Goodbye to the Weavers!

Hi Mom! Hi Dad!

 

This last week has been nuts!  We had a final Zone Conference in Olympia to say goodbye to the Weavers on Tuesday.  It was hard, you know how I am with goodbyes.  I am really grateful that I got to have them in my life for almost 15 months!

 

Saying good-bye to President and Sister Weaver!

 

I haven't met the new Mission President yet, we are doing that tomorrow.  I am super excited to meet the Blatters.

 

This week we found out that Leiloni (the little girl that we baptized last Saturday) and her mom Heidi had to move to Utah suddenly this last Wednesday.  They didn't expect it and we didn't either, but they just up and left!  I am sure that God knew though and looking back it was nothing short of a miracle that Leiloni got baptized last week.  We were originally planning to wait a week so that we could get more people at the baptism but we decided against it for whatever reason.  Good thing, too, because they left this Wednesday and we wouldn't have been able to do it on Saturday.  I hope I will be able to find them again when I get home and go visit them.

 

This week we had an amazing lesson with Pam and Dean Rivers!  Dean is the guy that read like 90% of the Book of Mormon on his own and he loved it.  His wife showed up to Church one Sunday too and she really liked it.  They have been busy for the last 2 months and their circumstances haven't allowed them to meet with us.  This Saturday, though, we were able to teach them the first lesson and it went great!  It made sense to them and they felt the spirit when we quoted the first vision (my favorite part of teaching the restoration might I add).  Dean has been looking up a bunch of stuff on lds.org and he loves a lot of our doctrine, like the idea that we existed before this life.  He said he has decided that he either wants to be a Mormon, which is what he is leaning towards, or go to no church at all and do his own thing.  They came to church on Sunday and before they even got in the door our Stake President was greeting him and his wife and inviting them to have a missionary discussion at his house.  Haha  Chehalis is so boss!

 

This week we almost ran out of miles with our car so we have been walking for most of the week because Lemieux doesn't have a bike.  It is cool though because for some reason we have been super effective on foot.  We have been having a lot of success seeing people and working in town and God is giving us all kinds of miracles for our hard work.  Well partly for our hard work but mostly because he is gracious.

 

We had a lot of other stuff happen this week but those are the highlights.

Love you very much!

 

By the way, the text that you got last week with the picture of us three wasn't from a member.  It was just a lady we knocked into and she is friends with a lot of sisters in the ward and they told her when she sees the missionaries she should text a picture of them to their moms.  She wasn't interested in the gospel but it was very nice of her to send a picture for us.

 

Have a great week!

Elder Green

 

Me and Elder Webber (past companion from Raymond) at the Olympia fireside last Sunday

A Baptism and the Olympia Fireside

Hi Mom! Hi Dad!

So there was a lot that happened this week!  On Tuesday we got to do an exchange with the APs, Elder Johnsen and Elder Steed.  It was awesome!  I was with Johnsen and Lemieux all day.  Pretty much all of our plan fell through but we had an awesome experience when we went knocking. 

 

We were knocking doors during our 5-7s and about 6:30 we knocked on a lady's door who opened up and with a smile said "Come in!"  We were a little taken off guard by her reaction but agreed to come in.  She asked "did they tell you to come by?"  We explained that we were simply knocking doors in the area.  She said "they didn't tell you my situation?"  We responded that we didn't know, but asked what her situation was.  She explained that she was a member and that her daughter had just died of cancer a couple of days before.  She thought that we were there because somebody sent us to give her a priesthood blessing.  We explained that nobody had sent us but that we were sure that the Lord had sent us because he knew that she needed help.  We were able to give her a blessing of comfort and she was very grateful for us being there.  It makes me think of the quote that President Monson said, something to the effect that "I have found that there is no sweeter experience than to follow a prompting only to find that you were an answer to someone's prayer."  We had no idea that we were following any prompting per say, but I am sure that the Lord lead us to her to give her that blessing she needed.  I just think that it is so amazing that God is so aware of every one of us.

 

The AP's came to our Zone Meeting on Wednesday (which went well).  Before we went to Zone meeting we stopped for lunch at Dairy Dan's to get a burger and shake.

 

 At "Dairy Dan's" for lunch before Zone meeting

(Elder Green, Elder Steed, Elder Walker, Elder Lemeux, and Elder Johnson)

 

At "Dairy Dan's"

 

We have been working with a less-active lady who is coming back to church and have been teaching her 10 year old daughter Leiloni.  We taught her all of the lessons and then lost contact with them because they moved and we hadn't been able to reach them on the phone.  On Friday we decided to just drop by and make contact and we did.  They were home and we asked if we could schedule a baptismal interview for Leiloni and her mom suggested that we do it that day.  We called our district leader and he came and did the interview and she passed.  We asked when they wanted to have her baptism and they said "How about tomorrow!"  So on Saturday we had her baptism!  Leiloni asked me to baptize her as well.  It was so awesome to have an unexpected baptism!  Leiloni was so excited and happy when she got baptized. 

 

Everything was great...except Leiloni wasn't the only one that got baptized...I also baptized my camera.  I went straight home and put it in some rice, though, and now it is totally fine.  Definitely a tender mercy!

 

The baptism of Leiloni

 

Sunday was the Olympia fireside, the last one with the Weavers.  It was a really awesome experience to be able to go to one last fireside with them.  They leave this week and that makes me very sad.  I am very grateful for them though and all that they have done for me.  I can't imagine having a more loving Mission President (and wife).  I am sure that the Blatters are going to be great, though, and I am excited to get to know them.

 

 Olympia Fireside

 

 The missionaries at the Olympia fireside

(No idea where Blake is)

 

 

(Received this picture from Sis Shoop who attended the Fireside - Thanks Donna!!)

 

For a long time the mission has been striving for a goal of having 500 lessons with a member present in one week.  We usually are in the mid 400's and once we got 497 or something.  Since this was the Weaver's last week we did a huge campaign to have the Weavers leave with a bang and meet that goal.  So every day we  totaled up the number of lessons with a member present in our zone, and sent it to the APs and kept track of it every day.  On Sunday we had a conference call to unveil the total number and we got 696!  We blew the goal of 500 out of the water!  It was awesome because President Weaver was so excited he couldn't even believe it!  I am glad that they are going to be able to leave on a high note like that.  They deserve it for all that they did.

 

There is more I could write about but that is the most important stuff that happened this week and I'm out of time.  I love being a missionary!

 

Love you!

Elder Green

 

 Old barn in Chehalis, WA

 

 

 

Elder Lemuex, Elder Walker, and Elder Green

(A lady in Chehalis text this picture to me on Friday evening with this message:  Just had your son stop by.  He is great and sends hugs!)

 

 

Happy Father's Day!

Hi Mom, Hi Dad!

 

So This week was totally awesome!  We got to go to the Weaver's last transfer meeting which was amazing . Two of the former Assistants went home so they bore way awesome testimonies.  We picked up Elder Lemeux and he is great.  He has very sarcastic humor so it meshes well with mine haha.

 

Elder Walker, Elder Green and Elder Lemeux

Transfer Day

 

 At transfer meeting

 

(I don't know these missionaries, but I love the photo bomb from Blake in the middle)

 

 

We have been having a lot of fun all week and have been seeing a lot of success.  We have been able to see a lot of our investigators this week and it has been pretty productive.  Definitely some awesome miracles brewing.

 

The coolest miracle this week was that I got to return to the land of Wapato Park and see one of my favorite investigators, Sok, get baptized!  I don't know if you remember me talking about it but he is great.  He wife was less active and Elder Kleine and I found them trying to visit less active members. The people we were trying to find had moved and they moved in.  I don't feel that that was a coincidence.  We would go over from time to time and get to know them and then one day we invited Sok to take the discussions and he said he would be fine with it.  The first time we taught him he told us that he wants his family to be together forever.  He would always keep his commitments and even dragged his wife, Erin, to church.  The lessons that we had with him were always super spiritual and it was just awesome to be able to teach him!  Then I got transferred of course haha but he accepted the invitation to be baptized and I got permission to come back and see it!  It was so awesome and he was so happy!  I just can't believe how blessed I am to be a missionary and help people find this incredible gospel.  Him and his wife and young son Liam are planning to go to the temple in a year and get sealed!

 

Sok's baptism

 

 

Happy Father's Day, Dad!!!  So mom sent me a tie, the same tie that she gave you for Father's Day  haha.  Just wanted to let you know that I wore it all day yesterday (on Father's Day) and remembered you.  Thank you so much for being such an incredible Father.  I have no idea what I did to merit having such a loving family and such a great example of what a Father should be.  Love you, Dad!

 

I'm sending you this dope picture of me with the tie for Father's day.  I made sure to get a nice landscape picture in the background (I know how much you love landscape pictures).

 

 

Happy Father's Day!

 

 

 

I love that you sent the Weaver's cookies -haha - you are a dork, Mom, and I love you.  I just opened up my e-mail from President Weaver and they said to tell you they got them and thank you very much. 

 

Love you, Mom! - Love you, Dad!

Elder Green

 

TRANSFERS THIS WEEK! I'M STAYING IN CHEHALIS!!

So transfers....

 

Elder Walker and I are staying together!  But wait!  That's not all!  We are also getting Elder Lemeux (luh-mo) and we are going to be a threesome!  Lemeux is a good guy and I am excited for him to come in to Chehalis.  Plus this means we get to go to the Weavers last transfer meeting!  They just changed the rules and from now on starting this transfer, only those who get transferred go to transfer meeting, so we get to go to pick up Lemeux.

 

So the picture (below) is because Elder Gordon (who served in the Wa-Tac and then in Federal Way) served here in Chehalis, so he came back to visit.  We have breakfast every Monday morning at Sis. Weilands house in our Ward, and this morning the Gordons came too!  Somehow Sister Gordon pieced it together that she knew Sis. Giles in our Ward and she knows you too somehow so she got all excited and took a picture. She said "I know what its like being a missionary mom and not getting any pictures." Haha so true.

 

 

(Sis Gordon sent this to me this morning on Facebook.  She was able to have breakfast with Elder Walker & Blake - Love it when people send me pictures!!)

 

This week we haven't been able to have contact with Carole, who is the lady that is afraid of water. We called her but she went out of town this weekend.  Hopefully this next weekend she will be able to come to church!

 

We did find a way cool investigator this week, though.  He was somebody that we found in the area book that missionaries were teaching about a year ago.  He is a young guy in his early 20's named Alex.  We went over to his apartment just as his girlfriend was leaving and he had some spare time. He is a super nice guy and let us in to share our message.  We taught the restoration and it went great, the spirit was there and he made a comment about how he felt really peaceful during the lesson.  He committed to read the Book of Mormon and asked if we could come over every week to help him understand it better.  He also offered to feed us because he says he has a ton of steak and other meat in his freezer.  He also asked if it would be okay if we played basketball with him- haha- he is like the coolest guy I have ever met.  We are way excited to start teaching him.

 

Good job, mom, on your missionary experience!  I bet if they go to the temple open house they would feel the spirit for sure!  So good job inviting in a professional way!

That is pretty interesting that a seventy just showed up to sacrament.  He was an answer to somebody's prayer I am sure.  I bet that was a neat experience to hear him talk.  On the few occasions I have been able to hear Seventies I was blown away by the power and authority that they teach with.

 

I am glad that Kels got her gift.  Those are from a little local candy store in Chehalis.  They had strawberry cheesecake cups that blew my mind so I got her a bunch of those and other candies.  I hope that they didn't melt into a pile a goo by time they got there.

 

Love you, Mom & Dad!

Elder Green

 

 Elder Green & Elder Walker at MLC - (Mission Leadership Council

 

 Mission Leadership Council

 

 Mission Leadership Council

 

 

Beautiful Mt Ranier

THE BOOK OF MORMON IS MAGIC

Hi, Mom!  Hi Dad!

 

An update...Rheis didn't come to church, he is trying to find out if God wants him to go to our church or to the Baptist church and he said that God hasn't answered him yet.  We have a church tour with Lynn today at 1:00 and we are way excited for it, you won't know till next week how it goes though. Donovan and Danny are back together for the time being, but we are nervous that they are going to be in this eternal limbo of not being married because they don't want to commit, but still living together to see if it will work, so I don't know what to do with them other than exhort them to live the commandments one way or another. The ball is in their court though.  That's the update on our current prospects.

 

 

So this week we had an appointment to go see this lady with our ward mission leader but she canceled last minute.  Our ward mission leader asked if there was anyone else we wanted to see since he was already ready to come out with us and an older lady who we have been trying to see came to our mind.  We went over and she was there and let us in.  She is way nice and loves reading the bible and stuff.  We asked if she had had a chance to read the Book of Mormon that we gave her and she said she read it twice!!  We asked what she thought about it and she said she loved it.  We asked if she believed it was true and she affirmed that she knew it was true.  Then we asked if she wanted to be baptized and she said that she would love to be baptized since she hadn't been baptized before.  It was a crazy miracle that came quite out of nowhere.

 

My mission president, President Weaver, loves to say "The Book of Mormon is magic."  Truer words have never been spoken haha.  I am sure that anyone who reads the Book of Mormon sincerely will without a doubt receive a divine witness that it is true.

 

So hopefully soon this lady will get baptized.  Her only hold up, and admittedly this is one I never thought I would encounter on my mission, is that she is deathly afraid of water to the point that the idea of being immersed in water to be baptized terrifies her.  I don't exactly know what to do about it but I am sure it will all work out.  Maybe we can baptize her with scuba gear on, that way she feels safe haha.

 

Transfers are this week.  I think I am staying and Walker is going to leave, this was his 3rd transfer here.  We will see, though.  That's just a guess.  And to answer your question, there are 16 missionaries in our zone, 10 elders and 6 sisters.

 

This week in addition to the miracles we had quite a bit of opposition.  We had a guy come up to us when we were street contacting and was as nice as a person could be.  He invited us over to his house and said that he would cook us steak and we could share our message with him.  Then he started asking questions, first innocent ones and then questions that bashers ask.  Then he started getting kind of loud and would cut us off when we tried to talk.  Then he started getting kind of mean.  Then by the end his true colors showed and he left by angrily saying that Joseph Smith was a false prophet and that he was in Hell.  We just bore our testimonies and walked away because he didn't want to listen.  It is amazing how much experiences like that strengthen my testimony because the methods he used were so contrary to that which Jesus used.  It was not motivated by love but by hostility.  I feel that my mission has helped me see so much better the character of Christ and the way he has his hand in things. I know that this church is His church and that the Book of Mormon is true.

 

Anyway, crazy mission life haha.

 

Love you!!!

Elder Green

 

 

PICTURES FROM THE CENTRALIA FIRESIDE

 

(Thanks to Sis. Shoop from the Lacey 2nd Ward who sent this picture to me!  She's such a sweetheart to always send a note and a picture of Elder Green when she see's him!!)

 

 Elder Walker & Elder Green at the Centralia Fireside
 

 

 The missionaries who attended the Fireside

(Blake is back row, below the arrow)

 

 Centralia Fireside

Blake getting a lift from Elder Webber on the right

 

 

Centralia Fireside

 

 

P.S.....I got Spencer's email, I can't watch it in the library so I will have to see if I can watch it at a members house or something. He told me what it is and I am beyond stoked about it. See if you can put it up on my blog.

 

 

 

(Blake's favorite band is "Haste the Day".  They are no longer together, however, they got together one last time and did a concert in the mid-west.  Blake's best friend, Spencer, flew there for their last concert and asked the band to say "Hi" to Elder Green.)