Wednesday, October 21, 2009
A Good Connection
Hey everyone,
How are y'all doing? I am doing great. The weather has cooled down quite a bit here, too. I like it. I was getting pretty sick of the hot summer days. I am really enjoying my missionary service here. My companion is Elder Brady Alan R, and he is so cool. I'm so glad to be his companion, we connect pretty well. He's from Oroville CA and he just came from being a zone leader in Wilmington. We're doing great things together, and honestly I just enjoy being around him and talking to him. I love the ward here, too.
Something funny happened just recently. When I was with Elder S he knew I had been on Jeopardy, but he didn't tell anyone in the ward about it so nobody knew (obviously I wasn't going to say anything!). Well, Elder R heard that I'd been on Jeopardy from the AP, Elder C, and he and Mike S asked me about it. They found out that was true, and then Elder R told Kyle D, the first Counselor, when we were having dinner with his family. He in turn told his brother in law, the bishop, who announced it in priesthood meeting. So everyone finally knows and asks me about it now, it was pretty funny when it got announced. So now people know! Ha ha.
Well, here is the missionary report from this week. "There are 5 people that we think will get baptized before the end of the year. They are Tiffaney, Mike P, Hunter, Brian, and Alex. We had some really good news with Tiffaney this week. She and Michael got married last weekend! So she is now pretty much good to go for baptism. She wants Michael to do the baptism ... Mike P is getting closer and closer to baptism, after we taught him about the Restoration he asked us about what he needs to do to get ready to be baptized. We're just waiting on December for Hunter to get baptized, we're pretty excited for him. We're going to see what we can do to get his Mom focused on getting herself rebaptized, there's no reason that she shouldn't do it soon. We taught Brian the message of the Restoration, and he understood it very well. He said that if he did find out it was true, he would get baptized (because you would have to if you did know that). He mentioned that he wants to give up smoking and that he was willing to give up tea. We taught Alex, who is turning 9 in just a little while. Her stepmother Danielle sat in on the lesson, and we committed her to read 3 Nephi 11 and pray to know if it's true. So we've got a lot of good things going on, there are 2 or 3 more other part-member families we are making efforts to start working with."
So things are going great here. I'm glad to hear about all the exciting things that are going on at home. Todd, you were right. Back home seems like a dream and that it doesn't/shouldn't really change while I'm away, but it definitely does. I'm glad that the time in St. George was good. I can't believe Grandpa's 80 years old! I assume that he's still pretty spry if he's playing in a band. That's pretty sweet. Derek, it’s good that you put on that ACT seminar. I remember Dad suggested to me that I do that same thing, but I didn't capitalize on the opportunity. Coulda, shoulda, woulda. Dad, I definitely should have taken your advice more often. I'm pretty jealous that y'all will get to hear Elder Holland speak. By the way Mother, we didn't get to listen to apostles speak ALL the time! Ha ha, we got to hear only about 2 or 3!
Oh, and I never did respond to your question. President C's all about being led by the Spirit, while President W was more old-school, everyone reports to the people at the top. President C's emphasis is getting the mission to do things according to Preach My Gospel and the Missionary Handbook and allowing us more discretion so that we can be guided by the Spirit. This means that some of President W's traditions are being done away with, such as the assistants and the zone leaders going on exchanges all the time. The assistants only go on exchanges with the zone leaders, and the zone leaders only go on exchanges with the district leaders (as described by the Missionary Handbook). There are also a lot more younger missionaries being called to leadership positions. Those are 2 of the examples of changes that have ruffled the feathers of some of the old-timers, I think he's a very inspired man, though, and there shouldn't be murmuring. There's not a whole lot, but my first couple transfers a couple of the missionaries that I served around complained about it a lot. But anyways, that's that. And as much as I would like you to send Bro. Bott's book to me, you probably shouldn't. We're still restricted to the missionary library. And I did read Jesus the Christ a couple months ago, it was amazing. Talmage certainly was a smart man.
Ok, so I have a couple requests for you Mom. My bank account is low, I've made some purchases with it. Basically we aren't allowed to buy personal items (including clothes) with mission money, so we have to use our own money. It would be nice if I could get maybe a couple hundred in there, there are some personal things I like to buy every once in a while (for example last week I bought a scale and a jump rope so that I can try and lose some weight; they stuff me every night and I've gained about 20 pounds!!! Yikes!). So that would be nice. Yes, I did get your package, thank you very much. I forgot to mention it last week, it definitely is nice to get something from home! I don't get very much mail at all (maybe a letter every couple of weeks), so every little bit is great. And I had a request for an early Christmas present. I really don't have any pictures of my life before I came out here, so I would really, really, really appreciate a photo album that has some pictures of my life throughout high school and college. You can get college pictures off of my Facebook account or there's a bunch on my computer, maybe you can get Chris or Derek to help you. But I would really enjoy that, if you could spare the time/energy/effort. Thanks for everything, I know that the church is true! I've been reading from the teachings of Joseph Smith, and I know that he truly must have been a prophet. I hope y'all have a great week and are enjoying life. Until next time.
Love,
Elder Casper
How are y'all doing? I am doing great. The weather has cooled down quite a bit here, too. I like it. I was getting pretty sick of the hot summer days. I am really enjoying my missionary service here. My companion is Elder Brady Alan R, and he is so cool. I'm so glad to be his companion, we connect pretty well. He's from Oroville CA and he just came from being a zone leader in Wilmington. We're doing great things together, and honestly I just enjoy being around him and talking to him. I love the ward here, too.
Something funny happened just recently. When I was with Elder S he knew I had been on Jeopardy, but he didn't tell anyone in the ward about it so nobody knew (obviously I wasn't going to say anything!). Well, Elder R heard that I'd been on Jeopardy from the AP, Elder C, and he and Mike S asked me about it. They found out that was true, and then Elder R told Kyle D, the first Counselor, when we were having dinner with his family. He in turn told his brother in law, the bishop, who announced it in priesthood meeting. So everyone finally knows and asks me about it now, it was pretty funny when it got announced. So now people know! Ha ha.
Well, here is the missionary report from this week. "There are 5 people that we think will get baptized before the end of the year. They are Tiffaney, Mike P, Hunter, Brian, and Alex. We had some really good news with Tiffaney this week. She and Michael got married last weekend! So she is now pretty much good to go for baptism. She wants Michael to do the baptism ... Mike P is getting closer and closer to baptism, after we taught him about the Restoration he asked us about what he needs to do to get ready to be baptized. We're just waiting on December for Hunter to get baptized, we're pretty excited for him. We're going to see what we can do to get his Mom focused on getting herself rebaptized, there's no reason that she shouldn't do it soon. We taught Brian the message of the Restoration, and he understood it very well. He said that if he did find out it was true, he would get baptized (because you would have to if you did know that). He mentioned that he wants to give up smoking and that he was willing to give up tea. We taught Alex, who is turning 9 in just a little while. Her stepmother Danielle sat in on the lesson, and we committed her to read 3 Nephi 11 and pray to know if it's true. So we've got a lot of good things going on, there are 2 or 3 more other part-member families we are making efforts to start working with."
So things are going great here. I'm glad to hear about all the exciting things that are going on at home. Todd, you were right. Back home seems like a dream and that it doesn't/shouldn't really change while I'm away, but it definitely does. I'm glad that the time in St. George was good. I can't believe Grandpa's 80 years old! I assume that he's still pretty spry if he's playing in a band. That's pretty sweet. Derek, it’s good that you put on that ACT seminar. I remember Dad suggested to me that I do that same thing, but I didn't capitalize on the opportunity. Coulda, shoulda, woulda. Dad, I definitely should have taken your advice more often. I'm pretty jealous that y'all will get to hear Elder Holland speak. By the way Mother, we didn't get to listen to apostles speak ALL the time! Ha ha, we got to hear only about 2 or 3!
Oh, and I never did respond to your question. President C's all about being led by the Spirit, while President W was more old-school, everyone reports to the people at the top. President C's emphasis is getting the mission to do things according to Preach My Gospel and the Missionary Handbook and allowing us more discretion so that we can be guided by the Spirit. This means that some of President W's traditions are being done away with, such as the assistants and the zone leaders going on exchanges all the time. The assistants only go on exchanges with the zone leaders, and the zone leaders only go on exchanges with the district leaders (as described by the Missionary Handbook). There are also a lot more younger missionaries being called to leadership positions. Those are 2 of the examples of changes that have ruffled the feathers of some of the old-timers, I think he's a very inspired man, though, and there shouldn't be murmuring. There's not a whole lot, but my first couple transfers a couple of the missionaries that I served around complained about it a lot. But anyways, that's that. And as much as I would like you to send Bro. Bott's book to me, you probably shouldn't. We're still restricted to the missionary library. And I did read Jesus the Christ a couple months ago, it was amazing. Talmage certainly was a smart man.
Ok, so I have a couple requests for you Mom. My bank account is low, I've made some purchases with it. Basically we aren't allowed to buy personal items (including clothes) with mission money, so we have to use our own money. It would be nice if I could get maybe a couple hundred in there, there are some personal things I like to buy every once in a while (for example last week I bought a scale and a jump rope so that I can try and lose some weight; they stuff me every night and I've gained about 20 pounds!!! Yikes!). So that would be nice. Yes, I did get your package, thank you very much. I forgot to mention it last week, it definitely is nice to get something from home! I don't get very much mail at all (maybe a letter every couple of weeks), so every little bit is great. And I had a request for an early Christmas present. I really don't have any pictures of my life before I came out here, so I would really, really, really appreciate a photo album that has some pictures of my life throughout high school and college. You can get college pictures off of my Facebook account or there's a bunch on my computer, maybe you can get Chris or Derek to help you. But I would really enjoy that, if you could spare the time/energy/effort. Thanks for everything, I know that the church is true! I've been reading from the teachings of Joseph Smith, and I know that he truly must have been a prophet. I hope y'all have a great week and are enjoying life. Until next time.
Love,
Elder Casper
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
New Companion, Elder Robertson
How is everything going? I hope that it's going well. Things are going great for me. I am really loving the work. My trainer Elder S just went home. He was a good guy and I learned a lot from him. My new companion is named Elder R. He is such a cool guy! I am definitely looking forward to working with him, we are going to get so much done together. He is an amazingly happy, optimistic person and an awesome missionary. He's from Northern California, a town called Oroville, and he's been out for 20 months. He was just a zone leader in Wilmington, so that might tell you a little bit about the kind of missionary he is. I'm glad to have him as my companion.
Well, I'm getting sick of writing two different accounts of the work every week, so I've decided to start including a portion of my letter to the mission president.
"Well, there have been a lot of good things going on. Elder R had a good conversation with Michael S on the way back from Raleigh. We are teaching his girlfriend, Tiffany; they are both really awesome people. They aren't living the law of chastity, they were in Vegas this weekend, though, and they may have got married. I do not know. If they aren't married, we are planning on working with them to set goals and determine whether they will get married or get separate apartments. She wants Michael to baptize her, which may take a while. We will see, but it will probably be best if somebody else baptizes her and they work together to get worthy to go to the temple.
We also taught Mike P. He's a really cool guy in a part-member family. When Elder S and I had last been there we had left him with a commitment to read 3 Nephi 11 with his family. He didn't do it, which was pretty disappointing. We did end up reading the chapter with them, though, and the Spirit was definitely there. He committed to read 2 Nephi 32, I'm pretty sure he will actually do it this time though. We also committed his family to start studying scriptures together as a family, which will of course be good for all of them.
We also saw Hunter this week. It looks as though he is going to be baptized in December, so we're going to continue working with him so that he will be ready and excited for it. We would also love to see his excommunicated mom get back into it, since we've been coming over and teaching him she's had a little bit more light enter into her life. We also committed them to start doing family prayer.
Then last but not least, we had a really good visit with Brian & Caitlin last night. Caitlin is a less-active member and they are not married, but they have two kids. Brian's been having trouble finding work, but it looks like he might get hired on as a prison guard. He would have good benefits and it will eliminate the excuse of financial insecurity as a reason that they aren't married. Anyways, we talked with him about running 3 mornings a week, and we got onto the subject of him smoking. We talked about the stop-smoking program, and also about how the gospel can bless his life. We invited him to take the lessons, and he accepted! We're pretty excited to work with him, and he's already been getting some great fellowship from the ward."
So that's pretty much what has been going on with the work...I love being a missionary out here and there are great rewards that come from being bold and consistent in missionary work. I also know that the gospel will bless our lives if we don't harden our hearts against it. I can testify of that, I've seen many amazing changes in my life over the last 10 months. Prayer is a powerful tool if we allow it to be, and I'm grateful for it and the other blessings that I have received.
Well, keep me posted on anything interesting that's happened at home. I love you all!
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Loving being a missionary
Hey everyone,
This last week has been really awesome! I think I've turned a corner, I genuinely love being a missionary now. I have been doing all of our planning over the last 3 weeks so that I will be ready to take over the area when Elder S leaves (in 1 week!). Planning can be kind of hard, especially in this area. There aren't very many people here, this is definitely one of the smallest areas in the mission population-wise. But we have started working with the members and getting referrals, and I'm super excited to continue in the direction we've been going. I thought I was going to get sick of this area because it's so small and there isn't a whole lot to do, but as we work with the members we are able to get a lot accomplished. If every member gave some concerted effort towards missionary work, we'd have more to do than we could handle. I'm excited! We are working with Hunter and he might get baptized this week before Elder S goes home. We also invited a couple part member families to hear the lessons, and they accepted. We've been getting about triple the referrals we've previously received, and I think the members are getting excited again. They were pretty excited for us to come back, but now they are more excited to do missionary work.
So yeah, this has been a great week. Something that really helped me was we had a visit from Elder Richard J. Maynes of the First Quorum of the Seventy. The information I gained from that has been invaluable to me, and I'm looking forward to continuing to apply the counsel I received and seeing the results. He taught us about connecting our purpose to our work, and that our purpose can be summarized in 3 words: find, teach, baptize. Since we have a new mission president, a lot of changes have been taking place. President C has been taking the mission in the direction described in the Missionary Handbook and Preach My Gospel, which has ruffled a few feathers of some of the old-timer missionaries. But I was amazed at how much what Elder Maynes taught corroborated what President C has been teaching. They are two truly inspired men... I'm still trying to learn as much as I can and be the best I can be.
Dad, thanks for the letter. To answer some of your questions, the leaves haven't changed yet. I don't know how much of the fall colors I'm going to see, this area has a LOT of pine trees. Elder S said it was greener up in Raleigh, so we'll see. I'll be sure to send whatever pictures I get of it. And it is still pretty warm, there hasn't been a frost yet. When it hits is when all the collards start getting popular because it sweetens them up. I'm sure most of you have no idea what collards are, it's a leafy plant kind of like spinach. They are a very Southern thing. I think they're ok but a lot of people don't like them. Thanks for sending me the list of missionaries! That's really sweet to hear about Jordan, Daniel, Jacob, Taylor, Colton and Levi. I actually saw Brennan when I was in the MTC and his cousin (Tray I think? The redhead). Tell Jacob to keep an eye out for an Elder Gundersen, he was my neighbor at college and he is in Tahiti right now. Which Phillipines mission is Colton going to? I have a couple friends from college who are there right now...
Royal lost to Zillah? That's pretty surprising. Tell Michael that I'm going to be sorely disappointed if they don't win the state championship.
This area is a very interesting area. It's different than a lot of the rest of North Carolina because the people are pretty uneducated for the most part. We haven't really Bible bashed much, it's much more common for us to hear, "You believe your way and I believe my way". They listen to their preacher, but haven't really studied the Bible that much themselves. They hold to the traditions of their fathers, for no good reason other than that's what they grew up hearing.
As for time management, it's really just important to break things down. You shouldn't measure performance on time spent (unless it's studying the scriptures), but on tasks accomplished. Otherwise it can be pretty easy to spend a lot of time on something that isn't worth it. I know for me it has helped big time carrying a planner with me everywhere I go, because when I remember something that I need to do I'm able to write it down and get it accomplished. Just think about what your purpose is, and whether a particular activity is helping you to accomplish your purpose. So yeah, that's my time management advice to everyone, most especially Dad (cause he asked for it!).
Oh, and you wouldn't believe how many times people have told me that they think Obama is the antichrist. I'm not a fan of Obama by any means, but that seems like a bit of a stretch. I did hear that he wanted to cut all U.S. ties with Israel though. Any details? If that is true, then that could play a pretty key factor in the Second Coming. Or at least I think so...
Well, in closing, I'm grateful to be out here. Not just because I know that it is my duty to be out here (which it is), but because I know that the gospel is true and that sharing it brings profound joy. Tell me a little bit about the missionaries currently in our ward. Are they up to snuff? If they are, you should definitely think of someone that you can share the gospel with and do your best to get the missionaries involved. I love you all! Until next week!
Love,
Elder Casper
Friday, September 18, 2009
First Baptism!
The work is going great. We did have a baptism yesterday. Margaret L knows pretty much everyone in the ward because she taught English for years. Bishop Nelson was one of her favorite students. So anyways, the service was held right after church. I definitely felt the Spirit there. I had some sweet feelings of peace and happiness. Later in the day we were going around visiting people and I pondered over it a little bit, “Did I really just have my first baptism today? Today doesn’t feel any different than any other day.” It was crazy, I guess I don’t really know what I was expecting but it did feel just like a normal day.
We are also teaching a few other people. One of them is Hunter. He is the funniest, sweetest 8-year old. His mother was a strong member and is now excommunicated, but she has taught Hunter the gospel pretty well and is starting to make her way back. Hunter really wants to get baptized, we haven’t set a date yet but it’ll happen.
We had dinner with Raisa this week. She fed us some good Russian food, including some mushrooms that she picked. We had a really good lesson with her after. She now understands that this is the only true church. She was brought up in the Orthodox religion and has a strong faith in that, but she is going to continue reading the Book of Mormon and pray to know if the church is true. She has told us about many good experiences she has had with prayer, so I have faith that if she sincerely prays then she will get an answer.
A couple of weeks ago a new part-member family moved into the ward. The member’s name is Mike S, which brings up an interesting experience. When I was at school in May, I ran into two missionaries in my apartment building. I talked with them a bit and told them that I had got my mission call to North Carolina. As it turns out, one of them was from the North Carolina Raleigh mission. His name was Elder S. I found out that Michael is Adam’s (the Elder’s) cousin. Small world. Anyways, his girlfriend is living with him and she is golden. She has already had the lessons and wants to get married and be baptized. So we are excited to teach them.
Then there is Jerry. Ezra Taft Benson said, “Every man eventually is backed up to the wall of faith, and there he must make his stand.” That is pretty much where we are at with Jerry, either he’s going to make the decision to change and start living the Word of Wisdom or he’s not. That simple.
The weather has cooled down a lot. It’s felt really good. We haven’t had the car over the past week, so we have biked a lot. I’m getting pretty sore from all of it. I’ll tell you what-- I got pretty lucky to be here for the summer. It got hot for a couple weeks during August, but even then it was at least 5 degrees cooler than the rest of the state (which makes a huge difference in this humidity). The ocean cools down this area and provides a nice little breeze. It’s very beautiful out here. It’s where the woods and the ocean meet, which makes for some pretty good sunsets.
Anyway, thanks for the news on the 4 cousins. It’s really cool to hear about the challenges they face and are working to overcome. I’m especially proud of Dan and Al, I’m so glad that they decided to serve missions. I’m so lucky to be from such a great family! I hope Kyle and Andrew continue to do well and enjoy their missions, they’ve always been good examples to me.
Wow, this has been a nice long letter! Thanks for the news on everything. Now that Michael has been bribed with peach pie into writing me a letter, I have received at least one letter from each sibling! I feel honored!… I can now ride my bike with no handlebars, ha ha! Only took me 1.5 transfers. Just thought you should know.
Well, thanks for everything. I appreciate the support I’ve gotten from you all. I know that the Church is true and that it brings peace to people. I have definitely seen that! I love you all, and I will write again next week!
Love, Elder Casper
We are also teaching a few other people. One of them is Hunter. He is the funniest, sweetest 8-year old. His mother was a strong member and is now excommunicated, but she has taught Hunter the gospel pretty well and is starting to make her way back. Hunter really wants to get baptized, we haven’t set a date yet but it’ll happen.
We had dinner with Raisa this week. She fed us some good Russian food, including some mushrooms that she picked. We had a really good lesson with her after. She now understands that this is the only true church. She was brought up in the Orthodox religion and has a strong faith in that, but she is going to continue reading the Book of Mormon and pray to know if the church is true. She has told us about many good experiences she has had with prayer, so I have faith that if she sincerely prays then she will get an answer.
A couple of weeks ago a new part-member family moved into the ward. The member’s name is Mike S, which brings up an interesting experience. When I was at school in May, I ran into two missionaries in my apartment building. I talked with them a bit and told them that I had got my mission call to North Carolina. As it turns out, one of them was from the North Carolina Raleigh mission. His name was Elder S. I found out that Michael is Adam’s (the Elder’s) cousin. Small world. Anyways, his girlfriend is living with him and she is golden. She has already had the lessons and wants to get married and be baptized. So we are excited to teach them.
Then there is Jerry. Ezra Taft Benson said, “Every man eventually is backed up to the wall of faith, and there he must make his stand.” That is pretty much where we are at with Jerry, either he’s going to make the decision to change and start living the Word of Wisdom or he’s not. That simple.
The weather has cooled down a lot. It’s felt really good. We haven’t had the car over the past week, so we have biked a lot. I’m getting pretty sore from all of it. I’ll tell you what-- I got pretty lucky to be here for the summer. It got hot for a couple weeks during August, but even then it was at least 5 degrees cooler than the rest of the state (which makes a huge difference in this humidity). The ocean cools down this area and provides a nice little breeze. It’s very beautiful out here. It’s where the woods and the ocean meet, which makes for some pretty good sunsets.
Anyway, thanks for the news on the 4 cousins. It’s really cool to hear about the challenges they face and are working to overcome. I’m especially proud of Dan and Al, I’m so glad that they decided to serve missions. I’m so lucky to be from such a great family! I hope Kyle and Andrew continue to do well and enjoy their missions, they’ve always been good examples to me.
Wow, this has been a nice long letter! Thanks for the news on everything. Now that Michael has been bribed with peach pie into writing me a letter, I have received at least one letter from each sibling! I feel honored!… I can now ride my bike with no handlebars, ha ha! Only took me 1.5 transfers. Just thought you should know.
Well, thanks for everything. I appreciate the support I’ve gotten from you all. I know that the Church is true and that it brings peace to people. I have definitely seen that! I love you all, and I will write again next week!
Love, Elder Casper
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
End of the summer already!
Wow, I cannot believe that it is the end of the summer already. It's also hard for me to comprehend that 2/3 of this summer has been spent as a missionary. Time is going pretty quickly. Elder S only has 5 weeks left of his mission, and then I will have a new companion and will pretty much be in charge of continuing the work here. It's kinda scary, I feel like I really don't know what all I'm supposed to do yet. But that will work out when I get there.
So this week has been a pretty good week. We taught Margaret 3 times, and she is an amazing woman. She reads the Book of Mormon and has an incredible understanding of it. She will be a good member when she gets baptized on Sept. 18th. We also taught Jerry. He believes a lot of the church but has not gained a testimony of the Word of Wisdom. He loves his coffee, and he told us he's prayed to know if that is a commandment but hasn't received an answer. We read John 7:17, and explained to him that the way to know if something is a commandment or not is to have faith and live the commandment. We want him to live it for two weeks and then pray about it. He hasn't agreed to it but he's definitely considering it…
I gave a talk last Sunday. It turned out ok, it was about faith. Later on in the week Brother Tommy H (who is the stake president's brother) told us to give him our home phone numbers so that he could call our parents and tell them we were doing a good job. He's a good guy, I'm sure you really appreciated that phone call,Mom. He has a pretty good Harker's Island accent.
So the work is going pretty good out here in North Carolina. It's been humid and hot, and we haven't had the car this week. So we've biked at least 10-15 miles each day, which has been just fantastic. I actually do like the biking, it's the hot and humid part that isn't the funnest. Missionary work is a good thing though. I've definitely seen a lot of blessings come into my life from it. The thing with missionary work is that you have to consecrate yourself to it, or else it doesn't do any good (for you) and you aren't very happy. At least that's my experience.
Anyways, sounds like you guys are doing great. You're pretty lucky to have Derek, Brianne, and Easton living with you. Mike, congrats on the accomplishment of the Eagle. It's definitely a relief to have it done, and something that you will be grateful for. I can't believe it's been three years since Max was born. I heard about it just before I went out to the bus stop for the first day of school my junior year. It's crazy to think about how much has happened and how much I have changed since then. Miraculous, actually. I like that likening of the scriptures to buried treasure, that is definitely true. We can learn so much from the scriptures if we study them and look for the things that apply to us…
Thanks for the things you've sent me. I did like that picture of Max, he's going to be so different when I get back. So guess what? Elder O [BYU basball player] is serving in New Bern, which means I see him every week at district meetings. He's definitely very green (even more so than me!), but he's going to be a great missionary. He's a cool guy.
There was a pretty good storm this last week. The thunder was shaking our trailer and woke me up in the middle of the night, you know how deep of a sleeper I am. It was crazy.
I have a request from Bro. Bott's book. I would like you to send me the section that talks about the records of your mission, the LTPs, the letters to your family, and the journal. I really want to make sure that I am keeping a good record. On a side note, I was reading in the book of Mosiah and I noticed something interesting. Zeniff's account of going into the land of Nephi is written in first hand, while the record of Noah's reign is not. It leads me to believe that Noah didn't keep a journal. Just something that I thought was interesting. And thanks for the extra talks, if ever you see a talk that you think is good or that could apply to me then please send it. I love modern day revelation.
So things are going great here. Whenever you feel like it, surprise me with something (that is a solicitation to send me stuff). I love it out here and hope everything's going well. Keep me informed! I love you all.
Love,
Elder Casper
So this week has been a pretty good week. We taught Margaret 3 times, and she is an amazing woman. She reads the Book of Mormon and has an incredible understanding of it. She will be a good member when she gets baptized on Sept. 18th. We also taught Jerry. He believes a lot of the church but has not gained a testimony of the Word of Wisdom. He loves his coffee, and he told us he's prayed to know if that is a commandment but hasn't received an answer. We read John 7:17, and explained to him that the way to know if something is a commandment or not is to have faith and live the commandment. We want him to live it for two weeks and then pray about it. He hasn't agreed to it but he's definitely considering it…
I gave a talk last Sunday. It turned out ok, it was about faith. Later on in the week Brother Tommy H (who is the stake president's brother) told us to give him our home phone numbers so that he could call our parents and tell them we were doing a good job. He's a good guy, I'm sure you really appreciated that phone call,Mom. He has a pretty good Harker's Island accent.
So the work is going pretty good out here in North Carolina. It's been humid and hot, and we haven't had the car this week. So we've biked at least 10-15 miles each day, which has been just fantastic. I actually do like the biking, it's the hot and humid part that isn't the funnest. Missionary work is a good thing though. I've definitely seen a lot of blessings come into my life from it. The thing with missionary work is that you have to consecrate yourself to it, or else it doesn't do any good (for you) and you aren't very happy. At least that's my experience.
Anyways, sounds like you guys are doing great. You're pretty lucky to have Derek, Brianne, and Easton living with you. Mike, congrats on the accomplishment of the Eagle. It's definitely a relief to have it done, and something that you will be grateful for. I can't believe it's been three years since Max was born. I heard about it just before I went out to the bus stop for the first day of school my junior year. It's crazy to think about how much has happened and how much I have changed since then. Miraculous, actually. I like that likening of the scriptures to buried treasure, that is definitely true. We can learn so much from the scriptures if we study them and look for the things that apply to us…
Thanks for the things you've sent me. I did like that picture of Max, he's going to be so different when I get back. So guess what? Elder O [BYU basball player] is serving in New Bern, which means I see him every week at district meetings. He's definitely very green (even more so than me!), but he's going to be a great missionary. He's a cool guy.
There was a pretty good storm this last week. The thunder was shaking our trailer and woke me up in the middle of the night, you know how deep of a sleeper I am. It was crazy.
I have a request from Bro. Bott's book. I would like you to send me the section that talks about the records of your mission, the LTPs, the letters to your family, and the journal. I really want to make sure that I am keeping a good record. On a side note, I was reading in the book of Mosiah and I noticed something interesting. Zeniff's account of going into the land of Nephi is written in first hand, while the record of Noah's reign is not. It leads me to believe that Noah didn't keep a journal. Just something that I thought was interesting. And thanks for the extra talks, if ever you see a talk that you think is good or that could apply to me then please send it. I love modern day revelation.
So things are going great here. Whenever you feel like it, surprise me with something (that is a solicitation to send me stuff). I love it out here and hope everything's going well. Keep me informed! I love you all.
Love,
Elder Casper
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