Due to the holiday, I am writing you a quick note to let you what's going on. Today is transfers and I'm leaving to go back to Tustin. I don't know if they use public libraries down there, but if so, I won't be able to write due to the holiday. So we came to the history center really quick to tell you that I'll write later today or tomorrow, depending. My new area is the Tustin Meadows ward and my new companion is Elder C, who was my district leader in Irvine. Life is crazy!
Love,
Elder Curtis
Monday, September 13, 2010
Mormon Manor (September 13 email)
Well, my life has changed quite a bit since last transfer. As I mentioned last week, I am now riding a bike instead of sitting in a car. I am also working an area with a companion who knows nothing more than I do about it. It's been an adventure, but with the help of my GPS, it hasn't been unbearable. We don't have anyone that is progressing super well, but we have a couple people with potential. We've been working on the area book quite a bit and trying to get organized so we know in what general area everyone lives in. Our apartment has like 25 members in it and is even managed by some people in the ward so that is fun. The owner isn't though, I'm pretty sure. Some people call it Mormon Manor :)
Tuesday and Friday we had lessons with a family that was less-active for some time and is coming back--mostly on account of their children. The autistic daughter got baptized two days before we arrived, and the younger son was baptized a while before that. The parents have been less-active, but are coming to church now to support their children, so I think that is wonderful. I'm sure they will be temple ready eventually with all that strengthening. The father even baptized K. Oh, and they are the J family.
We are being fed well in this area, even with two sets of missionaries working here. The members we've met so far have been really nice and I really like the people here so far. We have some great ward missionaries and our high council seems pretty good too. We met with Bishop H and our WML Bro. M this week, and they kind of helped us get going and gave a few names to us to try.
Thursday night we taught a recent convert that is a little less-active named G L. It was a good lesson and we had brother B come with us, who is a ward missionary and teaches Gospel Principles. Sunday night we taught N T , a black lady who converted a while ago but usually has to work during church. She said she has next week off though, so that's good. Brother B came to that lesson too, and we went over the lesson she had missed from Gospel Principles. We also gave a blessing to a non-member boy who broke his arm. He's a grandson of the S family in the ward, so hopefully we can start teaching him. We also have the C family and P/H that we want to start teaching.
Things are going well and Elder C is fun to work with--even if he's a little crazy sometimes :). Hope everyone is doing great.
Anyway, thanks for your prayers and support. Love you as much as my excitement for this new area,
Elder Curtis
Tuesday and Friday we had lessons with a family that was less-active for some time and is coming back--mostly on account of their children. The autistic daughter got baptized two days before we arrived, and the younger son was baptized a while before that. The parents have been less-active, but are coming to church now to support their children, so I think that is wonderful. I'm sure they will be temple ready eventually with all that strengthening. The father even baptized K. Oh, and they are the J family.
We are being fed well in this area, even with two sets of missionaries working here. The members we've met so far have been really nice and I really like the people here so far. We have some great ward missionaries and our high council seems pretty good too. We met with Bishop H and our WML Bro. M this week, and they kind of helped us get going and gave a few names to us to try.
Thursday night we taught a recent convert that is a little less-active named G L. It was a good lesson and we had brother B come with us, who is a ward missionary and teaches Gospel Principles. Sunday night we taught N T , a black lady who converted a while ago but usually has to work during church. She said she has next week off though, so that's good. Brother B came to that lesson too, and we went over the lesson she had missed from Gospel Principles. We also gave a blessing to a non-member boy who broke his arm. He's a grandson of the S family in the ward, so hopefully we can start teaching him. We also have the C family and P/H that we want to start teaching.
Things are going well and Elder C is fun to work with--even if he's a little crazy sometimes :). Hope everyone is doing great.
Anyway, thanks for your prayers and support. Love you as much as my excitement for this new area,
Elder Curtis
Hello! (September 6 email)
Due to the holiday, I am writing you a quick note to let you what's going on. Today is transfers and I'm leaving to go back to Tustin. I don't know if they use public libraries down there, but if so, I won't be able to write due to the holiday. So we came to the history center really quick to tell you that I'll write later today or tomorrow, depending. My new area is the Tustin Meadows ward and my new companion is Elder C, who was my district leader in Irvine. Life is crazy!
Love,
Elder Curtis
Love,
Elder Curtis
But he has (August 30 email)
I had a good week. How about you? Yesterday was the confirmation of Bro. W. It was a really neat experience. He kind of had a rough week and was a little troubled when he showed up to church (which he was really nervous for). He wasn't even sure if Bro. C liked him anymore (a misconception). Satan's really been working on him. He had a really neat experience during the confirmation however. He said about halfway through, he felt a cleansing power go through him starting at his head where our hands were and running down his body down to his toes. He said it was like all his worries and problems and mistakes were all just swept away and he was left whole. It was really touching to hear about. He said a month or so ago, he was really miserable and just doing terrible mentally and physically. He said none of his circumstances have changed, but he has. His whole attitude and outlook on life have completely changed for the better. Now that Jesus Christ is in his life, he feels like a new man and can face the future with optimism and hope. The Gospel of Jesus Christ has that power. It is the power to heal, to uplift, to strengthen, and to inspire. I know our Saviour lives and he loves us. He has a church on earth and He is lovingly reaching out to his children once more to gather them into His fold. This is His work and He gets all the glory. We are just instruments--useless pieces of material by themselves--but with the touch of The Master's hand, we can help Him work miracles in the lives of others and be shaped into something better along the way. We truly are clay in the Potter's hands, and stones in the river. We are tossed and turned when the current moves so strong. Like stones in the living water over time, are shaped until the edges are gone. We must build our foundation on the rock of Christ and when the storms and mighty hail of the adversary come, they shall have no power over us, to drag us down. For Christ is the sure foundation, whereon if men build they cannot fall.
Tuesday I went on exchanges with Elder H and Elder M. They are great zone leaders and I enjoyed spending a day with them and learning from them. Saturday we were able to teach S at Bro. J’s home. We reviewed the Restoration and the importance of reading and praying about the Book of Mormon. He took it really well and I think he has a good prospect of getting an answer to his prayers. He came to church yesterday and I think it was a good experience for him. Be sure to keep him in your prayers. The Zone Leaders had a baptism yesterday that we went to and it was really neat. It's a guy who has a member girlfriend and the service was wonderful. Well I hope everyone has a good week. Keep being a light unto the world! Love you as much as the 80+ doors I knocked this week!
Elder Curtis
Tuesday I went on exchanges with Elder H and Elder M. They are great zone leaders and I enjoyed spending a day with them and learning from them. Saturday we were able to teach S at Bro. J’s home. We reviewed the Restoration and the importance of reading and praying about the Book of Mormon. He took it really well and I think he has a good prospect of getting an answer to his prayers. He came to church yesterday and I think it was a good experience for him. Be sure to keep him in your prayers. The Zone Leaders had a baptism yesterday that we went to and it was really neat. It's a guy who has a member girlfriend and the service was wonderful. Well I hope everyone has a good week. Keep being a light unto the world! Love you as much as the 80+ doors I knocked this week!
Elder Curtis
Sweet and Short (August 23 email)
The Lord is pouring out his blessings upon the CAM (California Anaheim Mission). Yesterday brother W got baptized and entered into a covenant with God. It was a really neat experience and the service was sweet and short. Elder L played a musical number on the piano--a medley of Come Thou Fount and If You Could High to Kolob. It was beautiful--I'm always jealous of people with perfect pitch. A former bishop of the ward (Bro. N) baptized him and Brother C, who found him, gave the talk. He'll be confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints next Sunday during sacrament meeting.
Wednesday we had a lesson with S. He's been taught by missionaries for a while, but we haven't been in contact with him for a while, so it was good to finally teach him. Brother C in the ward is the perfect person to fellowship him and help us teach so we had the lesson at his house and he did a lot to help S. They are pretty close in age (30's) and even work together sometimes for their jobs. S didn't make it to church on Sunday, but we hope to be able to help him progress.
Thursday was fun because we had dinner with the T family. The dad, I. T., was a second string running back for BYU football. It was super fun to talk and discuss that with him. I think he was there my freshman year, but I don't remember him (Ross probably does though). Now he's about to have his second boy. He gave us some information that hadn't (hasn't?) been publicly announced yet. He said BYU is leaving the mountain west conference and going independent (after first presidency approval). I thought that was really interesting. Only three other teams are independent--Notre Dame, Army, and Navy. I'm actually happy for them--especially since Utah joined the PAC-10. Now that we are free, we can have more challenging games and maybe be better recognized. I heard we even got HD TV cameras.
Friday was not such a fun day. Mi. called and asked us to come over so she could talk to us. She told us she no longer wants to take the lessons and that she doesn't feel the Gospel is right for her and her family at this time. She was really polite though and thanked us and still wants to be friends. Sounded a lot like a GF/BF break-up to me. It makes me really sad, but I think at some future day she'll accept it into her life--perhaps when circumstances have more sufficiently humbled her.
After the Baptism yesterday we got to go to the bishop's fireside for the youth and be the teachers. It was pretty fun. We talked about missionary work, the Book of Mormon, Preach My Gospel, and how to prepare for a mission by being a missionary now. We even had them do a little activity where they studied a principle in chapter three of Preach My Gospel and practiced teaching it to another person. It was a fun time I thought.
Love you as much as all the drops of water needed to fill the font (and the drops wasted by our leaky sink).
Elder Curtis
Wednesday we had a lesson with S. He's been taught by missionaries for a while, but we haven't been in contact with him for a while, so it was good to finally teach him. Brother C in the ward is the perfect person to fellowship him and help us teach so we had the lesson at his house and he did a lot to help S. They are pretty close in age (30's) and even work together sometimes for their jobs. S didn't make it to church on Sunday, but we hope to be able to help him progress.
Thursday was fun because we had dinner with the T family. The dad, I. T., was a second string running back for BYU football. It was super fun to talk and discuss that with him. I think he was there my freshman year, but I don't remember him (Ross probably does though). Now he's about to have his second boy. He gave us some information that hadn't (hasn't?) been publicly announced yet. He said BYU is leaving the mountain west conference and going independent (after first presidency approval). I thought that was really interesting. Only three other teams are independent--Notre Dame, Army, and Navy. I'm actually happy for them--especially since Utah joined the PAC-10. Now that we are free, we can have more challenging games and maybe be better recognized. I heard we even got HD TV cameras.
Friday was not such a fun day. Mi. called and asked us to come over so she could talk to us. She told us she no longer wants to take the lessons and that she doesn't feel the Gospel is right for her and her family at this time. She was really polite though and thanked us and still wants to be friends. Sounded a lot like a GF/BF break-up to me. It makes me really sad, but I think at some future day she'll accept it into her life--perhaps when circumstances have more sufficiently humbled her.
After the Baptism yesterday we got to go to the bishop's fireside for the youth and be the teachers. It was pretty fun. We talked about missionary work, the Book of Mormon, Preach My Gospel, and how to prepare for a mission by being a missionary now. We even had them do a little activity where they studied a principle in chapter three of Preach My Gospel and practiced teaching it to another person. It was a fun time I thought.
Love you as much as all the drops of water needed to fill the font (and the drops wasted by our leaky sink).
Elder Curtis
20 Years (August 16 email)
Good noon (it's not morning or afternoon). We had two baptisms in the district this weekend. Brea third had one on Saturday, and the singles ward (Placentia 4th) had one yesterday. They were both good services. Brother Williamson's is this Sunday so I hope that goes well too. Sister Mia Farley still won't come to church, but she's still really nice and willing to listen to us. I really hope she decides to come soon, because she'd be such a good one to get baptized! Her kids are great too, and the two oldest--Nicole and Brook--are old enough for baptism (11,9).
On Monday we played tennis for our activity and are planning on doing it again today since it was so much fun. Elder Lew and I have even been doing it every morning for morning exercise. It's pretty fun. I'll have to take some pictures today. This morning we had breakfast at a member's house (the Schultz's). He's had missionaries eat breakfast there for like 20 years or more and has a log book of all their names. It's pretty cool.
This week we got to walk a dog every day because a single lady went out of town so she asked us to do that since her dog has arthritis. It was pretty fun. It was Elder Lew's first time to walk a dog. :) I never knew there was skill involved in dog walking lol. On Tuesday we had dinner with a non-member couple who have a son on a mission. He's getting home in a couple weeks from D.C. or something. They are so nice and are very kind to missionaries, but I guess it's Taboo to try and share a message with them. I heard that missionaries who did that didn't get invited to come again. I think that's a little odd--especially since they are so nice and sent us home with a whole pan of brownies.
We taught Brother Williamson twice this week and he came to church again yesterday so everything should work out for him to get baptized this Sunday. He seems pretty excited about everything. Now we just need someone else like him to teach. It was almost too easy haha. Well I hope everyone is doing well. I just realized today that I don't know my own home address or phone # so I better go memorize those :). Love you as much as the new house.
Elder Curtis
On Monday we played tennis for our activity and are planning on doing it again today since it was so much fun. Elder Lew and I have even been doing it every morning for morning exercise. It's pretty fun. I'll have to take some pictures today. This morning we had breakfast at a member's house (the Schultz's). He's had missionaries eat breakfast there for like 20 years or more and has a log book of all their names. It's pretty cool.
This week we got to walk a dog every day because a single lady went out of town so she asked us to do that since her dog has arthritis. It was pretty fun. It was Elder Lew's first time to walk a dog. :) I never knew there was skill involved in dog walking lol. On Tuesday we had dinner with a non-member couple who have a son on a mission. He's getting home in a couple weeks from D.C. or something. They are so nice and are very kind to missionaries, but I guess it's Taboo to try and share a message with them. I heard that missionaries who did that didn't get invited to come again. I think that's a little odd--especially since they are so nice and sent us home with a whole pan of brownies.
We taught Brother Williamson twice this week and he came to church again yesterday so everything should work out for him to get baptized this Sunday. He seems pretty excited about everything. Now we just need someone else like him to teach. It was almost too easy haha. Well I hope everyone is doing well. I just realized today that I don't know my own home address or phone # so I better go memorize those :). Love you as much as the new house.
Elder Curtis
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