¡Hola Familia!
I cant believe how much is
going on at home! I guess I sort of expected you all to just hang out
for two years without talking or having fun. :D It is super great to
hear from you all though! Thank you for taking time to write me
individually via e-mail. Also, I got all your letters from August 25th
yesterday! Haha The envelope was pretty messed up, I was super excited
when I got it though! Also, I got your second DearElder.com letter last
week I´m pretty sure, but not the one from Sept 8 i dont think. I think I
got some mail today though, so its possible.
Since I will be leaving in a couple weeks and it is crazy trying to
get mail out of Mexico into the states, I will respond to all your
letters right now. But keep sending me real mail! I will reply with real
letters when I get to Phoenix :)
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| Hermano Rogers |
It sounds like you are having some awesome scripture study Mom and
Anna! It is so weird, I´m kinda addicted to studying now that I´m here.
At least when we are in the classroom. Hermano Rogers, our evening
teacher, showed us all his study journal from his mission. The first
section is called ¨Doctrine¨ and he puts a page in for all the Preach My
Gospel topics and then for any other topics he comes across. He puts
them in alphabetical order, and just keeps a record of scriptures and
teachings for each topic. Then he has Insights, Testimony, Question and
Answers, and Quotes sections. Every section is cross referenced with
dates and such. At first it seemed like way too much work. But my whole
district started using it and now everyone is pumped about studying! It
is so much more efficient. I have my own little personal ¨Topical Guide¨
that I can refer to anytime. Anyways, I´m glad Im learning how to
effectively study now, because I know it will be such a useful tool for
me throughout my mission.
Dad, that's awesome you and the Priests went water skiing! I hope
you got to show off your slolem skills and thunder thighs. Send all
those guys my love, they are the best! I was sad to hear you sold the
Jetta, and that that girls dad was disrespecting Velma. Glad you got rid
of it though, it needed a new home. Haha Oh, also, I hope you took that mannequin head out of the back of the trunk before they drove it off...if
not, no worries. I´m sure they will enjoy it.
Richard and Marissa! I cant believe Lacey is trying to walk around
and stuff! I can believe the weird noises though, she gets that from her
parents. I got super pumped when I heard that our dear friend Kyle the
Interviewer will now be on SNL. I hope that was not a joke, because I
seriously got super excited. Happy Anniversary! We are gonna have to do
some bike rides when I get home, I dont know if I will get enough time
on the bike over the next 2 years. Marissa, thats so cool you are doing
the triathalon thing! My district has been waking up at 6:00 every morning to run. Its pretty sweet, it reminds me of our fun times running!
Cara, thank you for your advice. It is very important for
missionaries to be in tune with the spirit, and your testimony
strengthened mine. It reminded me of a David A. Bednar talk we watched
this week. He spoke of when he was a missionary in Germany, and he gave
Elder Boyd K. Packer a ride to the train station so he could fulfill an
assignment on the other side of Germany. Before he left, Elder Bednar
gave Elder Packer and his wife 20 Marks in case they needed it for their
Journey. Years later, Elder Packer reminded Elder Bednar of this
experience. What Elder Bednar had not know was that Elder Packer and his
wife would not have been able to cross the border that night because of
strict border control, without the 20 marks they had been given. Their
passports were not accepted, but they were allowed in with the 20 marks.
Moral of the story - Elder Bednar was prompted by the power of the Holy
Ghost to give the Packers those 20 marks. However, at the time he did
not feel that it was a prompting. His message was that if we are
continually living in obedience and worthiness, we will not have to
worry whether or not the Spirit is prompting us. Most of the time, we
are prompted by thoughts that we thought were our own, and only later do
we realize that they were promptings. The Spirit prompts and teaches us
in our own mind and personal language. That is so comforting to me.
Jeff, thank you for your lovely toilet paper note! My whole
district wanted to take turns holding it - we haven't felt toilet paper
that soft in 4 weeks! I really love ya man, and I appreciate all the
encouragement. Soon I will write you in Spanish!
Everyone else, I love ya too! It is inspiring to hear from you
every week! I am short on time, but I want you all to know you are
always in my prayers. The Savior´s Atonement is real. His love is real.
His plan is real. I am reminded everyday of how true our message is, and
how important it is to share with the world.
Adelante con la obra! (the work goes ahead- Hasten the work!)
With Love,
Elder Christensen |
| Cockroach in our room I killed |
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| We patch our screens holes with bandaids and stamps so mosquitos dont get in |
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| Elder Goehring (companion) |
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