Another Week in Smyrna!

Hola!

Get pumped people, because this is the first email sent from my IPad! Whatever the issue was with the email, it's fixed now. Yay! Plus, tomorrow is my 2 month mark for my mission so far. Whoah!

Things are still slow here in Smyrna, but things are going well. The weather is changing, and it has gotten much cloudier. Last week, it was 80's-90's every day. Now, it's still in the 80's....but with clouds...very muggy. Elder A and I are doing well, and we are still working hard. Last Monday night we met this awesome guy named O. He is way interested, and we have another lesson with him tonight, for which I am pumped, because he is awesome! This week we have been doing lots of tracting, and we have a lot of potentials. But, let me tell you about our two most awesome experiences this week.

On Tuesday, we had a lesson with H. We taught him the rest of the Plan of Salvation, and invited him to be baptized on October 10th. He said that he would, and he really wants to, but he physically can't. It's the weirdest thing! He has been undergoing dialysis, and he has a cord/wire thing that goes straight to his heart. If the cord gets wet, it would kill him. So, if we baptize him, he would literally die. It's so crazy! And he really wants to be baptized! We asked President Andersen what we could do, and he didn't know, so he sent an email to Salt Lake, and hopefully we'll have a solution next week. In the meantime we will continue to teach him, and do all that we can to prepare him.

Our other exciting thing this week was meeting M. Last week, Elder A and I were looking through the area book, and we found all of these people that had been taught the first 4 lessons, and we're progressing, but all of the sudden dropped off the face of the earth! And they all live in Murfreesboro. So, Elder A and I are trying to find them all. On Thursday we found M. We started teaching about the Restoration and the spirit was just super strong. She said that what we were teaching was familiar, and that she wanted us to come back. We asked about the Book of Mormon, and she said that she had one and that she was reading it! (What?!) It was just super cool. I'm not sure what happened with the last few sets of missionaries, but she seems absolutely golden. What a blessing to find her!

On Sunday, I was furiously typing up my talk on the way to church, because that was the only time I had to do it. It was a good talk though. I talked about making time to read the scriptures, and the blessings of seeking first the kingdom of God. Many members thanked me for my talk afterwards, and one of them, Hermano F., said that I speak better Spanish than him, which made me laugh, cuz it's not true. My Spanish is getting better though. Just trying to improve every day!

Even though the work is slow and difficult here, it truly is the Lord's work. I'm blessed to be serving with Elder A here in these areas. Hope all is well with y’all, the church is true!

Love,

Elder Mitchell


Pictures from his apartment:

His companion Elder A

Week 2 in Smyrna!

Elder Mitchell with President and Sister Andersen

Hola!

My second week in the field. Whew. Life in Smyrna is pretty good. A typical day pretty much goes like this: wake up, have studies, do an hour of additional study for the 12-week training, then language study. After lunch, we usually spend most of our time tracting, with a teaching visit here and there. After dinner, it's back to the streets to do more tracting. (We do a LOT of tracting). It's often hard to set appointments with the Spanish people, because they work so much and have crazy schedules. So we do a lot of drop-by visits, which sometimes works, and sometimes doesn't. But whenever our plans fall through, there's always more tracting!!

We've been trying to see a number of investigators, but not with much success. Our most promising is H, but we weren't able to see him this week. We've also been trying multiple people who are just kind of stuck on the first lesson. It's hard to get people to progress. Yesterday though, we found a new guy named J, and he seemed very interested in our message. We do have one other investigator, R, and she is doing well.

We had a lesson with R on Wednesday about faith, repentance, and baptism. We committed her to be baptized, and she said she would, but she didn't understand why it was important, because she's already been baptized in the Pentecostal church. We invited her to pray about it, and she said that she would. It was a really good lesson though. If I've learned anything this week, it's that serving in the Bible-Belt is no small task. So many people reject us, and I'm not sure how many times I heard, "No, soy Catholico." (No, sorry, I'm Catholic) this week. We also have lots of people come up and talk to us. Sometimes it's good, sometimes bad. People definitely recognize us as missionaries. It was funny, in Murfreesboro this week, someone pulled up to us and said in the most polite way, "Ya know, y’all need to get out of the Mormon Church fast as ya can." I just kinda laughed. It happens a lot, there’s a lot of persecution. It's hard with investigators, because many feel that they've already accepted Christ, and that they don't need to do anything else. It's been a little bit of a rough week. Most of our plans fell through this week. We are working very hard here, and trying our best to be obedient, but sometimes, that just happens.

There was some good to this week though. President and Sister Andersen visited our district meeting this week. We had interviews with President. We also had a great surprise! While we were in the middle of a role play, Elder Z comes in and says, "Elder Mitchell, we need you!" (Elder A was in his interview, and they needed a Spanish Elder). This family had walked into the church off the street, and so I was just excited, I said, "Hola, como esta?" The man looked at me funny and said, "Ummm..do you speak English?" (Elder Z thought that they were Spanish.....but they weren't Spanish.....awkward.) I said, "Oh, yeah. Of course". Anyways, it was a little embarrassing, but it was cool, because they were actually from Bethlehem! They sell little Nativities made from Olive wood, and they just like going around visiting Christian churches. They were actually a really cool family. Sister Andersen talked with them and handled it like a pro. She talked to them about the Book of Mormon, and invited them to church, and they seemed super interested! It's not all that often when the investigators come to you, so it was pretty cool.

On Friday we had a Zone meeting. The ZL's are pretty cool, and they gave some great training. Also, after Zone meeting, I got my I-pad! It's pretty cool. You have the whole gospel library on it, all the Mormon message videos, the area book, the planner. It really makes it simple to keep track of all the people and all the things that you have to get done. My I-pad is mostly functional, but there's a bug on it that won't allow the email to work yet. Other than that, it's working well. Hopefully they fix the email feature on mine soon. It really is a blessing to have technology assisting us in our work as missionaries.

On Sunday we had ward conference. We had a combined English-Spanish ward council, as well as other meetings with stake leaders. The 2nd Counselor in the Stake (Pres. Pennington) speaks really good Spanish, as well as one of the high council members. It was great to have them come teach us. During Sacrament, President Pennington and Presidente Rivera spoke. I'm still having some trouble understanding, so I'm not super sure on what they talked about, but I'm sure it was good! After the meeting, Presidente Miranda (the 1st counselor in the branch) asked if I would give a talk next week. So that should be fun.

Hopefully this week goes a little better for us. We just gotta keep working at it. Hope you are all doing well. With much love,

Elder Mitchell

Primera Semana en el Campo (1st Week in the Field)--Week 7

All the new missionaries in Nashville with President and Sister Anderson

Elder Mitchell is in the back in front of the chalkboard

Hola!

Well, the CCM is no more. On Friday we had orientation for the field, and then we had our last Sunday in the CCM. It was pretty great. Lots of goodbyes. We sang a stirring rendition of "Para Siempre Dios este con Vos" (God Be With You Til We Meet Again), singing "HASTA VER!!" at the top of our lungs. The CCM has been a great experience, and I absolutely loved it there. But, Monday came, and it was time to say goodbye to Mexico.

Monday morning felt like the start of a "24" season. We woke up at around 2 am to be at reception at 2:30. We got the Mexico City airport (which is HUGE!), and some Hermanos got us up to Security. After that, we were on our own. I was a little afraid that we would get stuck in Mexico, but, we made it back to the States, which felt great (but it was also really weird because I forgot that I didn't have to use Spanish all the time). We had a layover in Dallas, and then it was off to Nashville.

The Mission president and the AP's picked us up at the airport, and drove us to the mission home, where I enjoyed my first real American food in 6 weeks: Sloppy Joes. President and Sister Andersen are awesome! You can just feel the Holy Ghost emanating from them. We spent the night in the mission home, and my "24" season ended at about 11 pm. Looooong day. 

On Tuesday we had transfer meeting. They took the 17 newbies, and got us our new assignments. There are 5 Spanish Elders in the "generation." From the CCM are Elder Black, Elder Webster and I, and there are 2 more Elders from the Provo MTC.  I got my first area: Smyrna, TN! It's just a bit south east of Nashville. The Spanish Elders actually cover Smyrna, La Vergne, and Murfreesboro, but we can only go the Murfreesboro about twice a week (because it kills our mileage). We do have a car, and we do get the most miles, but it's a bit of a drive to Murfreesboro. My new companion is Elder A. He's pretty cool. He's been on his mission for about 7 months, and this is his first time training. He is from North Carolina. He did Marching Band and stuff in high school, so we kind of relate in that regard. He loves playing card games and stuff.

After transfer meeting we drove out to Smyrna and I taught my first lesson. We had a lesson that day with H. H is probably our most progressing investigator. He has committed to baptism, but the only problem is getting him to go to church! He is also partially blind, so he can't really read the Book of Mormon, but he loves listening to the CD's. We have also been teaching a couple of other investigators: J and F. We read with them in the Book of Mormon in our last lesson, and they are doing pretty well. We also have lots of potential investigators that we try to teach, so we try to stay busy. We also taught a few lessons to some less actives. We also do a loooooot of tracting. We mostly go to trailer parks and try to find Spanish houses. We do a lot of biking, to try to keep our miles down.

On Wednesday...I had my first dinner appointment...But, it went ok. We had this soup thing with chicken and boiled corn. The chicken was good, but the corn was so weird. Hermana L was super nice to us. We have dinner with her every Wednesday. She is also a less active.

On Sunday we had church. The Spanish branch meets in Murfreesboro. We had ward council, Sunday School, Priesthood, and then Sacrament. The members are all pretty nice. It was really hard to understand, but I can kind of get the gist of what people are saying. The branch president, President Rivera, is super awesome. 

As far as my Spanish, it's really hard to understand what people are saying to me, because they talk sooooo fast! But then, my speaking is probably really slow to them. There have been some times when I've looked at Elder A and asked, "uhh...what'd she say?" I can teach the Gospel lessons pretty well, but I am still working on being able to have regular conversations. Hopefully, it will come soon. Just gotta keep working at it.

Hope all is well at home. Love you all!

Elder Mitchell


PS it is really weird to be using an English keyboard. I kind of got used to using a Spanish one.

Here are some more pictures from his last week in the CCM:

Elder Mitchell with his BYU roommate, Elder S.

Trying to teach some Latino elders how to throw a Frisbee

Elder Mitchell with his companion Elder B 

in the Thomas S Monson building

With his companion and Hermana A, his teacher

With his companion and Pres. S, his branch president

Journey to Nashville--Week 6

His district--Heading out to serve the Lord

Hola!

We got to talk to Elder Mitchell on his way to Nashville. He had a layover in Dallas, so he got to call home! So no, he didn't write this post, but he won't have another p-day until probably next Monday, so this will have to do :)

His last days in the CCM were pretty busy. On Friday was field orientation. He had a bunch of meetings to get him ready to working with investigators in the field. Saturday was a fairly normal day but they had to say goodbye to their teachers. Then on Sunday they had their usual meetings with the highlight being singing "God Be With You Til We Meet Again", in Spanish of course.

On Sunday he also had his last good meal to break his fast. He said he had two servings of steak and 3 servings of chicken!! He has mostly enjoyed the food in the CCM, although he said the cafeteria couldn't do three good meals in a day (keeping in mind his idea of good and bad). If there was a bad breakfast, there would be a good lunch and dinner. On the other hand, if there was a good breakfast, then lunch or dinner wouldn't be so hot. We'll see how he eats when he gets to the field!

Another highlight for him was seeing his BYU roommate Josh a couple times this past week. Elder S arrived at the CCM on Wednesday to prepare to serve in the Florida Tampa Mission, Spanish speaking.

On Monday it was off to the airport. Their first flight was at 6:13 am, so they got up pretty early. He was flying with Elder B, who was his companion, Elder W, who had been in his district, and another elder who was on his way to California. They had help at the airport getting through security, but then they were on their own. The flight to Dallas went pretty quick since he slept most of the way. They made it through immigration, found their next gate, and then got to call home.

I asked him if he was ready to be in the field. He said half of him was ready. This was what he had been preparing for his whole life. The other half was not ready. How could he do this? He also said it was exciting but terrifying :)

He finished the call by bearing his testimony in Spanish. I only understood a few words: Joseph Smith, Jesucristo, and Libro de Mormón. It sounded good to me, but what do I know? He also recited his purpose as a missionary. This is it in English:

"Invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end."

That is what he will be doing the next two years as he serves the people of Tennessee!

Last email from the CCM--Week 5

Hola!

Wow, I only have a few more days left in the CCM! It's been crazy, but super awesome. I'll just start with a bang: On Friday, I had one of the most powerful spiritual experiences of my life. During the afternoon, we had a lesson with Nesha, and going in, I just thought, "I got a bad feeling about this." We asked how she was doing and she said: "Bad."  I'm thinking "oh no....here it comes." Nesha started by saying that she didn't want to take our lessons anymore, that she had read anti-Mormon stuff online, and that she had felt lied to. She was pretty mad at us. Then, we tried to bear our testimonies and explain that not everything on the internet is true. She wasn't having it. She started Bible-bashing with us, saying that in the Bible it says that no man can see God, but Joseph Smith did. I countered with Exodus 33:11, “ And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend.” It kinda went back and forth, and I got this impression: she can say what she wants, but she can't deny an answer from the Holy Ghost. I felt the spirit in my entire body, it was so powerful. I said, "Nesha, if you pray right now, right now, RIGHT NOW, you will receive an answer from God. I have faith that if you pray right now with real intent, that the Holy Ghost will testify to you that the things we have taught you are true. Pray. Right. Now. And you will receive a testimony." She looked stunned. She got down on her knees, and as she started to pray, I prayed to myself, "Please just let her feel the spirit right now. Come on, help me out." As she got up, we asked how she felt and she said, "I feel so much different." It was a crazy powerful experience. Afterwards, Hermana A said, "When I prayed, it was not as Nesha, I prayed as Hermana A, and that answer that I just received re-strengthened my own testimony." Wow.

On Saturday, we had TRC, and we taught A (one of the gardeners here), and J, another member. It went well. With A, we talked about enduring to the end. J told us about how her Dad was not a member, and we invited her to pray for her father every day, and to keep sharing the gospel with him. She started to tear up a bit as we made promises to her about her family. It was pretty good.

During Sunday/Monday I got to impart of my wisdom before leaving the CCM. On Sunday, I taught district meeting (pretty much Sunday school). We read Alma 30, and talked about what evidences we have in our lives that God does exist. It actually went pretty darn well. Then, during Sacrament meeting, I was called up to give a talk! I spoke about the Holy Ghost and shared an experience that I had in college with the Holy Ghost. It was good. The rest of Sunday was pretty good too. We had a class with Pres. Rubacavla (The 1st counselor in the MTC presidency). He gave a good lesson on the difference between testimony and conversion. Then, we had a devotional with Shawn Cates, the director of the CCM. It was way good. He talked about what things have we given up (to go on a mission) by choice , and what things have we given up because we had too. He asked: What are you still holding on to that's holding you back? He talked about how we need to "Stay on target" (yes, referencing Star Wars) and that we need to "Remember Lot's wife" who looked back at Sodom and Gomorrah.  Later, our video was "Joseph Smith: The Prophet of the Restoration" and it was awesome! Rumor is they might let us watch “Meet the Mormons” this week (yes!).

Anyways, back to imparting of wisdom...So, on Monday night I taught our zone during FHE. A couple of weeks ago, I was studying and I got the impression that I needed to share something with our zone. So, I asked and after two weeks, here I was teaching FHE. I started by asking a few of them what their motivation was for being on a mission. All missionary motivations are "A" motivations. Some are Awesome. Some are Average. Some are Awful. But, I wanted to teach about a different "A" motivation: the Atonement. I had demonstration where I had an elder do ten push-ups so that another person could have a cookie. It was a representation of the Atonement. Every time he did ten push-ups, I gave another person a cookie. As I started to go around the room, he was getting gassed. People started to ask if they could do it for him or help him, to which the answer was, "No." Some people didn't really even want the cookie. There were so many lessons in this. Our Savior atoned for us (doing a lot more than just push-ups) so that we could have a "cookie" (eternal life). We may wish that we could help the Savior, but he did it alone. Even if we don't want the cookie, the Savior paid the price anyway. I said that the Atonement is the greatest motivation for missionary work. When we have felt the power of the atonement, we realize that others need to feel the same joy that we feel. We see God's children as He sees them, and we are filled with charity. I gave three examples of those who had felt the Atoning power and had gone on to preach the gospel: Enos, Paul, and the Sons of Mosiah (you can go study those on your own :) It was such a powerful meeting, and the spirit touched the hearts of all those who were there. It was great.

On Tuesday we had a devotional that was broadcast from Provo. Elder Dallin H. Oaks talked to us about having the Holy Ghost, the Sacrament, and the plan of Salvation. It was good.

On Wednesday, we had our last lesson with Adrían. We taught him a simple version of the plan of Salvation. It went really well. I felt the peace of the spirit, and he told us that our lessons had helped him and his wife come closer together. It was also cool because we were FINALLY able to commit him to being baptized. He had been reluctant before, because his wife didn't want him to join the church, but we finally did it. Also on Wednesday, I got to see my roommate from BYU, Josh S! He just got here yesterday. It was so good to see him.

Anyways, the CCM is awesome. I'm sad I have to leave, but I'm ready to get out there and start helping real investigators. My Spanish still needs some work, but it's coming along. Hope you all have an awesome week!

Love,
Elder Mitchell