Days and Weeks

Dear Family and Friends,

Life is good here! I am enjoying the MTC, but I am ready to get out! I want to get out into the field, but then I think about it and know that I still have a lot of learning to do. Next week I will be in crazy heat and feeling the same way I did the first day in the MTC which was along the lines of “What is happening and why did I sign up for this?” haha.  In my brother, Evan’s email he wrote the truest statement I have ever heard: “The days feel like weeks, but the weeks feel like days.”  So much happens each week I never know what to include in this e-mail.  On Friday, I received my Patriarchal Blessing! It was amazing.  It was a super cool and sacred experience.

The devotionals this week were super spiritual.  On Sunday, we heard from Matthew Holland, the son of Elder Jeffery Holland.  He talked about the history of Joseph Smith and the importance of the message of the restoration. On Tuesday night devotional, Elder Couch and I got second row seats right where the speaker walks in! It was Elder Neil L. Anderson of the Quorum of the Twelve. He talked on a lot of things that I needed to hear and I know he is a true disciple and apostle of Christ.

Elder Stevenson & Elder Call

We finished teaching our first two TRC investigators.  In the short time we taught them we could see each grow in faith.  We had a really good relationship with both of them. One was the easiest TRC ever!  He will do anything we ask and he understands everything!  He definitely is a member. The other one was a little different.  We practically talked through four lessons and just bore testimony about things she was struggling with.  She is from Korea and when we invited her to pray for us at the end of the lesson she said she would do it if she could say it in Korean.  She prayed extremely quiet and fast in her native language and she said amen and I wasn’t positive I heard it, so she said amen again louder and we then extremely embarrassed followed and said amen! haha she went on to explain that Amen is the same as amen itt just made the humiliation worse!! hahaha it wouldn’t be a mission if there weren’t embarrassing times, happy times, and frustrating times. During our last lesson she thanked us for being such great teachers and for not shoving loads of info down her throat.  We were so excited to hear that what we were doing is exactly what she wanted and she said we helped her tremendously get closer to God!  Our new TRC investigators are not as easy as the first ones.  One of them just wants to show us videos on his I-pad about restaurants in Vegas that we have to go to. It was so awkward haha.  I hope he will start opening up so we can actually teach him!  The other TRC investigator is Katie and she is super nice to us. She has some questions and we can answer her questions with the Gospel which is cool to see that through this Gospel all questions can be answered.

Elder Call & Elder Hendricks

A lot of the companionships in the district are starting to get after each other which is sad to see. Elder Couch and I are still getting along extremely well! He is way easy going and is always down for a good joke. This week I had to say goodbye to Brigg Hoopes and Chris Erickson.  Brigg was in my MTC Branch and so we had the same schedule.  Chris was right down the hall so I got to see him quite a bit. I saw them on a daily basis and loved seeing them, it was a little piece of home every day.  Along with saying goodbye to them I had to say goodbye to Elder Stevenson and Elder Hendricks.  They were elders in
Chris's district and we were instant best friends.  They are by far some of the funniest people I have ever met.  Elder Hendricks is from Texas and Elder Stevenson is from no man’s land Colorado and lives on a ranch.  He is a crazy big redneck and straight up country.  haha he has some interesting stories  and is one the list of best story tellers (still behind Hal and Uncle Darrin!)

I am learning so much and my testimony grows stronger everyday of the truthfulness of this gospel!  Through Christ all can be saved!  I love the scripture, Mark 12: 28-31,  because, it is so true, if we love God and we love the people around us, we will not have any problem with any other commandments. I am working each day to try to be a better missionary and follower of Christ.  I love all of you and encourage each of you to better yourself each day.  Report to Heavenly Father in prayer each night and think of what you can do better the following day in the morning.  Set goals in prayer and do your best to keep them.  The blessings are amazing.

Love,
Elder Call    

Mark 12

Cousin, Sister Sally Jensen called to the Baltic States Mission and Elder Ben Call

28 ¶And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all?
 29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:
 30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.
 31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.