May 26, 2014

Dear Family and Friends,
It has been one heck of a week. It flew by and yet it seems like it
lasted forever. I got to go to a specialized training for the mission
for music. It was pretty cool meeting, we had William Joseph come and
speak to us on how to use music to invite the Spirit, and fulfill our
calling to "Invite others to come unto Christ." He is a cool guy! He
got to play the piano a lot on his mission in Perth, Australia. He is
actually from Glendale, AZ! Anyways, you would have enjoyed it a lot mom. :D

So the real crazy part of the week started on the way back up to
Flagstaff! A brush fire closed down the highway, so after waiting in heavy traffic for 4 hours, we had to turn around and stay with some elders back down in the valley. Fortunately they had contained the fire so we went back up he next morning, only to get stopped by more fires between Sedona and Flagstaff. We found another way home, and by the time we got back the whole sky was filled with smoke and ash was falling all over. We probably spent at least 10 hours in the car those two days. As soon as we got back we were told by President Taylor to immediately pack 24 hour kits in case of evacuation. We spent the rest of that afternoon helping people pack and prepare for evacuation down in Kachina, where the fire was about 4-5 miles away. It was pretty cool, we just went from house to house helping people get prepared. One guy was pretty disabled and super stressed about not being able to pack. It was cool to be able to help him, and others, and tell the, what we do as missionaries. As of now no one has been evacuated as far as we know, but the last I heard the fire is still 0% contained and a National emergency. There's still smoke in the air but we aren't too worried about anything happening anymore since the wind is pushing it away from Flagstaff. So yea! It's been a crazy week!

Teaching wise, we set a baptismal date for June 21 for Leander,  a member of a part member family here. He is pretty cool, and really quiet with us still like most Navajo people. We are excited for him though. He came to church for the first time along with another new investigator named Ray! We had a lot of people at church actually, we didn't have enough chairs in our Gospel Principles class!
Well its crazy to think that May is already almost through. I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ. As we apply it, it gives us "hope through the atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection, to be raised unto life eternal, and this because of your faith in him according to the promise" (Moroni 7:41). I know we can be forgiven, that the burdenof guilt can be lifted from off our backs, if we choose to walk side by side with the Savior, and allow the burden he already bore to carry us through. It is true, it is real, and it's His promise to us! I am so grateful to know that is true, by personal experience and witnessing it in the lives of those we get to work with.
Thank you for all your prayers and support! I love you all and pray
for you regularly!

Elder Collin Christensen

May 19, 2014

Dear Family,
This has been a great week. We found three new people to teach, one is from a part member family. His name is Leander and we are teaching him again tonight and inviting him to be baptized! The other two are Dave and Christina, a couple who has a pretty rough past. We finally got in to teach them last week and they came to church yesterday! They are awesome people and want to get married and everything. We are pumped to work with them! Also at church was a recent convert family that we have been working with, and we found out they were taught by Elder
Brandon Royse!
We also taught a recent convert's husband named Mike last week who has talked to missionaries for a long time. He told us he didn't get anything out of missionary visits, and wanted to move on to some greater knowledge past what we teach. He said it was because he doesn't feel there is enough evidence to back up what we teach, especially from the Bible. We asked if he had ever read the Book of Mormon, and he said he'd never opened it. We promised him he would
never know what we taught was true, or not true, unless he read the
Book of Mormon, which is the true evidence of everything! He ended up
coming to church without his wife...so she didn't drag him there!
Hopefully he found some higher knowledge! :D It was a cool experience
for me, because I realized how small of a role we play as
missionaries, and how little we really can do for people. That's not
to degrade our role at all, but there comes a point where we all have
to act, and being acted upon is no longer enough. When we act, The
Lord blesses us with a knowledge that what we are doing is either
right or wrong. The gift of agency is amazing!

Well, we have been enjoying the Family History we've been working on.
A Chinese man sat by me in the library as I was working on mine, and
he told us he loved Mormon people. So we looked up his family on
www.familysearch.org with him and he thought that was cool! But then
he told us that 120 generations back he comes from a royal Emperor
Family, so he was satisfied with that. Haha oh yea then I found out we
weren't supposed to contact/proselyte in public places like
libraries...oops.

Well that's about it for this weeks update. I pray for you all each
day and feel your prayers for me! This mission is changing me slowly,
and that's really what the gospel should do to all of us! I know that
as we come unto Christ through covenants and continued obedience, we
can receive the healing and freeing blessings he promises us. It's
like a gift he's already given us, but because our agency is so
important to him, it's our choice to receive it or not.

Here is my favorite scripture of the week:
"And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye should come unto
Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation,
and the power of his redemption. Yea, come unto him, and offer your
whole souls as an offering unto him, and continue in fasting and
praying, and endure to the end; and as the Lord liveth ye will be
saved" (Omni:26).

Elder Collin Christensen

May 12, 2014

Dear Family!
Well it was awesome to see/hear you all yesterday! As for the
appointments I told you about last night, one of them happened. We taught the older Mexican lady. We found out half way
through that she was not following what we were teaching at all. She may not be totally there, so we will see where that goes. Haha Besides her  we found 3 new people this week. 2 are
friends/coworkers of a less active member who invited them to listen to us.  We had a powerful lesson with
them about Enos' story. It helped me realize the truth of a Preach My Gospel phrase: "Although they may not know why, [those you teach] need relief from feelings of guilt that come from mistakes and sins. They need to experience the joy of redemption by receiving forgiveness of their sins and enjoying the gift of the Holy Ghost.... You are called to represent Jesus Christ in helping people become clean from their sins" (1: What Is My Purpose as a Missionary?). It's true that a lot of people don't even realize they are carrying burdens of guilt. Everyone needs the gift of forgiveness, whether they think so or not.

So Olin  was baptized Monday! He was part of another part member family and we are working to help that family become active again. It was a cool baptismal service, but it's been hard to get ward members to come.

Other than that we found out that at least three of our investigators
are on probation and/or are felons...explains why it's been so hard to find them!

Sorry this is a short email, but that's the basic update. I love you
all and hope you are doing well!

Elder Collin Christensen

Climbing Mt. Humphrey

Hola Familia y amigos!
Well we just got back from climbing Mt. Humphrey! It is the highest
mountain in Arizona! It took us almost 6 hours...I will say I am
sufficiently whooped. We weren't super prepared for the distance, or
the snow, or the 50 mph wind at the top. But it was definitely worth
it! From the top we could see part of the Grand Canyheon. I loved it! My
camera died so I didn't get many pictures...sorry. (this photo is off the web)

Elder Christensen's picture

Elder Christensen's picture

 

So this week was pretty good, I'm feeling pretty settled in and
finally starting to learn the area alright. Jr and Tracey  were
both both baptized this last Saturday! It has been cool teaching these
young kids, but they are solid and we are working on reactivating the
whole family so that they can have the support they need! Again, we
don't have pictures yet but we will send me when we get them!
There are so many Navajos up here! We cover the Flagstaff Hospital in
the area so we get called to give blessings at least 3 times a week.
That's been pretty cool.

We had some awesome meetings this week, we received training on Family
History work, which we are going to start doing as a mission! They
want us to know how to do our own so we can help others do theirs and
find new people to teach through it. Within the first minute of
working on it, I found out that my zone leader Elder Arave is my 5th
cousin or something like that! We have the same great great great
grandfather, Nelson Arave Arrivee! That's sweet! It's been cool
learning about all of this, the Spirit of Elijah is so real.

Also we had a focus on talking with everyone in our Zone meeting.
Since then, we made some changes in the way we do things and  have
found some solid new potentials just because we rent afraid to talk to
someone walking into their house, or sitting outside smoking. It's
been great.
Well, we don't have much time at all today, so that's the update!

Also, I need to know what time to call on Sunday! Please respond and
let me know before 6. Sorry it's late notice, but were just supposed
to have  set time. Looking forward to seeing you all! Let me know what
time works best!

I love you!

Elder Collin Christensen

4 PM Mother's Day call was scheduled.

April 28, 2014

Dear Family,

I love Flagstaff, AZ! After going to transfer meeting and feeling the heat of the valley on Wednesday I was definitely grateful to be sent back up North! And guess what...there are trees!! And they're green! I'm definitely loving the weather and scenery. Probably the closest thing I'll get to home! 

Elder Muñoz is a boss missionary! I am super pumped to be working with him. We speak mostly Spanish in the apartment and I have already learned a ton from him! He is a hard worker and really cares about the people here - he has been here since last September. That's when I came into the mission! He's been out 15 months and his family is from Minnesota. The Cedar Hill ward is very similar to how the Glassford Hill was. It's English with a Spanish group. So we cover all of Flagstaff and Williams and Grand Canyon area. Oh yea, Sister Taylor took us shopping after transfers because Elder Muñoz needed a suit, so you can look up those pictures in the blog I guess mom... :P 

So we had Stake Conference on Sunday. Former President Frost was actually sustained in General Conference as a new Area 70! There were 2 other members of the 70 there as well who spoke, that was cool. It was a great meeting, a lot focused on Hastening the Work of Salvation. president and Sister Taylor spoke and called Preach My Gospel the "best Family home evening manual ever." They said that the real MTC now is in our homes. They encouraged everyone to prayerfully create a family mission statement using PMG and apply it!

So on the way home from the evening Session of stake conference, I had some random thought come to me that I had forgotten my wallet at home. I checked my pocket and sure enough it wasn't there. Well, of course my first instinct was to slow down so I was actually going the Speed limit. No more than a few seconds went by before a family of 5 deer decided it was a good time to run across the road! They were about 30-40 feet in front of us. So two miracles happened here 1) had my foot not already been on the break we may not have been able to slow down as fast as we did and barely stop in front of them and 2) my companion hadn't even seen them jump out. For those who know me well, I am horridly night blind and can't see much at night unless there is light. It was a major blessing that on this unlit 45 mph road, I somehow spotted the first deer on the side of the road and my companion didn't. Lesson 1 learned, it's preferred to drive with your wallet. Lesson 2, drive the speed limit. Lesson 3, the Holy Ghost works through OUR thoughts and OUR memory. It whispers so subtly, yet so surely, that if we do not immediately respond, we will be sure to collide with unforeseen danger in the darkness ahead. I'm so grateful for the gift of the Holy Ghost in my life. It has guided me and protected me from much more than a possible car accident. It is a gift I will always cherish. 

On a lighter note, I'm alive! And driving in Flagstaff is fun! And I am learning the area a lot quicker than I feel I am! 

Well we have a couple baptisms coming up this weekend. J and T  are 9 and 10 years old and belong to a part member Navajo family. It has been cool to get close with their family and see them prepare for baptism!

That's it for this week! I am loving it here, I'm loving the work and am grateful for your prayers and support!

Scripture of the week:

"And I give unto you a commandment that ye shall do these things. And if ye shall always do these things blessed are ye, for ye are built upon my rock" (3 Nephi 18:12).

Elder Collin Christensen

April 22, 2014

Dear Family,

Well, first things first, I'm getting transferred! It's been a long 6
months up here in Prescott Valley, not going to lie! But I have loved
it and learned so much since I first got here. I will email you
tomorrow and let you know my new address!
It is great to hear you all had a great Easter! We had an awesome week
and Easter as well. We talked to so many people and shared the Because of Him 
video probably 50 times. We had some cool experiences with just
talking to everyone we saw - we realized that sometimes we pass
judgement on people without even talking to them or giving them a
chance. So we repented and started talking with anyone and everyone we
saw, more or less. It was cool!
Juan Ramos was set apart as a Ward Missionary on Sunday and then later
got to come with us to teach Jorge! It was his first visit with us and
was pretty nervous, but he gave his humble testimony of the Book of
Mormon and invited Jorge to read it. The Spirit was powerful and Juan
took it like a boss.
We had some awesome lessons with A. as well this week! She is SO
prepared! We taught her the plan of Salvation, invited her to baptism,
and said she wanted to! Elder Hicks and I were reading the story of
Ammon and king Lamonhi recently. The way he did missionary work was
Preach My Gospel status! Before even teaching the king, he served him!
It opened the path to a powerful lesson of inspired questions which
led to the kings conversion. It has been so similar as we have found,
served and begun to teach A. However, she hasn't become overcome
with the spirit and passed out on the floor yet...minor difference. :D
Well, I am learning so much out here. I am pumped to go experience a
new area and keep serving these people! I'm grateful for the time I've
had to serve and learn from Elder Hicks. I'll miss him, but it's
probably about time I leave my trainer. Haha :)
Love you all! Happy Easter!

Elder Collin Christensen

Happy Easter

Hello family and friends!

It has been one heck of a week! Sadly M. has fallen off the map and doesn't seem to want to talk to us anymore. But on a happy note, Tamrah got confirmed a member if the church! She was so happy, and it was a special experience for her husband to be able to confirm her. J. son told us he wants to be baptized in June! We are going to miss that family so much, they have completely moved into their new house.. Also Juan got the Aaronic Priesthood yesterday and was excited as always! He is searching for family names to bring to the temple, and we are planning on going with him in a couple weeks to do baptisms. D. and J. S.. came to church, they are a cool family but the dad isn't super supportive. [Their Daughter] is 8 and really wants to be baptized, but her parents are so casual about everything it's hard to help her progress. But they were at church so that's a blessing! We also felt guided to a members home last Monday, and we ended up teaching the excommunicated husband! He is a super chill Hawaiian guy who wants to be rebaptized! It's been cool to be able to go over there a few times now and bring the spirit back into their lives. Saturday we found this guy named J.who is really solid. He's about 25 and was really interested in Joseph Smith, said he believed it! I look back at the investigators we find and end up teaching, and I realize that so many of them came to be simply because we decided to talk to them on the street, or we followed a prompting to knock on their door. The Spirit truly can guide us to the elect, who are prepared and searching for the hope the gospel brings! We are still struggling with teaching and finding new people, but we are trusting in the the Lords promise: "Go your way whithersoever I will, and it shall be given you by the Comforter what you shall do and whither you shall go" (D&C 31:11).

One if my favorite talks from conference was by President Uchtdorf, Grateful in Any Circumstances.  When I read back over this talk, I tried to think of all the things I might not be so naturally inclined to be grateful for right now. As I thought, I first realized how blessed I already am. But from every thing I thought of that I might usually complain about, I suddenly recognized multiple blessings those things might provide me with. What I know is that even if we feel we can't recognize the blessings of our trials, there will always be a reason to thank our Heavenly Father. That's what makes gratitude an act of faith! I am trying to be more grateful for every experience and opportunity The Lord gives me.

With Easter approaching this Sunday, the church has launched a new Easter Initiative. Many of you have probably already heard of or seen this site, but the purpose is to help everyone feel the Spirit and love of God, and consider all the things that are made possible because of Jesus Christ. The site is www.mormon.org/BecauseofHim. I encourage you all to watch the video and share it on your Facebook page with your simple testimony! It's only for this week, so let's share it with as many people as we can!

I love my Savior and I love his work! I love that I can learn by experience and failure and he will still be there with His hands extended. I wish you all a happy Easter!

Elder Collin Christensen