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.

Entering the MTC

     My last experience leading up to my mission was going into the MTC, Missionary Training Center, on August 17, 2011. This was a very bitter-sweet day. My entire family traveled all the way to Utah with me so they could be with me up until the very last second. We had to take a bunch of pictures before they dropped me off at the MTC. That was not my favorite but whatever makes mom happy right? We walked around the Temple grounds there and then headed to the MTC.

     When we got to the drop-off spot at the MTC we didn't really get much time to say goodbye, but I did get to hug everyone. It was a little hard but I was ready to go. I walked away with all my luggage and that was the last time I saw my family since I started my mission. Since a mission is only two short years, I will be able to hug them again in no time at all. I am grateful to have a family that I love so much. I can't wait to be with them again, but at the same time I don't want this time to go by too fast, as I love what I am doing here and know it is very important.

Setting Apart

     That same Sunday that I gave my farewell talk at church I was set apart as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Getting set apart basically means that I was given permission to be a minister for the Lord in preaching the Gospel to all the world, well technically just the Nashville Tennessee area. Anyway, this was an awesome experience because my dad and a few of my leaders that I respect so very much were able to be a part of it. My dad was able to give me the blessing which sealed the deal. I guess that is not very common, but I thought was pretty cool. After the actual setting apart, which consisted of the blessing, everyone in the room was asked to give me some advice for how to be the best missionary I could be. Some were silly like not forgetting to email my mom every week, which I may have done once already, but they were all very helpful, that is another story. The room was filled with all sorts of emotions and tears, but overall very happy feelings. I am happy to say that at that moment I was officially a full-time servant of the Lord and that was very exciting for me.