps but we got it sorted out. It's a beautiful thing actually. We then went to Fairhope for Mardi Gras. It was quite nice as there were many families there. We hauled in quite the bounty which was awesome!
Tuesday I went on a trade-off with Elder B, our District leader. We had a great time and a very successful day. It was also a very funny day as Elder B is pretty goofy and several of the people we saw were just hilarious. It was all good fun.
Wednesday we got to eat with the T's which was was fun! They're the senior couple and we went to their RV and had a delicious organic meal (they're kinda healthy people- vegetarians and all that). We also had splits with Brother A who is awesome. He's a great guy and he's super funny.
Thursday was the big day! We had weekly planning and went to President H's for dinner (he's the Elder's Quorum president and ward mission leader). He had mentioned in a past meeting that he had always wanted a onesie but his wife never got him one (he's a big joker). We got one on Monday after some searching (turns out an XXL not pink onesie is rather hard to find). It was so funny. He showed us a picture on Sunday of him wearing it that is really funny but he's determined to not let that picture out of his phone so I don't have a copy. I really enjoyed the package of valentine stuff. I even sorted the candy hearts into things I can and can't do on the mission. Elder W and I had a pretty good laugh about that.
Friday we had a great lesson with S and a nice lady named T. She doesn't really have any faith in anything so that's what we've been discussing. Faith is something kind of hard to describe to someone to whom the concept is so foreign. So has no religious background. She's reading the Book of Mormon and finds it quite interesting. =) We watched The Prophet of the Restoration movie with them which they enjoyed.
Saturday we had dinner with the W's. They are hilarious. Sister W is a recent convert and we're still working with Brother W. They're a great family. I really struggled with sickness Saturday night as the cold/fever thing came back and hit me hard.
I was suffering Sunday but church was still good. I enjoyed the speakers as well as seeing everyone. We had dinner with the N's who I just love. They're fantastic.
Sorry I don't have more details as always I don't have much time. I should probably spend less time on www.mormon.org. We're gathering the elect so it's going to take us some time. It's interesting to see how quickly people can get caught up in worldly cares and pride and how much of a distance that puts between them and the Spirit.
But then again, how can we expect to see His face, if we can never see His hand?
I love you all! Remember I miss you!
-Elder Matthew Carlson
This week was pretty amazing and fun. It was also quite busy (of course things are just about to get more busy).
I don't have much time so I'll cover the highlights.
Monday- the big events of the day were going to Mobile to get a banjo. Elder W had been talking about it for months. He even dreamed about it once. So we finally when and got it with the help of T. It took forever but we got it. We ran into several bumps but we got it sorted out. It's a beautiful thing actually. We then went to Fairhope for Mardi Gras. It was quite nice as there were many families there. We hauled in quite the bounty which was awesome!
Tuesday I went on a trade-off with Elder B, our District leader. We had a great time and a very successful day. It was also a very funny day as Elder B is pretty goofy and several of the people we saw were just hilarious. It was all good fun.
Wednesday we got to eat with the T's which was was fun! They're the senior couple and we went to their RV and had a delicious organic meal (they're kinda healthy people- vegetarians and all that). We also had splits with Brother A who is awesome. He's a great guy and he's super funny.
Thursday was the big day! We had weekly planning and went to President H's for dinner (he's the Elder's Quorum president and ward mission leader). He had mentioned in a past meeting that he had always wanted a onesie but his wife never got him one (he's a big joker). We got one on Monday after some searching (turns out an XXL not pink onesie is rather hard to find). It was so funny. He showed us a picture on Sunday of him wearing it that is really funny but he's determined to not let that picture out of his phone so I don't have a copy. I really enjoyed the package of valentine stuff. I even sorted the candy hearts into things I can and can't do on the mission. Elder W and I had a pretty good laugh about that.
Friday we had a great lesson with S and a nice lady named T. She doesn't really have any faith in anything so that's what we've been discussing. Faith is something kind of hard to describe to someone to whom the concept is so foreign. So has no religious background. She's reading the Book of Mormon and finds it quite interesting. =) We watched The Prophet of the Restoration movie with them which they enjoyed.
Saturday we had dinner with the W's. They are hilarious. Sister W is a recent convert and we're still working with Brother W. They're a great family. I really struggled with sickness Saturday night as the cold/fever thing came back and hit me hard.
I was suffering Sunday but church was still good. I enjoyed the speakers as well as seeing everyone. We had dinner with the N's who I just love. They're fantastic.
Sorry I don't have more details as always I don't have much time. I should probably spend less time on www.mormon.org. We're gathering the elect so it's going to take us some time. It's interesting to see how quickly people can get caught up in worldly cares and pride and how much of a distance that puts between them and the Spirit.
But then again, how can we expect to see His face, if we can never see His hand?
I love you all! Remember I miss you!
-Elder Matthew Carlson
Monday, February 11, 2013
Mardi Gras is Fat Tuesday
Hello! Tomorrow is
(I think)
I'm not quite sure when it is as no one is really quite sure. The parades have been going on for some time. It apparently has something to do with the Catholic Lent but then we talked to an actual Catholic who claimed it had nothing to do with Catholism. We might be going to a parade tonight. I'll send you home some moon pies (For those of you who don't know what Mardi Gras is: Mardi Gras is a holiday that was reportedly started in Mobile. There are parades with floats and on these floats are people in costumes throwing beads, moon pies, commemorative plastic cups, oatmeal cream pies, and sometimes various other objects. Your job as a participant in this holiday is to put gold, green, and purple: the colors of mardi gras on your door and then attend one of the parades. At these parades you are expected to jump up and down as they shower you with the aforementioned gifts while trying not be knocked out by some of the faster and heavier flying objects. It's quite the holiday.)
Alright, enough commentary on the culture. On to this week. This week was kind of a tough one for me. We didn't get as much done as we would have liked and I was very tired for most of it. Particularly when we'd come home to plan. It was extremely difficult to stay awake and I would often by very cranky and unreasonable (poor Elder W). In fact, (quick story) we were planning and I was drifting off. Elder W was trying to get an answer out of me and asked a question. I thought about it and put my head down on the table. I answered the question and that's when my memory gets fuzzy. Apparently, after a few minutes of Elder W trying to coax a clearer answer out of me, I crawled under my desk and refused to come out. He had to finish planning as all I would do was "make grummly noises".
I hope you enjoyed the somewhat humorous picture.
We did have a pretty cool miracle this week. B is this really nice guy. He's in his 60's and has a big mustache. 6'5" or so and pretty skinny. He had kind of decided that we were all coming from different perspectives but getting to the same place (plus how many times the Book of Mormon says "and it came to pass" was driving him nuts). He had stopped reading the Book of Mormon (the first book he's read in many many years - he really felt prompted to read it when we gave it to him). He basically told us he wasn't all that interested and that we could still come by and talk but he was good. We went back and answered some of his questions as well as taught him about the spirit world. He thought it was the coolest thing. Then Elder W said something to the effect of "The Book of Mormon really helps us know all this cool stuff and ..." Then B threw up his hands and said "Alright alright. I'll start reading it again." It was amazing to see the Spirit just touch someone's heart. Going from not interested, not going to read it, here's your book back to alright, I'll read again. It was good.
I've been very tired lately. Please pray for me to help me have more energy. I would greatly appreciate it! (But don't pray too hard- I still want to be able to sleep. haha. Just kidding!)
I must not type slow or get distracted because I'm almost all out of time. =(
SCRIPTURE OF THE WEEK! Moroni 9:6 as well as Alma 5:6-13. I enjoy Moroni because of Mormon's determination to fulfill his responsibility and Alma because it asks many thought provoking questions as well as gives some good things to ponder. There's always something to work on.
(PS Bonus scripture! I just found this one a few hours ago during personal study. James 5:7- see if you can find where it talks about the restoration.)
I love you all! and miss you!
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
MARDI GRAS!
(I think)
I'm not quite sure when it is as no one is really quite sure. The parades have been going on for some time. It apparently has something to do with the Catholic Lent but then we talked to an actual Catholic who claimed it had nothing to do with Catholism. We might be going to a parade tonight. I'll send you home some moon pies (For those of you who don't know what Mardi Gras is: Mardi Gras is a holiday that was reportedly started in Mobile. There are parades with floats and on these floats are people in costumes throwing beads, moon pies, commemorative plastic cups, oatmeal cream pies, and sometimes various other objects. Your job as a participant in this holiday is to put gold, green, and purple: the colors of mardi gras on your door and then attend one of the parades. At these parades you are expected to jump up and down as they shower you with the aforementioned gifts while trying not be knocked out by some of the faster and heavier flying objects. It's quite the holiday.)
Alright, enough commentary on the culture. On to this week. This week was kind of a tough one for me. We didn't get as much done as we would have liked and I was very tired for most of it. Particularly when we'd come home to plan. It was extremely difficult to stay awake and I would often by very cranky and unreasonable (poor Elder W). In fact, (quick story) we were planning and I was drifting off. Elder W was trying to get an answer out of me and asked a question. I thought about it and put my head down on the table. I answered the question and that's when my memory gets fuzzy. Apparently, after a few minutes of Elder W trying to coax a clearer answer out of me, I crawled under my desk and refused to come out. He had to finish planning as all I would do was "make grummly noises".
I hope you enjoyed the somewhat humorous picture.
We did have a pretty cool miracle this week. B is this really nice guy. He's in his 60's and has a big mustache. 6'5" or so and pretty skinny. He had kind of decided that we were all coming from different perspectives but getting to the same place (plus how many times the Book of Mormon says "and it came to pass" was driving him nuts). He had stopped reading the Book of Mormon (the first book he's read in many many years - he really felt prompted to read it when we gave it to him). He basically told us he wasn't all that interested and that we could still come by and talk but he was good. We went back and answered some of his questions as well as taught him about the spirit world. He thought it was the coolest thing. Then Elder W said something to the effect of "The Book of Mormon really helps us know all this cool stuff and ..." Then B threw up his hands and said "Alright alright. I'll start reading it again." It was amazing to see the Spirit just touch someone's heart. Going from not interested, not going to read it, here's your book back to alright, I'll read again. It was good.
I've been very tired lately. Please pray for me to help me have more energy. I would greatly appreciate it! (But don't pray too hard- I still want to be able to sleep. haha. Just kidding!)
I must not type slow or get distracted because I'm almost all out of time. =(
SCRIPTURE OF THE WEEK! Moroni 9:6 as well as Alma 5:6-13. I enjoy Moroni because of Mormon's determination to fulfill his responsibility and Alma because it asks many thought provoking questions as well as gives some good things to ponder. There's always something to work on.
(PS Bonus scripture! I just found this one a few hours ago during personal study. James 5:7- see if you can find where it talks about the restoration.)
I love you all! and miss you!
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
Monday, February 4, 2013
Potato Pancakes
Hello y'all!
A big accomplishment for the week? Making potato pancakes.
They were like if you moshed up some hash browns with grits in them and grilled them into a patty. It was quite strange but strangely good. Elder W only ate a little bit leaving me a significant portion of potato pancakes (that little box made quite a few pancakes). He tends to be a little more cautious when it comes to crazy things his companion tries to get him to eat. UPDATE: turns out he liked them but he had just eaten a large amount of lunch. I saved some mix so I'll make them again.
We went to the USS Alabama once again since Elder W had never been. He really enjoyed it and plus we got to spend the day with T!! (love that guy). He's leaving in about 3 weeks for the MTC. He's going to Brazil. As usual, the main guns were quite large. I didn't take nearly as many picture this time as I already have a pile from last time. I just enjoyed the sights, the informative plaques, and the smell (the whole thing smells like steel and raw oil; especially once you start getting down into the lower decks).
We did find an Evan's room and had a good laugh ('s last name is Evans). It turns out it was about some ship (the USS Evans) and not about Tyler, so we moved on.
We did get time for the submarine which was nice.
On Tuesday we had Zone training which was quite informative. It was fun to see old friends (Elder J and Elder C). I learned a lot. Someday we'll just go through all my pictures, planners, and notebooks and I'll just tell you everything.
Wednesday was a rather rough day at parts. I was happy and it was a great day but it was very rainy. We decided to walk and we had raincoats and umbrellas but we both still got drenched. We met the lady we wanted to see but her husband wasn't home so we couldn't go in. Hopefully, we'll be coming back some time. =) The look on her face when we told her our car was parked in Robertsdale (it was quite a ways away as we were in Rosington at that point) was absolutely priceless. =) Thankfully R came and saved us. We had a great lesson with S that R really enjoyed. We really focused on the Book of Mormon. We're really trying to show him we are not tearing anything down he has but building it up. He kept asking us questions and would say things like "Another question- sorry, but I mean, my eternal soul is at stake here guys!" or "I'm at a fork in the road, I just want to go down the right path". Super cool guy. Hopefully, we'll see him at church one of these days but stuff always comes up when he wants to come. =( Daggum opposition.
We were both very cold when we got back so we decided to take a nice warm foot bath and read mail. It was fantastic.
Thursday was dinner with the H's which I always love. I did make one critical mistake however. As we were leaving, Sister H popped out of the kitchen and said "WAIT! Don't go! I need to give you cookies!" Then I made a foolish mistake and explained we wanted but didn't need cookies. Her cookies are muy delicioso. =(
Out of time- but the rest of the week was good. I even stood up and bore my testimony in fast and testimony meeting. =)
FUN FACT: Tim Cook, CEO of Apple is reportedly from Robertsdale, Alabama.
QUOTE: Whether you think you can or you can't; you're right.
It's awesome. I love my mission and it's going well. I've grown this past week and I'm a little bit better. A LONG way to go but I'm getting there. I do love and miss you all
Yay for a lot of photos! (one last sunset for ya) =D
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
A big accomplishment for the week? Making potato pancakes.
They were like if you moshed up some hash browns with grits in them and grilled them into a patty. It was quite strange but strangely good. Elder W only ate a little bit leaving me a significant portion of potato pancakes (that little box made quite a few pancakes). He tends to be a little more cautious when it comes to crazy things his companion tries to get him to eat. UPDATE: turns out he liked them but he had just eaten a large amount of lunch. I saved some mix so I'll make them again.
We went to the USS Alabama once again since Elder W had never been. He really enjoyed it and plus we got to spend the day with T!! (love that guy). He's leaving in about 3 weeks for the MTC. He's going to Brazil. As usual, the main guns were quite large. I didn't take nearly as many picture this time as I already have a pile from last time. I just enjoyed the sights, the informative plaques, and the smell (the whole thing smells like steel and raw oil; especially once you start getting down into the lower decks).
We did find an Evan's room and had a good laugh ('s last name is Evans). It turns out it was about some ship (the USS Evans) and not about Tyler, so we moved on.
We did get time for the submarine which was nice.
On Tuesday we had Zone training which was quite informative. It was fun to see old friends (Elder J and Elder C). I learned a lot. Someday we'll just go through all my pictures, planners, and notebooks and I'll just tell you everything.
Wednesday was a rather rough day at parts. I was happy and it was a great day but it was very rainy. We decided to walk and we had raincoats and umbrellas but we both still got drenched. We met the lady we wanted to see but her husband wasn't home so we couldn't go in. Hopefully, we'll be coming back some time. =) The look on her face when we told her our car was parked in Robertsdale (it was quite a ways away as we were in Rosington at that point) was absolutely priceless. =) Thankfully R came and saved us. We had a great lesson with S that R really enjoyed. We really focused on the Book of Mormon. We're really trying to show him we are not tearing anything down he has but building it up. He kept asking us questions and would say things like "Another question- sorry, but I mean, my eternal soul is at stake here guys!" or "I'm at a fork in the road, I just want to go down the right path". Super cool guy. Hopefully, we'll see him at church one of these days but stuff always comes up when he wants to come. =( Daggum opposition.
We were both very cold when we got back so we decided to take a nice warm foot bath and read mail. It was fantastic.
Thursday was dinner with the H's which I always love. I did make one critical mistake however. As we were leaving, Sister H popped out of the kitchen and said "WAIT! Don't go! I need to give you cookies!" Then I made a foolish mistake and explained we wanted but didn't need cookies. Her cookies are muy delicioso. =(
Out of time- but the rest of the week was good. I even stood up and bore my testimony in fast and testimony meeting. =)
FUN FACT: Tim Cook, CEO of Apple is reportedly from Robertsdale, Alabama.
QUOTE: Whether you think you can or you can't; you're right.
It's awesome. I love my mission and it's going well. I've grown this past week and I'm a little bit better. A LONG way to go but I'm getting there. I do love and miss you all
Yay for a lot of photos! (one last sunset for ya) =D
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
Monday, January 28, 2013
[He didn't have time for a title this week]
"Nuture your mind with great thoughts for you'll never go higher than you think"
-- Benjamin Disraelli
I don't have much time... as usual, but I'll give a brief overview of the week.
It was a good week this week. I learned a lot and became better this week. I'm usually pretty hard on myself but I made some strides on just letting going of what's in the past and what's out of my control.
I'm out of time... but we had some cool experiences this week. We were lead by the Lord even though we were lost and found someone that we needed to go see. My hastily prepared 3 minute talk turned into 20 minutes and apparently it was even good. Daphne is a good place, I love the people and my work. I need to just get out there and do it.
PICTURES:
SUNSETS!
Elder W was kind enough to let me have on of his toaster strudels today. I drew a missionary with the frosting. The tip was rather large and as such I had a large lack of precision.
There's a bridge over a small lake that we run over to get to the golf course most mornings. Sometimes there's even fish in it.
I've been enjoying the silly putty I received for Christmas.
I love and miss you all! =)
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
-- Benjamin Disraelli
I don't have much time... as usual, but I'll give a brief overview of the week.
It was a good week this week. I learned a lot and became better this week. I'm usually pretty hard on myself but I made some strides on just letting going of what's in the past and what's out of my control.
I'm out of time... but we had some cool experiences this week. We were lead by the Lord even though we were lost and found someone that we needed to go see. My hastily prepared 3 minute talk turned into 20 minutes and apparently it was even good. Daphne is a good place, I love the people and my work. I need to just get out there and do it.
PICTURES:
SUNSETS!
Elder W was kind enough to let me have on of his toaster strudels today. I drew a missionary with the frosting. The tip was rather large and as such I had a large lack of precision.
There's a bridge over a small lake that we run over to get to the golf course most mornings. Sometimes there's even fish in it.
I've been enjoying the silly putty I received for Christmas.
I love and miss you all! =)
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
Monday, January 21, 2013
5 Week Transfer
Well, it's the first day of the new transfer. I'm once again with Elder W in Daphne, Alabama. It's been a crazy last few months and it's even crazy to consider that I started on my mission in 2011 and it's now 2013. I'm getting old....
I'm sorry, but I don't have much time this week, so I'll cover what I can.
This transfer looks to be a good one. We have some fantastic new people that we are now working with that I'm really excited about! I'll tell you about them in a little bit. This transfer is a bit of an odd one. The MTC is switching over to new, faster time schedule of 2 weeks instead of the traditional 3. Therefore, the mission is moving to a different transfer schedule to accommodate that. This new transfer is only 5 weeks long instead of the usual 6 (those of you with calendars, that means the next transfers are on February 20th). That means also that all the missionaries go home dates are moved up a week.
The three people we've been working with are: S, E, and L.
S is a super nice guy who has a lot of faith in God and is a good, hard working guy. He likes to be prepared and has noticed that almost all preparedness stuff goes back to our church. He has a TON of questions that we answer to the best of our ability. I feel that he will really progress and I really liked a comment he made: "You know, you guys are the first ones to really not just try and convince me but are like hey- go asked God about this". He wants to come to church and hopefully he'll be there next week. =)
E is the fiance of a non-member. She's been less active for a number of years but has a good testimony and really knows a lot! She came to church yesterday and loved it! Her fiance is really nice and he knows quite about us and has read the Book of Mormon before. He hasn't prayed about it. We had a great lesson with them both and we invited him to be baptized and he agreed! =) He didn't come to church yesterday as he stayed up for most of the night reading the Book of Mormon. I can't really get mad at him...
L is a media referral we just got! We were able to meet him and he's super nice! He's Baptist but always had some questions and recently visited Salt Lake City. He went through one of the museums there and the missionaries answered many of his questions. He really wants to read the Book of Mormon which is awesome! We're going to visit him next week and explain to him where the book came from.
PICTURE TIME!
It was a nice day and there was a nice view. (it looked better in person)
On the day that we got a referral from headquarters, we had a rather discouraging morning and when we got that text it really cheered me up. We were going by Fresh Market (much like World Market back home) and I decided to get some sushi for lunch.
I even made Elder W eat one. He was incredibly suspicious and it took a lot of coaxing to even get him to touch it. He did enjoy the wasabi though.
All in all it was quite delicious and it was pretty good sushi. Especially for coming in a box.
We were walking along and met some people who we knew that missionaries had worked with in the past. They were sorting boxes of girl scout cookies. We tried to help but it was kind of a two people job kind of thing. They did give us each a box of cookies though (I tried to refuse but they were insistent).
I love you all! and miss you and stuff!
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
I'm sorry, but I don't have much time this week, so I'll cover what I can.
This transfer looks to be a good one. We have some fantastic new people that we are now working with that I'm really excited about! I'll tell you about them in a little bit. This transfer is a bit of an odd one. The MTC is switching over to new, faster time schedule of 2 weeks instead of the traditional 3. Therefore, the mission is moving to a different transfer schedule to accommodate that. This new transfer is only 5 weeks long instead of the usual 6 (those of you with calendars, that means the next transfers are on February 20th). That means also that all the missionaries go home dates are moved up a week.
The three people we've been working with are: S, E, and L.
S is a super nice guy who has a lot of faith in God and is a good, hard working guy. He likes to be prepared and has noticed that almost all preparedness stuff goes back to our church. He has a TON of questions that we answer to the best of our ability. I feel that he will really progress and I really liked a comment he made: "You know, you guys are the first ones to really not just try and convince me but are like hey- go asked God about this". He wants to come to church and hopefully he'll be there next week. =)
E is the fiance of a non-member. She's been less active for a number of years but has a good testimony and really knows a lot! She came to church yesterday and loved it! Her fiance is really nice and he knows quite about us and has read the Book of Mormon before. He hasn't prayed about it. We had a great lesson with them both and we invited him to be baptized and he agreed! =) He didn't come to church yesterday as he stayed up for most of the night reading the Book of Mormon. I can't really get mad at him...
L is a media referral we just got! We were able to meet him and he's super nice! He's Baptist but always had some questions and recently visited Salt Lake City. He went through one of the museums there and the missionaries answered many of his questions. He really wants to read the Book of Mormon which is awesome! We're going to visit him next week and explain to him where the book came from.
PICTURE TIME!
It was a nice day and there was a nice view. (it looked better in person)
On the day that we got a referral from headquarters, we had a rather discouraging morning and when we got that text it really cheered me up. We were going by Fresh Market (much like World Market back home) and I decided to get some sushi for lunch.
I even made Elder W eat one. He was incredibly suspicious and it took a lot of coaxing to even get him to touch it. He did enjoy the wasabi though.
All in all it was quite delicious and it was pretty good sushi. Especially for coming in a box.
We were walking along and met some people who we knew that missionaries had worked with in the past. They were sorting boxes of girl scout cookies. We tried to help but it was kind of a two people job kind of thing. They did give us each a box of cookies though (I tried to refuse but they were insistent).
I love you all! and miss you and stuff!
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
Monday, January 14, 2013
Elder W Breaks the Record!
Well, it's transfer week once again and I'm really quite surprised. I figured that it was pretty likely that Elder W was leaving but I guess that such was not in the plan and we're together again for another transfer. That's the longest I've ever kept a companion. Going on 3 transfers! It's been interesting and I guess it'll just continue to be interesting. In fact, our whole district is staying the same! I've never had a district stay the same for 3 transfers. Kind of unusual if you ask me. Actually, there aren't all that many people transferring into total.
Anyway, so onto the week! Unfortunately, I am short on time and will have to be brief.
It's been a crazy crazy week. I really don't know where it went again. It seems like it was just Monday yesterday or something and we were talking about how crazy it was that we would be learning about transfers in a week's time.
Tuesday I had the unique privilege to go to Foley on an exchange. Usually I don't get to go and this was only my fourth time doing so. 11 exchanges and only 4 out of my area? Crazy huh? It was pretty fun though. Elder B (seen in picture below) is a great guy - I like him.
We spent a large portion of our day in a trailer park. Elder B is a Spanish speaking missionary so we were looking for Spanish speakers. It was a good day. I was rather mystified as we were in this trailer park and I noticed a fence filled with chickens, goats, and two bulls. All together. In the middle of a trailer park.
I guess that's how they roll in the south. I learned much on the exchange and met some great folks. I really relearned the importance of following the spirit and keeping things clean. Elder B made me a delicious breakfast with part of it consisting of a fruit smoothie of some kind. I know it had carrots in it. It was surprisingly good though. It made me want to try and eat healthier.
Another highlight! We GOT NEW CHAIRS! Our old chairs were your standard metal chairs from the church. They had some padding on them but it didn't help much. Our apartment was inspected on Thursday and the senior couple asked us about our chairs. They looked at them and decided we needed new chairs. THEY ARE AWESOME!
We assembled them and luckily it was pretty self explanatory. I enjoy it as it swivels and goes up and down. It's nice. Plus, it's quite comfy.
Picture time! We were trying to contact some folks when I saw this super green field and we decided to take a picture. Yes. It was that green.
But yeah. Doing pretty good down there in the south. I'm working on just becoming a celestial missionary. That means that everything I got goes to the mission. It's hard. Really hard. But the thing that has been impressed upon me over and over was the simple two step process of humility and faith. Ether 12 is the best example of this yet there are dozens of other examples of this concept in action. Being humble and having faith in the Savior and His Atonement is the key to overcoming any sort of weakness. Does the Lord expect immediate perfection? No. But He does expect immediate progress. Just like conversion is a process that often takes a lifetime, so is perfection. To quote my friend Elder Alex Thomson on pickles "It is but a cucumber- perfected". President Lorenzo Snow once compared conversion to the concept of pickling. The conversion of a cucumber to pickle is a long and drawn out process. You cannot pull the cucumber out just a few hours after it's placement into the pickling solution and expect it to be converted. Even waiting a while, you will be disappointed to find that the pickling effect has taken place only upon the rind. In order for the pickling effect to completely and fully take place, the cucumber must be allowed to soak in the solution until it has permeated the very substance of the cucumber. We are saved (or made perfect) by grace, after all we can do.
I would submit according to my understanding and experience that the pickling solution that we must use is a mixture of the spirit, trials, and the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Those are the things that refine us and allow us to throw off the natural man and become saints.
I love and miss you all! Sorry I don't have much in the way of detail. Someday I'll go through all my pictures, journals, and planners and explain.
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
Anyway, so onto the week! Unfortunately, I am short on time and will have to be brief.
It's been a crazy crazy week. I really don't know where it went again. It seems like it was just Monday yesterday or something and we were talking about how crazy it was that we would be learning about transfers in a week's time.
Tuesday I had the unique privilege to go to Foley on an exchange. Usually I don't get to go and this was only my fourth time doing so. 11 exchanges and only 4 out of my area? Crazy huh? It was pretty fun though. Elder B (seen in picture below) is a great guy - I like him.
We spent a large portion of our day in a trailer park. Elder B is a Spanish speaking missionary so we were looking for Spanish speakers. It was a good day. I was rather mystified as we were in this trailer park and I noticed a fence filled with chickens, goats, and two bulls. All together. In the middle of a trailer park.
I guess that's how they roll in the south. I learned much on the exchange and met some great folks. I really relearned the importance of following the spirit and keeping things clean. Elder B made me a delicious breakfast with part of it consisting of a fruit smoothie of some kind. I know it had carrots in it. It was surprisingly good though. It made me want to try and eat healthier.
Another highlight! We GOT NEW CHAIRS! Our old chairs were your standard metal chairs from the church. They had some padding on them but it didn't help much. Our apartment was inspected on Thursday and the senior couple asked us about our chairs. They looked at them and decided we needed new chairs. THEY ARE AWESOME!
We assembled them and luckily it was pretty self explanatory. I enjoy it as it swivels and goes up and down. It's nice. Plus, it's quite comfy.
Picture time! We were trying to contact some folks when I saw this super green field and we decided to take a picture. Yes. It was that green.
But yeah. Doing pretty good down there in the south. I'm working on just becoming a celestial missionary. That means that everything I got goes to the mission. It's hard. Really hard. But the thing that has been impressed upon me over and over was the simple two step process of humility and faith. Ether 12 is the best example of this yet there are dozens of other examples of this concept in action. Being humble and having faith in the Savior and His Atonement is the key to overcoming any sort of weakness. Does the Lord expect immediate perfection? No. But He does expect immediate progress. Just like conversion is a process that often takes a lifetime, so is perfection. To quote my friend Elder Alex Thomson on pickles "It is but a cucumber- perfected". President Lorenzo Snow once compared conversion to the concept of pickling. The conversion of a cucumber to pickle is a long and drawn out process. You cannot pull the cucumber out just a few hours after it's placement into the pickling solution and expect it to be converted. Even waiting a while, you will be disappointed to find that the pickling effect has taken place only upon the rind. In order for the pickling effect to completely and fully take place, the cucumber must be allowed to soak in the solution until it has permeated the very substance of the cucumber. We are saved (or made perfect) by grace, after all we can do.
I would submit according to my understanding and experience that the pickling solution that we must use is a mixture of the spirit, trials, and the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Those are the things that refine us and allow us to throw off the natural man and become saints.
I love and miss you all! Sorry I don't have much in the way of detail. Someday I'll go through all my pictures, journals, and planners and explain.
--
Elder Matthew Carlson
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