Talmage Mission

Good Morning! Can I just state how excited I am for the work that's moving forward in Salina? This has been an amazing month for our area, especially compared to the last couple months here. When I arrived the history of progression and friends being taught was fairly stalled. Now, it has increased dramatically! We found 7 friends in the month of August, and a good number of members who have stepped back from the church, but have a desire to learn more and meet with us! Miracles abound at every corner, it's been a true blessing to witness God's hand in the lives of those who live here.  We met a member of the area Seventy yesterday morning, Elder Jeffrey Singer, during a brief meeting for all the current and future missionaries in the Stake (basically anyone who already had their call). He shared a significant amount of counsel with us, some of which I'll include in this email. The first principle to keep in mind is this; Utah is the bedrock of missions everywhere.  Wha...

Good Morning! The work goes on! We found two new friends, both of which have so much potential! We've learned more about them, and one is on track for baptism when she's ready, and the other will likely be a much longer process. He's still figuring out where his desires are, and why he wants to look into the gospel of Jesus Christ. But my two friends from La Verkin got baptized last Saturday! They were too far away for me to attend the baptism, but I have photos and that's just as good! We've worked a lot of the initial potential we've found, so now we're going to search for more. I'm still seeking and expecting miracles!  Speaking of miracles, I had a very intriguing study on miracles. Alma chapter 19 has a lot of examples concerning faith, and when you compare that to Moroni chapter 7, where it discusses the prerequisites to receiving miracles, it makes so much sense. That was an amazing study session! I left that hour with a greater desire to recogniz...

Good Morning! We've had some very needed miracles this past week! Chance, an individual we've been teaching, was baptized last Friday! And we found our first two new people to start teaching on Saturday. Ultimately, we're working to shift the area towards a higher productivity level, it's exciting! One of the two new friends we have is a very young girl, the oldest of six in a large family. This was one of those rare times where I'm actually able to communicate with kids, so I led a very entertaining and insightful discussion on God's Love with them! That never happens to me. Right after we were referred to this random apartment lot and we're about to leave, but instead we decided to knock on one of the doors right in the middle. Lo and behold the door opens, we talk to the gentleman for a few minutes, and set up a return appointment in a week! He's from Texas too, so it's meant to be.  We also found a bear. He's our new best friend, he was willi...

Good Morning! Elder Stucki wants to work! We've done just about everything possible to be the most productive, effective missionaries we can this past week. Guess how many people we began teaching!  Zero. But we caught a mouse! Salina, Redmond, and Aurora are the three towns in the Salina Stake, and the members here are wonderful. There's just a minor problem. The vast majority of people here are members, whether they come to church or not doesn't matter. The rest are Hispanic, and refuse to speak in English when talking to missionaries. We've given the local Spanish Sisters so many referrals it's insane.  Now, I do speak better Spanish than Elder Stucki, for whatever reason. But my limited knowledge doesn't get me very far in the conversation, but at least they're super nice! Even if they're not interested, they're very polite. It's much appreciated.  With this background knowledge, perhaps you'll understand what I've come to discover. S...

Good Morning! We just finished the best week of the transfer! Not only has it rained every evening without fail, but Taiji, our logical, smart friend was baptized on Saturday! He's amazing, and despite some little inconveniences (A leaky font, faulty AC, and scattered record information) God prevailed and he entered the covenant path! It was on his knees because of the leaky font, but still a very memorable experience. We also found six new people to teach this week, one is a family of four and super interesting, the others have been a long time in the making. Lastly, we put two of my favorite people in this area on date! I've loved working with the Perkins family, we found them our first week into the area and they became my passion project. Jenahsea and Chevy are both preparing for baptism, that'll happen in the month of August. Oh yeah, and I'm getting transfered again! My new area will be in Salina, and my new companion will be Elder Stucki. He's tall, and good ...

Good Morning!  I have had a very wonderful week. We didn't find anyone new to teach, but we had 10 friends at church! Ten! That's a miracle in and of itself. Elder Gibson and I have gotten along great, sometimes things were rough but we're back at it and working in harmony again. Sometimes it just takes an emotional and literal reset to sort out an issue. Kind of like computers. We have a ton of new people we're hoping to start teaching this week, and Taiji's baptism! He's super prepared, and probably my favorite person to help into the covenant path so far into my mission! I've learned some things from him, and am super excited for this coming week. Time to end the transfer on a high note!  We visited Zion today for Preparation Day. We did the Emerald Pools hike, and visited all three of the pools! There was a little bit of water running, but not a ton, and there were plenty of tadpoles to see. Then we went through a drive through the tunnel and into the Ea...

Good Morning! I have had a very busy week, but those are the best ones because it means I'm working. We had a high number of lessons this past week, and introduced a better way to communicate with the wards concerning those we are teaching, and trying to find, in their boundaries. We found one new person to teach, and only two people came to church, but it's not because we didn't work, that's my comfort. We have a number of people this coming week that we could reach out to and potentially begin teaching, and I know there are more hiding somewhere. We'll find them!  Some of my favorite days as a missionary are the days where I don't recall what happened in the morning. We've had days with 6 or 7 lessons, and other activities between, and by 9pm I'm ready to sleep. But there's still work to do, reporting to finalize, and a bedtime routine to complete. Sleep can't come too quickly on those days!  One thing I have come to recognize is the importance...