Two Weeks in a Rush

To my very happy surprise, Chris and Tyler Kraft took my Elder Rush out to lunch and sent this "mama missing her boy terribly,"some pictures!! Touched my heart!

Nov. 17, 2014

Dear Familia,

How are you all doing? Sorry I wasn't able to email you this week. The Keplers took us to Big Jud's and to this ice cream place that sells cubed ice cream. You need to look up Big Jud's Hamburgers. Lets just say they make their buns in pie tins. There is a challenge to consume a 1 pound hamburger, large fry and a large drink in less then 30 min. If you do, you get a t-shirt. I completed it but my stomach still hurts. Then we got cubed ice cream, which was really cool.

The work has been going okay here. Elder Downey has been sick, so the doctors and Walgreen Pharmacy have been frequent stops for us. Hopefully he can get better soon. Transfers are Dec. 3rd, so we will see if I stay in Pocatello with Elder Downey.

It snowed here for a few days and has been below 30 degrees F.  since Monday. The lowest it got, I am not quite sure? Maybe 5 degrees minus the wind chill, while we were out walking.

Hopefully you are doing well. I miss you all so much. Be good and keep me up-to date.

Love,

Elder Rush

I looked up Big Jud's, and oh my! Here is a picture of the challenge and the hamburger
 Elder Rush consumed, and he did it in under 30 min.! Crazy!

Digging in for the 30 minute challenge

Elder Rash and Elder Rush completed the challenge!

Cubed ice cream!

Elder Rash and Elder Rush enjoying cubed ice cream.

Elder Rush and Elder Downey.

Mitchell eating snow. He said he doesn't like snow, but he will live!

My favorite picture of the week. Potato gun war! Love my boy!

Week Something around 13 I don't know?

Hello Everyone! 

How are things going in your lives? I would love to hear about it!

Anyway I just wanted to express some feelings about serving a mission real quick.

As a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints I have the privilege of inviting people to come unto Christ, to learn more about our Savior Jesus Christ. I do not mean to offend anyone or their beliefs but to express what I know to be true. I invite all those that do not know much about the "Mormon" church to come and see what it is like. We hide no secrets and love to answer questions. I do not think I am better than anyone because I am a Mormon or that I am on a mission. We are all sons and daughters of our Father in Heaven and He wants us to return to Him! Remember the reason for this up coming holiday season and give thanks.

Elder Downey has been very sick the past two weeks. We have not been able to proselyte much. My studies have been outrageous though. Being inside 20 out of 24 hours a day gives me much opportunity to learn. Hopefully he can get better soon. I was told I might be training a new missioanry this coming transfer, which is next week, or be put into some other leadership position. Wish me luck. One big lesson I've learned is how much our faith, humility, patience, diligence whatever it may be pales in comparison to Christ! Make sure to strengthen that understanding become more Christlike!

Love you all Keep up the good work!

Elder Rush

Elder Rush has a Favorite Mission Kitten!

                       

      Elder Rush's favorite mission kitten!      

  

Hello Everyone!

Well I do not remember anything that happened this last week! Other then monday, it all was a blur. Elder Downey had many appointments, trying to figure out what is wrong. He was diagnosed with depression. We have appointments with a counselor twice a week now. Hopefully he will be able to deal with it better after our appointments. He could really use some prayers! Our teaching pool has really been expanding. We find more people each day mixed in with our failures. We are shifting the wheat from the tares! We have 4 people schedule to take that step closer to Christ and be baptized: Miles, Bill, Dixie, and Roger. And 3 more people we plan to set a baptismal date with: Gabe, Candy, and Teresa. They all have their struggles and are in need of more blessings. You can definitely tell the closer someone comes to choosing the right the harder their challenges in life become. Other than that, yesterday we had a General Authority, Elder Martino teach us for 6 hours! It was such an amazing experience! I learned so much and was spiritually feed beyond capacity. It is hard to describe it all in an email, so I am sorry. One of the most important things I learned was the difference between goals and achievements and that it must be traveled by work. There is no point of setting goals without doing the work. Anyway I love reading the scriptures being able to truly study and understand them! I love this gospel and it is true! 

Love,

Elder Rush

   Nice day outside!                   

WEIRD HOUSE!          

      

Week 10: Learning More Patience

Well Hello Everyone!

This week was been the longest week of my mission and my life! Praying for patience and more trials is not a good combination. I do not even remember what happened at the beginning of the week so...

Elder Downey was sick again. He has been trying his best to push forward and endure. The poor guy can't catch a break! Being inside has been hard for me but I am learning patience. What I do remember from this week was Halloween. We were locked inside from 6pm to 9pm and watched movies! I watched The Lego Movie, and Tron Legacy. Frozen was also available to watch but Tron sounded a little better. I am surprised that I said THAT! Saturday and Sunday were pretty long day as well. We were finally able to see some of our investigators. Sadly they have not been able to quit smoking but they are trying!  Angela has been progressing. She has been soaking up the gospel like crazy! When we met her I thought something was off and it turns out she is on probation for 4 years. And probation must be completed since it is seen as a form of repentance. And you must truly repent before baptism. Anyway I do not have much to say! This week was also the most contentious and stressful of my life and I have no idea why!

Anyway I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ, I love the happiness it can bring to your life. No one understands how important it is to keep the commandments and show our love for our Father in Heaven and his son Jesus Christ. Keep reading the Book of Mormon and praying from guidance and support!

Love you all! Miss you all! Please keep me updated!

Elder Rush

So proud of my Elder Rush. Even though his course is seeing lots of huge waves, he has set his course, sail and rudder, and is proceeding! Love my amazing boy!

  Pumpkin carving fun!

        

It snowed!

 The outdoors, yippy!

                                                

                           

Week 9: Patience

Hello Everyone!

Thank you for all your love, letters, pictures and support. I really appreciate it.

This week was slow but extremely fast! Elder Downey was captured by the bed monster again. Poor guy just can't catch a break. The work has been moving forward people still hate us and love to slam doors in our faces. It is quite funny when we walk down the street people will fake like they are busy doing something or run in fear. Really has been testing my patience. I devised a plan to focus on one Christlike attribute each transfer and this transfer has been patience. I have been praying for more patience and the result has been less patience. The little things I was able to deal with before are getting on my nerves. It is funny when we try to improve ourselves that is when we are tested more. I see that as I develop patience I will become more humble, diligent, hopeful and faithful.

There is this super cool talk I have been reading.This is the link to it.http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=1966

I recommend reading it. Sorry for the short letter, do not have much time this week.

Love you all.

Keep Praying and reading. 

Do not give up hope. 

Please keep me updated.
Elder Rush

                                     Ukulele time!                                                 

Week 8: Do Not Forget to Pray

Hello Everyone!

Hope you are all doing well. Thank you for the emails/letters and pictures. Miss you all! And for the people of Idaho's sake I will change all their names because I heard a story of a man leaving the church because his missionary wrote home about him and posted it on the internet.

This week started off awesome. Monday, we taught four lessons in a matter of hours. We usually are unable to teach that many in a whole day. From that experience, I though the week was going to be awesome, that everything would be turning around. Nope I was wrong. Elder Downey has started this program called "Elder Downey Be quiet days" On those days he does not talk and I am in charge of all the decisions we make, lessons we teach and talking to people. Tuesday was one of those days and everything went wrong that could go wrong. All our appointments cancelled, people were slamming door after door and the people we talked to told us to go away. We worked our tails off to find someone or at least do some service for someone. Absolutely nothing! That was a downer of a day. That night, when I was getting ready for bed I did not want to go to sleep. My desire to go out and keep serving was too great to let me sleep, so that night I did not. Sadly once the sun goes down no one will open their doors even though it is only 6 or 7 o'clock.  Wednesday we met a woman named Angela. She called the bishop of one of our wards telling him she wanted to learn more about the Church. She is a super nice lady. She has had a rough past. Drug addiction,  abusive marriage, been to jail, not fun stuff. She has been searching for God and understanding and relief in her life. So we met with her at noon. ( Elder Downey was in bed all day Wednesday so we did emergency exchanges to be able to teach her.) We went through the restoration of the Gospel and the Joseph Smith Story. She absorbed everything. At the end she said the restoration made sense because she was being restored as well. She has been keeping her commitments. She is set to be baptized  on November 22 at 2:00. She was/is totally prepared by Heavenly Father, no doubt about it. It showed me that when we work hard having faith in the Lord that He will provide, He will. We may not always see the fruits of our labor but they are there. Other than that this week was spent in our house. WE left for a total of 77 minutes in 2 days. Elder Downey has been really sick. We have been praying to have the strength to go out and the little time we were, we did a lot! Saturday Elder Downey felt better but lost his voice. I taught lessons by myself. It was crazy! Great Learning experience. Sunday Elder Downey was back in bed home sick with Elder Blake that had the flu. So I went out with Elder Simmons. We had to give a talk in one of their wards. I prepared a 20 minute talk in an hour. Since I was helping the other missionaries it was a very long Sunday. We were at a church building at 8 am and ran from building to building until 4 pm. 8 hours of church takes a toll on you. For some reason I was very contentious for part of the remaining hours we were out. Everything was annoying me. We taught a less active family around 7:30. We discussed the atonement and everything that Christ has done for me in my life. It rejuvenated me and I felt the Spirit working through me. I was so comforted and happy after that. The Atonement of Jesus Christ is real. He suffered all our pains and sorrows to help me get through my struggles. I am so grateful for everything He has done for me. 

Hope you all have a great week! Do not forget to pray or study the scriptures!

I suggest you read Alma 31:26-38! It is AWESOME!

Elder Rush

Elder Rush is a little taller than his fridge!

Week 7: We Made Applesauce

Elder Rush and Elder Downey making applesauce! 

Good knowledge to have. 

Now they won't ever starve!

Hello everyone!

Hope you are all doing well! I am doing great, the weather is getting cold, and the leaves are starting to fall! So this week was fun. Monday last week we went bowling! It was pretty exciting and I got 5 strikes in a row. 

Monday,Tuesday and Wednesday were spent helping members with missionary work. We have been trying to get the people here excited to spread the Gospel but most spend their weekends hunting. Geez Priorities. We actually learned the order of salvation this last week. It goes chile, laundry, tv, and then eternal progression. It is pretty funny what we get blown off for. Each of those nights we talked with someone that was having a struggle with life and if we weren't there bad things might have happened, it was pretty cool! Tuesday night for dinner, we met with a family that has a daughter who became addicted to drugs and other things. She has been going through rehab but relapsing. We were sharing a spiritual thought before we left and this scripture just popped in my head! D&C 121:7-9 So I shared and she broke out in tears and said thank you. Sunday her mom bore her testimony about Christ helping us through our trials and shared that her daughter has been doing great and it made me feel good inside. It is important that we act upon the promptings of the Spirit even when we are afraid or unsure. It is heavenly direction that needs to be followed!

On Thursday we were planning this upcoming week and we realized we have no one to teach because no one will listen. It is sad but I still get to do the Lord's work everyday, which makes me really happy! We have been thinking of new ways to help our area so we had a blitz that covered all the people that have ever been taught in our area. It yielded very little results but the results are enough to get us going. We now have people to teach! That night we went to visit a less active family that just moved in. Elder Downey has been having quite days so I have to talk to everyone. The family we went to visit opened the door. I said hello and my mind went blank! I could not think of a single word to say, so I awkwardly stared. But we got in and they weren't interested haha. 

Sunday night we put on a musical fireside. We organized it all which people thought was pretty cool. We actually filled the entire chapel, overflow and part of the gym. It was amazing.

This week I invite you all to read the monthly Ensign! Monthly scripture from the prophet need to be read. I read a story a day and the insight from it is amazing! People do not realize that we have a PROPHET OF GOD on the earth it is a really really really big deal! Continue to read the Book of Mormon daily. It is the foundation to everything! 

Love you all, 

Elder Rush

My Elder Rush with Elder Downey, Sister Manymules and Sister Hill after the musical fireside they organized and put on.

The scripture Mitchell is referring to:  D&C 121  7-9

 7 My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;

 8 And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes.

 9 Thy friends do stand by thee, and they shall hail thee again with warm hearts and friendly hands.

The "Little Mitchell" paper doll that will be going everywhere with us for the next two years. Until our Elder Rush returns home.

Week 6: The Weather was Bipolar!

Oct. 6, 2014

Hello Everyone!

How are you all doing? Hope everyone is doing well! Thank you for all being awesome and doing fabulous things. 

So once again there is not much to write about. I cannot believe that General Conference has already come and gone! It was so amazing and I hope you were able to see all the sessions. Every one of them had such important points to teach us.

The weather this week was bi polar it poured one day and the next it was a sauna. Monday we finally were able to make it to our first p-day activity. We played football on the ISU rugby field and let's just say it was not a field but more of a pool. We were slipping and sliding all over the field. My previously white shirt was no longer white. It was an excellent session of stress relief. 

 I had the opportunity to go on my 3rd and 4th exchange this week. My companion went to a different area and I stayed in my area with a different companion that had never been here before. Let's  just say it was a learning experience. On my 3rd exchange we had a zone fast in order to get the missionary work going in our zone. West Pocatello has three types of people: Members who are active or inactive due to hunting on the weekends, very very very anti mormons, and people who know about the church but are not interested. That makes it tough to find people. Anyway as we fasted, we talked to everyone, it was tough for me. I am still trying to get use to walking up to people and inviting them to come unto Christ. I know everyone needs to hear the Word of God and HE prepares people to be taught. So as we fasted our zone was able to set 6 baptismal dates! It was awesome. Elder Downey and I still do not have much success lots of closed doors or people fleeing in fear. I am happy to be here and learn so much everyday! I know that as we go forth with faith we will be given the strength and guidance needed to make it through our days. Continue to read from the Book of Mormon and ponder it in your heart and mind. Pray if it is true and you will be blessed with the answers you need.

"...peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment; And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes. Thy friends do stand by thee, and they shall hail thee again with warm hearts and friendly hands." D&C 121:7-9

We saw Meet The Mormons on Tuesday! Make sure to go see it this weekend! It was awesome!

Thank you for the Letters too!

Mitchell has some entertaining eating expressions! Looks like he's enjoying those Idaho potatoes!

It looks like Elder Rush and Elder Downey can't wait for the snow to come, so they made their own!

                                                        Snowball Fight!

Watching General Conference at the Church. Such a spiritual feast!

General Conference is a semiannual gathering of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, held every April and October at the LDS Conference Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. Our church leaders, men and women speak to us with uplifting spiritual messages.  It is broadcast thru out the world on TV, internet and radio. Their messages inspire me to be a better person.