8 Feb 2016

So there's been a lot of fun in our apartment. I don't recall if I mentioned before but I'm living with the Spanish elders and we've been getting along great. This transfer is teaching me a lot on how to have fun on my mission and still be productive. The hour before we go to bed consists of nerf wars and a lot of laughter. I feel a little bad for our neighbors because Elder Browning is just naturally loud. I will say that we need to work on being a bit more diligent in our planning. A lot of times when plans fall through we don't have good back up plans decided. It has been getting better as the transfer has gone on.

Monday- Well most of the morning was just riding around with the Spanish elders. Luckily the people we live with have a car so P-days are pretty easy. For our activity we did volleyball for a while and once we got bored of that we played gator ball, I don't know how to describe it but its super fun and really fast pace. Its like soccer and hand ball mixed. After P-day we waited around the Visitor Center for like 45 mins waiting for an appointment to show up, but she never did. We also had to talk to the sisters that were working there about someone who is living in there area. Once we got back to our area we went to see the Crider family. They are a mom that's coming back to the church and 4 unbaptized youth. Super nice family.  We wanted to check on them and they were packing up they found a new house (still in the ward, which is amazing to do in Idaho). Anyway, when we stopped over we offered to help pack. We called over brother Schuelke and got to work. We got a lot closer to the family and got work done. It was an awesome night.

Tuesday- So my whole mission I've  been drinking apple juice because it helps you have dreams, I've had a dream almost every night of my mission.  Elder B saw me buy the apple juice and he brought up the dream thing, and I was like that's why I buy it. So now we both drink apple juice before bed and share our dreams. Its kinda weird but its helped with comp unity. Nothing much happened today, until we went to the visitor center for a lesson. As we were waiting for our person to show up (who didn't) we were just looking around at some of the kiosks. As I'm around the corner someone came in and dropped off a package for me and left right away. So Sister Reed brought it over to me and I was just super confused. I saw that it was from Rexburg and sure enough it was a package I've been waiting for, for three months..... I had a friend up at BYU-I who said they would send me something while I was in the MTC and I never got anything. So here it is a package long awaited for, and..... it was...*drumroll*.... a potato... There was a note along with it that explained everything and it was actually really humorous. The rest of the night we helped Patricia move. Its been a long while that we've been helping her.  She's moving to a different stake which is going to be rough for her. But the Gospel is true everywhere and she's already met the new Elders. During the move though it was hilarious. We got to the new place and as we were moving things in Patricia goes, "yea know there's a couple of cute girls that live next door and I think they really need Jesus in there lives." So she was trying to set us up with these two girls (Patricia is hilarious) and she had Elder Browning ready to go knock. Before he could they actually came outside and started helping us move. They were super nice and when they looked away Patricia would make like these weird hand signals and what not, but as a missionary, gotta keep our hearts locked. (That's part of a phrase that our mission president's wife uses.)

Wednesday- This morning's study was a lot of fun, I read through Alma 30 the chapter on Korihor AKA the Anti-Christ. I'll talk more on that tomorrow.  We went and made contact with a few people today and then headed over to the V.C. (you may have noticed a pattern, We've been trying to get as many people to the V.C as possible) Today we had a recent convert with us. Thankfully they showed up and we watch the 60 min restoration video and they really enjoyed it (this week I've watched it 3 or 4 times, and its still powerful) so in the 60 min version it discusses a lot of the persecution they go through. So we focused on enduring.

Thursday- Zone training!!!! I wish we could have these more often. I have two pages of notes on this so I'm not going to even try typing about it. When I get back I'll let anyone that wants to, read through my notes. It might not necessarily be doctrine, well it should mostly be, I don't think I write anything in there that is not based on doctrine at least.  A lot of awesome thing are learned at Zone training. I feel like most of what I write the person talking never says. Its cool how the Spirit works. I'll just say that. So we went to the V.C again and the appointment got rescheduled when they didn't show up. We met Jesus (Spanish form of the name). He's a recent convert from the Spanish branch that is changing to the YSA ward and we ended up going to his institute class with him,  It was mostly on Korihor, The teacher was talking about metaphysics and epistemology and philosophy. It was super cool, He did this thing with a stool and asked, "what is this>" We would say a stool, He asked how do you know? People would answer my parents told me, Then he would counter with, "well does that mean everything your parents tell you is true?" These were all points that Korihor brought up. Then he hid the stool and asked is there a stool behind the pulpit, and we all answered, "yes." Then he asked, "how do you know you can't see it?" "Can you be 100% sure that I didn't have a trap door rigged and the stool is now gone." So he related it back to Korihor who wanted physical proof of God's existence. Then after people fall away or cast him out of the city he finally is asking these things to Alma, Alma goes on the offensive and asks, "What proof do you have that God does not exist?" For all things in this world tell me there is a God, What is there that tells you there is not. So the professor goes on to talk about how unless you could be everywhere at once and know all things, You can not disprove God and when you're able to do that you've become God. It was a pretty awesome lesson. It might have been a little crazy for Jesus considering he's only 3 months old in the gospel.

Well I have to get going we have a lot to do this P-day, so peace out I love you all.