WEEK 87 - ENTER INTO the JOY of LORD

Good morning, my dear friends, family, and acquaintances. Though the storm clouds are handing over Fort Collins this morning, it is still a very good and beautiful day in the world we are living in. It's me again, Elder Z.S.Weber, here reporting to you live from the Colorado Fort Collins Mission. This week, I am proud to announce that winter is finally (FINALLY!!!) over, and spring has sprung. And sprung it has, with all of the pollen and rainy weather it can bring with it. I mean, honestly, if I haven't been sneezing nonstop, then I've been listening to my companion sneeze nonstop, all while trying to not get too wet. So, it's definitely another beautiful day in Colorado!

Anyways, I'm certain all of you didn't come here today to listen to me harp about the weather, so let's get on with this past week, starting with Tuesday. After getting done with all of the studies we needed to go through that morning, we once more headed to the stake center for District Leader Council, and then Elder Anderson and I had to head to Windsor and the Mission Office for some quick business. Y'know how I mentioned last week that the other elders had gotten into a situation with our car and a bus? Well, that 'situation' was a small accident that caused the right side of our bumper to concave. That was back at the beginning of the Transfer. In order to still drive around, we had to trade our car out for another so our car could get fixed.

The only problem? The car they gave us needed repairs as well. Nothing too big, just a ding up in the front bumper, about a couple inches long, where the previous elders had ran into a fire hydrant or something. Anyways, last week, we were asked to take our new car to an auto-body and tune-up shop in Windsor to get the ding appraised. The ride was fairly long to get out there, though the appraisal went by fairly quickly. Turns out that whatever the past elders did to the car, they did a real good job, for such a small ding. The way it's positioned, it actually caused damage to another layer of the bumper under the exoskeleton, a layer that can't as easily be mended. So, most likely, in the next few week, we're gonna have to take another ride out to Windsor.

Though Tuesday was mostly marked by that small kerfuffle with the cars, Wednesday was a wonderful day, as once more we had the chance to teach our investigator, Duane. He and Monica had recently moved to a new house of their own across Fort Collins, so instead of meeting where we normally would, we decided to meet up at the Stake Center, that way it would be an even distance for the both of us to travel to. After getting inside and getting past some very amusing topics, including one about Duane's pet tarantula and a mantis it got in a fight with (don't ask me how we got to that, as I have no clear idea myself), we decided to get back down to the spiritual level and share the message we had prepared.

This time, we had felt prompted to share some of the commandments from the, surprise, Commandments section of our Missionary Lessons. We shared a few of our most important, in my opinion, commandments, including reading our scriptures, praying to Heavenly Father, following His prophet that is on the earth today, and keeping the Sabbath Day holy. After each of the different commandments, we invited Duane to follow and live them in his life. For the most part, he seemed willing to make these changes, even when it came to going to church on Sunday, though it seemed like Monica was going to need to help him get going. However, it was wonderful to watch the power of the atonement help to improve him.

Thursday was another great teaching day, as that morning we got a chance to go in and teach Roland once again. Once again, we sat with him in his living room and read the Book of Mormon with him. What was interesting about this lesson, though, was that both Elder Anderson and I felt that Roland was really starting to understand what the Book of Mormon was all about. Rather than us just stopping him and explaining what he had just read, every now and again he would actually stop himself and describe and explain what he understood was going on in what he was reading. And, after the lesson ended, and we were bearing testimony on how he can receive an answer as to whether the Book of Mormon is true or not, he, of his own free will, decided it would be a good idea to start praying before reading each night.

Um, can you say, wow?!

And then came Friday, with another round of service for myself and my fellow missionaries. As spring had indeed sprung, and the weather was clear again, Brother McKenzie, the member housing myself and Elder Anderson, decided to commission us to help him with some of the yard-work. We ended up spending most of the day out in his backyard, raking up pine needles and cleaning out under the trees, while Brother McKenzie got in his riding mower and took care of the lawn. After all that was said and done with, we had just enough time to get dressed into missionary-appropriate clothes and head off to dinner—which, actually, was a chili cook-off during the Taft Canyon Ward Pinewood Derby, which was made even more entertaining by the 'no rules' competition held by the fathers.

Ever seen a CO2 cartridge-propelled Pinewood Derby car? Neither had I, until that night. And, man, do they go fast!

So, that was pretty much how my week went. Which means it's time for the Spiritual Thought. Now, before I go any further, I want to explain that, while most of my thoughts tend to be light and humorous, this one might come across as a little more solemn or somber. If you choose to read ahead, remember, you have been warned.

Because of General Conference last week, this last Sunday (yesterday, in other words) was Fast Sunday. And while there were many moments throughout the day that made my Sabbath Day, as President Nelson has encouraged, 'a delight', there was one moment that really stood out for me. During the Fast and Testimony Meeting that Sacrament Meeting, one of those that decided to get up and bear his testimony was Brother Koenig, who I had known previously when I was serving in the Coal Creek Ward, his previous home Ward. He spoke of how he had just come back from a funeral of a dear friend in that Ward, a young man who had left a very young family behind. After talking with Brother Koenig after the meeting, I found that the man that had passed was Brother Rowberry, my Ward Mission Leader while in Coal Creek.

I don't believe I've mentioned Brother Rowberry very much in these weekly emails. If I did, I don't think I did much justice to the man that he was and is. Brother Jim Rowberry was, to put it in Brother Koenig's words, a spiritual giant. Always upbeat and positive, he was an incredible man, who loved his Father in Heaven and served Him faithfully in whatever calling he was given, whether it be Ward Mission Leader or simply a father to five very rambunctious children—the second-youngest of whom would often attempt to run off during Sacrament Meeting, which was very entertaining to watch every now and again. He was a great teacher in Gospel Principles, teaching powerful messages every week, and on Fast Sunday, he had some of the most powerful messages to share.

When I first heard that it had been him that had passed away, I was completely shocked. When I had last seen him, he had been so lively and upbeat. Yet here I was, six months later, hearing that he had passed from this mortal plane of existence. It took a while for the thought to truly sink in, but when it did, I had this comforting thought enter my mind; 'Well, if any man were to leave the mortal plane at such a young age, at least I can have confidence that the Lord has a special work for him in Heaven.' I have no doubt in my mind that as soon as Brother Rowberry crossed over the veil, he was given a spirit-missionary name-tag, received a new companion, and went to work sharing the gospel with those that never had the chance to accept it in this life. Who knows? Maybe he's even crossed paths with my grandfather up there.

As I've pondered over these thoughts these last couple of days, a certain scripture came into my head. "His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord." (Matthew 25:21) What an incredible statement! Ever since I first read those words, who knows how long ago that was, I knew that was how I wanted my Father in Heaven to welcome me back. I want to know, with absolute surety, that the work I've done for Him in my mortal life has been a work that He is proud of, and that He is proud to call me one of His sons and to welcome me back to His embrace.

This doesn't just apply to my mortal life, either. Right now, I'm in the last four months of my mission, the last stretch. Most missionaries, at this point, would start holding back and getting distracted by going home. But me? I want my mission to be filled with incredible moments, even to the very end. And I want every calling after this to be filled with incredible moments, even to the very end. I want to fully live the callings my Father has given me. That way, when my time to hold them comes to an end, and I must move on to a new calling, either in this life or the life to come, I will hear Him say, in my mind and in my heart, "Well done, my son. You have done the work that I asked of you to do. Because of this, my joy is full."

May we all seek to hear those words, in this life, in the life to come, from our Beloved Heavenly Father, is my prayer, in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

—Elder Z.S.Weber

WEEK 86 - MESSAGES FROM HEAVEN

Good morning universe and all that inhabit it! This is your handsome
and charismatic host from the Colorado Fort Collins Mission, Elder
Z.S.Weber, reporting in to y'all live from a local member's basement
in the Prairie Ridge Ward. Once more, I'm here to review with y'all
over the events of the past week and what made this week a joyful—or,
barring that, an interesting experience. Luckily for you, though, this
week was a joyful experience, so you won't have to hear me complain
about all that made this past week rough for me and my companion,
Elder Anderson. What you will hear, however, are a list of miracles
and wondrous moments that made this week not only joyful, but a truly
awesome week to experience as missionaries in the service of the Lord.
So, without further ado, let's get started!

First let's go over to Tuesday of this past week. Right away, our day
started out fast, with the two of us heading down the road to our
kinda-progressing investigator, Roland. Brother Haynes, our Ward
Mission Leader, was there with us to metaphorically 'turn up the heat'
on Roland. In the past, we had received a feeling that Roland was
understanding what we had to teach him with his head, but his heart
wasn't as easily accessible. As the Disney movie goes, "the heart is a
hard thing to change, but the head can be persuaded." We didn't want
that for Roland, though. Like all we teach, we wanted him to feel the
truth of our words in his heart, and feel the Spirit of the Lord
change him.

So, we 'turned up the heat' a bit. We dug down deep in order to get to
his religious roots and find out exactly what he himself believes, and
if what we've been saying to him is truly sinking in, or if it's just
a nice interpretation of religion that he has enjoyed listening to.
Brother Haynes was really on fire, asking Roland some very powerful
and thought-provoking questions—questions like whether he was still
married to his wife, who had passed years ago, or if he would even see
her again. We then bore a powerful testimony that we were there to
share with him the truth—not an interesting opinion or a fascinating
idea, but the one and only completely whole and true religion on the
entire planet—and invited him to read the Book of Mormon to know of
this truth for himself.

Since we last talked with Roland, he's been reading the Book of Mormon
every night before he goes to bed, three pages at least. That's three
more pages a night than he read in the past, so I feel that perhaps
the words we are saying are finally sinking in, allowing the Spirit
the chance to testify to him of the truth. I hope it is, and that he
is listening to it.

The next day, Wednesday, was another incredible day. After an
interesting fiasco which lasted for most of the morning and involved
the other elders, our car, and a bus, we headed off to our lesson with
Duane Morino and Monica Salmond, who I believe I have mentioned the
last few weeks. Last week, even, I believe that I mentioned that Elder
Anderson and I invited Duane to be baptized, which he neither accepted
nor denied. Well, I am proud to say that after we had gotten the early
meeting pleasantries out of the way and started getting down into the
doctrinal message we had to share, Duane revealed that he accepted the
invitation to be baptized. It's still a fairly tentative pursuit, but
we have full faith that with committed scripture study and prayer, his
desire will become truly firm and steadfast.

His acceptance of the baptismal invitation wasn't the only amazing
part of our meeting, though. About halfway through our lesson, we
slightly mentioned the priesthood, and both Duane and Monica mentioned
that they had been discussing it with one another, and Duane had a
desire also to wield the priesthood. Monica, as it so happens, is a
couple-generations-descendant of Ephraim Hanks, an incredible figure
in the early church's history. After hearing about the wonders and
goodness Ephraim Hanks was able to bring about through the priesthood,
Duane has started to desire to have that same power to preside,
direct, and care for his soon-to-be-formed family with Monica and her
children.

Now, how does that old church hymn go again? Ah, yes! "I stand all
amazed." That's how I felt, hearing those words and feelings from
Duane and Monica. While with Roland, it might be hard to tell if the
words we are testifying of are entering into his heart, with Duane
there is no doubt in my mind that the Spirit has been by his side,
sharing our message with him even when we aren't there. To see that,
and to feel that in my heart brought me so much joy and happiness. I
was almost brought to tears of joy. Almost. So, we shared what we knew
and understood about the priesthood, and invited him to, at an
appropriate time after his baptism, receive the priesthood, which he
gladly accepted. Once more, the joy in my heart that day was full.

Not much happened on Thursday, I am sad to say, but Friday was a
wonderful day, once more filled with incredible moments of service. In
the morning, we headed over to the Stake Center to distribute the
Bishop's Storehouse food to those that came to receive of it. Duane
and Monica came to help out—we had invited them after our lesson, as
Monica was desirous to find some way to give back to the church for
the good they had shown her. It was wonderful to see both Duane and
Monica with so much joy and good-spiritedness in their countenances as
they helped out. No doubt they felt the indescribable joy that comes
from doing service for others.

Then, after all the food had been distributed and the tables had been
folded up, us elders were enlisted to help Brother Johnson, one of the
other volunteers, and his son. I think I've mentioned this debacle in
the past, but basically Brother Johnson's son is moving to New York,
and has been needing help packing up all of his music equipment and
moving it out of his townhouse. Well, Friday was pretty much the last
phase of his moving-out process, and they needed some extra arms to
help in moving the keyboards and equipment to his studio across the
city. It was a fairly long and hard work, but we enjoyed it
nonetheless. And, we got some really nice pizza afterwords as a thank
you. So, all in all, it was a very good day.

And finally, we get to the best part of the week—General Conference
Weekend. Now, let me quickly apologize, my friends, for not inviting
y'all to participate and watch the Conference. Those of you that are
fellow members and part of my Ward family back home, I have no doubt
that you were able to watch it and enjoy the wonderfully spiritual
messages taught by the General Authorities, as well as the humorous
moments that will no doubt be quoted for the rest of the year
('Celestial language'. Ha! Everyone knows the 'Celestial language' is
Italian, Uchtdorf! Just ask my grandpa.). To those that didn't watch
General Conference this past week, or don't even understand why we
have it, may I share with you my testimony of it?

General Conference is the blessed time of year that we, as members of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—and, to fully extend
it, Children of the Almighty God—have to listen to the prophets and
apostles called by our Lord and Master. We are able to hear the
messages that those men and women have been prompted to share with us,
and feel are most necessary for our day and age. Each message is
unique and different—one speaker may focus on the divine role of
fatherhood, while another might share his own personal testimony on
the Plan of Salvation—but there is no doubt that each and every talk
given and testimony born is for our benefit and our good. If we listen
to the messages that are given, and take the messages into our hearts,
we will receive the knowledge and instruction that God desires us to
know.

I don't recall when I first started watching General Conference. It's
always been a major event in my life. When I was younger, my parents
would find fun and engaging games to keep us kids focused on the words
our prophet and apostles said. As the years passed by, and as we got
older, we were able to stay engaged completely on our own. We learned
to love the prophet, be he Gordon B. Hinckley or Thomas S. Monson. We
loved the Apostles, and as I grew older I came to eagerly anticipate
the messages born by President Uchtdorf, President Nelson, Elder
Holland, Elder Bednar, and Elder Christofferson (I look forward to all
of the Apostles' addresses, but I look forward to those five's just a
little more than the others).

Through those years of watching General Conference, I came to know for
myself that the church was true, and that it was led by a prophet of
the Lord, and man called by God to oversee the church in our day. The
messages he and his fellow Apostles shared were messages for me
personally. Perhaps they were not all meant to be that way, but by
listening to their words, and to the words of the Holy Ghost who sat
beside me and taught me, I learned exactly what I needed to know.
Because of those experiences, I have grown as a man and as a man of
God in more ways than I even can understand just yet.

To those of you who were not able to watch or listen to Conference, my
invitation is simple—watch it. Listen to it. Hear the words the
prophet and the Apostles have to share with us, and listen with an
open heart. That way, the Spirit of the Lord can teach you from those
words what you most need to know. To those of you who did watch
Conference, or listen to it, my invitation is the same. Watch it
again. Listen to it again. These messages are our modern-day
scriptures, messages given from the prophets to benefit us in our
circumstances. And, like all scripture, the more you pour over the
messages given, the more messages you will find that pertain to you
specifically. This I bear joyful testimony of, in the name of our
Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.

—Elder Z.S.Weber