Daniel vs Being Busy

Date: Mon, 31 Oct 2011 14:38:10 -0700
From: eric.feller@myldsmail.net

We had a crazy week! Tuesday was interviews with the Mission President. It was really good. Except we didnt get home until about 5 o clock so the rest of our evening got thrown off. President Howes really amazes me at how well he knows every single missionary. In my interview he just talked about my District, each person specifically and their needs. It was crazy!

Then on Thursday we had a visiting General Authority! Elder Wilson of the second quorum on the 70 came and spoke to us. It was from 9 in the morning until about 4-5. President and Sister Howes spoke, then Elder Wright, the area 70 here, and then Sister Wilson, then Elder Wilson. Then after lunch Sister Wilson talked about the common born-again argument against the church about "grace and works", which was a very complex answer that a lot of us didn't completely get, and then Elder Wilson talked again and opened the floor to questions.

Friday we spent applying our new training from the Assistants on our weekly planning, but then I had to bike way into Mesa in my suit to do a baptismal interview for the sisters. It went really well, except in the middle of the interview the girl I was interviewing told me I had pretty eyes, so I wrapped it up quick... It is really cool to interview these people who are so ready to be baptized. Its awesome to see the excitement in them as they are preparing.

Then Saturday we had to help Amanda move, and then had a ward Halloween party at night. We sat down and were eating food next to some of our friends in the ward, and at the same table was some non-members and no one told us! She got up and left to go get food and then her friend came over and was like "that was my neighbor!" and we're like, "Why didn't you tell us!?" Remember: It is impossible for missionaries with 300+ members at any given time to know who's who. I had 1200+ members in Queen Creek. You have to tell the missionaries if you want them to talk to them!

Then on Sunday we had to go to church, hurry and hop over to another ward to try and catch some investigators that didn't show and then race back to the other building to speak in the singles ward and then we left early to go prepare for Amanda's baptism, then we had a baptism and after we had to get a ride over to another church building to interview the other sisters candidate for baptism, then we went home to take some study time so I could prepare for District Meeting, but then we couldnt because we had to go to Amanda's house to give her some church DVDs we forgot to give her.

Whew.

But the baptism was amazing! The spirit was really strong and she really felt it. Her and her son Joseph were baptized, and after he went to church yesterday, her other son Christopher wants to get baptized as well. Joseph asked me to baptize him, and that was really cool. Amanda asked the Bishop to baptize her. She jokingly said it was because she wanted to make sure it was the right authority! We explained that lots of people could do it, but she still wanted the bishop. So it was really good. It was the first baptism of my mission that came from street contacting, even though I wasn't here when they started teaching her.

Also, wait let me explain, So Elder Krueger has my number back in Queen Creek so he could call me if he had any questions, because he was so fresh and didnt know the area. He called me before and told me that Bro. Powell had told him that he wasn't really waiting to talk to his parents, but he still believed that the Catholic church had that authority, and I was devastated! I felt like I had failed! But then called me on Sunday night and said he went over and had a throw-down lesson with him about the restoration and bro powell got back to him later and said he thought about what he said and would probably get baptized this year! It took me a second to realize that there's only two months left this year and then I was supper happy!

Love,

Elder Feller

Finally Pictures! These computers at MCC are bad at pictures, but I have conquered them!

Amanda's baptism

Last day in Queen Creek

Presents for Elder Krueger

This was taped on my desk, which is across from my companions desk.

Daniel vs An Apostle!

08/31/2010
Yeah.

So I guess a lot happened this week. First of all this is pretty awesome: http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/news-releases-stories/church-in-talks-to-regularize-activities-in-china

I miss the real news sometimes...

and I don't have my camera because we came straight to email from the snowflake temple this morning. Its a cool little temple. They have all these Native American designs and stuff in there. But yeah, so no pictures.... ): next week!

The biggest thing that happened this week that I couldn't mention was happening before was we went down to "The Valley" aka Tempe, to see L. Tom Perry! We drove from Saint Johns to Show Low and had a "slumber party" with the ZL's and some other elders in this huge mansion that was built to look like a log cabin. It was sweet! It was in this neighborhood that was a forest. Then we woke up early and I showered on the third floor, even though we stayed on the first and it was dark and I almost fell down all the stairs. Thats not important, I just thought I'd share. But then we drove though the Salt River Canyon, which was a awesome and beautiful drive, down though Globe, then into Tempe. It was hot. Hotter than up here in the mountains. I met up with my district leader from the MTC and my MTC comp. It was cool. Then Elder Perry and Elder Hallstrom came in and we were listening to elder Hallstrom and I got a stupid bloody nose! So I had to walk out of the chapel holding my nose, WHILE Elder Hallstrom is talking, Elder Perry is sitting on the stand, and my Mission President is probably thinking about sending me to Yuma all next summer. So I dont really remember what he was talking about because I came back and he was almost done. Something about teaching. Then Elder Perry spoke. He talked about Elder Holland's 5 things for teaching. and then told us things we had to have a testimony of, so that we could teach it, and he bore testimony every time. It was awesome hearing 5 different live testimonies from an apostle of Christ. Every time he started to bear testimony his voice got a lot louder and you could really feel the spirit. It was awesome.

But then we ate at some Deli in Tempe that was expensive and not that good.

Anyways, its still hard to get a whole lot of teaching opportunities up here in saint johns. We did finally meet with this one guy who we've been trying to meet for forever, and we forgot to start with a prayer, because we really didn't have a plan to teach him, he just needs to stop smoking. and it was terrible! I'm never not having a prayer at a lesson ever again. It was worse than when me and Elder Carpenter did that in the mtc...

Dad asked me about my personal and companion study. I mostly focus on the lessons, because I dont know them well enough and cant teach them very well yet. Well, I do alright, but I can do a lot better. And comp study is pretty much the same thing. We train on lessons and missionary skills and other things from our "red handbook" that we only get in the Arizona Tempe Mission. It had talks and other helpful things on it. Like 10 pages on bible bashing scriptures! Just kidding, its called "resolving concerns" but is pretty much a bible bashing scripture gold mine.

Mom asked me
1. How is your ward?
2. Are you and your companion getting along?
3. Do you ever ride your bike or do you mostly use the truck?
4. Do you like email, snail mail, or a combination of both?

1. I have 3 wards and they're pretty good. Some better than others. Our best ward for missionary work has the best Ward Mission Leader, surprise surprise. But Chad is awesome. We go to him for pretty much anything. He runs a machine shop in town and does engines and stuff. He converted like 5 years ago or something. But he's really cool.

2. My companion and I are fine. I don't really question him because he's my trainer. I just kinda do what he says. Plus I'm not very hard to get a long with, so I dont think I'll have companion problems unless they're really bad. My companion's getting old. He's almost 20 months! So I think he's getting a little "trunky" (homesick/thinking about going home)

3. We ride bikes a little bit. Because we're low on miles. I had to buy a new bike seat and a new tube. Already got a flat. And that bike seat was killing me...

4. I like both. Snail mail is nice because I don't have to read it in my email time, but whatever. Snail mail costs and its no big deal. So both is fine.

And when I say my comp is getting old, I mean like in mission years. They say weird stuff like "born" and "died" for stuff. For example, I was "born" in Saint Johns, because its my first area. I could "die" as a zone leader in Yuma someday. Born=first area, die=when you go home. Daddy=trainer. yeah. Weird stuff like that. Someone didn't know I was new, and asked me where I was born and I looked at him weird and said "...Los Angeles" and then he looked at me weird and said "...what?" Yeah it was awkward.

Anyways, I'm probably going to New Mexico today to a wide spot in the road called pie town. There's two pie shops there or something and that's it... Whatever, I don't care, I want to go to New Mexico.

Oh and we're allowed an "appropiate lappel pin" for our suits, so I want a little California Flag one. Represent, 916, thug life, you know. Whatever. No big deal. So yeah, if next time you send me a package, send a little square CA flag pin. oooh and if you can fine one the revolutionary war flag uhh the snake one that says "dont tread on me" that would make a sweet pin too. Yeah. Awesome. Gotta go

Elder Daniel Feller