We had a super cool week this week. Three of our investigators were baptized on Saturday and confirmed on Sunday. They are each super cool! They're each trying to change their lives. All three of them are really humble, and are willing to do their best to follow Jesus Christ. I love seeing people except the gospel, and I love seeing people use the atonement in their lives. It reminds me of the mercy and the love that the Savior has shown me on so many occasions.
One of the blessings that comes by sharing the gospel is that it reminds you of what the Savior has done for you personally. It's like taking the Sacrament. we take the Sacrament to remember Christ's atonement, and the covenant we made at baptism to follow him. Sharing your testimony about Christ, reminds you of what the Lord has done for you, and most importantly it reminds you about your relationship with the Savior. We need these constant reminders in our life, so we can avoid the distractions.
Potential - distraction = performance.
Alma 29:10 best describes the way I feel when I see people we have found and taught get baptized.
So I'm serving in a foursome of two companion sets, and we share the one vehicle. Well, one of the elders in the other companion set totalled our car in an intersection. So we've been on bike for a couple of weeks now, lol. It's okay though, I've lost some weight. My legs are getting stronger, and the weather is really nice right now. There are a lot of hills here to peddle up, and our area is pretty wide spread. Bike riding has been fun, and it hasn't slowed us down very much; but we are all ready to get some wheels. This area wasn't intended for bikes.
We went to the park today as a Zone, and we got to see the USS Stenis float down the Sound, on it's way out to sea. That was cool. I took some pictures. The USS Stenis is the aircraft carrier that Optimus Prime was standing on at the end of Transformers.
Speaking of aircraft carriers: The USS Kitty Hawk is here in Bremerton. It's retired, but it's sitting out in the water. Cool huh, I got to go on the Kitty Hawk when I was a little kid. It made me smile when I saw it.
That's about all the news I have. It's been a fun crazy week. The Lord has greatly blessed us, and I'm super stoked to be a missionary for another year! What a privilege, huh? I'm going to be the best I can be. I'm hoping that next transfer I get to train; I would really like to help a new elder get off to a great start on his mission. A bunch of new elders from the MTC are coming into the Mission this next transfer. So hopefully President Weaver will assign me to one, lol.
I love you guys, a lot of miracles are happening, and the people we found and taught last transfer are progressing towards baptism. I love my investigators, I would do anything for them. I love my Savior, and I want to give him everything I've got.
I love you guys; stay classy.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Elder Michael Thornton
24 August 2011 to August 2013
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Fifty-Second Letter Home 20 August 2012
Hey, (I never know how to start these letters...)
Bremerton is sweet. I'm enjoying myself. The area is right across the Pugnet Sound from Manette, and I still go to the same church building, service is just at 1:00PM instead of 9:00AM. My new address is:
1604 Naval Ave. A 303
Bremerton, WA 98312
I really like all my companions; they're fun. Elder Grachev is the other Zone Leader, Elder Peck is a "greenie," and Elder Jones is a bit slow moving and slow talking, but he's a good Elder; I like him. They're all great. Elder Peck is excited about life, which is good. Elder Grachev is super tight. He cooks us food like buck wheat cereal in the morning, which is a popular breakfast in his "mother land," and he makes jokes. He's really touristy -- always taking pictures. I tease him because he's Russian, and we're serving in a naval town, lol. He's a good Elder, and we get along really well. He is not a spy!
The funny thing was that when I got my transfer call, President Weaver said to me, "Elder Thornton, I've got a special assignment for you..."
Anyway, the area is cool, we have some cool investigators, and I've transitioned all my old investigators over to the sisters in Manette. Being transferred and not being able to baptize the people I found and taught was disappointing, but I'm already seeing that the Lord had a purpose behind it.
Denise was one of our investigators. She really liked Elder Elder and I. She liked our lessons, she liked the way we answered her questions, and she felt really comfortable talking to us. But I think her boy friend felt a little threatened by us. Now that we're gone, he's actually come to church with her and has been asking questions about the gospel. The Lord knows what he's doing. I wasn't doing anything wrong, I was being a missionary, but I think he feels more comfortable now that Sister Missionaries are teaching his girl friend instead of a couple men. Ha-ha, being a missionary is awesome. I love it.
Today we went to Port Orchard. We road the foot ferry across the Sound. I had a blast. We floated pass the naval yard where we got to see submarines and carriers. We saw a bunch of seals (the animal kind, not the commando kind). It was really fun.
Our apartment actually has a nice view We look out over the Sound, and on the other side is a really nice park, called Lions Park. Nice to look at from a distance, but it's actually a sketchy area at night; safer during the day.
Not much else has happened this week. As is typical, transfers have been a little chaotic. I'm anxious to see miracles performed this transfer.
One attribute every hero in the Book of Mormon has is total trust in the Lord's promise and ability to fulfill his purposes. The brother of Jared, knew the Lord could do anything, according to his purposes. In his humble prayer, the brother of Jared affirms to the Lord, "thou can do this." Enos knew God could not lie. Captain Moroni had a perfect understanding of truth, and that conviction is key because in John 1:17 it says truth came from Christ. Captain Moroni had a perfect understanding of the atonement. He knew Christ, he had exercised the atonement in his life. Thus, when the lamanities came to war, he knew that God would support him and the Nephite people so long as there was a band of Christians in the land. He knew that God kept his promises. Moroni kept his promises to God, and God had kept his promises to him. Captain Moroni delighted in peace and righteousness. He in resisted iniquity. Whenever any of these men fell to their weaknesses in their lives, they all called upon the father in the name of Christ for forgiveness and for strength to overcome, and they received strength from God to overcome. They were perfectly acquainted with the grace of Christ. Those who never faced the storms of life, never learned where to place their feet so they wouldn't be blown over.
Obedience is the key to developing a true relationship with Jesus Christ. It's hard to be obedient sometimes. It's hard to fight against the natural man within us. Actually, it's impossible for us to do it alone. But victory is assured through the grace of Christ. In Mosiah 3:19 we learn that we will never come to know Christ if we never try and walk the path he gave us to follow.
My goal as a missionary is to get to know Jesus Christ. I love Jesus Christ. He is my friend. My mission has been the greatest experience of my life so far, because I've had the opportunity to serve side by side with Him. He's kept his promises to me, and everyday I try to keep my promises to him. I know we'll see miracles because he's promised me that. I have see miracles on my mission. What a gift. Guys, I would encourage you all to reflect on the miracles you've seen throughout your lives. They are gifts from Heavenly Father, to help strengthen our trust in him.
I love you guys.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Bremerton is sweet. I'm enjoying myself. The area is right across the Pugnet Sound from Manette, and I still go to the same church building, service is just at 1:00PM instead of 9:00AM. My new address is:
1604 Naval Ave. A 303
Bremerton, WA 98312
I really like all my companions; they're fun. Elder Grachev is the other Zone Leader, Elder Peck is a "greenie," and Elder Jones is a bit slow moving and slow talking, but he's a good Elder; I like him. They're all great. Elder Peck is excited about life, which is good. Elder Grachev is super tight. He cooks us food like buck wheat cereal in the morning, which is a popular breakfast in his "mother land," and he makes jokes. He's really touristy -- always taking pictures. I tease him because he's Russian, and we're serving in a naval town, lol. He's a good Elder, and we get along really well. He is not a spy!
The funny thing was that when I got my transfer call, President Weaver said to me, "Elder Thornton, I've got a special assignment for you..."
Anyway, the area is cool, we have some cool investigators, and I've transitioned all my old investigators over to the sisters in Manette. Being transferred and not being able to baptize the people I found and taught was disappointing, but I'm already seeing that the Lord had a purpose behind it.
Denise was one of our investigators. She really liked Elder Elder and I. She liked our lessons, she liked the way we answered her questions, and she felt really comfortable talking to us. But I think her boy friend felt a little threatened by us. Now that we're gone, he's actually come to church with her and has been asking questions about the gospel. The Lord knows what he's doing. I wasn't doing anything wrong, I was being a missionary, but I think he feels more comfortable now that Sister Missionaries are teaching his girl friend instead of a couple men. Ha-ha, being a missionary is awesome. I love it.
Today we went to Port Orchard. We road the foot ferry across the Sound. I had a blast. We floated pass the naval yard where we got to see submarines and carriers. We saw a bunch of seals (the animal kind, not the commando kind). It was really fun.
Our apartment actually has a nice view We look out over the Sound, and on the other side is a really nice park, called Lions Park. Nice to look at from a distance, but it's actually a sketchy area at night; safer during the day.
Not much else has happened this week. As is typical, transfers have been a little chaotic. I'm anxious to see miracles performed this transfer.
One attribute every hero in the Book of Mormon has is total trust in the Lord's promise and ability to fulfill his purposes. The brother of Jared, knew the Lord could do anything, according to his purposes. In his humble prayer, the brother of Jared affirms to the Lord, "thou can do this." Enos knew God could not lie. Captain Moroni had a perfect understanding of truth, and that conviction is key because in John 1:17 it says truth came from Christ. Captain Moroni had a perfect understanding of the atonement. He knew Christ, he had exercised the atonement in his life. Thus, when the lamanities came to war, he knew that God would support him and the Nephite people so long as there was a band of Christians in the land. He knew that God kept his promises. Moroni kept his promises to God, and God had kept his promises to him. Captain Moroni delighted in peace and righteousness. He in resisted iniquity. Whenever any of these men fell to their weaknesses in their lives, they all called upon the father in the name of Christ for forgiveness and for strength to overcome, and they received strength from God to overcome. They were perfectly acquainted with the grace of Christ. Those who never faced the storms of life, never learned where to place their feet so they wouldn't be blown over.
Obedience is the key to developing a true relationship with Jesus Christ. It's hard to be obedient sometimes. It's hard to fight against the natural man within us. Actually, it's impossible for us to do it alone. But victory is assured through the grace of Christ. In Mosiah 3:19 we learn that we will never come to know Christ if we never try and walk the path he gave us to follow.
My goal as a missionary is to get to know Jesus Christ. I love Jesus Christ. He is my friend. My mission has been the greatest experience of my life so far, because I've had the opportunity to serve side by side with Him. He's kept his promises to me, and everyday I try to keep my promises to him. I know we'll see miracles because he's promised me that. I have see miracles on my mission. What a gift. Guys, I would encourage you all to reflect on the miracles you've seen throughout your lives. They are gifts from Heavenly Father, to help strengthen our trust in him.
I love you guys.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Forty-Eighth thru Fifty-First Letters Home July 23, 30, August 6, and 13, 2012
[I, Elder Thornton's dad, fell on the job of posting his missionary letters, so his last nine letters home are just now being posted. the following are the last four of the nine letters: July 23, 30, August 6, and 13.]
23 July 2012
Hey, we've had a very good week this week!
We've seen a lot of miracles, and the Lord has been blessing our finding efforts. We actually have a teaching pool now. We have an awesome Investigator who came to Church again on Sunday. He's such a nice guy, and he's very wise. He studies things out, and he does so with his conscience as his guide. We went and saw him the other day, and he was talking about what he'd learned from the Internet about Mormons... That is usually a problem, but he had no problem sorting through the anti and distinguishing the truth from the lies.
We do a movie night on Saturdays, where the missionaries in the district all meet at the Church with their investigators, and we all watch a Church movie together. It works really well, this time we watched Prophet of the Restoration, and Ward really liked it.
He said, "I've always thought prophets were only in the old testament, but the more I think about it, the more I see that it makes perfect sense that God could call one now if he wanted."
His wife is flying out to visit him in a couple of weeks, so we're trying to figure out what day to invite him to be baptized on. Normally I would invite people on the first lesson, but with Ward, I haven't felt prompted to do it yet. Maybe the Lord has something in mind in regards to Ward's wife coming up here soon. Either way, we're teaching the Plan of Salvation on Wednesday, so we'll put him on date then.
I'm really trying to Baptize weekly this transfer. So far we only have one, but the Lord is blessing us with fairly solid investigators, so hopefully we'll be albe to help them except the Gospel.
Everyone has their challenges, and I love how the Spirit can work through you when you're trying to help people. He is such a good teacher, I learn something new every time we teach together, lol. The hard part is staying in tune, and not allowing yourself to rely on your own knowledge too much. Building a reservoir of knowledge helps facilitate teaching with the Spirit, because then the Holy Ghost can "bring things to your remembrance," but it is easy to begin to rely on your own knowledge so much that you forget to listen to the still small voice.
I've had experiences where I've gotten really confident in my ability to apply the scriptures in lessons, and as a result I wasn't listening to the Spirit as much. I'd remember a scripture that applied to something, but as I tried to find it, I couldn't. I'd flip back and fourth through the pages, and then the impression would come, "remember whose investigators these are..." Then, I'd stop, say a little prayer in my heart, apologizing for getting a little cocky, and then I'd be able to find it and continue teaching. Missionary work is not done by the arm of flesh, it's done by the Spirit. If Heavenly Father wanted people to be convinced through intellect and reason, he wouldn't have called 19-year olds to be his messengers.
We met some really fun and interesting people this week. The first guy was a 91-year old WWII vet. He could barely open the door steadying himself on his walker so he could stand up, but he invited us in anyways. He sat us down on the couch, and immediately started telling us his story. Ha-ha, I love old people, they love to tell stories, especially WWII veterans. It was such a defining time in their lives I think. This guy had an awesome story.
He was in the Air Force, stationed in Nebraska. His wife was back in Pennsylvania, and she was about to have a baby, so the Air Force let him go home for a week to take care of his wife. When he got off the train, his wife was in labor. A week later, he got a telegram telling him to report for duty, and when he got there, they through him on a bus, and shipped him to New York. Once there, they put him on a boat, and shipped him to England, in preparation for what would become the D-day invasion of Normandy. Now, Normandy was divided up into three beaches. Utah and Omaha were attacked by the US Army, and the third one was invaded by the British. Omaha was the worst of the three. Well, this guy was put on a landing craft, headed right for Omaha beach with a bunch of Army infantry. Now being an Air Man, not infantry, all he was issued was an M1 carbine .30 caliber rifle. He was a mechanic, not a assault soldier, but somehow they misplaced him, and accidentally assigned him to the wrong unit: Big time! He had no clue what was going on, so he asked someone what they were supposed to do once they got to the beach, and they said run as fast as you can! So, that's what he did, as soon as the ramp hit the sand, he took off running, and I guess he was pretty fast, because he out ran all of the other soldiers. Bullets were whizzing around him, bombs were going off, but he kept running. He ran past a group of soldiers taking cover, and he kept going. Eventually he got to the top of a hill, and then upon looking down at the beach, realized that he was behind enemy lines... Heavy fighting was going on down on the beach, and everything was so chaotic that no German soldiers had noticed the little skinny soldier run right past them. He got so far back that he was actually standing behind a German general who was coordinating the artillery fire! He was walking on top of the German bunkers, trying to figure out what to do, he didn't have any grenades, so he couldn't drop them down into the bunkers, so he just kept moving. He didn't tell us if he took out the General or not, but the next day he linked up with the Rangers who scaled the cliffs at Utah beach, and finally got sent where he was supposed to be the whole time. The last thing he said was, "The news paper said no Air Men were on the beach... I was." And he shook his head.
I love people's stories, and I love veterans. Those guys are hero's.
We met a really funny old lady, who told us a crazy story about the sketchy park we go contacting in sometimes. She was jogging early one morning, because she's active, and a guy came up to her and tried to attack her. So, she pulled out her tazer and tazed him, lol. She showed us her tazer, it was like 50,000 volts or something... She was super funny. She invited us back, to share a message with her, so that will be cool. I love it here. Being a missionary is the greatest privilege there is.
I love you guys.
Love,
Elder Thornton
P.S. I'm out of time, so thank you everyone for the packages and letters. I got everything. Thank you so much.
__________
30 July 2012
Hey, how is everyone doing? This week has been difficult, just because despite the teaching pool we've been blessed to find, many of our investigators are really sketchy when it comes to keeping commitments. But we keep working on it, and the key is to love people sincerely.
I was praying the other night, and I was really beating myself up, feeling very frustrated, discouraged, and worthless. Some of the members in the Ward here subliminally accuse us of being lazy through the comments that they make because the Sisters have an awesome teaching pool and have baptized weekly this month, and we have no investigators and have baptized just one person. I brought these feelings of inadequacy and self-pity to Heavenly Father, and He responded to me that feelings of discouragement, worthlessness, are stemmed from fear, which is the opposite of faith. He told me that if I wouldn't focus on my own weaknesses so much, and instead focus on how I can serve others, the devil wouldn't have as much opportunity to make such brutal emotional attacks. The Gospel isn't introverted, the Priesthood isn't introverted, the Atonement wasn't introverted. The devil tries to discourage us because discouragement is a selfish feeling, and keeps us from serving others. Basically, as he's told me before, it's not about me. If we fill our mind with thoughts of how to bless people, and seek their welfare, there won't be any space left for that little punk the lier of lies to make us feel bad about ourselves. To feel sorrow for other people is Christ like. To feel worthless is a lie from the devil. After all, we are God's children, how can we ever be worthless? It's not about us, it's about Christ. Losing ourselves in His work, is a sure way to find joy as a missionary, as a human being.
This chastisement was not what I expected in response to my prayer, but it was what I needed. After all, I'm a soldier of the Lord. Christ is my Captain, and where he sends me I will go, and what he tells me to do, I will do, for in him, and through him, the victory will be won.
I have a lot of fun being a missionary, I love finding people, I enjoy talking to people and teaching them about the gospel.
Yesterday I had a blast talking to a bunch of recently retired gang bangers from Compton about Jesus. It seems like all the guys that try and escape the violence down there, come up to bremerton. Lakewood and Tacoma have pretty active gang activity, but "B-town" isn't too bad. Anyway, they were sitting outside their house cooking burgers, so we walked up and started talking to them. They liked us, they were saying that everyone says Mormons are so bad, but they know we're cool, and they like that we go around and try and help people find God. They were saying that they are trying to find God because before, they only tried to have a relationship with him when they were in jail. We've been meeting with one of them, and he was telling his buddies, "you should here what these guys have to say, it's so good. They know whats up."
So while we were talking with them, everything was going really well, but because there was alcohol present, they almost got in a fist fight with each other. Fortunately, because we had been talking about the gospel, and the Spirit was there, the drunken angry one just left. One of them was a Jehovah's witness, and he was probably the nicest JW I've met. He said some really good things, I don't think he's active in that religion, but he was encouraging our investigator to "grow a pair," give up his sins, and start following Jesus. Ha-ha, he was telling our guy he should get baptized. It was so fun, these guys need help so bad, all of them are trying to change, they're trying to break away from their lives' circumstances; and the truth is, God sent us to them to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with them so they could actually change for the better. What a blessing it is to be a missionary. Those guys would have never talked to us if we were there for any other reason. They can see we have something they want. They want Jesus, but they are afraid to let him down, and they don't know how to overcome their weaknesses.
If they would keep the commitments we leave with them, they would have so much joy; but it's up to them. We each have our agency. All my companion and I can do is testify and invite. But if we didn't follow the prompting to go, and we didn't open our mouths to talk, they would never have the opportunity.
I try to be a good missionary, the longer I've been out the more I've realized I don't know what I'm doing, but the Lord does.
I hope you have an awesome week, I love you guys.
Love,
Elder Thornton
__________
06 August 2012
Hey, it seems like yesterday that all of you were going to Disneyland. That's because it was last August or September that you went. I remember well because I had just left the Missionary Training Center for Tacoma, Washington, lol. I hope you guys have a fun trip.
The weather has been really hot lately. Probably just because I've become accustomed to the regularly cool and dreary weather here, and now the sun is out. I'm glad I get to be in a pretty part of Washington for the summer though, because it's gorgeous when the sun is out. Bremeton is near the Olympic mountain range, and the Pugnet Sound runs through it.
Today, I got to take a tour of an Ohio class Submarine, the USS Kentucky. It was fun, really fun. I could never be on a sub though, this one was a big one, and it was still crowded and claustrophobic in there.
This week has been really challenging. I've been really worn out emotionally, and physically. It's so hard to get our people to Church and to get them to keep commitments. One of the guys we had on date just went to jail, because he didn't show up for his court date. I just don't want to leave this area without seeing more success. Joshua got the priesthood yesterday though, so that was cool. We do have some really good investigators the Lord has blessed us to find. One of them is a super good man; he's praying about the Book of Mormon, and he's been talking to his wife over skype about the things we've been teaching him. He asked his wife what she thought about getting sealed in the temple. So cool. The only problem is, we haven't seen him the last two Sundays. He goes to Church, and last Sunday we thought he just visited another ward some place, to compare them, but yesterday he did the same thing, so we don't know where he's going. We'll have to ask him, lol.
The devil doesn't let our investigators go without a fight. And I've been fighting discouragement so much lately it's ridiculous, but through a lot of mighty prayer and insights gained through personal study, I think I'm back to operating at full capacity. All we can do is stay diligent and positive.
Today, I was reading Mosiah 10:12-19, and I thought it was interesting that King Zenif took the time to tell his people why the Lamanities were coming against them. It's so important that we understand our enemy. He's not only our enemy, but he's also our enemy's enemy. Understanding that, helps us to understand that it isn't really about you or about them, it's about the Lord's work. All the opposition, discouragement, even the feelings of in-adequacy come from the same source: the enemy to God. He's the same who discourages people from changing for the better, makes them feel ashamed to show up in Church, and whispers lies in their ears about what will bring them satisfaction and happiness in this life. It all comes from the devil. And his purpose is to stop the Lord's work so that everyone will remain with him in utter misery.
As I was reminded by the Spirit today that the devil wants to see us frustrated; especially those of us that are anxiously engaged in furthering the Lord's kingdom. As much as he thrashes and rants though, he can't stop the work from progressing, he really can't. The Lord will fulfill all His words. He promised Abraham that through his seed all the nations of the earth would be blessed. That has happened, it is happening, and it will continue to happen. The enemy can't stop it. What does that mean to us? I think Enos summed it up best, when he said,"And I, Enos, knew that God could not lie." The gospel is going forth. I just need to be worthy of the companionship of the Holy Ghost and be where Heavenly Father needs me to be. I'm all about that.
The Lord is so good to me: he answers my prayers; he has been there to lift me up in my darkest times. It is amazing to me that even as his servant, even when all I want to do is serve him well, he still shed drops of blood for me, so that he could succor me in my trials and afflictions. How could I give anything but my best to the Master such as He? The greatest gift I've received as a missionary is a knowledge of the power of Christ's atonement. He is my Savior. I'm praying that President Weaver will let me stay another transfer, just to see things through. I would love that.
I hope everyone has an awesome week, I love you.
Love,
Elder Thornton
__________
13 August 2012
Hey, how are things? The time for transfers has arrived once more. The claw (President Weaver) chooses who will go and who will stay. This time the claw got two for one! We're both leaving. The Manette area is becoming a Sisters only area. We're a little bummed, considering we've worked really hard to establish a teaching pool, and we have people on date and people to put on date for next transfer. We were projected to hit weekly, but this time we won't be the ones doing the harvesting.
It's okay. I feel like I fulfilled my purpose. I found a lot of really sweet people who will have the opportunity to be baptized. I helped to solidify some of the Sister's investigators, and Joshua now holds the Aaronic priesthood. As difficult as last transfer was, it was a huge blessing, and I'm grateful for all the experiences I had. I got to spend time serving Jesus Christ.
I'm not going very far though. I'm actually just getting kicked across the Sound. I'm going to be serving in West Bremerton! I'm actually super stoked. Mostly, because I don't have to share tracting spots anymore. I'm going to be the new Bremerton Zone Leader/Manette District Leader... ha-ha it's weird, but It'll be really fun. I love being a District Leader. I like having to put together trainings, and meeting every one's baptismal candidates during the interviews, it's great. It's been a growing opportunity for me. This is the best part though, my new companion is Elder Grachev, from Moscow, Russia. He's super tight, he was my Zone Leader when I was a greenie serving in Port Townsend. I'll actually be serving in a foursome; we also have Elder Peck and Elder Jones, who are our "boys." I'm stoked. President is going to let me participate in lessons with the investigators I have to turn over to the Sister, which will be good, because our investigators really like us. We get attached to them, and surprisingly, they get attached to us, lol.
President Weaver always says, "when you're a missionary, people love you and respect you more than you deserve."
So last Monday we went to a member dinner with a Samoan family. They were really sweet. They had us and the Sisters over. For dinner, we ate an interesting slimy noodle dish, a really good but weird looking potato thing, and fried fish. This wasn't just any fish though, this fish had a face. In fact, it had a whole head! We were sitting at the table. The family was super nice and hospitable, and they invited us to dig in. So, to show our appreciation, we started putting everything on our plate. The fish were cut in half, so some of them were the tail portion, and some the head portion. I was trying to avoid the fish, but one of them was staring at me... I tried to point it out to Sister V, and guess what she did -- she grabbed it and threw it on my plate. So, I ate it. I ate the fish head. Yum. The funny thing is, Elder Elder ate the fish, scales and all. He ate two of them.
That's about all that has happened this week. It has been fun. Summer here is really pretty. Oh, the best part about summer here in Washington is that black berries grow like dandelions here. Seriously, anywhere you go, you can pick fresh black berries. We eat them while we tract, it's the coolest thing ever. It's the only time that tracting is successful regardless of whether or not you find someone, lol.
The Ward didn't say anything when they found out we were leaving, only two people said bye to me after sacrament meeting. When they found out they were getting Spanish Elders instead, one lady was like, "finally, I love the Spanish Elders. I'm so glad they're coming back.".... I tired my best.
I hope you have an awesome week, I love you guys.
Love,
Elder Thornton
23 July 2012
Hey, we've had a very good week this week!
We've seen a lot of miracles, and the Lord has been blessing our finding efforts. We actually have a teaching pool now. We have an awesome Investigator who came to Church again on Sunday. He's such a nice guy, and he's very wise. He studies things out, and he does so with his conscience as his guide. We went and saw him the other day, and he was talking about what he'd learned from the Internet about Mormons... That is usually a problem, but he had no problem sorting through the anti and distinguishing the truth from the lies.
We do a movie night on Saturdays, where the missionaries in the district all meet at the Church with their investigators, and we all watch a Church movie together. It works really well, this time we watched Prophet of the Restoration, and Ward really liked it.
He said, "I've always thought prophets were only in the old testament, but the more I think about it, the more I see that it makes perfect sense that God could call one now if he wanted."
His wife is flying out to visit him in a couple of weeks, so we're trying to figure out what day to invite him to be baptized on. Normally I would invite people on the first lesson, but with Ward, I haven't felt prompted to do it yet. Maybe the Lord has something in mind in regards to Ward's wife coming up here soon. Either way, we're teaching the Plan of Salvation on Wednesday, so we'll put him on date then.
I'm really trying to Baptize weekly this transfer. So far we only have one, but the Lord is blessing us with fairly solid investigators, so hopefully we'll be albe to help them except the Gospel.
Everyone has their challenges, and I love how the Spirit can work through you when you're trying to help people. He is such a good teacher, I learn something new every time we teach together, lol. The hard part is staying in tune, and not allowing yourself to rely on your own knowledge too much. Building a reservoir of knowledge helps facilitate teaching with the Spirit, because then the Holy Ghost can "bring things to your remembrance," but it is easy to begin to rely on your own knowledge so much that you forget to listen to the still small voice.
I've had experiences where I've gotten really confident in my ability to apply the scriptures in lessons, and as a result I wasn't listening to the Spirit as much. I'd remember a scripture that applied to something, but as I tried to find it, I couldn't. I'd flip back and fourth through the pages, and then the impression would come, "remember whose investigators these are..." Then, I'd stop, say a little prayer in my heart, apologizing for getting a little cocky, and then I'd be able to find it and continue teaching. Missionary work is not done by the arm of flesh, it's done by the Spirit. If Heavenly Father wanted people to be convinced through intellect and reason, he wouldn't have called 19-year olds to be his messengers.
We met some really fun and interesting people this week. The first guy was a 91-year old WWII vet. He could barely open the door steadying himself on his walker so he could stand up, but he invited us in anyways. He sat us down on the couch, and immediately started telling us his story. Ha-ha, I love old people, they love to tell stories, especially WWII veterans. It was such a defining time in their lives I think. This guy had an awesome story.
He was in the Air Force, stationed in Nebraska. His wife was back in Pennsylvania, and she was about to have a baby, so the Air Force let him go home for a week to take care of his wife. When he got off the train, his wife was in labor. A week later, he got a telegram telling him to report for duty, and when he got there, they through him on a bus, and shipped him to New York. Once there, they put him on a boat, and shipped him to England, in preparation for what would become the D-day invasion of Normandy. Now, Normandy was divided up into three beaches. Utah and Omaha were attacked by the US Army, and the third one was invaded by the British. Omaha was the worst of the three. Well, this guy was put on a landing craft, headed right for Omaha beach with a bunch of Army infantry. Now being an Air Man, not infantry, all he was issued was an M1 carbine .30 caliber rifle. He was a mechanic, not a assault soldier, but somehow they misplaced him, and accidentally assigned him to the wrong unit: Big time! He had no clue what was going on, so he asked someone what they were supposed to do once they got to the beach, and they said run as fast as you can! So, that's what he did, as soon as the ramp hit the sand, he took off running, and I guess he was pretty fast, because he out ran all of the other soldiers. Bullets were whizzing around him, bombs were going off, but he kept running. He ran past a group of soldiers taking cover, and he kept going. Eventually he got to the top of a hill, and then upon looking down at the beach, realized that he was behind enemy lines... Heavy fighting was going on down on the beach, and everything was so chaotic that no German soldiers had noticed the little skinny soldier run right past them. He got so far back that he was actually standing behind a German general who was coordinating the artillery fire! He was walking on top of the German bunkers, trying to figure out what to do, he didn't have any grenades, so he couldn't drop them down into the bunkers, so he just kept moving. He didn't tell us if he took out the General or not, but the next day he linked up with the Rangers who scaled the cliffs at Utah beach, and finally got sent where he was supposed to be the whole time. The last thing he said was, "The news paper said no Air Men were on the beach... I was." And he shook his head.
I love people's stories, and I love veterans. Those guys are hero's.
We met a really funny old lady, who told us a crazy story about the sketchy park we go contacting in sometimes. She was jogging early one morning, because she's active, and a guy came up to her and tried to attack her. So, she pulled out her tazer and tazed him, lol. She showed us her tazer, it was like 50,000 volts or something... She was super funny. She invited us back, to share a message with her, so that will be cool. I love it here. Being a missionary is the greatest privilege there is.
I love you guys.
Love,
Elder Thornton
P.S. I'm out of time, so thank you everyone for the packages and letters. I got everything. Thank you so much.
__________
30 July 2012
Hey, how is everyone doing? This week has been difficult, just because despite the teaching pool we've been blessed to find, many of our investigators are really sketchy when it comes to keeping commitments. But we keep working on it, and the key is to love people sincerely.
I was praying the other night, and I was really beating myself up, feeling very frustrated, discouraged, and worthless. Some of the members in the Ward here subliminally accuse us of being lazy through the comments that they make because the Sisters have an awesome teaching pool and have baptized weekly this month, and we have no investigators and have baptized just one person. I brought these feelings of inadequacy and self-pity to Heavenly Father, and He responded to me that feelings of discouragement, worthlessness, are stemmed from fear, which is the opposite of faith. He told me that if I wouldn't focus on my own weaknesses so much, and instead focus on how I can serve others, the devil wouldn't have as much opportunity to make such brutal emotional attacks. The Gospel isn't introverted, the Priesthood isn't introverted, the Atonement wasn't introverted. The devil tries to discourage us because discouragement is a selfish feeling, and keeps us from serving others. Basically, as he's told me before, it's not about me. If we fill our mind with thoughts of how to bless people, and seek their welfare, there won't be any space left for that little punk the lier of lies to make us feel bad about ourselves. To feel sorrow for other people is Christ like. To feel worthless is a lie from the devil. After all, we are God's children, how can we ever be worthless? It's not about us, it's about Christ. Losing ourselves in His work, is a sure way to find joy as a missionary, as a human being.
This chastisement was not what I expected in response to my prayer, but it was what I needed. After all, I'm a soldier of the Lord. Christ is my Captain, and where he sends me I will go, and what he tells me to do, I will do, for in him, and through him, the victory will be won.
I have a lot of fun being a missionary, I love finding people, I enjoy talking to people and teaching them about the gospel.
Yesterday I had a blast talking to a bunch of recently retired gang bangers from Compton about Jesus. It seems like all the guys that try and escape the violence down there, come up to bremerton. Lakewood and Tacoma have pretty active gang activity, but "B-town" isn't too bad. Anyway, they were sitting outside their house cooking burgers, so we walked up and started talking to them. They liked us, they were saying that everyone says Mormons are so bad, but they know we're cool, and they like that we go around and try and help people find God. They were saying that they are trying to find God because before, they only tried to have a relationship with him when they were in jail. We've been meeting with one of them, and he was telling his buddies, "you should here what these guys have to say, it's so good. They know whats up."
So while we were talking with them, everything was going really well, but because there was alcohol present, they almost got in a fist fight with each other. Fortunately, because we had been talking about the gospel, and the Spirit was there, the drunken angry one just left. One of them was a Jehovah's witness, and he was probably the nicest JW I've met. He said some really good things, I don't think he's active in that religion, but he was encouraging our investigator to "grow a pair," give up his sins, and start following Jesus. Ha-ha, he was telling our guy he should get baptized. It was so fun, these guys need help so bad, all of them are trying to change, they're trying to break away from their lives' circumstances; and the truth is, God sent us to them to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with them so they could actually change for the better. What a blessing it is to be a missionary. Those guys would have never talked to us if we were there for any other reason. They can see we have something they want. They want Jesus, but they are afraid to let him down, and they don't know how to overcome their weaknesses.
If they would keep the commitments we leave with them, they would have so much joy; but it's up to them. We each have our agency. All my companion and I can do is testify and invite. But if we didn't follow the prompting to go, and we didn't open our mouths to talk, they would never have the opportunity.
I try to be a good missionary, the longer I've been out the more I've realized I don't know what I'm doing, but the Lord does.
I hope you have an awesome week, I love you guys.
Love,
Elder Thornton
__________
06 August 2012
Hey, it seems like yesterday that all of you were going to Disneyland. That's because it was last August or September that you went. I remember well because I had just left the Missionary Training Center for Tacoma, Washington, lol. I hope you guys have a fun trip.
The weather has been really hot lately. Probably just because I've become accustomed to the regularly cool and dreary weather here, and now the sun is out. I'm glad I get to be in a pretty part of Washington for the summer though, because it's gorgeous when the sun is out. Bremeton is near the Olympic mountain range, and the Pugnet Sound runs through it.
Today, I got to take a tour of an Ohio class Submarine, the USS Kentucky. It was fun, really fun. I could never be on a sub though, this one was a big one, and it was still crowded and claustrophobic in there.
This week has been really challenging. I've been really worn out emotionally, and physically. It's so hard to get our people to Church and to get them to keep commitments. One of the guys we had on date just went to jail, because he didn't show up for his court date. I just don't want to leave this area without seeing more success. Joshua got the priesthood yesterday though, so that was cool. We do have some really good investigators the Lord has blessed us to find. One of them is a super good man; he's praying about the Book of Mormon, and he's been talking to his wife over skype about the things we've been teaching him. He asked his wife what she thought about getting sealed in the temple. So cool. The only problem is, we haven't seen him the last two Sundays. He goes to Church, and last Sunday we thought he just visited another ward some place, to compare them, but yesterday he did the same thing, so we don't know where he's going. We'll have to ask him, lol.
The devil doesn't let our investigators go without a fight. And I've been fighting discouragement so much lately it's ridiculous, but through a lot of mighty prayer and insights gained through personal study, I think I'm back to operating at full capacity. All we can do is stay diligent and positive.
Today, I was reading Mosiah 10:12-19, and I thought it was interesting that King Zenif took the time to tell his people why the Lamanities were coming against them. It's so important that we understand our enemy. He's not only our enemy, but he's also our enemy's enemy. Understanding that, helps us to understand that it isn't really about you or about them, it's about the Lord's work. All the opposition, discouragement, even the feelings of in-adequacy come from the same source: the enemy to God. He's the same who discourages people from changing for the better, makes them feel ashamed to show up in Church, and whispers lies in their ears about what will bring them satisfaction and happiness in this life. It all comes from the devil. And his purpose is to stop the Lord's work so that everyone will remain with him in utter misery.
As I was reminded by the Spirit today that the devil wants to see us frustrated; especially those of us that are anxiously engaged in furthering the Lord's kingdom. As much as he thrashes and rants though, he can't stop the work from progressing, he really can't. The Lord will fulfill all His words. He promised Abraham that through his seed all the nations of the earth would be blessed. That has happened, it is happening, and it will continue to happen. The enemy can't stop it. What does that mean to us? I think Enos summed it up best, when he said,"And I, Enos, knew that God could not lie." The gospel is going forth. I just need to be worthy of the companionship of the Holy Ghost and be where Heavenly Father needs me to be. I'm all about that.
The Lord is so good to me: he answers my prayers; he has been there to lift me up in my darkest times. It is amazing to me that even as his servant, even when all I want to do is serve him well, he still shed drops of blood for me, so that he could succor me in my trials and afflictions. How could I give anything but my best to the Master such as He? The greatest gift I've received as a missionary is a knowledge of the power of Christ's atonement. He is my Savior. I'm praying that President Weaver will let me stay another transfer, just to see things through. I would love that.
I hope everyone has an awesome week, I love you.
Love,
Elder Thornton
__________
13 August 2012
Hey, how are things? The time for transfers has arrived once more. The claw (President Weaver) chooses who will go and who will stay. This time the claw got two for one! We're both leaving. The Manette area is becoming a Sisters only area. We're a little bummed, considering we've worked really hard to establish a teaching pool, and we have people on date and people to put on date for next transfer. We were projected to hit weekly, but this time we won't be the ones doing the harvesting.
It's okay. I feel like I fulfilled my purpose. I found a lot of really sweet people who will have the opportunity to be baptized. I helped to solidify some of the Sister's investigators, and Joshua now holds the Aaronic priesthood. As difficult as last transfer was, it was a huge blessing, and I'm grateful for all the experiences I had. I got to spend time serving Jesus Christ.
I'm not going very far though. I'm actually just getting kicked across the Sound. I'm going to be serving in West Bremerton! I'm actually super stoked. Mostly, because I don't have to share tracting spots anymore. I'm going to be the new Bremerton Zone Leader/Manette District Leader... ha-ha it's weird, but It'll be really fun. I love being a District Leader. I like having to put together trainings, and meeting every one's baptismal candidates during the interviews, it's great. It's been a growing opportunity for me. This is the best part though, my new companion is Elder Grachev, from Moscow, Russia. He's super tight, he was my Zone Leader when I was a greenie serving in Port Townsend. I'll actually be serving in a foursome; we also have Elder Peck and Elder Jones, who are our "boys." I'm stoked. President is going to let me participate in lessons with the investigators I have to turn over to the Sister, which will be good, because our investigators really like us. We get attached to them, and surprisingly, they get attached to us, lol.
President Weaver always says, "when you're a missionary, people love you and respect you more than you deserve."
So last Monday we went to a member dinner with a Samoan family. They were really sweet. They had us and the Sisters over. For dinner, we ate an interesting slimy noodle dish, a really good but weird looking potato thing, and fried fish. This wasn't just any fish though, this fish had a face. In fact, it had a whole head! We were sitting at the table. The family was super nice and hospitable, and they invited us to dig in. So, to show our appreciation, we started putting everything on our plate. The fish were cut in half, so some of them were the tail portion, and some the head portion. I was trying to avoid the fish, but one of them was staring at me... I tried to point it out to Sister V, and guess what she did -- she grabbed it and threw it on my plate. So, I ate it. I ate the fish head. Yum. The funny thing is, Elder Elder ate the fish, scales and all. He ate two of them.
That's about all that has happened this week. It has been fun. Summer here is really pretty. Oh, the best part about summer here in Washington is that black berries grow like dandelions here. Seriously, anywhere you go, you can pick fresh black berries. We eat them while we tract, it's the coolest thing ever. It's the only time that tracting is successful regardless of whether or not you find someone, lol.
The Ward didn't say anything when they found out we were leaving, only two people said bye to me after sacrament meeting. When they found out they were getting Spanish Elders instead, one lady was like, "finally, I love the Spanish Elders. I'm so glad they're coming back.".... I tired my best.
I hope you have an awesome week, I love you guys.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Monday, August 20, 2012
Forty-Third thru Forty-Seventh Letters Home June 18, 25, July 02, 09, and 16, 2012
[I, Elder Thornton's dad, fell down on the job posting his letters onto the blog; the following are the first five of the nine letters now posted. Sorry for the delay.]
18 June 2012
How is everyone doing? This week has been kind of tough. A lot of the work we've been doing has been falling through. But, we keep working, and I know the Lord will bless us with opportunities to serve him. There is alot of work to be done here.
I think I told you about our buddy Patrick, the super awesome member who does missionary work with us? Well he's had a very difficult week. He's preparing to serve a mission, and he's just waiting to have his final interviews. Last week, I felt impressed to warn him that the adversary was going to fight him really hard to try and keep him from going on a mission. I told him that the adversary knew the good he would be able to accomplish as a missionary, and would try to stop him at all costs... That warning came true this week when his mother had a seizure that caused her to hit her head which caused cerebral hemorrhaging. She also suffered a minor stroke. Patrick has been taking the ferry to and from Seattle to visit his mom, and as if that wasn't adversity enough, Sunday night, as he was walking home from the ferry, he got jumped by two thugs. He was just walking, and he said they came out of no where and started punching him in the face and head. He didn't know what to do, it was dark, so he couldn't see anything, but he commanded them in the name of Jesus to leave, and they ran off. He then ran to our house, and beat on our door until we woke up. It was like 12:40am. Poor kid was bleeding out of his nose, and he had a really bad split lip that required stitches. I felt so bad for him.
The war we are fighting out here is a war for souls. The devil fights hard, and he fights dirty. He will do anything he can to stop us from shaking his kingdom. Patrick is discouraged, but I think he's doing better now, and he's regained some of his spunk. I read Alma 48:17,19 to him, my favorite scripture. From the Book of Mormon we learn that Captain Moroni shook hell. Satan had no power over him, and it's very obvious from the scriptures that the devil didn't like that, from all the wicked men he inspired to try and destroy him. In verse 19 we learn that Helaman and his brethren, the missionaries, were no less serviceable than Moroni was. They were also shaking hell. Missionaries continue this shaking of the devil's kingdom, and I know from personal experience he doesn't like that. He wages a very personalized war against each one of us, and if he can catch us before our mission, before we have the increased protection and power from the Holy Ghost, he wins a very sinister victory.
None the less, I really like serving here. But we've got to do something more here: We knock on people's doors all day and follow up with potentials, but we get so very few commitments. I love tracting, but there is a more effective way to do things, and I really want to explore other finding options. I'm still gonna knock though, because I've found a lot of sweet people that way. We should have a couple of baptisms this weekend. I'm stoked. Some of our investigators, including one of the ones getting baptized doesn't speak English, lol. I really wish I could teach him, but I can't. So instead I make the visuals and object lessons, lol. I made a really cool spanglish Plan of Salvation the other day, it was legit. People have said I have really good Spanish pronunciation though... for the hand full of words and phrases I know. It's fun, I really like being a missionary. I really really want to be a good one.
That's about all that's new for me, Summer is supposed to start in a couple weeks... Seriously, St. George is gonna knock me out when I go home: tons of Sun, no rain, heat, and no trees! Environmental shock!
I hope you guys have a good week; I love you.
Love,
Elder Thornton
__________
25 June 2012
Hey, whats up? This week has been challenging for the whole district. The sister missionaries had both of their investigators get "antied" and fall off date for baptism, we've been struggling at finding new people and getting appointments to stick, and the Zone Leaders' baptism didn't go through. Personally, as a missionary I've been at my highest, and I've been at my lowest. I've never felt such joy, and I've also never felt so discouraged and depressed.
My last area and this one before I arrived were well performing areas in which many people were found, taught, and baptized. But since I arrived the work has tanked. I don't know what the problem is, I work hard, I'm obedient, I try to be enthusiastic and pumped about the work, but things don't seem to work out. These feelings of inadequacy have been weighing on me more and more. By the time Sunday rolled around, I was pretty beat. I try not to get down, because I know the source of these feelings comes from the devil, and he gets a kick out of my misery. I don't want to give him anything to smile about. But I've been fighting these feelings for a while, and they were really beginning to take their toll.
I love Sundays because I get to take the Sacrament. During the whole sacrament song, I was praying to Heavenly Father, apologizing for my failures and inadequacies, asking for power through the atonement of Christ to overcome my weaknesses, and asking for forgiveness for all my faults. As I took the sacrament, I felt a huge burden lifted off my shoulders. And I heard a voice in my mind say, "Michael, it's okay. You are my friend."
What a wonderful gift the gospel of Jesus Christ is in our lives. We have a knowledge of the love our Savior has for us, and we have the Holy Ghost to bring that love to our hearts. I feel better know, I know the gospel is true. Taking the sacrament is like getting baptized again, because the Holy Ghost renews and sanctifies us. What a gift. The gospel gift, or these glad tidings, is what I'm here to share. My message is that Christ is risen, he overcame the world. He has provided us with a guaranteed plan of happiness.
My desire is to please my Heavenly Father. I want to serve him well. The adversary uses this desire I have to try and make me feel guilty, inadequate, and worthless. We all feel like this at times. Don't. Those feelings don't come from God. Don't give the enemy of happiness the time of day. Christ is our Savior, he loves us. He wants us to know him. I know that there is nothing better than getting to know our Savior, Jesus Christ. It should be everyone's highest priority, because in the end nothing else matters.
Being a missionary is awesome. We meet all kinds of cool people. I read this one guy Helaman 5:12, and he liked it so much, he said he wanted to get it tattooed on his side, lol. People are great, and deep down inside, they are all looking for Christ. Many of them just don't know where to find him, or that they were even looking. This is week six, the last couple weeks have been ones of broken swords, and shattered shields! Days in which scattered, beaten, and famished, we've pulled ourselves off the field to partake of a meager meal, and think upon the morrow with faint hearts. We can't look upon the morrow with discouragement clouding our eyes! We are the Lord's soldiers, the battle is already won! The only battle that isn't is the one with in our hearts! We must be valiant, we must stand fast in the liberty where by God has made us free! We must cry unto the Lord, turn ourselves about, and plow into the enemy with one accord! Let's be strong and of good courage, for our Lord, Jesus the Christ, is with us.
I love you guys; I hope you have a good week.
Love,
Elder Thornton
__________
02 July 2012
Hey, it's me again... It sounds like every on has had a good week. I got the package from Amber and Brad, and I got the card from Mom and Dad. I got them on like Tuesday and Wednesday, so I couldn't write until today. Thanks so much.
This week was interesting, it was week six, so I think Elder Lopez was a little transfer trunky, but we still made some pretty good progress. We got our transfer calls on Saturday. Elder Lopez is going back to speaking Spanish, and he's being transferred to Aberdeen, which will be a feat for him. I'm going to be staying here as the District Leader, and my new companion is going to be Elder Elder. Ha-ha! I'm way stoked about that. He too is a really good Elder: obedient and hard working. We are gonna have a sweet transfer.
A nine year old boy named Jarridan was baptized this week. He is such a nice kid, very polite, respectful, and he made the decision to be baptized all on his own. A good example for his parents who have been less active members.
Our investigator who lives in a halfway house is progressing, I really like him. We found him while tracting. It was cool. We were done tracting for the day, walking down the street when I felt prompted to knock on a random house. He answered the door, came to the church with us, and has been meeting with us ever since. He is going to be baptized next week. He lives in a halfway house because he's on probation, and because he's on probation he had to have a special interview from President Weaver. President Weaver said he was fine to be baptized. He is very humble; he's repentant. He wants to change his life.
What a blessing it is to go out and find these people. Heavenly Father loves them so much, and it is an honor to be able to find them, teach them, and baptize them. I'm really excited for this young man.
We found a less active family with two UBCs yesterday, so we're really excited about that, and I'm setting the goal to find, teach, and baptize six people next transfer. It's gonna happen. Culture night was really fun on Saturday, tons of people showed up, and the Sisters did an awesome job setting everything up. People brought all sorts of different food from their countries, and one person brought fried grass hoppers seasoned with chili powder. I ate like five of them, lol. Ha-ha. They weren't bad. They tasted like spicy burnt popcorn. I had to eat them, because up until now, the weirdest thing I have eaten was a boiled peanut. The boiled peanut was way worse, lol. Those are disgusting.
I've been enjoying my personal scripture studies lately. I'm at 3 Nephi now. Helaman is such a good book. I've really been studying the principle of faith lately. We know that Faith is something hoped for, which is not seen, but is true. True is the key word. If faith is in anything that isn't true, it isn't faith, but simply a vain hope. The only person that was always true was Jesus Christ. Therefore, faith has to be in Jesus Christ, and his atonement. The Atonement of Christ brings salvation to us, thus fulfilling God's purpose to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. So, if we are to exercise faith, it has to be in the power of Christ's atonement in fulfilling God's eternal purposes. No matter how strong our hope is, if it goes against God's purposes, it isn't faith. In the book of Helaman, Nephi was given great power from God because he wouldn't do anything contrary to God's will. Another example of this is found when Alma and Amulek were forced to watch the martyrdom of the righteous people in the city of Ammonihah. Amulek desired to save the people from the flames, but the spirit told them they couldn't. God's purposes would be fulfilled. If we are to learn to exercise great faith, and have the power to do mighty miracles, we must first learn to align our will with God's will. Then, with faith that God has all power to fulfill his words and his purposes, we will be able to be powerful servants in his hands. Miracles are the direct result from applying true principles. We develop faith in God's power to fulfill his purposes by living the Gospel, experiencing the power of the Atonement in our lives, and keeping the commandments. There is nothing better than developing a relationship with Christ, and their is nothing that brings more joy then feeling the atonement work in your life. It is after all, "the glad tidings of great joy," spoken of by angles, prophets, apostles, and young little missionaries.
I love all of you, and I hope you have an awesome week.
Love,
Elder Thornton
__________
09 July 2012
Hey, how is everybody doing? Good, good, glad to hear it...
Let me tell you a story... (That's what President Weaver always says, lol. He loves to tell stories.)
Our young investigator who lives in a halfway house was baptized on Sunday! I am so excited for him, he is such a good kid. He is very solid, very humble, and very repentant. I believe I needed to come here when I did, so I could have a part in finding and teaching him. The Lord blessed me with this opportunity to serve him, and with the great privilege of teaching one of his children. Now we need to help him find a place to live. He'll have to leave his place on the 16th, and he has no other place to go other than the streets. Some of the members have empty studio apartments, so we're working on getting him into one of those. Please pray for him, the poor guy is trying so hard to change his life.
We don't have a progressing teaching pool. Finding more investigators has been really tough. We tract for more than four hours a day, and we invite everyone. It's frustrating, because we share an area with sister missionaries, and they have tons of people to work with. All the referrals go to them, and we have to share our tracting spots. I really like them: they're good Sister missionaries, but I don't really like sharing the tracting area. Especially when we are struggling so much. It has been hard to get the support from the members also. The Sister missionaries have been here tracting for nearly six months and the members are more familiar with them. They know everyone. They get fed all the time, while we might get fed once a week. The sisters share with us though, so thats nice. Ha-ha it's kind of crazy. I have five sisters in my District. They can be a bit of a handful sometimes, lol. They're all really good Sisters though, I love my District this transfer. When we have District meeting, it looks more like a college ward FHE group than a District, lol. Things are starting to come together though, and Elder Elder is a great companion. He works really hard, he wants to be obedient, and he's easy to get along with. What more could you ask for, right?
Brother Patrick is doing better, he's got his mission papers in now, so he should be getting a call soon. I'm excited for him.
Our 4th of July was really fun, our neighbors all did fireworks, so we got to watch the show from our balcony. President and Sister Weaver put together a mission picnic for everyone during the day, and that was really fun. Afterwards, we had a really nice devotional, in which we sang patriotic songs, listened to a talk from an LDS soldier that I knew from Fort Lewis, and then President and Sister Weaver "coined us." In the military, if you like someone, or want to reward someone, you give them a coin. (Basically it means you'll buy them a beer next time you see them.) The Weaver's bought a bunch of Washington, 2012, commemorative quarters, and gave each of us one as a gift for a job well done the month of June. Our mission baptized 99 people in June. The Weavers are really nice, they are very sweet people, and I like them a lot.
Not much else has happened this week. I'm working hard, I'm fighting discouragement, and I'm trying to be the best I can be. I'm going to do everything I can to reach my goals this transfer. I hope you have a great week. I love you all.
Love,
Elder Thornton
__________
16 July 2012
This week has been really great! We witnessed a couple really sweet miracles. However, as has been the pattern of my mission, miracles have almost always been preceded by difficulties.
Earlier in the week we were out contacting, and we got "antied" hard core for like 45 minutes by a guy who wouldn't quit. He acted like the devil himself. Pretending to be interested, he talked to us for about fifteen minites asking us questions about the Church and about our beliefs. And then he began to try to ensnare us with his questions while still pretending he was interested. We sensed the change in his motives, but we continued to answer his questions anyway. Then he admitted, "I haven't been completely honest with you, I'm actually a professor of theology...," and so on he went. He proceeded to tear into us, trying to destroy our faith in continued revelation and the restored gospel. The guy was like a combination of Sherem and Korihor from the Book of Mormon. It was very frustrating, and a little bit demoralizing; especially because he lied to us and pretended to be interested. We have been trying so hard to find people to share the gospel with. Here's the thing though, I wish people would take a step back and look at themselves. If he truly thinks his cause is just, and that he needs to convince the Mormons of the error of their ways, he's going about it totally the wrong way. He acted like the devil, deceiving, belittling, finagling, and seeking to destroy our faith. When did Christ ever act that way with people? Besides, his logic and interpretation of the scriptures were un-inspired, and his intentions were malicious. He was allowing himself to be used by the adversary as a stumbling block in the path of the Lord's servants. He's got himself convinced that he's right, and we're evil. I feel bad for him. Oh well, that was a discouraging way to start off the week, but we continued to press on, we continued to work, and the Lord blessed us.
On Thursday, we were tracting, and I felt inspired to tract in a specific area. We went there, but we weren't finding anyone. We finished the area but still hadn't found a single potential investigator. As we were leaving the area, and I was trying to figure out why I felt so strongly we needed to be there, a van pulled up to the last house on the corner, and a man got out. I called out to him, "Hey would you like to check out our Church?"
He was like, "Yeah! My buddy gave me a Book of Mormon right before I came out here, and I've been wanting to come check out your Church!"
Long story short, we set up a Church tour for the next day. He came. He felt the spirit. We taught him about the restoration, and then he came to church on Sunday. It was super cool. In one of the hallways in the church there hangs pictures of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve. After teaching him in the Chapel about the Restoration, I felt inspired take him into the hallway and show him their pictures. He studied them for a second, and then with his hand he covered up each of their faces, all but their eyes.
Then he said, "These are good men, look at their eyes, these are the eyes of someone who knows Christ."
So cool. He's 47, and he's a contractor for the Department of Defense (DOD). He's a very smart, open minded, and spiritual man. The Lord led us to him. What a blessing.
Earlier that day, I was driving to a new tracting spot, and I felt inspired to swing by the house of one of our "ninja" investigators. (A ninja investigator is someone you find one day, and then they disappear for a while.) I drove by slowly, and saw him sitting on his front porch. I stopped the car, and hopped out, but before I could say anything, he called out to me, and asked if he could come over to church with us to check it out, (that doesn't happen). Of course we took him, and we had a very good Church tour. I sat in the chapel with him, and taught him about the Spirit, and the Sacrament. We talked for a while, and then we went and showed him the baptismal font. We taught him about authority, showed him a picture of John the Baptist, and then we showed him the font. I taught him that the reason the font is level with the ground is because it represents the death and resurrection of Christ. That as we go under the water, our past life, is being left behind, and when we come up out of the water we come up clean like a brand new person. A person who is committed to follow Christ.
He listened intently, and then he started to cry. He said, "That's what I want, that's what I need."
We invited him to be baptized on the 28th, and he accepted. These are just examples of the many miracles that occur everyday all over the world. Christ leads this church, the Gospel is his. He leads missionaries to the people he's preparing to hear the gospel, so that they can enjoy his blessings. This work is a huge privilege. I love being a missionary. Joshua got confirmed on Sunday, and now he's going to prospective elders quorum. It's so exciting. The gospel changes people's lives. It gives them a chance, it gives them hope, it is the only thing that can truly help people no matter their circumstance.
I would like to ask each of you for a favor. Treat the missionaries in your home ward the way you would treat me. We are tired of people thinking we are less valiant than the missionaries called to serve in Uganda or other exotic parts of the world because we're just serving in their home ward. The missionaries that serve in your wards, are there because people like Ward and Marvin, are waiting to be found so they can have the gospel. The missionaries need help finding those people. Plus, we get abuse from so many: people flip us off, people threaten us, people ignore us, people cuss at us, and some people try to kill us. When you see your missionaries, remember that they could have just had the worst day they've ever had. They need encouragement, they need support, and they need to fulfill their purpose. It's the only thing that will make it all worth it.
I love you guys, I love being here. I'm the happiest person alive when I'm able to fulfill my purpose, and bring people unto Christ. Have an awesome week.
Love,
Elder Thornton
18 June 2012
How is everyone doing? This week has been kind of tough. A lot of the work we've been doing has been falling through. But, we keep working, and I know the Lord will bless us with opportunities to serve him. There is alot of work to be done here.
I think I told you about our buddy Patrick, the super awesome member who does missionary work with us? Well he's had a very difficult week. He's preparing to serve a mission, and he's just waiting to have his final interviews. Last week, I felt impressed to warn him that the adversary was going to fight him really hard to try and keep him from going on a mission. I told him that the adversary knew the good he would be able to accomplish as a missionary, and would try to stop him at all costs... That warning came true this week when his mother had a seizure that caused her to hit her head which caused cerebral hemorrhaging. She also suffered a minor stroke. Patrick has been taking the ferry to and from Seattle to visit his mom, and as if that wasn't adversity enough, Sunday night, as he was walking home from the ferry, he got jumped by two thugs. He was just walking, and he said they came out of no where and started punching him in the face and head. He didn't know what to do, it was dark, so he couldn't see anything, but he commanded them in the name of Jesus to leave, and they ran off. He then ran to our house, and beat on our door until we woke up. It was like 12:40am. Poor kid was bleeding out of his nose, and he had a really bad split lip that required stitches. I felt so bad for him.
The war we are fighting out here is a war for souls. The devil fights hard, and he fights dirty. He will do anything he can to stop us from shaking his kingdom. Patrick is discouraged, but I think he's doing better now, and he's regained some of his spunk. I read Alma 48:17,19 to him, my favorite scripture. From the Book of Mormon we learn that Captain Moroni shook hell. Satan had no power over him, and it's very obvious from the scriptures that the devil didn't like that, from all the wicked men he inspired to try and destroy him. In verse 19 we learn that Helaman and his brethren, the missionaries, were no less serviceable than Moroni was. They were also shaking hell. Missionaries continue this shaking of the devil's kingdom, and I know from personal experience he doesn't like that. He wages a very personalized war against each one of us, and if he can catch us before our mission, before we have the increased protection and power from the Holy Ghost, he wins a very sinister victory.
None the less, I really like serving here. But we've got to do something more here: We knock on people's doors all day and follow up with potentials, but we get so very few commitments. I love tracting, but there is a more effective way to do things, and I really want to explore other finding options. I'm still gonna knock though, because I've found a lot of sweet people that way. We should have a couple of baptisms this weekend. I'm stoked. Some of our investigators, including one of the ones getting baptized doesn't speak English, lol. I really wish I could teach him, but I can't. So instead I make the visuals and object lessons, lol. I made a really cool spanglish Plan of Salvation the other day, it was legit. People have said I have really good Spanish pronunciation though... for the hand full of words and phrases I know. It's fun, I really like being a missionary. I really really want to be a good one.
That's about all that's new for me, Summer is supposed to start in a couple weeks... Seriously, St. George is gonna knock me out when I go home: tons of Sun, no rain, heat, and no trees! Environmental shock!
I hope you guys have a good week; I love you.
Love,
Elder Thornton
__________
25 June 2012
Hey, whats up? This week has been challenging for the whole district. The sister missionaries had both of their investigators get "antied" and fall off date for baptism, we've been struggling at finding new people and getting appointments to stick, and the Zone Leaders' baptism didn't go through. Personally, as a missionary I've been at my highest, and I've been at my lowest. I've never felt such joy, and I've also never felt so discouraged and depressed.
My last area and this one before I arrived were well performing areas in which many people were found, taught, and baptized. But since I arrived the work has tanked. I don't know what the problem is, I work hard, I'm obedient, I try to be enthusiastic and pumped about the work, but things don't seem to work out. These feelings of inadequacy have been weighing on me more and more. By the time Sunday rolled around, I was pretty beat. I try not to get down, because I know the source of these feelings comes from the devil, and he gets a kick out of my misery. I don't want to give him anything to smile about. But I've been fighting these feelings for a while, and they were really beginning to take their toll.
I love Sundays because I get to take the Sacrament. During the whole sacrament song, I was praying to Heavenly Father, apologizing for my failures and inadequacies, asking for power through the atonement of Christ to overcome my weaknesses, and asking for forgiveness for all my faults. As I took the sacrament, I felt a huge burden lifted off my shoulders. And I heard a voice in my mind say, "Michael, it's okay. You are my friend."
What a wonderful gift the gospel of Jesus Christ is in our lives. We have a knowledge of the love our Savior has for us, and we have the Holy Ghost to bring that love to our hearts. I feel better know, I know the gospel is true. Taking the sacrament is like getting baptized again, because the Holy Ghost renews and sanctifies us. What a gift. The gospel gift, or these glad tidings, is what I'm here to share. My message is that Christ is risen, he overcame the world. He has provided us with a guaranteed plan of happiness.
My desire is to please my Heavenly Father. I want to serve him well. The adversary uses this desire I have to try and make me feel guilty, inadequate, and worthless. We all feel like this at times. Don't. Those feelings don't come from God. Don't give the enemy of happiness the time of day. Christ is our Savior, he loves us. He wants us to know him. I know that there is nothing better than getting to know our Savior, Jesus Christ. It should be everyone's highest priority, because in the end nothing else matters.
Being a missionary is awesome. We meet all kinds of cool people. I read this one guy Helaman 5:12, and he liked it so much, he said he wanted to get it tattooed on his side, lol. People are great, and deep down inside, they are all looking for Christ. Many of them just don't know where to find him, or that they were even looking. This is week six, the last couple weeks have been ones of broken swords, and shattered shields! Days in which scattered, beaten, and famished, we've pulled ourselves off the field to partake of a meager meal, and think upon the morrow with faint hearts. We can't look upon the morrow with discouragement clouding our eyes! We are the Lord's soldiers, the battle is already won! The only battle that isn't is the one with in our hearts! We must be valiant, we must stand fast in the liberty where by God has made us free! We must cry unto the Lord, turn ourselves about, and plow into the enemy with one accord! Let's be strong and of good courage, for our Lord, Jesus the Christ, is with us.
I love you guys; I hope you have a good week.
Love,
Elder Thornton
__________
02 July 2012
Hey, it's me again... It sounds like every on has had a good week. I got the package from Amber and Brad, and I got the card from Mom and Dad. I got them on like Tuesday and Wednesday, so I couldn't write until today. Thanks so much.
This week was interesting, it was week six, so I think Elder Lopez was a little transfer trunky, but we still made some pretty good progress. We got our transfer calls on Saturday. Elder Lopez is going back to speaking Spanish, and he's being transferred to Aberdeen, which will be a feat for him. I'm going to be staying here as the District Leader, and my new companion is going to be Elder Elder. Ha-ha! I'm way stoked about that. He too is a really good Elder: obedient and hard working. We are gonna have a sweet transfer.
A nine year old boy named Jarridan was baptized this week. He is such a nice kid, very polite, respectful, and he made the decision to be baptized all on his own. A good example for his parents who have been less active members.
Our investigator who lives in a halfway house is progressing, I really like him. We found him while tracting. It was cool. We were done tracting for the day, walking down the street when I felt prompted to knock on a random house. He answered the door, came to the church with us, and has been meeting with us ever since. He is going to be baptized next week. He lives in a halfway house because he's on probation, and because he's on probation he had to have a special interview from President Weaver. President Weaver said he was fine to be baptized. He is very humble; he's repentant. He wants to change his life.
What a blessing it is to go out and find these people. Heavenly Father loves them so much, and it is an honor to be able to find them, teach them, and baptize them. I'm really excited for this young man.
We found a less active family with two UBCs yesterday, so we're really excited about that, and I'm setting the goal to find, teach, and baptize six people next transfer. It's gonna happen. Culture night was really fun on Saturday, tons of people showed up, and the Sisters did an awesome job setting everything up. People brought all sorts of different food from their countries, and one person brought fried grass hoppers seasoned with chili powder. I ate like five of them, lol. Ha-ha. They weren't bad. They tasted like spicy burnt popcorn. I had to eat them, because up until now, the weirdest thing I have eaten was a boiled peanut. The boiled peanut was way worse, lol. Those are disgusting.
I've been enjoying my personal scripture studies lately. I'm at 3 Nephi now. Helaman is such a good book. I've really been studying the principle of faith lately. We know that Faith is something hoped for, which is not seen, but is true. True is the key word. If faith is in anything that isn't true, it isn't faith, but simply a vain hope. The only person that was always true was Jesus Christ. Therefore, faith has to be in Jesus Christ, and his atonement. The Atonement of Christ brings salvation to us, thus fulfilling God's purpose to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. So, if we are to exercise faith, it has to be in the power of Christ's atonement in fulfilling God's eternal purposes. No matter how strong our hope is, if it goes against God's purposes, it isn't faith. In the book of Helaman, Nephi was given great power from God because he wouldn't do anything contrary to God's will. Another example of this is found when Alma and Amulek were forced to watch the martyrdom of the righteous people in the city of Ammonihah. Amulek desired to save the people from the flames, but the spirit told them they couldn't. God's purposes would be fulfilled. If we are to learn to exercise great faith, and have the power to do mighty miracles, we must first learn to align our will with God's will. Then, with faith that God has all power to fulfill his words and his purposes, we will be able to be powerful servants in his hands. Miracles are the direct result from applying true principles. We develop faith in God's power to fulfill his purposes by living the Gospel, experiencing the power of the Atonement in our lives, and keeping the commandments. There is nothing better than developing a relationship with Christ, and their is nothing that brings more joy then feeling the atonement work in your life. It is after all, "the glad tidings of great joy," spoken of by angles, prophets, apostles, and young little missionaries.
I love all of you, and I hope you have an awesome week.
Love,
Elder Thornton
__________
09 July 2012
Hey, how is everybody doing? Good, good, glad to hear it...
Let me tell you a story... (That's what President Weaver always says, lol. He loves to tell stories.)
Our young investigator who lives in a halfway house was baptized on Sunday! I am so excited for him, he is such a good kid. He is very solid, very humble, and very repentant. I believe I needed to come here when I did, so I could have a part in finding and teaching him. The Lord blessed me with this opportunity to serve him, and with the great privilege of teaching one of his children. Now we need to help him find a place to live. He'll have to leave his place on the 16th, and he has no other place to go other than the streets. Some of the members have empty studio apartments, so we're working on getting him into one of those. Please pray for him, the poor guy is trying so hard to change his life.
We don't have a progressing teaching pool. Finding more investigators has been really tough. We tract for more than four hours a day, and we invite everyone. It's frustrating, because we share an area with sister missionaries, and they have tons of people to work with. All the referrals go to them, and we have to share our tracting spots. I really like them: they're good Sister missionaries, but I don't really like sharing the tracting area. Especially when we are struggling so much. It has been hard to get the support from the members also. The Sister missionaries have been here tracting for nearly six months and the members are more familiar with them. They know everyone. They get fed all the time, while we might get fed once a week. The sisters share with us though, so thats nice. Ha-ha it's kind of crazy. I have five sisters in my District. They can be a bit of a handful sometimes, lol. They're all really good Sisters though, I love my District this transfer. When we have District meeting, it looks more like a college ward FHE group than a District, lol. Things are starting to come together though, and Elder Elder is a great companion. He works really hard, he wants to be obedient, and he's easy to get along with. What more could you ask for, right?
Brother Patrick is doing better, he's got his mission papers in now, so he should be getting a call soon. I'm excited for him.
Our 4th of July was really fun, our neighbors all did fireworks, so we got to watch the show from our balcony. President and Sister Weaver put together a mission picnic for everyone during the day, and that was really fun. Afterwards, we had a really nice devotional, in which we sang patriotic songs, listened to a talk from an LDS soldier that I knew from Fort Lewis, and then President and Sister Weaver "coined us." In the military, if you like someone, or want to reward someone, you give them a coin. (Basically it means you'll buy them a beer next time you see them.) The Weaver's bought a bunch of Washington, 2012, commemorative quarters, and gave each of us one as a gift for a job well done the month of June. Our mission baptized 99 people in June. The Weavers are really nice, they are very sweet people, and I like them a lot.
Not much else has happened this week. I'm working hard, I'm fighting discouragement, and I'm trying to be the best I can be. I'm going to do everything I can to reach my goals this transfer. I hope you have a great week. I love you all.
Love,
Elder Thornton
__________
16 July 2012
This week has been really great! We witnessed a couple really sweet miracles. However, as has been the pattern of my mission, miracles have almost always been preceded by difficulties.
Earlier in the week we were out contacting, and we got "antied" hard core for like 45 minutes by a guy who wouldn't quit. He acted like the devil himself. Pretending to be interested, he talked to us for about fifteen minites asking us questions about the Church and about our beliefs. And then he began to try to ensnare us with his questions while still pretending he was interested. We sensed the change in his motives, but we continued to answer his questions anyway. Then he admitted, "I haven't been completely honest with you, I'm actually a professor of theology...," and so on he went. He proceeded to tear into us, trying to destroy our faith in continued revelation and the restored gospel. The guy was like a combination of Sherem and Korihor from the Book of Mormon. It was very frustrating, and a little bit demoralizing; especially because he lied to us and pretended to be interested. We have been trying so hard to find people to share the gospel with. Here's the thing though, I wish people would take a step back and look at themselves. If he truly thinks his cause is just, and that he needs to convince the Mormons of the error of their ways, he's going about it totally the wrong way. He acted like the devil, deceiving, belittling, finagling, and seeking to destroy our faith. When did Christ ever act that way with people? Besides, his logic and interpretation of the scriptures were un-inspired, and his intentions were malicious. He was allowing himself to be used by the adversary as a stumbling block in the path of the Lord's servants. He's got himself convinced that he's right, and we're evil. I feel bad for him. Oh well, that was a discouraging way to start off the week, but we continued to press on, we continued to work, and the Lord blessed us.
On Thursday, we were tracting, and I felt inspired to tract in a specific area. We went there, but we weren't finding anyone. We finished the area but still hadn't found a single potential investigator. As we were leaving the area, and I was trying to figure out why I felt so strongly we needed to be there, a van pulled up to the last house on the corner, and a man got out. I called out to him, "Hey would you like to check out our Church?"
He was like, "Yeah! My buddy gave me a Book of Mormon right before I came out here, and I've been wanting to come check out your Church!"
Long story short, we set up a Church tour for the next day. He came. He felt the spirit. We taught him about the restoration, and then he came to church on Sunday. It was super cool. In one of the hallways in the church there hangs pictures of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve. After teaching him in the Chapel about the Restoration, I felt inspired take him into the hallway and show him their pictures. He studied them for a second, and then with his hand he covered up each of their faces, all but their eyes.
Then he said, "These are good men, look at their eyes, these are the eyes of someone who knows Christ."
So cool. He's 47, and he's a contractor for the Department of Defense (DOD). He's a very smart, open minded, and spiritual man. The Lord led us to him. What a blessing.
Earlier that day, I was driving to a new tracting spot, and I felt inspired to swing by the house of one of our "ninja" investigators. (A ninja investigator is someone you find one day, and then they disappear for a while.) I drove by slowly, and saw him sitting on his front porch. I stopped the car, and hopped out, but before I could say anything, he called out to me, and asked if he could come over to church with us to check it out, (that doesn't happen). Of course we took him, and we had a very good Church tour. I sat in the chapel with him, and taught him about the Spirit, and the Sacrament. We talked for a while, and then we went and showed him the baptismal font. We taught him about authority, showed him a picture of John the Baptist, and then we showed him the font. I taught him that the reason the font is level with the ground is because it represents the death and resurrection of Christ. That as we go under the water, our past life, is being left behind, and when we come up out of the water we come up clean like a brand new person. A person who is committed to follow Christ.
He listened intently, and then he started to cry. He said, "That's what I want, that's what I need."
We invited him to be baptized on the 28th, and he accepted. These are just examples of the many miracles that occur everyday all over the world. Christ leads this church, the Gospel is his. He leads missionaries to the people he's preparing to hear the gospel, so that they can enjoy his blessings. This work is a huge privilege. I love being a missionary. Joshua got confirmed on Sunday, and now he's going to prospective elders quorum. It's so exciting. The gospel changes people's lives. It gives them a chance, it gives them hope, it is the only thing that can truly help people no matter their circumstance.
I would like to ask each of you for a favor. Treat the missionaries in your home ward the way you would treat me. We are tired of people thinking we are less valiant than the missionaries called to serve in Uganda or other exotic parts of the world because we're just serving in their home ward. The missionaries that serve in your wards, are there because people like Ward and Marvin, are waiting to be found so they can have the gospel. The missionaries need help finding those people. Plus, we get abuse from so many: people flip us off, people threaten us, people ignore us, people cuss at us, and some people try to kill us. When you see your missionaries, remember that they could have just had the worst day they've ever had. They need encouragement, they need support, and they need to fulfill their purpose. It's the only thing that will make it all worth it.
I love you guys, I love being here. I'm the happiest person alive when I'm able to fulfill my purpose, and bring people unto Christ. Have an awesome week.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Forty-Second Letter Home 11 June 2012
Hey everybody! Whats up?
Teague looks like a handsome little man baby. I like his hair.
Things are going well for me here in the blessed land of Bremerton. This place is really pretty, and it has tons of sweet tracting places.
I love tracting; it is probably my favorite time of the day -- which is probably really obnoxious to other missionaries, lol. The reason why I love it so much is because it is loaded with spiritual experiences. We go out to find people following the promptings of the Holy Ghost who knows where the people who are searching for the gospel live. We found five new investigators this week through tracting, and the Holy Ghost led us to each of them. We'll be driving down the street and feel prompted to tract a specific apartment complex, or we'll be walking and feel prompted to knock on a specific door. It's so fun.
Our obedience and our diligence are the only things we have complete control over, and when we exercise these two principles, miracles happen. Plus, even when you don't find people to teach, you still find really interesting people.
Like this week we knocked on a guy's door who said he was the most trusted man in the USA; that he knew and funded every US President with all his cases of jewels; that he basically is the US treasury, and he's built pyramids with all the commas he has from his zillions of dollars... He also said he's been shot 17 times in the head with a .44 magnum. He lost track of all the times he's been shot in the body, and he personally knows the ancient Egyptians. He's also dating Maria Carrie by the way. We asked him if he believed in Jesus, and he said he definitely does -- then he thought about it, and said "Sometimes I even think I am Jesus." Drugs are terrible! Anyway, he was a very interesting conversationalist, and he was very hospitable. Being a missionary is such and interesting experience. So this area is very fun, and it's also very interesting.
We actually share our area with the Sister Missionaries. It's the only place in the world that does that, lol. That keeps things interesting, because we end up tracting the same streets a lot of the time. Actually, it's good because we found a couple people who weren't home when the Sisters came by, and some of them were interested. Heavenly Father knows what He's doing.
There is a little Philipino lady who lives in our apartment complex who makes us food. She cooks for us lumpia, fried rice, noodles, ribs; it's really delicious. She is a Catholic lady who likes us; so she feeds us. My companion Elder Lopez is a good Elder. He is Mexican so when some of our investigators speak Spanish and very little english he communicates well with them. It's fun, they are very nice people.
That's about it. I like our area. We have a really awesome member of the Church here named Patrick. He's a convert and is one of the most solid people I've ever met. He loves going out with the missionaries. He has a super strong testimony, and he knows this area like the back of his hand because he's been hanging out with missionaries for a number of years. He's awesome, I really like Patrick. He is 22, and he's submitting his papers to go on a mission of his own. Ha-ha. He's gonna train his trainer; this kid is a pro. Seriously, he's a super good tag-less missionary.
I've been reading the Book of Mormon, and I'm on Alma chapter 10 now. I love the Book of Mormon, it's so awesome. Somethings I've pondered a lot as a missionary are: real intent, obedience, charity, and faith. In Alma chapter 32, we learn the contingency in regard to faith, which is that our faith has to be exercised in things that are true. The only way to know if something is true is to experiment on it. And so aside from keeping us safe, another reason for God's commandments is to give us knowledge of things we can put to test. When we exercise faith by applying (testing) the commandment or principle God gives us, the promised blessings come and our Faith is rewarded. And thus we know our Faith was exercised in a real truth.
Charity is the pure love of Christ. Christ submitted his will to the will of the Father's in all things. Everything Christ did was done to please his Father. If we are to posses charity, we to need to submit our will to the Father's, or follow the example of Jesus Christ. See: Moroni 7:47-48 Real intent is the follow through of our faith, or the actual experimentation that will determine whether our Faith is true or not. Charity is the greatest of all. Charity is the combination of faith with real intent to be obedient to the Lord's commandments, or to align our will with His. As we do this, our faith grows, and our disposition changes. We overcome the natural man, and become purified through Christ. And when we look at our brothers and sisters, we will see them as Christ sees them.
I hope you have an awesome week, I love you guys.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Teague looks like a handsome little man baby. I like his hair.
Things are going well for me here in the blessed land of Bremerton. This place is really pretty, and it has tons of sweet tracting places.
I love tracting; it is probably my favorite time of the day -- which is probably really obnoxious to other missionaries, lol. The reason why I love it so much is because it is loaded with spiritual experiences. We go out to find people following the promptings of the Holy Ghost who knows where the people who are searching for the gospel live. We found five new investigators this week through tracting, and the Holy Ghost led us to each of them. We'll be driving down the street and feel prompted to tract a specific apartment complex, or we'll be walking and feel prompted to knock on a specific door. It's so fun.
Our obedience and our diligence are the only things we have complete control over, and when we exercise these two principles, miracles happen. Plus, even when you don't find people to teach, you still find really interesting people.
Like this week we knocked on a guy's door who said he was the most trusted man in the USA; that he knew and funded every US President with all his cases of jewels; that he basically is the US treasury, and he's built pyramids with all the commas he has from his zillions of dollars... He also said he's been shot 17 times in the head with a .44 magnum. He lost track of all the times he's been shot in the body, and he personally knows the ancient Egyptians. He's also dating Maria Carrie by the way. We asked him if he believed in Jesus, and he said he definitely does -- then he thought about it, and said "Sometimes I even think I am Jesus." Drugs are terrible! Anyway, he was a very interesting conversationalist, and he was very hospitable. Being a missionary is such and interesting experience. So this area is very fun, and it's also very interesting.
We actually share our area with the Sister Missionaries. It's the only place in the world that does that, lol. That keeps things interesting, because we end up tracting the same streets a lot of the time. Actually, it's good because we found a couple people who weren't home when the Sisters came by, and some of them were interested. Heavenly Father knows what He's doing.
There is a little Philipino lady who lives in our apartment complex who makes us food. She cooks for us lumpia, fried rice, noodles, ribs; it's really delicious. She is a Catholic lady who likes us; so she feeds us. My companion Elder Lopez is a good Elder. He is Mexican so when some of our investigators speak Spanish and very little english he communicates well with them. It's fun, they are very nice people.
That's about it. I like our area. We have a really awesome member of the Church here named Patrick. He's a convert and is one of the most solid people I've ever met. He loves going out with the missionaries. He has a super strong testimony, and he knows this area like the back of his hand because he's been hanging out with missionaries for a number of years. He's awesome, I really like Patrick. He is 22, and he's submitting his papers to go on a mission of his own. Ha-ha. He's gonna train his trainer; this kid is a pro. Seriously, he's a super good tag-less missionary.
I've been reading the Book of Mormon, and I'm on Alma chapter 10 now. I love the Book of Mormon, it's so awesome. Somethings I've pondered a lot as a missionary are: real intent, obedience, charity, and faith. In Alma chapter 32, we learn the contingency in regard to faith, which is that our faith has to be exercised in things that are true. The only way to know if something is true is to experiment on it. And so aside from keeping us safe, another reason for God's commandments is to give us knowledge of things we can put to test. When we exercise faith by applying (testing) the commandment or principle God gives us, the promised blessings come and our Faith is rewarded. And thus we know our Faith was exercised in a real truth.
Charity is the pure love of Christ. Christ submitted his will to the will of the Father's in all things. Everything Christ did was done to please his Father. If we are to posses charity, we to need to submit our will to the Father's, or follow the example of Jesus Christ. See: Moroni 7:47-48 Real intent is the follow through of our faith, or the actual experimentation that will determine whether our Faith is true or not. Charity is the greatest of all. Charity is the combination of faith with real intent to be obedient to the Lord's commandments, or to align our will with His. As we do this, our faith grows, and our disposition changes. We overcome the natural man, and become purified through Christ. And when we look at our brothers and sisters, we will see them as Christ sees them.
I hope you have an awesome week, I love you guys.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Monday, June 4, 2012
Forty-First Letter Home 04 June 2012
Hey!
A baby! That's so cool. I didn't know he was coming this week... Teague Cayman is a cool name, I like it. He's cute, I really like his hat. Did he come with it?
So... it has been a crazy week for me. I'm not in Lakewood anymore... I am in Bremerton. President needed to do a mid-transfer transfer, and he needed me here in Bremerton. I'm actually really stoked, this is a really good area. I kind of wish I could have finished the transfer in Gravely Lake, but that's okay, I go where the Lord wants me. My new address is:
1121 Callahan Dr. Apt. 222
Bremerton, WA 98310
My new companion is Elder Artimio Lopez. He and I were the ones who trained Elder Bailey. This is going to be fun, I hope I get to work here for a while.
During my short time with Simmons I did learn some good tips on working with members, so I'm hoping to use them here. That's about all that is new for me. I have some cool souvenirs from Ft. Lewis; that place was so fun.
We helped a Green Beret move the other day. That was fun. This guy was like 220 pounds of solid muscle. His arms were huge. He was on a HALO ODA team, and those guys are intense. They're your direct action, search and destroy guys. He's done missions with teams of six, and ones with himself and only one other operative. He's the nicest guy ever, other than the fact that he's built like a tank, you'd never know he was an elite warrior. However, I've heard from guys he's done missions with that he's scary when he switches to mission mode. Anyways, I had a lot of fun talking to and working with the Army guys.
I got to go to the Temple on Thursday. It was really nice; I really enjoyed it. We had a whole session to ourselves, over a hundred full-time missionaries. The spirit was really strong. President Weaver told us to read the Pearl of Great Price before we went, so I did. I loved the Book of Moses, it was awesome. It made so much more sense as a missionary. The cool thing is that the Gospel of Jesus Christ was taught to Adam, the same as it is taught today. Faith, Repentance, Baptism, Receiving the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End. Prophets have taught the same Gospel since the beginning of man. Why? Because it is the Plan of Salvation.
Christ's Atonement and Resurrection give us power over sin and death, an enabling power over everyday struggles and weaknesses. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is what we have to do to access the Atonement. That's the glad tidings spoken of in the scriptures. It is the message of the plan of salvation. Angels and Prophets have been testifying of this since the fall of Adam and Eve. Before baptism, people are just wondering around, separated from God by a wall. There is only one gate in that wall, and it was created by Jesus Christ. He is the gate keeper. That gate is baptism.
As missionaries, we go out and invite everyone to come to that gate, believe in Jesus Christ, enter the gate, and then commence on the path to eternal happiness. We teach people about Jesus Christ, and we teach his commandments. If people have a desire to follow Christ, and are willing to follow his commandments, we baptize them. Why? Because they can't enjoy the full blessings of the atonement without baptism. Why do we teach them the commandments? Because after they are baptized they are given the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost sanctifies them. When we keep the commandments, we invite the Holy Ghost is there to interact with us and teach us, which allows us to continually be sanctified. If people don't know the commandments, how are they going to keep the companionship of the Holy Ghost? The Gospel is simple. Everything we do is about Faith in Jesus Christ, Repenting by keeping the commandments, fulfilling callings, serving, etc., making covenants with the Lord, through baptism and then taking the Sacrament, and receiving the Holy Ghost who sanctifies, testifies, warns, and exhorts us back to faith and repentance. In this pattern, we endure to the end. These simple five points of doctrine somehow unlock the most incompressible gift of the Atonement in our favor.
It's great news. Who wouldn't want to hear this? This is liberty; this is agency. This leads us to happiness. We are saved by Jesus Christ. Let us not be afraid to first use this wonderful gift in our lives, and then share it with others so they can enjoy it as well. Christ wants all of us to come unto Him. he is standing by the Tree of Life holding that delicious fruit. Let's point him out to the people around us. There are so many people looking for the gospel truths, they just don't know it, and they don't know where to find it. I love being a missionary.
I got to talk to Yuki before I left Lakewood. She thanked me for baptizing her. She said, "you were here at the right time, I wouldn't have gotten baptized if you hadn't helped me. I am so grateful that you baptized me." She was one of those people looking for the gospel, who didn't know where to find it. There are people like her in each of our lives. All we have to do is invite them, be patient, and to invite them again. I invited yuki every Sunday for seven weeks. On the Seventh week she got baptized. She is one of my favorite converts. She is such a sweet lady. I will always be grateful that the Lord sent me to Ft. Lewis, so I would have the privilege of being an instrument in his hands in helping her receive the gospel of Jesus Christ.
I have to go, I love you very much.
Love,
Elder Thornton
A baby! That's so cool. I didn't know he was coming this week... Teague Cayman is a cool name, I like it. He's cute, I really like his hat. Did he come with it?
So... it has been a crazy week for me. I'm not in Lakewood anymore... I am in Bremerton. President needed to do a mid-transfer transfer, and he needed me here in Bremerton. I'm actually really stoked, this is a really good area. I kind of wish I could have finished the transfer in Gravely Lake, but that's okay, I go where the Lord wants me. My new address is:
1121 Callahan Dr. Apt. 222
Bremerton, WA 98310
My new companion is Elder Artimio Lopez. He and I were the ones who trained Elder Bailey. This is going to be fun, I hope I get to work here for a while.
During my short time with Simmons I did learn some good tips on working with members, so I'm hoping to use them here. That's about all that is new for me. I have some cool souvenirs from Ft. Lewis; that place was so fun.
We helped a Green Beret move the other day. That was fun. This guy was like 220 pounds of solid muscle. His arms were huge. He was on a HALO ODA team, and those guys are intense. They're your direct action, search and destroy guys. He's done missions with teams of six, and ones with himself and only one other operative. He's the nicest guy ever, other than the fact that he's built like a tank, you'd never know he was an elite warrior. However, I've heard from guys he's done missions with that he's scary when he switches to mission mode. Anyways, I had a lot of fun talking to and working with the Army guys.
I got to go to the Temple on Thursday. It was really nice; I really enjoyed it. We had a whole session to ourselves, over a hundred full-time missionaries. The spirit was really strong. President Weaver told us to read the Pearl of Great Price before we went, so I did. I loved the Book of Moses, it was awesome. It made so much more sense as a missionary. The cool thing is that the Gospel of Jesus Christ was taught to Adam, the same as it is taught today. Faith, Repentance, Baptism, Receiving the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End. Prophets have taught the same Gospel since the beginning of man. Why? Because it is the Plan of Salvation.
Christ's Atonement and Resurrection give us power over sin and death, an enabling power over everyday struggles and weaknesses. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is what we have to do to access the Atonement. That's the glad tidings spoken of in the scriptures. It is the message of the plan of salvation. Angels and Prophets have been testifying of this since the fall of Adam and Eve. Before baptism, people are just wondering around, separated from God by a wall. There is only one gate in that wall, and it was created by Jesus Christ. He is the gate keeper. That gate is baptism.
As missionaries, we go out and invite everyone to come to that gate, believe in Jesus Christ, enter the gate, and then commence on the path to eternal happiness. We teach people about Jesus Christ, and we teach his commandments. If people have a desire to follow Christ, and are willing to follow his commandments, we baptize them. Why? Because they can't enjoy the full blessings of the atonement without baptism. Why do we teach them the commandments? Because after they are baptized they are given the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost sanctifies them. When we keep the commandments, we invite the Holy Ghost is there to interact with us and teach us, which allows us to continually be sanctified. If people don't know the commandments, how are they going to keep the companionship of the Holy Ghost? The Gospel is simple. Everything we do is about Faith in Jesus Christ, Repenting by keeping the commandments, fulfilling callings, serving, etc., making covenants with the Lord, through baptism and then taking the Sacrament, and receiving the Holy Ghost who sanctifies, testifies, warns, and exhorts us back to faith and repentance. In this pattern, we endure to the end. These simple five points of doctrine somehow unlock the most incompressible gift of the Atonement in our favor.
It's great news. Who wouldn't want to hear this? This is liberty; this is agency. This leads us to happiness. We are saved by Jesus Christ. Let us not be afraid to first use this wonderful gift in our lives, and then share it with others so they can enjoy it as well. Christ wants all of us to come unto Him. he is standing by the Tree of Life holding that delicious fruit. Let's point him out to the people around us. There are so many people looking for the gospel truths, they just don't know it, and they don't know where to find it. I love being a missionary.
I got to talk to Yuki before I left Lakewood. She thanked me for baptizing her. She said, "you were here at the right time, I wouldn't have gotten baptized if you hadn't helped me. I am so grateful that you baptized me." She was one of those people looking for the gospel, who didn't know where to find it. There are people like her in each of our lives. All we have to do is invite them, be patient, and to invite them again. I invited yuki every Sunday for seven weeks. On the Seventh week she got baptized. She is one of my favorite converts. She is such a sweet lady. I will always be grateful that the Lord sent me to Ft. Lewis, so I would have the privilege of being an instrument in his hands in helping her receive the gospel of Jesus Christ.
I have to go, I love you very much.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Fortieth Letter Home 28 May 2012
Hey! hows it going?
I'm sorry Kahmi died.
We had an awesome miracle this week. First of all, Elder Simmons and I are working hard. On Wednesday, when the transfer started we didn't have any new investigators, and our teaching pool was filled with very slow-progressing investigators. Since then, we found five new people; we put three on date, and baptized two of them on Sunday! It was so cool.
The Cookseys were baptized. They are this awesome family referred to us by the Andreasons in the American Lake Ward. Brother Andreason new me so he called me up and sent me over to teach the Cookseys the gospel. Jesse Cooksey is in the same unit as Brother Andreason, and he would ask him questions about the gospel. What started out as teasing questions about garments, polygamy, and the mountain meadows massacre, turned into sincere interest in the gospel and Church of Jesus Christ. As his curiosity grew, Brother Andreasen invited him to ask his questions to the missionaries. He was reluctant at first, and said if the missionaries found him he would talk to them. He made Brother Andreasen promise he wouldn't give the missionaries his address.
That night, Andreasen prayed that the missionaries would find his friend. Guess what? The next day, Jesse saw the missionaries tracting his neighborhood, but before they made it to his door, they were invited into another house. Long story short, he recognized that God wanted him to talk to the missionaries, so he gave Andreasen permision to send them over. The next day, I showed up on his door with Elder Bowser. We took Him and his family on a Church tour, taught them the restoration, and tried to commit them on date. They said they wouldn't mind getting baptized if they knew it was true, but that they were gonna wait till they got to Kentucky, so they could get baptized by Brother Andreasen. (He had gone there for crew chief training.) We respected that, and invited them to Church that Sunday.
Guess what. They actually came. And not only did they show up, they went and bought Sunday clothes. They stayed the whole three hours, and their three little girls went to Primary. They loved it. We met with them that week, taught them, and answered their questions. The next Sunday, they came to Church again, and their kids even sang in the Primary program, lol. Needless to say, the Ward didn't know they were non-members. They came every Sunday, we taught them all the lessons, they fed us dinner; it was awesome.
Our plan was to have them ready to be baptized as soon as they got to Kentucky, but as the day of their move grew closer I grew worried that they would fall through the cracks. The adversary is ruthlessly skilled in sabotaging.
This weekend a miracle happened. Brother Andreasen came back to help his wife move to their new home. We felt very strongly that we needed to invite the Cookseys to be baptized before they left. We talked to Andreasen about it, and he was all about it. He had been feeling similar feelings, I think. We had a lesson in the Andreasen's home with the Cookseys, and taught them the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Our focus was on the blessings of baptism and the Holy Ghost. We bore solid testimonies about the Gospel and what it has meant in our lives, and Andreasen bore his testimony also. At the end, we asked them if they believed the things we'd taught them were true. They said they new it was true. Jesse said, "I'm afraid to be baptized because I don't want to spit in God's face by messing up after I'm baptized, but I know these things are true, so if I don't change, it's basically the same thing."
The Spirit was there; they felt it, and they committed to be baptized on Sunday. Brother Andreasen baptized them and confirmed them, and the Ward showed up to show their support. It was so cool, they are such a wonderful family. They are solid, and now they have the Holy Ghost. What a wonderful blessing it will be in their life. Jesse will be able to baptize his kids in a couple of years. He'll be able to bless his family when they're sick. The Gospel is awesome, and it all starts with baptism. I am so grateful to have been a part of their life. It is a privilege.
The nine months I've been here in the beautiful land of the WA-TAC have not been a sacrifice, because I've loved every minuet of it. I left my family so I could come and find the rest of it. Everything I am, everything I have, I owe to my Savior Jesus Christ. I will serve him till I drop. This is gonna be a good transfer. Simmons is twenty months old, he is a very experienced missionary, and he's baptized over 50 people. This is an opportunity for me to be humble and learn all that I can from his experience. I'm receiving more training. Heavenly Father put us together for a reason, and he kept me in Gravely Lake for a reason. We have a great work to do.
I get to go to the temple on Thursday! I'm so excited. It's our annual temple trip. President Weaver asked us all to read the Pearl of Great Price before we go. I love it, I haven't read it as a missionary. It has so many cool things in it. Plus, it is proof that the Gospel of Jesus Christ has been the same since Adam. I'm also reading the Book of Mormon. I want to finish it before I hit my year mark. This will be the fourth time I've read it as a missionary. I just finished 2 Nephi. So good. I really like Nephi -- what a stud. I
love you guys, I pray for your welfare.
Love,
Elder Thornton
I'm sorry Kahmi died.
We had an awesome miracle this week. First of all, Elder Simmons and I are working hard. On Wednesday, when the transfer started we didn't have any new investigators, and our teaching pool was filled with very slow-progressing investigators. Since then, we found five new people; we put three on date, and baptized two of them on Sunday! It was so cool.
The Cookseys were baptized. They are this awesome family referred to us by the Andreasons in the American Lake Ward. Brother Andreason new me so he called me up and sent me over to teach the Cookseys the gospel. Jesse Cooksey is in the same unit as Brother Andreason, and he would ask him questions about the gospel. What started out as teasing questions about garments, polygamy, and the mountain meadows massacre, turned into sincere interest in the gospel and Church of Jesus Christ. As his curiosity grew, Brother Andreasen invited him to ask his questions to the missionaries. He was reluctant at first, and said if the missionaries found him he would talk to them. He made Brother Andreasen promise he wouldn't give the missionaries his address.
That night, Andreasen prayed that the missionaries would find his friend. Guess what? The next day, Jesse saw the missionaries tracting his neighborhood, but before they made it to his door, they were invited into another house. Long story short, he recognized that God wanted him to talk to the missionaries, so he gave Andreasen permision to send them over. The next day, I showed up on his door with Elder Bowser. We took Him and his family on a Church tour, taught them the restoration, and tried to commit them on date. They said they wouldn't mind getting baptized if they knew it was true, but that they were gonna wait till they got to Kentucky, so they could get baptized by Brother Andreasen. (He had gone there for crew chief training.) We respected that, and invited them to Church that Sunday.
Guess what. They actually came. And not only did they show up, they went and bought Sunday clothes. They stayed the whole three hours, and their three little girls went to Primary. They loved it. We met with them that week, taught them, and answered their questions. The next Sunday, they came to Church again, and their kids even sang in the Primary program, lol. Needless to say, the Ward didn't know they were non-members. They came every Sunday, we taught them all the lessons, they fed us dinner; it was awesome.
Our plan was to have them ready to be baptized as soon as they got to Kentucky, but as the day of their move grew closer I grew worried that they would fall through the cracks. The adversary is ruthlessly skilled in sabotaging.
This weekend a miracle happened. Brother Andreasen came back to help his wife move to their new home. We felt very strongly that we needed to invite the Cookseys to be baptized before they left. We talked to Andreasen about it, and he was all about it. He had been feeling similar feelings, I think. We had a lesson in the Andreasen's home with the Cookseys, and taught them the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Our focus was on the blessings of baptism and the Holy Ghost. We bore solid testimonies about the Gospel and what it has meant in our lives, and Andreasen bore his testimony also. At the end, we asked them if they believed the things we'd taught them were true. They said they new it was true. Jesse said, "I'm afraid to be baptized because I don't want to spit in God's face by messing up after I'm baptized, but I know these things are true, so if I don't change, it's basically the same thing."
The Spirit was there; they felt it, and they committed to be baptized on Sunday. Brother Andreasen baptized them and confirmed them, and the Ward showed up to show their support. It was so cool, they are such a wonderful family. They are solid, and now they have the Holy Ghost. What a wonderful blessing it will be in their life. Jesse will be able to baptize his kids in a couple of years. He'll be able to bless his family when they're sick. The Gospel is awesome, and it all starts with baptism. I am so grateful to have been a part of their life. It is a privilege.
The nine months I've been here in the beautiful land of the WA-TAC have not been a sacrifice, because I've loved every minuet of it. I left my family so I could come and find the rest of it. Everything I am, everything I have, I owe to my Savior Jesus Christ. I will serve him till I drop. This is gonna be a good transfer. Simmons is twenty months old, he is a very experienced missionary, and he's baptized over 50 people. This is an opportunity for me to be humble and learn all that I can from his experience. I'm receiving more training. Heavenly Father put us together for a reason, and he kept me in Gravely Lake for a reason. We have a great work to do.
I get to go to the temple on Thursday! I'm so excited. It's our annual temple trip. President Weaver asked us all to read the Pearl of Great Price before we go. I love it, I haven't read it as a missionary. It has so many cool things in it. Plus, it is proof that the Gospel of Jesus Christ has been the same since Adam. I'm also reading the Book of Mormon. I want to finish it before I hit my year mark. This will be the fourth time I've read it as a missionary. I just finished 2 Nephi. So good. I really like Nephi -- what a stud. I
love you guys, I pray for your welfare.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Thirty-Ninth Letter Home 21 May 2012
Hey! Guess what?...
I'll tell you anyways, I got my transfer call on Saturday... and I am not going anywhere! Ha-ha. I'm staying in Gravely Lake, and I'm going to be serving as the new Zone Leader. I'm a little nervous about that, but President said the Lord wants me to do it, which means the Lord wants to teach me somethings; and if I stay in tune with His Spirit, He will be able to guide me to help others. For that, I'm excited. My old District isn't getting changed too much either. The new District Leader is Elder Bishop from Kansas City, Missouri, and Elder Bowser will be his companion. Ha-ha, he isn't moving very far. I'm going to miss being a District Leader. It was a very one-on-one experience with everyone, and the District was pretty tight nit. My new companion is Elder Simmons. He is currently the Zone Leader with Elder Dayhuff who is going home on Wednesday. I will do my best to be a good companion. When it comes to missionary work, I like to be obedient, and do things the way the Lord set them up to be done. After all, it's His work He's allowed me to participate. I hear Elder Simmons has baptized a lot of people. I'm excited to have a motivated companion. We're gonna get good work done. President Weaver told me to keep an eye on him in regards to "insta-tisms." (Elder Simmons likes to baptize homeless people on his first contact with them...) I'm excited for this new assignment and transfer. Each one is a gift from Heavenly Father.
On Sunday Adam and Stacy came to Church! I was so excited. I've been working with them for about nine weeks. Seeing people make positive progress brings me a lot of joy. Service as a missionary is not a sacrifice, it's a gift. Yesterday, Elder Bowser was giving a spiritual thought to some members, and Holy Ghost taught me an important principle about missionary work.
In the Book of Ether, the Brother of Jared was commanded to make barges so that his family and friends could cross the ocean and come to the promised land. The Lord gave him specific instructions on how to build the ships, and in answer to the Brother of Jared's prayer, gave him specific instruction in regards to how to have air to breath during their voyage. Then, the Brother of Jared prayed and asked the Lord what they should do for light. This time, the Lord said this: "What will ye that I should do that ye may have light in your vessels? For behold, ye cannot have windows, for they will be dashed in pieces; neither shall ye take fire with you, for ye shall not go by the light of fire. For behold, ye shall be as a whale in the midst of the sea; for the mountain waves shall dash upon you. Nevertheless, I will bring you up again out of the depths of the sea; for the winds have gone forth our of my mouth, and also the rains and the floods have I sent forth. And behold, I prepare you against these things; for ye cannot cross this great deep save I prepare you against the waves of the sea, and winds which have gone forth, and floods which shall come. Therefore what will ye that I should prepare for you that ye may have light when ye are swallowed up in the depths of the sea?" The Holy Ghost brought these scriptures to my memory, and as I thought about them, I recognized an important principle: The Lord told the Brother of Jared the things he couldn't do. He gave him limitations, that would stretch his resourcefulness, and Faith. The Brother of Jared was given a task that he couldn't accomplish by himself, he needed the Master's hand. The Brother of Jared brought forth his best effort, rocks, and with the touch of the Lord a miracle was created. This is true in missionary work. We have limitations, we have rules, we have weaknesses, but the Lord has given us an assignment. Provide light for those around you. He has given us talents, and we have Faith that Christ will help us out. But, in the end, what we need is the touch of the Master's hand. We need to do things the way the Lord has outlined, and then we need to ask him to bless our efforts. I know that this principle is true. There is always a way to accomplish the things the Lord commands us to do. He will stretch us, and he will bless us.
I hope that makes sense. I love you guys, and I hope you have a good week. Oh yeah, I'm trying to read the Book of Mormon one more time before I hit my year mark in three months. I'm in 2 Nephi. To do it, I'm reading six pages a day. Not to bad. This will be my fourth time reading it as a missionary. Bye, love you guys.
Love,
Elder Thornton
I'll tell you anyways, I got my transfer call on Saturday... and I am not going anywhere! Ha-ha. I'm staying in Gravely Lake, and I'm going to be serving as the new Zone Leader. I'm a little nervous about that, but President said the Lord wants me to do it, which means the Lord wants to teach me somethings; and if I stay in tune with His Spirit, He will be able to guide me to help others. For that, I'm excited. My old District isn't getting changed too much either. The new District Leader is Elder Bishop from Kansas City, Missouri, and Elder Bowser will be his companion. Ha-ha, he isn't moving very far. I'm going to miss being a District Leader. It was a very one-on-one experience with everyone, and the District was pretty tight nit. My new companion is Elder Simmons. He is currently the Zone Leader with Elder Dayhuff who is going home on Wednesday. I will do my best to be a good companion. When it comes to missionary work, I like to be obedient, and do things the way the Lord set them up to be done. After all, it's His work He's allowed me to participate. I hear Elder Simmons has baptized a lot of people. I'm excited to have a motivated companion. We're gonna get good work done. President Weaver told me to keep an eye on him in regards to "insta-tisms." (Elder Simmons likes to baptize homeless people on his first contact with them...) I'm excited for this new assignment and transfer. Each one is a gift from Heavenly Father.
On Sunday Adam and Stacy came to Church! I was so excited. I've been working with them for about nine weeks. Seeing people make positive progress brings me a lot of joy. Service as a missionary is not a sacrifice, it's a gift. Yesterday, Elder Bowser was giving a spiritual thought to some members, and Holy Ghost taught me an important principle about missionary work.
In the Book of Ether, the Brother of Jared was commanded to make barges so that his family and friends could cross the ocean and come to the promised land. The Lord gave him specific instructions on how to build the ships, and in answer to the Brother of Jared's prayer, gave him specific instruction in regards to how to have air to breath during their voyage. Then, the Brother of Jared prayed and asked the Lord what they should do for light. This time, the Lord said this: "What will ye that I should do that ye may have light in your vessels? For behold, ye cannot have windows, for they will be dashed in pieces; neither shall ye take fire with you, for ye shall not go by the light of fire. For behold, ye shall be as a whale in the midst of the sea; for the mountain waves shall dash upon you. Nevertheless, I will bring you up again out of the depths of the sea; for the winds have gone forth our of my mouth, and also the rains and the floods have I sent forth. And behold, I prepare you against these things; for ye cannot cross this great deep save I prepare you against the waves of the sea, and winds which have gone forth, and floods which shall come. Therefore what will ye that I should prepare for you that ye may have light when ye are swallowed up in the depths of the sea?" The Holy Ghost brought these scriptures to my memory, and as I thought about them, I recognized an important principle: The Lord told the Brother of Jared the things he couldn't do. He gave him limitations, that would stretch his resourcefulness, and Faith. The Brother of Jared was given a task that he couldn't accomplish by himself, he needed the Master's hand. The Brother of Jared brought forth his best effort, rocks, and with the touch of the Lord a miracle was created. This is true in missionary work. We have limitations, we have rules, we have weaknesses, but the Lord has given us an assignment. Provide light for those around you. He has given us talents, and we have Faith that Christ will help us out. But, in the end, what we need is the touch of the Master's hand. We need to do things the way the Lord has outlined, and then we need to ask him to bless our efforts. I know that this principle is true. There is always a way to accomplish the things the Lord commands us to do. He will stretch us, and he will bless us.
I hope that makes sense. I love you guys, and I hope you have a good week. Oh yeah, I'm trying to read the Book of Mormon one more time before I hit my year mark in three months. I'm in 2 Nephi. To do it, I'm reading six pages a day. Not to bad. This will be my fourth time reading it as a missionary. Bye, love you guys.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Thirty-Eighth Letter Home 14 May 2012
Hey! How is everybody? I enjoyed talking to you yesterday, It was fun.
I took a nap this morning after insanity and studying, because I didn't sleep well last night. The insanity felt good this morning though. It shook up a lot of the congestion and got my blood circulating.
I finished the Book of Mormon for the third time on my mission the other day, and I've restarted it. I want to read it once more through before I hit my one-year mark. I have to read about six pages a day. I really love the Book of Mormon; it is filled with so much insight and pure truth. Nephi said that the prophets of the Book of Mormon would speak as ones crying from the dust, and that is true. The more I read, the more I notice the differences in the personalities of the writers, and I feel their testimonies as if they were bearing them from the pulpit in Fast and Testimony meeting.
I love Nephi because he is such a humble disciple of Jesus Christ. Nephi had an eternal perspective. He gained it through experimenting on the word of God. Because he had real intent, the Lord blessed him with spiritual experiences that increased his knowledge, and expanded his understanding of God's nature and purposes. Nephi had a desire to know, and a desire to act. Knowledge is both empowering and condemning. Knowledge expands our ability to use our agency. However, if greater light is given, more is required, which is condemning to us if we refuse to act on the witness we've received. When Nephi explained Lehi's dream to his brothers Laman and Lemuel, he taught them that if they would ask God with diligence in keeping his commandments, God would make their father's dream known unto them. Diligence in keeping the commandments is important for two reasons: One, you demonstrate real intent as you prove your willingness to follow the council the Lord gives you; two, through keeping His commandments or "experimenting on the word," you develop a relationship with God and begin to receive the many blessings associated with having a close relationship with Him (D&C 130:20-21). Laman and Lemuel would not receive an answer to their prayers as long as they intended to be disobedient to the answer they received.
But if greater knowledge can be condemning, why would we want the added responsibility? It is because knowing the "truth will set you free." Essential to Heavenly Father's plan is Agency. We fought for Agency, we rejoiced for Agency, and every battle the adversary wages against us in this life is to take our agency away from us. God calls prophets to teach his children how to expand their agency, so they can experience more joy. Missionaries go out into the world to share the glorious message of the Atonement. Why, because the Atonement lifts, empowers, fulfills, strengthens, heals, and overcomes all the negative things. The plan of happiness is a plan of liberty. We should never look at the commandments as restrictive.
I hope everyone has a really good week. I'll get my transfer call this Saturday... We'll see what happens. There is a real possibility that I will stay, and there is a good chance that I'll leave. Love ya.
Love,
Elder Thornton
I took a nap this morning after insanity and studying, because I didn't sleep well last night. The insanity felt good this morning though. It shook up a lot of the congestion and got my blood circulating.
I finished the Book of Mormon for the third time on my mission the other day, and I've restarted it. I want to read it once more through before I hit my one-year mark. I have to read about six pages a day. I really love the Book of Mormon; it is filled with so much insight and pure truth. Nephi said that the prophets of the Book of Mormon would speak as ones crying from the dust, and that is true. The more I read, the more I notice the differences in the personalities of the writers, and I feel their testimonies as if they were bearing them from the pulpit in Fast and Testimony meeting.
I love Nephi because he is such a humble disciple of Jesus Christ. Nephi had an eternal perspective. He gained it through experimenting on the word of God. Because he had real intent, the Lord blessed him with spiritual experiences that increased his knowledge, and expanded his understanding of God's nature and purposes. Nephi had a desire to know, and a desire to act. Knowledge is both empowering and condemning. Knowledge expands our ability to use our agency. However, if greater light is given, more is required, which is condemning to us if we refuse to act on the witness we've received. When Nephi explained Lehi's dream to his brothers Laman and Lemuel, he taught them that if they would ask God with diligence in keeping his commandments, God would make their father's dream known unto them. Diligence in keeping the commandments is important for two reasons: One, you demonstrate real intent as you prove your willingness to follow the council the Lord gives you; two, through keeping His commandments or "experimenting on the word," you develop a relationship with God and begin to receive the many blessings associated with having a close relationship with Him (D&C 130:20-21). Laman and Lemuel would not receive an answer to their prayers as long as they intended to be disobedient to the answer they received.
But if greater knowledge can be condemning, why would we want the added responsibility? It is because knowing the "truth will set you free." Essential to Heavenly Father's plan is Agency. We fought for Agency, we rejoiced for Agency, and every battle the adversary wages against us in this life is to take our agency away from us. God calls prophets to teach his children how to expand their agency, so they can experience more joy. Missionaries go out into the world to share the glorious message of the Atonement. Why, because the Atonement lifts, empowers, fulfills, strengthens, heals, and overcomes all the negative things. The plan of happiness is a plan of liberty. We should never look at the commandments as restrictive.
I hope everyone has a really good week. I'll get my transfer call this Saturday... We'll see what happens. There is a real possibility that I will stay, and there is a good chance that I'll leave. Love ya.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Thirty-Seventh Letter Home 07 May 2012
Hey! How are things?
Sorry I'm so late writing today, I had to mow the lawn...
So we live in a super ghetto little box behind some one's house, that is smaller than the neighbor's garage, but for some reason it has a pretty big lawn. Our neighbor Reggie wants us to clean up the neighborhood by keeping our yard nice. It makes sense, except the only way anyone can see our yard is by going down a sketchy alley, and we definitely aren't bringing down the neighborhood by any means, lol.
Reggie brought us his weed eater like five days ago as a hint hint that we need to mow our lawn. We don't have time to mow, so we told him we would mow it on Monday (our Preparation-day). He came over three days later, and knocked on our door while we were doing our personal study. He was furious, he was like why the heck haven't you mowed your lawn man? I thought we were trying to clean up the neighborhood. I explained that we could only do it on P-day, and upon hearing that he stomped off with his weed eater.
Today, Monday, a member let us borrow their lawn mower, and I mowed the lawn. It took a whole hour to do it, but that should please Reggie for a couple more weeks. After that, our District went on a hike out to an old sunken ship. When the tide is low you can walk all the way out to it. It was fun, there were huge starfish and other marine life. Our District is pretty tight. We do "Insanity" exercise workouts every morning together, and it has been good for our health and our unity. It's a real pump-up for everyone.
This has been a tough week. We've spent a lot of time tracting and following up, and we haven't found any solid new investigators. Plus, all our investigators fell off date because they didn't come to Church. It's so hard, Bowser and I were at their house 30 min before Church, which starts at 1:00pm, and they were getting ready. We had to meet a couple other investigators at Church, so we said we would meet them over there... They never showed up. I watched the door like a faithful puppy all through Sacrament meeting, and they never came. It's ridiculously frustrating. I feel worried for their behalf, I don't know what to do to help them. I think they are just really shy. They love having us around, we teach lessons, we read the Book of Mormon with them, they say they want to be baptized, and then they don't show up to Church. All I can do is work hard, pray for them, and be obedient.
Mother's Day is coming up, which means I get to call home again. Did you know that? President Weaver is letting us Skype this time -- only for 30 minutes though. If we call on the phone, we get 40 minutes to visit. He's trying it out, (I think Sister Weaver talked him into it, lol). So if you want to Skype let me know through email before next Sunday. I'll be calling or emailing between 4:30 and 5:00 my time. I'll check my email at the member's house before I do, so I can get the skype address. We don't have to Skype if you don't want to. I would be fine with calling.
I'm almost done with the Book of Mormon again, I'm in the book of Ether. The last part of the Book of Mormon is so tragic, It makes me feel really sad for Mormon and Moroni. They were super valiant men. As I read the first chapters of Ether this morning, I came to the chapter where Christ bears witness that the Book of Mormon is true. As I read, the Spirit re-iterated to me how important it is that we have a testimony of the Book of Mormon. As those thoughts came to my mind, I paused my reading and feeling impressed to ask God if the Book of Mormon was true, I offered a prayer. I thanked Heavenly Father for the wonderful testimonies and examples contained in the Book of Mormon, and then asked God if they were true. A feeling of peace rushed over me that was so wonderful, I could have sat there in my chair forever. I felt peace, joy, and light, and then this thought. "Michael, the Book of Mormon is true, go share it." I love the Book of Mormon, and my greatest desire is to help convert people to Jesus Christ. The Book of Mormon contains the fullness of Christ's gospel, and it is clear and straight forward. Plus, the Book of Mormon is evidence that God keeps his covenants, and he loves all of his people. The Book of Mormon is key to conversion. I am thankful to be here sharing the good news. The great apostasy is over, the period of darkness, when the heavens were sealed is over. The Gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored. "The standard of truth has been [raised], no un-hallowed hand can stop the work from progressing. Persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, and calumny may defame. But the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every climb, swept every country, and sounded in every ear. Till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the great Jehovah shall say the work is done." -Joseph Smith-
I hope you have an awesome week. I'm looking forward to sharing the miracles that are going to happen this week with you guys when I get to talk to you.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Sorry I'm so late writing today, I had to mow the lawn...
So we live in a super ghetto little box behind some one's house, that is smaller than the neighbor's garage, but for some reason it has a pretty big lawn. Our neighbor Reggie wants us to clean up the neighborhood by keeping our yard nice. It makes sense, except the only way anyone can see our yard is by going down a sketchy alley, and we definitely aren't bringing down the neighborhood by any means, lol.
Reggie brought us his weed eater like five days ago as a hint hint that we need to mow our lawn. We don't have time to mow, so we told him we would mow it on Monday (our Preparation-day). He came over three days later, and knocked on our door while we were doing our personal study. He was furious, he was like why the heck haven't you mowed your lawn man? I thought we were trying to clean up the neighborhood. I explained that we could only do it on P-day, and upon hearing that he stomped off with his weed eater.
Today, Monday, a member let us borrow their lawn mower, and I mowed the lawn. It took a whole hour to do it, but that should please Reggie for a couple more weeks. After that, our District went on a hike out to an old sunken ship. When the tide is low you can walk all the way out to it. It was fun, there were huge starfish and other marine life. Our District is pretty tight. We do "Insanity" exercise workouts every morning together, and it has been good for our health and our unity. It's a real pump-up for everyone.
This has been a tough week. We've spent a lot of time tracting and following up, and we haven't found any solid new investigators. Plus, all our investigators fell off date because they didn't come to Church. It's so hard, Bowser and I were at their house 30 min before Church, which starts at 1:00pm, and they were getting ready. We had to meet a couple other investigators at Church, so we said we would meet them over there... They never showed up. I watched the door like a faithful puppy all through Sacrament meeting, and they never came. It's ridiculously frustrating. I feel worried for their behalf, I don't know what to do to help them. I think they are just really shy. They love having us around, we teach lessons, we read the Book of Mormon with them, they say they want to be baptized, and then they don't show up to Church. All I can do is work hard, pray for them, and be obedient.
Mother's Day is coming up, which means I get to call home again. Did you know that? President Weaver is letting us Skype this time -- only for 30 minutes though. If we call on the phone, we get 40 minutes to visit. He's trying it out, (I think Sister Weaver talked him into it, lol). So if you want to Skype let me know through email before next Sunday. I'll be calling or emailing between 4:30 and 5:00 my time. I'll check my email at the member's house before I do, so I can get the skype address. We don't have to Skype if you don't want to. I would be fine with calling.
I'm almost done with the Book of Mormon again, I'm in the book of Ether. The last part of the Book of Mormon is so tragic, It makes me feel really sad for Mormon and Moroni. They were super valiant men. As I read the first chapters of Ether this morning, I came to the chapter where Christ bears witness that the Book of Mormon is true. As I read, the Spirit re-iterated to me how important it is that we have a testimony of the Book of Mormon. As those thoughts came to my mind, I paused my reading and feeling impressed to ask God if the Book of Mormon was true, I offered a prayer. I thanked Heavenly Father for the wonderful testimonies and examples contained in the Book of Mormon, and then asked God if they were true. A feeling of peace rushed over me that was so wonderful, I could have sat there in my chair forever. I felt peace, joy, and light, and then this thought. "Michael, the Book of Mormon is true, go share it." I love the Book of Mormon, and my greatest desire is to help convert people to Jesus Christ. The Book of Mormon contains the fullness of Christ's gospel, and it is clear and straight forward. Plus, the Book of Mormon is evidence that God keeps his covenants, and he loves all of his people. The Book of Mormon is key to conversion. I am thankful to be here sharing the good news. The great apostasy is over, the period of darkness, when the heavens were sealed is over. The Gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored. "The standard of truth has been [raised], no un-hallowed hand can stop the work from progressing. Persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, and calumny may defame. But the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every climb, swept every country, and sounded in every ear. Till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the great Jehovah shall say the work is done." -Joseph Smith-
I hope you have an awesome week. I'm looking forward to sharing the miracles that are going to happen this week with you guys when I get to talk to you.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Thirty-Sixth Letter Home 30 April 2012
Hey family,
I'm glad to hear everyone is having a good reunion. Sorry it isn't under better circumstances, but I'm glad Xander and Uncle Dave had good Birthday parties.
I've had a good week though it's been slow. We're trying to find new investigators, and we haven't had much success. We keep looking though. It's like a big game of hide and seek. We know Heavenly Father has prepared people in our area, we just have to be diligent and listen to the Spirit so we can find them.
This is such a glorious work; I love it. Being a missionary rocks! Sometimes it blows me away that I'm actually a missionary. I look in the mirror, and I'm like "how did I get here?" I've always thought missionaries were tight. They were always so wise, noble, and just all around cool. I need to step it up if I'm gonna exemplify that persona. Serving the Lord should never become mundane, after all this is the Lord's work, and His glory. It is a privilege to participate in this.
Vickie got baptized and confirmed this week. We are super excited for her -- she is such a nice lady. A Polynesian lady allowed us to teach a lesson in her house with Vickie, and it was funny because the Polynesian lady kept telling Vickie that she and her were both lamanites, lol. Vickie is Native American. Lamanite-tism! Many of the members in the Ward were excited about Vickie getting baptised. She likes going to Church, and she even went to a Relief Society function prior to her baptism. She is determined to become an active member of the Church, and her goal is to lead her family to be baptized as well so they can all be sealed in the Temple together as an eternal family. Why would we cause someone to procrastinate the day of their repentance, when they are converted, and want to follow Christ?
The adversary doesn't want people to get baptized. Why? Because baptism unlocks the atonement of Christ in their lives, which puts people at liberty, and gives them greater power to exercise they're agency. The evil one is an enemy to agency, and to all righteousness. Why give him more time to discourage people by putting off the day of their repentance? We have an investigator who now doesn't want to be baptized anymore because she put her baptismal date too far out. A postponed baptism date gives way too much time for the devil and his minions to discourage people.
We're working hard, we are going to find the people Heavenly Father wants us to find. Everytime things have been slow, it has been a test for us to endure. Heavenly Father wants to see what we'll do. He's waiting to bless us if we demonstrate our real intent.
I hope you all have a wonderful week.
Love,
Elder Thornton
I'm glad to hear everyone is having a good reunion. Sorry it isn't under better circumstances, but I'm glad Xander and Uncle Dave had good Birthday parties.
I've had a good week though it's been slow. We're trying to find new investigators, and we haven't had much success. We keep looking though. It's like a big game of hide and seek. We know Heavenly Father has prepared people in our area, we just have to be diligent and listen to the Spirit so we can find them.
This is such a glorious work; I love it. Being a missionary rocks! Sometimes it blows me away that I'm actually a missionary. I look in the mirror, and I'm like "how did I get here?" I've always thought missionaries were tight. They were always so wise, noble, and just all around cool. I need to step it up if I'm gonna exemplify that persona. Serving the Lord should never become mundane, after all this is the Lord's work, and His glory. It is a privilege to participate in this.
Vickie got baptized and confirmed this week. We are super excited for her -- she is such a nice lady. A Polynesian lady allowed us to teach a lesson in her house with Vickie, and it was funny because the Polynesian lady kept telling Vickie that she and her were both lamanites, lol. Vickie is Native American. Lamanite-tism! Many of the members in the Ward were excited about Vickie getting baptised. She likes going to Church, and she even went to a Relief Society function prior to her baptism. She is determined to become an active member of the Church, and her goal is to lead her family to be baptized as well so they can all be sealed in the Temple together as an eternal family. Why would we cause someone to procrastinate the day of their repentance, when they are converted, and want to follow Christ?
The adversary doesn't want people to get baptized. Why? Because baptism unlocks the atonement of Christ in their lives, which puts people at liberty, and gives them greater power to exercise they're agency. The evil one is an enemy to agency, and to all righteousness. Why give him more time to discourage people by putting off the day of their repentance? We have an investigator who now doesn't want to be baptized anymore because she put her baptismal date too far out. A postponed baptism date gives way too much time for the devil and his minions to discourage people.
We're working hard, we are going to find the people Heavenly Father wants us to find. Everytime things have been slow, it has been a test for us to endure. Heavenly Father wants to see what we'll do. He's waiting to bless us if we demonstrate our real intent.
I hope you all have a wonderful week.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Thirty-Fifth Letter Home 23 April 2012
Hey, how is everybody?
I'm doing really well. I got to exercise this morning so I'm stoked. I did Insanity with the District in the gym at the Church. I tell you what, eight months in a car hasn't been very good for me... Ha-ha; it was fun though. I'm going to get into shape. I feel so much more energized. I really dislike feeling sluggish and lethargic; plus being in shape boosts my confidence level which affects the work in a positive way. A win/win scenario.
I'm sorry that Grandpa passed away, but I'm also happy for him.
In the mission, we use our two years of service as an analogy for life. Before we came into the mission, we lived with our families. We learned; we grew; we experienced life. Then, upon choosing to serve a mission we were born into the the mission field where we have the opportunity to test what we knew from before: help other people, and gain greater experience and knowledge. Our time in the mission field is difficult at times, but when we focus on the Savior, and seek to align our will with His, we experience great joy. Everyone that enters the mission field knows that their time in field will come to an end. Some choose to use the time they've been given wisely, and give themselves over to the work. Others, try to live in two worlds at once, and in so doing waste the time they've been given. Eventually every one's time in the field comes to an end, and they "die." At that point, they sit down with the "President" and account for their mission. Did they choose to live happily by doing the work? Or did they make themselves miserable wanting what they couldn't have? Many will be filled with joy. They will miss those people they have come to love so dearly, and people will miss them, but they will have joy when they look into their parents eyes and can honestly say they gave it their all. Life continues after the mission, just as it continues after this life. Those things we learned here will go with us, and our knowledge will be added upon as we continue to experience life.
I'm excited for Grandpa. He fought a good fight, and now he has gone home. I am so grateful for the Plan of Salvation. What a gift. When all hell brakes loose in movies, what is it that everyone wants to hear? "Don't worry, I've got a plan." It doesn't even have to be a good one, just the thought of having a plan calms everybody's nerves. The Plan of Salvation is a perfect plan, and Heavenly Father has set things up for us to succeed gloriously.
I love you guys. Viki is getting baptized this Saturday. The gospel is true, and I love seeing it change people's lives, and give them hope. Have an awesome week. Here's a scripture to ponder in Mormon 9:24.
Love,
Elder Thornton
I'm doing really well. I got to exercise this morning so I'm stoked. I did Insanity with the District in the gym at the Church. I tell you what, eight months in a car hasn't been very good for me... Ha-ha; it was fun though. I'm going to get into shape. I feel so much more energized. I really dislike feeling sluggish and lethargic; plus being in shape boosts my confidence level which affects the work in a positive way. A win/win scenario.
I'm sorry that Grandpa passed away, but I'm also happy for him.
In the mission, we use our two years of service as an analogy for life. Before we came into the mission, we lived with our families. We learned; we grew; we experienced life. Then, upon choosing to serve a mission we were born into the the mission field where we have the opportunity to test what we knew from before: help other people, and gain greater experience and knowledge. Our time in the mission field is difficult at times, but when we focus on the Savior, and seek to align our will with His, we experience great joy. Everyone that enters the mission field knows that their time in field will come to an end. Some choose to use the time they've been given wisely, and give themselves over to the work. Others, try to live in two worlds at once, and in so doing waste the time they've been given. Eventually every one's time in the field comes to an end, and they "die." At that point, they sit down with the "President" and account for their mission. Did they choose to live happily by doing the work? Or did they make themselves miserable wanting what they couldn't have? Many will be filled with joy. They will miss those people they have come to love so dearly, and people will miss them, but they will have joy when they look into their parents eyes and can honestly say they gave it their all. Life continues after the mission, just as it continues after this life. Those things we learned here will go with us, and our knowledge will be added upon as we continue to experience life.
I'm excited for Grandpa. He fought a good fight, and now he has gone home. I am so grateful for the Plan of Salvation. What a gift. When all hell brakes loose in movies, what is it that everyone wants to hear? "Don't worry, I've got a plan." It doesn't even have to be a good one, just the thought of having a plan calms everybody's nerves. The Plan of Salvation is a perfect plan, and Heavenly Father has set things up for us to succeed gloriously.
I love you guys. Viki is getting baptized this Saturday. The gospel is true, and I love seeing it change people's lives, and give them hope. Have an awesome week. Here's a scripture to ponder in Mormon 9:24.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Thirty-Fourth Letter Home 16 April 2012
What's up?
Thanks for all the birthday wishes, and the goodies, and such things. I enjoyed them. I didn't have cake, but as you can see from my pictures I don't really need it, lol. But seriously. I've had a good week. Week one of transfer three in Fort Lewis is over.
We found a lady named Viki while tracting, took her on a Church tour, and put her on date for Cinco de Mayo! Fiestatism! Ha-ha, she came to church yesterday -- which was super awesome. That doesn't happen very much around here. Getting people to Church is like trying to storm Fort Bragg with a nerf gun. And then when you get them to Church, no one says hi or introduces themselves, which makes it really hard to get them there a second time. We are really trying to build up Ward relations. It's so hard though.
The problem that we have in the Church, as stated in General Conference, is that people aren't converted to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We as members are not reading the Book of Mormon like we should. Today I was reading in Alma chapter 60, where Captain Moroni is ripping the government for not sending reinforcements and supplies to him and his guys on the front line. He says, "And now, my beloved brethren -- for ye ought to be beloved; yea, and ye ought to have stirred yourselves more diligently for the welfare and the freedom of this people; but behold, ye have neglected them insomuch that the blood of thousands shall come upon your heads for vengeance; yea, for known unto God were all their cries, and all their sufferings -- Behold, could ye suppose that ye could sit upon your thrones, and because of the exceeding goodness of God ye could do nothing and he would deliver you? Behold, if ye have supposed this ye have supposed in vain."
There are people all around us who are suffering. I'm in their homes everyday, I see the desperate father with his crying wife and newborn baby, looking for work. I see the crack heads desperate for another fix. I see the gang bangers stuck in a life of violence and crime. I see the soldiers, suffering from PTSD, and fear in their eyes knowing they're about to be deployed to another battle field, where the enemy is even less distinguishable than the one in Iraq. The Gospel is the only thing that can take away these people's suffering. Christ suffered for all of us, and his arms are opened to all. Knowing this, how could we ever turn our backs on those who show even the slightest desire to hear the Gospel? We will be held responsible if we don't make an effort to impart the glorious blessings we've been given from Heavenly Father to our brothers and sisters. We need to be converted to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and then, we need to share it with others.
I love being a missionary. I love my investigators. They drive me crazy sometimes, but I love them, and I would do anything that's right for them. Heavenly Father blesses us so much. The Holy Ghost whispers into my ear and tells me what I need to do, what I need to say, and where I need to go. I do my best to follow these promptings. On many occasions, I've turned the car around, and went out of my way to see a specific person the Spirit has prompted me to go see. The Delgado family was baptized because of a simple prompting. We found a new investigator yesterday, because of a prompting. I love being a missionary.
Guys, I love all of you. I am so grateful for you, and the support you give me. I pray every night for your welfare, and thank Heavenly Father for the wonderful family and friends he has blessed me with. My greatest desire is to be the Lord's servant. I want to be an instrument in His hands in blessing the lives of His children. I have many flaws and weaknesses, and the adversary tries to exploit them and discourage me. It is incomprehensible that my Savior Jesus Christ even suffered for me while I'm serving him. He felt my discouragement. He suffered for my inadequacies. How could I not give Him my all? I love you, have a good week. Sorry these letters have been rather solemn, but these are the things I've been thinking about.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Thanks for all the birthday wishes, and the goodies, and such things. I enjoyed them. I didn't have cake, but as you can see from my pictures I don't really need it, lol. But seriously. I've had a good week. Week one of transfer three in Fort Lewis is over.
We found a lady named Viki while tracting, took her on a Church tour, and put her on date for Cinco de Mayo! Fiestatism! Ha-ha, she came to church yesterday -- which was super awesome. That doesn't happen very much around here. Getting people to Church is like trying to storm Fort Bragg with a nerf gun. And then when you get them to Church, no one says hi or introduces themselves, which makes it really hard to get them there a second time. We are really trying to build up Ward relations. It's so hard though.
The problem that we have in the Church, as stated in General Conference, is that people aren't converted to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We as members are not reading the Book of Mormon like we should. Today I was reading in Alma chapter 60, where Captain Moroni is ripping the government for not sending reinforcements and supplies to him and his guys on the front line. He says, "And now, my beloved brethren -- for ye ought to be beloved; yea, and ye ought to have stirred yourselves more diligently for the welfare and the freedom of this people; but behold, ye have neglected them insomuch that the blood of thousands shall come upon your heads for vengeance; yea, for known unto God were all their cries, and all their sufferings -- Behold, could ye suppose that ye could sit upon your thrones, and because of the exceeding goodness of God ye could do nothing and he would deliver you? Behold, if ye have supposed this ye have supposed in vain."
There are people all around us who are suffering. I'm in their homes everyday, I see the desperate father with his crying wife and newborn baby, looking for work. I see the crack heads desperate for another fix. I see the gang bangers stuck in a life of violence and crime. I see the soldiers, suffering from PTSD, and fear in their eyes knowing they're about to be deployed to another battle field, where the enemy is even less distinguishable than the one in Iraq. The Gospel is the only thing that can take away these people's suffering. Christ suffered for all of us, and his arms are opened to all. Knowing this, how could we ever turn our backs on those who show even the slightest desire to hear the Gospel? We will be held responsible if we don't make an effort to impart the glorious blessings we've been given from Heavenly Father to our brothers and sisters. We need to be converted to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and then, we need to share it with others.
I love being a missionary. I love my investigators. They drive me crazy sometimes, but I love them, and I would do anything that's right for them. Heavenly Father blesses us so much. The Holy Ghost whispers into my ear and tells me what I need to do, what I need to say, and where I need to go. I do my best to follow these promptings. On many occasions, I've turned the car around, and went out of my way to see a specific person the Spirit has prompted me to go see. The Delgado family was baptized because of a simple prompting. We found a new investigator yesterday, because of a prompting. I love being a missionary.
Guys, I love all of you. I am so grateful for you, and the support you give me. I pray every night for your welfare, and thank Heavenly Father for the wonderful family and friends he has blessed me with. My greatest desire is to be the Lord's servant. I want to be an instrument in His hands in blessing the lives of His children. I have many flaws and weaknesses, and the adversary tries to exploit them and discourage me. It is incomprehensible that my Savior Jesus Christ even suffered for me while I'm serving him. He felt my discouragement. He suffered for my inadequacies. How could I not give Him my all? I love you, have a good week. Sorry these letters have been rather solemn, but these are the things I've been thinking about.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Thirty-Third Letter Home 09 April 2012
Happy Easter!
It sounds like everyone had fun. I had fun also. We were invited to a cook out with an investigator who is in the army. He is the one who just won the Soldier of the Year award. He is Hispanic so he made carne asada. So good, really really good; for real. It's like steak in a taco... you don't even have to use a fork.
Anyways, that dinner engagement happened at three o'clock, and then we went to the Hendricks for dinner at five. Basically, we ate all day long. Now you know why my face looked so round in the pictures I sent you; lol. It's so bad; I want to go running really bad, but my companion won't participate, not even on a track. So my exercise routine has been limited. That brings me to the next order of business: transfers. I am staying here, and so is Elder Bowser. He will be the first companion I stay with for more than one transfer... It builds our character. Anyways, I'm excited to stay so I can continue to help our investigators. I love them all very much, and I pray that we'll be able to help them to learn and accept the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The adversary fights against me all the time. He wants to bring me down. From the second my alarm goes off, to 10:30 at night, he tries to discourage me, distract me, and ultimately he would destroy me if he got the chance. I'm going to be honest: I feel like I'm fighting a two front war when it comes to working with my companion. I'm tired. This morning I took a nap. I really needed one. I studied for an hour, and then I went back to sleep. It's been tough; that's the truth. But, it's okay. I'm ready for another month of work until the next transfer. I know why I'm here, and nothing is going to stop me from fulfilling my purpose. "I am a disciple of Jesus Christ the son of God, I have been called of him, to declare His word, among His people that they may have everlasting life." I'm on the Lord's errand, and he can't be beat. I will not fall.
This email was my gripe email. I needed to get it off my chest. So that is the end of it. I will love Elder Bowser, and I will do everything I can to help him make this next period of his mission the best. We will have joy and fulfillment in serving our Savior Jesus Christ.
Have an awesome week. Thank you for all the letters, birthday wishes, packages, goodies, and such. You're awesome. I love you.
Love,
Elder Thornton
It sounds like everyone had fun. I had fun also. We were invited to a cook out with an investigator who is in the army. He is the one who just won the Soldier of the Year award. He is Hispanic so he made carne asada. So good, really really good; for real. It's like steak in a taco... you don't even have to use a fork.
Anyways, that dinner engagement happened at three o'clock, and then we went to the Hendricks for dinner at five. Basically, we ate all day long. Now you know why my face looked so round in the pictures I sent you; lol. It's so bad; I want to go running really bad, but my companion won't participate, not even on a track. So my exercise routine has been limited. That brings me to the next order of business: transfers. I am staying here, and so is Elder Bowser. He will be the first companion I stay with for more than one transfer... It builds our character. Anyways, I'm excited to stay so I can continue to help our investigators. I love them all very much, and I pray that we'll be able to help them to learn and accept the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The adversary fights against me all the time. He wants to bring me down. From the second my alarm goes off, to 10:30 at night, he tries to discourage me, distract me, and ultimately he would destroy me if he got the chance. I'm going to be honest: I feel like I'm fighting a two front war when it comes to working with my companion. I'm tired. This morning I took a nap. I really needed one. I studied for an hour, and then I went back to sleep. It's been tough; that's the truth. But, it's okay. I'm ready for another month of work until the next transfer. I know why I'm here, and nothing is going to stop me from fulfilling my purpose. "I am a disciple of Jesus Christ the son of God, I have been called of him, to declare His word, among His people that they may have everlasting life." I'm on the Lord's errand, and he can't be beat. I will not fall.
This email was my gripe email. I needed to get it off my chest. So that is the end of it. I will love Elder Bowser, and I will do everything I can to help him make this next period of his mission the best. We will have joy and fulfillment in serving our Savior Jesus Christ.
Have an awesome week. Thank you for all the letters, birthday wishes, packages, goodies, and such. You're awesome. I love you.
Love,
Elder Thornton
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Thirty-Second Letter Home 02 April 2012
What's up?
It sounds like everyone really enjoyed General Conference. I love Conference. Yuki, our recent convert watched it in Japanese online. We watched one Saturday session with our investigator family; and Sister Hampton, who I've been trying to get to come to Church for 10 weeks, came to the Sunday afternoon session. Clara, our "German grandma" lady watched Sunday morning's session of Conference. Ha-ha, I love conference because the talks our investigators heard where exactly what they all needed. It worked out perfectly.
The Apostles and Prophet re-iterated principles we taught our investigators last week. It was cool for me personally, because things that I've studied and promptings that I've received from the Holy Ghost were re-iterated and confirmed by the Lord's chosen servants. Many of the talks were exactly what our Ward and Stake leaders needed to hear also. I took good notes, and this morning as part of my study, I reviewed them. Then, I read out of the Book of Mormon.
The Holy Ghost, through the Book of Mormon, once again confirmed the words of the Lord's servants to me. I have so much fun studying with the Holy Ghost. He is always teaching me cool things, and the best is when he teaches me things that I get to use that day to help explain the gospel to someone.
Many of the talks focused on the importance of being converted to the Gospel, and having an eternal perspective, or vision. As a missionary I've noticed that many members of the church don't know what the Gospel is, and as a result get caught up in "club Mormon," missing the point of why the Church was restored in the first place.
The Gospel, as defined in 2 Nephi 31, and 3 Nephi 11, is Faith, Repentance, Baptism, Receiving the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End. Everything else we do in the Church should support these five principles and ordinances. Christ's gospel is so simple that a child can understand it, yet so complex and perfect, that it takes a life time to master it. For investigators, it unlocks the full power of Christ's atonement in their favor. For members of Christ's Church, it renews the solid ground beneath our feet, keeping us on the rock of salvation. Baptism is the only ordinance we continue to renew for ourselves, through partaking of the Sacrament. Other ordinances are done by proxy, in the behalf of others.
In 3 Nephi 18:6-7,10-12 Christ says that by partaking of the Sacrament, we are securing our place on the rock. Helaman 5:12 tells why we want to hang out on that particular rock. Understanding the Gospel of Jesus Christ gives us an eternal perspective. It gives us hope, and that hope is re-inforced by Heavenly Father's blessings to us. These principles, are the center of the plan of salvation, the plan for happiness. Christ is our benefactor, He paid for us in blood. D&C 19 captures what that entailed. If we don't want to suffer as He did, we have to accept his Gospel. If we don't want other people to suffer that agony, we need to share his Gospel. "A religion that doesn't require a sacrifice from it's members, will never have the authority, or power to live with God." It is through applying the principles of the Gospel in our lives, that we make that sacrifice, and choose to follow our Savior. This Saturday is transfers... we'll see what happens. I'll let you know on Monday.
Elder Thornton
It sounds like everyone really enjoyed General Conference. I love Conference. Yuki, our recent convert watched it in Japanese online. We watched one Saturday session with our investigator family; and Sister Hampton, who I've been trying to get to come to Church for 10 weeks, came to the Sunday afternoon session. Clara, our "German grandma" lady watched Sunday morning's session of Conference. Ha-ha, I love conference because the talks our investigators heard where exactly what they all needed. It worked out perfectly.
The Apostles and Prophet re-iterated principles we taught our investigators last week. It was cool for me personally, because things that I've studied and promptings that I've received from the Holy Ghost were re-iterated and confirmed by the Lord's chosen servants. Many of the talks were exactly what our Ward and Stake leaders needed to hear also. I took good notes, and this morning as part of my study, I reviewed them. Then, I read out of the Book of Mormon.
The Holy Ghost, through the Book of Mormon, once again confirmed the words of the Lord's servants to me. I have so much fun studying with the Holy Ghost. He is always teaching me cool things, and the best is when he teaches me things that I get to use that day to help explain the gospel to someone.
Many of the talks focused on the importance of being converted to the Gospel, and having an eternal perspective, or vision. As a missionary I've noticed that many members of the church don't know what the Gospel is, and as a result get caught up in "club Mormon," missing the point of why the Church was restored in the first place.
The Gospel, as defined in 2 Nephi 31, and 3 Nephi 11, is Faith, Repentance, Baptism, Receiving the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End. Everything else we do in the Church should support these five principles and ordinances. Christ's gospel is so simple that a child can understand it, yet so complex and perfect, that it takes a life time to master it. For investigators, it unlocks the full power of Christ's atonement in their favor. For members of Christ's Church, it renews the solid ground beneath our feet, keeping us on the rock of salvation. Baptism is the only ordinance we continue to renew for ourselves, through partaking of the Sacrament. Other ordinances are done by proxy, in the behalf of others.
In 3 Nephi 18:6-7,10-12 Christ says that by partaking of the Sacrament, we are securing our place on the rock. Helaman 5:12 tells why we want to hang out on that particular rock. Understanding the Gospel of Jesus Christ gives us an eternal perspective. It gives us hope, and that hope is re-inforced by Heavenly Father's blessings to us. These principles, are the center of the plan of salvation, the plan for happiness. Christ is our benefactor, He paid for us in blood. D&C 19 captures what that entailed. If we don't want to suffer as He did, we have to accept his Gospel. If we don't want other people to suffer that agony, we need to share his Gospel. "A religion that doesn't require a sacrifice from it's members, will never have the authority, or power to live with God." It is through applying the principles of the Gospel in our lives, that we make that sacrifice, and choose to follow our Savior. This Saturday is transfers... we'll see what happens. I'll let you know on Monday.
Elder Thornton
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Thirty-First Letter Home 26 March 2012
Hey, hows it going?
This week has been rather mundane; not to much new happened. The progress we've been making with our investigators is slow. We can't get any of our contacts to come to Church. People promise they will come. We set up rides for them, and then they don't show. It's super frustrating.
Then yesterday a member brought his boss and his boss's wife to Church with him. It was their first time, so they attended the Gospel Essentials class. We don't have a teacher, so I've had to wing the last three lessons. My companion doesn't want to do it, so I've been teaching all the Gospel Essential classes lately. I don't mind teaching though, it puts me in the position where I can steer the discussion, and hope to meet the needs of the potential investigators. But without fail, someone will feel the need to bring up something irrelevant and shift the class away from the lesson. I was talking about the Atonement and about the Gospel of Jesus Christ when a member interrupted me and said they wanted to learn about the war in heaven. Then they wanted to learn about the 1/3 that were cast out of heaven. Then they wanted to talk about Celestial Glory, and Endowments, and... can we give some milk before we try feeding them steak please? It's ridiculous. Our investigators get so confused. Ha-ha, so that was Sunday School, but we are very grateful for the member bringing them to Church, and we got a solid referral from the ward we've been trying to get one for nine weeks now. This week the member is going to have us and his friends over for dinner. I think there is some definite potential here. We gave the couple a copy of the Book of Mormon.
We continue to work with our other investigators. Austin was upset at us because we couldn't go shooting with him the other day. He was even planning on having friends there who we could talk to, but the handbook says no guns. President Weaver says no guns. This means Elder Thornton had to say "no guns" also. Trust me, that was difficult. But I'm glad I was obedient.
The Ward here is difficult to work with. We announced in Ward Council we had a family on date to be baptized for Easter Sunday, and they flipped out. (Forgive me for trying to baptized someone on the day Christ rose from the dead. It's not like baptism is symbolic or anything.) Apparently the problem stems from missionaries in the past who just went behind the Ward's back, so-to-speak. They would show up with baptism records after the fact. You would think now that the Ward has missionaries trying to communicate and work with them and do things the right way, they would be excited; but all they gave us was flack. They ate us alive in Ward Council. Totally uncalled for. First time missionaries have even bothered to show up to Ward Council in months, and they kicked us out after ten minuets. It is frustrating!
I'm trying. At the same time, I'm not going to allow their pride to deny people entrance into the Lord's Kingdom. I've got a job to do. It' will take time, and I will work at it. I promised Heavenly Father that I was going to leave this area better than I found it. And that's what I'm going to do.
That's about it, that was my rant. I'm sorry. I try not to complain. My companion does enough of that for the two of us, lol. Ha-ha, I like Elder Bowser, and though he hesitates to admit it: He is starting to like being a missionary. His testimony is growing. We've had quite a few little miracles this transfer. I told him, if you want to enjoy your mission, you've got to have the Holy Ghost with you. Galatians 5:22 "The fruits of the spirit are, joy... faith... peace... long suffering...." The influence of the Holy Ghost is what makes this work awesome. But, if you want him to hang out with you, you have to be obedient, and you've got to work. I think he is starting to see that. Yesterday, he told me to wake him up at 6:30 — "except on P-day!" Haha, the Spirit is getting to him.
Anyways, I hope you have a great week. I'm going to have a great week because I'm going to do everything I can to have the Holy Spirit with me. He makes everything good.
Bye guys.
Oh, another highlight of the week: I got to go take a tour of the 160th SOARs Spec Ops helicopters. Ask me about it in a couple years.
Love,
Elder Thornton
This week has been rather mundane; not to much new happened. The progress we've been making with our investigators is slow. We can't get any of our contacts to come to Church. People promise they will come. We set up rides for them, and then they don't show. It's super frustrating.
Then yesterday a member brought his boss and his boss's wife to Church with him. It was their first time, so they attended the Gospel Essentials class. We don't have a teacher, so I've had to wing the last three lessons. My companion doesn't want to do it, so I've been teaching all the Gospel Essential classes lately. I don't mind teaching though, it puts me in the position where I can steer the discussion, and hope to meet the needs of the potential investigators. But without fail, someone will feel the need to bring up something irrelevant and shift the class away from the lesson. I was talking about the Atonement and about the Gospel of Jesus Christ when a member interrupted me and said they wanted to learn about the war in heaven. Then they wanted to learn about the 1/3 that were cast out of heaven. Then they wanted to talk about Celestial Glory, and Endowments, and... can we give some milk before we try feeding them steak please? It's ridiculous. Our investigators get so confused. Ha-ha, so that was Sunday School, but we are very grateful for the member bringing them to Church, and we got a solid referral from the ward we've been trying to get one for nine weeks now. This week the member is going to have us and his friends over for dinner. I think there is some definite potential here. We gave the couple a copy of the Book of Mormon.
We continue to work with our other investigators. Austin was upset at us because we couldn't go shooting with him the other day. He was even planning on having friends there who we could talk to, but the handbook says no guns. President Weaver says no guns. This means Elder Thornton had to say "no guns" also. Trust me, that was difficult. But I'm glad I was obedient.
The Ward here is difficult to work with. We announced in Ward Council we had a family on date to be baptized for Easter Sunday, and they flipped out. (Forgive me for trying to baptized someone on the day Christ rose from the dead. It's not like baptism is symbolic or anything.) Apparently the problem stems from missionaries in the past who just went behind the Ward's back, so-to-speak. They would show up with baptism records after the fact. You would think now that the Ward has missionaries trying to communicate and work with them and do things the right way, they would be excited; but all they gave us was flack. They ate us alive in Ward Council. Totally uncalled for. First time missionaries have even bothered to show up to Ward Council in months, and they kicked us out after ten minuets. It is frustrating!
I'm trying. At the same time, I'm not going to allow their pride to deny people entrance into the Lord's Kingdom. I've got a job to do. It' will take time, and I will work at it. I promised Heavenly Father that I was going to leave this area better than I found it. And that's what I'm going to do.
That's about it, that was my rant. I'm sorry. I try not to complain. My companion does enough of that for the two of us, lol. Ha-ha, I like Elder Bowser, and though he hesitates to admit it: He is starting to like being a missionary. His testimony is growing. We've had quite a few little miracles this transfer. I told him, if you want to enjoy your mission, you've got to have the Holy Ghost with you. Galatians 5:22 "The fruits of the spirit are, joy... faith... peace... long suffering...." The influence of the Holy Ghost is what makes this work awesome. But, if you want him to hang out with you, you have to be obedient, and you've got to work. I think he is starting to see that. Yesterday, he told me to wake him up at 6:30 — "except on P-day!" Haha, the Spirit is getting to him.
Anyways, I hope you have a great week. I'm going to have a great week because I'm going to do everything I can to have the Holy Spirit with me. He makes everything good.
Bye guys.
Oh, another highlight of the week: I got to go take a tour of the 160th SOARs Spec Ops helicopters. Ask me about it in a couple years.
Love,
Elder Thornton
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