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| Making Transfer Calls |
December 14, 2015
Howdy errybody!
First of all I want to give a shout out to my wonderfully
talented mother! I love you Mom! I have been handing out your Christmas CDs
here, and everyone that has gotten one loves it!! I am sitting in the mission
office as we speak and I can hear Sister Bell playing it. It has been playing here in the office
non-stop since I handed it out to everyone. So you are famous here in Nevada,
and I am lucky to claim you as my mother!!
I am also grateful for all of my siblings who constantly write
me letters and give me updates on the Sports world!! #ToddFamRepresent
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| Working on transfers with Elder Ash and Pres. Chestnut |
We have spent the past week here in the office preparing for
transfers tomorrow! This has been a short, 5-week transfer, and it went by SO
fast. It feels like just yesterday Elder Ash arrived. But as we do the last
week of every transfer, we spent lots of time staring at the transfer board and
trying to prayerfully figure out companionship's and leadership and areas and
all of that. Overall, this has been a small transfer, with not too many
changes. Tomorrow we lose 5 missionaries and we gain 5 missionaries, and so we
won’t have to open or close any areas, which is nice.
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| 5 missionaries going home. Sister Stevenson is 2nd from right. |
Tomorrow Sister Katie
Stevenson goes home, and the mission is going to miss her! She has been a
powerful missionary and a great leader for not just the Sisters, but us Elders
as well. I looked up to her a lot. Ashburn Stake represent!! But it is always fun to spend time with
President in his office. He is really a hilarious guy when you get to know him.
He is 100% himself around us, and it makes it a lot of fun. Our joke this week
was, "Our we making any bonehead decisions?" in regards to the
transfers. He kept asking us that and now it is one of our inside jokes.
Lavonda is doing GREAT! She is going to attend the temple this
Friday! And yesterday, during the 2nd hour of church, she went and worked with
the Family History Consultant and they got her mother’s information, and on
Friday she is going to be baptized for her mother!! Is that cool or what??
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| Christmas lights in the upstairs of our apartment |
This week should be a crazy, but fun week!! Tomorrow is transfer
day, which is always lots of fun. And then on Thursday we have a huge West-side
party, with about 120 missionaries in all the zones on the West side of the
mission...Carson City, Reno, Reno North, Quincy, Sparks, and Fallon! And then
after our party here, we are going to rip across Nevada and go to the East-side
party, with the 3 zones out there – Elko, Ely and Winnemucca on Friday! We are
super pumped to attend those, just two straight days of parties, wahooo!! It will be lots of fun to see the whole
mission again. Then Friday night we will have to drive back home for a meeting
on Saturday with the new greenies and their trainers. So it should be an
action-packed week. This new transfer will be 7 weeks long, so after these next
two weeks of parties and Christmas it should settle down and be a normal
transfer, without any zone conferences or anything. It will be nice to do some
good ole missionary work! Our area has suffered a fair amount this past
transfer because we have been so busy with mission-related administration
items. We are probably going to put another set of Elders in our ward next
transfer so that we can travel around the mission more and the ward itself won't
suffer.
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| Another pic of our apartment...Christmas lights and all |
During this past week of transfer planning, we would always go
out and proselyte in the evenings, and you would think that because we have so
little time to proselyte that the Lord would bless us in the evenings, but this
past week was one of the hardest weeks I've ever had! We had TONS of
appointments in the evenings this past week, some even double booked, but only
a few actually happened. It is really tough during this time of the year, too,
because not many people are out and about in the evenings because it is dark
and cold, and not many people are too excited to let us in when it is dark and
cold, either. So we have to find the people that are open and available to let
us in at that time of the day, and pray and plead with the Lord to lead us to
those who are ready at that time.
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| Snowy Night |
It has been pretty cold here lately...and it snows about every
other day, but it usually doesn't stick around for very long. But it’s fun to
have it actually feel like Christmas here! I have grown to really love the
weather here in the west...I certainly do NOT miss the humidity back at home!!
Last week Elder Ash and I made a trip to Costco and LOADED up on
stuff. We spent almost $200 in groceries
and stuff! But we are loaded now. We have tons of everything…milk, cheese,
bacon, ham, bread, fruit, toilet paper – it is great. We are hoping we don't
have to do much shopping these next two weeks.
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| Costco Run |
This past week I went to give a blessing in the hospital that is
in our ward, and the lady had an NG Tube...and while we were there the nurse
came in and pulled it out!! It brought back so many memories....not necessarily
good memories, but memories nonetheless of when I was in the hospital with a
ruptured appendix and had an NG tube of my own. I am grateful for the health
that I have been blessed with while I have been here on my mission, it is truly
a miracle that the Lord has blessed me with.
I speak a little Spanish every now and then...and the other day
it donned on me that Christmas is just Christ-MAS...like 'More Christ".
Pretty cool, eh? Just a random thought.
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| We loaded up!! |
During the past few weeks I have been studying Chapter 4 of
Preach My Gospel, which talks about The Holy Ghost. I have learned a lot from
my studies, and it has made me so grateful for the Holy Ghost in my life. It is
a teacher, a testifier, a guide, and a comforter for me in my life. Because of
my studies I have been trying to more closely listen and identify impressions
that I receive. The Sparks Stake President said in a meeting once, "A
thought is an impression until otherwise proven." I like that quote a lot.
I know that when we are doing what we should be and we are worthy of the
companionship of the Holy Ghost, that truly any good thoughts that we receive
are from the Spirit. I have taken the influence of the Spirit for granted
sometimes, but it truly is one of the greatest blessings that anyone can have
in their life. There are TONS of scriptures but one of my favorites is Moroni
10:5, "And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the
truth of all things." I know that as we all strive to be worthy of the Holy Ghost in
our life that we will be lead and guided in all that we do, which will allow us
to experience more peace, joy, and confidence in this life.
One funny story about the companionship of the Holy Ghost...we
had two Elders in our mission back into a pole at their house, and of course
this caused damage to the back bumper which had to be reported to the vehicle
coordinator and the President and all of that.
When Elder Zappe, the senior missionary who is also the vehicle
coordinator, went down to check it out, he asked them, "Who was standing
outside backing up the car?" (Because that is of course a church-wide rule
for mission vehicles) and the Elder said, "The Holy Ghost" and I
thought it was pretty funny myself that he would say that, but Elder Zappe
wasn't too amused, and his response was something like, "well as soon as
you put the car in reverse and your companion didn't get out, the Holy Ghost
left." So a small little lesson about being worthy to have the Holy
Ghost!!
I love you guys!!
Love,
Elder
Richman Dawg
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