I've Been Blown Away

We were having some really great weather recently, but everything changed when the cold front attacked. Now it's windy for days and the cold has reared it's horrendous face to destroy us. Hide yo kids, hide yo wife. Heck, hide yo family, everybody gettin' freezed up in here.

One of my favorite people from Deer Park got to be baptized on Saturday! I got permission to take Elder Herem with me and attend the baptism, since the two of us found her and put her on date for baptism. She was pretty nervous because the anticipated gathering of 10 people changed into like 40. It took a bit for her to enter the font because of fear of everyone watching, but she was an entirely new person once she rose from the waters as a reborn disciple of Christ. She was at peace and very happy. We were, too. Then, me and Elder Herem were given the chance to give a presentation while she changed into normal clothes. Like, I remember that we were asked like 5 days in advance, but I put it out of my mind and then was reminded about it an hour before the baptism. We ended up giving a 5 minute version on the message of the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I got on the piano to play Joseph Smith's first prayer while he recited the first vision, then the two of us bore testimony to everybody. We even had a couple people in tears. Not bad for no prior prep. Ultimately, it was wonderful to see our friend be baptized and also be reunited with a small number of our Deer Park buddies. 

The assistants to the president called us up one morning so that they could set up an exchange for the day. I wasn't expecting it at all but thoroughly enjoyed it. I got to be with the missionary I was with in one of the most powerful phases of my mission, Elder Stuart! I think I'm currently in my most powerful phase, but lost a bit of power between last transfer and when I was his companion. Anyhow. We went out did some serious contacting and tracting. It was odd to me that we faced minimal opposition. Everyone (except like 2 people) were so kind and willing to listen. We found like 5 people who are willing to have the missionaries of that area back to share more. We also taught multiple lessons and caught up on old times. Of course, there was some punching involved, but what can you do? Haha. It was a really great day and it was good to be with him again. I just wish they had more food in their apartment! 

That wind has just been destroying us this week! I think we were on bikes on the windiest day, which was reaching 27 mph. Of course, the wind was blowing the opposite direction. It was really hard to keep pedaling, especially since we did 19 miles on bikes that day. No joke, the closer we got to our destination, the worst the wind got. The last 200 yards or so, the wind switched to 80 miles per hour. Literal tumbleweeds blasted through the airs, trying their darndest to send us to the depths. I seriously wanted to just give up and turn right back around. We punched our way through the last foe and parked our bikes at a complex which was swarming with the fuzz. I kinda laughed to myself as I saw a cop asking a 10 year old questions on the playground while we locked up the bikes. Anyways, we fought through the blasts of heavy wind and bugged the residents, finding a new person to teach and also finding a less active of many years, whose boyfriend we might be able to pick up. Nice. 

So yeah, we found 4 people to teach this week. That is insane for this particular area. It's really just a hard place to serve and a lot of opposition is going around through the mission, whether its physical or emotional ailments, a lot of people are going through tough stuff. It makes me think of a scripture that I read in Helaman 3:25. I challenge you to read this. If you fail the challenge, I don't want to describe your willpower to you. Anyhow, it helped me to see that people can be happy, even in the hardest situations. These people are in an era of war and confusion and more. I imagine it a lot like modern times. When things were the hardest, things were also the best. There's plenty of talks about it, so I won't go off the wall, but when things have become impossible and you're about to fall over, just hang in for a moment longer and you'll see a miracle or 9.

Baptism!

Locking up the bikes

Me and Elder Herem

I'm Tired, Just Like My Car

A little while ago, I remembered back to last year when I said, "April showers bring May showers". Since the rain is so consistent, I think it'll happen again. There must be legions of old ladies in churches praying for moisture. There was enough moisture to satisfy me for the next month or so this week. However, on the days it mattered most to me, it was bright and sunny and I was so glad! Nemo got to spend the whole day outside on Easter. 

So I was sick. While I was sick, I had a dream where I was telling someone else how to get unsick. When I woke up, I followed my own advice and started recovering pretty quickly. I finished the night with a workout at our gym and then felt 90 percent better than I did yesterday. Then the rest of the week, I was pretty much good to go, with the exception of some congestion. Neat.

The family that we have been teaching had just kept growing and growing in the gospel. This time around, we brought a woman fellowship to help teach, and they really kicked it off with her, especially since she has kids their age. We taught them about the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which we sum up with faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost and enduring to the end. The Dad was totally down to be baptized and said he would have all his kids come, too. This was the mom's second lesson, and so her testimony hasn't grown as much. She says that she will be baptized, but she wants to wait and learn a little bit more. When the lesson was almost done, their 15 year old son decided to stop playing minecraft in his room and shimmied down to join us, saying something to the effect of, "I don't really know what you guys have been doing, but my family had been getting better and better since you two started showing up, and I want to be a part of it, too." Wow! Now there are only two people left of the family to join in. It's been a pleasure seeing them blossom in the gospel and love for one another.

I got to go on a companion exchange with a pretty great guy this week. It was a whole lot of fun. I've found a lot of joy in going out and doing work with someone who can support me in testifying. We managed to pick up two new investigators that day. It was as if we had been companions for weeks! We went around with major power, testifying and working hard. It was so neat finding one family who was really dedicated to their religion. I told them that their love for one another was evident, and our church would enable their family relationship to perpetuate beyond the grave. They politely declined, so I said, "that's not good enough. I testify that through the church of Jesus Christ, your family can be sealed together forever, not just until death do you part." The wife hesitated hard core and then turned us down again. We continued talking and we learned that she believes in revelation. I testified yet again that this is the way for her family to be together forever, and inviting us over would be the first step to making it happen. She hesitated again! I asked her to pray, because I knew God loved her and her family, and he would tell her what she needed to do, then left her with our phone number. The spirit was undeniable. I'll be kind of bummed if she never reaches out to us, but I know that we made a good friend that day and we have done our part. Now it's up to her to accept or reject the two Angels God sent her way. (The Bible Dictionary says an angel is a messenger from God) 

We had zone conference this week. It's always fun getting to see my buddies and exchange punches. It hurts to see with each conference more of my friends have finished their missions and I might not see them again, but I'm glad I got to know them. Anyhow, this was quite an influential zone conference for me. I learned a lot about persuasion and God's love for us. A well known scripture was shared to us which in my own words says, "you shouldn't ever use your position or power to make people do what you want. You should only try to persuade through your love and your actions." The zone conference continued on with a theme that these truly are the last days, and we can no longer be passive. We shouldn't say, "oh, ok". When people hit you with the all too common "I'm not interested". After all, the Savior and Redeemer of the world suffered everything and rose from the dead this week 2000 year ago so that these people could repent and come unto Him. Christ never yelled at people for not following him. He'd perhaps lament, "how oft would I have gathered you as a hen gathereth her chicks", but He wouldn't force anyone to follow Him. However, He wouldn't just take a "no" either. He would try and persuade everyone with his love and His patience to follow Him. So now, that's what I am trying to do. There's no more passive Elder Ruth. These are the last days, and there also isn't a crap ton of time for my mission, either. I've got almost 4 months left, boys. 

So that's just about it for shareable material this week. Oh, in other news, I successfully ate 4 California sushi rolls. It may not have been easy, but anyone who knew my history with sushi would be shocked. 

Thou art a true friend unto my son, Nephi.  2Ne1:30

Talking to our Moms on P-Day!

For The One

Man, this week was not one for the books. Elder Muhlestein got sick relatively early on in the week, and that severely limited our activity. Then, I woke up Friday sick as well! Unlucky! So almost nothing got done this week. That being said, something did get done which is better than nothing, so let's go, boys!

So there I was in church, sneezing up a storm when this high councilor comes up and says, "good news Elders. You get to be Captains in my army! I need you to help lead an a capella We'll Bring the World His Truth in my talk today!" I was like, uhhh. Can I just play it on the piano so its not all out of tune? He agreed, and so I was handed a children's songbook and then had 10 minutes or so before I had to go up and play the song without any actual practice. It turned out ok! And it was cool singing that when we wouldn't normally sing. What a good song. 

When we told the mission nurse that we were sick, she said that it was probably allergies. She prescribed claritin for Elder Muhlestein and honey for me. I made sure he took his Claritin every day and then I went around, drinking enough honey to make Whinnie the Pooh jealous. Oh bother ;) though neither of these remedies worked, I did enjoy the suggestion. If you've served with me, you probably know of my craze for honey, and we didnt have any here, so we had an excuse to go out and buy some. 

So one thing that I have pondered on a lot lately is the love our Savior has for the individual being. Even when we feel inadequate of his love, there he is with his arms outstretched. I hope it's a secret, but to some, it is no secret that I've been having a tough couple transfers. Various circumstances have been limiting my ability to see success in my own eyes. I had the opportunity to be interviewed by the mission president this week. I ranted to him of my troubles in my last email, and then I finished, sheepishly trying to justify myself, though the pessimist in me told me that I should stop complaining. My dear president held me in his arms and expressed his gratitude for me, calling me one of his strongest soldiers. He then said that 9/10 missionaries who have my similar struggles would've gone home months ago, and he is in awe at my diligence. He then said that I had him in awe and that he loved me, and so does God. It's not often you can get Elder Ruth to tear up, but it happened to me on this day. It was incredible to look at myself from someone else's eyes and see that I'm doing just ok, and even good. I was ministered to in my time of trial. Which brings me to my bigger reason for talking about this.

On Friday, when we were both sick, I felt that we should try and at least just walk around so people could see us outside. Doing so has planted seeds in the past, so we did that day. One person in particular had been on my mind for a little while. After sneezing too much without a tissue, I decided we should breach the sanctity of our 5-7 finding time and visit this less active man. He had a table almost ready for dinner, and we both took a nap during our dinner time earlier due to fatigue. He said that he had been waiting for us and he knew we would come. His daughter had undergone some very traumatic things leaving him with even less strength than usual. We helped him put his front room back together and just stayed with him for two hours, listening to his stories and sharing scriptures and comforting him. I was blown away by his faith in expecting us. He told us that he had been in pain for days and praying that God would send anyone, and he knew we would be the ones to show up. He teared up and hugged us in gratitude. If you dont believe in God, riddle me that. I felt compelled to bring us to a guy I've only met once in his greatest time of need. Needless to say, I testify that God is real and he cares about each one of us individually. It may not seem as apparent to you as it was to him, but God is watching over you and he is mindful of your prayers. As you draw nearer to him and strengthen your faith, you'll be able to feel his presence even stronger and receive answers to your prayers in more recognizable ways. 

So yeah, that's just about it for this week. Oh, also, Elder Herem sneak attacked me at the end of church the other day and now I get to accompany him in a violin piano song at zone conference Wednesday. At least he gave me more notice than most people. 

Written When I Was Tired and Weird

This week went by even quicker than Alma returning to the city of Ammonihah. It wasn't what I expected from a week as trying as this one. But I saw a wild owl, saw multiple sunsets and felt the spirit a lot, so it was good.

The agnostic guy is the investigator who in my opinion has the greatest potential for success. We finally met his wife and 9 year old daughter this week. His wife told us that he would spend a while after every visit teaching her everything that we taught him. Slowly with each lesson, the Lord has been removing the scales of darkness from their eyes so that they may see. They've been noticing truth all around them. They have also seen how many of the "good" people they know are members of the church, and how much of the things they have heard about the church is wrong. We talked to them dropping hints like crazy about the temple and eternal marriage and they can be sealed as a family. If things go they way I hope, we will put him and his wife and 9 year old on date this Tuesday. I am so excited for them. I've seen some incredible happiness watching the lives of people change who were humble enough to God in even if it was for just a minute.

So, I guess that for quite a while, I've been enthralled by the beauty of the twilight. I noticed lately that if it rains, the sky that night will be especially beautiful. Multiple times, the sun has set on us as we've walked the streets, creating an aura of absolute peace. The birds softly chirp as they return to their nests and parents call their kids in for the night as the sky radiates incredible hues of gold and pink, twisting into the purple and blues of the night. It just feels so different to me and I love it. I feel the spirit so strong as I watch the skies last hurrah, knowing God made it do that for you and me. It's definitely mellowed me out, and I've found I feel so awe struck I have a difficult time talking for at least 30 minutes after the fact. And I stand all amazed, knowing that God would create something so beautiful for someone like me, who goofs all the time. I wish there was a better way to repay Him sometimes. After all, He's almost all I really have left. 

We went to a very well off neighborhood this week in the pursuit of the children of God. One lady viciously informed me we were in neighborhoods of an H.O.A and so it was illegal for us to be here. We told her she had nothing to worry about, we were here for a specific purpose. That got her off our backs, and we mosy to a door that other Elders knocked on a couple weeks back. This grouchy old man opens, says some rude things, and closes the door right as his wife appears behind him. I stared at her until she opened up. She started to rebuke us too, saying we don't believe in Christ. I told her, "We believe in Jesus Christ as the Savior and Redeemer of the world. He created the world and just about everything in it." (Because he didnt make our soul.) She then rebuked, saying that we must never add to the bible, so I gave her a history lesson. (The bible is a compilation of works by various prophets on hundreds of scrolls, not a single book passed around. The Book of Mormon wasn't in the bible because it was on another continent.) She was just getting so angry and said that she prays we will one day be brought to the truth. And with her angry remarks, we turned our backs and I said, "yes, pray to God and ask." And that's really our invitation to all. This was especially apparent to me in general conference. We need to pray to God and gain a witness for ourselves if the church actually is Christ's church. If it is, you had better drop what you're doing and join it. If it's not, then don't. I testify it is, and I dont need to pour out every ounce of my testimony to back myself up. This is Christ's church. So if you dont think so, or you doubt the prophet or some doctrine, have some faith and pray about it. I know those who do so with a broken heart and contrite spirit will resolve their concerns and unite with the church of the beloved lamb of God. 

Last P day was one of the best P days I have had on my mission. I had invited the clutchest members this side of anywhere to come with us to go bowling. They brought their whole family other than their Elder, all of whom I have grown to love immensely. Not only this, they brought my boy Tyson, the one who would go out with me in deer Park and wrought miracles, along with his sister. I was so excited to see everyone, and though the absence of his other siblings bummed me out a bit, I was so glad to be with all of my friends. Oh, Elder Herem was there too. 

Anyways, being a missionary makes it seem like you've gotta just get out and baptize everyone and their dog. A mature missionary knows that's not it at all. It's about strengthening our brothers and sisters and helping our lost ones return. Though none of these my brethren were lost, I believe that they have strengthened me with their love and faith. I can't speak in their behalf, but I hope that I have done the same for them. 

This brings me to last week when I bore testimony in church. There were so many kids making noise and running up the aisles to the stand to bear testimony. I watched them in awe. They were full of faith, without any doubt or fear as they told the congregation they know the church is true. I had to get up there and tell the congregation to "behold your young ones". Of such is the kingdom of God. They are so incredible and pure, I'd like to be like them. It was just a quick two minute testimony and I didn't think anything would come of it. Later, we were invited to some members to dinner the next Sunday (yesterday). They told me that they were grateful I listened to the prompting of the spirit and got up there. My brief testimony had struck them, causing them to "make some changes". And though I don't know what their changes were, I could feel their love and gratitude. So my final message of this email is, people are watching you and they can see your light. Even when you feel small and insignificant in this world, you are likely making a difference and inspiring other people. If you're doing anything commendable and don't see the fruits of your labors, don't give up. Keep holding out strong. A city on a hill can not be hid. People will see you and will grow because you had the faith to follow Christ and act in his behalf. 

So there it is. We found three new this week. I've also seen eagles, hawks, porcupines, marmots and an owl over here. We did some sweet service and tried our best to be good ol representatives of Jesus. Peace. 

Good Company, Good Food

We can play games on P-Day now!

Sunset in Spokane

I Would Walk 500 Miles And I Would Walk 900 More

One fateful day, we had our car parked in a lot in Spokane for a couple hours. When we returned, it had a couple mystery scratches upon it. We brought it in this week and so we've been dealing with our chevroLEGS like no man's business. It's been pretty tiring, but we did it. We walked all over this town, visiting places I'd never been and talking to some neat people. You wouldn't believe the amount of coins I found this week. We also passed likely hundreds of alcohol bottles as well as numberless cigarette bunz. Not sure why I'm typing about this. We just walked a lot. And biked. A lot.

So, sometimes I joke about being "too swoll" because I don't appear to be super ripped. This week, my saying actually came to be. I was just so exhausted and tired, when a member inquired as to my weakened state, they diagnosed me. I was hitting the gym with too much dedication and I wasn't eating enough calories that my muscles were attacking themselves to get bigger. Or something? So I did what seemed right, and we moseyed down to McDonald's where I got a large meal and ate every bite. It was odd to me to get the most calorie packed meal I could, but it sure made me feel better! Oddly enough, a bunch of chocolate helped, too.

Remember that old man from last week whose dog wouldn't let him go home? I guess he really had the experience of us helping him bouncing around his mind all week. He's normally a mean old man, but he's been especially nice lately. He caught us out and about a few days ago and asked if we could talk. I ended up sitting on the curb while he sat in his wheelchair, telling us 40 minutes of stories which didn't seem to have anything in common with each other. At the end of the surprise story time, he asked for our number because he said that he feels like we have what he's missing. Just listening to him softened his heart immensely. Neat! I really like this side of him. Who knew underneath his grumpy face and unkind words was actually a really sweet old guy who'll bring a smile to anyone's face?

We met one of my new best friends this week. She's a super neat girl who has had many difficult experiences similar to me. However, instead of turning to God, she went to other sources. I won't talk too much about what she believes because many people would ridicule her. However, I already have so much respect for her and the things she has to say. The whole time we were with her, I knew we had to teach her about the plan of salvation. Ok, I guess I'll say a little about her, its important to the story. She had a crystal on her neck, and I asked about it, knowing they can hold energy. She told me to hold it, and great feelings of peace and warmth overcame me. Ok, no more talk about crystals because of non believers. I told her about how these feelings were good, and they were things that she could always have, without the aid of something else. I told her she was a daughter of God, and as she drew nearer to Him, He'd draw nearer to her. She was like, "well, I don't know." So I told her, "I had enough faith to not call you crazy, so now you need enough faith to not call me crazy." We are going back this Tuesday to teach her the plan of salvation and help her develop a relationship with her Heavenly Father. 

Man, Jesus is just so special. There were two occasions where I only had one dollar in my pocket. As missionaries, we have been counseled to not give people money, so I guess I broke a rule, but I gave both of these people the only dollar that I had. One of them seemed extremely grateful, one of them didn't think much of it. I know it's common to think, "oh, they are just going to go buy drugs." But that isn't up for us to decide. In Mosiah 4:19 and 20, it says "For behold, are we not all beggars? Do we not all depend upon the same Being, even God, for all the substance which we have... and behold, even at this time ye have been calling on his name and begging for a remission of your sins. And has he suffered that ye have begged in vain? Nay." The chapter goes on to talk about how if we are just condemning people, saying they brought this upon themself, "how much more will be your condemnation for withholding your substance, which doth not belong to you but to God." I know it's not always easy to give to these people, but I know God will be even more proud of you, and if it was possible, he'd love you even more because of it. After all, in Matthew chapter 25:35-36, it says "For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in. Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me." I know that serving anybody also serves Jesus Christ. 

One last special thing I wanted to talk about comes from a song that I love called Dear to the Heart of the Shepherd. This song talks about how all of the sheep are important to God, and He wants all of them to return to Him. We've come across a couple people this week who have been less active for years. I know people are more impressed when you say "I baptized 200 people on my mission" than if you were to say, "I helped 200 people come back to church", but I know every single soul is important to God. One of the people we randomly tracted into last week told me this week on our third visit, "missionaries found me about a year ago, but they only came once. You are much more persistent than them." I just know that in this part of the field, I've been given stewardship over the flock, and I won't knowingly let any of my sheep suffer before I can do something about it. I'm aware of what I could be doing better and things that are holding me back, but I know that when I see my stake president in 5 months upon returning home, I can tell him I tried my best to help others come to the fold of God. 

So there you have it for this week. Found various wonderful people, walked over 9,000 miles, biked over 40,000, helped three families move back to back, and did what we could in this part of the vineyard. 

Helaman 5:48 And behold, they saw the heavens open

Why is there a porcupine in the tree?

My wrecked pants from the wire incident