Ya'at'eeh Keshmish Pt.2

Funny: rather than having the traditional snowmen, the people out here build snowmen out of sand. With the occasional snowman made out of tumble weeds. It definitely puts a different spin on Christmas but is really fun to still see people celebrating however they can.

Spiritual: white washing and training around Christmas time is a perfect setup for some incredible miracles and the Lord blessed us greatly. We received a referral from the Elders Quorum president for a returning member. When we got there, he wasn't home but his neighbor was. He told us that he normally doesn't let missionaries in but because it is Christmas time he would. We shared the Light the World campaign and as we were talking about the birth of Jesus Christ, he told us that he felt really good about us and our message. He went and got his mom and grandma to listen to our message. We ended up teaching a wonderful family. What a good time to be a missionary!

Where I am at: Tuba city is a promised land! There is so much work to do and we are having a great time figuring everything out. The members treat us great and our love for this people is growing so much! Christmas should be fun, we are planning on having a drybread (similar to frybread) contest and hopefully we will go on a hike. I hope that you have a very merry Keshmish!

Tubas, Pinons, and Tactical Forces

Funny: there were some crazy things going down in Pinon when we went there for our District council. There were some active shooters and so the FBI used the church parking lot as kind of a base. Well I guess they must have thought that we were part of them when we came out in our dark suits because we had a police officer ask us what we would like him to do... we didn't really have an answer but one of them missionaries invited him to come to church that Sunday.

Spiritual: I am very sad to leave the amazing people here. We had a lesson with the Allen's who are so very close to baptism. During the lesson they both really opened up to us. She told us that she had finally prayed with real intent. She asked God to help her know if this really is the true church. She then opened up the Book Of Mormon randomly and it flipped to Ether chapter 12. Her prayer was answered and when she shared that experiance with Donovian (her soon to be husband) he told us that he always knew that their was a right and a wrong church and that he finally felt that what we were talking about is true. The changes they have made in a relatively short time have been incredible. When we met them they weren't sure that there was a God and she had only heard of Jesus Christ a few times. Conversion changes you!

Where I am going: sadly my blessed time in Window Rock is over. But thankfully I am still going to be on the rez. I am headed to that great town of Tuba City. I will be a district leader and training a new missionary and whitewashing. It will be very fun and I am very excited. Most of the members in my district are covering Hopi land so we will get to experience a new culture that from what I have heard is very rich in Book of Mormon parallels.

Elder Uchtdorf

Funny: One of the families we are teaching have these big pigs. We were over helping with a wood haul and one of the pigs were sniffing around at Elder Naisbitt's shoes and bumping him as he was trying to split the woods. He eventually got a bit tired of it so what do you do? Well the obvious answer was to ride it like a bull. He sadly did not make the full 8 seconds but that pig sure never came back.

Spiritual: This week was probably one of the most spiritual weeks of my life. We had a mission conference where Elder Lynn G. Robbins and Elder and Sister Uchtdorf came and spoke to us. It was incredible. Here are some of the Highlights:

Elder Robbins:
• Let the Scriptures offer the invitation for people to come to Christ.

• Get rid of the false yes. If they are not going to come let them tell you no. That allows you to answer their concerns better.

Sister Uchtdorf:

• Personal preparation, example, and dedication allow us to be like Angels of Glory.

• Expect to see fruits from your labor.

Elder Uchtdorf:

• Enduring to the end takes time. It does not happen all at once.

• Once you (and the people you teach) feel forgiven, let it go. Don't dig into memories you don't need to dig into.

• Listen for understanding not just for what you can respond to. Trust that the spirit will fill your mouth if you are listening with your ears and your heart.

• Your power is limitless if you let prayer be a focus and you keep your visibility unlimited.

There were many more things we mentioned but for the sake of keeping the email semi short these were some of my favorites.


Where I am at: Life is going great. After getting spiritually empowered by Elder Uchtdorf we are having a great time Lighting the World. People out here respond a little bit differently to the concept of service than they did in the city. We have had to adjust our lesson plans so that we can help them understand that service doesn't always mean giving away their stuff but it can also mean giving of their time and talents. It has been really fun to see the joy that had come into their lives as they see that there is a lot of joy to be found in serving other people. I am very grateful for the people in this area. They have taught me so much about what true Charity looks and feels like.

I love you all

Lucky Chucky and Elder Cook

Funny: this week we went up to Lukachukai for an exchange. They ended up doing their day of service a few days earlier because they were going to get a lot of snow (they got about a foot) we went with them and hauled 6 truckloads of woods. It was a lot but the funny part were the people who came with us. The Navajo people are really big teases. They taught the senior couple Elder some Navajo. They were supposed to teach him how to introduce himself as a white man but instead they taught him to introduce himself as a left hand (the words are very closely related). Bahaha it made me feel less bad for accidentally talking about my saliva instead of my father.

Spiritual: there was a special devotional last Friday with Elder Cook and he talked about some really incredible things. Some of the things he talked about were:

• Building Zion in your heart and in your home.
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• What happens in the home is so very important to children.
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• Being critical will kill Zion in the home or companionship
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• Who do we see in others and who do others see in us. The God faring man or the critical man.
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• Those in spiritual camouflage are tempted much more than those who are open with their religion. Be an example
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• Honor the sabbath, have fun while being respectful. Having joy in the home will get the Gospel principles across better.
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• He also explained part of what being a "special witness of Christ" means
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• It was a great devotional and a ton of revelation was poured out on all of us.

Where I am at: This week has been a roller coaster. Due to a series of unfortunate events Elder Robison is leaving to Grant's New Mexico to take care of a situation down there and my new companion will be Elder Naisbitt. We also got 4-5 inches of snow! Which is more snow than I have gotten on the rest of my mission. It was really fun but it killed our Sacrament meeting attendance. Hopefully there is more snow on the way!

love ya'

Elder Black