Week 35-Snow, Friends, and Priesthood Blessings

"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!" 

After a beautifully warm week, Elder Smith and I woke up yesterday morning to a drizzly, dim Sunday morning.  On the drive to church, I made the comment that the drops appeared to be crystallizing instantaneously as they met our windshield.  Not an hour later, there was a full-blown (or, should I say "blowin'") blizzard outside!  This morning, we woke up to half a foot of snow.  Our little Chevy Malibu is just loving the change, and has taken to gleefully sliding across the ice at every turn, eagerly testing out its bare tires.  Silly thing.  At least I'm used to driving in the snow! :) 

As far as the candles are concerned, I seem to recall dad, after making a comment that he'd never use that many candles in his life even if he were Catholic, sent them off to D.I. as we cleaned out the basement.  To my dismay.  :(  Speaking of pumpkin carving utensils, We'll be carving some pumpkins with them today, and I'll send you some pictures!

A couple fantastic things happened this week, so I'll see what I can write about them quickly.

First:  Just a couple of hours after I emailed last week, Elder Smith and I got to go to a combined zone P-day.  Guess who was there? 

...SISTER BUTLER!!!  :D Yeah, it was a much needed visit.  We talked for perhaps an hour as we played volleyball or just sat on the stage and reminisced.  I don't know if you remember, but she's training: And seems to be doing a fantastic job!  Her "daughter" will be "dying" with me, so I'll actually know someone on the plane ride home! 

Second, I got a visit from the Beaubien family just yesterday! They were on they're way from Lethbridge back to Sparwood and gave me a call. Again, a much needed visit from some great friends!  I think Sister Beaubien was going to post something on Facebook so you could see what happened. :P

And, lastly, a spiritual story to share:

I had a significant testimony booster this past week as I acted as voice for a priesthood blessing to an older gentleman.  I had a similar privilege the previous week to minister to a Sister who had contracted pneumonia, and I began this blessing expecting to feel similar promptings of certain promised blessings of healing; however, by the end, I was amazed to discover that no two phrases were the same in either blessing.  I had only spoken to either of these individuals perhaps a couple of times, but our Heavenly Father was able to transcend this minimal contact and open my finite mind to the infinite love He has for His children.  The words came to my mind freely, and as I spoke words of comfort and peace, I had both the Spirit and the individuals testify to me that they knew those words had to be from God.  Never before have I given a blessing to someone I didn't know very well; never before had "my" words been so powerful.  Heavenly Father truly is mindful of each and every one of us, and we can experience the veracity of this through the power of His holy priesthood. Ask for blessings frequently! 

Well, I'm headed off to Fort Macleod for P-Day again; thanks for the continued words of support!

Love,

Elder Larsen 

P.S.: The temple trip was just us and the Ludwigs.

Week 34-Temple Worship

"Hello, hello, hello again; sh-boom, it's lovely to [write] again!"

It's Monday, and that means I'm here in the Pincher Creek Municipal Library, enjoying the beautiful surroundings of books and shelves that Elder Smith and I helped move, set-up, and organize! It's a great building that's been under-going renovations for quite some time, and they just had their grand re-opening celebration this last Saturday.  There was cake. :) 

Anyway, it's been a pretty decent week up here, and I've got good news and bad news.  The good news is: We got to go to the temple!!! :D :D The bad news is: A) I forgot my camera, and B) I lost my SD card and reader... So I can't even send you replacement pictures. :( But the Cardston temple is absolutely beautiful!  I'm pretty much eternally indebted to the Ludwigs for taking me.

The temple brought with it a lot of pondering.  Before my mission, I was attending a session anywhere from twice a week to once every two days.  Going from that to a genuine drought was kind of getting me down!  But I guess the rules on temple attendance keep me from spending all of my time as a missionary within its walls.

The scarcity of temple trips on the mission has actually taught me a valuable lesson in relating to those members who are not able to attend the temple due to less-activity or worthiness issues: I'd reached a logical conclusion that I missed going to the temple out of sheer habit, but I didn't realize emotionally just how much I missed the temple until I was inside.  I'd imagine it's much the same with less-active members; they probably recognize logically that the temple brings joy and blessings, but they've forgotten just how extreme that joy is.  It reminded me of something Sister Bradford once taught me, and I hope she won't mind the quotation or the mistakes therein:

"When I would go to the temple, it would always bring feelings of intense peace and joy; but then, I'd go home to my kids, and that feeling would almost immediately leave, bringing back all of the stresses of parenthood.  Over time, I started to dread returning home after a temple-trip, knowing this cycle would continue.  Then, one day, the Spirit told me,
'Your kids can't go to the temple yet, so you have to bring the temple home to them.' My temple worship changed from that day forward as I focused on trying to help my kids feel those same things they would some day experience in the temple."

As I reflected on this teaching, I began to relate it to my responsibility and obligation as a missionary. I go to the temple so that I can bring those feelings to those I teach, giving them a taste of what they can experience if they make the changes necessary to enter into the Lord's house. Which means I have to be living always with that feeling that comes from temple attendance.  With the level of the Spirit being so concentrated in that holy place, this becomes a daunting and difficult task; however, to be able to take that level of spirituality anywhere I go would be a tremendous help and strength to both myself and all whom I interact with. 

As far as the work in Pincher Creek goes, we're focusing, yet again, on the less-active members in the ward; we've compiled a list of thirty names that we are either currently working with or whose doors we'd love to enter.  On top of that, there are 74 names of less-active households living out on the reserve in Brocket; we were supposed to be meeting with the only active family out there to discuss what needs to be done, but the appointment fell through.  If you could keep the people of Brocket in your prayers, that'd be much appreciated! 

With Halloween fast approaching, I find myself occasionally wondering what I would be dressing up as if I were back at home: Until I realize I've already got the best costume!  And, with the Ludwigs offering to carve pumpkins with us next week, it looks like I'll be able to keep at least some of our traditions. :)  Hopefully I'll get to see some pictures of yours! 

Well, thanks for listening to me ramble on; I'm still trying to figure out how best to write these letters, so keep sending suggestions if you've got them! 

I love you! 

-Elder Jared D. Larsen

Week 33-Member Area Books

Happy not-really Thanksgiving!!  Well, yesterday, anyway.  Canadian Thanksgiving is good and all, but even three dinners up here just couldn't quite match up to one at Grandma's with the family.  The ward was extremely gracious in inviting us into their homes despite the large amounts of company they were entertaining, and it was definitely appreciated. 

This past week, Elder Smith and I have been focusing a lot on helping members do their own missionary work; in trying to come up with new ways to get them excited about it, I made a suggestion to Brother Ludwig (the Ward Mission Leader) regarding Member Area Books. 

Now, Taylor and Jason will know what an Area Book is, but I'm not sure how much the rest of you do.  An Area Book is a large binder (typically 3") in which missionaries maintain records for their areas: It never leaves the area, and we are to study the information therein to get a feel for the way the work has been done in the past.  These records contain information on anyone who has ever been taught in an area who still resides there, as well as general regional information missionaries ought to be aware of.  These records provide the most succinct way to convey what progress has been made in any singular geographic location. 

Now, why would we feel members could benefit from something of a similar nature?

I'll give you a scenario: You're a member, preparing your home and a meal for the arrival of the missionaries. It's chaotic: your kids are running around (and haven't yet done their homework), your living room isn't what you would consider up to snuff, and you're praying the missionaries are running just a little late.  Typically, they are, but the cook-time of your food seems to defy their appearance, delaying the meal.  Finally, the table's set, the blessing's been had, and you can sit down and enjoy your casual dinner-conversation with a couple of only-just-not teenagers.  After the meal, the missionaries ask what your family's done for missionary work in the past while, and you realize that was the farthest thing from your mind that day.  You could give an answer along the lines of, "...I think I had a gospel conversation with Bob this week..." Or, you could turn to your.... 

Handy-Dandy Area Book!!  The place where you've kept dilligently records of the people with whom you are working pays off, and you can tell the missionaries precisely what you've done to invite God's children to return to Him.  Not only that, but the missionaries can then discuss these specific names with you, and provide guidance and direction about what further steps should be taken by any of the parties involved.  Ideally, it's a win-win-win situation! 

...Or, so we hope.  It's still a work in progress, but our High Councilor over missionary work wants a prototype by next Tuesday; I hope I can procure a copy of the material to send home to you and see if you might want to implement it. 

Well, I think the Macleod connection has come and gone... and I haven't heard of too many  people heading that direction for a little while; but the Assistants to the President asked us all for our parents' emails so they could see about all of us getting Christmas packages, so you might be getting some information about that soon. 

You know, I'll be a little sad if Annie goes to BYU-I; that would mean we can't hang out all the time!! ...But I guess I'll allow it if she really wants to. :) I wish her luck with the ACT! 

I realized last week (after I sent my email, of course. -_-) that you, mom, had asked me for insights on Chapter 19 of Lorenzo Snow's teachings! While it's a little too late for that, I hope your lesson went pretty well; you've always had a way of teaching us kids the gospel, so teaching others how to do that probably wasn't too difficult. :) 

Well, I've got a couple of other emails I want to send out, so I'll be on here for a little while; I love you, and I hope you have a grand week! 

-Elder Jared D. Larsen 

P. S. - Today, I get to go to the temple for the first time in over 7 months. Can you say, EXCITED?!?  Pictures and stories next week!!

Week 32-Thoughts on General Conference

Gooood morning, Larsen familia!  Apparently, I've already been here for six weeks, and the Lord has seen fit to... Eh, enough of the cheap tricks: I'm staying in Pincher Creek. :P

First things first: Do you have your Ensign for this month with you?  Good.  Open it to Page 51.  Look familiar?!  Yeah, I was pretty excited when I saw that!  But it's probably already been the buzz of Northridge Stake, so I might just be the last to know. 

Alright, let's get down to business.  Conference was *insert adjective here that means "wonderful," "superb," "fantastic," "inspiring," "divine," and "sublime"*!  I wrote so many notes... But I guess that might just show how much I loved these sessions!

Unfortunately, I'm again unable to pick a favorite talk; I did, however, write down a lot of my favorite quotes.  Hopefully I didn't write them too inaccurately... I want to talk about just a few of them, and I'll just place the rest at the end.

1. "We aren't asking everyone to do everything, but we are asking everyone to reach out to just one person before Christmas." -Elder M. Russell Ballard, speaking about member missionary work

I LOVED this moment: it was quite possibly my favorite from all of this session.  Why?  General Authorities have been continually reminding members of our obligation and responsibility to do missionary work, but, despite all of the blessings they've promised, I haven't seen them commit every member of the church to perform a specific missionary-oriented effort before a specific date.

December 25th.

Are you ready?

2&3. "Self-mastery is placing reason over appetite." -Elder Russell M. Nelson

"If you haven't [________] in two days, there's no reason to fail on the third." -Ulisses Soares

Although that blank space used to contain the word "quarreled," its omission allows for a broader application.  As I mentioned in my email last week, I'm striving to be more obedient and more focused on my efforts as a missionary; a lot of this requires a daily assessment of what I've done, how I've failed, and how I've improved.  However, it was emphasized to me in President Uchtdorf's talk in Priesthood Session that I need to be setting more broadly-arched goals.  I need to be looking further into the past and further into the future in order to become the person I want to be.

4.  "If we had thought of our loved ones, we never would have delayed our journey home." -Adrián Ochoa

While the moment in which this quote was given was not my favorite, the quote itself is.  Elder Ochoa spoke of a time in his youth when he foolishly placed a game of marbles in a higher priority than his return to his family.  I pondered on this concept for a while, searching to apply it to myself, but the application was really not all that hard to find.

In the broad scheme of the Plan of Salvation, each of his children currently traversing this perilous and rewarding path known as "life" will eventually die.  Unfortunately for a good portion of the world, this journey is seen as a one-way trip; this perspective emphasizes the "anything goes" attitude found in popular culture, allowing many of God's children to be distracted by their "games of marbles."

However, through our knowledge of the restored Gospel, we know that "the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, ... are taken home to that God who gave them life" (Alma 40:11).

God is waiting for our return. Anxiously. And He knows that we simply cannot allow ourselves to be distracted by the treasures of the world that can be so easily equated with the silliness of "marbles."  So He gives us tools that we should focus on: Tools that will allow us to be more in tune with the Spirit, our most important guide on this journey.

But the Spirit's not alone.  As testified of by numerous latter-day prophets, seers, and revelators, as we seek out and provide ordinances for our ancestors, they will stand by us avoid the sirens' call.  They will help us share the Gospel.  And they will help us return home.

I know that familial ties are what give our strongest connection to our Heavenly Father.  I know that Priesthood power and ordinances provide the means for us to have such ties, and that numerous ordinances are provided as means to help us escape the difficulties of our lives, helping us focus on the things which will bless us for eternity.

I love you, Mom; I love you, Kaysie; and Jason, and Ashley, and Taylor, and Jori, and Annie.  I'm grateful for the bonds we've been able to forge over the years with each other, as well as with our extended family.  Thanks for helping my testimony become what it has, and aiding this opportunity to help it grow!

Until next week,

-Elder Larsen

"It does not matter to God how much we have done or where we have been, but rather where we are willing to go." -Edward Dube

"Doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith." -President Dieter F. Uchtdorf

"Until you know a person's name and face, the Lord can't show you his or her heart." -S. Gifford Nielsen quoting... Someone...

"Follow the example of our Savior: If the bitter cup does not pass, drink it; and dream of better days to come." -Elder Jeffrey R. Holland

"To become champions, we need effort, discipline, and mistakes." -President Dieter F. Uchtdorf

"To hold the Priesthood of God is to be responsible for the lives of His children." -President Henry B. Eyring

"If we do not establish our priorities in accordance with [the Plan of Salvation], we are in danger of serving other Gods." -Elder Dallin H. Oaks

"Breaking a covenant with the Lord is never justified." -Elder Richard G. Scott

"Shall I falter, or shall I finish?" -President Thomas S. Monson

"If we allow the world to diminish the special relationships children have with their mothers, grandmothers, and other nurturers, we will live to regret it." -Elder Quentin L. Cook

"Sometimes I think we over-associate the Priesthood with men in the Church.  A man may open the drapes so that the light may enter into a room, but he does not own the sun, or the light, or the warmth." -Elder Neil A. Andersen

"My father said he could remember the day, the very hour his family left the Church." -Kevin S. Hamilton