February 22, 2010

Well hello there!!! This week was quite a crazy one! Edgar was baptized, L. Tom Perry came, and I am an idiot.

Let's start with the "I am an idiot" part. Well, ya know how there is certain types of dish soap detergent stuff that you use only for the dishwasher. And then there is certain types of dish soap you just use only on dishes.... Well, I didn't know that before. But I know now. This week we ran out of dish detergent stuff. Ya know... the soap you put in the dish washer. So I thought, eh what the heck, dish soap is dish soap no? So I put some of the dish soap that you use on the dishes in the sink in the dishwasher. Yup, I just squirted it on all the dishes in there. Needless to say, half an hour later, there was bubbles all over the floor and in our dishwasher. Yeah.... not the smartest move on my part. Haha, yeah, I guess when it comes to not putting that soap in the dishwasher, it is just common sense. But, I lack on sense sometimes. As you may or may not know. But it was pretty funny. So I called Sister Kunz and said "Sister Kunz, just say someone that you know... hypothetically speaking, but dish soap in the dishwasher and now there are bubbles all over the floor and in the dishwasher, what would you do?" She just laughed really hard and said... "Elder Moore, hypothetically speaking, this is what I would do...." Yeah, it was a good laugh.




So Edgar was baptized on Sunday! It was so awesome! He is such a great kid. His baptism went great! His mom came and his dad too, and also 3 of his friends. It's going to be hard for him being the only member in his family, but I know that he is going to do just fine. He is so excited and loves learning about the gospel! I love that kid! We have had a lot of fun with him. It's hard though because he lives out in Crete which is a 30 mile drive there and 30 back. So it chews up a lot of our miles. I talked to President Kunz yesterday about me going to Crete and opening it up as another spanish area. He was very excited about the idea. I really hope he lets me do that this next transfer! There is a good chance of that since we have talked about it before. So we will see what happens. It would also really help Edgar, having us there to see him more than just twice a week.



Yesterday was incredible! L. Tom Perry came to the mission with Elder Holstrom of the presidency of the 70. Wow, it was incredible. The spirit was so incredibly strong! And L. Tom Perry shook everyone of our hands! IT was aweosme. He was wearing a really nice cardigan and I just had to compliment it. So it was my turn to shake his hand and I got there and he says "How are you?" and I said "I am doing great. That is an excellent cardigan you have on." And ya know it was a line so I started to move on, and he still had a hold of my hand and pulled me back and said "Ya know Elder Moore, when you get to be old like me, you always need to wear a sweater. But thank you, I think it's nice myself." Hahaha yeah it was pretty much awesome!!!

SO that was the weeks events! I got 2 new companionships in my district. It's pretty cool. Oh yeah, Hector and Julie are set for baptism now too! We have had some incredible lessons with them. They are both 17, boyfriend girlfriend thing. Hector is the son of a recent convert. They call us everynight and tell us they read the Book of Mormon, and they ask questions about what they have read. It's awesome. Also Julie called the other night and asked if I could bring her some sticky tabs so that she can write her own summary of the chapters she reads and put it in her book of mormon which she has decorated with stickers. It's actually pretty cool. So they read and pray together everynight! They are set for the 20th of March. And are looking great for their date.

So that is the news here. It was a pretty crazy week. Me and Elder Stephenson are still together. Should be a fun transfer. Lots of good things are happening here and we are very excited for what the future holds.

I can't believe Justin is working three jobs to prepare financially for his mission. He is really working his tail off. I'm glad that Justin will be serving his mission soon. That is so exciting! I can't wait to hear where he gets called to. The mission is an amazing experience that he will love.

I have found recently that sacrifice brings blessings. I have had to sacrifice a few things these past few weeks to be able to start feeling the full love our Savior has for us and to have his spirit more strongly. But it has been worth it. Also in my studies this week I realized something.....Christ was ONE sin away from failure. Just one. How incredible is that, that he didn't let temptation get the best of him. He knew his calling and had internalized it. He is such an amazing man.

I love all of you very much!!! Take care and have a great week!!!
Love,
Elder Moore

P.S. HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMBER!!!!

February 16, 2010

Hey hey hey! I am glad that you enjoyed your trip to Carlsbad California. You luckies. :) You are right, it will be my turn in December. But I'm glad ya had fun and got to spend some serious good time in the sun. Well I have been loving my time in the snow here. Yup, we got more snow. It's been great!

Transfers are tomorrow. It seems like I just got to Lincoln, but 6 weeks have already passed by. I have a feeling that something really big is going to be happening with me this transfer. I've had some interesting conversations with President Kunz and he has sent me to a few meetings I don't normaly go to. So we'll see.... but you'll have to wait a few days to see if what I am thinking is going to happen happens or not. ;) Sorry!

So Edgar is so ready for baptism this Sunday. We are so excited for him. He is getting quite a bit of opposition from his friends and mom telling him that it is way too soon to be baptized. But he knows that what he is doing is right. We are very excited for him!

We also set another man for baptism this week. His name is Jorge. We went out to Crete to knock some doors and no one was home. Then we saw a man in the street. So I turned to Elder Stephenson and said, "Do you think we can baptize him?" And he looked at me and said, "Yeah." And I said, "Yeah me too." So we went and started talking to him, and he let us in to his house which wasn't too far away and we started to teach him. And then we taught him the first lesson and we invited him to be baptized and he said YES! Woohoo! Yeah we are very excited!




So the reason I asked Elder Stephenson that question was this.... I read a quote by Bruce R. McConkie that said once the missionary believes he can baptize, he will begin to baptize. I think I have lacked the faith that the Lord has been preparing people for us to teach and baptize. So I decided to start believing that we could baptize. And we have seen some amazing things happen from it. We are definately inviting more people to be baptized. Haha, I've also become a lot more bold with people. It's been a little hard for me because I like to keep the conversation light. But it's actually worked really well. Yeah, the mission is going great. I really have no desire to come home right now. I have really just started to focus and realize that the end really isn't that far away. It's nuts.

Also, next Monday I won't be here either. I will be in Omaha! :) L. Tom Perry is coming to talk to all the missionaries in our mission!!!!!!! How cool is that?!?! That is way cool. So I will be doing emails again on Tuesday.

SO mom, thank you very much for the Valentines package you sent me. That was very sweet of you. :) I love you Mom! Well that is that for this week. I know this one is short. Crazy huh? But tomorrow should bring many more crazy things. I love you all. I am glad you made it home safely.

Pray for Edgar. He is doing great, but can always use your prayers.

Love you all and take care.
Love,
Elder Moore

February 8, 2010

First off.... dumb Myldsmail people are making us get new emails. We don't even get to create our own, so there is no creativity in this one. But starting next week.... email me here BRANDON.MOORE@MYLDSMAIL.NET.



Well, this week was good. Not much to say about it though. But! Fidel did get baptized!!! That was so great. It was a really nice baptismal service and we had quite a few members show up and bring refreshments. Fidel also invited his sister and her husband to come to it. Afterwards, they came and talked to us and said that they want us to come over to their house and talk with them. So that will be AWESOME!!

So this week, I had quite the dream that I want to share with you. And the more and more I have thought about this dream, the more and more it has related so much to the atonement for me. This week I got a really good look at what it's going to be like when we meet are Savior Jesus Christ. So Thursday night I had a dream that I had just gotten home from the mission and I walked into a room. And in this room there was a lot of people that have really helped me through out my life...that have inspired me, or guided me, or influenced my life in one way or another. And people were walking up to me and hugging me. I don't want to name everyone in the room because there were quite a few people there, but I knew everyone of them. And I was talking with them and hugging them and just smiling. And then I looked to the left of me, and there was Dirk Roberts. And we made eye contact, and I just got these tears in my eyes. And Dirk walked over to me and gave me this big hug. And he didn't let go. His hug was longer than anyone elses. And we just sat there and hugged and cried. And he let go of me after about 2 minutes and looked me in the eyes and said, "Well done." And he left. Then I woke up and I sat there and thought about it. And over the course of the next few days I have just been thinking about that dream.I read an article yesterday by Jeffrey R. HOlland called the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and in this article Orson F. Whitney has a dream and witnesses the atonement of Christ. At the end of the dream, he says with tears in his eyes that he looked up at Jesus and Jesus hugged him. And I thought to myself, when we return home from our earthly missions to Christ, he is going to hug us, and cry with us, and just not want to let go. And then he will take a step back and look us in the eyes and say, "Well done." I know that Dirk is doing just fine up there. I am sure that he is looking down on us and watching us. And he is so proud of what we are doing here. So you can tell Nicole and Brynna that Dirk is alright. I could tell just from the way he looked at me and hugged me. Yesterday I just thought about that dream and I finally started to understand it and I just started to cry. I miss that guy.

Well Edgar and Annel did not get baptized. But they will be getting baptized on the 21st. We got in a talk with her mom, and she said in her church you have to study for a year before you get baptized and she said it was too soon. So they are set now for the 21st of February. Edgar set his own date and said.... "THIS IS WHEN I'M DOING IT! I know that I will be ready. I don't have to wait a year." Haha. He is the man. And he gives the best prayers! Annel has been working 6 days a week 12-15 hours a day, so she gets off at like 1 in the morning. So 3 times this week she called me at 1:30 in the morning and I taught her for like an hour and a half over the phone. I have been so wiped out in the morning. But it's worth it. She is doing great!

Well that was the week. Tonight we are going to have 8 missionaries staying in our tiny apartment. Tomorrow is zone conference. Yay. Great eh? So tonight should be great. Hope you enjoyed the pictures!! I love you all and have a great time in California you luckies!!!!!

Love,
Elder Moore

February 1, 2010 Una semana muy especial‏

Wow!! This was an amazing week. So many things happened this week. So this could possibly be a long email. I shouldn't say possibly, because it will be a nice long one.

Well we had 7 people come to church yesterday. Yes, 7! We have 7 people set for baptism now. Most looking really good. Two, not so good. But the other 5, looking great! So on Tuesday we had an incredible spiritual experience with Edgar and Annel. They were supposed to come to church on Sunday but didn't make it there. I was pretty upset with them for that since I had just talked to them the night before. So we went there on Tuesday, and I guess I wasn't my normal self. I was being a little hard on them and had toned down the jokes a little bit to let them know that I was serious. Annel said to me, "Wow, you are fiesty today." And I have to agree. I was. And I guess it turned out to be a good thing. I told them why I was upset. Then afterwards we taught her about how she can fight off these really evil feelings she has been feeling. Edgar was also there. She said to us that she likes her mom's church and our church and wants to get baptized in both. So I pulled out a scripture from 3rd Nephi. We read verses 19-21. In verse 21 I put Annel and Edgar's names in there to personalize it some. And I said, "Jesus Christ can't be here to invite you to be baptized, but he has sent us as his representitives. We are here, standing in his place. If he were here, he wouldn't say, wait to be baptized, he wouldn't say get baptized in both churches. He would say, follow me, and be baptized, in MY name." Annel looked at me, and so did Edgar. They were almost about to cry. And she said, "Ok I want to be baptized on February 6th!" And then Edgar looked at us and said, "YEAH! Me too!" I was really taken back, I was like... wait, what? Haha. But I told them they could of course. So pretty much they set themselves. The spirit was very strong in that room. Yesterday, they came to church, and Edgar brought his girlfriend. Then the 5 of us went up to Omaha to the trail center. We drove about 275miles yesterday between Crete and Lincoln and Omaha. It was a long and exhausting day. But a very good one! They even announced their own baptisms in church yesterday. So they are very excited and very ready. It was pretty cool too because the Sandovals came to the trail center to say hi to me, also Elders Curisinche and Morrill, as well as Melanie Thomspon. It was so nice to see some familiar faces.

Also, Fidel is looking so solid for his date! This Saturday he will also be baptized. Funny thing... we found out that Fidel and Annel used to date. Small world eh? But he will definitely be baptized this Saturday. It's been amazing to see his progression and his changes over the last 2 weeks. I am so excited for him!

Also, we set Hector and Julie for baptism. They are boyfriend and girlfriend. Hector and Julie said they wanted to wait till after marriage to get baptized because they wouldn't be able to follow the law of chastity. So that's why they wanted to wait. But, once again, being really bold with them helped. We told them straight up that what they are doing is wrong. And that they were not going to do it anymore. it's hard being hard on people sometimes, but ya gotta do it. So we did it. And it payed off. They are set for the 18th. I think it's good that both of them are doing it together. That way they can strengthen each other. So they were both at church yesterday and are looking really good for there date. But we have a lot to teach them.




So yes, President Kunz did come to my district meeting. It was great!! Everyone was so nervous. So I decided to ease the tension with a little "joke." So lately President Kunz has been on the "tie tie-ing high." Meaning, he has really been encouraging the elders to tie their ties down to the belt and not above it. Well, ya know I had to do somethin!!! So I did. :) Amber, for my one year mark, sent me a box with some goodies in it. One of them being a clip on tie that is MAYBE 3 inches long. So I wore that to district meeting. I wore my overcoat over my suit to district meeting so no one could see my tie. So I was sitting in my chair and I got up to conduct the meeting once everyone was ready to go, and I took off my overcoat and went up to the front and started to conduct like everything was normal. Hahaha, then everyone just started laughing. President Kunz louder than anyone else. And we laughed for like a minute straight. It was great. That really eased the tension and calmed everything down. It was great!! After the meeting President Kunz took like 3 pictures with me. I guess he liked it. ;) But it was funny.




This whole past week before the district meeting I had this feeling that I needed to talk to my district about companionship study. I could just feel that it wasn't being done. So I got up after the 2 trainings and talked about that for only like 3 minutes and told why it is so important. Afterwards President Kunz got up and said,"Wow, Elder Moore, you are one step ahead of me. That is what I wanted to train on next zone conference." It was kind of interesting I thought. After the meeting, President Kunz took us all out to lunch. That was sweet! Free lunch! Last night I was reporting the numbers to Elder Taggart and he asked me what was my favorite part about the week. And I said "Free Lunch on Wendesday!" And he said.... You have 7 people at church and your favorite part of last week was free lunch? Haha, I guess 7 people at church was cool too. :)

Oh yeah, one more story. Annel and Edgar's mom is of a different religion. So we decided to talk to her. We talked with her about the bible and the Book of Mormon, and we had her read a scripture from the Book of Mormon, and right in the middle of it, the light went off in that room. Didn't go off in any other room. Just that one. That was weird.

Oh yeah, one other crazy cool thing!!!! So we have a member, well kind of a member. She was baptized like 10 months ago but is now going to another church. Well we decided to go visit her and we went to her house and her pastor was there teaching her. So we walked in and talked to the pastor for a second and he said, "We have bible study here every Saturday at 5." And I said, "Well that's great." And he said "Yes it is." So I said, "Well I would love to join you next Saturday if you don't mind." And he said "Sure, but we only talk about the word, and we only believe in Jesus Christ." And I said, "That's great. Us too!" So he said, "Ok we will see you here next Saturday then." Woo!!! I am so excited for this. To be able to talk to this pastor about the bible. And the Book of Mormon. Right there with our member. Well kind of member. Good thing I have been studying the bible a lot. I am not looking for a bible fight or religion fight by any means. I just want to see what he is telling our member that made her leave our church so fast. So this should be a lot of fun!!! I am really looking forward to it! I love being part of the TRUE church. So next Saturday, pray for us. :)

Well that is it. It has been a crazy week! Thank you for the email. I love you all so much!! And in case I don't see you again "Good afternoon, good evening, and good night!" - The Truman Show. Oh yeah, I am doing this so early because we have zone activity today at 12:30, pizza and bowling. Should be good.

Love,
Elder Moore