Vicissitude

(These pictures came with Elder Inman's email last week, I just forgot to post them)


Hey everyone, fun word for this week huh?

This will be a short letter this week because I have a lot to get done today and am sore and not wanting to do much typing anyway. I'll give a fast re-cap on my week and then explain why I used vicissitude as my weekly title.


- The baptism of C.H. was held this Saturday and it was beautiful! Her father, just recently baptized, was the one doing the actual baptism and I think his excitement matched his daughters. Two days before the baptism was held we got a call from him letting us know that he dislocated his left shoulder at work, but still wanted to do the baptism if at all possible. So, he still did the baptism, with the help of his father in law with getting her back up out of the water. They are becoming an eternal family and it is one of the greatest things I have ever been part of. Seeing this incredible family taking steps towards eternity makes me think more and more about how blessed I am to be a part of a family sealed for eternity, knowing that the people I love most will be with me for eternity. I can't imagine being without the joy that comes from the knowledge that my life with my family is perpetuated beyond the grave.


- J.P. came out with Elder Thatcher and I again on Sunday to go door to door and work as a missionary. We took him tracting for about an hour and we all had a lot of fun. The first door we knocked on ended up being a member, which we had a good laugh about, and then from there it was tracting as usual, which of course isn't a bad thing. He helped us teach a couple lessons and did a great job at inviting the spirits into their homes.


- On Sunday we were able to meet A.S. at church. He said that it has been 15 years since he has attended any church, that he grew up catholic, and he is wanting the peace that come from growing closer to God. We stayed with him through all of church explaining everything as we went along and he really seemed to enjoy it. Lots of other members came up and introduced themselves and welcomed him to church, and our dinner on Wednesday even invited him over to dinner with us. I am so excited to get to know him better and help bring the joy of the restored gospel into his life. Its incredible to see that God really is preparing people to receive this message and that as long as we are obedient and in tune with the spirit we will be brought in contact with one another somehow.


- Our program that we have started in this ward with teaching families and building member trust is already starting to bring forth wonderful fruits! We already had quite a bit of member trust in this ward before, but it is being strengthened and the ward is growing even more excited about missionary work. Members are coming up randomly telling us they are trying to talk to neighbors and friends, or telling us stories about their efforts so far. In separate church meetings our efforts are being brought up, and the ward is starting to encourage each other without our promptings. Families are hearing about the family mission plan and thinking ahead of what they will do for it before we even go to their home to present it. Just last week we met with a family to go over it and they told us that they have talked to their neighbor already and they are wanting to meet with the missionaries. We are meeting with them for the first lesson tonight! Its so exciting to see everyone's excitement and enthusiasm for the work, and I know this area will be richly blessed for it, and that many more will be able to enjoy the blessings of the gospel. Soon we may even have to split the ward :-)


- I got some really fun letter from Harrison, Eve, and Aurora up in Alaska! I loved reading them and am so proud of how they are growing up. It helps to have incredible parents, but I like to think I helped a little too, lol.

This is longer then I had anticipated, but as soon as I begin writing I get excited and just keep wanting to say more. So Ill give a quick explanation for the title and then get going. vicissitude means change, and this mission is in the middle of a lot of that because of the mission President change. Lately there have been some major changes that can be a little difficult for us as missionaries to institute, and many missionaries have begun murmuring because of it. When I first heard about the changes I wanted to murmur as well, but decided instead to pray for the strength to follow. Since then I have had several times when I want to complain or question, but because of my decision to follow based on faith I have been very blessed. I look forward to seeing what changes follow, and even more what blessings will come as a result. I am constantly being humbled by the realization that I don't know as much as I like to think I do, and am learning better how to rely on God. My mission continues to become a greater and greater blessing.

Love,

Elder Inman

Debilitated

Good morning everyone,


The title very much matches how I felt much of this week... I had a great birthday but near the end of the day I started feeling a little more tired then usual, and my throat was starting to ache a little. I think it is because I have been eating much healthier lately and then I felt to bad turning down all the cake for my birthday so it shocked my body, yuck. I ended up getting a really bad cold and was not able to go more then 15 minutes at a time without having to blow my nose, so I was bed ridden for a couple days. I still forced myself to get up and look excited for our appointments but was unable to do much more then that for a while. When we did have appointments I was blessed with greater strength, but then as soon as we were done my body would basically shut down. Not to much fun huh. But even with all that gross sickness plaguing me this week ended up being another incredible week as a missionary and I love looking back on it. So here is how it went:

(I was told to not put full names because of privacy, but I'm sure the message will still get across)

- I want to start off talking about Jeremy because I am so excited about his progression and excitement with the gospel. Oops, he will now be J, lol(great start to this whole privacy thing). First off, earlier this week when we were meeting with him he informed me that he found me on Facebook, which led to him looking at my blog and reading all about himself, so it feels weird writing this and knowing that he will probably read it soon. As always the appointment with him went great and the spirit was very strong with him asking great questions and bearing testimony. Then on Saturday he called and asked us if he could go out with us on Sunday and see what its like to be a missionary, and that it would make his day if he could. Of course we readily excepted and let our dinner appointment know that we would have him with us, which they were also excited about. He stayed with us all day as we went to appointments, met up with missed appointments, tried potentials, and talked with random people on the sidewalks. We had some tracting scheduled in as well but more people let us in then expected so we ended up running late to dinner as it was. He will still get to try it though since he wants to come out with us next Sunday as well, and he is also coming along with certain appointments this week.

The day ended perfectly with our last appointments, which was with the Healy's ( Now the HLY's?). We went in and just talked with them for a little while and Jeremy got to know them a little better. They HLY's are already asking about senior missions! Then a little while into it we started the lesson with a prayer and I turned to J and, without prior warning, asked him to teach us about charity and gave his the chapter in PMG to work from. I thought he would do well because of how strong his faith is, but to my surprise he did an incredible job. We all opened up to chapter 7 of Moroni and he read the verse about charity for the first time and then taught by the spirit what it is and how to gain it as a spiritual gift. It was such an uplifting and exciting experience. Not only did J teach like a well prepared missionary, but the HLY's in return bore strong testimony and taught in return. They also conversed about their conversion process, since both are new to the church, and talked about the trial both have of family being very against the church. J with all of his family basically and the HLY's with his mom. Being able to see people come into the gospel and begin teaching with power shortly after, with the expectation of serving missions, is such an incredible blessing!

- There is a new family that moved into the ward, and we had a great lesson with them a couple days ago. The only reason I'm writing about them is because they have kids, 4 and 6, who already have 14 scriptures memorized! I just thought that was incredible...

- I also got some great presents for my birthday this week :-) Getting more Gold Toe socks was great, thank family! Thank you as well for everything else, I am very much enjoying the treats, and sleep even better on my new silk pillow case, but I may like all the pictures the best. Also, Brenna sent me a really fun gift that many missionaries out here have enjoyed so far! Thank you so much to everyone that sent me letters as well! I got great letters from Mom, Danni, Ashley, Grandma Angel, Grandparents all the way up in Alaska, and the Radfords, and lots of fun emails.

There is so much more to say, and this is a pretty sad looking letter, but with all the b-day emails I dont have enough time to write more. Have a great week, and find someone to share a piece of the gospel with!

Love,

Elder Inman

Feliz Cumpleaños

Hola everyone,
The title this week is a little self centered but I happen to enjoy my birthdays so I feel just fine having that there. This week has been so great and I have become even more thankful that I am able to be out here on my mission. Here it goes:
- I am told that holidays on the mission are a little bit of a bummer because we always have to be in early and we cant really afford to buy anything special to celebrate with, and that is partially right looking back at the 4th. But, even though I wasn't able to celebrate the normal way I loved sitting on my porch reading the Book of Mormon and hearing fireworks in the distance. It really was a beautiful night and I'm glad I was here for it. I'm pretty sure I am going to love birthdays out here though, especially with how long I have been in this ward and how well everyone knows and likes me. Me and my comp are constantly being taken out for lunch and dinner and there are so many families who are making me cake to celebrate with. I am going to have to work out extra hard this coming week just to make sure I don't blow up like a balloon, but I have felt so much love from the ward. Just the other night I had a dream that I spent all two years of my mission here, and I didn't want to leave. I woke up depressed because I felt like my mission is already going by to quickly and I wanted it to slow down a little.
- Even better news then my birthday is how well the baptism of Jeremy Pescetti went on Saturday! He is such a strong young man and he continually impresses me with his faith and determination to do what is right, considering none of his family supported him and not a single member of his family came to the baptism. Elder Thatcher and I arrived a little over an hour early to set everything up and fill the font and even at that time I felt the spirit strongly so I knew that the baptism was going to be one to remember. By the time the baptism actually started we had to set up more chairs and there was barely walking room because so many people came to support him, including a very large amount of youth his age from other wards that came. The whole baptism was a beautiful experience with Brendan, Jeremy's friend, doing the baptism and other friends from church giving very heart felt talks and testimony. Right after the baptism Brendan's family took the family, Jeremy, and us out to eat at Outback Steakhouse. They handed out at least 10 of our cards for the Book of Mormon and then Jeremy was given free desert because the owner is a member and wanted to congratulate him. That spirit carried over when yesterday both he and brother Healy were confirmed members of the church and given the Holy Ghost.
- The work here is doing great. We are having a little trouble keeping a good teaching pool right now because so much of our time is now spent teaching new member lessons, but I guess that is a good problem to have. We are working very hard on following the spirit and working more effectively so we have tried to limit tracting to no more then an hour a day if we can help it. As we were studying we came across a section that talked about having an open house so we have taken that idea and are on a full run ahead now. It is schedule for Aug 29th and we are hoping and praying that we have a good turn out of members with their friends so that we can start getting more member referrals since that is one of the most effective ways of bringing others into the Gospel. We are now starting member lessons where we go into every families home in our ward and give a lesson about missionary work and we help them make a family mission plan, including inviting someone to the open house. We are already seeing good results from this. In fact, after Jeremy's baptism the Stake Presidency took me and my companion into a separate room and asked us why the work is going so well in our area because they want others to catch the fire. He quizzed us for information on how to find and teach more effectively for about 10 minutes and then let us go back to mingle with everyone who was still around after the baptism. I know I am not the reason so many people are coming into the waters of baptism, but I am so thankful that I am worthy to be worked through by a loving Heavenly Father, because being a part of this work has been one of the greatest blessings of my life.
(There is a lot to write about this week)
- A few days ago I got a call from one of the members in my ward letting me know that they had my scripture case and my camera. I was so excited that we drove over there right after our appointment to pick it up, and I thought it was a joke they were playing on me when they handed me it because my scriptures weren't in the case. They said that a friend of theirs found it as they were jogging on day and found it that it was a missionaries because of the pictures, so they gave it to this family because she knew she was a Mormon from work. The weird thing is that the scripture case only had my camera and not the scriptures which is way different then I thought it would turn out. Who takes scriptures and leaves a nice camera? This is still a great blessing to have my camera back, but just a little confusing.
- Our new Mission President has already been making changes in the mission and I am excited to see the effects. One of those changes is that each missionary has to prepare a 10 minute talk weekly with a memorized scripture so that if they ward ever needs to call on us to speak we are ready. Along with this we also have to bear our testimony in front of the ward every fast and testimony meeting, the first being two weeks ago. I felt the spirit strongly during the meeting but didn't think anything special had happened until we were at a members family for dinner, the Williamsons. They are a great family and very strong in the church. She actually didn't join until a couple years after marriage but is now very active. Bro. Williamson has tried to convince her to go on a couples mission once all their kids move out for the past couple years with no success, but she said that as she was listening to my testimony the spirit took over and told her that she needs to go on a mission. She doesn't remember anything I said, but testimony allowed the spirit to speak to her heart and both of them are now excited for their mission, years down the road. Isn't it great to see the spirit work?

Just as a last thing, I had a great experience during personal study this week. Early on I was reading and came across a scripture talking about the sons of Mosiah and the power they had in teaching because they had the spirit of Revelation and Prophesy. It hit me for the first time that I don't really know the difference between those two, besides just a very superficial understanding. I spent the rest of my study time trying to figure it out with no success. For the next couple days I asked everyone I could think of and spent my spare timing studying and praying about it, and it seemed like it just kept getting more confusing to me. Then two days ago I was studying it and came across Alma chapters 8-12 and got sidetracked reading about this incredible missionary and trying to figure out why he was so successful. I began learning so much about him, and then as I was reading the answer came to me regarding revelation and prophesy. Suddenly it seemed so simple, and now as I study and come across those words my understanding of the scripture is so much stronger. Its was a very powerful experience and one that strengthened my testimony in revelation quite a bit. I'm so thankful that I have been raised to recognize the prompting of the spirit and have lived worthy of those miraculous promptings. I am praying for you all and hope that you are doing the same because I am always in need of it.
Love,
Elder Inman

Evanescence

Happy 4th Everyone!




Hope you like my title for the week :-) I used it because I just heard it in conversation and love the sound of it as well as the definition, and it happens to fit my mood right now. Yesterday I had an incredible Sabbath day and the spirit was strong throughout it, and then this morning I had a great personal study of the gospel which has helped my worries and hardships fade away from my mind, evanescence. Alright, now on to my week, but it will probably be a short one today because I am running short on time:



- We held a beautiful baptism Saturday night for Carmen Chavez. One of the most exciting parts of the baptism was that her dad was able to perform the baptism, and he was by far more nervous then she was. We worked with him for a while before the baptism on the words and he had them down perfect, the hardest part being her name. Her full name is Carmen Monet Paeseva Chavez, which is a part Tongan name because of her mom. They both smiles as they walked into the font and he started the blessing, completely forgetting to say her name at first, so I quickly corrected him and he started over. This time he forgot to say "having been" so I had him start over again. This time he forgot to say her last name, so we had him start one more time. This time he got all the wording right and dipped her down into the water, but she came out without her elbow being submerged so I let him know we need to do it again. He misunderstood that we needed to do the whole thing again and instead just dipped her into the water again without saying the blessing. After several more attempts he completed the baptism, and the entire time Carmen was smiling and letting him know that everything was OK. It was so wonderful to see, and the spirit entered with force as she was baptised. The next day he stood up and bore his testimony of the power of baptism and said that the many attempts that were made before he got it right helped him feel the spirit and realize even more that this was a baptism done with the power of God. It was so beautiful to see everything come together like it did.



- Last night we had to come in at 7pm because of it being the 4th of July. It was a little disappointing because so many members were inviting us over to watch fireworks and enjoy a cookout, but I enjoyed the holiday anyway. We had an assignment to study the Holy Ghost from 7 to 9, and I ended up being very uplifted through that study. Then we went out on our porch and watched fireworks in the distance as they exploded all over Albuquerque. Its hard to compete with actually being close to them, but it was still a beautiful view and a great experience. During all of this my mind kept wondering to times with my family playing with fireworks or watching shows, and I started to miss them a little more then usual, which led to me talking about them even more. As my companion laid to go to sleep I started talking about my family and how blessed I have been and he would give occasional comments until after about 40 minutes I noticed that he was actually crying. As we continued to talk I found that he has grown up in a very different family situation. He said that he loves them very much, and they grew up active in the church, but they are not close at all and some of his older siblings wont even talk to his parents. He talked about how badly he wants his family to be more like mine and we started to discuss why ours are so different if we both grew up active, which led to us discovering the difference between being active and being dedicated. He said that they almost never had FHE, they never did family scripture study, and they had very little time spent as a whole family. Its incredible to see the difference those small things make, and how they really are not that small. I never realized how rare my family is with how close we are and am so thankful that my parents were diligent my whole life with making sure we did what the prophet counselled. Being out here and seeing so many broken families has showed me just how blessed I have been, and given me a greater appreciation for my parents closeness to the spirit and a greater resolve to try to be like them.



I am out of time, but I love you all and pray that you grow closer and closer to the spirit. Being a missionary has helped me realize to a much greater extent the joy and protection that comes from following the commandments as well as the misery that follows disobedience.



Love,



Elder Inman