11/23/15 - I am grateful for...‏

Jesus Christ and the Atonement, above all else! I am also grateful for
birds, painting, and nature. I am grateful for family and kindness,
and unlimited amounts of chances to get things right! And vultures,
you can never forget to be grateful for birds that eat dead animals.
Don't think too long about it, gross thoughts will come....

This week has been fun. Lots of stuff has happened. We have no idea
how long we are going to have Leander's car. We only use it when we
are in a pinch, which has happened a few times and we have been
grateful to have it. It's really started to get chilly this week too.
My poor hands are dry and cracked, but nothing lotion can't fix. It's
so deceiving. During the day it will feel perfect, blue sky and sun
shining. But then around 6 when it gets dark it becomes rather cold.
Grateful for sweaters, jackets, and coats. It only caught us off guard
a couple times before we learned. People that tell you Texas doesn't
get cold are so full of bologna. Trust me, It gets cold.

We had some ridiculous wind that made biking miserable. Thankfully
that was only one day. Probably nothing like Spokane winds, but not
fun nonetheless.

(more random stuff)

The pond we ride by almost everyday was still super high, like 20 feet
above where it normally is, on Friday. We rode by on Sunday and it was
back to normal. How they got rid of so much water I have no clue. But
I'm ok with it being back to normal. Now the turtles are back!

Tuesday was a good day because we had zone conference. We were taught
how to ask better questions and the importance of doing so by the
Assistants and other leaders. President Slaughter then gave us a
training on keeping the sabbath day holy. The brethren have said that
if the missionaries can improve their sabbath day observance and then
help the members do so, the face of the church will change. Pretty
cool huh? We talked about that a little bit. The take away for me was
the brethren aren't going to give us a list of do's and don'ts. But
any activity we feel is appropriate and makes the sabbath a delight is
appropriate and is the goal. Focus on the outcome! How will we feel as
a result of this activity? We also talked about gaining trust with the
members and things we can do and then President opened it up to
questions.

Later that night we had a very brief lesson with Gracen. He has a
baptismal date set for Dec 12th. We should be good to go, he's an
awesome kid! We then had dinner with the Gray family and did some
proselyting.

The Round Rock stake is so missionary oriented I love it. Every month
we have a missionary breakfast at one of the stake president's homes.
They make us delicious food and we end up having a missionary
discussion at the end. Always motivating and always fun. They taught
us how to use just serve, but Washington received that training so
long ago. I was ahead of the game. But we have an opportunity to help
serve thanksgiving dinner to the needy at a Catholic Church. Our zone
is going to go and do that together. It will be a good experience.
People are so good to us. We have been asked so many times if we have
thanksgiving plans. You're probably wondering the same! Me and Elder
McNeil are going to do the service dinner thing and then go to a
members home for food! We are then going to help him paint a room and
then probably go and proselyte a little bit. It should be a great day!

This stake is awesome. Three times a year they have a 'Why I Believe'
fireside and they have coverts bear testimony and share their
conversion stories along with beautiful music. It was so powerful. One
lady named Jeanie was approached by missionaries with no desire to
change her bad habits or change at all. She didn't care why she was on
earth and had no desire to find out. She said the missionaries could
come by and they always did even when she didn't want them to. Slowly
she opened up and came to church and slowly grew to like the church
and the teachings. She was so impressed by all the people that were
members of our church and she wanted what they had. She went on and on
about the little things we take for granted being lifelong members
that she deeply appreciates. It is always so nice to hear different
perspectives, and she had a great perspective! Another guy, Perry,
grew up on a tiny Caribbean island. His mom was deeply religious and
started out Catholic. She had questions that her pastor couldn't
answer so she left. She went on a journey to find God. Perry said
every week they would go to a different church. They eventually went
to every church on his island and his mom wasn't satisfied with any of
them. His dad one day was working for a man and at the end of the
workday the man invited his dad and his family over for "bible study."
That's what they thought it was, but it was really FHE. His mother was
introduced to the BoM, the pearl of great price, and D&C. All her
questions were answered from the new scripture and shortly came to
know the church to be true. Later on a stake was organized and they
became active. Perry, at the age of 14, wasn't so sure what he
believed. He went on his own journey to find God and did it the same
way his mother did. One night he was watching his sisters when he felt
a prompting to go to a religious gathering that was going on. He
listened and went. While he was there a man asked him what church do
you go to and why are you here? He answered I am here to learn and I
am from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The guy then
took him about 50 yards from the gathering and asked him again what
church he was from. Perry said the same thing. The guy then told him
everything wrong and bad about the church you could say. Perry said an
overwhelming peace came over me and I told him that Jesus is the
Christ, God is my father, the BoM is true, and Joseph smith was a
prophet. The spirit bore testimony to him that the church was true,
and his journey was over. Then ANOTHER powerful conversion story was
told. It was great! I'm running out of time so I will give you the
gist. He lived in Norway, he came to America as a foreign exchange
student, the family he lived with was lds, they prayed to know what
they needed to do, they gave him a BoM, he was baptized at the age of
19 and now is in the stake presidency.

If you want to see what a positive, powerful affect the gospel has on
individuals and families, go on a mission. You won't be able to deny
the power and the truthfulness of the gospel.

Elder McNeil is the best companion I could ever hope for. I consider
myself nice, but he is so nice. He is so obedient and tries so hard to
do what's right. Is so kind and charitable to others and strives to
see the good in them. I am grateful for our companionship and his
great example!

We have had so many funny things happen to us. When you work with
people all day it's inevitable. They are hard to explain, but I will
give it a go with one of them. We were visiting less actives in a
older neighborhood when we see this older lady struggling with
something. We offer our assistance and she lets us help. She is 73 and
is trying to cement caulk some cracks in the outside of her house. She
clearly has no clue what's she is doing, but good on her for trying
right? The cracks are absolutely tiny, and don't need to be covered at
all, but she is selling her house so she wants it to be perfect. She
ends up being hilarious. We couldn't figure out why the caulking gun
wasn't working, we got it to work but she couldn't do get the cement
to come out consistently, we ended up doing most of it for her but it
was hilarious. She got sooooo excited. You kinda just have to meet her
to know how funny it was. Her name is Diana and we have an appointment
with her tonight.

The sweetest lady, Jalene, asked my mom for my favorite foods and then
made them for me when we went to dinner. How nice is that?

So many good people are members of this church. I love to be a part of
it and grow with others!

My favorite scripture this week is Mosiah 2:22. We are asked to do a
lot but when we keep the commandments, all is well. The promise for
keeping the commandments is found in Mosiah 2:41. Keep the
commandments and I promise you life will be great and peace will fill
your days.

I love all of you and I am grateful for all of you in my life. Have
the best thanksgiving and know that I am thinking about you! Eat good
food and be happy!

Love, love, love,
Elder Christensen

11/16/15 - Winter has fallen upon the city of Round Rock‏

It's a whopping 50 degrees, which isn't even cold. But because of the
painfully hot summer I have become a huge wimp. I've had to pull out
my jackets and sweaters a few times now. It's not bad walking around
but biking in the chill air can be a bit cold sometimes.

Anyways, on to more important news. I have a new companion! That last
transfer was the fastest transfer ever. It felt like only a couple
days ago me and Elder Shipley first met. My new companion is Elder
McNeil. He is fun and we should be able to get lots done this
transfer, which is always such a blessing. He is my oldest companion
yet! He has been out for a year, he is from Arizona (Sho Low), he is a
soccer player and has 5 siblings. He is the second oldest. It will be
fun to serve with him.

Lots happened this past week. We found a new person to teach. His name
is Fabio and he has recently moved here from Brazil. He has a wife and
a two year old son. Elder Shipley had knocked on his door in the past
and he said we could come by sometime. We went and knocked on his door
and he said, "hold on, I have something to show you." That's the
translation, or what he meant to say, kind of a language barrier. But
he comes back down stairs and to the door and shows us a Book of
Mormon in Portuguese. He says he has been reading from it with his
nephew. How cool is that? (I might have told you that part already).
We set up an appointment and we taught him this week. We taught him
and his wife the restoration and he expressed to us that he just wants
to know the right path that leads to heaven. A very prepared man. We
told him that the prophets will always show us the right path. He then
asked "how do I know if someone is a prophet?" We told him that a
prophet has to have the priesthood and the priesthood is in this
church. The BoM and prayer is the way to know. I didn't do the best
job answering his question, but we will meet with him again. He said
he would read and pray. We have an appointment with him tonight!
Always fun to teach lessons.

We also met with Gracen and Gabi again. Gracen is doing great! We
taught him the plan of salvation this past week. At the beginning of
the lesson we explained that the pos answers some big questions such
as where did we come from, why are we here, and where are we going. We
asked him if he had ever asked himself those questions. He said yes I
have, not all at the same time, but at different times I have asked
myself that. When I was ten I was still thinking about nothing
important. We then explained a little bit about how families could be
sealed in temples. He thought that was the coolest thing. He said my
mom and sister always told me that after we die and go to heaven we
wouldn't know who our family was, but I always knew that was wrong! He
is one incredibly prepared 10 year old. He is living with his uncle
who was baptized about 9 months ago. Because of his uncles choice, he
has been introduced to the gospel. Our choices matter. The only
problem I could see us running into with his baptism is his mom not
giving him permission. But we will see.

Gabi is doing ok. She has some pretty big concerns at the moment with
the doctrine and the church. A while back we taught the plan of
salvation and she had a problem with the fact that if her family
didn't become lds her family wouldn't be together forever. She has
expressed to us that her family doesn't want to be baptized lds. They
think church is too long and too boring. She's struggling, she might
stop meeting with us soon. We tried to teach the plan again because
she said she didn't understand it but she had concerns with everything
we taught. She is a very knowledgeable lady, hopefully she comes
around and decides to do what is right. She knows what she needs to
do, it's now a matter of doing it.

Tuesday was also the day we got transfer emails. So that's when I
found out I was getting a new companion. Same area, but new companion.
It also meant that my district was being switched up. Elder Hunt,
Shipley, and Sister Storms all left. Sad day. Elder Meachum, who's
name is also Kade, is in the district, and so is Sister Angulo. Funny,
because she was in my last district. I think this transfer will be a
bit trickier than last as a district leader. I think the district will
need more help and guidance. We shall see!

We helped someone put together chandeliers. It was fun, I guess. It
helped save them so time so it was service. Service is always good.

We transferred on Thursday. That was interesting. Austin transfer
meeting is at 2 so it leaves so much time to be nervous. I always get
nervous when I get a new companion. It's awful. So just prolonging the
time when you find out who your new companion is is awful. But like
always, transfer meeting was great. The chapel that it was at was only
25 minutes away which was nice. At every transfer meeting they are
starting to have musical numbers. Sister Weber sang come thou fount.
It was incredible. She has quite the talent. She is a small lady but
she has a loud, powerful voice. We were all impressed. Elder Baker is
training, and to make a long story short he can't drive. So guess who
has their car until he can drive? We do! It's been nice to have one.
We could totally use a car in this area. It's big enough.

I've seen twice this week what divorce can do to families. Don't get a
divorce, work it out. It hurts everyone involved. We met with a less
active lady who is struggling with her beliefs. Thankfully she is
willing to stay in contact with the church. It's a sad situation. Me
and Elder McNeil afterwards were like ok our hearts are broken now.
Kind of neat how we were able to meet with her. We stopped by a
previous day to meet her and she said we could come back. Long story
short, our plans feel through. But the spirit show d us EXACTLY what
we needed to do. The spirit said go to the orange area, and go to
Jennifer. It was really cool. She let us in and we figured out what we
could do to help her. The spirit is real, and like President Monson
says, when you're on the Lord's errand, you deserve His help.

All in all, great week!
Trials help us grow. And it has been incredible to look back 9 months
ago and see how far I have come. I have really, truly learned that the
gospel is the only way prepare ourselves for the great and last day.
God loves us so He has restored the gospel so we can know the way.
Live the gospel, be happy. A mission is a wonderful thing!

Love you!
Sincerely,
Elder Christensen

11/9/15 - "Are you out preaching the word of man?" - crazy guy‏

Dear sweet friends and family,

Running into people that don't have filters is fun. They aren't open
to learning and they don't let you talk, but you do get to listen to
some funny stuff! Such was the case the other day. We walk up to this
guy because we were looking for a less active that lives at this house
and the first thing he is, "are you out preaching the word of man? The
Mormon religion is a man made religion." Oh boy, the best way to
handle these kinds of things is say cool, can we do anything for you?
They normally say no and that's the end of that. It's always fun.

More rain this week. It makes it miserable. It will rain for like an
hour and then stop for an hour. Which makes it so hard to know whether
or not to bring a raincoat or a jacket. We have to take the brushy
creek trail down to vista ridge area so when it rains we are stuck in
walsh ranch. Not bad, but it does get old.

I can't remember if I told y'all or not but we went and helped a
former investigator set up Halloween decorations last week and then
she asked us if we could help her take them down. Service is always
good. She has some health issues and she gets tired quick and needed
help. She wants to take us to lunch on Saturday. To make it productive
we are going to focus on the restoration and the gospel. Hopefully it
works.

In vista ridge and Walsh ranch we only have two not-as-nice areas.
Brown and brown. We were in WR brown and we found an older couple that
invited us back to teach them the plan of salvation. They fell
through, but it led us to a guy named Paul that lives next to them.
Neat how it all works. We also had a LA guy in that same neighborhood.
He had mice allllll over his doorway and yard. It's so weird that we
can go three blocks away from there and be in a nice neighborhood. But
go three blocks towards this neighborhood and it becomes a slum. Weird
right? It's neat to have the opportunity to present people with the
gospel that will truly change their lives if they want to change.
People in poor areas always seem to be more humble.

While we were in this same area we kept going by this really animated
walker with sunglasses on. I always take things like this seriously or
as a sign that we need to take to them. When we saw her we were
already riding our bikes so I knew it was going to be awkward, but o
tried anyways. As we rode past her I held out a card and said hello
ma'am in the hopes she would take it. She was just silent, no smile,
walked on by. It was funny. We also had another LA guy we were trying
to find yell at us through his door "GO AWAY!!" Lots of good stuff
this week.

So sorry this is a shorter one. We didn't have wifi all day and I
wanted to play chair soccer. I promise you are more important! Sorry
:(

In closing, I enjoyed this quote from Elder Maxwell. He's talking to
all the people that can't decide whether or not to be active in the
church.

Do not think, either, about the doctrine that you are a child of God,
for if you do, it will be the beginning of belonging.

Exaltation is our goal; discipleship is our journey. - Elder Utchdorf

I love you all very, very much. I have been reading past letters
before I go to bed and while doing so I have gotten to know y'all
more. It's been so fun!

Have an awesome, possum week!

Love,
Elder Christensen

A few photos - Bumper stickers and flooding

11/2/15 - Truly, sweet is the work!

Hello friends and family! Another week has come and gone. I can't
believe week 5 of this transfer has begun! That means transfer emails
are next Tuesday. Crazy! We will see what happens. Our zone leader,
Elder Tovar, just became the new assistant to the president so we will
see who our new one is! Which makes me super bummed, because he was my
last zone leader as well in east zone. Ever since I met him I hoped I
would be able to go on an exchange with him. I had my chance to when I
went on exchanges with the zone leaders but his companion went with me
instead. Hopefully I will have another chance to before he goes home.
Love that guy. He is a hard worker!

I hope everyone had a great Halloween! Isn't it crazy how fast the
holidays come and go? Everyone was so excited for it, but now it's
gone just like that. The good holidays are coming up now. I'm going to
miss y'all and grandma's incredible cooking. Rolls, 7 layer jello,
turkey.... Mmmmm. If I'm in this area again we will eat dinner with
the Cramer's. I like them so it will be fun.

Speaking of Halloween, it went well for us. We don't have any specific
rules from our mission president for Halloween but he gave us
suggestions for things we could do inside. We had dinner with the
Hansen family. She made some delicious chili and rice and then we
talked to the people she invited over to join them. It was about 6:15
when we left and we rode through one neighborhood and got plenty of
unkind, weird looks which was uncomfortable so we decided it would be
safest to go home. On our way home a middle aged couple called out to
us and we went over and had a conversation about religion on their
front porch for an hour which was awesome. They were devout Catholics
but they love Mormons because we are also devout. It was nice, they
were nice people. During the day we just proselyted like normal.
Weirdly enough no one was home. I'm pretty sure out of the 30 people
we tried only 10 answered.

So yes, it has rained like crazy here as of late. It has been way fun!
Some tornados touched down all around Austin. And downtown Austin was
completely flooded. Was kind of cool to see on the news. But anyways,
the trail we ride is the brushy creek trail and right next to that
trail is, oddly enough, brushy creek! When it rains that creek becomes
a gushing river and that trail gets destroyed. It becomes one giant
muddy mess! We were a little worried on Halloween that we wouldn't be
able to get to dinner because brushy creek trail is the only way to
get there. Thanks heavens the Lord is aware of all of us and some
members offered us a ride to get over there. There's is little bridge
that leads to a neighborhood that goes over brushy creek and water was
rushing over it. See the photo at the end of the email. It's been an
adventure. Lots of beautiful sunsets as of late too.

We had district meeting this past Froday. I love my district. I
thought my other districts were good, but this one is awesome! A bunch
of great missionaries and great people. Love them lots! Sister Storms
is going home next week and we will miss her. I'm very impressed by
her not showing it at all. She doesn't seem homesick or ready to be
done, she is finishing strong! After district meeting we have district
lunch. I think our favorite place to go is Torchies tacos. It is
delicious. I am always impressed whenever I eat there. They have a big
menu of different tacos they make and I order two tacos and a drink,
sometimes queso which is delicious chip dip. Yummy stuff!

I always enjoy testimony meeting, but these two Wards really struggle
with it. I consider myself kind of patient with others, but man, it
truly is a test of my patience with others when fast and testimony
meeting happens and everyone tells a story. I think the only time
Christ was mentioned was at the end, in the name of.... It was awful.
Two people gave their testimonies and there was five minutes left.
That's my rant for the week. Moral of the story, please keep your
testimony centered on Christ and the basic doctrines of the gospel.
Let's really give sacrament meeting back to Christ.

We have continued to bike around and stop by less actives and
prospective elders. We are making progress! We started to work smarter
this last week and it payed off. We met some families who said they
would like us to come back or stop by when we are in the area. Last
night for example, we went by a single guy on the records and he has a
wife and 3 kids who aren't baptized but said we could come back next
weekend because that's when its best to catch them. We talked for a
little while and they opened up. We also met a single lady who was
raised LDS but has fallen away. She was also totally open to us coming
back. She has a husband that isn't a member. There is so much work to
do, it's all about looking in the right places. 5 weeks later, we
finally have some direction in the work! We are going to start meeting
with a recent converts nephew who now lives with him. Lots to look
forward to! I struggle a little bit in this area with my lack of
helping others. It feels as if we don't help as many people in this
area. Not as many people wanting helping or seeing the need for it.
But I was reminded this week that I really do have lots and lots of
opportunities to help. It's up to me to see them and see opportunities
to serve as just that, service. No matter how big or small. As we were
going by less actives and PE's we stopped by a family we didn't know.
We knock and it turns out it's an active single mom in the Ward.
Sister Duncan! It turns out her brother in law is Weylan Duncan, who
used to be in Columbia Ward when we were there. Funny huh? But she
asks us if we have dinner and our dinner fell through so we said no.
She invited us to come back during dinner time and we gladly accepted.
A homemade meal is a beautiful thing to missionaries. We go back and
she chats our ears off, but at the end she says thank you so much for
coming back, I adding get to have adult conversation very often. She
is a single mom with an autistic younger son who requires lots of
attention, and a 10 year old. I'm sure it was a wonderful break for
her to talk for a little bit and relax. Apparently Heavenly Father
needed us to go and listen that day. Not as many big things we can do,
but lots of little acts of service. But isn't that the truth for life?
We all have tons of opportunities for little acts of service
throughout our days. As we serve daily, we love those we serve. We all
want to express our love for others anyways, and small chances to do
so are given to us everyday!

I had the privilege of going on exchanges with Elder Hunt on Friday.
He has only been out for 3 months but he is awesome! I learned so much
from him. He doesn't take anything personally and works so well with
others. He tries to have fun and shares the gospel at the same time.
Great thing to learn! They have been incredibly, incredibly blessed as
of late with prepared people to work with. They have been working with
a lady named Diana who knows the gospel is true. When we she found out
she couldn't be baptized unless she was married to the person she
lives with she almost instantly filed for divorce. Now she is just
waiting for the divorce to be finalized so she can be baptized. How
cool is that? So excited for her to experience the blessings of the
Holy Ghost. It truly is an incredible gift. We also met with a family
that a 16 year old referred the missionaries to. It was one of the
most powerful lessons I have ever been in. The 18 year old daughter
said she wants the truth and is willing to do anything to find out
what it is. By the end, she understood that reading the BoM and
praying about it was how she was going to find out if it was true. She
said if she finds out this is the truth and it's what is good she will
do it, be baptized. How cool is that? The spirit was so strong the
whole time. The dad also sat in the lesson and the younger brother as
well. Everyone wants to be baptized except the dad. Hopefully he comes
around, and he will. It might take some time though. He said that he
didn't understand why God would use prophets back then and not now. So
obviously he will come around. It was a very, very cool day. In
conclusion, elder hunt is awesome and it was a great day. Exchanges
are way fun and I get to learn a lot. Win win.

I was studying guidance from the spirit this morning and President
Eyring gave two talks on this topic this last general conference. One
of them was in the priesthood session. But in that talk he says we
find out what we need to do, and then the Lord will magnify it. If we
find out our role is to be friends with others and share with them the
light of the gospel, the Lord will do the rest to help them come to
Him and His gospel. He magnifies every good thing we do. Nothing good
we do goes to waste! Very cool talk, I'd recommend it.

Share the gospel my friends, life will be sweet as can be! Love you
all. You are all awesome and God loves you very much. Everything we go
through is intended to help us become stronger. The stronger the wind,
the stronger the trees! Have a blessed week!

Love,
Elder Christensen
Do Good Stuff!

10/26/15 - Raining and flooding, again!

This past week we had some serious rain. Me and Elder Shipley had no
idea why until we talked to this one lady who said the strongest
hurricane ever recorded hit Mexico and the aftermath was coming at us
in a straight line. It rained for 2 days straight and we got 9 inches
in one day. It was awesome! Though it made a damper on missionary
work. We tried to bike around but we became soaked to the bone in a
matter of minutes. It was a no go. So we only went to our set
appointments and went and visited members we didn't know. It ended up
being a fun day.

Before the real storm began it would rain for 5 minutes and then stop,
rain 5 minutes and then stop. But it became quiet and still or about
30 minutes. Then all of a sudden it began to dump buckets of rain on
us. It was quit the adventure! Since we were close to the church we
went and took refuge there and waited for it to stop. We were dripping
wet so we tried to dry off a little but it didn't work. We ended up
being wet for the remainder of the day. All part of the adventure
right?

I can't remember if I told you the "trail" story, so I will tell you
in case I haven't. Since we are on bikes it can be hard to get to
certain places in our area. Sometimes we have to come up with creative
ways to get to these places. We had been assigned by the ward council
to go and talk to this lady, Elizabeth, about taking the missionary
lessons and she so happens to live in one of these special, hard to
get to places. We looked at google maps on our iPads for a way to get
there and thank heavens for Elder Shipley's trail dedication. He found
one that would get us to where we needed to go. We get to the place
where the beginning of the trail should be and its a construction
site. We walk through it thinking the trail is going to be on the
other side of the site, which it is. So far so good. We take the trail
for a little while until we get to fence number 1. I admit, this was
not our best idea nor was it very smart. We hop the fence and get our
bikes over and continue on our way. This happens two more times. But
we get to this spot where a bridge should be and there is no bridge,
only a stream that's about 100 feet wide. Our only choice was to cross
it. We get to the other side and go to Elizabeth's house only to find
out that she is not home. Turns out she does not want to take the
missionary lessons but she wants to come to church and still have her
daughter go to activity days. It will take time but they will come
around. It sounds like her husband is not too supportive which is
keeping them back. Bummer, but there is a plan for everyone.

I also had the privilege to go on exchanges with Elder Iverson. He
taught me lots, he is a great missionary! He is really good at getting
peoples attention and then relating something they say back to the
gospel. Something I would like to do better with. Something I am going
to work on this upcoming week is being bold and proclaiming the gospel
as with a trump! There is no need to not tell people about the gospel.
It is the power of God unto the salvation of man. It is what is going
to save mankind and the world. Every time I don't talk to someone or
bear testimony is an opportunity wasted. There is a quote in PMG
regarding testimony by Thomas S. Monson. It says "Regarding one's
testimony, remember, that which one willingly shares he keeps, while
that which he selfishly keeps he loses. ...Teach and testify. There is
no better combination." I think I have learned what that that means
this past week. If we don't open our mouths and share our testimony
when we are given the chance to do so, we are going to lose it. Kind
of cool huh?

We saw a very cool miracle yesterday. Normally we call to remind
people that they have signed up to feed us dinner a day in advance
because we are all human, we all forget. But for whatever reason, we
did not call to remind these poor people on Saturday that they signed
up to feed us on Sunday. Before sacrament meeting started we went over
and asked them if that would still work and they said sure, come on
over! We go to dinner and they said they used to be in Walsh ranch but
because of the Ward split they are now in vista ridge. They remember a
guy that was baptized about a year ago and they said we should go by
him sometime. It just so happened that we were going to where he lived
after dinner! We end up going by and he comes out on his porch and we
talk a little bit and then he invites us in. His friend who was there
said he had always been interested in what Mormons believe. We teach
him the restoration and he says he will read the Book of Mormon. How
cool is that? I am always so impressed by Heavenly Father and how well
He knows His children. I promise you that Heavenly Father knows you.
He weeps when you suffer and rejoices when you do what is right. Very
cool to see the spirit direct the Glazier's thoughts towards that guy
and then having us go by. We are truly in the Lord's errand!

Because Heavenly Father loves us He desires us to be free from the
burden of sin. So He sends missionaries to people who need to hear the
message of the gospel; the message that they can be clean and be free
from the sins and addictions of this world through Jesus Christ and
His Atonement.

Something very cool I learned more about this week is the enabling
aspect of Christ's atonement. Commonly referred to as grace. All we
have to do is ask and it will be given us, as long as we are striving
to do what God asks of us. It only makes sense that we receive
blessings we show God that we want. We show God we want blessings as
we keep the commandments. Mosiah 2:41 "consider on the blessed and
happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold,
they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual." Blessed
in ALL things. Keep the commandments and ask for strength to endure,
strength to change, strength to accept the will of God, whatever it
may be.

We had district meeting this past week as well. It was fine, we have a
wonderful district so if it turns out meh then that's ok because they
are still awesome. Lots of leaders in this district. Always next time
right?

Yesterday we had our other Ward primary program. Funny stuff was said
. But on our other Ward it was a normal sacrament meeting and the
coolest story was shared. This kids grandparents are in Madagascar
serving a mission. In Madagascar they have been having awful drought
so the people are literally starving. The grandparents had the
opportunity to go and deliver food to the people there. The grandma
said the picture that will always stay in her mind is a starving
mother with a starving baby on her back that looked lifeless. They
were escorted by 7 armed gun man because rebels might try and take the
food. They get there start handing out the food and the rebels start
coming out of the forest. They stand at the edge of the forest and
just wait. The grandma thinks it might be a good idea to go over and
make friends. She goes over with her translator and asks if she can
have a picture with them. They end up being flattered and say yes that
would be fine. Originally they saw 14 of them but all of a sudden they
started coming out of nowhere and there ends up being 200 rebels with
shotguns standing there wanting to be in the picture. It works! They
become friends and they end up going over and helping hand out the
food to the starving people. Isn't that awesome? Thought that was a
cool story, wanted to share.

Love the gospel, love Jesus Christ, love all of you! Have a great week!
Sincerely,
Elder Christensen
Do Good Stuff

This is a cane standing on a turtle! We ride by this lake almost everyday.

You might have crows in a power line, but we have vultures. Yes, those are all vultures ready to eat anything that has recently died.

10/19/15 - Will the priesthood please put the chairs away?‏

*This is a longer letter*

President Slaughter is a funny man. Lots of little traditions that the
church has that drive him nuts, and one of them is when people say,
after a meeting, "will the priesthood please put the chairs away?"

President Slaughter: Whenever I hear people say that, I just sit and
wait to see what's going to happen. I wait for the chairs to fold
themselves up and put themselves away. What we should really say is
will the men please put away the chairs.

Here another one. We were talking about praying and vain repetitions
we often use. One of the ones we as members of the church use a lot
is, "Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for this day." When we pray we
are speaking directly to the most powerful being in the universe, and
we thank him for the day.

President Slaughter: I hear it all the time, people when they start
their prayers will say thank you for this day. If God walked into the
room would we all turn to Him and say, "Ah, thank you for THIS day!"
No, so why do we when we pray?

He says that using these vain repetitions such as help us get home
safely, thank you for this day, etc. keep us back from saying things
that actually matter and asking for things we actually need. All in
all, he is a good man. I will miss him when he leaves. I have come to
love him.

Every other transfer, so every 12 weeks, we get to sit down with
President and have interviews. This past Wednesday I had the chance to
talk with him. I brought up the point that I really don't enjoy
talking to people, because this is something I consistently struggle
with. I wanted to know if there was a way I could enjoy it or what I
could do to change. His response, so you're an introvert, me too. He
then went on to say how in the past 50 years of his life he hasn't
found out a way to enjoy it, but how his perspective has changed. His
love for the Lord has sunk deeper, deeper into his heart and because
of that its not about him, it's about the Lord and others. Because he
loves the Lord, he talks to people, laughs with them, and strives to
help them feel comfortable. Our love for the Lord will lead us to do
things that will stretch us and make us better tools in his hands.
Someone once asked an apostate if he enjoyed being an apostle. The
apostle said, "I didn't know it was a requirement to be an apostle. I
do it because I love the Lord." That should be our motivator as well.
If you don't feel deep love for the Lord, learn of His atonement
through the scriptures and then apply it to your life. Elder Dallin H.
Oaks gave a great talk about the atonement in this recent general
conference titled, Strengthened by the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

One more cool thing I learned and then I will tell you the stuff you
want to know.

Jesus Christ, whenever he taught people or healed someone, He always
required them to show faith. He did this because He wanted them to
develop greater faith; he wanted them to grow. For example, when Jesus
rose Lazarus from the dead, He asked the people present to move the
stone away. This took faith that Jesus could actually raise him from
the dead. The same goes with priesthood blessings.

Elder Nelson puts it perfectly.

Olive trees are special in the Holy Land. The olive branch is
universally regarded as a symbol of peace. This tree provides food,
light, heat, lumber, ointments, and medicine. It is now, as it was
then, crucial to life in Israel. It is not a deciduous tree, but ever
bearing--always green. Even if the tree is chopped down, life will
spring from its roots, suggesting everlasting life.


Jesus came to the base of the Mount of Olives to effect
the first component of the Atonement. This He did at the Garden of
Gethsemane. The word Gethsemane comes from two Hebrew roots: gath,
meaning “press,” and shemen, meaning “oil,” especially that of the
olive.


There olives had been pressed under the weight of great
stone wheels to squeeze precious oil from them. So the Christ in the
Garden of Gethsemane was literally pressed under the weight of the
sins of the world. He sweat great drops of blood--his life’s
“oil”--which issued from every pore. (See Luke 22:44; D&C 19:18.)


Jesus was accorded titles of unique significance. One
was the Messiah, which in Hebrew means “anointed.” The other was the
Christ, which in the Greek language means “anointed” as well. In our
day, as it was in His day, the ordinance of administration to the sick
includes anointing with the consecrated oil of the olive. So the next
time you witness consecrated oil being anointed on the head of one to
be blessed, and these sacred words are said, “I anoint you with this
consecrated oil,” remember what that original consecration cost.
Remember what it meant to all who had ever lived and who ever would
yet live. Remember the redemptive power of healing, soothing, and
ministering to those in need. Remember, just as the body of the olive,
which was pressed for the oil that gave light, so the Savior was
pressed. From every pore oozed the life blood of our Redeemer. And
when sore trials come upon you, remember Gethsemane.

The anointing of oil before a priesthood blessing is an opportunity
for us to remember the Savior and to develop greater faith in Him and
in His atonement.

Anyways, about my week! It was a great week. Still low on teaching
others but that's because we have been doing things wrong. President
gave me and Elder Shipley advice to stop knocking on so many doors and
start getting to know the less actives, part-members, and active
members. Chastisement taken, it was needed. We received that advice on
Wednesday so for the past three days that's what we have been doing.

As missionaries we do this thing called weekly planning where we plan
for the week, just how it sounds. So we made a list of every once in
the Ward and put them in their color. We have our area split into
colors so we can organize ourselves and make the best use of our time.
We did that which will help a ton. We also got a Ward roster for the
vista ridge Ward and a prospective elders list which will give us
direction and keep us busy. The work is improving.

I think I left off talking about our plan to teach more. That's the
end of that!

We had a lesson this week with a family that's coming back to church
named the Dollahites. The reason they decided hey needed to come back
was because of their son and an experience they had with the Lego
Movie. After watching the Lego Movie, their son Tim, had some
questions about God and was convinced that Will Farewell was God. This
concerned them quite a bit. Since Bro. Dollahite had been raised LDS
and his wife was baptized but never active, they decided to come back.
Kind of funny! We talked about the importance of the BoM and what it
helps us with. The BoM plays three roles, foundation of testimony,
witness of Christ, and fullness of doctrine. We then read Alma 36 and
focused on its role as a witness of Christ and hoe the BoM helps us
grow closer to Him. They really enjoyed it. As a missionary I get to
do stuff like that all the time so I forget sometimes that it's a
treat when we go to people's houses and they get to learn about the
gospel, at their house! They are a very sweet family. I like them a
lot! Its always cool to see how the gospel unites people. At first it
was kind of awkward as we tried to get to know each other and talk but
by the end we could feel the connection. And that connection comes
from the gospel and our love for Christ. It's neat to experience.

I also had the privilege of going on exchanges with Elder Baker on
Tuesday. He's the youngest, mission age, in the district but I have
lots to learn from him. He does a great job talking to others, showing
interest in them and helping them feel comfortable. And by so doing he
can share the gospel easily. I also got to use a car for the day so
that was a blessing in its self! Elder Hunt and Baker live with an old
lady. She likes to be called Abuelita. It was kind of fun to live with
an old lady for the day. I feel like when you live with someone it
feels like you actually live in a home. You don't have as much
privacy, but you do have a home feeling. But since she is old she
likes to keep the temperature at about 78 which is hot. At night they
sneak out and turn it down and before she gets up in the morning they
turn it back up. Not the best, but also kind of funny. There are a ton
of small business here because everyone is rich, which means there are
tons of good restaurants. We tried this place called Bahama Bucks
which is the best shaved ice I have ever had. It's incredibly fine, I
don't know how they do it. It was yummy stuff. Also on our exchange we
taught a guy named Conner who they had been working with. We brought a
lady from e Ward to the lesson with us and we think she might of felt
attacked a little bit by his questions and as a result she went on a
rampage of bearing pure testimony. It was intense. So hopefully that's
not ruined for them, she felt bad afterwards. It happens. A lot
happened that day. We also had dinner with the cutest, awesome at
family ever. They had 6 kids, 3 boys and 3 girls. I thinks that's
perfect. But she made us homemade noodles and made chicken noodle
soup. It was incredibly good. They were fun to eat with.

A while back we were asked to teach a class for a mini mission youth
activity and of course we said yes. We did that on Wednesday. It was
fun, we taught three classes 15 minutes each to a group of about 10 on
the purpose of missionary work and why it's I
important to share the gospel. You can tell people all day everyday
these things but unless you have felt the atonement work in your life
you won't have a burning desire to share it. Hopefully they will feel
it and then desire to share it.

As your understanding of the Atonement of Jesus Christ grows, your
desire to share the gospel will increase. (Preach My Gospel pg. 2)

We are still getting fed everyday by wonderful people. They make sure
to take care of us, that's for sure! If we don't have a dinner or
someone can't have us over for whatever reason, they order is pizza.
Way nice. People are good.

We also had a great opportunity to serve a lady named Maria. She asked
us to help her load her trailer with stuff she was taking to Mexico to
donate. We said of course and helped her out. It was fun, and she
bought us groceries so we don't have to shop today. It was sweet of
her. We are going to try and teach her, she has been taught in the
last but maybe she will be open this time, who knows!

It was funny because the day before we went over to help her i was
thinking, man I wish I had a shoe horn. While we were packing up all
her stuff, in one of the boxes there was a shoe horn and she said I
could have it. Heavenly Father is oh so mindful of all of us.

I get to go one exchanges with the zone leaders tomorrow which will be
fun. My zone leader from my last area, East Zone, moved with me to
this zone and is my zone leader again. He has been my zone leader my
whole mission and I have always wanted to work with him for a day and
now is my chance! His name is Elder Tovar, he is wise and a hard
worker. Can't wait!

We also had an awesome stake missionary breakfast at our stake
presidents house. President Ludrop has missionary breakfast once a
month where all missionaries in the stake are invited and all the Ward
mission leaders too. We talk about how we can improve, what's working,
what's not working, etc. It was awesome! Lots of wisdom was shared and
lots of things to improve on. The food was also great! Austin is
awesome.

Anyways, the gospel is true. Our main purpose in this life is to
conform our will to Heavenly Father's. His will is for us to return to
live with Him. But we must be obedient to do so. Conforming our will
to God's will is hard and requires faith, but it can be our sturdiest
rock to stand on. If conforming our will to God's is essential, it
means that the gospel is true. The universe is set up for our success.
It's so much bigger than just us. I don't know how to express this. If
you ever doubt the gospel and the truthfulness thereof, remember that
there is more than just you. Remember that we need to conform our will
to God's, humble yourself and acknowledge a grander purpose. Life is
good! God is good! He is always around us.

Love you all!
Sincerely,
Elder Christensen
Do Good Stuff