Week 33 - Teaching a new family

This week was a pretty good one. We, as a mission, have been focusing on increasing our faith in order to see the miracles that the Lord has in store for us. As a result, our zone taught over 200 lessons this past week which is about 60 more than ever in this zone. So we are all really excited about the good work we have to do up here. 

We have another baptism this Saturday so that's exciting! E.  will be baptized along with 3 little girls in our branch. I just hope he can stay active in the church since his mom is returning to activity in the church. But we have a pretty good day planned Saturday as we'll be having 4 baptisms :) 

So one of the families we've recently started teaching is the S Family. There are 4 that we're teaching. J. (father), M.  (mother), M.  (25ish) and E. (15ish). This family is so nice! They seem to be really sincere about learning. They said they had previously talked to missionaries, but all they would talk about was the bible. So the other day we taught them about the Restoration of the Gospel and they all said it made tons of sense. We gave them a Book of Mormon and they seem really sincere about reading it. We have another lesson with them on Thursday and we're planning on setting a baptism date for them. Sadly, M. and E. left for Mexico yesterday and won't be back for a few weeks, so we'll have to wait to teach them, but J. and M. are still very eager to learn more. 

At church we had some kind of conference in our area or zone or something where we watched a meeting in SLC. Sadly I wasn't able to listen to all of it since I was helping set stuff up and getting the late-comers settled in our little Relief Society room, but I did hear a talk by Sis. Reeves about the Atonement. She talked about how no matter how far we've gone from God, Christ's Atonement can reach us anywhere. It was a good conference and we ended up having 4 investigators at church! We will be having Stake Conference next Sunday in Mishawaka so that will be good!

I recently read the story about Esther in the bible. I love the story of Esther and how courageous she is. It's incredible the faith she had that through the fasting and the prayers of the Jews, she was able to confront the King of Syria and save her people. 

Well that's pretty much it for this week. Not a ton going on. But I love hearing from you and about all the fun stuff that's going on over in the Promised Land of Utah! I love you!  I'll see you in a couple weeks :)

Love,

Elder Thayne

Week 32 - A Baptism and a testimony of Joseph Smith

There are a few members out in Indiana who are so kind and sometimes send us pictures and little updates on Josh throughout the week.  We had received a few pictures from N's baptism and word that he had given a talk at the baptism and also at Sacrament Meeting the next day.  Yes I did give a talks on Saturday and Sunday and it was literally the first time I've given a talk since my farewell! So I guess it was overdue. In sacrament meeting I spoke on "The Work of Salvation" aka missionary work. I just spoke about the responsibility we have and the importance of the members in missionary work. I was really nervous and the talk was a little shorter than it should have been but meh. I actually didn't have any troubles with the Spanish during my talk so that was a blessing. 

The baptism went really well and N. was really excited about it. Afterwards we did go to a Hibachi grill to eat and that was a lot of fun as well. I have grown to really like that family a lot and it's gonna be hard to say goodbye to them. R. was really excited and later she told us how long she'd been waiting and praying for her daughter to accept the gospel so they could all be sealed in the temple as an eternal family. They're a great family and I'm really excited for them. 

I had given a lesson in Relief Society on Joseph Smith and how he was an instrument in the Lord's hands.  I was telling Josh that my feeling is that Joseph Smith is coming under new attacks in our day more and more by those in the church who doubt his calling as the prophet of the restoration.  It's true that Joseph Smith and the veracity of his holy calling is being attacked unceasingly these days. And as you said, doubts relating to him will automatically fill us with doubts about everything connected to what he did. At the very beginning of my mission I started having doubts about Joseph Smith and the Restoration of the Gospel. I knew that I couldn't do what I needed to do out here without dispensing any doubt. As I went about doing this I decided to renew and strengthen my testimony of the Book of Mormon. As I earnestly read and prayed unceasingly, I received a witness that the Book of Mormon is true and I can say that I know it is true without any doubt. No matter what other doubts I have or had, the Book of Mormon is proof of Joseph's Smith prophetic calling as the Prophet of the Restoration. I really enjoy Jeffrey R Holland's talk about this called "Safety for the Soul". I would encourage anyone who doubts the truthfulness of Joseph Smith's witness to read or re-read the Book of Mormon and pray to God to know if it's true. Once we gain a testimony of this book, we can know with a surety that Joseph Smith was a true prophet of God. 

We had a really good week! We found a lot of new people to teach. We're still working with E., but it's hard for him to come to church because his mom is returning from inactivity and his dad isn't a member. He's still planning on getting baptized on May 2nd with 3 other kids in our branch turning 8. 

There are tons of great things happening in our branch here! We're finding a lot of great people to teach and doing everything we can to invite them to come unto Christ. I love you!. Thank you for all you do! Have a good week! 

Love, 

Elder Thayne

N's Baptims

At a Hibachi restaurant after the baptism

Week 31 - "Help thou my unbelief"

This week was pretty good! We'll be having N.'s baptism on Saturday and she couldn't be more excited! She's super prepared and we're all really excited for her. E. and his mom finally came to church yesterday so luckily he was able to keep his date of May 2nd. 

Pretty early in the week we were riding our bikes through this apartment complex and this car just honked at us so we turned around and the waved us over. This small Hispanic lady rolled down her window and asked us if we speak spanish. She asked us for the address of the church and told us that she went to our church a few times when she lived in Oklahoma about a year ago, but ever since she moved here she hadn't been able to find it. We gave her and her husband the address and then they drove off before we could get any of there information. I was praying and hoping that they'd come to church so that we could get their information and begin teaching them, and then about 15 minutes into Sacrament meeting, they both walked in! It was great to see them there and we got their information so we'll try to set something up to visit them. 

On saturday I was listening to a talk by Elder Holland called "Help Thou My Unbelief".  It's about the story in Mark ch. 9 about the man who brings his suffering child to Christ. Christ tells him that if he believes, anything is possible. With the little faith and belief that the man had, he boldly declared "Lord, I believe", but realizing his lack of faith he desperately pleaded, "Help thou my unbelief."

I love the way Elder Holland describes this story. He related that all of us feel like this at some point. We all are desperate for more faith and knowledge to help us out. In his talk, he stated that just like this man, we should focus on what we do believe and hold on to that until more knowledge comes. I really liked that and I thought that was something that everyone could use. A lot of times we have doubts and we don't know as much as we'd like, but if we focus on what we already know and capitalize on that, our faith and knowledge will grow immensely in God's own time. 

Not a ton really happened this week.. Sorry! I love you Mom! I hope you have a good week! Thanks for the pictures!

Love,

Elder Thayne

Week 30 - Answers to questions given at Conference.

This week was pretty good! Not much happened today, but General Conference was definitely the highlight of this Easter weekend. 

I especially enjoyed Elder Holland's talk. I have fallen in love with his talks and his powerful boldness as he bears testimony. Sadly, only one of our investigators came to Conference (N.), but she seemed to really enjoy it! Her younger sister A., who's already a member, actually had a really cool experience! We had just watched the Sunday morning session and went to eat dinner at their house. As soon as we finished dinner, we shared a short message about the Atonement. After the message, A. told us she had a question. The question she asked us was a question we could not give a straight answer to. We all discussed it for about 10 minutes and we didn't really come to a single conclusion. She kind of shrugged it off but was still left wanting an answer.  We soon left their house and all went over to the chapel to watch conference. We weren't watching the session in the same room as her since  she was watching it in spanish with her mom in the relief society room. We had all kind of forgotten about the question she had asked and were enjoying the excellent talks being given.  Near the end of the session, Elder Hales was talking and something incredible happened. Elder Hales answered the exact question that A. had asked just a couple hours before during dinner. He answered it simply and plainly and I immediately remembered the question. As soon as conference ended, I hustled over to the Relief Society room to see if A.i was listening. As soon as I saw her I said, "Did you see him answer your exact question??" and she just nodded and smiled so big and her mom was crying due to the spiritual experience. We had been telling A. all week that preparing to watch conference with a question in mind really helps you to receive answers, and after this experience, she knows it. It was a great experience and I'm sure that her sister, N., learned from the experience as well. 

Yesterday, after conference, we were knocking doors in a trailer park near the church. We knocked on this door and a very old white woman walked to the door. We told her who we were and why we were there. She then proceeded to tell us that she had recently moved here from Pennsylvania about a year ago after her husband had passed away. She told us that she was planning on her daughter taking care of her but she said she had abandoned her. At this moment she started to cry and I felt so sad for her. She said she would really love someone to talk to about God. I'm really glad we found her because it's clear that she really needs the gospel. 

We had another great experience on Tuesday! We were biking to E''s apartment and as soon as we pulled into the parking lot, this car drove up by us, stopped, and a man about our age walked out and called out to us. He asked "are you english missionaries?" We told him no, then he told us that he's been wondering how he could join our church. I was dumbfounded. I honestly thought he was kidding at first, but then he began telling us that he has a bad history and he's been wanting to change and give his life over to God. He told us he has a Grandma in Spanish Fork who is a member and she had told him to contact some English missionaries. We gave him the number of the English missionaries and they taught him at the church that same day! He even came to conference yesterday and he loved it! It was good to see the Lord help him find what he was looking for. 

That's pretty much it for this week! I'm sad conference is over, but I'm counting down the days until we have another one in October! I miss you all and love you so much!

Love, 

Elder Joshua Thayne

Dinner at President and Sister Alarcon's house.

This picture was sent to me by Brother Alarcon (Branch mission leader).  Here was his caption:  We had Banana splits yesterday and Elder Thayne put the ice cream on top of the unpeeled bananas haha idk what he was thinking ... It was funny.

Week 29 - Wow Wee Woo, Easter and Conference!

This week was pretty good for us. Not much happened but we've been trying our best to find more and more people to share this gospel with. Yes we have been using the new Easter video to find/teach people and it's working pretty well. I'm surprised at how many people don't really know the real reason we celebrate Easter. It's hard for some people to see behind the eggs and the Easter bunny and see the real reason we have this hope. I love the message that the message gives that Christ is here for us. He rose the third day. We just have to do what we can to find him. 

N. was able to come to all 3 hours of church today and she loved it! We had a really good lesson about the Atonement in Gospel Principles and she really enjoyed it.  Sadly, L. and E.  weren't able to come. L.  has been having a hard time believing that God really will answer her prayers. We've been trying to help her so much in finding the truth but she's struggling. E. was in Michigan so he wasn't able to go. I'm definitely learning how to be patient.

 We had a mission wide fast yesterday due to a new mission goal we have. For the next 3 months (apr, may, jun) we have a goal to get 120 baptisms in the whole mission. We were inviting members to fast with us and I know that our efforts and faith are seen by the Lord.

Not much else happened this week.. I've been really trying to study a lot out of Preach my Gospel to improve my teaching skills. I've found that there is SO much to learn and study and it's kinda overwhelming but I'm trying to stick with it. 

That's so sad to hear about Brother Allred. I can't imagine how hard that must be for Nick out on his mission. That is literally my worst nightmare and I don't know if I'd be able to do it. That's good to hear that Sis. Allred is staying strong and leaning on the Atonement. That would be incredibly hard. It's good to know the things we know about families. It would be so hard to bear that if we didn't have a firm belief that we would see them again. 

That's pretty much it for this week. Pretty uneventful. But I'm looking forward to listening to conference this week and I hope you enjoy it! I love you!

Practicing the organ at church

Elder Thayne and Elder Latu stole the branch mission leaders (Bro Alcaron's) phone when he
 left the room and decided to leave some funny pictures on it.  Crazy Elders!

Deep in thought...haha!

Love, Elder Thayne

Week 28 - Seeing the Lord's hand in our work

This week flew by! It was super warm on Monday and then it started cooling down throughout the week, and it's currently snowing -__- but hopefully this is the last of the snow until the next dreaded winter! We've been having tons of success up here and I can really see that the Lord has been helping us lately. We currently have 3 baptism dates set and the other elders in our district have 2. Ours are N(April 18), E (May 2), and L(May 9). 

N. still hasn't quit work but she said it should be soon. She has a ton of support from her family and we're able to teach her about 2 times a week so it's going pretty well. She just hasn't gotten in the habit of reading the Book of Mormon so she's kinda struggling with that. 

E. is a 9 year old boy who's mom is a member but his dad isn't. His mom really wants him to get baptized, but his dad has been kind of against it until recently. He's one of the smartest kids I've ever met and he remembers every thing we teach him. We gave him a Book of Mormon picture book and he's been reading that every day. 

L. is the daughter of one of our students in English class. C.  has been one of our only consistent students and she brings L. with her to class. L.  is 18 yrs old so she speaks perfect English, so she just sits in the gym with us and the kids. We started teaching her stuff in between watching the kids and she has a real desire to learn more about God and be a better person. She seems to be struggling with her prayers and believing that God will talk to her, but we're trying to help her with that. We have also taught her mom a couple times but she has not accepted a date yet because she wants to learn more first.

So we've had some good success! We did have the chance to go back to the drunk guy, but sadly this time he was even more drunk! He told me he had a dream where he saw me and Jesus. He said Jesus told him he was supposed to give me something. He then took out his wallet and handed me a $100 dollar bill! I tried and tried and tried to convince him to take it back but he just wouldn't take it! After arguing about it for about a half hour his sober friend walked up the stairs in the apartment building and tried to reason with him. It went NO WHERE, so eventually we just accepted the money, left with his friend and gave the money to his friend who said he'd give it back when he was sobered up. It was quite the interesting experience! 

We love the success we're having up here and I can't wait until these baptisms happen! Thanks for your love and your support! Love you all!

Love, Elder Thayne

Me with A. and N.  N is getting baptized in April

With A. a cute kid fro our branch

Week 27 - Happy St Patrick's day!

The weather has been SO nice lately and I am loving it. There are many times when we choose to take the bikes even though we could take the car because the weather is so beautiful. I am loving it so much! 

This week was one full of success! We found a few more people to teach and the other elders in our branch had 5 people at church so it was a really good week for us. 

Our investigator recently told us that she's quitting her weekend job so she can come to church. I know that is an answer to our prayers. I'm so glad she'll be able to progress more towards baptism!This week was a great one with a lot of success. We taught a lot of lessons and found a few new people to teach.

One person we found was a really interesting experience. We knocked on the door and we could hear really loud Spanish music playing from inside. Out came a super drunk hispanic guy. At first I just didn't want to deal with it because he smelled bad and he was talking gibberish and I had no faith that it was going to turn out well. He talked and talked and talked for about a half hour straight about his life and his problems and why he drinks so much and eventually I just had the feeling that I need to be super bold and interrupted him and said, "Listen! We are representatives of Jesus Christ and He is talking to you. Are you going to listen??" It got kinda quiet for a bit and then he started telling us about how he used to be really religious and he had kinda fallen away so lately he'd been fasting and praying for God to help him get on the right track. He said that when he decided it wasn't working he started drinking and partying again. He said he never answers the door for random people that come by but he said that something told him he needed to open up to us. Eventually he let me throw away the rest of his beer and we set up another time to come back when he was less drunk. It was a very spiritual experience!

Our investigator, N., is still on a baptism date for April 18th, but she has been having a hard time coming to church because of her work schedule. We've been praying a ton so she can have the opportunity to come to church. She was able to come to church yesterday and she was smiling the whole time. After Sacrament meeting she came up and told us that she's giving them her 2 week notice today so she can come to church! It's definitely an answer to our prayers and I am so excited for her!

I had the opportunity to teach English class last week and it was actually really fun! It wasn't all that hard. We just cover a certain subject (we did "Hobbies") and then learn various words and phrases. Such as: sports, piano, like, dance, and things like that. All the people that go are very kind and humble, and I know how they feel because that's exactly how we did it in the MTC. I'm just not very good at making the class exciting or fun so I'm not sure I'll be teaching it any more. We'll see. 

My old investigator P,  in my old area, just got baptized on Saturday! I was bummed I had to miss it, but I'm so glad she stuck with it! I texted her after her baptism and she said it was a great experience and she loved it. I'm so happy for her. 

Well that's all I really have this week! 

Love, Elder Thayne 

Elder Thayne and Elder Latu