One-Year Mark

     So, a few days ago I hit a pretty big milestone in my mission, the one-year mark. So now, as everyone likes to point out, I am on the downward slope. A tradition that we have as missionaries is that when we hit our one-year mark we burn a shirt. I was able to do that and it was a very fulfilling experience.

     The weird thing was that I didn't feel any different still. Much like when I have a birthday, it felt like nothing was different. It is fact that one more year had passed by, but it still didn't feel any different than the day before. As a matter of fact, I even forgot it was my year mark until about half way through the day when I saw it written in my daily planner. All of this reminds me of a talk I just read titled "Always in the Middle." The part that I would like to focus on is this:
     "When I speak to our young missionaries, I often tell them they are in the middle of their missions. Whether they just arrived the day before or are to depart for home the day after, I ask them to think of themselves as always being in the middle.
     New missionaries may feel they are too inexperienced to be effective, and so they delay speaking or acting with confidence and boldness. Seasoned missionaries who are close to completing their missions may feel sad their missions are coming to a close, or they may slow down as they contemplate what they will do after their missions.
     Whatever the circumstances and wherever they serve, the truth is that the Lord’s missionaries are daily sowing countless seeds of good tidings. Thinking of themselves as always being in the middle of their missions will embolden and energize these faithful representatives of the Lord. As it is with full-time missionaries, so it is with all of us."

     I guess that means I have always felt that I have been at my year mark because really don't feel too different. I really like how he tells us that we are in the middle so that it gives us the ability to be bold and have energy. I am so grateful to be out here in Tennessee on my mission because it gives me that opportunity to spend my time serving the Lord on a full-time, day-to-day basis. 

20th Birthday!!!

     I had the great opportunity of getting out of my teens just a few days ago! Yes this post is gonna be a little random and may seem off topic but to me it is very important! I turned 20 on August 5th 2012. It was kind of a weird feeling to have a birthday out on my mission. It's not even that I usually have my birthday at home, because I don't. As a matter of fact I can't even remember the last time I had a birthday at home. I think the biggest thing that was weird was that I just really didn't know too many people. I mean don't get me wrong I had an awesome birthday but it was just not the same, it was weird...haha. Okay, I think you get the picture.
     To start off my day some of the other missionaries came by my apartment and showered my apartment with balloons! That was an awesome surprise. They hung up a banner, blew some air horns, and gave me cupcakes. It was the best way to start this roller coaster of a day. After our normal morning routine of study and getting ourselves ready for the day we went out to go talk to people before church. We started riding our bikes and as soon as we left it started to rain...yes here is where the roller coaster begins. We got to where we were going and they were only gonna be able to be home for like 20 minutes so we got cut super short. We went to church with some great members. At church a few people said happy birthday to me. We had dinner at one of the members houses and we had a great time there. They had brownies and ice cream for dessert. We went to another member's house and they gave me some cake. We tried to visit some other people and nobody else was home or available at the time. When we got home, I went to open the cards and other things I had for my birthday and didn't get anything from my family which was kind of a bummer. That pretty much wraps up my day.

     Ok so here is the reason I wrote all of this: "Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life." (2 Nephi 31:20). This was an easy way I could get this message across. The way we deal with things entirely depends on the way we look at it. The way I described may day made it seem like a roller coaster of a day that was a not so great birthday. In reality, It was amazing! I had a couple of other missionaries come over to my apartment in the early hours of the morning to be with me for a little bit. I was able to share the Lord's message with some people on my birthday, even if it did mean I got a little wet. People at church that really don't even know me too well thought it was important to wish me a happy birthday. A couple members thought it was important for me to have a proper birthday celebration by having me over for dinner, having brownies (with a candle) and birthday cake ice cream, and then cake (with a candle). I was able to spend time with people who like to just love people and that is awesome! I got letters and other goodies from a whole bunch of people from back home that cared enough about me to wish me a happy birthday from all the way across the country. I matter to people! Sure I may not have had anything from my family on my actual birthday but a few days later I got WAY more than I could have asked for. When we have an outlook like the second one it just makes everything better. My invitation is to look for the positive things in your life!




When you look back on your day with a positive attitude how do you see your day change?

Independence Day

     Today is the forth of July. It is a very special day for us as American Citizens. Two-hundred and thirty-six years ago our country adopted the Declaration of Independence which declared our independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. Because of this we became a free nation. In the first sentence of the famous preamble it states, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights." The men who created this declaration were truly inspired men. In the first sentence they tell us that our Creator gave us certain rights and that we were to be able to enjoy them. One of these rights was the freedom of religion.
     Thanks to the freedom of religion Christ was able to restore his church on the earth today through his prophet Joseph Smith. Only in a country that granted religious freedom, like the newly formed US, could this marvelous work be brought forth. I am truly grateful for the great blessing it is to live in this country, the United States of America, especially because of the great truths which were able to be restored to the earth.

 

     I also want to thank all those men and women who have given their lives in order to bring about this great privilege of having religious freedom, as well as, those who have given and are giving their lives to defend it.

God bless the USA!

The Carmichaels

     On my mission I have come to be very close to many of the members of the church that I have served around. There was one family in particular that I grew very close to. At the meeting where I found out I would start my mission off in Hopkinsville, KY, Sister Carmichael gave me and 3 other missionaries a ride all the way to our new home in Hop-Town. Not only did she drive us that 2 hours, but she also took us out to lunch on the way home. That same day, after we had gotten all settled in our apartment and went out to see a few people, they had us over for dinner. These are definitely not the only reasons I love them so much, but these first few experiences on my mission truly made a huge impact. Brother Carmichael was assigned to be in charge of us missionaries in Hop-Town so that meant we spent a lot of time with him. Whenever we needed anything they were always ready and willing to help. Lets just say we never went without anything we needed. Because of this awesome family, I have truly learned what charity means. They made me want to be a more selfless person, just by being around them. Whenever we tried to return the favor to this family they would turn right back around and do for us double of what we had just done for them. I will forever be indebted to this family.

Daddy!

     I am going to take another quick little break from my normal routine to devote this post to my dad. I love you dad so very much. You have been my biggest role model for ever and I look up to you for all things. I hope I can be as good a father as you one day! Thanks for all of the time you have spent with me throughout the years. I will always cherish those nights growing up, when you would spend time with just me, and we would go out to get an ice-cream cone or go check out the toys in the toy store (I bet you thought I didn't remember that). I loved those long car rides to various water polo games or whatever it may have been where I had the chance to just be with you and talk. Thanks for being my biggest fan and supporting me through all my sporting choices, even if I was not very good at some of them. I am so grateful to have you as my dad, because you are the best one out there and I love you so much. Thanks again for all that you do for me. Happy Father's Day, Dad!

I love you dad!

Arriving in Nashville

     Leaving the MTC was a rather interesting experience. I woke up at about 3 AM to pack up our last minute things and get dressed. The bus that was taking us to the airport was supposed to leave at 4:30 AM so we could get to the airport on time and not miss our flight. That was a little stressful because some of the other missionaries that were traveling with me were a little late due to faulty alarm clocks. Needless to say, we made it on time and actually had a little extra time before we had to board the plane, so we were allowed to call home. It was great to be able to talk to my family for that short little bit and see how they were all doing. Even though I hadn't even been gone for 3 weeks it still felt like so much had already changed. We had a layover in Atlanta, GA, which was about 2 hours long and then got on the next flight and finally, after hours of travel, arrived in Nashville, TN. We were immediately greeted by our mission president, President McKee, and his wife and a couple other missionaries. As we waited for our luggage at the baggage claim we were told to go talk to the people around us and that is exactly what I did. I handed out my first copy of the Book of Mormon to a man in the Army who was just getting home for his R and R. It was a very cool experience and afterward we got our luggage and headed to the mission home. The minute I stepped outside it felt like I walked into a swimming pool because it was just so hot and humid. We got to the mission home, ate dinner, and then were given a bunch of papers to fill out. Presdient McKee gave us some instruction on what our mission was gonna be like and then we heard a great musical number by his 5 daughters that still live with him, he has 10 kids, and saw a great presentation by some of the missionaries about the area. We wrapped up the night and went to bed. It was good because I was so exhausted and ready for some sleep. I was also super happy to finally be in Nashville and ready to start my mission for real!

MTC

     So I have decided I am going to continue this chain by talking about some of the many experiences I have had on my mission. I will start off with the very first thing, the Missionary Training Center. The 3 weeks I spent in the MTC were very interesting and a great experience as well. It was great because there were hundreds of missionaries just like me being taught and prepared to go out all around the world to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. It was so great to be able to have this experience, so I could get the real preparation I needed to be doing this full-time. We were blessed to have some of the Apostles of the church come and talk to us while we were there and give us the encouragement that we all needed and sought after. Unfortunately, it was not all a cake walk. Don't get me wrong I loved my MTC experience, but sitting in those small classrooms and being taught for 3 hours in a row, twice a day made it feel just like I was back in school. I am grateful now for it, because I am definitely a lot better of a teacher than I was before going there.