And the work goes on......

Wow...what an amazing experience .... serving the Lord on a Mission. It has been extremely enlightening to listen to Elder Rob talk about the family they are teaching, that they are a partial member family, that they love to have the missionaries in their home (hmmm I wonder if they know the feeling the missionaries bring is from the Lord?) that in their eyes they know what they need to do....but, they are just not ready to commit to even attending meetings...how the members need to start to fellowship this family...they need to feel the strength and support of the members in their area...how important it is for all of us to help out the missionaries....they can't always do it by themselves...it takes love and support from all to help these families know and commit to changing their life styles and living the gospel in its fullest. You know, for us, we are used to the routine...VT and Home teaching,teaching lessons, attending 3 hours of meetings every Sunday instead of working in the yard, camping, shopping etc...paying one 10th of the hard earned money that we make to the Church....well, to the Lord...to us it is something we do, to new members, it is a sacrifice of huge proportions ... Faith....practiced daily...no even min by min .... changing habits that might be a struggle like smoking, drinking etc...this sometimes is a hard thing because it is something they have never thought of as "bad" or "harmful" .... following local church leaders....listening and doing those things that will help us find Joy in the Gospel in our daily lives....Wow! So much! These young men teach these families, but we as members need to fellowship, love, be examples to and help new members love the gospel and the Lord...Elder Rob has noticed the importance members are, and he is a little disappointed in their examples so far...many get involved in their own daily lives and forget other responsibilities. We all need to be missionaries...bottom line.

Elder Rob says it's beautiful in Hermiston....spring like weather. He does love the people...the wards. He is loving his mission. He still gets a bit homesick, but knows he is doing what the Lord wants of him and he will be blessed for it.


And the mission goes on....prayers are always appreciated for these young men..and the people in their missions, that their hearts will be softened and prepared for His teachings brought to them by selfless, hard working young men who give their lives to the Lord for 2 years as teachers of the Gospel. I'm excited for the growth I am seeing in Elder Rob, in his Testimony and maturity...

D&C 16:3-6
3 And I will tell you that which no man knoweth save me and thee alone—

4 For many times you have desired of me to know that which would be of the most worth unto you.

5 Behold, blessed are you for this thing, and for speaking my words which I have given unto you according to my commandments.

6 And now, behold, I say unto you, that the thing which will be of the most worth unto you will be to declare repentance unto this people, that you may bring souls unto me, that you may rest with them in the kingdom of my Father. Amen.

Mission Possible..........

So....guess I better catch up just a little because we will hear from Elder Rob tomorrow on his pday....last week his first comment was "It's just amazing" he is really enjoying his mission...there are some challenges..of course..but he is really loving it. He was telling Kristi that it is hard to tract a family...see in their eyes that they really feel something and want to know more, but make the decision for whatever reason not to listen to the discussions. My prayers have been with the people in the Kennewick Mission..that they will be prepared by the spirit and ready to listen to these young men... listen to their message of our Savior Jesus Christ and His love for them...listen to the way they can become Eternal Families....ways they can find Joy in the Gospel...I am anxious to hear from him tomorrow...this is a growing experience for him though....he is such a great guy and has such a love for others...stay tuned and I will post what he says tomorrow...

P-DAY................

We got our emails from Elder Rob today....he is really loving this mission and as he says "I'm having fun" isn't that great? I am so glad he is "having fun". He said they taught their first investigator the first lesson and the guy they taught would like them to come back...Rob was really psyched about that...missionary work is so exciting. He said that they live with an older couple..they have a room, bathroom, microwave and micro refrigerator....that's how he put it anyway...he also said that the people in Hermiston where he is right now don't generally lock their doors during the day or at night, that they have had some break-ins in his area in the last month, but the Poly's caught them in the act and they were probably scared to death...watch out for those Poly's...you know they will take good care of you anyway. It's good as a mom to hear your son enjoying serving the Lord...and the work moves forward in the Washington Kennewick Mission.....

WHAT A NICE SURPRISE!!!!!

Can I tell you how happy I am tonight!!!!! We got a surprise phone call from Elder Rob!!!! He had technical difficulties at the airport so we didn't get much time to talk....he got permission to call us and talk for 15 min!!! It was so good to hear from him, and actually, I am glad it was after he got to his mission...he was able to tell us a little about what he has been doing. He is in Hermiston Oregon...he said it is about 1/2hr from Kennewick. It is a retirement community..pretty spread out so they have a car right now. They are living in a members home. He said they have mostly been visiting with members since he got there...his companion is from Layton Utah. Elder Rob is his first trainee...he sounds so good, did I mention that? Anyway, he really sounds good! Gosh! I can't remember everything we talked about, but he sounded so good...that's all that matters! At the end of the call he thanked Dad and I for sending him on this Mission....ya know, it is totally our pleasure to have him serving the Lord...so hard because we miss him a ton, but we know he is doing what he is supposed to do right now..serving those in the Kennewick mission...our missing him is a small price to pay for 2 years if he is doing the Lord's work....I'm so happy, did I mention that???

He CALLED!!!!!

Ya know how good intentions sometimes just don't work out.....well, poor Elder Rob...it was apparently a total mess at the airport today! He wanted so bad to call us ... the line at the phones were HUGE, then the phones wouldn't take his debit card so he had to run and get a pre paid phone card...his flight left at 11:30 and it was around 10:55 when we finally got our call!!! He was STESSED!! to say the least...but after talking for a few minutes, he settled down and sounded good...ya know, sometimes ya just need to talk to mom for a minute and all's well...LOL

Calm...Step Back...Breath...It'll all be OK!


He talked about the missionaries and how there are a lot that are spanish speaking...he said "Mom, I might just come home speaking spanish"....that would be a good thing for him anyway....He was then able to call and talk to dad....I think he will be just fine....time to get on with the Work.....what a great missionary!!!

He's leaving........

Elder Rob leaves tomorrow to go to Kennewick!!! Hurray!!! He get's to call us from the airport while he waits....I am so excited. He leaves the MTC at 8am and heads to the airport....he will fly out around 11:30...so hopefully we will have a little while to talk to him. He sent a quick email yesterday to remind us to stay close to our phones for the phone call...and included in the email 2Nephi 3.....I am so interested to find out what he did for Christmas. The MTC administration sent us an email letting us know that the missionaries were going to be kept busy with plenty of things to do the week of Christmas...they also hoped our missionary would write us a letter letting us know their emotions and feelings about that week....well, anyway, excited to hear from him tomorrow...stand by...I will post how he is as soon as I can.

The Lord's Work moves forward.......

We got a letter and email from Elder Rob this week...he is really doing good. He Loves the MTC....hahaha....he said if he could spend his entire mission at the MTC he would be happy...lol...he is excited to get to Kennewick though. He said they got their flight information and he leaves on the 28th at around 11am....I guess they leave the MTC at around 8am and they can call us from the airport...he is so excited to do that, and I am so excited to hear from him. I have debated whether we should show up at the airport like some families do....as much as I want to and would love to give that big bear hug again, I think it would be harder for him and I don't want to do anything that would make him sad....he is really excited to call us and that will have to be ok this time. He is really into being obedient on his mission. I am glad because like I told him...that is probably one of the most important things he will ever do on his mission and it will help him have a successful mission. He said the new group of young men that came last week are struggling with following the rules...it concerns him, and I'm glad it does.... it means he knows the importance of that principle on his mission. He is really growing and learning all ready..I am so proud of him and know he will be successful and have a great 2 years in Kennewick....I love that boy, he's my son.