An unusual week!

Hello all,

 

Well, this has been probably the craziest week of the transfer (and possibly my mission.) We have been quite busy, not necessarily completely doing missionary work, but also at the office. Today was quite an interesting day. What was supposed to be a p-day today became something I could never have imagined. In the middle of personal study, we got a phone call telling us that another missionary had left his apartment. So we spent the day, along with our zone leaders, driving around and trying to track him down. Needless to say, the elder was eventually found and has decided to stay. It is always sad when a missionary decides to leave. I don't think they really know what they are missing out on.

 

This was an exciting morning at the office. We picked up 5 new cars in Kirkland, which isn't necessarily new, but I finally was able to drive by myself! On top of that, we were outside of the mission boundaries. This is really the only instance that that is okay. It was really exciting and weird at the same time. And of anything I could have done in the office, driving by myself is one of the things I wanted to do the most! So I can check that off of my things to do on my mission checklist. Haha.

 

So it was kind of an abnormal week. I went on exchanges on Wednesday and half-day Thursday.

We did get some time to proselyte though. The Stinsons are finally back and are planing to attend conference. Jake is attending Priesthood meeting, which will be good. That is one of my favorite meetings. So this quite strange week is going to end well.

 

Transfers are next week. I don't know what is going to happen, but I know that whatever happens will be for my own good. I have learned from every area and from every companion. Anyways, this is probably a weird email. My mind is in a million places at once and I can't seem to put my thoughts together. Maybe it is a combination of overhearing a Chinese version of "The wheels on the Bus" at the library, having a million Spanish children running around the computers here right now, or it has just been a long week and I need a nap. But whatever it is, I am sure next week will be better. But things are going well. We still teach Betsy, although I don't know where she is going to go. Our other investigators aren't progressing.It will be interesting to see where I end up next transfer.

 

The Church is true!

 

~Elder Fetzer

Getting Closer

Hello all,

 

Well this was quite an interesting week! Betsy is close. When we met with her on Wednesday, she decided for herself that she needed to know if Joseph Smith was a prophet. She is smart. She realized that that is one of the main differences from us and any other Christian Church. If Joseph Smith is a Prophet - and he is - than The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true! We taught her about prayer and how she could gain her own testimony of the restored gospel. She says that knowing her, she will make a decision soon.

 

We invited our investigator Jullian and his family to Church! They said they were open to it and are planning on being there. So if all goes well we will have at least 3 at Church this week!

 

We were invited to dinner with Dave and his wife Michelle. They are a very nice couple. Interested in what we have to say, but active members at another church - Mars Hill - which is a very large and popular church in the Seattle area. They said we were welcome to come back and share more, but I don't know how interested they would be in being converted. So we'll see where it goes.

 

We're in the office less and less now that the Dollars are here. They are trained and ready to go, though we're still only a phone call away. Transfers are coming up, which means I have a good chance of being transferred out of the office, seeing as the previous office missionaries have only stayed here for 4 transfers. But we'll see what happens.

Things are going well.

 

~Elder Fetzer

Finding Myself

Hello All,

It is quite amazing what you find in an obscure corner of your area at the end of a windy road. The Lord promises that people all around us are being prepared to the message of the restoration, even in Bellevue, Washington. Each day we tract for just a few hours and this week we saw many miracles. First, we met Dave, a converted Christian that originally told us he was having family night and so we gave him a Book of Mormon, but just a few seconds after shutting the door, he opened it back up and stepped out and wanted to learn about the gospel. We talked to him for about an hour about the restoration of the gospel through the Prophet Joseph Smith and how the authority was restored to the earth. He was quite interested and wants to learn more. So we'll see where it goes.

Last month Elder Kasenberg and I were tracting in an apartment complex and we met June. She said she was busy and said to come back "in a month." So a month came and went and we kept on putting it off because things like this happen all the time without going anywhere, but we did decide to go back. So on Tuesday we went back and were told to come back Friday night (Last Night). A little skeptical, we went to our appointment and were invited in. It turns out that June's 13 year old son, Jullian had a friend from school pass away during the week. So we testified and taught about God's eternal plan and that he would see his friend again. What is amazing to me is the timing. We were prompted to go back on Tuesday and set an appointment for Friday BEFORE his friend died. None of us could have ever expected this tragedy to happen, but the Lord always knows best and times things perfectly. This family was prepared by God and at the very moment they had questions about death, they already had an appointment with the missionaries.

Now Jullian's parents aren't necessarily interested. June is Wiccan and the dad isn't really anything, but they are very open to letting their son come to Church and learn from us. So we'll see where our new prospects take us, but I know the Lord truly is preparing people all around us as we go out in faith and earnestly seek them - even in Bellevue.

Now to Betsy, she didn't make it to Church last week. She is very feeble and sick and was tired when the Stinson's came to pick her up. But we'll try again this week. She is still learning but I think with her we're going to be in it for a while. She sees the importance of living the gospel. As we were teaching her about repentance, I realized something HUGE. Anyone can repent fully without necessarily being a member of the Church. The repentance process is truly between yourself and God. Betsy has gone through all the steps of the repentance process before. Our Church doesn't necessarily have any new methods to repent, but we can repent fully when we are baptized by the proper authority, which only our Church has. This was a good week. The Dollars, from Meridian, Idaho arrived in our mission. We are still in the process of training them. Tuesday we went to the Temple. It was great as always, full of personal revelation.

How many missionaries does it take to change a tire? Answer: 7. One to change the tire, the rest to supervise, including the NEW vehicle coordinator My last official duty as vehicle coordinator involved changing tire in the temple parking lot in my suit, while the others stood around the car watching me do it. There was a missionary companionship that has been having car troubles lately - both with their assigned car and the one we replaced it with when it was being fixed from an accident. Now they had a nail in their tire that had caused it to go flat. Good thing it is really quite easy to do it and a repair at Les Schwab is free!

The highlight of my week had to be on Wednesday when Elder Edwards of the second quorum of the Seventy spoke to half the mission in a zone conference. His words were truly inspiring and uplifting. We learned about music and how music invites reverence and reverence invites the spirit. We learned that our future children will be our most important investigators. Most importantly, I learned how to see all God's children as He sees them. Everyone is a child of God. We knew them before this life. And now we are hear to re-teach them the gospel and touch them again because they agreed to it before they came here. The office staff and the zone leaders were personally interviewed by Elder Edwards afterwards. It was probably the BEST interview I have ever had with any priesthood leader, much better than any one I have ever had with President Larkin. Elder Edwards is filled with so much charity. He helped me see what I should become on my mission.  He helped me truly realize what missionary the Lord truly wants me to become. It was really inspiring and now I am even more determined to become a better missionary.

The Lord is truly blessing an area that hasn't seen much happen in the past months. It is really quite amazing! Things are going well and I am hopeful for the future. The Church is true!

~Elder Fetzer

The end of the office

Hello all,

 

This was another good week. The Dollars (new office couple) couldn't be coming at a better time. We have worked hard the last weeks without the Greensides, but it will be nice to have a new couple taking over our positions. It is kind of funny that so much happened in the office the last week. The Washington Seattle Mission office is officially out of English copies of the Book of Mormon, but we will have enough to give out until 640 new copies come next week. Secondly, someone wants to sue a missionary that got in an accident last year and take him to small claims court. I didn't have to talk to the person that wanted to sue because she didn't know who to call and called the local LDS family services. Luckily all it took was a phone call to the insurance company and they are now on the case! Lastly, A missionary drove home to Utah in a mission car. The car won't be coming back and will be sold by Church headquarters. So if you see a light green Mazda 3 driving around on the streets of Utah, think twice about where it may have come from.

 

Tomorrow we actually are going to have an investigator at Church! Betsy is coming to a stake conference (which is actually a broadcast). We have found Betsy to be quite a difficult student in some aspects. She has many feminist ideas, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but has problems with women not having the priesthood and for some reason doesn't like the doctrine on the family. Maybe she has past issues in her family - we'll have to dig a bit deeper into the problem. It seems as though she agrees with the majority of what we teach her, but she still has concerns about the smallest details. Jake and Lindsey have been great fellowship. Lindsey has really become her friend and even spent the day with her when she came home from the care center. Lindsey even came over and read the Ensign with Betsy. It is exciting to see the fire they have for sharing the gospel with others and hearing them bear testimony about how the Church has blessed their lives.

 

We got another new investigator this week. The Korean missionaries were tracting in our area and found Wei, a Chinese man in his late 20's. He grew up Buddhist, but doesn't necessarily believe in it. He doesn't understand why God didn't let him tell his grandpa he loved him before he died. But we had a really spiritual lesson about the gospel of Jesus Christ and how it can heal his wounds. He felt the spirit and was excited to read the Book of Mormon. He is one of the most honest and sincere truth seekers I have ever met!

We are going to have a good week. Elder Edwards of the Quorum of the Seventy is going to be visiting our mission on Wednesday and we will be attending the temple on Tuesday. Things are starting to pick up in this area! It is always interesting to see an area come alive again after being nearly dead for many, many transfers, even before the Stinsons joined the Church.

 

The Church is true!

 

~Elder Fetzer

Year One

Something has changed. I finally have less days than the number I have been out. I am just over the hump. I have been out ONE YEAR! And in that year I have learned a lot about myself. I have learned to be more patient. I have learned to be more kind. I have learned that I can make friends and spend time with nearly anyone - no matter what age. I have learned to cook better, how to be an effective teacher. And I have learned what charity is. But more importantly, I have learned more about the truthfulness of the gospel - by living it and seeing others live it. And I have seen the happiness that comes from fully repenting, changing, and becoming better. Is there room for improvement? Of course! I can work harder and be a better missionary, but I would never change what has happened so far. I know that all the people I have met, the companions I have had, the people I have taught and the places I have gone have taught me and made me better. And as hard as it is some days, I know I can persevere. Because I have seen the blessings that come through it. So all in all, I love my mission and I can't wait to see where the next year takes me.

To end my first year, I couldn't ask for a better week. Because this was probably my busiest week, teaching wise in this area. The Lord is truly blessing us right now. Time is ticking down until the new senior couple comes. For that I am excited. This week was my last vehicle training. And soon I can turn over my cell phone to the new Vehicle Coordinator and let him deal with some of the weird situations I have had to.

This week we got a new investigator. Her name is Betsy. I would say that she is in her late 70's. A member from a different ward asked some other missionaries to give her a blessing, but when they found out she lived in our area, we soon started teaching her. Right now she is in a care facility so that she can regain strength and gain some weight, which she desparately needs. But in a few weeks she plans on attending Church and other activities. She is very sincere about wanting to learn more. We have met with her almost every day in the care facitliy. Basically everything we have taught her so far "rings true" with her. So here's to hoping that she turns out. We brought Jake and Lindsey to one lesson. They were great fellowship! While we taught the Plan of Salvation, they shared their testimonies and conversion story. Jake even pitched in and did some of the teaching on agency and the fall, even when he didn't necessarily realize that was part of the lesson plan. He knows the doctrine well, even as a new member. It was really exciting to me to see where their testimonies of the gospel are. As I have said before, they are going to be great members of the Church.

So things are going well. We are teaching more and that always helps. The Church is true!

~Elder Fetzer