July 22nd, 2013

It is interesting that everything happens all at once or not at all. This is one of the weeks that I have too much to talk about. Even though it was a really slow week! It has been interesting to see how God tests our faith to see if we will give up or keep going. That is what happened with us! We had a really slow week! Lots of good experiences but a really slow week up until Saturday! I think we only taught around 5 lessons up till then! It was super slow! But it was good!

 We went on an exchange this week with Elder Evans and Elder Percell. It was a lot of fun as I was able to go with Elder Evans and work in their ward! We had some good lessons there and were able to do some service! We saw some crazy bugs and frogs and everything! We saw a lot of wildlife this week!

 We had our interviews with President Killpack this week! That is always fun! It is always great to go in and just talk to him! It is cool (and kind of sucks) that as I am getting closer to the end we talked more about the mission as a whole and all that I have been able to accomplish so far and who I have become! It was great! It always pumps me up! We also had another cool experience this week in our monthly meeting with the Stake President. This time we had the whole Stake Presidency and the HC over missionary work there and President Killpack came with us! It was fun to be on the same side of the table as him as we talked about the work in the area.

 We found a new guy named Greg. This is where the miracles after the trial of our faith came in. So Greg is 26 and investigated the church when he was sixteen but his parents wouldn't let him get baptized. Then he tried to investigate when he was at college but that didn't work out. And then he was walking in the park and saw the plan of Salvation drawn in chalk on the sidewalk. He got really excited and called the missionaries who did it and left their number. They had a lesson with him and then passed him to us! It was great! He is so ready! He wants to be baptized and knows a lot! We just need to work with him a little and everything will be great!

 We had a great lesson and opportunity also on Saturday with Nicole! Nicole is the girl that Elder Clark and I were able to teach up in Thatcher. She came down to Tucson to visit our friend Salina and they got our number from other missionaries and gave us a call! It was great to see them again and to have a lesson! It was definitely inspired! I loved it!

 The craziest experience this week was another new person we found to teach. His name is Chris (not the other two Chris’s that we have taught here, a NEW one!) and he is pretty sincere. Not too solid but we will see what happens. The crazy experience and the reason he isn't super solid is because his dad has a PHD in religious studies and is a PSYCHO! I have never met a more pessimistic and unhappy person who just loves offending people! He knows so much about all religions and is SO smart but he won't have faith in anything! Everything has to be proven to him and he also has some crazy ideas. He tried to shake our testimonies for a long time but we stayed strong and even were able to pray with them after and he said, "Wow that was a good prayer! Normally when people talk to me they can't pray after." Crazy! We will have to try and teach Chris away from home!

 Crazy week! Hope to have another!

 See ya, love ya, bye!

Elder Banner

July 9th, 2013

Crazy week right here!!

It was a really fun one! Being that Elder Berry is from Canada we celebrated Canada Day last Monday! Then we also had the 4th this week which was real fun!

So the craziest thing that happened this week was with Cornelius. We had a great week with him! We had some really cool lessons and we convinced him not to drink on the 4th. That was quite a challenge being that he wanted to for his buddies that were killed in the service and with his friends that died in the Arizona fire last week. But we did it! It was a great week and he progressed quickly! We were planning on baptizing him on Saturday and he asked me to be the one to baptize him! That was crazy! Ha-ha But God had different plans. Little back story....

Cornelius is from Colorado Springs and his daughter (15 months) lives up there. His roommate John is also from there. They were planning on moving back up there in about 2 weeks. But Saturday morning John's (the roommate) girlfriend in Colorado tried to commit suicide. She is 8 months pregnant with John’s daughter so it was a mess. John decided to move back as soon as he found out. The problem is that John is Cornelius' only ride up there and if he didn't go with John then he wouldn't be able to see his daughter or his family until next April or so. So it was a hard decision but he decided to move back. So they left a few hours before his baptism so it didn't happen.... Dang! But he is ready! He will probably be baptized up there in the next couple weeks but it was disappointing that it happened. But the weird thing is we knew it was going to. The whole morning (before he called) we felt like it wasn't going to happen and during the whole thing we were both really calm and knew that were supposed to happen. I don't know why but this is the plan. So ya! Fun stuff!

Chris is doing really well! We talked to him about fasting and he decided to fast for an answer this weekend! He did the full 24 hour fast and even was invited to and went to a wing place on Saturday night but stayed strong! He is awesome! Then at church we had some really powerful testimonies that were almost all from converts or less actives that have come back! It was sweet! Hopefully he got his answer! We will talk to him about it tomorrow.

It is Monsoon season again! I love it! It is so crazy to have so much rain all at once! When one comes moving through they are so intense that you can see the wall of water moving towards you! I am grateful that we have a car but that is also scary because the roads will go from dry as bone to overflowing over the curbs in around ten minutes! Crazy! That is when you pull in somewhere and wait! Better that then dying! Ha-ha The biggest problem is when it is over and gets up to 112 again it gets really humid! Ha-ha

We started teaching a man named Samuel this week. He is from Syria and we had a really good lesson with him.

We also had MLC this week! Super fun! I love it! And this time I didn't have to drive all day to have it! We live just up the street!

That is a few of the crazy things that happened this week! Elder Berry and I are having a blast and working like crazy!

Love you all!

Elder Banner

July 1st, 2013

July 1st, 2013

Hey Everyone!!

 So it has been a really really good week! I love being here with Elder Berry! I am excited to be back to Tucson actually! I do really miss the Gila Valley but I am happy to be here! We have a good ward and a lot to do! We are teaching a guy named Cornelius and last week was really cool to be teaching him! He is 23, he just finished a deployment in Italy and Afghanistan as a Para-trooper, and he is also a fireman and is awesome and so funny! Last week is when he really started to recognize the Spirit! It was so cool! It was on Thursday that he got his answer and he recognized that God was letting him know that this is true! It was so cool! It is fun to be teaching him!

 We are also teaching a guy named Chris who is also awesome! He just graduated and was introduced to the church by one of his friends and is just eating it up! It is fun to see how much he enjoys reading from the Book of Mormon and how much it is already starting to mean to him! It is great!

 To clarify a few things that was unclear in the last email. I am still a zone leader; I am just in the North stake with Elder Berry! Which is fun! Elder Berry is from North Alberta Canada and I have known him for a long time! He is awesome and I am happy to be with him. I actually said I would get transferred here at the beginning of the last transfer! Just had a feeling! Ha-ha the North is a little different being that it is a more well off area of Tucson! It is nice! Our zone is much smaller than the last one I had which is nice! We are over the University YSA 1st ward! Most of our members/people we work with either go to the U of A or Pima Community College! It is so much fun! I love being in the YSA! It is so much fun! One of the biggest differences here is that our area is so big! We have to, on average, have a half hour drive between appointments here. Which is fine, I had forgotten that Tucson was like that! But I love it! 

 Have a good week!

 Elder Banner

June 25th, 2013

Hey

Hey Everyone! This one will be really short! Being that it was transfers this week and I was transferred back to Tucson! I am now with Elder Berry in the North Tucson Stake in the YSA University 1st ward! I am super excited! It will be way fun! But I don't have any time to write a letter because we are about to head out to dinner! So....sorry! I am doing great! Had an amazing week last week with Elder Cooper! It was tons of fun and we were able to do a lot of cool stuff! Sister Merriman is going to be baptized on the 27th of July!!! I am so excited! It was so cool because she got her answer that the church is true within twenty minutes after our first lesson ended! I am sad I won’t be able to see that! But I am so excited for her! Justine is also doing great and will also be baptized on the 27th of July!! I am super excited for her as well! That is the worst part about leaving but I am excited to be here and be in YSA still! It will be so much fun! Also the missionary broadcast on Sunday was super cool! I loved every minute of it and was so pumped up to go work! Well I will have a better email next week! Love you all!!

Elder Banner

June 17th, 2013

It was a really good week this one! I can't believe how fast this transfer is going! This upcoming week is the last week of the transfer! This has definitely been the fastest that I have had!

 So we had a really good week finding-wise! We found 5 new investigators this week! Sister Merriman, two of the Cauthen children, and the Peru family! It was really good! We are really excited for them! It will be a really good opportunity to teach them! Hopefully everything will all work out with them! We were able to have really good first lessons with both Sister Merriman and the Peru family! They were super spiritual and a great start! I am excited to see what will happen there!

 Justine is also doing really good! She is awesome and progressing well! She came to church yesterday and I think that she had a really good time! We had some really cool lessons with her this week and she is super excited to be baptized!

 We were able to have some really good experiences/lessons with Tyler this week as well! We were able to help her out and we had a good Lesson with her about the Enabling power of the Atonement!

 We had Zone trainings this week which were awesome! President and Sister Killpack had some good trainings that really pumped us up! It was good! The work is changing! The Lord is really hastening his work!

 I was also able to go on exchanges with Elder Simpson this week! That was super fun! He is such a good missionary! It was a really good exchange and we were able to set up a lot for them to do!

 There is a lot more but that will be it for this week!

 Love you all!

 Elder Banner