March 25, 2013

Dear Family,

I always love hearing about the talks that are being shared in church back home. It sounds like the story about the turkey wandering along the road must've been pretty funny :) And I'm sure April gave a really good talk in the Mendon 1st ward. I wish I could have heard it. You're right Mom, missions are an excellent opportunity to learn about the doctrines of the Gospel. While I'm really not that knowledgeable myself (I'm reminded of this every day as Elder Heindel corrects my crazy opinions on the spirit world, celestial glory, etc.), I can at least recognize that my understanding of Gospel principles has grown in the past couple of years. And judging by how intelligent April is I just know that her talks must be awesome!

One source of doctrine that I've gained the most knowledge from is - you guessed it - the Book of Mormon. I recently finished Mosiah and started Alma and it's been a blast to learn things that I never noticed in previous readings of the same book. As I started Alma chapter 1 I read about the people of the church who were "steadfast and immovable" and the priests who labored to "impart the word of God unto the people," but didn't do it for money. In verse 27 it mentions that the people helped each other out and imparted their substance to those in need. At the end of the verse it reads that "they did not wear costly apparel, yet they were neat and comely." When I read that, I thought to myself that that perfectly describes members of the church. People who aren't too fancy or wild in their appearance, but a people who like to look neat and nice. My definition of "neat and comely" is this: righteously classy. Take for instance Deiter F. Uchtdorf. This man always has fantastic ties and has the most wonderful hair. He's not in-your-face with his style, but yet he is righteously classy. What a stallion of a man! Just a thought :)

Anyways, on to the work. This week was a good one for us. We picked up 5 new investigators (all from tracting) and we taught 23 lessons - the best since I've been here. We're still struggling to set baptismal dates with our investigators, but both Elder Heindel and I feel impressed that we'll be able to set 2 dates by the end of this coming week. Our zone is equally doing just as well. We reached 130 lessons, which breaks any previous record for the Springfield zone. It's about an average of 14-15 lessons per area, which is near the best in the mission. Sometimes I get so frustrated with the elders in our zone, but I'm happy to see that they're actually working hard for the most part. I think that our zone meeting this last Monday was a real help to everyone. We talked about being in the moment and trusting in the Lord that you won't fail. We reminded our elders that no effort is wasted. I know the Lord will continue to bless this zone if we are obedient and are working hard. And we've been able to see that as we've jumped from 55 to 130 in just a couple of months. Cool stuff!

I also know that numbers aren't everything. I still have my frustrations because I want to see real growth. The kind of growth that is seen in progressing investigators, baptismal dates, church attendance, and most of all - baptisms. Elder Heindel and I have about 50 potential investigators (no lie) from our diligent hard work, but it's a struggle to get them from point A to point Z. Sorry if I've said this same stuff before, but I want to see it improve. But I'm still positive. I try to "rejoice" in the little miracles that happen each day. One little miracle is that Bro. Gould is doing awesome. He'd the one that's married to a member, comes to church every week, says he'll be baptized, but doesn't want to be pushed. We've been trying not to push him too much, but I just want the guy to get baptized already!! While I'm not able to say that we set a date with him this week, I'm able to say that we've had some great lessons with him recently. Yesterday we had a little miracle in our Gospel Principles class as we watched "Safety for the Soul" by Jeffrey R. Holland. Bro. Gould seemed to really liked it and he even recognized the scripture 2 Nephi 33:10-11 about the words of Christ because we had read it with him previously. He really opened up to us and even kind of bore his testimony to us. Baby steps...

Other little miracles include really good exchanges with some of the priests in our ward. We have some awesome priests, but they seem a little disinterested sometimes. They don't realize what a crucial period of time it is right now. Most of them have girlfriends. A few of them talk about missions like it's an afterthought. But this week we went with Slade and Joe on separate occasions and they had a blast. I pray and pray every time that we'll get into doors and that they'll have a good experience and the Lord came through for us. Slade even got to see us teach a first lesson to Karissa and Todd. Joe came up to us at church and said that he wanted to go with us again this week. I've never seen that from him before. Little miracles!

So life is wonderful. It's been as cold as all get out this week and we've gotten tons of snow. I'm about ready for spring, but you know how I love the winter wasteland. I'm still working my guts out. I'm still loving my companion. What else could I ask for than this wonderful experience! I'm very blessed.

Love, Elder Atkin

March 19, 2013 - Positivity!

Dear Family,

Howdy howdy howdy!

Sorry about last weeks email. I really felt bad about typing such a negative email so I thought I chose a better option, even if it was really short. I just need to be more positive! Positive in my emails, positive in my area, positive with the zone in meetings... The Lord doesn't like negative people. In a talk I recently read by Elder Tad R. Callister he mentioned that consecrated missionaries always have a smile and a good attitude because no matter what happens, they have the Gospel of Jesus Christ. There's no need for me to get down on everything. I should be happy that I've made it this far and that I'm blessed to be a part of this church. And how wonderful it is! Now that's something to be happy about. Word of advice from Elder Atkin this week: whenever you're frustrated/angry/sad/down, just remember who you are and what you have. Your problems will then seem tiny.

This week was definitely a finding week. I think that I must've tracted every single day. And I say that with all the gratitude and happiness that my soul can possess. Sadly, our weekly indicator for new investigators was a big fat 0, but man I had a blast. The Lord has definitely taught me a few lessons that I couldn't place a price on. 1) I know I've said this before, but I absolutely love meeting people. 2) God for sure loves each of his children, even when they have the biggest wad of chew dripping from their mouth or they answer the door with a beer in hand. 3) No effort is wasted. 4) I've met dozens and dozens of people that will someday be members of this church. Dead serious. 5) Tracting is NOT A WASTE OF TIME, as many missionaries like to say it is. If you do it right, don't set yourself up for failure, and show your love of the Gospel, you will have success. While we didn't have any new investigators, we have a list of potentials about a mile long. Now comes the struggle of just catching them at home. People sure are busy...

A few days ago we were out knocking doors in Ash Grove and we had a funny experience I thought y'all would appreciate. Elder Heindel and I were just finishing up a street before we headed back home for dinner when we came upon the last house. It was a small, run-down home that had a big sign on the fence that read: "WARNING: I'm a bitter gun owner clinging to my religion."  I'm usually not too scared when it comes to talking to people, but for some reason I just chickened out on this one. Ash Grove is a small town with strange people so I had every right to be. After a short pause I told Elder Heindel that we should probably skip this one and go back to the car. As I began to walk away my courageous companion grabbed my arm and said with a smile, "We're knocking on this door Elder." Oh great. I thought for sure I was going to get shot. Elder Heindel knocked on the door and I awaited my doom. But to my pleasant surprise, a nice old man named Frank answered the door. The same Frank that I previously mentioned had a gob of chew dripping out of the corner of his lips. *shudder* We told him who we were, what the Book of Mormon was, and asked him if we could come back. Once again to my surprise, he said, "Sure, why not." With the goofiest, toothless smile he wished us a good day and we were off. I guess it wasn't my time to die quite yet.

So yeah, Heavenly Father blesses us here and there in different ways that we don't expect. There's many other nice people we met this week that we hope to teach again in the future. Most of our investigators aren't really progressing right not, but they'll come around. I have the faith. Well, at least I hope I do... Either way, life is good and I'm happy.

Have a great week!

Love, Elder Atkin

March 11, 2013 - Another week in Paradise

Excerpt from Willie's letter:

Here's probably one of the greatest pictures of all time. Yesterday before church we found this intersection while hunting for good tracting spots. Can you believe it?? This is a once in a lifetime opportunity! I will forever remember where William Ave and Dennis St met - a place where the sun shines a little brighter :)

February 4, 2013 - New Transfer = New Opportunities

Dear Family,

So we finally get a new refrigerator after 25 years? Talk about bittersweet. Gosh, I feel like a part of me has died... Will I see our good ol' fridge in the next life? Haha I'm just kidding. You can make fun of me for saying this, but I'll miss that old tank of an appliance. It's all I've known! Well, life moves on.

Speaking of life moving on - I was reading the end of Jacob going into Enos this morning for personal study. As Jacob is finishing his account, he tells the story of one named Sherem - an anti-Christ who is convinced of his wrongdoing right before he dies. I haven't faced many anti-Christs on my mission, but I can sure relate to Jacob in the way that he gets extremely "anti'd" (aka religious bash, battle). But of course Jacob handles the situation like a champ by confounding Sherem in "all his words." He was simply able to do this because the Spirit of the Lord was within him. Just as the Doctrine and Covenants promises the Lord's missionaries repeatedly, Jacob was living right so that he was given what he should say in the very moment he needed it. Cool stuff! Anyway, Jacob ends his words by saying that "time passed away with us, and also our lives passed away like as it were unto a dream..." He also calls his people "wanderers" and a "lonesome and solemn people." As I was reading that I couldn't help but think about how life truly does pass away like a dream when we're living right and helping others come unto Christ. Jacob spent his whole life doing just that. Though we may feel "lonesome" or feel like "wanderers" in this strange world we live in, we can also be blessed like Jacob. Soon life will pass by like a dream and we will look back on the good times of helping people and serving God. Just a thought.

This week sure passed by like a dream. It was another hard working week where we experienced more of the extreme highs and lows of missionary work. Mom, as to answer you're question on how I deal with the roller coaster of the work - I simply pray, trust in the Lord, and move onward. It's not always easy. Heck, Crystal didn't seem as golden as we thought she was. Who knows, she might still be interested, but her husband got in the way. We dropped by this week and he answered the door. We explained that Crystal said we could come back. His response was this, "You know, we talk to God everyday... We're not going to be interested in what you have to share. My wife .... she's easily persuaded ..." Talk about a depressing walk back to the car. I feel like my heart's been broken so many times that I almost expect it sometimes. I always get my hopes up that they are "the one," only to find out later that they aren't.

Such is the case with Grahm (Crystal's neighbor). We've taught him twice now and he's so prepared for the Gospel that it's ridiculous. Both lessons were absolutely perfect and I can see how God has slowly led Grahm to eventually embrace the truth. It's almost too perfect. I can't help but get my hopes up for this one. He's fascinated by the Book of Mormon. He even asked us to show him which scriptures were most important for him to read to know that it's true. Both Elder Heindel and I about jumped out of our chairs to show him 3 Nephi 11, King Benjamin's address, 2 Nephi 31-33, etc. Man, if Grahm doesn't make it somebody might just have to piece my fragile heart back together! He's probably our most progressing investigator right now.

Despite the downfalls, there are wonderful things happening in our area. We taught 20 lessons and picked up 3 new investigators. 2 of them are a couple that we tracted into named Mark and Ashley. They are hard-core Pentecostal, but somewhat open-minded to the whole Book of Mormon thing. We taught a great lesson on the Restoration and afterward Mark asked us what our views were on speaking in tongues. We could tell that it was important to them. Haha Elder Heindel basically zipped his lips shut and looked at me to answer the question. In the most loving and respectful way I could I explained our church's view and the way I felt about it. I didn't want to flat out say that they were crazy. They accepted what I said, but I have a feeling that we'll be talking a lot more about it in the future. Hopefully they gain a testimony of the Book of Mormon before too long :) Good grief!

I hope y'all have a great week and a fun homecoming with April. Sure wish I could be there, but it can wait a few months. Take care, ya hear!

Love, Elder Atkin

February 25, 2013 - Quick transfer

Dear Family,

Hopefully I can write a better email to y'all this week because I'm not as tired (though I still did work just as hard this last week) and a lot of great things have happened. Besides, Rachel let me know that she prayed that I would write a better email so it's got to be better, right?

First of all, transfer calls were on Saturday. Elder Heindel and I were hoping to stay together for another one and our wish was granted. I'm staying in Willard for at least another 6 weeks. Hooray! That means that after this coming transfer I'll have 2 transfers left. Of course, I have hopes that for those 2 transfers I'll be training my one and only "son," but let's not get ahead of ourselves. :) I should be grateful for what the Lord has already done for me so far and for my answered prayers. I've been truly blessed to be in the areas with the companions that I needed all throughout my mission. Sometimes in the moment I've wondered if I was in the right place with the right elder, but looking back I know that each situation has been just perfect for me to learn and grow. Missions are so great! Certain experiences that I've had have built up the appreciation that I have for Elder Heindel and my area that I wouldn't have otherwise. Does that make sense? Basically I'm just happy where I am and I know that the Lord knows what he's doing. Cool stuff.

This week was a good finding week. We've found some pretty neat people through tracting. People that are obviously prepared to receive the Gospel, whether they know it or not. On Tuesday Elder Heindel and I ran out of things to do. We went through our plans and realized that we only had a few options: tracting or....tracting (haha). There was Robberson St. in downtown Willard - one which we previously had prayerfully selected on a map, or we could tract somewhere else. We had been putting of Robberson for the longest time (a few weeks) because we doubted that we would be successful there. It's in downtown Willard and we figured that it had been tracted a million times. But as we were praying and trying to decide what to do, we couldn't get Robberson out of our minds. Finally, we decided to go for it. Time to quit fearing man more than God.

The first 10 doors were either not home or not interested. Surely our fears were coming to pass. But as we knocked on the 11th, a really nice lady stepped out of her house. She didn't seem too interested, but kindly listened to our approach and said, "What, you want me to read your book?" We smiled and explained that this book helps us draw closer to God and Jesus Christ. We then talked about modern prophets and apostles. As we spoke she began to show more and more interest. I asked her if she had felt the Spirit before. Expecting the normal emphatically-Christian YES, she surprised us by saying, "You know what, I haven't. I know that God's there, but I've always expected to feel the Spirit at church and stuff. That hasn't happened to me." We chatted some more and promised that she would feel the Spirit in a way only she could understand if she read the Book of Mormon, prayed about it, and learned more from us. We found out her name is Crystal and she said we could come back. Hopefully we can start teaching her this week.

The miracle continued through the next 2 houses where we met Graham - a nice guy that's not sure about his faith - and another man who teaches religion at Pitt State in Kansas. I don't remember his name, but he's very open-minded and said we could come back any time. I'm not sure how interested he is, but he's fascinated by anything to do with religion, theology, etc. He already has a couple of Book of Mormons. So, moral to the story is NEVER doubt a prompting! We had been impressed to tract Robberson for the longest time, but we just kept scaring ourselves away. Stupid Elder Atkin!! Why did I doubt?

Besides that, we found another lady named Jennifer who is the most dry Mormon I have ever met. And we also found an older man named James who's starting to question his purpose and wondering where he's going after this life. He's realized how close to death he really is and he's searching for the truth. We taught him the Plan of Salvation, thus answering some of his burning questions, but he's still looking for more. We'll go over Tuesday or Wednesday and share the Restoration. That'll get him :)

So yeah, life is good (I know I say that a lot. sorry). We're teaching a lot of lessons, even with a big ice storm on Wednesday night that shut everything down for a bit. I was actually stuck in Aurora for a couple of days, but that's a whole 'nother story.

Have a great week! Be safe, be courageous, have integrity, and show someone your love today. It's a beautiful day to be alive.

Love, Elder Atkin

P.S. Bro. McKinnon and Bro. White are both still doing well. They were both sustained to receive the priesthood and the office of a priest. Bro. McKinnon also received a calling to be the building clean-up director. He'll love that calling.

February 19, 2012 - Hey

Dear Family,

Golly, this week was a blur. It's hard for me to remember everything that happened. There are some Mondays that I come and sit at the computer and have so much to say but don't know how to say it. Today is one of those days. I've been sitting here for about 15 minutes looking at the screen trying to conjure up a sentence or two. What's so hard about typing an email about my week??? I just feel deflated. Don't worry, I don't mean that in a bad way. My brain seems to shut down on the "Day of Jubilee." It's probably because my mind has been running a million miles an hour since the last Preparation Day. Don't get mad at me for summarizing my week in a list:

-The baptism was incredible. Tons of people showed up to witness Bro. White and Bro. Mckinnon get baptized after years of investigating the church. I felt such joy for both families as they took giant leaps toward being eternal families. Just like many other baptisms I've witnessed, Bro. White had to be dunked twice because Elder Denton said the prayer wrong. No big deal.
-We set baptismal dates with Cassi and her son Matt for the 20th of April. Cassi really wants to make changes in her life after seeing her friend get baptized last year. Matt (13 years old) has a great understanding of the Gospel and is really solid too. Great people!
-Sunday was ward conference and we got a new bishop. The old Bishop - now Bro. Stoll - is moving his family to Colorado to accept a job there. Bishop Stoll will be replaced by Bro. Sanders. Bishop Sanders is a chiropractor here in town so everyone knows him. He'll do great.
-I met a less-active family named the Sneeds up in Walnut Grove on Friday. They lived in Lewiston and Preston for a long time until just a few years ago. We had a blast talking about Cache Valley - Gossner's, A&W, Macey's, Utah State, etc. I'm pretty sure they're my new favorite family in the ward :) Haha as long as they don't get me too trunky.

Besides that, we just worked our tails off visiting less-actives and investigators. It was one of those weeks where I felt like we worked so hard for barely any results (besides the baptisms, of course). But that's okay, we can't always instantly see the fruits of our labors.

Transfer calls are already this coming Saturday. I just got here! Next Monday I'll be sure to let you know what happened with that. And I also promise that I'll send a longer email next time. Gosh, I don't know why I'm so bushed... Maybe I just need to take a nap.

The Gospel is true! I love it and I love you.

Love, Elder Atkin

February 11, 2013 - Lo! In Camora's lonely hill

Dear Family,

Mom, you can't believe that I like tracting?? Gee, that makes me feel special.... Haha I'm kidding :) But really, I love to knock doors. There's such a thrill that comes with not knowing what's on the other side. This week we did some tracting in a trailer park and had great success. I'll admit that I usually go for those who live in more "humble circumstances," but I get what I can take. I'm a firm believer that if you say the right thing and are nice enough, 90% of people will respond positively even if they aren't interested. God's servants need to be happy! I try my best to do just that. The result? At that trailer park I met another nice Jehovah's Witness. That's 2 in the last few months! We had an excellent conversation about heaven and the 2nd coming and such. She made it obvious that she disagreed with us, but she was cordial. Tender mercies.

I love what you said about Bishop's talk in ward conference. I have really grown to love hymns as of late, but I think it's a fantastic idea to sing a hymn every morning. One hymn that Elder Heindel and I have thought a lot about lately is "Brightly Beams Our Father's Mercy." We've used it for a spiritual thought a couple times in members' homes after dinner. We'll sing the hymn to them and then talk about what it means to be a "lower light." I love the line where it talks about the Lord trusting us with the lights along the shore. We've been trusted with such a beautiful gift of light that we need to share with other people. It's our responsibility to shine the light and guide others to Christ. Missionary work isn't just fun. It's our duty.

Speaking of talks in church - Elder Heindel and I were asked to give talks in sacrament meeting on our personal conversions. We only had enough time to prepare the day of, so I was a bit worried. As I tried to gather my thoughts, I prayed and asked for guidance and for inspiration. And ya know what? It came! Suddenly all of my thoughts organized themselves miraculously onto paper and before I knew it the talk was prepared. Golly, the Lord comes through EVERY time for me! Even for something as small as a talk. Both of us were able to deliver our talks with power and by the Spirit and people really liked them. Not that I wanted praise or anything, but it was good to know that we didn't bore too many people. I talked about how my conversion has been like the sunrise: slowly, but surely the Lord has revealed to me his truth throughout my life until it's become plain and clear what is right. I'm still on the path of conversion, but the sun is high enough for me to see clearly and know what's true. And what I know to be true is more comforting than anything else. I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

This week was another great week for the two of us. We had ZLC in Tulsa, 2 exchanges, zone meeting, and other things to possibly distract us, yet we worked as hard as we could and taught 17 lessons - another high for us. We wanted to reach 20, but considering the amount of cancelled appointments we did awesome. We picked up another couple of investigators, including a Hispanic lady named Inede. Her husband made it clear that he didn't want to be "preached at," but she expressed interest. We've taught her a bit about Priesthood and the Book of Mormon and she likes it so far. She wonders why there's so many Christian denominations. She's so prepared! We'll be taking over Spanish-speaking members in the future to help her feel comfortable.

Well, there's not much else to say except that Bro. McKinnon and Bro. White are ready to be baptized this Saturday. Bro. Gould isn't too far behind - it's only a matter of time. Josh came to church with a haircut and a white shirt and tie, so that was a miracle. He's already changing! We hope to set a date with him this week.

Life is good in the OTM! Thanks for your prayers and love. Happy Valentines and Happy Birthdays to Mom and Amy!

Love, Elder Atkin

P.S. Here's a picture of me next to a '67 Camaro at Bro. Gould's house. I'm hoping that sometime him and his wife take us for a spin. Cool stuff!