Dear Sons of Mosiah,
It has been a rough week, but it has definitely helped me reach a significant milestone in my life, I think. It was a hard week on success with a lot of let-downs, but that just goes to show that the Adversary is increasing his efforts to lead the Children of God down to misery and pain. Of course, as always, the Lord will come out triumphant. Sometimes things just don't happen in the timing that we hope, or in the way that we hope. But the Lord knows all things, and we best keep in mind that He is perfect, and just, and merciful. Heavenly Father made a plan for His children, and I don't think the Lord intends to save only few of his children. Apparently, neither did Joseph Smith's father, because he said the same thing--at least in the restoration video. I firmly agree.
My bretheren, there is a sorrow and also a joy out on a mission that seems to be almost uncomparable to any other sorrow or joy. The first little bit each of you is on a mission, you will probably miss home a lot. But the sorrow changes, and you never really lose sorrow, but rather, your sorrow becomes focused on your work. The sins of the world around you affect you tremendously. It's no wonder that Alma lemented over the sins of his people--but he also rejoiced in the Lord, and that joy is a joy that is not comparable to any other. It is the most exquisite joy, the joy that comes with this work. Sometimes I find myself worn down by the world around me, and my sadness seems almost unbearable as I watch my brothers and sisters fall away, being led slowly and steadily into the captivity of the devil. The law of chastity, and word of wisdom are huge problems out here. I watch as people reject the gospel, because they are held down in those chains. If any of you are bound in these chains, break them immediately, and follow the Savior. He truly is the Light and the Way. With HIs light comes a joy that is sweet above all other things.
Love the Lord, my bretheren, and His goodness. Pray to your father in mighty supplication for the welfare of your souls, as Enos did. Have faith in Christ, and trust in him. I realize that I must strive for these things, because my imperfections are many. The prophet Nephi also felt of His goodness, and also an exquisite sorrow because of the desires of the flesh. The scripture is 2 Nephi 4. I feel as he did quite a lot. It's a scripture that hit me with power. If a Prophet of the Lord feels a need to lament because of his sins and temptations that so easily beset him, have we also a need to cry out to the Lord as he did, and humble ourselves as the dust of the earth? I think so. It's my thought for the week. How can we better humble ourselves before the Lord? There was a talk I heard this week that I am stealing this next bit from. It's a question. Look at your hands. Whose hands are those? Certainly they are our hands. A mother might answer that they are her kids hands, and a husband might say they are his wife's hands. What do you say? Are they the Lord's hands?
Our God is a being who serves. The Son of Man descended below us all. It is so interesting how he came into the world not to be ministered unto, but to minister. Now go minister.
I am running short on time, but my experience for the week is so interesting. Plainly, a man antied us. He gave us antimormon literature. It disgusted me. If felt angry, and loathsome at that man. He looked at me and my district leader who was on exchanges with me, and asked, "Gentlemen, have you ever considered that you might well be on your way to outer darkness?"
Inside I was furious, and angry at his ignorance and accusation. The antimormon literature he gave us was so ridiculous and faulty, and all it did was anger me. I prayed to the Lord greatly for this man, as sorrows began to replace the anger in my heart. I asked what I should do concerning him, and the Lord answered me so vividly. Bretheren, the Lord wants to speak with us. He will help us fulfill the responsibilities of our stewardship. Turn to him always.
I have to go. I love all of you, and pray for you always.
Love, Elder Chris Petersen
Monday, March 15, 2010
Monday, March 8, 2010
A Great Week!!
Dear Sons of Mosiah,
Best week in my mission history, I would dare say. I went on exchanges for two days (meaning other missionaries came in to work with me in my area, and my companion went to a meeting one day, and the next day he went to a Zone Leader's area). The first day, two other Junior Companions came and worked my area with me. It was a growing experience for me running my area for the first time, being in charge, and calling the shots. That day we got two new investigators, setting one of them for baptism. The next day, one of the Zone Leaders came into my area (his name also Elder Petersen!), and he and I got two more new investigators. The next day, my companion came back form an amazing training, and we started applying this training he had received at the meeting he went to. We got yet another new investigator, and commited him to prepare for baptism. Now, five new people might not mean much to those of you who haven't experienced a mission anywhere in North America, but that is fantastic out here! And we are just getting started. The Lord has blessed us greatly! In fact, this new training will also transform our mission, if utilized correctly.
Well, I'll tell you about a couple of these great experiences.
Wallace: He is a referral from a recent convert, named Lawrence Johnson. Brother Johnson has been best friends with Wallace for 52 years. They are 61 years old. Wallace is really open, and we taught him that we have a loving Heavenly Father, that he gave us families and prophets because he loves us, and also about the apostasies, Christ's Ministry, the Great Apostasy, and of course, the Restoration of Christ's True Gospel. As always, the Spirit filled the room--especially when I told about Joseph Smith's first vision, using Joseph's own words. My bretheren, there is little that is more powerful than testifying of Heavenly Father, HIs Son Jesus Christ, and the fact that Joseph saw them both, in his own words. The Spirit testifies so strongly, because whenever truth is spoken, it is his job to testify. When we teach, we should always strive to keep complicated things out of our teaching, and teach simply, ONLY stating truth. When we do that, the Holy Ghost fills the room so powerfully. The Truths of the Gospel stated simply, has more power than an eloquent man presenting a perfect presentation made for the smartest of men. Showing our intelligence does nothing. Testifying of bold, simple truths, is small, simple sentances, does everything. Well, we set him for baptism after that lesson, and we will be meeting with him again. He's excited to read the Book of Mormon, and to be baptized by the proper authority--being the priesthood, and the authority to perform acts and miracles in Christ's name.
Danielle: We also shared a similar message with Danielle, since it was also her first time being taught. She was a potential investigator some time ago, and had been questioned in the street by some missionaries. My companion just happened to pick her from the long list of potentials, so we visited her, set up an appointment, and I came back with two other Elders since that was the day she picked. Well, it was a good lesson. She cried, as we spoke about that Great Apostasy. It saddened her deeply. Then Elder Stevenson-a great guy-presumed to dive into the Restoration, and specifically Joseph Smith's first vision. He's used to speaking Spanish, but somehow he still remembered the words in English. He did fine, but he said it very quickly, and it was a lot to take in. She pointed out how huge a claim that was, to say that there were two of them, and that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ were separate beings. I quickly analyzed the problem, and explained to her how throgh the Holy Ghost we can know the truth of all things. I explained the feelings the Holy Ghost brings, and how he only testifies when something is true. I told her I would recite what Joseph said he saw, again for her, and this time invited her to pay attention to those feeling to see if the Holy Ghost would testify. She agreed, and I presumed to say it slowly, simply, and with sincerity. She looked at the picture we had given her, as I said Joseph's words. I paused for a moment afterward to let the Spirit testify even more. Quietly, I heard her say something along the lines of: "I believe it. I believe that happened."
Bretheren...Sisters...there is a power in these words, and in simplicity and sincerity. I did not convince her of anything, nor am I a special missionary beyond anybody else. This power is God's, and is the Power of the Holy Ghost. When you are a missionary, you are endowed with a power that is promised to you. Have faith in that, and know that the Holy Ghost will always testify of the simple truths. Remember to teach simply. Help them feel the Holy Ghost. Words will convert nobody. Physical evidence, miracles, and signs will convert nobody. Remember that Laman and Lemuel saw an angel, and they did not change. The Children of Israel saw the Red Sea part, and many many other miracles. Yet even they worshipped a golden cow, because of their unbelief. It is only by the Holy Ghost that we will know the truth of all things. I love you all.
Love, Elder Chris Petersen
Best week in my mission history, I would dare say. I went on exchanges for two days (meaning other missionaries came in to work with me in my area, and my companion went to a meeting one day, and the next day he went to a Zone Leader's area). The first day, two other Junior Companions came and worked my area with me. It was a growing experience for me running my area for the first time, being in charge, and calling the shots. That day we got two new investigators, setting one of them for baptism. The next day, one of the Zone Leaders came into my area (his name also Elder Petersen!), and he and I got two more new investigators. The next day, my companion came back form an amazing training, and we started applying this training he had received at the meeting he went to. We got yet another new investigator, and commited him to prepare for baptism. Now, five new people might not mean much to those of you who haven't experienced a mission anywhere in North America, but that is fantastic out here! And we are just getting started. The Lord has blessed us greatly! In fact, this new training will also transform our mission, if utilized correctly.
Well, I'll tell you about a couple of these great experiences.
Wallace: He is a referral from a recent convert, named Lawrence Johnson. Brother Johnson has been best friends with Wallace for 52 years. They are 61 years old. Wallace is really open, and we taught him that we have a loving Heavenly Father, that he gave us families and prophets because he loves us, and also about the apostasies, Christ's Ministry, the Great Apostasy, and of course, the Restoration of Christ's True Gospel. As always, the Spirit filled the room--especially when I told about Joseph Smith's first vision, using Joseph's own words. My bretheren, there is little that is more powerful than testifying of Heavenly Father, HIs Son Jesus Christ, and the fact that Joseph saw them both, in his own words. The Spirit testifies so strongly, because whenever truth is spoken, it is his job to testify. When we teach, we should always strive to keep complicated things out of our teaching, and teach simply, ONLY stating truth. When we do that, the Holy Ghost fills the room so powerfully. The Truths of the Gospel stated simply, has more power than an eloquent man presenting a perfect presentation made for the smartest of men. Showing our intelligence does nothing. Testifying of bold, simple truths, is small, simple sentances, does everything. Well, we set him for baptism after that lesson, and we will be meeting with him again. He's excited to read the Book of Mormon, and to be baptized by the proper authority--being the priesthood, and the authority to perform acts and miracles in Christ's name.
Danielle: We also shared a similar message with Danielle, since it was also her first time being taught. She was a potential investigator some time ago, and had been questioned in the street by some missionaries. My companion just happened to pick her from the long list of potentials, so we visited her, set up an appointment, and I came back with two other Elders since that was the day she picked. Well, it was a good lesson. She cried, as we spoke about that Great Apostasy. It saddened her deeply. Then Elder Stevenson-a great guy-presumed to dive into the Restoration, and specifically Joseph Smith's first vision. He's used to speaking Spanish, but somehow he still remembered the words in English. He did fine, but he said it very quickly, and it was a lot to take in. She pointed out how huge a claim that was, to say that there were two of them, and that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ were separate beings. I quickly analyzed the problem, and explained to her how throgh the Holy Ghost we can know the truth of all things. I explained the feelings the Holy Ghost brings, and how he only testifies when something is true. I told her I would recite what Joseph said he saw, again for her, and this time invited her to pay attention to those feeling to see if the Holy Ghost would testify. She agreed, and I presumed to say it slowly, simply, and with sincerity. She looked at the picture we had given her, as I said Joseph's words. I paused for a moment afterward to let the Spirit testify even more. Quietly, I heard her say something along the lines of: "I believe it. I believe that happened."
Bretheren...Sisters...there is a power in these words, and in simplicity and sincerity. I did not convince her of anything, nor am I a special missionary beyond anybody else. This power is God's, and is the Power of the Holy Ghost. When you are a missionary, you are endowed with a power that is promised to you. Have faith in that, and know that the Holy Ghost will always testify of the simple truths. Remember to teach simply. Help them feel the Holy Ghost. Words will convert nobody. Physical evidence, miracles, and signs will convert nobody. Remember that Laman and Lemuel saw an angel, and they did not change. The Children of Israel saw the Red Sea part, and many many other miracles. Yet even they worshipped a golden cow, because of their unbelief. It is only by the Holy Ghost that we will know the truth of all things. I love you all.
Love, Elder Chris Petersen
Monday, March 1, 2010
The Work Continues...
Dear Sons of Mosiah,
A word of advice for all of you, and then I'll get on to the stories. Always always remember that there is no substitute for member referrals, and that it is important to always share the gospel with our neighbors. The prophets have taught that it is the responsiblity of all members to preach the gospel. The full-time missionaries are set apart to do it all of the time, to teach, and to baptize. However, it is much harder for us to do this without member support, and help. One of the reasons that Elder L. Tom Perry came to my mission, from my understanding, is to get the members to help with a goal that the apostles have. Now, I wasn't there for the meeting he had with the members, so don't quote me on it, but supposedly they have a goal for members to be so involved in finding people for the missionaries to teach that the missionaries never have to tract because the members are keeping us so booked with teaching their nonmember friends. Interesting, huh? Preach My Gospel says that tracting is one of the least effective ways of doing missionary work. It also notes that one of the most effective (if not THE MOST), is having members involved every step of the way (this includes inviting friends into their home to be taught by the missionaries, being the friend, helping them to church, etc.). I guess the apostles want us missionaries to spend less time finding, more time teaching. Great concept, isn't it? Help the missionaries out in your area.
Great news: The Jones Family that I was teaching in Benson got baptized! YES!!! I'm so excited for them. As well, I attended a baptism of a person my companion was teaching before he handed him over to the sisters in the singles ward. My companion was the one that baptized him. He's a great guy named Andy, and I'm so excited for him. Also, that day at the baptism, I met somebody's aunt and cousin...:-p
So, I think you'll find this next story interesting. I love being a missionary because of all the crazy things we get to do. Being involved with the lives of people is so fascinating. Especially when it's the life of a Catholic man named John Riggs.
Crazy Story of the Week: We are trying to get John Riggs to church, and he's an open guy. Still, sometimes you have to bargain with people to get them to do things, and they aren't always willing to investigate openly. So, my companion and I got permission to make him an interesting trade, and it worked. So, he's going to church with us, but in exhange, we had to go to a Catholic Mass with him. Hehehe...
Now, of course my companion and I aren't allowed to miss our own church, but we were allowed to attend an earlier session of Catholic Mass yesterday, and we did. HOLY COW!!! It was kind of like an apostate sacrament meeting, mixed with an apostate temple session. That's the only way to describe it simply. Also, you have to add all of their ritualistic things they do that have absolutely nothing to do with the true gospel. Some of the things are just entirely out there, and some of the things you can tell used to be part of the true gospel, but became corrupted by men. It's very interesting. The world has corrupted a lot of it. It's no wonder that the Lord didn't call somebody to reform a church that already existed, but instead called Joseph Smith to RESTORE Christ's Church. Some of the things the other churches do are so far gone that the gospel HAD TO BE RESTORED.
Now, I don't mean to bash on Catholocism. They are great people, they were very kind, and some of the things they do are fantastic. The real problem is simply that they don't have the whole truth. That is why missionary work is so important. We are called to help people find the truth that they don't even know they are missing, and to fill the void inside of them, that many don't even realize is there until we fill it. The authority is again on the earth, and the Spirit of God is upon the inhabitants of the earth once again.
A word of advice for all of you, and then I'll get on to the stories. Always always remember that there is no substitute for member referrals, and that it is important to always share the gospel with our neighbors. The prophets have taught that it is the responsiblity of all members to preach the gospel. The full-time missionaries are set apart to do it all of the time, to teach, and to baptize. However, it is much harder for us to do this without member support, and help. One of the reasons that Elder L. Tom Perry came to my mission, from my understanding, is to get the members to help with a goal that the apostles have. Now, I wasn't there for the meeting he had with the members, so don't quote me on it, but supposedly they have a goal for members to be so involved in finding people for the missionaries to teach that the missionaries never have to tract because the members are keeping us so booked with teaching their nonmember friends. Interesting, huh? Preach My Gospel says that tracting is one of the least effective ways of doing missionary work. It also notes that one of the most effective (if not THE MOST), is having members involved every step of the way (this includes inviting friends into their home to be taught by the missionaries, being the friend, helping them to church, etc.). I guess the apostles want us missionaries to spend less time finding, more time teaching. Great concept, isn't it? Help the missionaries out in your area.
Great news: The Jones Family that I was teaching in Benson got baptized! YES!!! I'm so excited for them. As well, I attended a baptism of a person my companion was teaching before he handed him over to the sisters in the singles ward. My companion was the one that baptized him. He's a great guy named Andy, and I'm so excited for him. Also, that day at the baptism, I met somebody's aunt and cousin...:-p
So, I think you'll find this next story interesting. I love being a missionary because of all the crazy things we get to do. Being involved with the lives of people is so fascinating. Especially when it's the life of a Catholic man named John Riggs.
Crazy Story of the Week: We are trying to get John Riggs to church, and he's an open guy. Still, sometimes you have to bargain with people to get them to do things, and they aren't always willing to investigate openly. So, my companion and I got permission to make him an interesting trade, and it worked. So, he's going to church with us, but in exhange, we had to go to a Catholic Mass with him. Hehehe...
Now, of course my companion and I aren't allowed to miss our own church, but we were allowed to attend an earlier session of Catholic Mass yesterday, and we did. HOLY COW!!! It was kind of like an apostate sacrament meeting, mixed with an apostate temple session. That's the only way to describe it simply. Also, you have to add all of their ritualistic things they do that have absolutely nothing to do with the true gospel. Some of the things are just entirely out there, and some of the things you can tell used to be part of the true gospel, but became corrupted by men. It's very interesting. The world has corrupted a lot of it. It's no wonder that the Lord didn't call somebody to reform a church that already existed, but instead called Joseph Smith to RESTORE Christ's Church. Some of the things the other churches do are so far gone that the gospel HAD TO BE RESTORED.
Now, I don't mean to bash on Catholocism. They are great people, they were very kind, and some of the things they do are fantastic. The real problem is simply that they don't have the whole truth. That is why missionary work is so important. We are called to help people find the truth that they don't even know they are missing, and to fill the void inside of them, that many don't even realize is there until we fill it. The authority is again on the earth, and the Spirit of God is upon the inhabitants of the earth once again.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
New Transfer to Lincoln
Dear Sons of Mosiah,
Well, not much to update you on. I got transferred to Lincoln Nebraska, and am currently serving in the Holmes Lake Ward. Unfortunately, missionary work is really slow in my new area that I moved into, and our key indicators that we report to the our leaders, are way below the standard. I don't like it one bit, and I hope to change that while I am here. The Ward needs a lot of help getting motivated to do missionary work, but my companion and I are in the process of setting up a new program here for the members that should take missionary work to a whole new level here. Unfortunately, it's very much an investment. The results will take time, but the important thing isn't that our numbers go up right away. The important thing is that we help souls do the things they need to do to live in Heavenly Father's Presence again, and reach exaltation. Should this work, missionaries that are here in the future should have plenty of people to teach, and the work should get so much better. It's going to take Patience to get this going, but it should work well.
The Lord will guide us, and it's going to take a lot of effort. Right now, we are only teaching one person, and he's a devout catholic. I'll tell you a little bit about him in a second. This means my companion and I are working on finding people to teach, and it is very difficult. The good thing is that Elder L. Tom Perry from the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles came to Nebraska on Sunday, spoke with local church leaders about how to get the members finding people for the missionaries to teach, and then he spoke with all of the missionaries yesterday. It was great being in the presence of one of the Lord's Apostles. It is my second time seeing him on my mission.
I need to go soon, so I will tell you a bit about the man we are teaching. He had us for breakfast at Village Inn, and would buy us any food we wanted. He's nice, but he's extremely liberal, which meant I had to keep my mouth shut and just smile as he bashed Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, and Glenn Beck. I love them all. Anyway, he's a devout catholic, but he doesn't even believe in a good portion of the bible, which is weird. He believes that Adam and Eve were a parable, and that the whole world being flooded didn't really happen. Moses parting the red sea...didn't believe that either. Why is this guy catholic? Cause he believes in all of their Articles of Faith. Anyway, it's strange, but I've got to go. Love you all!
Love, Elder Chris Petersen
Well, not much to update you on. I got transferred to Lincoln Nebraska, and am currently serving in the Holmes Lake Ward. Unfortunately, missionary work is really slow in my new area that I moved into, and our key indicators that we report to the our leaders, are way below the standard. I don't like it one bit, and I hope to change that while I am here. The Ward needs a lot of help getting motivated to do missionary work, but my companion and I are in the process of setting up a new program here for the members that should take missionary work to a whole new level here. Unfortunately, it's very much an investment. The results will take time, but the important thing isn't that our numbers go up right away. The important thing is that we help souls do the things they need to do to live in Heavenly Father's Presence again, and reach exaltation. Should this work, missionaries that are here in the future should have plenty of people to teach, and the work should get so much better. It's going to take Patience to get this going, but it should work well.
The Lord will guide us, and it's going to take a lot of effort. Right now, we are only teaching one person, and he's a devout catholic. I'll tell you a little bit about him in a second. This means my companion and I are working on finding people to teach, and it is very difficult. The good thing is that Elder L. Tom Perry from the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles came to Nebraska on Sunday, spoke with local church leaders about how to get the members finding people for the missionaries to teach, and then he spoke with all of the missionaries yesterday. It was great being in the presence of one of the Lord's Apostles. It is my second time seeing him on my mission.
I need to go soon, so I will tell you a bit about the man we are teaching. He had us for breakfast at Village Inn, and would buy us any food we wanted. He's nice, but he's extremely liberal, which meant I had to keep my mouth shut and just smile as he bashed Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, and Glenn Beck. I love them all. Anyway, he's a devout catholic, but he doesn't even believe in a good portion of the bible, which is weird. He believes that Adam and Eve were a parable, and that the whole world being flooded didn't really happen. Moses parting the red sea...didn't believe that either. Why is this guy catholic? Cause he believes in all of their Articles of Faith. Anyway, it's strange, but I've got to go. Love you all!
Love, Elder Chris Petersen
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Short but Sweet!!
Dear Sons of Mosiah,
Never was there a greater time to be a servant of the Lord than on this humbling day. Transfers are this week, and I have to admit, I am very nervous. One of my companions got called to be the Assistant to the President, and I am way excited for him, though it means I will not be able to serve alongside him any longer, which kind of saddens me. I have yet to find out whether or not I am staying in my area, and though I hope to, I will go where the Lord wants me to go.
Blessed is this day, brethren. Though many people may be in their deepest hardships, struggling to get by with all their might, the Lord has not turned Himself away from His Children. He is reaching out His hand, and He is there to comfort each of us who will run to His aid that He may succor us as a parent does a child. We are not alone. May we remember His promises to us, and His goodness, His power, and wisdom in all things. Sometimes things hurt, and we worry. Why is it that miracles happen all around us, and still our faith is shakeable? I wonder that of myself sometimes. None of us are perfect, but through the Lord Jesus Christ, we can be perfected.
I have no stories today, but rather a message to convey to all of you. Be there for each other, and place upon yourselves Charity and Love Unfeigned. Be faithful, and let virtue have place in your hearts and in your minds. Let not the fierce winds of the adversary push you into forbidden paths, but rather stay on the straight and narrow that you may stand blameless before God at the last day, through repentance in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
Know that God loves you, and cares for you. Know that He wants us to be happy, take joy in righteousness, and to serve one another. Christ himself came not to be ministered unto, but to minister. Let us follow His example, and let us take joy in each other.
I love you all so much, and take joy in each of you. I hope all of our individual relationships will last through time, and also through all eternity. I love each of you, all in different, and marvelous ways. Some are family, some of us an unbreakable brotherhood, some the sweetest friendships, others an influence of charity and support, and another the sweetest love in the eyes of God :-p. I love you all, and these things are among the things which are the testimony of my heart. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Never was there a greater time to be a servant of the Lord than on this humbling day. Transfers are this week, and I have to admit, I am very nervous. One of my companions got called to be the Assistant to the President, and I am way excited for him, though it means I will not be able to serve alongside him any longer, which kind of saddens me. I have yet to find out whether or not I am staying in my area, and though I hope to, I will go where the Lord wants me to go.
Blessed is this day, brethren. Though many people may be in their deepest hardships, struggling to get by with all their might, the Lord has not turned Himself away from His Children. He is reaching out His hand, and He is there to comfort each of us who will run to His aid that He may succor us as a parent does a child. We are not alone. May we remember His promises to us, and His goodness, His power, and wisdom in all things. Sometimes things hurt, and we worry. Why is it that miracles happen all around us, and still our faith is shakeable? I wonder that of myself sometimes. None of us are perfect, but through the Lord Jesus Christ, we can be perfected.
I have no stories today, but rather a message to convey to all of you. Be there for each other, and place upon yourselves Charity and Love Unfeigned. Be faithful, and let virtue have place in your hearts and in your minds. Let not the fierce winds of the adversary push you into forbidden paths, but rather stay on the straight and narrow that you may stand blameless before God at the last day, through repentance in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
Know that God loves you, and cares for you. Know that He wants us to be happy, take joy in righteousness, and to serve one another. Christ himself came not to be ministered unto, but to minister. Let us follow His example, and let us take joy in each other.
I love you all so much, and take joy in each of you. I hope all of our individual relationships will last through time, and also through all eternity. I love each of you, all in different, and marvelous ways. Some are family, some of us an unbreakable brotherhood, some the sweetest friendships, others an influence of charity and support, and another the sweetest love in the eyes of God :-p. I love you all, and these things are among the things which are the testimony of my heart. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
One Crazy Week!!
Dear Sons of Mosiah,
The work is amazing, and great! I have learned a great deal in the past month and a half. There is nothing like doing the Lord's work everyday! My brethren who are nearing their chance to serve, prepare yourself for a great experience of the most ultimate joy and sadness you might ever experience. Word I would use to describe a mission that probably fit it best: bittersweet. More sweet than bitter, but there are definitely hard times.
One of the worst things you will experience, happened this week. We were teaching a man named Steve Bauermeister. He's a great guy, but a little slow. We had a really spiritual lesson with him, and I know that it got through to him. That lesson should have gotten through to somebody with a heart of stone! And his isn't even that bad! Still, days later, he called us and told us he didn't want to hear from us anymore. Future Missionaries, I will tell you right now, it really sucks when someone gets 'antied'! It seems like almost everytime you teach someone, somehow somebody hits them with some form of anti! The adversary is all over this! If there are three things I've gained an even stronger testimony of out here, they are: 1) God loves us more than we can even know. 2) Joseph Smith was undoubtedly a Prophet of God who did, in fact, restore Christ's Church to the Earth, and 3) Satan is VERY REAL! Not only is he real, but he is in fact very involved in trying to destroy the Saints. I know, we have all heard it, but do we all comprehend the amount of power he has? It's so true that it does not stand a chance against the Power of God, BUT it is powerful.
Anyway, I tell you this so that you will all be ready, those of you who are preparing to serve a mission. Be ready.
(Go to Part Two)
Crazy Person of the Week:
We met with a man named Devin, this week. He only let's us meet with him twice a month, or so, for some reason. He is hillarious!
We went to his house, and he let us in of course, muting his television like he did last time, and holding his little dog, trying to keep him off of us (on the side here, the poor dog! He forces it to stay on his lap, and he sits there and plays with the dogs legs, moving in around in motions, pulling on them, and ignoring the dog as it gnaws at his hands trying to get him to stop. It's really funny actually!). Devin is another black guy we are teaching, which automatically makes him one of my favorite.
Devin is a really logical man, in really bizarre way, and last time he told us that he wanted to analyze and compare Christ's Church that he set up in the Bible, to our Church (which is the same church). So, we brought him evidences...the 17 Evidences of the Church. We compared, and all matched up. However, this man is totally a debater. Heck yes (except in Missionary work, then it's funny, but not so heck yes)!
Later we were talking about the Book of Mormon, and how Christ came to the Americas. He was like, "How did he get there? By boat, or ship, or something?". And we responded, "No, he descended from Heaven, just like he ascended to His Father in Heaven." And he said, "What?! You mean he flew? Nah!" And we laughed, "He is the SON OF GOD, you know? Why not?" And he debated us about the possiblity of things like that, or course we all laughed the whole time (including him). Then we brought up that he HEALED THE SICK, RAISED PEOPLE FROM THE DEAD, etc. He was like, "Nah! For all I know that's all an alagory, or something." And we were like, "You're kidding me, right?" And he said, "No! I don't know! Have you ever seen something like that before, cause I haven't."
We talked about it for a while, talked about God, and also things like he purpose of life. We asked what he thought it was, and he says, "Man! I don't know. Maybe this is all a computer game or something!" I said, "What a boring game!", and he continued, "Or maybe God created us cause he was bored. If I was God floating out in nothingness, I'd create us too!" We were like, "You gotta be kidding..." we then started leading him in the right direction, presenting it as though they were possiblities, and phrasing some of them in questions that began "do you believe...", "do you think...", "what about...". He's like, "Man, I don't know! I don't know! How can I know that? I've never seen it!"
To sum up the story, I've never heard someone use the phrase, "I don't know", more in my entire life. Also, he continued with outrageous possiblities, that we rather amusing, but ridiculous. Like I said, he's one of my favorite people to talk to. Anyway, the conversation ended with him saying, "Hey, if I could make this remote float, would you believe me? Cause I ain't ever seen anybody do that before?" And we answered, "Believe you about what? You don't have a belief to present." And he said, "Yeah, but what if? I ain't never seen anybody do that..." Yeah, roughly the conversation, it's crazy.
Last Part:
Here's the last story. So, we did exchanges again this week, a few times. One in particular was insane! Background for this story (and it will be a short story): There are potholes like crazy in Omaha! Some of you complain about Lehi's roads, but they don't have anything on Omaha's roads! They are the most terrible roads I have ever seen in my life! The government even gave them money to fix them, and I'm not seeing much progress!
So, we were driving to people we had planned to see throughout the day, when we hit a pothole that was huge, and my companion didn't see. Well, we were driving, and we realized the tire was going flat. So we pulled off to the side, made the calls we needed to make, and of course, changed the tire. If it would have ended there, we would be just fine. So, we spent forever changing the tire, which luckily two of us knew how to do (me being one of them), and put the spare tire (the donut) on.
Well, we tried to avoid driving much after that, but we had to take the broken tire to get repaired. On the way there, we hit another pothole (this one seemingly unavoidable), and there goes the donut! The count is up to two! So, we pull over at McDonalds, at night, stranded in an area that wasn't our own. After a while, we called the repair guy who is a member, and he suggested putting on the original tire, and trying to make it to him on that one. Both tires had the same problem. The rims were bent, and air leaked. So, we had to drive another fifteen miles or so to get to him. The whole way there, we stopped at two or three gas stations to try to fill the tire temporarily, and we lost pressure fast, until we said a prayer.
Well, we made it to the repair shop, and we were worn out. He got to fixing it, when he noticed another tire had begun leaking. We ruined THREE TIRES! Also, one of them had a nail in it, but luckily the nail didn't penetrate. So they were all easy fixes. He banged the rims back into place, saying "The Lord is with you Elders", a couple of times, if I recall correctly. Anyway, what I've written doesn't justify what we went through. It was an exhausting day on little sleep, it was snowing, we didn't see many people, and it was a lot of work to get to our destination. Only two good things really happened that day: 1) The Lord answered our prayer, BIG TIME! 2) I got mail. :) Write me people, it makes my bad days good!
Love you all, sorry if I bored you, but I hope it's slightly entertaining, and I want to prepare all of you future missionaries for the craziness. Of course, who knows? Perhaps N.O.M. is the craziest mission of all! ;)
Love Elder Christopher Petersen
The work is amazing, and great! I have learned a great deal in the past month and a half. There is nothing like doing the Lord's work everyday! My brethren who are nearing their chance to serve, prepare yourself for a great experience of the most ultimate joy and sadness you might ever experience. Word I would use to describe a mission that probably fit it best: bittersweet. More sweet than bitter, but there are definitely hard times.
One of the worst things you will experience, happened this week. We were teaching a man named Steve Bauermeister. He's a great guy, but a little slow. We had a really spiritual lesson with him, and I know that it got through to him. That lesson should have gotten through to somebody with a heart of stone! And his isn't even that bad! Still, days later, he called us and told us he didn't want to hear from us anymore. Future Missionaries, I will tell you right now, it really sucks when someone gets 'antied'! It seems like almost everytime you teach someone, somehow somebody hits them with some form of anti! The adversary is all over this! If there are three things I've gained an even stronger testimony of out here, they are: 1) God loves us more than we can even know. 2) Joseph Smith was undoubtedly a Prophet of God who did, in fact, restore Christ's Church to the Earth, and 3) Satan is VERY REAL! Not only is he real, but he is in fact very involved in trying to destroy the Saints. I know, we have all heard it, but do we all comprehend the amount of power he has? It's so true that it does not stand a chance against the Power of God, BUT it is powerful.
Anyway, I tell you this so that you will all be ready, those of you who are preparing to serve a mission. Be ready.
(Go to Part Two)
Crazy Person of the Week:
We met with a man named Devin, this week. He only let's us meet with him twice a month, or so, for some reason. He is hillarious!
We went to his house, and he let us in of course, muting his television like he did last time, and holding his little dog, trying to keep him off of us (on the side here, the poor dog! He forces it to stay on his lap, and he sits there and plays with the dogs legs, moving in around in motions, pulling on them, and ignoring the dog as it gnaws at his hands trying to get him to stop. It's really funny actually!). Devin is another black guy we are teaching, which automatically makes him one of my favorite.
Devin is a really logical man, in really bizarre way, and last time he told us that he wanted to analyze and compare Christ's Church that he set up in the Bible, to our Church (which is the same church). So, we brought him evidences...the 17 Evidences of the Church. We compared, and all matched up. However, this man is totally a debater. Heck yes (except in Missionary work, then it's funny, but not so heck yes)!
Later we were talking about the Book of Mormon, and how Christ came to the Americas. He was like, "How did he get there? By boat, or ship, or something?". And we responded, "No, he descended from Heaven, just like he ascended to His Father in Heaven." And he said, "What?! You mean he flew? Nah!" And we laughed, "He is the SON OF GOD, you know? Why not?" And he debated us about the possiblity of things like that, or course we all laughed the whole time (including him). Then we brought up that he HEALED THE SICK, RAISED PEOPLE FROM THE DEAD, etc. He was like, "Nah! For all I know that's all an alagory, or something." And we were like, "You're kidding me, right?" And he said, "No! I don't know! Have you ever seen something like that before, cause I haven't."
We talked about it for a while, talked about God, and also things like he purpose of life. We asked what he thought it was, and he says, "Man! I don't know. Maybe this is all a computer game or something!" I said, "What a boring game!", and he continued, "Or maybe God created us cause he was bored. If I was God floating out in nothingness, I'd create us too!" We were like, "You gotta be kidding..." we then started leading him in the right direction, presenting it as though they were possiblities, and phrasing some of them in questions that began "do you believe...", "do you think...", "what about...". He's like, "Man, I don't know! I don't know! How can I know that? I've never seen it!"
To sum up the story, I've never heard someone use the phrase, "I don't know", more in my entire life. Also, he continued with outrageous possiblities, that we rather amusing, but ridiculous. Like I said, he's one of my favorite people to talk to. Anyway, the conversation ended with him saying, "Hey, if I could make this remote float, would you believe me? Cause I ain't ever seen anybody do that before?" And we answered, "Believe you about what? You don't have a belief to present." And he said, "Yeah, but what if? I ain't never seen anybody do that..." Yeah, roughly the conversation, it's crazy.
Last Part:
Here's the last story. So, we did exchanges again this week, a few times. One in particular was insane! Background for this story (and it will be a short story): There are potholes like crazy in Omaha! Some of you complain about Lehi's roads, but they don't have anything on Omaha's roads! They are the most terrible roads I have ever seen in my life! The government even gave them money to fix them, and I'm not seeing much progress!
So, we were driving to people we had planned to see throughout the day, when we hit a pothole that was huge, and my companion didn't see. Well, we were driving, and we realized the tire was going flat. So we pulled off to the side, made the calls we needed to make, and of course, changed the tire. If it would have ended there, we would be just fine. So, we spent forever changing the tire, which luckily two of us knew how to do (me being one of them), and put the spare tire (the donut) on.
Well, we tried to avoid driving much after that, but we had to take the broken tire to get repaired. On the way there, we hit another pothole (this one seemingly unavoidable), and there goes the donut! The count is up to two! So, we pull over at McDonalds, at night, stranded in an area that wasn't our own. After a while, we called the repair guy who is a member, and he suggested putting on the original tire, and trying to make it to him on that one. Both tires had the same problem. The rims were bent, and air leaked. So, we had to drive another fifteen miles or so to get to him. The whole way there, we stopped at two or three gas stations to try to fill the tire temporarily, and we lost pressure fast, until we said a prayer.
Well, we made it to the repair shop, and we were worn out. He got to fixing it, when he noticed another tire had begun leaking. We ruined THREE TIRES! Also, one of them had a nail in it, but luckily the nail didn't penetrate. So they were all easy fixes. He banged the rims back into place, saying "The Lord is with you Elders", a couple of times, if I recall correctly. Anyway, what I've written doesn't justify what we went through. It was an exhausting day on little sleep, it was snowing, we didn't see many people, and it was a lot of work to get to our destination. Only two good things really happened that day: 1) The Lord answered our prayer, BIG TIME! 2) I got mail. :) Write me people, it makes my bad days good!
Love you all, sorry if I bored you, but I hope it's slightly entertaining, and I want to prepare all of you future missionaries for the craziness. Of course, who knows? Perhaps N.O.M. is the craziest mission of all! ;)
Love Elder Christopher Petersen
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
The Best Mission Ever!
Dear Sons of Mosiah (and all other readers, of course),
Why is Nebraska the best mission ever? If you don't know, it's because you've never gone on a mission to Nebraska. There are so many great things going on here, and though there are a lot of lost people out here, they are all God's Children. There is a great and a marvellous work to do out here!
Crazy Stories of the Week:
I went on an exchange to the Fontenelle Area here in Omaha Nebraska (which is an even more ghetto place than Benson, where I am currently serving, which is also in Omaha), and it was way awesome, except we didn't get to use a car that day, so we walked A LOT! We only got to teach one person the whole exchange (which really stunk, but it was only a part-day exchange, luckily), and I think he may have been drunk. At least he smelled drunk. Drunk people smell nasty, by the way. Don't do it.
Well, while I was in the area, we were walking down the street, minding our own business, when a man saw us from off of his porch, and began screaming at us to get off of his block. It was quite hysterical! He tried to send us away in the name of Jesus, and when I looked back in his direction like he was crazy, he then said "I'll shoot you!". Is that oxymoronic, or what? Go away in the name of Jesus, or I'll kill you?! Yeah...maybe somebody needs to review the ten commandments...
(Look for Part 2, I have to change computers)
On the good side of things, I have really gained a strong testimony that the Lord blesses those that are diligent and work hard. Since I got out here to my first area, it's been quite difficult finding solid investigators,but we were determined. So we tried new tactics, and continued to work hard. This last week it really paid off.
The Lord put in our path, as we worked hard, a man named Justin. Justin's story is really cool. He is a single man that is 26 years old, and is in a wheelchair. Something is wrong with his legs, but we've never bothered to ask. He's obviously missing part of one of his legs, and I think a part of his other foot as well. Justin is also a recovering alcoholic who knows he had a drinking problem. Because of this, he joined AA, and the here's the cool part. The first step of AA is to join a religion, so he prayed about it, wondering what religion to choose. The next day, we showed up. Isn't that way cool? He's also a way rock solid guy, he came to church but went to the singles ward), and he's set for baptism.
We also met Mary, Craig, and Destiny. I will have to tell you about them later for interest of time. Also Karen.
Well, now we've found these wonderful people, after our hard work and dilligence. Here's the cool part: after all of that, we were referred to a less active woman who told some other missionaries that she wanted to go back to church. So we went to her house, and she has FOUR BAPTISM AGE CHILDREN WHO NEED TO BE BAPTIZED!!! It's way cool. We asked if she wanted them to get baptized. Right away, she said yes, and they said yes! Like that, the Lord just kind of handed them to us. It's a testimony to me that God blesses His servants who work hard. All of you that plan on serving a mission, remember that.
I need to go now, but also remember that the Lord called all members of his church to do missionary work, even when they are not full time missionaries. It is actually the members job to find people. It is simply our job to teach people, and prepare them for the covenant of baptism. Do the work, my brethren (and sisters of course).
Love, Elder Christopher Petersen N.O.M.
P....Paragraph, I guess: N.O.M. stands for Nebraska Omaha Mission! Isn't that awesome?! When I get home, I can say, "Back in NOM..." lol! Anyway, bye!
Why is Nebraska the best mission ever? If you don't know, it's because you've never gone on a mission to Nebraska. There are so many great things going on here, and though there are a lot of lost people out here, they are all God's Children. There is a great and a marvellous work to do out here!
Crazy Stories of the Week:
I went on an exchange to the Fontenelle Area here in Omaha Nebraska (which is an even more ghetto place than Benson, where I am currently serving, which is also in Omaha), and it was way awesome, except we didn't get to use a car that day, so we walked A LOT! We only got to teach one person the whole exchange (which really stunk, but it was only a part-day exchange, luckily), and I think he may have been drunk. At least he smelled drunk. Drunk people smell nasty, by the way. Don't do it.
Well, while I was in the area, we were walking down the street, minding our own business, when a man saw us from off of his porch, and began screaming at us to get off of his block. It was quite hysterical! He tried to send us away in the name of Jesus, and when I looked back in his direction like he was crazy, he then said "I'll shoot you!". Is that oxymoronic, or what? Go away in the name of Jesus, or I'll kill you?! Yeah...maybe somebody needs to review the ten commandments...
(Look for Part 2, I have to change computers)
On the good side of things, I have really gained a strong testimony that the Lord blesses those that are diligent and work hard. Since I got out here to my first area, it's been quite difficult finding solid investigators,but we were determined. So we tried new tactics, and continued to work hard. This last week it really paid off.
The Lord put in our path, as we worked hard, a man named Justin. Justin's story is really cool. He is a single man that is 26 years old, and is in a wheelchair. Something is wrong with his legs, but we've never bothered to ask. He's obviously missing part of one of his legs, and I think a part of his other foot as well. Justin is also a recovering alcoholic who knows he had a drinking problem. Because of this, he joined AA, and the here's the cool part. The first step of AA is to join a religion, so he prayed about it, wondering what religion to choose. The next day, we showed up. Isn't that way cool? He's also a way rock solid guy, he came to church but went to the singles ward), and he's set for baptism.
We also met Mary, Craig, and Destiny. I will have to tell you about them later for interest of time. Also Karen.
Well, now we've found these wonderful people, after our hard work and dilligence. Here's the cool part: after all of that, we were referred to a less active woman who told some other missionaries that she wanted to go back to church. So we went to her house, and she has FOUR BAPTISM AGE CHILDREN WHO NEED TO BE BAPTIZED!!! It's way cool. We asked if she wanted them to get baptized. Right away, she said yes, and they said yes! Like that, the Lord just kind of handed them to us. It's a testimony to me that God blesses His servants who work hard. All of you that plan on serving a mission, remember that.
I need to go now, but also remember that the Lord called all members of his church to do missionary work, even when they are not full time missionaries. It is actually the members job to find people. It is simply our job to teach people, and prepare them for the covenant of baptism. Do the work, my brethren (and sisters of course).
Love, Elder Christopher Petersen N.O.M.
P....Paragraph, I guess: N.O.M. stands for Nebraska Omaha Mission! Isn't that awesome?! When I get home, I can say, "Back in NOM..." lol! Anyway, bye!
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