THE OFFICE - WEEK 3

Privet family! Kak dela oo vas?

So basically this week has flown by yet again. It's crazy how the time goes by. This past week we reached several of our goals we set, I think it was the best week of my mission as far as attaining goals set. Among some of the goals reached are that we have a progressing investigator and we found two new investigators. We also found some good contacts on the street who were really interested in meeting. One was a nice older lady and another was a younger guy who we basically taught the whole first lesson to on the street because he asked how our church was different than the Jehovah's Witnesses. We also met a guy on Saturday night I think who wanted a Bible but we don't carry Bibles so we gave him a Book of Mormon and set up with him for tonight. His name's Dennis and he has a family. And we talked to this greeter in front of a restaurant on the street. His name is Nikolai and at first wasn't too interested in our message but we've gone back a few times and he's sparking some interest so we'll see what happens with him. There are always people interested to listen, it's all about attitude and opening your mouth. At the beginning of my mission I didn't like talking to people on the street and always feared it but now I don't mind it at all. Of course it's still scary sometimes but I have a lot more confidence now and it's something I've been working at. But this past week we've just been doing our best to find people to teach and like I said already we found two new investigators. One is a former investigator named Andrei. He is a chemical engineer and has read the Book of Mormon one time already. We are going to talk about baptism tonight with him because our last lesson didn't quite go as planned. And you might remember me talking about a lady a few weeks ago named Larissa? Well we set up a lesson with her last night and we ended up teaching her older daughter the first lesson instead of Larissa. Her daughter's name is Aksana and is probably 30ish. She attends a church called The Church of Victory with a pastor and priests and whatnot. But it was a pretty good lesson and she said she will read the Book of Mormon and pray about it so we'll see what happens with her. She has some concerns but everybody we teach has concerns so it's nothing new. I think she'll turn into a good investigator. And this past week we also met with our investigator Vladimir. He has agreed to pray about the Book of Mormon which is a huge step for him. When Elder Harrison and I first taught him he didn't even want to talk about the Book of Mormon so we're praying for him to receive an answer. He's 62 years old and likes talking about religion. Our next step with him is to get him to Church and ask him to be baptized of course. He met with sister missionaries one year ago but from what we understand kind of got scared about baptism. So we're just taking it slow with him. We have a lesson with him this Wednesday so hopefully all goes well.

I'm really like the office, it's a great area. We have lots of area to cover because the APs don't have an area anymore but it's awesome because there's tons of people to call in the area books and lots of new investigators to meet with. Plus the office isn't bad at all. We work Tuesdays and Wednesdays but we're basically here everyday because we eat lunch and dinner here and do weekly planning and district meeting so it's our second home. And I think I've talked a little about the people that work in the office but I don't remember so here's some info. Brother Vilakonov is the mission driver for President Campero. He used to be a mafia driver no joke haha. He was also a branch president here in Donetsk but has since been released. He does stuff with the books and apartments. There's also three people who work with visas and registration stuff. Tatiana, Aleksei, and Dima. Tatiana isn't a member but knows registration stuff inside and out so I guess the church just hired her early on. She's nice, always really busy. Aleksei just got called to be the branch Sunday school president yesterday. He's pretty cool. And Dima is a returned missionary who served in Kiev and he just got married. I don't really know them all that well I just talk to them now and then during the day. And then there's Sister Irina haha. Sister Irina is a babushka who was going to serve a Kiev Temple mission but then something didn't work out so she serves in the office a few days a week. She is really hard to understand because all old people are haha and she just says crazy stuff but she's great though. I've started to read the Book of Mormon in Russian with her for language study. It's going really well. I have a goal to finish reading the whole Russian triple before my mission's over. It's a good goal, I will achieve it near the end if I keep reading everyday. And then of course President is in the office when he's in town and Sister Lydia comes in three times a week to make us food. The office is a great place!

Now for some comments/tidbits. This Friday is the big ONE YEAR MARK! I can't believe it's almost here. It doesn't even seem like a year has gone by at all. Maybe for you but not for me. I've been thinking a lot about this past year and everything that has happened. My life has been completely changed and I know that Heavenly Father has blessed all of us so much. The mission is an amazing thing. I don't know where I'd be without it. I'm so grateful to all of you and for your love and support to me. I just hope and pray that I can do the things that I'm supposed to and accomplish what I need to. Every day is a blessing that God gives us to bless the lives of others. I know this to be true.

Well family, have a great week and keep on keepin on, okay? I love you all and the Church is true!

с любовью,

старейшина каун

украинская донецкая миссия

A Razzle Dazzle Week

Privet family!

So like two minutes ago the power went out in the office and now everyone's freaking out and yelling in Russian that I don't understand as I'm writing you so if this letter gets crazy then you'll know why haha. The computer is on a battery so I write on. This past week flew by! Things are going good in the office, pretty busy but good. It's been a challenge starting to train Elder Goloshokov. He's not bad or anything he's way cool and we all get along great but we have like no time to do his training with him so it's been a struggle everyday to fit it in and balance it with the office. It's really weird because he knows Russian but he doesn't know like any grammar or gospel vocab. But he speaks the language and grammar fine but he doesn't know it. It's hard to explain haha. But probably in a transfer or two he'll just take off and remember all of his Russian. I'm really grateful that I get to serve with him this transfer, he's really funny and has a great attitude about everything. And like I said already we're all getting along well. It's trying sometimes to be in a threesome because everything takes longer to do but things are good.

This past Tuesday we had a Mission Conference here in Donetsk and it was AMAZING. President Ronald A. Rasband, Presiding President of the Seventy, President Lawrence, President of Europe East Area, and President Campero, of course, were all there with their wives. It was awesome to be sitting there as part of the mission and listen to their words. The Spirit was very much present and I learned a lot of things to apply to my life and how I can better do the work here. President Rasband was here 20 years ago because he came with a friend to start a company in a city called Gorlovka (around Donetsk) making plastic utensils and cups. It was before missionaries were even here (I think if I remember correctly it was like the same year or something that missionaries arrived.) But anyway, he was here before the Church even was and he said that he started a Book of Mormon reading group because many of the employees were interested in religion. So fast-forward to June 2012 now, he spoke at the Kiev Stake Conference last Sunday and asked if anyone attending was in those Book of Mormon groups and there were 13 people that stood who had been baptized as a result several years earlier. He was surprised but very happy to see that his work hadn't gone to waste. This was a main point that he talked about with us, that every part of the work we do is noticed. Whether finding someone, teaching someone, working with a less active, baptizing, it doesn't matter what we do because it's all the same to the Lord and His harvest. President Rasband told us that the work here in Ukraine is amazing. In only 20 years there is already a temple and a stake in Kiev. (Hopefully we can get a stake in Donetsk very soon) He gave us lots of advice but what I really took from him was to be more diligent and urgent about the work. Time flies on the mission and so we must use it the best we can. At the end of the meeting we did a question and answer session. An elder asked what advice he would give to missionaries returning home and I really liked what he said: "Always stay worthy of holding a temple recommend because that's what it's all about." This truly is what it's all about. What I do and accomplish here on my mission remains with me for eternity and prepares me for the rest of my life. There's nowhere else that I'd rather be at this time.

Also this past week I went on a split with Elder Robison. He has been a Zone Leader in this area ever since he left me in Cold Mountain after one transfer so it's been a while. We taught a lesson to one of their investigators and she got baptized two days ago and confirmed yesterday so that was sweet! And we were finally able to play basketball together because we never got the chance in Cold Mountain. So basically it was a great split! We talked about just how fast time goes by and how much we've changed compared to when we were serving together and it's crazy to think about. On Friday this past week we were in charge of the English study group. Nine people came and we talked about different foods that people like to eat. And then during the group a huge rain storm hit, almost like a hurricane it was crazy! And it was at the end of our class so no one could go home because it was insane on the street. So it turned out that this man and woman wanted to know more about the Church and why we're here and stuff so we did a first lesson with them right after. The lesson was going pretty good we thought but at the end when we invited them to read the Book of Mormon to know if it's true or not they said NO! That's the first time someone has expressed an interest to meet and then rejected even reading at the end of the lesson, the whole climax haha. Elder Goloshokov was blown away by that so afterwards we just talked about how we can do everything and invite the Spirit but people still have free agency to reject the message. Sometimes this goes forgotten but hey, maybe in the future they'll want to read.

And on Saturday we did a service project with the branch. We started to paint an old fence at a kindergarten nearby the branch building. There was a good turnout of members but we didn't finish painting so we're going to go back soon and finish up. Something that I haven't done a ton of on my mission is service. We're supposed to do service every week but we can never find projects to do so I always like when the branch has these service projects planned. Most missionaries here have trouble finding service to do so it's kind of a problem for everyone. But we just gotta keep looking and we'll find it.

You asked a little about Akbar and I have great news to share with you. I called him this week on Thursday and found out that he was able to find a job!!! One of my last lessons with him was about faith and prayer and during that lesson I felt prompted to tell him that if he really started to look and involved prayer that he would find a job. And now he did!!! So he said that he's going to just keep working and start saving money because he wants to buy Ukrainian citizenship so we'll see what happens with him. But then yesterday I called Lambert because I needed to tell him something and he told me even better news that happened yesterday at church: AKBAR PASSED THE SACRAMENT, PAID HIS FIRST TITHING, AND GOT A CALLING IN THE ELDERS' QUORUM!!!!! IT'S SO AWESOME! And Lambert told me a conversation that he and Akbar said that pretty much sums up how great he is. A:"I want to pay this tithing from my heart directly to God." L:"Akbar, why are you so perfect?" A:"Only Jesus Christ was perfect." Akbar is the man! I was so happy to hear about all of this stuff happening yesterday. I wish I could've been there to see it happen but hearing is just as good. I just can't explain how I feel. It's so awesome to play a small part in God's plan for people.

Now for some comments/tidbits. First off, Happy Father's Day Dad! I hope Mom and Brynn treated you well. I love you very much and thank you so much for your example to me. I can't believe that already one year ago I gave my farewell talk. Also tell everyone who told me hello that I love them and wish them the best. And to answer your question about the U or BYU, I still definitely want to continue at the U. I haven't changed my mind about that although like every missionary here goes to BYU and tells me it's the celestial kingdom blah blah haha.

Well, that's about all for this week. The power just barely came back on an hour ago so that is why this email is a little late if you have been waiting. Have an excellent week and remember to choose the right! I love you all and pray that all is well with you. Keep on keepin' on and I'll talk with you next week!

с любовью,

старейшина каун

украинская донецкая миссия

 

ps- pics for the week are Elder Moss and I at mission conference, Elder Harrison, Elder Goloshokov and I, a sweet picture I took near the office, and a tree that fell down during the crazy storm. Enjoy!

Hello from Center Donetsk in THE OFFICE!

Privet family!

This week has been crazy, lots of changes have been made around the mission and as you can see I am in a new area- Center Donetsk! I'll be serving as an Office Elder and my new companion is named Elder Harrison. He is one transfer ahead of me and is from Orem, UT. He looks EXACTLY like Harry Potter, not even joking haha. And he has like perfect Russian so I'm sure I'll learn a lot from him in the Russian speaking area. He is great so far, we're getting along just fine. So I noticed in your email that you think I went AP haha. I need to clear this up that I most definitely did not go AP, only to the office haha. I don't ever want to serve as AP because you don't have any time to be a missionary, just travel around the mission with President. Tons of work. However, being in the office now I will spend lots of time around the APs and President so it will be cool. I am going to be over the Records this transfer and then probably switch over to Finances and inventory next transfer. So this is basically my schedule now. Mondays- PDay. Tuesday- Work in the office from 11-5. Wednesday- Work in the office from 9-5. Thursday- Normal day. Friday- Normal day with weekly planning. Saturday- Normal day with district meeting and missionary correlation meeting. Sunday. So my schedule is all planned out for me for the next two transfers. It's nice to know what's going on everyday :) I haven't worked in the office yet but my responsibilities will be with recording numbers of the mission- lessons taught by all missionaries during the week, baptisms, referrals, etc. and then I send it to Salt Lake every week. I also deal with baptismal records and ordering stuff for the mission. And there's probably more but I don't know everything yet haha so if I remember then I'll tell you next week. The office used to be an everyday thing when the old mission president was here. Elders worked Monday-Friday and had Pday on Saturday but it's gotten much better now and things are under control so we only have to work two days a week, maybe three sometimes if things get crazy. And this is really cool, a lady from another branch in Donetsk cooks all of our meals except breakfast! So we eat breakfast on our own but then all other meals we eat at the office. Her name is Sister Lydia and she is a saint. I met her on Friday. She comes in Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays and cooks enough food to last until the next cooking day and we just eat it. We pay her for the groceries and then 10 grieven each for each meal which turns out to be $1.50. So I won't be doing too much cooking myself for the next 3 months haha but that's alright. The food I've had already has been very tasty so I'm excited. There is also a lady who works in the office named Sister Irina. She was supposed to be a missionary at the Kiev Temple but things didn't work out so she works in the office three days a week. She's a crazy old lady haha but she is great.

So my area like I already mentioned is Center Donetsk. It's an awesome area! Very beautiful, lots of people to talk to on the streets. We are near the soccer stadium in Donetsk so when the Euro Cup starts in a few weeks there will be tons of people everywhere. And we have a few investigators to meet with so things are good. We need to find more but this is always the case haha. Something new this transfer is that the APs no longer have a proselyting area because they are going to be traveling to all parts of the mission and working with all the missionaries. So we split their old area with our Zpne Leaders and now have lots more ground to cover than there used to be. And also this transfer instead of having several Zone Leaders in Kharkov and Donetsk, President decided to just have two Zone Leaders for Kharkov and Donetsk both, and to call one Zone Leader in all the other cities who also acts as a district leader. So my ZLs in Donetsk are Elder Robison (you remember him!) and Elder Bolingbrook, who is one transfer ahead of me as well. They're awesome. And also this transfer President called like 6 or 7 mini missionaries to serve. Mini missionaries are natives who he asks to serve short term missions. So at transfer meeting they all got assigned companions from the mission to serve with. It's pretty cool. Lots of changes mission wide!

This past weekend we've had some elders from the Rostov Russia Mission staying with us because they came in for visas but haven't received them yet. Hopefully they get them today and can go back to their mission tomorrow. They're pretty cool, very young, still getting trained but they have to leave Russia every 90 days for new visas and stuff. The Church pays a lot of money to keep missionaries in Russia. It's crazy. So we've been talking with them and seeing how they do missionary work in their mission. There are differences of course but in the end it's all the same. The Ukraine Donetsk Mission has come a long way since I arrived here. We are more unified and everyone has a great desire to serve to their best ability and find the Lord's elect. President Campero truly is an inspired man. He has changed this mission with his love. The mission just keeps getting better everyday, it's awesome!

Well that's about it for this week. It was really weird to leave Saltovka and Elder Lambert. He is probably my favorite companion so far. I've been blessed with great companions my whole mission and I learn so much from all of them, but Lambert is my favorite, besides Elder Moss in the MTC. Just so you know what happened in Saltovka after I left, Elder Lambert is now the District Leader there and Sister Turnbull the sister who was finishing getting trained by a native in my district is now training TWO SISTERS! It's crazy! One is from Russia and the other is from US. So Saltovka district is even more crazy now than it was when I was there haha. The branch here is awesome, there is a good spirit here. I'm sure I will like this area a lot, I already do!

Now for comments/tidbits. I still can't believe that Brynn graduated! Where did the time go? Thanks for the pictures, they were great. I'm looking forward to the video in the future. Tell everyone hello back home, ward and family, and that I love them. I love you all very much and I'm so grateful for your love and prayers to me. The Church is true, I know it with all my heart. I love this gospel and my Savior, Jesus Christ. Have an amazing week and keep on keepin' on!

с любовью,

старейшина каун

украинская донецкая миссия